BSOV | Chapter 2

1. Becoming the Villain’s Secretary (1)

 

 

“My Lady, are you awake? The Count sent word that he would like you to join him for breakfast.”

As I lay sprawled across the bed, blinking blankly, Milina finally spoke up, unable to bear the sight any longer.

“Today is an important day, so it might be best if you started getting ready a little sooner.”

In other words, she meant I should stop dawdling and get up already.

“Ah… Do I really have to go?”

“Pardon?”

“I have to be the one to go? There’s no one else who could go in my place?”

As Milina prepared the washbasin water, she looked at me as though asking what nonsense I was saying, then smiled brightly.

“Of course. If Lady Blaine, His Majesty the Emperor’s secretary, doesn’t go, then who would go to the secretariat?”

“Now, now, up you get,” Milina said, tugging at my hand to pull me up.

Today was, at long last, my first day of work.

As the secretary to the Emperor, the hidden villain and sub male lead of ⟨Romance with a Kind Person⟩.

Ah… Couldn’t the world just end for a moment or something?

 

* * *

 

I made my way downstairs to the dining room and took my seat across from my father.

“Did you sleep well?”

“I did. Come, sit. Let’s eat together.”

Count Asen Nostelgia, the father of the foolish villainess in ⟨R.K.P.⟩, had never shared a particularly warm relationship with his daughter in the novel.

The life of the wife he had loved dearly had faded away at the same moment their daughter was born.

Whenever he looked at Blaine, who bore equal resemblance to both of them, he must have been reminded of his late wife, and perhaps that was why he could not love his daughter wholeheartedly.

But that was the story of the original work, and I was Min Doyeon, someone who knew the universal truth that nothing good came from leaving one’s parents’ care too early.

For the past seven years, I had used the social maneuvering skills I had mastered in my original world to win over Count Nostelgia, and I had not merely charmed him; I had him thoroughly wrapped around my finger.

As a result, the Count had become…

“Your hand lifting the spoon is slower than usual today. You’ve eaten about three fewer bites compared to yesterday. Are you feeling unwell? Come to think of it, I heard you had trouble getting out of bed. Shall I call the physician?”

…a truly exemplary doting father.

As the days passed, his doting only became more excessive. Lately, I wondered if he had been secretly taking some sort of class in it.

Just then, the newly hired butler arrived with a stack of letters. They were courtship attempts from nobles who, now that our family’s fortune had been recovered, were eager to reestablish ties.

Well, considering I had been promoted at lightning speed to become the Emperor’s personal secretary, it was only natural that the stream of suitors had become even more fervent.

However, Father did not even spare the letters a glance as he spoke.

“Burn them.”

When our family had hit rock bottom, not a single person had offered us a helping hand except for Glumi, the original female lead of ⟨R.K.P.⟩.

Wondering if he had been reminded of the betrayal of his friends, I brought up Glumi to distract him from the bitter expression on his face.

“Father, have you been in touch with Miss Glumi?”

“Hmm? Yes. I received a letter from her yesterday and sent my reply. She was absolutely delighted to hear that you had become His Majesty’s personal secretary.”

Father considered Glumi, who was around my age and the only person who had reached out to us in our darkest hour, as something like a second daughter.

“If it weren’t for Miss Glumi, we wouldn’t be sitting here like this, sharing a meal together.”

“That’s right. It’s all thanks to Miss Glumi.”

Though, to be fair, this new townhouse had been purchased with the insurance payout I had ground myself to the bone to secure.

Still, if Glumi had not shared flour mixed with potatoes and buckwheat, my family would have starved long before I ever managed to become an imperial official.

“Father. What if we were to sponsor Miss Glumi?”

“Sponsor her?”

I gave Father a firm nod.

The truth was, I wanted nothing more than to quietly cut ties with the original female lead at this point.

After all, staying as far away from the story’s cast of characters as possible was, without question, the smartest way to live.

But wanting to cut ties with Glumi for that reason alone wasn’t enough, not when I was already the Emperor’s personal secretary. Any hope of distancing myself from the original story’s main characters was well and truly out the window.

And on top of that, Glumi was the very person the Emperor, whom I now had no choice but to serve as my superior, was destined to go mad over.

If we were bound to become entangled regardless, then it was better for it to happen on favorable terms.

“What if House Nostelgia provided her with regular financial support? There are many ways for nobles to sponsor commoners. Becoming her patron, making donations…”

“My dearest, kindest Blaine. If there truly is a saintess in this world, then it must surely be you.”

Father spoke with emotion, clasping both hands before his chest.

Hmm… That’s not quite right, Father. There’s already an actual saintess, you know. Hahaha…

At any rate, my conversation with Father had been going in a positive direction. Right up until we ran headlong into a single point of disagreement.

“What do you mean by merely providing financial support?”

“If we can’t take responsibility for her to the very end, then it would be wiser not to hastily accept her as a member of our family.”

“What do you mean, we can’t take responsibility for her to the very end? Just because I failed once before, do you no longer trust this father of yours?”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“I have no desire to continue this conversation any further today.”

Father rose from his seat.

It seemed Father had been considering making Glumi a member of our family, in other words, adopting her as his daughter.

That would be a little troublesome.

If I had to become involved with her anyway, then yes, it was better to do so on good terms, but from my perspective, maintaining an appropriate distance from the original novel’s main characters was essential.

“We ought to be welcoming her as an honored guest, and you want to offer her nothing but financial support. You know very well that money is not everything. Even if a commoner has money, that doesn’t mean they can enjoy everything nobles do…”

Father lamented that he hadn’t realized until now just how shortsighted I could be, and the hurt on his face was plain.

But this was one issue where I could not back down either, so I pressed my lips together and said nothing.

Father eventually left the dining room like that, and I made my way through the awkward silence that lingered in his wake, heading to the Emperor’s office for my very first day of work.

 

* * *

 

Helwid Glaise, the young twenty-six-year-old Emperor.

After crossing paths with both the male and female leads, I was now finally standing face to face with the hidden villain of ⟨R.K.P.⟩.

⟨R.K.P.⟩ was famous for the extraordinary beauty it lavished upon its characters in every description.

Even through the written word alone, their beauty had seemed unparalleled, but seeing the hidden villain in person after transmigrating into this world was on another level entirely.

His honey-blond hair shimmered as though dusted with crushed crystal and opal, and his alluring blue eyes carried the languid, half-lidded quality of a cat’s gaze, seductive in a way that was nothing short of breathtaking.

Where his formal imperial attire, buttoned all the way to the collar as befitted an emperor, parted just enough to reveal the firm line of his jaw and the pale curve of his neck, there was something strangely alluring about him despite all that careful, ascetic covering.

I swallowed quietly as I looked at this young emperor, the very man who would one day lose himself completely over the original female lead of ⟨R.K.P.⟩, descend into tyranny, and bring about his own ruin.

Helwid had been resting his chin in his hand, wearing an expression of supreme boredom as the senior secretary rattled off my abbreviated credentials, but the moment our eyes met, he smiled.

That sly, knowing smile made my heart lurch. It felt terrifyingly as though he had caught me drinking in the sight of him.

Helwid spoke to the senior secretary, who was still reciting my credentials.

“That’s enough. You’ve worked hard. And you’re fired now.”

“…Pardon?”

Helwid smiled with the gleeful ease of a child who had just discovered a wonderful new toy.

“I can see now that the Count’s daughter over there is sharper than you are. Which means I no longer have any use for you.”

“Y-Your Majesty…!”

True to the villain with a rotten personality who would consider kidnapping and imprisonment trivial matters, Helwid mercilessly hurled cruel words at the secretary who had likely served him faithfully for quite a long time.

Then he approached me as I stood there, too stunned to move.

Even while seated, it had been obvious he possessed an imposing physique, but facing him standing upright like this left me dizzy from his overwhelming presence.

Wow, he could put any model to shame.

I had been busy admiring the breadth of his frame when I caught myself and hastily dropped my gaze to the floor.

Helwid extended his hand toward me and said, “I look forward to working with you.”

It was an offer of a handshake.

I hesitated, uncertain whether one was even allowed to shake hands with the Emperor, and as I stood there with my head lowered, Helwid leaned in and whispered near my ear.

“The way you were looking at me, practically licking me with your eyes, I thought you were dying to touch my body… Was I mistaken?”

“Hic!”

His voice had dropped so low and so suddenly that it startled a hiccup right out of me.

He raised one eyebrow at my reaction, a lazy smile spreading across his face.

“Or perhaps it isn’t my hand you want to touch?”

“N-no, hic, absolutely not!”

I hurriedly grabbed his outstretched hand.

It was large and broad, and cool to the touch.

With a satisfied expression, he clasped my hand and shook it, and at that moment, between one hiccup and the next, a single thought crossed my mind.

Ah, I’m screwed.

 

* * *

 

Two hours later, the dismissed secretary cleared out his desk without leaving behind a single word of instruction or transition.

I sat at the spotless desk my predecessor had emptied and stared blankly at the ceiling.

I wasn’t sure how long I had been sitting like that when Helwid returned from his walk in the gardens.

“It would have been lovely if my secretary had joined me for the walk. The newly bloomed peonies were quite beautiful.”

Helwid lowered his brows as though he were genuinely disappointed.

The Emperor, Helwid Glaise, the hidden villain and the sub male lead of ⟨R.K.P.⟩, possessed a charm defined by his wide range of expressions.

Unlike the cold, impenetrable villains of other stories, he was sly and playful, gentle and warm, and generous in his affections.

On the surface, at least.

Who could have guessed that beneath all this warm, solicitous care for his subordinates, he was actually rotting away inside, trapped in the shadow of the late Emperor, who had been hailed as a wise ruler, unable to fully display his own capabilities?

Even the female lead he had loved to the point of madness in the original story had been unable to completely embrace the rotten abyss within him.

Only readers like me knew why he had no choice but to become the villain. Of course, that didn’t mean I felt any sympathy for Helwid.

I approached Helwid, who was seated and loosening his cravat.

“Um, there’s something I would like to say.”

“What is it? As long as it’s not a resignation letter, feel free to speak.”

When I stared at him in surprise, he chuckled softly and said, “I hear you tried to hand in your resignation on the very day of your promotion.”

Helwid spoke in an easy, unhurried tone.

Even knowing that his kindness was merely a mask, the relaxed atmosphere he created made my guard drop ever so slightly.

Gathering my courage, I spoke.

“I am afraid I am not in a condition to serve Your Majesty.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“The truth is, my father, Count Nostelgia, suffers from a longstanding illness, and―”

“Ah, now that you mention it, I happened to run into Count Nostelgia during my walk just now. It had been a while since I last saw him, but he still looked as hale and hearty as ever. I almost wanted to ask him for the secret to his health myself.”

Damn it.

“Actually, it’s my own health that isn’t very good―”

“Now, where did I put the records from the physical examination you took to become an imperial official? Ah, here it is. Twenty-seven sit-ups in one minute, fifteen seconds for the hundred-meter sprint, and sixteen pull-ups in one minute. Those are very impressive results.”

Good grief, I must have been insane. Why did I do so well?

“I cheated on the imperial official examination―”

“Imperial Law of the Infelion Empire, Article 32, Clause 12. All imperial citizens are obligated to conduct themselves with honesty in matters of public service. Any act of fraud or deception in any area of public service shall result in the confiscation of all family assets and a sentence of life imprisonment. Now then, what was it that you just said? I didn’t quite hear you.”

“…It was nothing.”

Ding ding ding. I could practically hear the bell announcing a knockout defeat.