I Became the Master of the Villain

‘What do I do, he seems really shocked.’
I didn’t think Father was the kind of person to be shaken by something like this.
I asked a servant to bring him a new knife, then carefully observed his expression.

“Are you alright?”
“Of course. I’m fine.”
…You really don’t sound convincing when you say that with the look of a man who’s lost his country.

He gave a soft laugh, but a faint twitch was visible at the corner of his mouth.
I pretended not to notice and thought to myself.
But why did Father react with such dismay?

I thought he liked Kian quite a bit.
My confusion didn’t last long.
“I’m hurt. To think you made such an important decision without even discussing it with your father…”

An important decision?
I suppose choosing to date Kian—someone with the risk of blackening—could be considered major.
But that wasn’t what Father meant.

“To go and get engaged without so much as a word to me—don’t you think that’s too much?”
“…Excuse me?”
Even the people involved didn’t know they were engaged.

I turned to look at Kian in alarm.
But Kian looked deeply moved by the word ‘engaged.’ His eyes sparkled.
‘Kian, what are you thinking right now?!’
Since he made no effort to explain, I had no choice but to speak up.

“Father, we only just started dating. There’s been no talk of engagement yet.”
“Then what do you call that ring?”
“What ring…? Ah.”

He was pointing to the ring on Kian’s left ring finger.
“If that’s not an engagement ring, then what is it?”
“No, that’s…”

The blue diamond ring I’d bought for 300 billion gallons before Kian awakened as a mage.
At the time, Father hadn’t looked kindly upon Kian’s presence.
So even though we lived in the same house, they had barely seen each other.

‘So he doesn’t realize that’s the same ring from back then?’
I explained to Father that it was just a personal gift I’d given to Kian.
At that, his face lit up as if a decade-old weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

“If that’s all it was, why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Uh… you’re the one who jumped to conclusions, Father.
—or so I wanted to retort, but the blame was admittedly a bit ambiguous.

After all, Kian was wearing the ring on his left ring finger.
Meanwhile, Kian looked excited as he turned to me and asked:
“Lady Olivia. While we’re at it, what would you think about getting engagement—no, matching rings together?”

It was phrased as a question, but judging by the look in his eyes, he’d already made up his mind.
My very capable boyfriend was now thinking of making us a set of matching rings worth 300 billion gallons each.
A 600 billion gallon couple’s ring set.

A price worthy of a Guinness World Record.
They say lovers grow alike…
‘Did I spoil him too much with my reckless spending?’

I’d apparently ruined Kian’s financial sensibilities.
***
There was a bit of a misunderstanding, but dinner that night was warm and cheerful.

Surprisingly, Father and Kian got along really well.
Both of them couldn’t stop singing my praises.
The servants carrying the dishes looked dumbfounded by Father’s unfamiliar attitude.

Their faces all clearly said:
—Our Duke has changed!
Well… I was surprised too, to be honest.

Who would’ve thought Father had this doting-dad side to him?
Still, one mystery was solved.
I’d wondered how the two had grown so close—turns out, they’d bonded over talking about me.

‘They say mothers-in-law love their sons-in-law, but… wait, in this case it’s the father-in-law.’
I glanced at Father as he offered Kian another dish.
“Kian, try this one too.”

Kian obediently accepted what Father gave him.
Father watched him with satisfaction.
“Good appetite. It’s nice to see.”

Kian smiled, his eyes curving into half-moons.
“You should eat more too, Your Grace. That way, you’ll recover quickly and the three of us can travel together.”
“Haha, you really! I said that’s enough of that talk!”

Maybe the three of us really should go on a trip sometime.
I started seriously considering it.
***

The next day, I woke up feeling refreshed.
With Ashford Chocolates’ sales back to normal, the factory was ramping up production again.
And Anna’s black dress had become a trend across the Empire, allowing us to open new branches one after another.

Time flew by as I dealt with business matters related to the family enterprise.
“Thank you for your hard work, Lady. That concludes your morning schedule.”
When I returned home and sank into the chair in the study, the butler spoke.

“In the afternoon, you are scheduled to visit Greenhills Convalescent Hospital.”
Greenhills Convalescent Hospital.
Founded ten years ago, it was the Empire’s only specialized facility for sleep disease patients.

But due to its age and flimsy construction, a full reconstruction had been approved.
When a lack of funding caused repeated delays in construction, our foundation stepped in to sponsor the project.
After several months, the hospital had finally been rebuilt.

I had been invited to the reopening ceremony thanks to our involvement, but couldn’t attend.
At the time, I’d been too busy dealing with the chocolate factory crisis.
‘It’s a little late, but I should go check out how the hospital turned out.’

After sipping the fragrant black tea the butler had brought me, I boarded the carriage.
Sunlight filtered through the branches, casting a net-like pattern across the dirt road.
The carriage rumbled along a path lined with rows of plane trees.

Far in the distance, a white building atop a gentle hill came into view.
That was Greenhills Convalescent Hospital.
As I admired the lush scenery, we arrived before I realized it.

The hospital director came out to greet me as I stepped down from the carriage.
“Welcome, Lady Olivia. We’ve been expecting you.”
“It’s been a while, Director.”

After exchanging a few pleasantries, we started walking.
Once we entered the hospital, its spacious interior was immediately apparent.
As expected of something the architects had poured their hearts into, the newly constructed hospital was impressive.

The flooring and finishing materials were all top quality, and the interior design gave off a warm, comforting atmosphere.
The director guided me through the building.
“Thanks to the improved environment, the medical staff’s satisfaction has gone up significantly.”

He chuckled, saying it was all thanks to the Ashford Foundation’s support.
I responded with a professional smile.
“Oh, it’s just part of doing business.”

Charity work is business, after all.
The director laughed and nodded in agreement.
Then he looked toward the patient rooms lined up along the corridor.

“Would you like to take a look at the rooms as well?”
“Yes, let’s.”
Since it’s where patients spend the most time, I thought it would be good to check.

The director led me into one of the rooms.
Decorated with ivory wallpaper, the room was bright and spacious, with large windows that let in plenty of sunlight.
But one thing struck me as odd.

‘Is it just my imagination?’
It felt like there were fewer patients than before, in every room we visited.
After stepping back into the corridor from the eerily quiet room, I heard two men arguing in the room across the hall.

“Discharge her? That’s insane!”
“There’s no point keeping her here! Mom’s not going to get better!”
“Then what do you want to do? Take her home and watch her around the clock yourself?”

The door to the room was open. They were arguing loudly enough that I could hear everything clearly.
One of the men spoke again.
“I have a plan. I’ve already got the money.”

“What are you talking about? Are you saying they developed a new drug or something?”
“You don’t need to know. I’ll handle it myself…”
Sleep disease patients can’t be awakened with any known drug.

Because sleep disease isn’t actually a disease to begin with.
As I stood there listening, the director gave an awkward smile and spoke.
“Lately, more and more families have been requesting to discharge their loved ones.”

“Ah… I see.”
“After ten years of no progress, they’re trying to find alternatives. Folk remedies, experimental drugs… they cling to anything that gives them hope.”
If only such things could actually save the patients.

The director ended with a bitter note.
“Shall we take a look at the next area, Lady Olivia?”
“Oh, yes.”

I followed the director down the corridor. But for some reason, I couldn’t take my eyes off that patient room.
***
After visiting Greenhills Hospital, I got into another carriage to attend to a different matter.

I met with a member of a foreign royal family who had shown interest in our art export business.
He had some rather demanding conditions, and it took quite a bit of effort to negotiate.
By the time I returned to the mansion, the sun had already set.

I was a little worn out after a full day of work.
‘Phew… I need to go rest.’
I passed through the first-floor hall and began climbing the stairs that led to my room.

That was when I suddenly heard the maids’ voices.
“Mia! How could you do something like this…?”
“You—what are you doing here—”

“Answer the question first!”
I stopped on the landing and craned my neck to look down the hall.
For some reason, the maids were gathered in front of my room.

They were all my personal attendants, but the mood was completely different from usual.
They had Mia surrounded.
Karen—the maid who, along [N O V E L I G H T] with Becky, had served me the longest—stepped forward.

“Mia, how could you do something like this?”
She held out her palm, revealing a pair of red ruby earrings.
I stood frozen on the landing, watching the scene in shock.

Karen scolded her in a sharp voice.
“To think you tried to steal the Lady’s belongings! Have you lost your mind?”