I Don’t Want to be a Villainess

“…So all I need to do is prove that I’m Sara’s family?”

At Choi Na-kyung’s words, the director pondered for a moment before responding.

“Well, just saying you’re family won’t cut it in today’s world. What kind of world are we living in? Even parents aren’t recognized properly as parents unless the child-parent relationship is well-established these days.”

“……”

“Is that company still pressuring you?”

“…That’s just the way the situation has unfolded.”

“I see.”

The director fell silent for a moment, then picked up the cup on the table. But he didn’t take a sip.

Holding the warm cup with both hands, he hesitated before speaking.

“You’re aware there’s an heir from Lee Won Yanghaeng among Sara’s friends, right?”

“……”

“That company isn’t someone you can look down on like the one you’re currently dealing with. While we make requests to them and they fulfill those requests, it’s a relationship that benefits both sides, which is why it continues.”

He lifted his gaze to look at Choi Na-kyung.

“As I mentioned last time, handling any displeasing counterpart in this way repeatedly is an immensely poor habit for a manager. There are limits to pressing them down with power. They’ve already built a reputation as the ‘King of Kings’; it would be problematic if that image solidifies, wouldn’t it?”

“I’ll handle what I can.”

“Didn’t you say you would leave the operations to this director?”

“……”

“Please, I hope you won’t let personal feelings blind you and obstruct the company’s path. We are, after all, people seeking benefits, not a means to resolve the Chairwoman’s personal emotions. Please consider the reasons you ascended to this position within the company.”

“……”

The reason she was able to rise to the chairwoman’s position.

It was clear he was suggesting she remember the former chairwoman’s grace.

It was all thanks to that person that she, a mediocre nurse struggling with triple shifts every day, became one of the wealthiest women in the world.

Though, of course, Choi Na-kyung’s rise to chairwoman had nothing to do with that.

What she desired was always one thing.

“While you personally own the most shares in Yujin Electronics… I want to let you know that when the board gathers, the amount of those shares isn’t exactly overwhelming. Furthermore, the actions you are currently displaying are negatively affecting the company’s image. Investors are anxious.”

“……”

“Even though they are steadily buying back shares, they’re currently quiet, but who knows what will happen in the future?”

“…Sara’s shares…”

“Sara’s shares are Sara’s shares.”

At the director’s words, Choi Na-kyung fell silent.

Indeed. They were Sara’s shares.

Normally, they should appear as one with Choi Na-kyung’s, who was the only one, their mother.

But.

“…So please, accurately show that you still maintain a parental-child bond with Sara.”

Otherwise, the future is pretty much predetermined.

Voting within the company runs strictly according to the logic of capital.

“…I’ll definitely prove it.”

Choi Na-kyung bit her lip.

*

It was another ordinary day.

Of course, “ordinary” applies only within this school. To the outside world, this school was ‘not at all’ ordinary.

It was a place where the children of the wealthiest families in the country went.

Every facility was of the highest quality, as were the teachers. They managed everything with student tuition alone, with minimal support from the government, boasting tuition fees comparable to elite private universities.

If children from ‘ordinary’ families wanted to attend this school, they’d have to study incredibly hard to get in as scholarship students or take on massive debt.

The contents were even more astonishing.

Students, as children of families entrenched in extremes of capitalism, regularly exchanged “gifts,” and the luxury teachers receiving substantial sums seemed to have forgotten how to behave as teachers, regardless of not attending classes at all.

Money flowing between students, among teachers, and between students and teachers was a given, to the extent that there were even bankers dispatched solely for this school.

The deeper one delved, the more this place was drastically removed from what one would typically call ‘ordinary.’

However, no matter how strange it was, spending time there continually led one to think this was normal.

The kids who had ostracized Ye Sara in the past would have thought the same, as would the teachers who nonchalantly agreed with them.

Rather, it could be said that the very existence of ‘Ye Sara’ suddenly breaking out into a frenzy shattered that ‘ordinariness.’

The hierarchy within the school had changed significantly.

Even if teachers were ignored by students, they at least secured minimal teaching authority. Teachers had the power to give students grades, and while students who paid could ignore the authority of the teachers, the ‘students attending for free thanks to those students’ were still fearsome beings.

Clearly, scholarship students who should be treated well since they had the best grades were, in fact, at the bottom of the food chain. They were the ‘kids who would be hired one day.’ The ones paying to attend this school easily slipped a noose around their necks.

…And then there was Ye Sara.

‘The money Ye Sara possesses is not Ye Sara’s money.’

It was not surprising that such thoughts were widespread.

After all, most of the students attending this school thought that way in reality.

Regardless of how old they were, they were still not adults. Among the students in this school, how many could declare confidently, “This money isn’t my parents’ money; it’s mine”?

Moreover, Ye Sara was indeed controlled by her mother as well.

…Of course, that was merely a misunderstanding.

By casually scattering money that someone might earn over a lifetime, Ye Sara seized control of the school.

Thus, the current situation resulting from that hardly felt ordinary.

A scenario where nobody could ignore her, and where words had to be listened to.

…In a place where only those with one eye could gather, a person with two eyes is the abnormal one. Those who have lived with one eye all their lives find someone with both eyes to be bizarre, after all.

And in such a society, for a person with two eyes to be treated as ‘normal,’ it is only possible if they pluck one of their eyes out.

However—

“Ye Sara.”

During morning assembly, the teacher suddenly called out Ye Sara’s name.

As always, she was gazing out the window without a care in the world, but after a beat, she turned her head and stared blankly at the teacher.

“You don’t need to attend class today.”

“…What?”

It was a sight seen frequently when Ye Sara was flustered. Especially during the early days of this semester, where she would make strange sounds every time her friend poked her side.

But as time went by, Ye Sara returned to her calm demeanor and rarely showed signs of fluster these days.

“Could you repeat what you just said?”

Her tone seemed to provoke the other party directly.

The homeroom teacher frowned at her words, yet responded, “There’s someone here to see you.”

With that response, the whole class directed their attention to Ye Sara.

“……”

Ye Sara, resting her chin in hand, gaped at the teacher.

“…Who is it?”

“You’ll find out when you go meet them.”

“I don’t want to.”

Ye Sara’s response was sharp.

But there was a look of bewilderment on her face.

…Or perhaps, an expression of anticipation?

Surprised yet with the corners of her mouth slightly raised.

No, it could also be an angry face. Her eyebrows twitched, and her sharp eyes seemed ready to slice through the teacher with a glare.

“Ah, you all stay seated. If you get up, you’ll face disadvantages. How many classes have you skipped up to now?”

Glancing at Shin So-hee and Yoo Ha-neul, who were about to stand up, the teacher said that. Yoo Ha-neul’s face turned red, while Shin So-hee bared her teeth.

“I said to sit down.”

The students held their breath.

How is this happening?

The teacher who couldn’t even speak properly after being exposed for receiving money from Shin So-hee was now boldly making remarks.

“It’s fine.”

Ye Sara stood up and spoke.

“…I figured they’d look for me eventually anyway.”

“…Sara.”

“I’ll be back soon.”

With that, Sara looked at the teacher.

“…Where should I go?”

“They’re waiting in the teacher’s office.”

The homeroom teacher simply said that.

Ye Sara glared at the teacher for a while, then turned toward the classroom door.

“Sara, after all—”

Yoo Ha-neul tried to say something, but,

“No.”

Ye Sara quickly interrupted.

“This is something that needs to be settled between us two.”

“……”

Ye Sara didn’t look back.

The classroom door closed, and silence enveloped the classroom for a while.

“Now, we’ll begin the assembly.”

The teacher smiled confidently and said that.

“……”

And that was a sort of signal.

The students assessed that the teacher had regained confidence.

Ah, it’s time to ‘become ordinary’ again.

It was difficult to accurately perceive how things were turning out, but they could gradually figure it out from here on.

As long as things were flowing well.

Their gazes fell upon Shin So-hee and Yoo Ha-neul, who remained in the classroom.

—In a place where only those with one eye gathered, those with two eyes were treated as abnormal.

And for those ‘abnormal’ ones to become ‘normal,’ they had to pluck one of their eyes out.

But there was one crucial thing.

While plucking an eye out, one must accurately choose which eye to remove.

Because if one chooses the wrong side, they might end up being treated as abnormal even after having plucked an eye out.

BAM!

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