I Became the Master of the Villain

"My ear, my ear...!"

Marquis Stenley clutched his right ear and screamed in agony.
A young noble standing nearby rushed over in concern.
"Marquis, are you all right?"

"The blood... the blood won't stop... Call a healer, bring a healer!"
"Um, but..."
The marquis cut off the young noble mid-sentence and shouted insistently to summon a healer.

Those watching began to murmur among themselves. 
"What’s going on? What happened?"
"Is he injured or something?"

Marquis Stenley's right ear was still perfectly intact. Yet he screamed in pain as if it had been severed.
Unable to stand it any longer, an elderly noble clicked his tongue and said,
"Lord Stenley, get a grip. Your ear is still attached."

But the marquis, like a madman, lunged and shoved the elder without warning. The elder nearly stumbled and shouted furiously,
"What on earth are you doing?"
"You almost stepped on my ear just now!"

"W-What did you say?"
Stenley started feeling around the empty floor. He pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and wrapped it around something invisible. Then, shoving through the crowd roughly, he shouted,
"Out of my way! I must get to the healer...!"

He stormed out of the hall like a lunatic.
Kian, watching the marquis’s retreating figure, leaned toward me and whispered,
"I cast a mild hallucination spell. It will wear off soon, so please don’t worry."
Ah, of course… So that was Kian’s doing.

With a voice still tinged with restrained anger, he said,
"I don’t mind if someone insults me. But I cannot tolerate anyone insulting Olivia-nim."
Only then did I understand why Kian had pulled that trick on the marquis.

I whispered back to him,
"Well done, Kian. That was so satisfying."
Fortunately, it seemed I wasn’t the only one who thought so.

"Tch, has he completely lost his mind?"
"Whatever that was, he brought it on himself."
"I always knew he’d embarrass himself eventually."

"Even if he is the empress’s cousin, he’s been far too arrogant for far too long."
Apparently, plenty of nobles had long held grudges against Marquis Stenley. Afraid to offend the empress, they had all been biting their tongues—until now.
It was a relief that the marquis was the common enemy of the room. Of course, the thought crossed my mind that he might raise an issue about today’s incident. But it had been Marquis Stenley who insulted both Kian and me first. If this were to be formally addressed, we had more than enough to say in our defense.

After the marquis left, peace returned to the hall as if nothing had happened.
Then, a powerful trumpet fanfare rang out.
A solemn voice declared,

"His Majesty the Emperor enters!"
The chatter that had filled the hall died in an instant. The chaotic atmosphere vanished, and all eyes turned toward one place.
The door reserved exclusively for royalty opened, and the emperor entered the Great Hall.

He wore a long cape embroidered with golden threads, a crown of gold on his head, and a scepter adorned with jewels in his right hand. His attire radiated the majesty of the continent’s most powerful nation.
But what drew even more attention than the regalia was the emperor’s appearance. He looked so young that he could have been mistaken for the crown prince’s brother walking in behind him. It was hard to believe he was sixty years old.
People called it proof that the emperor had been chosen by the gods—as a divine representative. Had I not read the original novel, I might’ve believed that too.

The emperor trailed his long cape as he climbed the dais and sat upon the throne. Beside him, the crown prince sat with a visibly displeased expression.
The emperor looked down over the gathering and spoke. 
"The reason I have summoned you today is to announce the appearance of a new top-tier mage within our great empire, and to confer a title upon him."

Everyone lowered their heads respectfully and listened. After a few more ceremonial phrases, the emperor continued, 
"You have all set aside your busy affairs to attend, so let us not delay the proceedings."
An attendant presented a ceremonial sword to the emperor. He rose from the throne and declared,

"Kian, come forward."
Kian walked to the front and knelt on one knee before the emperor, bowing his head in the proper manner.
What followed was a long string of formal and tedious words customary during ennoblement ceremonies. Kian gave the necessary responses with due decorum.

Then the emperor proclaimed,
"I, Sigmund III, Emperor of the Empire, hereby bestow upon Kian the title of Count."
He lifted the silver-glinting sword and lightly tapped it on Kian’s shoulder.

A grand symphony echoed through the hall, played by the royal orchestra.
I watched as Kian stood and received the nobles’ congratulations.
This is way, way off from the original story. I never imagined I’d live to see such a scene.

For some reason, it filled me with deep emotion. But at the same time, it made me uneasy. It felt like I’d rewritten the entire plot, and now I was left wondering—what would I do if something happened that I didn’t know about?
Well, whatever. I’ll deal with that when it comes. At least I’d stopped my death flag for now, so I could rest easy for a while.
As long as Kian doesn’t blacken, it’s fine.

But that thought was far too naïve. And it would be some time before I realized just how wrong I was.
***
"Milady, this is the last one."

The servants wiped sweat from their brows as they spoke.
I looked at the pile of luggage stacked as high as ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) my head and praised their hard work.
"Thank you all for everything."

The boxes were all filled with Kian’s belongings. Now that he had become a count and received a new mansion, he was moving out of the Ashford estate.
After teleporting the mountain of luggage to the mansion, Kian turned to me and asked,
"May I come visit from time to time?"

From the way he asked, it was clear he was reluctant to leave. Perhaps he’d grown attached to this place, even if only for a short while.
Lowering his gaze slightly, he waited for my response.
"Of course. You can come by anytime."

At that, Kian smiled in obvious delight.
My father, Albert, and several servants had come to see him off. Among them was the eccentric painter, Nicholas.
Nicholas watched Kian’s departing figure and sighed.

"Ahh, what a shame. I wanted to go with him too..."
Honestly, I didn’t know why this man kept trying to freeload in other people’s houses when he had a perfectly good home of his own.
As the farewell wrapped up, Nicholas turned and said,

"Now that Kian’s gone, I suppose I’ve no reason to stay here either."
I replied playfully,
"Perfect. Then vacate your room right away."

"Ah! Milady, aren’t you being a bit too cold to me?"
He pouted and grumbled,
"So heartless. I’ll just pack and go, then."

He muttered that he’d better start gathering his things. Worried I’d gone too far, I quickly corrected myself.
"I’m kidding. I was actually thinking it’d be boring without you around."
"Ah, I knew it! That must be your true feelings!"

His nose lifted high with pride. Honestly, if you stripped away Nicholas’s narcissism, there’d be nothing left. I shook my head in disbelief.
***
Four days later, an invitation arrived from Kian.

Written in neat handwriting, the letter said he wished to invite me to his mansion for a meal.
I picked up a pen to reply right away.
In answer to his question about a convenient date, I wrote: “Anytime is fine.”

And on the agreed-upon day, Kian came to fetch me.
Even though it had only been a few days, I was genuinely happy to see his face again. Kian smiled gently and asked,
"Have you been well?"

I replied that I had, and then asked,
"You must’ve been busy with work. Are you sure this is okay?"
Kian had been appointed commander of the 7th Magic Division the day after his title ceremony.

He must have been overwhelmed—meeting the other division commanders, getting to know his direct subordinates.
But Kian smiled softly and said,
"It’s no trouble. There’s nothing more important than my promise with Olivia-nim."

That made my heart ache.
Lately, just seeing Kian smile sent my heart racing.
I heard that my heart stopped once during the assassin attack.

Maybe that’s why it keeps acting up like this. Maybe there were lingering aftereffects.
I clutched my chest and said,
"Shall we go? I’m ready."

"Then, please take my hand."
With a polite gesture, Kian extended his hand.
The moment I took it, the scenery around us shifted rapidly.

That strange sensation I’d felt before returned for a brief moment.
Then, a luxurious mansion appeared before my eyes.
The fountain in the front yard caught the afternoon sun and cast a rainbow. The garden bloomed with vivid spring flowers.

"Welcome home, master."
As I followed Kian through the front doors, the staff bowed deeply in greeting.
Kian nodded lightly in response.

It seemed he’d grown quite used to the role—his manner was smooth and natural.
The interior of the mansion was just as grand and spacious as its exterior.
We passed through the chandelier-lit main hall and entered the dining room.

The table was set with elegant dishes atop a white cloth.
Kian kindly pulled out my chair. Once we were both seated, the food was served.
As I was slicing into the main course, Kian asked cautiously,

"Does it suit your taste?"
"Mm. It doesn’t just suit my taste—it melts in my mouth."
Relieved, Kian smiled.

"Then I’m glad."
After a flawless meal, we decided to stroll through the garden.
Fragrant spring blossoms filled the air. The garden had a charm different from that of the Ashford estate.

But perhaps I got too caught up admiring the scenery—my foot caught on an uneven tile.
My balance faltered.
"Ah...!"

I braced for a fall—but strong arms wrapped around my waist.
My cheek brushed against Kian’s chest.
Above me, his worried voice came,

"Are you all right?"
"Yeah..."
My ankle was fine—just a minor misstep.

But something else was the real problem.
My heart was absolutely not okay.