I’m a Villainess, Can I Die?

"We've arrived."

With the coachman's voice, the carriage door swung open. Lukas stepped out first, then extended his hand toward me.
Should I take it or not?
I took Lukas’s outstretched hand. It was my first time getting off a carriage, so I figured it was best to accept the help. And unlike with the maids earlier... Never mind. Let’s forget about the past.

His hand is big. Strong. Rough with calluses.
His hair is like something out of an Elasthine commercial, but I guess even protagonist buffs don’t extend to everything.
"Is there anything in particular you’d like to see today?"

"…I’m not sure. Just anywhere worth looking at. Honestly, I don’t know anything about this place."
"Then I’ll guide you to the most famous spots."
I nodded and followed him. Since I had no clue about anything here, it was best to just listen to the guide. If I behaved today, I might be allowed out more often.

And soon, I regretted it.
Now that I thought about it, I had never traveled anywhere in my past life. No school trips, no retreats, nothing.
My younger brother was too sick to even attend school—there was no way my parents would have let someone like me go on trips.

It used to bother me a little, but as I grew older, it just became the norm.
In that sense, this was practically my first real sightseeing experience.
And yet… it didn’t suit me.

Especially not the popular places.
Passing through the crowded market square and glancing at the most famous restaurant teeming with customers nearly made me gag.
Too many people.

"Sir Lukas."
"Yes, Selina?"
"Let’s eat somewhere else."
He turned to me, surprised.

"Why? Oh, do you dislike veal?"
Veal, my ass. That wasn’t the problem.
I shook my head. My complexion must have looked bad because Lukas frowned and stepped closer, scrutinizing my face.

"There are too many people. It’s making me nauseous."
Ah.
Lukas let out a small sound of understanding, then glanced around. I guess my reasoning made enough sense to him.

He led me to a small restaurant a bit farther from the square.
The wooden exterior matched its cozy interior. There weren’t many tables, and only a few other diners were inside.
Phew, finally, I could breathe.

I must have looked worse than I thought.
Now that we were inside and I had a moment to relax, Lukas’s expression softened. As if he had genuinely been worried about me… No way.
Enough useless thoughts. I tapped my fingernail against the table while looking over the menu.

Tomato stew, roasted pork, grilled chicken thighs… When was the last time I actually read through a menu to choose my meal? And the last time I sat across from someone like this?
I lifted my gaze from the menu to look at Lukas.
He was staring at his menu with a strangely serious expression. The way he studied it with such focus was oddly entertaining.

He always acted so refined and charming around other nobles, yet here he was, putting the same level of effort into choosing a meal at a small restaurant.
If the people who admired him saw this, they’d probably laugh in disbelief.
"Is something wrong?"

Lukas glanced up just as our eyes met.
"I was just wondering… what meal Sir Lukas would choose so seriously."
At my words, Lukas blinked, mouth slightly open.

I raised my brow.
What, he can crack jokes all the time, smirking and snickering at me, but the moment I tease him, he freezes?
But soon, the corners of his lips curved into a smile.

Not the usual polite, gentlemanly one. His eyes sharpened slightly, and his lips curled upward—an expression he made sometimes.
Not quite a villain’s smirk. More like a mischievous one.
"This is one of my favorite restaurants. Everything here is good, so deciding what to get is always a dilemma."

"Oh."
So this was one of Lukas’s go-to places.
Now that I thought about it, didn’t the book mention something about his past? That he was once… a poor noble?

It was just a passing mention, barely a few lines. I didn’t remember much.
"I’ll have the tomato stew. What about you, Selina?"
Lukas closed his menu.

The quiet atmosphere of the restaurant made the sound of the menu shutting echo slightly.
"I’ll have the same."
The tomato stew was excellent.

If the food at the White Duchy felt like dining at a high-end restaurant, this place was more like a homemade meal.
The fact that I even compared tomato stew to home-cooked comfort food…
People really do adapt fast.

At this rate, I might start calling potato stew bone broth.
"Ah, I’m full."
I leaned back slightly, satisfied.

Lukas glanced down at my plate and frowned.
There was still a little bit of tomato stew left.
"You eat too little."

"I don’t move much."
"You’re very self-aware."
"There are plenty of people who aren’t. I’d say that’s fortunate."

I was talking about you.
But Lukas, oblivious, just arched a brow with a small smile.
See? Some people really don’t get it.

After finishing our meal, we decided to walk along a quiet path behind the square.
A peaceful, secluded trail—exactly my kind of place.
We walked across a bridge over a river, and I stopped.

Leaning against the railing, I peered down at the water.
This translation is the intellectual property of .
It was so clear that I could see the riverbed, the fish swimming below.

Was this bridge high? Was the river deep?
If I fell from here, would I die?
Drowning would be painful, wouldn’t it?

I hate pain.
"Selina, unless you're enjoying the thrill of danger, step away from there."
"I'm holding onto the railing."

"Your grip strength isn’t exactly reassuring."
I should do as he says.
He was definitely going to report everything to my parents later. If he said anything strange, I might never be allowed out again. I raised my hands from the railing and took three steps away from the bridge.

Satisfied, Lukas gave a slight nod.
"What's that over there?"
I pointed at a towering building with a large clock mounted on it.

"The clock tower. And before you ask, no, you can’t climb it."
"...I wasn’t planning to."
Sharp-eyed, aren’t you?

But... his claim that no one could go up there was definitely a lie.
There was no way they’d install a massive clock in a place no one could reach.
Someone had to be maintaining it, or else the mechanism wouldn’t function properly. Did he think losing my memory also made me an idiot?

I kept my eyes fixed on the tower, watching the long minute hand tick forward once before turning away.
Lukas was waiting for me a few steps away. Our gazes met, and without a word, he approached and held out his hand.
"Let’s go back, Selina."

We made our way toward the square again.
There was no real reason for me to hold Lukas’s hand while walking, so we simply walked side by side, a slight distance between us. There wasn’t much conversation.
"I'm... I'm sorry! Please, just once... just forgive me this once!"

A young voice rang out, desperate enough to cut through the wall of people and reach us clearly.
The crowd's attention was fixed on one spot.
Curious, Lukas and I headed toward the commotion.

A child sat collapsed on the dirt ground.
His face and body were covered in dust, as if he'd taken a tumble.
Standing opposite the dirt-streaked boy was a man in a garishly extravagant outfit, completely lacking any sense of color coordination. He leaned on a cane, his face twisted in an irritated scowl.

The cane didn’t seem to be for age-related support. More likely, it was one of those trendy accessories popular among nobles lately.
The ridiculous getup instantly reminded me of her—attention-seeking Mia.
"Forgiveness? Forgiveness! How dare you babble about forgiveness in front of me?! My carriage was nearly scratched because of you!"

Even his words brought Mia to mind.
Could this be her father…?
"Oh dear… how unfortunate… to have gotten caught by a noble like that…"

"Running that fast in such a crowded place… What was he thinking…?"
The murmurs around us grew.
The young boy knelt before the smug noble, his body trembling uncontrollably.

It wasn’t hard to piece together what had happened. The boy must have nearly been hit by the carriage. In a crowded place like this, carriages should be moving slowly. Even lawmakers follow traffic rules when they drive.
I doubted there were actual traffic regulations in this world, but there were certain unspoken laws that governed human behavior. Things passed down through generations—things people should simply know to do.
"What should we do?"

"What do you mean?"
"Are you going to help him?"
Hmm… Should I? Or not?

Why did the ugly side of the world keep unfolding right in front of me these days?
If I stepped in, I’d draw attention. If I ignored it, my conscience would nag at me. A very bothersome, exhausting situation.
At this rate, someone might end up getting stabbed inside the duchy. I'd have to watch my back at home like Ariel did… Just imagining it made my head ache.

I wasn’t the heroine. I was the villainess.
This kind of scene should be happening in front of a kind-hearted, optimistic, self-sacrificing protagonist—not me.
"Do you know who that man is?"

I asked Lukas quietly.
He shook his head slightly before answering.
"I assume he was one of the nobles invited to the young master's engagement. But judging by the carriage, it's a rental. He likely got his hands on an invitation by sheer luck."

"Lucky enough to get an invitation…"
Isn’t security way too lax?
I set that thought aside. It wasn’t important right now.

My gaze returned to the boy and the noble.
The man’s cane swung threateningly above the child's head.
If you're lucky enough to gain status, at least learn how to act the part.

The child's small body flinched each time the cane swiped past him, trembling violently.
The pitiful sight made the onlookers murmur in dismay.
Seriously… how did troublemakers always seem to find me?

I was clearly not cut out to be a bystander.
But at least I wasn’t a villain. That was something, I supposed.
Resigning myself, I looked up at Lukas.

"If that cane swings at me, make sure to block it. I hate getting hit."
I really hate it.
I had been slapped around plenty as an adult. I had no intention of going through that in this life too.

And I was going to die soon, anyway. If I got beaten before then, that would be…
No. Absolutely not.
"Of course."

Lukas’s response was unwavering.
I nodded and stepped into the crowd, moving toward the center of the commotion.