The Villainesses in the Romance Fantasy Novel Became Obsessed with me

What on earth happened with Damian that day?

Charlotte stood in front of the mirror, asking herself.

“What happened? Why won’t you answer? You were the one who wanted to share memories! Why aren’t you responding?”

…

No answer.

No matter how much she shouted at the mirror, human Charlotte didn’t respond.

Frustrated, she felt annoyed.

Her face was bright red.

“I did apologize… But why was the sofa wet… And why was I in the infamous art room with Damian…”

Not knowing the situation made her feelings unsettled.

Thinking about Damian made her body heat up.

Irritated, Charlotte lay down and buried her face in the pillow.

“What happened to me?”

Charlotte didn’t know the reason for the changes she felt.

She kept wondering.

“I just apologized… Right? Nothing else happened… Right?”

Damian’s face kept appearing in her mind.

***

It was a weekday, and we had to return to school after the weekend.

The villainesses and I attended the academy without causing major incidents.

That didn’t mean we didn’t cause any minor ones.

Suspicion, obsession, and jealousy continued.

“Damian. Why did you tell me not to go out…?”

Yuri.

I had sent her a letter over the weekend, telling her I’d be studying in the dorm and that she should stay inside.

Perhaps because of that.

“You didn’t meet someone else, did you? That’s not it… Right?”

On the day of our return to academy, Yuri caught me in front of the dormitory and began to question me.

She seemed to have harbored deep suspicion over the weekend.

As we walked, she didn’t take her eyes off my face.

“You didn’t ditch your best friend to meet someone else, right?”

She was sharp.

I answered in a voice filled with grievance.

“Of course not. If I wanted to hang out, I’d do it with you. Why would I call someone else?”

“Right…? If you want to hang out, it’s right to call your best friend… Damian wouldn’t have a reason to meet another girl… I think that’s correct too…”

Phew.

What a relief.

I managed to placate Yuri’s suspicions for the moment.

However, she still seemed unconvinced.

“Still, Damian seems suspicious… Is it just my feeling…?”

Her obsession and suspicion were relentless.

‘Even if I left witnesses, I left no evidence. Yuri shouldn’t find out.’

I felt like a cheating boyfriend.

Nevertheless, I walked to school with Yuri after a long time.

I complimented her on looking prettier, and we arrived at the classroom for the first class.

“See you later, Damian… Let’s meet during the break…!”

“Sure. See you then.”

Waving goodbye to me with reluctance, Yuri kept her eyes on me until she disappeared down the hallway.

“She’s terrifying.”

I was genuinely scared.

Her suspicion and obsession were already intense.

How much worse would it get later?

The fear sent chills down my spine.

After seeing Yuri off, I entered the classroom.

As it was a major class, my classmate Bluebell was already there with her usual group of friends.

Seeing me, she waved and smiled.

“Hi Damian!”

She didn’t grumble as she used to.

Clearly, relieving her pent-up feelings made her more cheerful even around other students.

I waved back at Bluebell.

‘He doesn’t seem very enthusiastic about my greeting. Why isn’t he happier? Doesn’t my greeting make him feel good? Does he not like me?’

“…”

It appeared she had another complaint.

Wanting to show off in front of her friends, I decided to ignore Bluebell and took my seat.

A male student from the same department, Maurice, sat next to me. He was a significant character in the novel.

‘Maurice plays the role of a typical strategist for the heroine. Despite his feelings for Elisha, he gave up due to the insurmountable obstacle of the crown prince and instead focused on using his intellect. He was basically born to handle paperwork in the story.’

Maurice was destined to become the Minister of Finance under the crown prince’s favor.

Maintaining a good relationship with him wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Wearing his intellectual glasses, Maurice greeted me as he sat down.

“Hello Sinclair Damian.”

I wondered what brought him to me.

While lightly probing him, I returned his greeting.

“Yeah. Hello.”

“How are the lectures? Are they worth listening to?”

“Well. They’re alright. Not too easy. Not too hard. Just worth attending.”

“As expected, a genius sees things differently. To say the lectures aren’t difficult…”

Why was he suddenly complimenting me?

In the novel, Maurice wasn’t interested in anything besides studying and the heroine.

Yet, here he was, showing interest in me.

‘This guy isn’t gay, but why’s he acting like this?’

Naturally, I was curious.

As my suspicion began to turn unhealthy, Maurice, being sharp and observant, widened his eyes and waved his hands.

“Oh no. It’s not what you’re thinking. I’m just curious about you, that’s all.”

“That sounds even more suspicious.”

Maurice made no effort to dispel misunderstandings.

Looking intently at me, he asked with curiosity.

“What do you think of the crown prince?”

“The crown prince is handsome.”

“You know that’s not what I’m asking.”

He was being annoyingly persistent.

I considered how to deal with this smart but bothersome guy.

There was only one way—direct confrontation.

“You want to hear my opinion on the crown prince? And possibly about the successor to the emperor?”

“You speak carelessly without considering your position. Watch your mouth.”

“No. There’s no need to be cautious because my opinion is always the same.”

I leaned in and whispered to Maurice, who was aligned with the emperor’s faction.

“I believe the crown prince is the rightful heir to the empire. This belief will never change. Ever.”

“…!”

Since I knew who the winner would be, telling Maurice that someone with a notable reputation like mine supported the crown prince would be very effective.

‘When one of the villainesses goes on a rampage later, maybe our family will be spared. My younger sibling is due to be born soon. When should I go see them?’

Maurice nodded, indicating he understood my actions and intentions.

“I’ve heard a good answer for the future of the Empire.”

A decent outcome.

Maurice and I had formed a sense of internal camaraderie.

Having achieved our goals, we quietly listened to the lecture without further conversation.

Once the lecture ended, I prepared for the next class.

“Hey Damian.”

Until Bluebell showed up.

Sitting in the back, she waved arrogantly at me.

“Come here. What were you guys whispering about? Come and tell me.”

“No.”

“W-what? You’re refusing me?”

“Yeah. Why don’t you come here and listen? Why should I go over there?”

If you keep catering to her, it’d become a habit.

Bluebell seemed momentarily angry at my assertiveness, but it was only for a moment.

Reluctantly, she walked over to me, dropping her pride.

“… What were you talking about with him? It seemed interesting.”

“Just discussing the political situation of the Empire? That’s what our department focuses on, right?”

“… So you became close enough to whisper about it? Damn it!”

Suddenly, Bluebell started cursing.

She turned her head away and returned to her seat, muttering under her breath.

“If he wanted to sit, he should’ve sat next to me… Why sit next to a guy…? He can hug men all his life and die…! What am I lacking compared to him…? I’m better…”

“…”

She seemed upset that I didn’t choose to sit next to her.

Even though she had told me not to sit next to her when we were in a cold war.

‘… I guess I’ll have to sit next to her next time.’

Sighing, I resigned myself to the situation.

***

Nadia’s art room.

A space filled with the smell of paint.

The place where Nadia always painted my portraits.

‘I thought cleaning would be enough.’

Apparently, the sensitivity of the art room’s owner was sharper than I anticipated.

As Nadia painted my portrait, she was also sharply interrogating me.

“There was a scent. A woman’s scent that I don’t know.”

“… Maybe the cleaning lady came?”

“That’s impossible. My art room is always locked. Only two people can enter: you and me.”

Plop!

Nadia flicked some red paint from her brush onto my face, making it look like blood.

“For the record, I wasn’t in the art room over the weekend. Yet, there’s a scent I don’t recognize. Whose scent is it?”

“I-I don’t know.”

“Really? You don’t?”

Brush strokes echoed as Nadia painted with a serene expression.

However, I could feel the deep anger beneath her calm exterior.

“I generally like the art room to be filled with your scent, Damian. It helps me stay calm while painting. But now, there’s a blemish on my painting because of someone’s mistake. My painting has been ruined because of it.”

Nadia turned the canvas she was working on toward me.

“… It’s me.”

“Yes, it’s you, Damian. A version of you I haven’t seen before. But I’m sure you’ve made that face at least once.”

There, on the canvas, was a figure that looked exactly like me but with a different expression. One of desperation and arousal.

Nadia slowly got up from her chair and walked toward the sofa where Charlotte and I had been.

“I don’t know which rat it was that tainted our private space. I don’t recognize this scent from any of the people around you, Damian.”

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Nadia stopped in front of the sofa, her face expressionless.

“Marquis Bluebell Pieridot, Grand Duke Justia Yuri, Princess Charlotte, commoner Elisha. I know all the women connected to you, Damian. But if it’s none of them, then whose scent is it? Is there a new woman I don’t know about, Damian?”

Nadia’s expression turned icy, and she frowned as she muttered.

“Bring that woman to me right now.”

“…”

“If you can’t bring her… You’ll take her punishment in her place.”

“How dare someone invade my space? What a nerve.”

Nadia whispered in my ear, her smile like a mocking jeer from hell.

“If you don’t want to die, it’s best to bring that woman to me intact. As you know, I despise anyone who covets what’s mine…”

‘I thought airing the room would suffice.’

I was screwed.

Treating one villainess only brings dissatisfaction to another.

It was a vicious cycle.

It appeared I’d never escape this circle of suffering.

“Bring her. Now. Before I decide to make you a permanent fixture here.”