I’m a Villainess but So Popular

Episode 4

Translator : Missme Editor : Aru

“Well, did you hear this time? The spades–”

“Oh, that’s right. I heard she’s going to hand over her successor status to a member of the branch family.”

As I walked with my black cape scattered, I heard people whispering about me.

People originally like gossip. There must be a lot of talk about the fact that a direct member of the 7 Imperial Family gave up his or her position and handed over his or her status as the successor to a person from his or her own family.

“Oh, that’s the Young Lady Spade.”

I couldn’t help being stand out because of my purple hair and the eye patch. Of course, I didn’t like it because I didn’t stand out in a good way.

I walked across the hall, ignoring people’s words.

And I calmly recalled in my head what I had to do today.

Everything was perfect. I relaxed and moved again.

As I was walking toward the platform, I heard someone calling me.

“Yerine?”

Looking back, a pretty-looking girl with long curly brown hair stood there.

The girl with mysterious eyes, close to orange, was wearing a neat but luxurious dress.

Judging from the pattern on the brooch hanging on the chest of the dress, it was clear that it belonged to the 7 Imperial Families.

“It’s Yerine, right?”

If she belonged to 7 Imperial Families, there was a possibility that she would have been hostile toward me.

It must have been very interesting to see a direct descendant give up her post as successor.

So with a cold smile, I answered deliberately briefly.

“What’s your business?”

At my cold response, the girl opened her eyes wide as if embarrassed. But the girl, who regained her composure, gulped down and came to a step forward toward me.

“He, it’s me, Yerine. Rachel Ale Club.”

The moment I heard the name, Yerine’s memory of Rachel came into my head.

Only then did I realize that the Ale Clubs was the only one of the 7 Imperial Family to have an alliance with the Spades.

In the memory, Yerine often played with Rachel as a child and knew well that she couldn’t hurt herself.

“Ah…”

Rachel waited for my reaction, shaking her eyelashes nervously.

“I remember you, Rachel.”

Rachel clasped my hands when she said that.

“You really remember me, right, Yerine?”

I answered, looking into her eyes, a little teary.

“Of course.”

“You… do you know how worried I was?”

“Huh?”

Rachel’s rapidly darkened face embarrassed me.

Her hand, clasping my hand, had a force in it.

“How can they…..to your parents……”

Rachel hesitated and said,

“Why didn’t you contact me? Not a single letter. I took my parents to the Duke Spade Mansion, but your relatives told me you were sick and couldn’t meet anyone….”

The Postade family apparently locked Yerine up under the pretext that she was sick and could not meet people and completely blocked her from contacting the outside world.

“To be honest, it seemed like they were lying. But my parents have the power to intervene with the Duke Spade family affair.”

Other families could not intervene in the affairs of certain families. The Postade family would have taken advantage of that point.

“You, what has happened so far…..How can you never contact me……”

“.. …there was a situation. I can’t tell you now.”

“First of all, I’m glad you came out today……… You know how worried I was that you might really have a fatal disease…..?”

She seemed genuinely concerned about Yerine for a long time.

I was paying attention to people’s sharp nerves ahead of the plan, and it was comforting to have someone who really cared about me.

“But Yerine, can you give me your ears…..”

When she asked to give my ears, I approached Rachel and reached out my ears.

Then Rachel hurriedly covered her mouth with her hand and whispered in my ear in a small voice.

“The successor post, are you really going to give up?”

Her face, facing my ears off, was really anxious.

No matter how long ago they broke up, it is clear that she was worried that her friends would lose all their rights as successors.

“…..”

There were too many eyes to answer no.

I didn’t know what would happen if the plan went any wrong.

So at that moment, I wondered whether I should tell Rachel the truth or not.

Maybe she took my silence as a sign of yes, Rachel grabbed my arm and kept me from doing that.

“No, Yerine. You’ll be in big trouble if you do that. I’ll help you, and somehow–”

I held my index finger to my lips in front of her.

After seeing my behaviour, Rachel must have noticed my meaning, so she shut up right away.

With a confused look on her face, I murmured softly at Rachel, who looked at me.

“I’m not giving up. So don’t worry.”

Rachel’s orange eyes grew bigger.

I wanted to reassure her completely, but if I had more contact with her, it would draw more attention.

“Well, see you later.”

So I purposely moved slowly in the opposite direction to where Rachel was and looked around.

Leon, who was most concerned, and his mother seemed busy talking to people who appeared to be organizers.

I was worried if he saw me talking to Rachel earlier, but I didn’t have to worry about it.

The moment I took a step with a sigh of relief, my eyes met someone who was staring at me from the other side of the hall.

I was frozen in the eyes of a man who looked at me thoroughly from head to toe.

A man with black hair like ebony and golden eyes shining like a beast was staring at me with a sharp look like a hawk.

‘What the…’

He must have noticed that I was surprised because he kept looking at me. Nevertheless, he seemed unwilling to draw attention.

There’s nothing good about running into such an anxious fellow on a day like today. Eventually, I turned half my body to avoid his gaze and then took my steps elsewhere.

I pretended to be okay on purpose, and even as I moved my steps with my head down, the chatter didn’t stop.

“That’s the spade’s, young lady–”

“They said she was sick. Is that what’s keeping her from using magic?”

“Still. One of the 7th Imperial Families. Can’t she use magic? Being pushed out of a power struggle at an early age–”

I can hear you guys.

The moment I ignored their chattering and went on, someone in a white uniform stood in my way.

“Huh?”

I looked up in the face to see if I was blocking someone else’s way, and the creepy black-haired man from before was looking at me with his arms folded.

“Uh…”

Unknowingly, I opened my mouth and hardened into the spot.

Two heads taller than me, three times the size of my body, overwhelmed me, but the scariest thing was his eyes.

The sharp light from the golden eyes resembling a hawk made me want to bow my head.

He was as handsome as the bastard Leon, but somehow, because of his eyes, he felt scarier than handsome.

“……you.”

I flinched at his low-pitched voice as if flowing from deep.

“Yes?”

Looking at me answering awkwardly, the man rolled his eyes slowly.

I wondered what the hell he was trying to say. It’s our first time seeing each other today, and this is the venue where the successor appointment will be held, which is full of Imperial officials.

To be honest, I was a little afraid that threatening lines such as “follow me to the roof” would fly in any minute.

‘What do I do then? Should I use magic? But the appointment ceremony is still…..’

As soon as I was thinking about my inner thoughts rolling my head quickly, I heard the man’s deep voice.

“Have you ever seen me before?”

Dumbfounded by his words, I raised my eyebrows and asked back, ignoring the eyes of the people around me.

“What?”

But the man, regardless of my reaction, recited the lines just now.

“Have you ever seen me anywhere?”

The situation right now is so astounding, as if he ran away from home by the doorway to Jordan River, enough to make me snort a laugh.

I was so confused with the thought of throwing a taffy at Leon’s gang, but suddenly a strange man came and made a comment that would have been popular in the 70s and 80s.

“No, I don’t.”

At the words, the man tilted his head for the first time and put on a slightly perplexed look.

He must have thought his face would work. Watching him get embarrassed made me feel a bit better.

“No, wait a minute, think it over–”

“I’m sure I’ve never met anyone like you. And please use honorifics, this is our first meeting after all.”

At my words, the babbling of the people around me grew louder.

The man also looked around with an expression as if he had been beaten on the head.

At that time, the voice of the host official on the platform filled the ceremony.

“The appointment ceremony will begin in 10 minutes, so please gather in front of the podium.”

I peered at the official standing on the platform, who spoke in a solemn voice, and then spoke to the man who was still standing stupidly.

“I’ll be going now.”

“Wa, wait!”

The man stretched out his right hand as if in a real hurry, but it wasn’t enough to reach me.

Lightly avoiding the hand, I went straight to the platform.

In front of the podium were me and Rachel, as well as three additional children, who will receive a successor status, Leon, and Countess Postade.

“Now, you all know how the ceremony goes. Don’t be too nervous.”

The official who was standing on the platform came down and kindly encouraged us.

“When your name is called, go up to the platform and use the flame magic on the glass in front of you.”

Everyone nodded at his words.

Soon after, however, the official’s gaze was fixed on me, and he continued with a look of trouble.

“Of course, this year in Spade’s……there’s been an unexpected turn and there’s going to be an additional process to deal with it”

As if to intercept his words, the Countess Postade stepped in and said,

“You don’t have to worry about that. We’ll take care of it.”

Her voice, which was openly irritated, made the official flinch and mumbled.

“But just in case….. Lady Spade, you can go up to the podium with Mr Postade, and when asked if you want to hand over your status as the successor to Mr Postade, you can say yes, okay?”

There was a strange mixture of pity in his eyes at me.

I felt like he was trying to protect myself from Countess Postade’s rebuke.

“…yes.”

“That’s good. We will proceed with the ceremony right away, so please wait.”

Not long after the official had left, Countess Postade, grabbed me roughly, spoke with an unpleasant breath in my ear.

“Do well. If anything goes wrong, I’ll pull out all your hair.”

Then I almost fell in front of the podium thanks to her flinging me as if she was throwing something away.

Meanwhile, white light poured out in the middle of the platform, and the official, who received applause from the people, began to call the names of the children one by one.

I don’t know the exact reason, but my name was called last.

When I went up to the podium with Leon, I realized once again how shabby I was compared to Leon.

The hair covering the whole face in a shaggy manner. And the black cape without a piece of jewellery.

By comparison, Leon is showing off his colourful clothes and accessories with a bright smile.

People probably laughed inwardly, looking at the contrast between the two of us.

“Yerine Ephritte Spade.”

The official’s calm voice rang in my ears.

“Do you agree to hand over the status as Spade’s Successor, to Leon Terval Postade?”

All eyes were on me.

At least what they expect me to do is ‘yes’ and nothing less.

In a stifling silence, people swallowed their saliva and watched my lips slowly unfold.

“……no.”

It’s time to break their stupid ideas.

Behind my purple hair, I smiled and spoke clearly.

“I don’t agree. The only real successor to the Spades is me, Yerine Ephritte Spade.”

———————–