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Chapter 3
The Obsessive Male Leads Are a Problem
Fighting Obsession with Obsession
Right now, my head contained a database of more than three hundred obsessive male leads from the novels I’d read in my previous world.
Obsessive male leads, tyrant male leads, scheming male leads, mastermind villains, northern dukes—even the hardcore yandere tops from BL novels.
After analyzing them all, I came to one conclusion.
To become someone those male leads would obsess over, three things were absolutely necessary:
Money. Power. Authority.
Without those three, I’d be disposed of by those terrible male leads long before I could even make them obsessed with me.
So what about Ariadne Veloa, the woman I had reincarnated as?
Money.
The House of Veloa owned enormous plantations and major mines. Among the Four Ducal Houses, they were the wealthiest.
Power.
Each of the Four Ducal Houses inherited a special ability.
The House of Callisto in the north possessed the power of fire.
The House of Douglas in the west wielded the power of wind.
The House of Shannon in the east controlled water.
And the House of Veloa in the south commanded the power of earth.
Those who inherited the bloodline strongly enough could awaken these ancestral abilities. They were called the Chosen, and they were welcomed wherever they went.
Ariadne Veloa belonged to that group.
Not only that—her earth magic was considered exceptionally powerful.
Though compared to the male leads, she’s still weaker…
Still, objectively speaking, Ariadne was strong.
For now, that was more than enough.
Lastly—
Authority.
Ariadne was the daughter of Duke Veloa.
What more needed to be said?
Perfect.
Everything’s ready.
Feeling refreshed, I stepped out of my room.
For the first time in a while, I was craving a proper dinner at the Veloa mansion.
*****
As always, there was one face in the dining room that I had absolutely no desire to see.
“Tch. There goes my appetite. Who invited Ariadne?”
Lawrence slammed his knife onto the table with a sneer.
Ignoring him completely, I greeted Julieta, who sat across from him.
Julieta was Ariadne’s companion and closest friend, living in the Veloa estate alongside her.
Thankfully, the original story hadn’t started yet.
There was still one year left before everything fell apart, so Ariadne and Julieta were still on relatively good terms.
“Good evening, Julieta.”
“A-Ari! I’ve been waiting for you!”
Julieta beamed brightly.
Judging by the untouched dishes in front of her, she’d truly waited for me before eating.
“Huh? You didn’t have to wait. You should’ve started first.”
She shook her head.
“No. Food tastes better when we eat together…”
“…”
She’d always been like this.
She always waited in the dining room so she could share meals with Ariadne.
But after Julieta’s debutante ball, the original Ariadne found even the sight of her unbearable and began eating every meal alone in her room.
She must have hated Julieta so much that she couldn’t even stand sharing a table with her.
Why would anyone hate such a sweet girl?
Suppressing a sigh, I sat beside Julieta.
As if he’d been waiting for the opportunity, Lawrence immediately picked a fight.
“Look at those manners! You’re going to stuff your face before greeting your older brother? I guess that’s what happens when you’re born to a commoner. You don’t have an ounce of etiquette.”
“…”
“Even though Julieta’s from a commoner background too, she’s polite and kind. Tch. Honestly, I wish Julieta were my real little sister instead!”
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say the original Ariadne became twisted because of Lawrence.
She had never once received genuine love from her family.
Her father was indifferent to his children.
Her mother had died when Ariadne was only five.
She had an older half-sister and half-brother from another mother.
And especially her half-brother—
Lawrence despised her.
Of course, he wasn’t likely to cherish a younger sister born to a commoner stepmother.
But that was only the excuse.
The real reason he hated Ariadne was much simpler.
Because she had inherited the power of earth.
Children blessed with earth magic were born with golden hair and emerald-green eyes.
Ariadne was one of those chosen children.
Lawrence wasn’t.
He refused to accept that fact.
He couldn’t stand that the daughter of a commoner possessed the very power he had failed to inherit.
So whenever he had the chance, he bullied Ariadne.
He constantly compared her to Julieta, her only friend, belittling Ariadne every step of the way.
Starved for affection her entire life, Ariadne gradually came to resent Julieta, who received the love she herself never had.
And when Julieta eventually captured the hearts of the Duke of the North, the High Priest, and even Ariadne’s own fiancé…
Ariadne finally lost herself to jealousy.
But that was the original Ariadne’s story.
Not mine.
The old Ariadne would have desperately tried to appease Lawrence here.
But why should I bother catering to a piece of trash like him?
I calmly picked up my glass of water…
…and dumped it straight onto his face.
Splash!
Heh.
I’d wanted to do that ever since my last life.
It felt so satisfying to finally make it happen.
I’d been holding quite the grudge against you, Lawrence Veloa.
Water streamed from his soaked hair as he shot to his feet.
“Hey! Are you insane?! What the hell are you doing?!”
As expected.
His first response was pure rage.
I folded my arms and smiled lazily.
“I’m from a commoner family, remember? I don’t have any manners. Since you’re a noble, I’m sure you’ll understand.”
“What?! Watch your mouth! And how dare you speak to your older brother so disrespectfully!”
“Why shouldn’t I? It’s not like there’s that much of an age difference between us.”
“…What?”
“…Did you just call me ‘you’?”
Everyone in the dining room stared at me in disbelief.
Well, naturally.
Until yesterday, Ariadne had trembled in fear whenever Lawrence spoke.
But I had no intention of living like that.
I looked at him with a mocking smile.
An unmistakable sneer.
The veins on Lawrence’s forehead bulged.
“Hey, Ariadne! What kind of attitude is that toward your older brother? Apologize. Now!”
“…”
“Oh? So you’re refusing? You stupid little brat who doesn’t know her place! You’re exactly like your filthy commoner mother!”
“…”
Just as expected.
He immediately dragged my mother into it.
Not surprising.
The fact that her mother had been born a commoner was the thing Ariadne hated and wanted to hide most.
But so what?
It meant absolutely nothing to me.
Why should someone’s birth matter?
I smiled pleasantly.
“Funny.”
“The one who doesn’t know his place is you.”
“W-What did you say?”
“If you’re going to insult someone, at least get the facts right.”
Lawrence froze in shock.
Even after insulting my mother’s background, I hadn’t reacted the way he’d expected.
Yeah.
None of your attacks work on me.
I stood up confidently and stared him straight in the eyes.
“Lawrence, it’s true my mother was born a commoner.”
“But she isn’t a commoner.”
“…What?”
“She became a Sixth-Class Mage, and His Majesty personally granted her the title of Baroness.”
“So if you insist on calling her a commoner…”
“…should I take that as disrespect toward the Emperor’s own decree?”
“H-Hey, what kind of nonsense are you—”
“If that’s not what you mean, then choose your words more carefully.”
“I’d hate to see you dragged away for treason.”
I’ve been to prison before.
Someone raised as delicately as you wouldn’t survive it.
Pretending to wipe away tears with a handkerchief, I sat back down.
I could feel Lawrence glaring daggers at me, but I didn’t care in the slightest.
“Damn it…”
“Ariadne… you’ll regret this.”
Unable to contain his anger any longer, Lawrence stormed out of the dining room.
Thanks to that, I was finally able to enjoy dinner in peace with Julieta.
Honestly…
Eating alone with Julieta was incredibly peaceful.
As I listened to her cheerful chatter, I cut a piece of steak and placed it into my mouth.
The moment I bit into it, rich juices burst across my tongue.
The meat was so tender it practically melted away like sherbet.
Mmm.
So delicious.
Home cooking really is the best.
A smile naturally spread across my lips.
Then Julieta casually said something that made my heart sink.
“Oh, right, Ari.”
“Young Master Douglas sent you a bouquet.”
“…Huh?”
“A bouquet?”
…Oh no.
Jeffrey might have been Ariadne’s fiancé, but he absolutely despised the selfish, greedy Ariadne.
So why would he send her flowers?
That couldn’t possibly be right.
“Yeah. But I think they were delivered to the wrong room.”
“Your bouquet ended up in my bedroom.”
“…Haha. Really?”
“I think the delivery person must’ve made a mistake.”
“I’ll bring it to your room tonight.”
“Y-Yeah… thanks.”
Julieta thought it had simply been a delivery mistake.
But I knew better.
Jeffrey’s servants weren’t incompetent enough to make an error like that.
Which meant…
From the very beginning…
The bouquet had been intended for Julieta.
He was expressing his interest in the true heroine of the story.
