🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 1
Being Reincarnated into an Unfinished Novel Sucks.
I wasn’t a complete train wreck from the very beginning.
At least, when I first found myself transmigrated into the dark romance novel Julietta in the Cage, I had been an ordinary person.
Julietta in the Cage was a tragic reverse-harem fantasy romance about the heroine, Julietta, whose life was torn apart by the obsessive love of three male leads.
As expected of a reverse-harem story, there weren’t just one but three men hopelessly obsessed with the heroine.
They were all different in appearance, personality, and age, but they shared one thing in common:
They were completely insane about Julietta.
To possess her, they would stop at nothing.
Near the end of the novel, they even tried to lock her away in their own hideouts so that no one else could have her.
Like a bird trapped inside a cage.
Perhaps that was why the novel was called Julietta in the Cage.
Unfortunately, I never found out whether Julietta actually ended up imprisoned in those cages.
The novel went on indefinite hiatus right before that part was published.
“What the hell? Are you kidding me? You’re ending it here?”
I threw my phone onto the bed in frustration.
Of all places, the author had stopped at the biggest cliffhanger imaginable. I was dying to know what happened next.
Of course…
That didn’t mean I wanted to be transmigrated into the novel myself.
*
When I opened my eyes, I was staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.
Then a perfectly square window—just like something out of a video game—appeared before me.
[SYSTEM]
Welcome to Julietta in the Cage.
You have become Ariadne Veloa, age 18.
“…Huh?”
What was this system window?
I wasn’t playing some VR game, yet the strange translucent screen floating before my eyes refused to disappear.
Trying to stay calm, I slowly read every word.
“So… I’ve become Ariadne Veloa from Julietta in the Cage*…?”*
Ariadne was the villainess of the novel.
She was the duke’s daughter who grew jealous of Julietta for receiving the male leads’ affection and eventually met a tragic death because of it.
“And I’m… her?”
What kind of nonsense was this?
Startled, I sprinted toward the mirror.
Reflected in the ornate antique mirror—something that belonged in a European royal palace—stood an impossibly beautiful young woman with golden hair and emerald-green eyes.
“W-What is this?”
I screamed in shock.
But what frightened me even more was hearing a voice far higher and clearer than my own.
“Holy crap… I really got reincarnated into a novel?”
While I stood there panicking, another system window appeared.
[SYSTEM]
Complete the unfinished novel Julietta in the Cage.
Success Reward: A Wish Stone that grants one wish.
Failure: Move to RESET POINT.
“…Hmm.”
After several minutes, I finally managed to calm myself.
Staring at the floating window, I thought things through.
“So… I have to finish the story because the original novel never ended?”
I wasn’t exactly a genius, but even I could tell these conditions weren’t bad.
“Actually… they’re incredible.”
The Ariadne I had become might have been the main villainess, but she wasn’t truly an essential character.
She simply bullied the heroine out of jealousy before being brutally killed by the male leads.
“In that case… I don’t even need to interfere with the story.”
Without Ariadne constantly harassing Julietta, the heroine and the male leads should naturally get together even faster.
The story would reach its ending more smoothly than in the original, I’d obtain the Wish Stone, and then I could live however I pleased.
At the time…
I genuinely believed it would be that simple.
Because of that, I never gave much thought to what the system meant by RESET POINT.
*
“Ahhh… Life is wonderful!”
Three years passed.
The story had finally reached the point where the original novel had gone on hiatus.
Rumor had it that the male leads were desperately trying to imprison Julietta somewhere in the imperial capital.
Which meant…
The climax had finally arrived.
“Perfect! This is it!”
Feeling delighted, I looked back on everything I’d done.
Unlike the original Ariadne, I had maintained a friendly relationship with Julietta.
I had even happily accepted Male Lead No. 2’s demand to break off our engagement so he could marry Julietta instead.
“Wait… Seriously? You’re agreeing that easily?”
Remembering the dumbfounded expression on his face as he stared at me still irritated me.
And then…
The next thing he said…
“No. Don’t think about it.”
“I’ll never have to see that bastard’s face again.”
Right.
From now on, I would only think happy thoughts.
Gazing at the brilliant emerald sea, I calmed myself.
Truthfully, I had never wanted anything to do with the original male leads.
So during the past three years, I had only spent time with Julietta.
Then, just a few days ago, after receiving my father’s permission, I moved to a villa on the distant coast, far away from the capital.
“If I’m here, I’ll never run into those male leads again.”
Exactly.
All I had to do now was relax, enjoy my peaceful life, and wait for Julietta in the Cage to reach its ending.
…
Exactly one week after beginning that carefree life…
I died.
A massive black tidal wave swallowed me before I could escape.
“W-What the hell?!”
The gigantic black wave engulfed the entire seaside mansion in an instant.
As I stared in horror, the familiar system window appeared.
[SYSTEM]
Julietta has gone berserk because of the male leads’ obsession.
The Empire has fallen.
Moving to RESET POINT.
“…What?”
Julietta…
Went berserk?
Then…
Was she the one who created that black tidal wave?
And the Empire had been destroyed?
Because of her?
…How was that even possible?
As far as I knew, Julietta was simply an ordinary heroine with a bit of talent for magic.
The original novel had never mentioned her going berserk even once.
She had always been portrayed as a kind, gentle, emotionally fragile heroine—the typical female lead in a tragic romance.
So how had she suddenly become some kind of ultimate weapon capable of destroying an entire empire?
What the hell was this?
Filled with disbelief, I slowly closed my eyes.
When I opened them again…
I was eighteen-year-old Ariadne Veloa once more.
At the time, I was so shocked that Julietta had destroyed the Empire that I completely overlooked the true cause.
Looking back…
That was the most important clue of all.
[SYSTEM]
Restarting due to the story remaining unfinished.
You are Ariadne Veloa, age 18.
“W-What… the hell is this…?”
I stared blankly at the system window.
Forcing my sluggish brain to think, I desperately tried to make sense of everything.
“The Empire suddenly fell…”
“Did everything go wrong because I didn’t follow the original story?”
It sounded entirely possible.
After all, in transmigration stories, the more the transmigrator changes the original plot, the more unexpected consequences appear.
That’s how villainesses accidentally end up loved by their families or marrying the cold Duke of the North.
“If the transmigrator doesn’t fulfill the role assigned by the original story… the plot can’t progress properly.”
I had no desire to die another meaningless death because of Julietta’s rampage.
So…
“This time…”
“I’ll follow the original story.”
And that’s exactly what I did.
I hated Julietta just like the original Ariadne.
Well…
Not completely.
If I copied the original exactly, I’d still end up murdered by the male leads.
So I toned things down.
Instead of slapping her—
I insulted her.
Instead of throwing cold water in her face—
I insulted her.
Instead of shredding the dress the male leads had given her—
I insulted her.
Instead of trying to poison her—
I insulted her.
I never insulted her parents.
And I made sure not to go overboard.
“Phew… That should be enough.”
As a result, I avoided the gruesome death that awaited Ariadne in the original.
Instead…
When the story reached its hiatus point, I was sentenced to two years in the Imperial Central Prison.
The male leads had finally had enough of my constant verbal abuse and worked together to throw me in jail.
“I hereby sentence the defendant, Ariadne Veloa, to two years of imprisonment.”
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The judge’s gavel echoed through the courtroom.
“Well… I expected as much.”
I accepted the verdict without resistance.
Simply surviving instead of being murdered by the male leads was already a blessing.
“Hah! That feels satisfying! Lady Veloa’s era is finally over!”
“It’s wonderful news. She always looked down on Lady Cutler. Serves her right.”
“Exactly! Anyone who bullies an angel like Lady Cutler deserves this. Of all people, she dared target Lady Cutler…”
The courtroom buzzed with delighted whispers.
Everyone seemed to celebrate Ariadne Veloa’s downfall.
Everyone…
Except one person.
“Aria! No!”
As the prison guards escorted me away in handcuffs, I heard Julietta calling from behind.
Pushing through the crowd, she grabbed my arm.
“Aria! This has to be a mistake! What did you even do to deserve this?”
“…”
“And prison…? This is completely unfair! We have to speak to the judge right now—”
I quietly looked at Julietta’s face.
Just as I’d expected.
Her eyes were swollen red from crying all night.
Even now…
She was still taking my side.
It honestly amazed me.
During my second life, I had never once treated Julietta kindly.
Yet just like in the original story, she continued to care about me.
“She’s such a genuinely kind person.”
“No wonder those lunatic male leads are obsessed with her.”
That was why I could never truly hate Julietta.
Without realizing it, I had already fallen for her warmth and kindness myself.
Julietta possessed that kind of power.
