I will not die a Villainess's death

Once you get used to the darkness and silence, it was not too bad. Rather, it could become a calming source and the vastness of the darkness could allow you to breathe better.

The real fear could only be felt once the calmness of the dark was broken by a sound. The fear of that 'unknown' could make even the strongest of people crumble, never mind six years old.

For Elysia, the sound of the door being forced open was similar to her visions.

In her visions, the person behind the prison door was the crown prince who had come to drag Elysia to her death.

But the hand that reached inside the current door was slimmer and smaller than the crown princes. It looked rather feminine and delicate to belong to any male.

'D-Did the vision change? Am I even dreaming right now? I don't remember going to sleep,' Elysia's mind was a mess.

Her emotions were already unstable from her day encounter. But the familiar face of Sister Rosa made Elysia relax a little.

"W-Why are you here? The head priest said that I am grounded and no one is allowed to meet me."

Elysia's voice was heavy with emotions. Sister Rosa was not her favorite person but she was the only one who would treat Elysia the same even in the future.

In Elysia's visions, she had seen people turn away from her once she fell out of the emperor's favor and was certified as a villainess.

Only Sister Rosa did not change. She had treated Elysia as a monster from the start and continued to look at Elysia like a monster.

"I'm just here to see what a monster looks like. Even if the head priest asked me to feed you secretly, I won't follow his orders. You better go to sleep if you don't want to feel hungry tonight."

"Oh,"

Elysia was not sure if she felt happy or disappointed to hear that news.

On one hand, she was not getting any food tonight which sucked. But on the other hand, just the fact that the head priest had thought of her was enough. It meant that he still liked Elysia and was concerned for her.

Also, she knew that sister Rosa did not like her but she still took time out of her schedule to let Elysia know this.

These small things might not mean anything to most people. But for the six-year-old Elysia who had seen visions of true loneliness and disparity, these moments were more than enough.

"S-Sister Rosa, wait. I have a question to ask of you."

"What is it?"

"C-Can I join the prayers tomorrow in the morning? It is the eclipse tomorrow and we always offer prayers to the gods on that day."

Initially, Elysia had wanted to ask something else. But the frosty eyes looking back at her forced Elysia to stay quiet.

"You are free to do what you want to. But I will advise you to not show your face near the special prayers held at noon time. The royal retainers will be here along with the next crown prince. I'm sure he will not want to see someone who injured him before."

"Oh. But then my part of the prayers-"

"-Will be handled by Brother Yohan's ward. That girl has more holy power than you so you do not need to worry about it."

Oh, so that was it. It was about time 'that' scene happens.

As far as the visions were concerned, the first meeting between Adam and Eve took place during Eve's first temple prayers. Even if it was happening a few years early, the condition of the meeting did match.

According to Elysia's visions, the meeting took place during the solar eclipse. Eve ends up replacing Elysia due to brother Yohan's insistence on her to prove herself.

In a fit of jealousy, Elysia ends up doing the taboo and causes a devil to appear which attacks the crown prince.

It was also the time Eve's strong holy magic activates and saves the crown prince.

That was how their first meeting was detailed in Elysia's visions. It was a dangerous incident for everyone which would not happen this time because Elysia would avoid the holy prayer this time.

It seems like being grounded had its uses. No one would ask for her presence in the prayer anyway since they all knew she was grounded.

As a bonus, Elysia would be able to avoid the crown prince and the royal retainers as well. It was a win-win situation for everyone.

_____________________________________

Eve watched Elysia's door finally open after a long time and sister Rosa exit it. The sister looked unconcerned about being seen venturing in and out of Elysia's room this late in the evening.

It was only after sister Rosa was truly gone did Eve come and stood in front of Elysia's door.

She hesitated before gulping down her fear and knocking at the door. She needed to apologize for what happened in the evening.

No one answered her and no one opened the door. So Eve decided to be brave and force the door open.

There was some resistance at first but the door slid open pretty easily after the first resistance. The magical locks on the door had been broken already.

"Sister Rosa, do you need something?"

The room was dark so Eve could not tell where Elysia's voice was coming from. It seemed to be echoing all over the room.

It was a creepy effect but not one that would scare Eve away.

"I'm sorry that I am not sister Rosa. I am just here to apologize to you for what happened before. Did Yohan come here to apologize -"

Eve felt someone push her outside the door instantly and the door was closed with a bang before she could even finish her sentence.

The push had not been hard, just enough to send Eve out of the door.

"You should not be here. If someone finds you here then you will get into trouble as well. You cannot get in trouble before the ceremony tomorrow."

Elysia's voice was muffled but clear through the door. It did not sound angry or even sad to Eve.

It made Eve feel a little better about her situation.

"It will be alright. But did Yohan apologize to you? I asked him to apologize to you or I won't talk to him again. I hope we can still be friends."

Eve had been riddled with guilt the entire day. Her only friend had been threatened because of her and that did not sit right with her.

Eve already did not have a lot of people on her side in this unfamiliar world so she did not want to lose anyone else important to her.

"Apologise? Ah, I don't need an apology since I already forgave brother Yohan. It was a misunderstanding so I'm not angry either. We can still be friends."

Eve's heart felt light once she heard those words. Now she wanted to be Elysia's friend.

"I-If we are friends, then, can you open this door for me? Talking through the door is a bit weird for me."

"I cannot do that or you will get into trouble. You should also head out now since it's time for an evening check. Take the right corridor so that you do not get caught on your way out."

Eve wanted to spend more time with Elysia but she could hear footsteps headed her way.

For behind an abandoned part of the temple, there were sure a lot of people who passed through this corridor.

Eve managed to turn the corner just in time before she heard the footsteps stop. She quickly snuck her head past the corridor to take a look.

It was Yohan who stood in front of Elysia's room. His face held an expression Eve had never seen before but she could not bring herself to get out and confront him.

Yohan had been good to Eve. He had taken her in when no one else had and he had cared for her. He was a gentle and kind man who cared for people.

"Let's get this over with. It is already late."

The man gave a single knock at Elysia's door before he entered the room.

'He must be here to apologize. He did not look happy but I'm sure he will come to like Elysia soon. And then we can be friends for real.'

Those might be Eve's native thoughts coming to the surface. Or it might be her wishful thinking. But she was sure things would be alright in the future.

That day, Eve left Elysia's corridor with a happy look on her face, unaware of the thing she had neglected to check.

Inside her room, Elysia was disturbed for the third time that day. But this visit would be the one that would change everything.

Two pairs of unfamiliar eyes met across the room and Elysia felt her breath get caught in her throat.

For the first time in her life, Elysia felt fearful of a human. And that human was brother Yohan, the female lead's guardian, and biggest supporter.

To a future villainess like her, he was the biggest reason contributing to her death apart from the crown prince.

"Come, sit down. I have some things I need to discuss with you. Don't worry, I won't harm you yet so just listen to me for now."

Elysia took in a deep breath to calm herself before sitting down in front of the man. And then the staring match began anew.