49) Chapter 9. Do You Want Me to Be a Villain? (1)

If I think back to my previous life—

I don’t remember my elementary school entrance ceremony at all. It was too long ago.

They said I’d been sniffling nonstop, but the fact that I can’t recall even a trace of it probably means I was just bored out of my mind.

Middle school wasn’t scary.

Most of the kids I met at the entrance ceremony were just neighborhood friends.
We’d played together the day before—why would I be nervous?
Even if there were new classmates, as long as I stuck with my elementary school friends, school was never lonely.

High school was the real problem.

Out of all the kids in my class, I barely knew anyone.
My social circle hadn’t magically expanded in middle school, so even kids from the same middle school were basically strangers.

Up until middle school, I could at least say, “I’m not completely friendless.”
But once I entered high school… well, that was the end of that.

And college? There’s nothing to explain there.

“Haa…”

“What are you so nervous about?”

“B‑Because… no one else from my school came here.”

I still kept in touch with Mirae and Ji‑hye. We met during breaks or after school.

When we first met, my knowledge of anime, manga, and games was way behind theirs.
But at some point, I caught up—or even surpassed them.

Well, I was home while everyone else was at school.

I had a tutor, but I didn’t study as much as I would have in a real school.
My goal was just to pass the qualification exam, so I didn’t need to.

After a year of laser‑focused studying and mock exams, I had too much free time.

Even though I knew I shouldn’t, I ended up diving deep into my old hobbies again.

…Anyway, despite being friends with Mirae and Ji‑hye—

Neither of them were superhumans.

The Academy only accepted superhumans to train them so they wouldn’t cause trouble as adults.
So they weren’t even eligible.

Which meant I knew exactly zero people at the Academy.
Well—excluding Soi and Chae‑yi.

It felt less like a high school entrance ceremony and more like being thrown straight into a college orientation where I knew no one and had no idea how to talk to anyone.

“Hee~ I see.”

When I trembled with anxiety, Soi gave me a strangely meaningful smile.

Then she grabbed my hand tightly.

“Don’t worry too much~”

That lazy, teasing tone she always used when she wanted to mess with me.

If I didn’t know her real personality, I might’ve thought she was some laid‑back gyaru type.
But unfortunately, I knew her far too well.

Her true nature was closer to a model student who listened well and behaved perfectly.

“This unnie will take care of everything~ Making friends isn’t that hard~”

“D‑Don’t tease me.”

When I grumbled, Soi giggled.

Ever since she became a third‑year, she used that voice more often.
Maybe she’d decided I was someone who needed “protecting.”

Well… she always thought that, but still.

Maybe it was because she’d grown confident in her abilities.
Honestly, she was strong enough now to take down a mediocre villain in real combat.

When I tried to gently push her off my arm—

“Right. Do you think Rua is a baby or something?”

The girl holding my other hand tugged me closer.

That sensation was… troublesome.

Not good or bad—just… troublesome.
Like something I shouldn’t be feeling.

When we entered middle school, I thought all three of us had already finished growing.
But apparently not.
Me, Soi, and Chae‑yi had all grown taller, our figures more defined.

Which meant… when they clung to me like this, I became painfully aware of it.

“Right? Our Rua isn’t a baby. She can do everything just fine on her own. I believe in her.”

If Soi wanted to act like the cool older sister, then Chae‑yi…

Chae‑yi talked like a mom doting on her daughter.

“But I’ll stay right beside you and help you with everything, so don’t worry! Fighting!”

Wasn’t she shy until not long after entering middle school?
She used to stutter like me.

When did she change?

It happened so gradually I couldn’t pinpoint when our dynamic became like this.

“……”

Soi narrowed her eyes at Chae‑yi.
A look full of unspoken complaints—but held back because I was there.

That was another problem.

There was definitely some kind of rivalry between them.

Did they fight in middle school?
Maybe they were “friends of a friend”—friendly on the surface but not actually close.

They whispered to each other behind my back sometimes, but whenever I asked, they said it was nothing.

“A‑Anyway…”

We were all girls, so maybe people wouldn’t misunderstand—
No, actually, that made misunderstandings more likely.

It happened in middle school too.
Kids whispered about us.

And this was the Academy.
It was worse here.

I was already famous.

Soi and Chae‑yi were famous too, but in a good way.
They were daughters of heroes.

Auntie Yujin was already well‑known, and Cheong Hwirin’s reputation had skyrocketed recently.
I wasn’t sure if that was thanks to Auntie Yujin, but they’d caught villains together a few times.

“M‑Maybe… we should keep some distance?”

I suggested carefully.

Because—

I was the Witch’s daughter.

The news had talked about it endlessly.

My “mother” had hurt people.
Not just a little—seriously.

I wrote letters to the victims, just like Auntie Yujin told me to.
But no one ever replied.

At some point, I realized something:

Just like I had trauma,
they might have trauma because of me.

And the best way to heal trauma was to forget.
To bury it under new memories.

If they had permanent injuries… then forgetting would be impossible.

Maybe Auntie Yujin’s gentle words were her way of telling me that.

…Anyway.

This was dangerous.

If the daughters of heroes stuck too closely to the Witch’s daughter—

“Hmmm.”

Soi made that sound again.
The sound she made when she completely disagreed with me.

“So our Rua is just embarrassed? Cute~”

She clung even tighter.

“No need to be shy. We’re the closest friends in the whole world. Of course we stick together.”

“…I’m the closest.”

“…Well, we can all be close together, right?”

…No.
You two don’t seem that close at all.

But I kept that thought to myself.

*

The entrance ceremony was boring.

The principal dragged on with the same clichés everyone already knew.

Maybe becoming a principal automatically gave you the urge to give long speeches.

But one thing stood out:

The principal didn’t look that old.

Seol Heewon.

That was her name.

The original owner of the house we visited every summer.

Her black hair was neatly tied up, giving her the impression of a sharp, competent career woman.
Since she was friends with Auntie Yujin, she was probably around the same age.

“Oops, did I talk too long?”

She smiled slightly, as if realizing it late.

A boy nearby sighed softly.

Not a sigh of boredom—
More like…

…Was there a teacher heroine in the original story? I don’t remember.

If she were important, I’d probably recall her.
But I didn’t.

Still, I remembered the major events.
I should be able to handle things—

That’s when it happened.

The principal’s eyes met mine.

Huh.

I hesitated—should I look away?
But before I could decide, she smiled at me.

Thankfully, no one else seemed to notice.
With so many people around, maybe I imagined it.

“That’s enough boring talk. Everyone, please head to your classrooms.”

The students let out a collective sigh.

This time, a genuine sigh of relief.

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Pub: 29 Mar 2026 01:50 UTC

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