Chapter 1

It was cold. My shoulder, uncovered by the blanket, felt chilled. In a groggy state, I fumbled with my hand and pulled the blanket up.

The cold that disturbed my sleep didn’t disappear right away, so I slowly curled up, and right beside me, I felt warmth.

‘It’s warm.’

I stopped curling up, reached my hand towards the warmth, and hugged something cozy.

Knead, knead.

The warmth, too big to be held in one arm, was firm yet soft, fitting perfectly into my hand.

‘Right, just like a person’s skin…’

Knead, knead, knead, knead, knead, knead.

‘…’

Wait, what am I touching?

A cold shiver ran down my spine. There was a strange something in my bed.

‘How… did I get back to the dormitory yesterday?’

Rustle, I heard the sound of the blanket shifting. I, for one, was frozen solid.

Clutching my uncontrollably pounding heart, I slowly opened my eyes to check on the uninvited guest in my bed.

And what came into my sight was…

A sharp jawline that looked like it could cut, black hair that shone beautifully in the early morning sun. His shoulders and chest were so broad that I could be held in them, not the other way around. Every part of him was a flawless, perfect man.

‘Wow, he’s amazing…’

I blinked my blurry eyes, and the handsome face became even clearer.

‘Just as expected of the original male lead.’

It was a rare opportunity to see his face up close, so I examined him from head to toe.

He was the Duke of Eclipse, the lord of the North, and the youngest swordmaster in the Empire.

And he was the ‘male lead’ of this world.

It was Nine Eclipse.

‘But why is he here?’

I just moved my eyes, glancing around.

Location: My dormitory room, on the bed.

Time: Probably morning.

Situation: I’m in the same bed as Nine Eclipse, under the same blanket.

‘?’

I covered my mouth with my hand to stop myself from screaming. My pounding heart whispered, “You’re screwed,” in my ear. I tried to ignore that voice and slowly lifted the blanket we were sharing.

‘…’

I’m so screwed.

As I lifted the blanket, what I had hoped against hope was proven false: Nine’s buttons were not doing their job, proudly showing off his sculpted physique.

I hurriedly removed the hand I had placed on his chest.

‘No wonder it felt so firm!’

But the problem didn’t end there.

I slowly inspected myself under the blanket. I was in a thin chemise. The front was open, and the skirt was rolled up and caught on my thigh, completely exposing my pale legs.

‘…’

Anyone looking at this scene would think something had happened.

I jumped up and clutched my head. What in the world happened?

“Inhale, exhale…”

I took a deep breath, trying to steady my dizzy mind, and slowly began to trace my memories.

***

Chacha Blueberry.

That was my current name, and a character from the romance fantasy web novel 「White Plum Blossom at the End of Winter」 that I had read in my past life. She was the minion 1 of the villainess who only appeared for a short time. In other words, a total extra.

‘I guess the author was too lazy to come up with a name.’

The ridiculous name was a big reason I realized I was a web novel extra. I had wondered if it was a normal name in this world, but it turned out to be an unusual name here too.

Anyway, I was a transmigrator, the most common type in web novels.

In my first life, I was an ordinary woman named ‘Lee Hyun’ who lived in a place called the Republic of Korea. I wasn’t lucky with parents and spent my youth working like an ant to pay off my father’s debt from drinking and gambling. Then I collapsed, bleeding from my nose…

When I opened my eyes again, I was a noble young lady in a fantasy novel. I had thin, fluffy, curly light pink hair. My eyes were a bit darker pink than my hair. I had white skin and a perfect, puppy-like face.

“Chacha!”

“Oh my, are you okay? My daughter!”

Not long after I woke up, a plump middle-aged man and a plump brown-haired noblewoman came to find me.

“Oh, who are you?”

And I naturally pretended to have amnesia.

The two people who introduced themselves as my parents told me a lot of information since everything was unfamiliar. This was the Blueberry County, part of the Dragon Empire. The Blueberry County, despite its cute name, ran a pretty big merchant guild. I was seven years old.

“Does your head still hurt, my daughter?”

“Why did you climb that tree!”

The Blueberries said that Chacha Blueberry had lost consciousness after falling from the top of a tree. It was a good thing that they thought I had lost my memory from the shock of the fall.

‘She climbed a tree because she wanted to look down on people.’

Chacha Blueberry had been an aspiring minion of the villainess since she was a child.

Anyway, that’s how I began to live Chacha Blueberry’s life. It wasn’t easy to adapt to the unfamiliar environment and people, but one thing was certain: Chacha’s life was happy. For the first time in my life, I received a lot of love from a family.

‘So this is what family is like.’

In addition, my life was prosperous. The Blueberry County was a family that had amassed vast wealth through a large merchant guild. Thanks to this, I could also enjoy material prosperity that I had never experienced in my past life.

‘I love being a rich and beloved noble young lady. I want to live like this forever.’

I made a decision. I will stay true to the original story so I don’t mess up this life! I know the future, so if I just get on the villainess’s good side, I can make a graceful exit when she leaves the story and maintain this life regardless of the original plot.

With this bold life plan, I entered the ‘Dragonia Academy’ and continued my life as a minion to the villainess, Duchess Helena Oswald, for five years. That is, until before the graduation party.

“Can you get me a love potion?”

“Pardon?”

A ‘love potion’ is a magical medicine. It was only wrapped in a romantic name; it didn’t actually have the effect of making someone fall in love.

But why this?

“It has to be so perfect that no one notices, Chacha.”

“Wait, just a moment, Lady Helena?”

“The deadline is before the graduation party. You can do it, right?”

The reckless villainess said only that and left.

I had intended to be faithful to the original, but I didn’t expect this. Was this the ‘love potion incident’?

‘Is it happening now?’

The combination of the graduation party and a love potion naturally made me recall the incident from the original story. The details were unclear because it was only briefly mentioned as a past event, but it was the incident where Helena tried to make Nine drink a love potion.

What was she planning? I could do as she wanted. But…

‘According to the original, Helena gets a convent ending.’

The plan fails, the main culprit is revealed, and Helena couldn’t escape the consequences. And because of this incident, Nine is traumatized and comes to despise contact with women…

I didn’t want to get involved in the original plot, but since the incident I knew about was in my hands, I couldn’t ignore it.

‘What should I do…’

I didn’t dislike the villainess, Helena. After being in this world and experiencing her firsthand, she was different from the one-dimensional Helena I read about in the book. Of course, she was selfish and arrogant, and she did torment people, but she wasn’t a girl I could simply hate. After spending so much time with her, I had grown fond of her.

‘But the love potion is too much.’

I decided to change the original story just this one time. I didn’t want to see Helena end up in a convent, and it was better for Nine not to have a needless trauma.

‘And I owe Nine a debt.’

Since Helena left half of the plan to me, from preparing the love potion to its execution, it was easy to intervene. Honestly, Helena wasn’t a very good superior. Most of her plans had only a goal, and the details were all worked out by her minions below.

‘It’s so easy to be a villainess.’

Just say the word, and the minions would make it happen.

Anyway, I went to the back alleys to get a colorless and odorless love potion while also diligently preparing an antidote and a magical tool.

The graduation party arrived quickly.

***

This year’s graduation party was held in the largest hall in the academy. It was always a grand affair, but it seemed the scale had been made even bigger since there were many children of high-ranking nobles in this graduating class.

The high ceilings, the sparkling chandeliers, the luxurious red carpet, and the gentle melody flowing through the hall. Everyone who entered the party was dressed to the nines, but Helena was by far the most noticeable.

“Wow, Lady Helena!”

“You are truly beautiful.”

Her red hair sparkled under the chandelier light, pulled up in a half-updo with transparent gem hair ornaments. Her vibrant purple dress, the same color as her eyes, perfectly showed off her slender waist and was so luxurious that it caught everyone’s attention.

“Lady Chacha, your dress suits you so well too~!”

The young ladies who had gathered around her complimented each other and then politely spoke to me.

“Oh, thank you! You also shine today, Lady! Isn’t that dress from the most popular boutique these days?”

I returned the compliment. Today, like a good minion, I was dressed carefully, not standing out too much, but also not looking inferior to her.

‘I broke a sweat just doing this.’

I looked down at the sky-blue dress that went well with my pink hair. It was a dress with just the right amount of frills and lace and was decorated with just the right amount of jewels that weren’t too flashy. The necklace and earrings were simple yet elegant. Simple is best.

It was much harder than just decorating myself to be pretty.

But the real core of my role was now. Being a minion to the original villainess isn’t just about standing by her side.

“As expected, Lady Helena’s beauty shines the brightest at today’s party!”

“And Lady Helena was the second-place graduate as well!”

“Oh, really?”

Helena doesn’t like compliments that only praise her looks. When I subtly added a compliment about her intelligence, her gaze softened.

“As expected, Lady Chacha, you’re quick with news. Still, it’s a shame I couldn’t be first place in the end.”

“Ah… First place was still Duke Nine, I see.”

Why would you bring up Nine there! Helena talking about it herself was one thing, but if someone else brought up the topic of first place, her mood would sour. Her sharp gaze was instantly directed at Lady Lebona, who had made the slip. She was about to ruin her.

“But didn’t Duke Nine lose to Lady Helena in the academic subjects, excluding the practical ones?”

I quickly jumped into the conversation, as if muttering to myself in a dazed manner. I naturally changed the subject.

“You’ll naturally be opening a salon after graduation, Lady Helena? I’m already looking forward to it!”

Both of their gazes naturally turned to me. Regaining her composure, Helena smiled faintly and replied.

“Yes. But I plan to be selective about the members. We’ll be discussing subjects that might be too difficult for those with a low level of education. I’m sorry, Lady Lebona.”

Those words can be interpreted in four words. ‘I’m not inviting you.’

Just then, the head of the academy appeared in the hall, and the conversation ended. The servants bustled around, handing everyone champagne glasses.

Standing behind Helena, I subtly glanced at Nine, who was a little distance away.

That’s right.

Helena’s plan was to use a bribed servant to make Nine drink the love potion. Nine received a champagne glass from the servant.

“Congratulations on your graduation, everyone. Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

With the academy head’s toast, Nine drank the champagne with the love potion in it.

Without any suspicion.