I will not die a Villainess's death

If someone was asked what the most mysterious place in the empire was, most people would not hesitate to point toward the Dirac estate.

It was rumored to be a place full of wildlife and magic. One where dreams could come true and magic was in abundance.

Those were the rumors the common people liked to tell when talking about the Dirac family.

However, those who had even a little bit of knowledge about the underworld and the politics would tell you otherwise.

They would tell you to never offend a Dirac or would disappear without a trace. The most powerful family in the empire after the royal family was Dirac without any doubt.

But the source of their power or their wealth was not known to anyone. Anyone who tried to abuse the Dirac wealth or name for themselves ended up dying of natural causes. Even the magicians were not spared.

And above all this power stood only one man, the current head of the Dirac family and the only member of the line currently alive - Lucas, the immortal.

The only person to have survived the family tragedy and beaten the Dirac curse.

No one know how he looked or even his real age. He rarely stepped out of his mansion and his work was mostly carried out by his proxy, a distant relative who was equally recognized in the kingdom.

People tried to get close to the truth of the young master. Ladies flocked toward him when social events came but he never paid attention to anyone.

But everyone agreed that he was dangerous.

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"Hector, have you prepared everything I asked you to prepare?"

The cool and heavy voice belonged to no one other than the Lord of Dirac house, Lucas. His accomplishments were many and his name was known far and wide in the empire.

But despite his enormous fame, he was but a man in his early twenties.

His features were delicate but they did not possess fragility. His body was lean but strong, a sign of a swordsman who had practiced the art but not spent all his time on it.

But despite his pretty-boy looks, there was an aura of danger around that man which told the looker not to mess with him or they would regret their decision.

Lord Lucas was a dangerous but attractive young man who many would love to marry. And yet he had stayed single to this day and not even looked toward anyone.

The family butler, Hector, who was kneeling in front of his master was worried about his young master.

'So young and still single. And now he decided to take that problem child back in the family as well.'

"Everything had been taken care of, master. The staff has been warned to not mistreat my lady once she returns home."

The butler wanted to look at his master's expression but he did not dare. Master Lucas had been in a weird mood the past few days, and his temper was volatile.

"Out with it, Hector. Say what you want to say and don't beat around the bush anymore."

Hector took a deep breath before facing the music. He had been caught by his master already so there was no point in hiding his emotions any longer.

"My lord, are you sure you want to call 'that child' back? You have heard the rumors that are circulating Lady Elysia. If we take her in then your reputation would only sour further. Not to mention, people will believe that you support her and the crown prince's union. Please do not let the temple pressure you into making this decision-"

Hector had only wanted to say a little on this topic, but once the dam had broken, words had spilt out of his mouth.

The butler dared to look up for only one second before he flinched and looked back down.

The look in his master's eyes was not one he had ever seen before. That rage and darkness swirling in his master coupled with the uncontrolled magic made the butler shiver in fright.

"You still don't understand what is going on so do not run your mouth unnecessarily. The decision to bring Elysia back was mine, not the Temple's. As for supporting her union with the crown prince? It's the opposite. Those who wanted this union to break would jump at this opportunity to cause a mess."

The butler could not understand his master's thought process at all.

"Don't try to understand what is going on Hector, you won't get it anyway. All you need to do is to obey my command and you will live. Now, if that is all then leave this room. I need to make some 'personal' preparations to welcome my younger sister back."

The butler shivered as he left Lord Lucas's office. The last thing he saw on his face was a smile that did not look right.

Whatever his young master was planning, it hurt someone in the end. It was better to stay out of his way.

Those who oppose the Dirac family never got good ends. And Hector, who had served this family for generations knew when to keep his head down.

It seemed like the young miss Elysia would be a ticking time bomb once she arrived here. He would have to make sure nothing happens to her.

_____________________________________

Elysia found herself unable to sleep well at the night. Her mind kept flashing back to the news that had been dumped over her all of a sudden.

'Back to that family home? Somehow, I can't fall asleep at all.'

Elysia twister and turned in her bed, her sleep coming in broken intervals that she did not even remember.

The morning greeted her with a tired and aching body along with an unclear mind. Elysia didn't have the willpower to get up from her bed.

"Time to get up. Head Priest asked me to make sure you reach your destination without any problem," it was Sister Rosa's voice that broke the thin vile of sleep over Elysia.

Since someone had come to pick her up, Elysia could no longer pretend to be asleep. She forcefully dragged her body out of bed and walked toward the bathhouse.

'I least it's not the ceremonial pool. I don't think I can handle seeing a vision today.' Elysia continued her walk and quickly washed.

The less time she spent on her preparations, the less time Elysia would have to think over her circumstances.

Sister Rosa was waiting for her when she came back. The indifferent look Sister Rosa gave her along with her injured eyes filled Elysia with guilt.

It had been her fault Sister Rosa had been injured like that in the first place. And Elysia knew how tough it was to navigate this world with limited vision.

Elysia and Sister Rosa might not have identical situations but they were in a similar enough boat for Elysia to feel connected with her.

"I send your luggage to our cart already. You should head down when you are ready. We will have breakfast in the town."

Elysia was thankful for the time Sister Rosa was giving her to say goodbye. There were not many people Elysia needed to greet but she did feel like she needed to say something to Eve before leaving.

'Eve will also tell Adam about me so I will not have to worry about him either. I hope things go alright between them even without my intervention.'

Although Elysia knew she had nothing to worry about when it came to those two, she still could not help but worry.

For two people who were destined to be with each other, they surely did like to keep their differences. But maybe being away from Elysia would be good for their relationship.

Elysia knocked at Eve's door but no one answered. It was unusual for Eve to not answer her door and Elysia almost opened the door when she was stopped.

"Here for Eve? She's not here today. She was asked to get materials ready for the crown prince's birthday so she already left. Seeing her doing 'someone else's' duty sure is weird but I support her."

Elysia ignored the jab that was made at her 'position'. The sister who had just spoken had done so to humiliate Elysia.

These sisters knew that they could get away with humiliating Elysia, so they did just that. And Elysia chose to ignore them in return so that she did not have to break her mask if a meek bi-stander.

"O-Oh. Then I should get going as we-" Elysia had not even taken one step ahead when she collided with something solid.

Thankfully, she did not lose her balance or it would have been humiliating for her.

"Why are you dressed like this? Are you going somewhere? I was looking ahead to spending the day with you," the familiar whisper spoke directly in Elysia's ears.

Elysia shivered as soon as she felt the cold touch of Adam's breath and her body lost all the energy it had.

For some reason, her body refused to move as soon as Adam touched her. Elysia always ended up leaning on him for support when these things happened.

"M-My lord, shouldn't you let Lady Elysia go? S-Someone will misunderstand if they saw you like this," the sister from before was brave enough to speak up.

Elysia was not even looking toward Adam but she already knew he had a glare on his face.

"What kind of 'wrong idea' will I give out when I am supporting 'my' fiance? Don't open your mouth uselessly."

Adam sounded pissed. He was even pulling Elysia tighter against his body to prove a point and it made Elysia's heart skip a beat.

"I-I mean she's not….if anyone…..I'm sorry. I should take my leave now."

The sister that had tried to drive some sense in the crown prince's head made a quick exit. Elysia could only see blurs of a passing figure but she was sure the sister would not be seen again.

"Adam, you can let me go. I will not trip again."

"Are you sure?"

The crown prince's voice sounded like it doubted Elysia but he still let go after the last squeeze. Elysia took a few breaths to calm her racing heart down before she faced the crown prince.

She wanted to ask him why he was there but she didn't get to speak before the crown prince opened his mouth.

"Elysia, where were you thinking of going? You were not present during our weekly meeting yesterday, nor before that. It feels like it's been ages since I last saw you. Don't tell me that you were trying to cut me off."

'He sounds mad. Why is he so angry?' Elysia had no idea what had pissed the crown prince off. She had even been considerate enough to give him some alone time with Eve so that he could make a move on her.

"There is nothing wrong. I was just a little busy these past few weeks."

"Busy? Busy doing what?"

Elysia opened her mouth to confess but then closed it the very next second. She did not know what compelled her to even think of confessing, but Elysia quickly squished those traitorous thoughts out of her mind.

"You do no-"

"Lady Elysia, please hurry up. We need to leave now if we want to get to our destination in time. We should not keep Lord Dirac waiting."

"Lord Dirac? Your elder brother? Seems like an interesting story I would want to hear. Won't you allow me to accompany you both on this journey?"

It did not surprise Elysia to see Adam know about her real family. This topic had only come up once and that was also by mistake but Adam was just the kind of man to not anything goes.

Of course, he had dug up everything available on Elysia's past to use later.

"Y-Your highness? Ah, sorry, I did not see you. But surely you are too busy to accompany us? You should be helping out lady Eve in her preparation."

Sister Rosa sounded as taken back by Adam's presence as Elysia felt. She also seemed to be trying her best to make the crown prince go away but the younger just smiled at her instead.

"Of course, I am not busy. I always have time to accompany 'my' fiance to her family home. I would also like to meet my future in-laws. As for Eve? She can do her assigned tasks on her own. She doesn't need my help."

In front of the crown prince, even Sister Rosa's sharp tongue did not work. The duo did not stand a chance to go against his words.

"Now, let's hurry up and leave. Dirac estate is a little on the outskirts and we should not waste any more time here."

Elysia could only sigh at the upcoming long trip. This was either going to be great or a complete disaster for her.

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