Living As the Villainess Queen

All she was told was that she was going to be given something by someone when she visited the Scan family. She was surprised that that person in question was Anika Jin and was even more surprised when she learned that she was a relative of Anika Jin. So, she remembered the conversation between her grandfather and father and finally understood what they were talking about.

“Originally, I was supposed to meet Anika Jin, but, because grandfather is sick I can’t,” her father had told her. “So please relay this for me instead. But you can’t tell anyone else. You can do that, right?”

“Yes, father.”

“Hitasya, this is a gift that I don’t want to give to a bad person. So, if you meet Anika Jin and think she’s a bad person, don’t give it to her. Don’t tell her who you are either.”

Hitasya had been confused. “How will I know if she’s a bad person or not?”

“It’s okay,” her father had assured her. “Just do what your heart tells you to do. It’s not the end of the world if you give it to the bad person anyway.”

Was it because Hitasya was also a Muen that she had the same instincts as her father? She didn’t know much from what Thas told her, but she knew that she couldn’t give the gift to just anyone.

Hitasya wondered if Eugene was a good person. Anika Jin, who she had always wanted to meet, was very pretty, but she knew that just because someone is pretty, it didn’t mean that a person was good. She liked how the Anika was being kind to her, but she wondered if that was just because the Anika thought she was a child of the Scan family.

“I’m not the granddaughter of the owner of this place,” Hitasya said. “His granddaughter is Celline. I’m her friend.”

“I see.” Eugene nodded. “Are you visiting her?”

“Yes.”

“What do you do with your friend?”

Eugene was curious about the children of this world, so she had a lot of questions to ask. The conversation between the two of them continued for a while.

As they were talking, Hitasya’s compulsive thoughts of the Anika being a good person faded. The smart girl understood what her dad meant. If Anika Jin was a bad person, she wouldn’t have held the conversation for so long.

“My name is Hitasya Muen,” Hitasya finally said.

“Muen?”

Eugene’s face fell. She still didn’t understand what Hitasya wanted to say, but she did know that her grandmother had told her that she had never heard news about the Muen family, let alone met any of them. There must have been a good reason for her to distance herself.

“I think that my grandfather’s sister was your grandmother,” Hitasya said.

Eugene gasped in surprise.

“Yes.” Eugene was overwhelmed, so she grabbed Hitasya’s hand. “My grandmother was born to the Muen family.”

She realized why Hitasya looked so familiar—lookeshe resembled herself and Dana as well.

“I’m glad to meet you, Hitasya,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to meet my grandmother’s side of the family.”

When Eugene’s expression brightened, Hitasya began to feel overwhelmed as well. The girl blushed. “I’ve also wanted to meet you.”

“Just call me big sister,” Eugene said. “You’re my sister.”

Hitasya opened her mouth to speak, but then she closed it and shook her head. “I can’t. Father said that we had to keep the connection a secret.”

Eugene’s eyes widened. Was there a reason why it had to be kept a secret?

“HItasya, this isn’t a coincidence, is it?” she asked slowly.

“Yes.” Hitasya nodded. “Father said I have to meet you.”

“Why? Is your father also here?”

“No.”

Hitasya removed the bag she was carrying, took out a leather notebook and a pendant, and put it on the table. “Father said this is a gift for you. I’m here to give this to you.”

***

Eugene examined the two items that Hitasya gave her on her way back.

She opened the notebook first. She flipped through it in case there was a hidden letter, but she found nothing. Her excitement quickly turned into disappointment. Was it really a gift like Hitasya said? Although, despite the lack of a letter, she could tell that the notebook seemed quite luxurious.

Maybe the pendant is real? Eugene examined the silver pendant closely. As she clicked a button on the pendant’s side, it opened. A picture.

There was a picture of a young lady and, the longer Eugene stared at it, the faster her heart started to beat. The girl looked like her mother. Is she perhaps my grandmother? If the picture had shown more of the face rather than just the top half, she might have even found some similarity to her mother. It was hard to tell with such a small picture.

There was no portrait of her mother in Arse mansion. She heard that no portrait was left. Dana looked quite disappointed when she told Eugene this.

Eugene was so deep in thought that she almost didn’t notice that they had arrived at the mansion. She stepped inside and asked a maid, “Is His Majesty working?”

“His Majesty left around noon and hasn’t come back, My Queen,” the maid told her.

“I see.” Eugene nodded. “Please inform me once he has returned.”

“Yes, My Queen.” The maid bowed and walked away.