Two guards clad in shining silver armor stood, backs straight and unyeilding even in the frigid morning air. Their breaths puffed out in tiny clouds as they fixed their gazes on the horizon. Matching spears were tightly gripped in their hands, slightly trembling from the cold. Behind them was an arching stone bridge, and beyond that was the front entrance to the palace where more guards awaited.

  Facing the bridge was a bustling city, the kingdom capital, Darkwood. In the early hours of dawn, the city was not quite so bustling. Many people were just waking up, the distant cries of roosters echoing in the mostly empty streets. The few people who wandered about were beggars, bakers starting on their bread, or drunkards stumbling their way out of brothels after a long night.

  Despite the lack of people and the earliness of the day, the guards remained vigilant. Just a few days ago, someone had broken into the palace dungeon and freed a prisoner. All of the palace security had been on high alert ever since. The number of guards on duty in the garden alone had doubled, and even the Crown Prince himself had been out late into the night leading yet another search party.

  As they stood watch, a figure appeared on the horizon. At the current distance, it was no more than a black dot, but it was clearly heading in the direction of the palace. Both sets of eyes zeroed in on the figure's presence as it got closer.

  The person was wearing a black cloak with the hood pulled up to cover their face. The guard on the right narrowed his eyes. All he could make out was a dress the color of dark red wine, and the ends of long, black hair peeking out from the shadow. He had a sneaking suspicion he knew who it was, but why would she come back here? Was she crazy?

  "Halt!" The guard and his companion cried out in unison as they pointed their spears. The cloaked figure was now only a few feet away. "Identify yourself and your purpose!" the guard demanded.

  The girl slowly reached up and lowered her hood, revealing a beautiful face warped by a sinister smile and blood-red irises. The gaze was piercing, and the guard couldn't help the chill that ran up his spine as the woman scoffed.

  "You dare to point your weapons at me?" She pushed the point of the spear away with a finger without a trace of fear. "You must know who I am. I've come to speak with my ex-fiance."

  The last words were spat with so much venom that the guard felt himself feeling sorry for the Crown Prince. Everyone at the palace had thought Nemesis to be a sweet girl growing up, but once Prince Dimitri broke off their engagement she revealed her true colors.

  The guard's companion scoffed. "You think you can make demands? You're merely a fugitive now, Miss Cain. We will have to take you back into custody."

  Nemesis let out a sharp laugh. It was the kind that anyone who heard it would be unsettled by it. "I'm aware of my place. Are you aware of yours? I refuse to be taken prisoner again, so don't blame me for resisting. Consider this your warning. Let me meet with Dimitri, or I'm afraid my poor snake will get indigestion."

  "Huh?"

  Before the guards could react, a large, pure white snake stuck its head out from beneath the cloak. Slowly, it slithered out and wrapped itself around the woman's shoulders like a shawl. The guard on the right felt his jaw drop. He had never seen such a large snake. It had to be at least five or six feet long! It must have been heavy, but Nemesis didn't flinch at all under the weight. The creature's golden eyes seemed to hold an eerie intelligence as it stared at the guard.

  "W-what is that thing!?" his colleague sputtered.

  Nemesis pet the snake on the head tenderly before scratching its chin and cooing. The snake hissed and stuck out its tongue, as though it were annoyed by the affectionate action.

  "What else?" she answered. "It's my pet."

  "You call that a pet!?"

  Her eyes narrowed at him, any lingering affection from her interaction with the snake gone. "I suggest you let us both pass. I haven't fed Spirit in over a day, so he's pretty hungry."

  "Are you threatening us? You-!"

  The guard shoved the spear closer in anger, but the snake was quick to react. In an action so abrupt it could barely be perceived, it had lashed out and snapped the pole of the spear. The half that had pointed at Nemesis clattered to the ground, and the left guard stared at his now-broken weapon in horror.

  The right guard sighed. "That's enough." By the orders of the Crown Prince, no one was to harm Nemesis Cain anyway. Rather than a confrontation, it was better to play along for now. Though they couldn't just let her enter recklessly, he had another idea. He turned to his partner.

  "Since your weapon is broken anyway, why don't you go back to the palace and get someone to inform Crown Prince Dimitri of Miss Cain's arrival? I will wait here with Miss Cain in the meantime." Then, he looked back at the woman and her snake. "Is this acceptable to you, Miss?"

  Nemesis huffed. "Though I don't appreciate no longer being referred to as a Lady, I suppose I can let it slide this time. As long as I can meet with Dimitri, I don't mind waiting here."

  Seeing as they had the crazy lady's approval, he gestured for his colleague to get going. The other guard grumbled a "Fine" under his breath and jogged across the bridge.

  [ SYSTEM: +1 Villainess Point ]

  [ SYSTEM: +1 Villainess Point ]

  [ SYSTEM: +1 Villainess Point ]

  [ SYSTEM: +1 Villainess Point ]

  Mimi's heart felt like it was going to beat out of her chest. Even though she was fairly confident in her plan, there was no guarantee it would work. Having Ant for backup certainly helped, but she was still a wanted criminal. If things had escalated to the worst case scenario... well, she was just glad it didn't come to that.

  Besides, she got decently rewarded by the system for her performance, so it was worth it. She thought she settled quite nicely into the villainess role. It was even kind of fun. In the real world, Mimi had been somewhat of a people pleaser. She never did much for herself, which was why she threw herself into her favorite games during what little free time she had. They became like her safe haven.

  Mimi found that being able to speak and act unapologetically was oddly freeing. It was something she wouldn't mind getting used to, even if it was all an act. It wasn't like she would actually let Ant eat anyone. Would he even want to? Honestly, she wasn't sure what snake spirits were capable of.

  Ding!

  [ SYSTEM:

  1 New Comment:

  plapmonster: did she really name him spirit... bc hes a snake spirit lol ]

  If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  There's nothing wrong with my naming sense! I thought it was cute...

  Mimi frowned to herself.

  "What's wrong? I thought it went according to your plan?"

  A soft voice tickled her ear as it spoke in a whisper. It was low enough that no one but Mimi could hear it. She turned her head and saw the snake staring at her a few inches away.

  "It's nothing," she whispered back.

  A few moments later, someone came walking briskly across the bridge. It wasn't the guard from before, but rather a familiar messenger followed by two knights. She recognized the messenger from Nemesis's memories. She seemed to recall he worked for Dimitri.

  "Lady Cain, Crown Prince Dimitri has accepted your request to meet. Please, follow me," the messenger announced.

  With that, Nemesis was led into the palace.

  "...Nonsense," a low voice muttered.

  Mimi glanced down to the snake resting its head in her lap. It was now wrapped around her waist as they sat on a large, plush sofa in a waiting room. The attendant had said the Crown Prince had been sleeping after having been up all night, so it would be a few minutes until he would be able to meet with her since he needed to get ready. Mimi didn't mind. Things were going quite smoothly.

  The room she was taken to was small but ornately decorated. A matching velvet sofa mirroring the first sat on the other side of a low table. A spread of snacks and tea had been prepared. It was surprisingly hospitable, all things considered.

  Though they were currently alone in the room, Mimi knew there were likely guards stationed right outside the door in case she tried anything. Not wanting to be overheard, the two kept their voices low as they chatted in wait.

  "Huh? What did you say?" Mimi asked the snake in a bored tone.

  "I said to stop speaking nonsense," the snake hissed. Those striking golden eyes flicked up to meet hers. "Stop telling people I'm going to eat them."

  She raised her eyebrows in mock surprise. "You mean you won't?"

  Even though he was currently a snake and couldn't clearly express emotions with that reptilian face, Mimi got the vague sense that Ant was currently looking at her in disgust. "Don't be ridiculous," he retorted with a light snap of his jaws.

  "Hmmm." Mimi gazed at him in thought. "By the way, I'm curious about something. Are you poisonous? Do you have, like, venom?"

  The snake sighed. "You only thought to ask this now? Yes, my bite is extremely venomous. Care to test it out?"

  Mimi thought about it. With her innate healing abilities, she wondered if the venom would affect her the same way it did other people. Testing it actually wasn't a bad idea. "Maybe later," she replied sincerely.

  Ant huffed, mildly squeezing her torso. "Are you crazy? I'm starting to think your accelerated healing is to make up for your lack of self-preservation skills."

  Mimi wheezed as the air was gently squeezed out of her. "Okay, I get it. Let go for now."

  The pressure eased up and she sucked in a deep breath. "Geez, someone's grumpy."

  "I just didn't expect to have to put so much effort into keeping my partner in crime alive. You're proving to be quite the handful."

  "You don't even have hands right now," Mimi pointed out.

  "... I changed my mind. Next time we get a chance, I'll give you a good bite."

  Just then, the unmistakable sound of footsteps approaching caused them both to fall silent. Mimi straightened her posture as the snake lazily lowered its head back into her lap, closing his eyes as if he were dozing off.

  The door swung open with urgency and Prince Dimitri entered with swift steps. Upon seeing Nemesis, his eyes flooded with relief before settling on the animal in her lap.

  "Nemesis, what is this? Why did you run away? And where did you find this... thing?"

  As he moved to take a seat, someone else entered behind him before closing the door. Mimi's heart swelled. It was none other than the love of her life! After shutting the door, Sir Arius stood stiffly behind the opposite sofa with his hands folded behind his back.

  Mimi's gaze was fixed on his every action. She scanned his appearance head to toe, searching for any potential injuries. He was dressed lightly and casually apart from the sword at his side, the official knight uniform nowhere in sight. Mimi wondered if he had also been out all night looking for her. Or maybe he just didn't believe Nemesis would pose a real threat. Regardless, it made it easier for her to assess his condition.

  Ant had said they got into a fight back then, but apart from some light scrapes at his temple that had already scabbed over, Arius seemed mostly unharmed. Mimi found herself letting out a sigh of relief.

  In an instant, her gaze regained its sharpness as she locked eyes with Dimitri. It was time to get back into character. "Why did I run away? Are you really asking me that?"

  Dimitri looked away guiltily. "I know the dungeon conditions weren't ideal, but what did you expect? After you did all those things..."

  Nemesis scoffed. "Ah, right. Where is that little girl anyway? Shouldn't you be spending time with her instead of running off searching for me every night?"

  [ SYSTEM: +1 Villainess Point ]

  Prince Dimitri leaned forward, expression darkening. "I'm being quite generous right now due to our past friendship. For your own sake, you should leave her out of this."

  "Is it really for our past friendship?" Nemesis responded with an empty chuckle. "Or could it be for some other reason? Let's stop pretending, Dimitri. You don't care about me anymore. You wouldn't have left me in those conditions otherwise. What you really care about... is my healing ability, am I right?"

  Dimitri's eyes widened in surprise. Behind him, Arius was wearing a similar expression. However, rather than the shock of being caught, Arius looked more like a person who was hearing something for the first time.

  Ah, so he didn't know. For some reason, that makes me feel a bit better.

  The thoughts came up so suddenly, Mimi didn't know if those were her own feelings or those of the real Nemesis. A strange sensation crept up inside her, accompanied by a dull throbbing in the back of her head, but she quickly pushed it down. It wasn't the time.

  "That's not true," Dimitri finally said, slumping backwards on the sofa. Much of the fight had drained out of his body. "Keeping you like that. Those were the Emperor's orders, not mine."

  Nemesis frowned, her blood-red eyes narrowing. "I suspected that possibility but... what could the Emperor possibly want from me?"

  Dimitri shrugged, but the action was unconvincing. Mimi thought that he was still hiding something.

  "Who knows? He doesn't tell me everything, either. Keeps a lot of secrets," he mumbled. "It isn't easy to operate within the palace if you aren't on his good side, so I don't ask too many questions."

  "Are you telling me the truth right now?" Nemesis demanded. "Dimitri, look at me."

  Hearing his name called with no title or honorific attached seemed to startle him into obeying. His gleaming eyes snapped up to meet those devious ones. The red color seemed to seep into his very soul, and he froze.

  "I'm not lying," he quickly defended. "But... I do have a theory. It could be that he doesn't want to lose the support of your family. The royal family does rely on them a lot, after all."

  Nemesis hummed in thought, hand resting gracefully on her chin. "Is that so?" For some reason, she still wasn't buying it.

  "Cut to the chase, Nemesis," a voice interrupted. "You came back. That means you want something."

  Ahhh, he's talking to me!

  Mimi couldn't help but squeal internally. The last time they met, her brain had been so fever-addled that she could hardly even process it. Now, he was standing boldly before her, and even speaking directly to her! Even if his words were clipped, she felt like she could die from happiness.

  System, show me his character window, quickly!

  [ SYSTEM:

  Character Name: Arius Sylvan

  Affection Lvl: 45%

  Character Attribute: Currently Unavailable ]

  ... Only 45 percent!? That was even lower than Dimitri!!!

  As always with the system, happiness was fleeting. Oh well, affection was something she could build upon after all. She would just have to increase it with time.

  Show me his attribute.

  Ding!

  The unmistakable sound of the window updating resounded in her ears as a new window popped up to replace the old one.

  [ SYSTEM:

  Character Name: Arius Sylvan

  Affection Lvl: 45%

  Character Attribute: Son of Thetis ]

  Thetis? Thetis??? Who the hell is Thetis? Why did that name sound so familiar?

  Mimi searched her brain but she couldn't recall. It sounded Greek, which would be in line with many character names from Love in the Kingdom of Darkness. Still, she couldn't recall any characters with the name Thetis. So where had she heard it before?

  Back when she was deeply invested in the game's lore, Mimi had done a lot of research into Greek names and mythology out of curiosity. However, she could only find vague connections at best and assumed the developer picked the names at random based on what sounded nice. The name Thetis must have come up then, but so much of that research blended together Mimi couldn't remember for sure who Thetis was or their significance.

  Damn it! Once again, the system was useless. How was she supposed to piece anything together with such obscure clues?

  A light cough brought her back to her senses. The Crown Prince was looking at her questioningly. Every time, the system had a way of making her space out. Just great. Now she probably looked like a weirdo in front of Sir Arius and left him with a strange impression again.

  "You're right," Nemesis declared, not bothering to hide her intentions. "Though I don't know what you really want from me, I also don't intend to stay on the run forever. So I have a simple request. I refuse to go back to the dungeon, but I also know you won't let me leave the palace again. Therefore, I ask for an upgrade."

  "An upgrade?"

  Nemesis waved her hand flippantly. "I'm not stupid enough to expect to go free. I'm still a criminal after all. So I ask that rather than being locked up, my sentence is slightly altered. An upgrade in conditions is surely not unreasonable."

  Dimitri raised a curious brow and gestured for her to continue. Nemesis smirked like a cat that got the cream, and the Crown Prince immediately felt a headache coming on. That girl always had a way of getting what she wanted...

  "I ask to be placed under house arrest."