After that long, dark battle with the old lady and the accident that happened after, I regained consciousness and looked around blankly at the unfamiliar landscape that came into sight.
I was lying in a canopy bed with a white awning.
The size of the bed could fit seven adults in total.
Where the hell am I?
She stared at the curtains that were delicately embroidered with gold threads of snakes and roses. Then, after a while, she jumped up as she recalled the motorcycle accident that had happened.
It felt like my bones were crushed and my muscles were torn. However, as I closely observe it right now, it seemed fine. Besides that, I didn't even feel any sort of muscle pain.
However, as soon as I caught a distinct view of my body, I was flustered by my suddenly large chest.
"W-What is this…..?"
Feeling confused, I looked alternately at my chest and away from it. Then, I got out of bed and went to look at myself in the mirror.
"Wow."
I was suddenly breathless.
The reason for that was because rather than the face she'd usually see everyday, the face reflected on the mirror was that of a beautiful woman with a naturally sharp expression.
She was an impressive woman with shiny purple hair and ruby-like red eyes.
TL/N: Deborah is very beautifulll
'Stunning....'
After a while, I slapped myself twice so that I'd be able to wake up.
Slap! Slap!
The pale cheeks of the beautiful woman reflected in the mirror became so swollen.
However, I couldn't help it as I had to wake up from my silly dream.
"Oh….It hurts."
But how come I was still not awake?
I was in a dream that was too vivid for it not to be reality.
Then, suddenly, a sharp sound pierced my eardrum.
As I inadvertently turned my eyes to the direction of where the sound came from, a bowl of porridge was rolling on the floor and a woman, who was dressed in a western-style maid outfit, sat down with a terrified face.
As soon as our eyes met, the woman lowered and bowed her head saying,
"I'm so sorry! I must've been blind! I am guilty of committing a sin that cannot be forgiven with merely my life! Please have mercy on me, Princess Deborah."
Deborah? That name sounds quite familiar.
Suddenly, the answer penetrated my mind.
Soon, I remembered where I came across the name, Deborah. It was the name of the villainess in a 19+ unpopular novel entitled, "Swallow The Black Thorn". I would always buy its new chapters until the series was abruptly halted.
Deborah was a hardcore villainess created by the author to use petty tricks against the heroine. Besides that, her inappropriate language has always been the topic of the best comments in "Swallow The Black Thorn".
Her current situation doesn't make any sense unless she possessed the villainess of the novel. It can't be perceived as a dream either as she felt the stinging pain when she slapped her cheeks twice. Other than that, she had clear vision and eyes and hair of the same color as Deborah's as depicted in the novel.
As I was slowly trying to understand what had happened to me, a middle-aged man with fierce eyes entered the room.
"What's this commotion about?"
As soon as she met his icy silver-grey colored eyes, fragments of Deborah's memories began to appear inside her mind.
The man in front of me was George Seymour, Deborah's father. He is a high-ranking mage and is considered as one of the top five geniuses in the long history of the Seymour family.
The Duke of Seymour, who had a slender body that wasn't like that of a middle-aged man, was as cold-hearted as he seemed to be on the outside.
The only person he opened his heart to was his wife, Marien Seymour. After she died from giving birth to their youngest child, Enrique Seymour, he went back to his cold nature.
"Pathetic."
The Duke of Seymour looked down at me with a scornful glare as if he was looking at trash.
He valued the honor of his family and hated Deborah for her constant evil deeds.
"Hah, is going on a hunger strike not enough that you even decided to do self-harm?"
He squeezed my reddened cheeks tightly.
"Your face is only worth looking at because it resembles your mother's."
"....."
"I can't believe you're doing this for jewelry. You are a disgrace to the Seymour Family."
According to the fragments of memories floating through her mind, Deborah went on a hunger strike a few days ago as she wanted to acquire the Empire's one and only pink diamond necklace.
The Duke of Seymour seemed to have misunderstood that after going on a hunger strike, I even decided to harm myself.
"There is a limit to the things you are allowed to do as my daughter. This is my last warning. Don't get in trouble for the time being and stay here to reflect on your actions until you realize your mistakes so you can prevent such things from happening instead!"
The Duke scolded me with gritted teeth and eyes as cold as ice.
Thereafter, he stopped squeezing my cheeks tightly and strode out of the room. I gazed blankly at the back of the Duke of Seymour until I could barely see it anymore and took a deep breath.
No way, how could a father be so handsome…
No, more than that, how could he be so ruthless?
The shivers that went down my spine made my body unable to move.
However, what bothered me right now, so much so that I almost screamed, is that I'm barely managing to move my legs towards the bed.
That is because the maid, who was lying on her stomach and was in a desperate posture, continuously begged for forgiveness.
"I'm so sorry! I made a mistake! Please forgive me just once!"
Suddenly, the maid began to bang her head on the floor until it bled.
It was painful for her to realize that she had possessed a body of a villainess inside an unpopular novel.
"….Oh, well, get out."
Her voice was strained.
The maid, who repeatedly shouted "Thank you", quickly removed the bowl of porridge on the floor and ran away. As soon as she disappeared from my sight, I slowly sat down on the floor.
"Wow. I'm going crazy."
I've been working hard throughout my whole life, but I passed away at the age of 24, and I even possessed the body of such a character.
'Why, God?'
There are many other characters in the novel, why did it have to be her?
I swallowed my despair and buried my trembling face into my hands. Then, I lied down on the bed and closed my eyes, hoping that when I wake up, everything was just a dream.
***
When I opened my eyes in the morning, I was still the villainess, Deborah.
'….But, isn't it going better than I thought?'
It's already been ten days since I've reincarnated as Deborah, and unexpectedly, I have been adapting well.
I thought that it would be difficult to live as a character whose reputation was the worst in the society, but that didn't seem to be the case at all.
'There's nothing I need to adapt to. Everything is perfectly set up.'
As I slept on a soft, spacious bed, I woke up late and was hungry.
As soon as the bell in my room rang, the employees immediately served me with breakfast.
"It's delicious….."
I muttered casually as I ate the delicious pastry that melted away in my mouth. As the employees heard me, they immediately left the room and brought baskets of various kinds of bread in a flash.
'Amazing. Look at how disciplined they are.'
Even if I talk to myself in a low voice, everything I want will be heard and given immediately.
The way they moved was like that of a well-trained army as they didn't want to provoke Deborah's landmine-like temperament.
'Well, compared to them not listening, this is a hundred times much better.'
I shook my head, picked up a bread, scooped a lot of raspberry jam and spread it onto the bread.
The food served here was quite palatable.
"Princess, would you like more?"
"No, get out."
I felt uneasy being watched by the servants as I ate, so I imitated Deborah's way of speaking following the fragments of memories floating in my head.
The figs on the plate were fresh and the mushroom soup was very savory.
After I finished eating the delicious meal, the servants brought tea with a good aroma and poured it into the cup.
I've never been to a five-star hotel, however, if I did go to such a place, the room service would probably be quite similar to this.
I lifted up the elegant, antique teacup and shifted my gaze towards the direction where the birds were chirping.
It was such a relaxing, laid-back morning…..
Throughout my whole life, this was the first time I have enjoyed such luxurious peace.
It was like a battlefield every morning in my house.
Every morning was a busy one because we had a narrow house for three siblings.
My younger brother had his own room, whereas I shared one room with my older sister, who would always turn on all the lights in the room once she woke up. Besides that, she'd even dry her hair using a blowdryer while I'm still asleep.
Every morning, I'd go crazy because of that loud, fierce sound. It was even more unbearable for me, who was always wide awake at night.
"Yoon Dohee, can I wear this?"
The clothes I would recently buy online with money I've worked hard on were often worn by my sister.
"You wear my clothes often, too."
My sister always throws her clothes that have become small for her or if the area around the neck was already stretched. She would always say that it's not a big deal for her to do such things and boast to other people whenever she wears new clothes. However, since I was such a pushover, I couldn't even be angry at her, so I would always allow her to borrow my clothes.
"Noona, I'll use the bathroom first since I'm in a hurry."
After getting out of the bed forcibly because of her older sister, when she was about to enter the only bathroom available in the house, her younger brother suddenly appeared out of nowhere like a ghost and went in the bathroom first.
I had to clean it early in the morning after he used it because whenever that bastard uses the toilet, the whole bathroom would become a dirty mess.
After getting used to such hectic mornings, I felt like I went on a vacation at a five-star hotel.
"Don't get in trouble for the time being and stay here to reflect on your actions until you realize your mistakes so you can prevent such things from happening instead!"
I laughed at the thought of the Duke's words.
If this is how it feels like to be grounded, then I'd rather be grounded for life.
'I feel relaxed because my body feels so comfortable.'
I put aside my worries about the future for a moment and watched the snow falling by the window.
By the time the meal I had was almost digested, servants, who brought water with them, began to groom themselves. After wearing petticoats and dresses, people wearing fancy dresses entered the room in a line.
'Oh, come to think of it, Deborah ordered a collection of dresses a month ago.'
Based on the fragments of memories floating in my head, Deborah loved shopping so much that she often went out to buy expensive clothes and jewelry. It was one of her hobbies to wear fancy jewelry and dresses to show off her wealth and beauty.
But, I couldn't go outside because I am currently grounded. However, the servants naturally turned the room into a department store's VIP room.
Deborah's class itself was on a different level.