TLFKCT 02

Chapter 2

The Male Lead Went Crazy for the Incompetent Villainess

“Even after joining the expedition party, do your best not to tarnish the name of Ardena.”

Even in a situation like this, the Duke of Ardena was only concerned with what he had to say.

There wasn’t the slightest hint that he was worried about his daughter. He was simply calm, as if he were taking care of a task that had been assigned to him, and there was not even a trace of affection in the way he looked at me.

Is he really my father?

“I can’t even hold a sword.”

I calmly protested.

I could easily come up with a hundred reasons why I shouldn’t join the expedition party.

And I didn’t want to die.

I didn’t want to leave with the expedition party only to return as a cold corpse.

“You’ll only be a burden to everyone else. If that happens, I’ll end up shamefully tarnishing the name of Ardena.”

“That isn’t something you need to worry about. I’ll take care of whatever happens afterward, so you only need to do as I say. Whether you’ll be a burden or whether you’ll disgrace the name of Ardena is for me to decide. Not you.”

Talk about the ultimate patriarch.

It was painfully obvious that he considered his child to be his property.

No, Rosana. I thought you were just a character who caused trouble for everyone, but that’s not what happened at all…?

As expected.

Villainesses aren’t simply born that way.

You know how most of those spoiled kids you see on TV usually have problems with their parents?

With a father like that, there was no way Rosana could have grown up any differently.

Since he was going to force me into it anyway, there was no point resisting any further.

“Do as you’re told. If you disobey me again, I won’t let it slide. This time, it won’t end with you being locked in the attic for a day or two.”

The Duke’s voice dropped low.

Each family was required to send one person to join the expedition party.

Since the fate of the world was at stake, the Imperial Family was also keeping a close eye on whether each family participated.

Any family that refused to take part would have a hard time avoiding the consequences.

Wait, he actually locked his own daughter in the attic?

Rosana’s memories suddenly came back to me.

‘Someone possessed by an evil spirit like you needs to be locked up and starved until you come to your senses. Lock Rosana in the attic and don’t give her even a sip of water.’

‘Rosana, you’ve made another mistake. You spilled soup on Her Majesty the Empress’s dress? Have you lost your mind? Even the horses in the stables are better than you! If your trembling hands are the problem, I know how to fix them! Make Rosana stay in the stables for a week!’

‘Useless thing.’

The Duke’s verbal abuse, followed by violence, came rushing back to me.

I even remembered crying myself to sleep in the stables.

Am I really his biological daughter…?

No matter how much I protested, things were ultimately going to go the Duke’s way anyway.

I ground my teeth.

“Yes, Father.”

“…You aren’t planning to run away again, are you? If you were born as a member of the Ardena family, then uphold your dignity and your promises, Rosana.”

“No. I won’t run away.”

Even if I ran, I’d obviously just get caught and brought back.

Did I know the geography of this world? Did I have any money? Did I even have someone who could help me?

I knew nothing about the roads, had no money, and had no friends. What could I possibly do in that situation?

Whatever I did, it would be like throwing an egg at a rock.

It was better to stay quiet, keep my head down, and wait for an opportunity.

There was no reason to cause trouble and get myself locked up again.

There had to be a way to escape this godforsaken place.

“Really?”

“Yes, Father. Since you said it’s my duty to represent the Ardena family, I’ll consider it an honor.”

“It’s surprisingly sensible of you to say that. Good. You’ve made the right choice.”

I spoke obediently, but my thoughts were completely different.

This world was doomed.

Monsters had taken over civilian areas, and countless people were dying.

When humanity first encountered the monsters, its forces had been completely helpless. Faced with creatures whose physical abilities far surpassed those of humans, mankind had been left hanging by a thread.

Then, people with special abilities began to appear.

One of them was the male lead.

Led by him, an expedition party was formed.

The main story was about the male and female leads successfully defeating the monsters and returning, bringing peace back to the world.

I had fallen asleep while reading the novel just yesterday, so I remembered the story fairly clearly.

The important part here was this:

‘The female lead and male lead succeed, and peace returns.’

Okay.

This world was going to return to normal anyway.

Then I needed to prepare for the future.

I would carefully avoid all the death flags, survive, and make sure I returned.

To the capital.

And when I returned, I wouldn’t go back to the Ardena ducal family.

I would become independent.

With my own strength!

I would become an amazing person who would never again be controlled by the Duke of Ardena.

That was when—

“Still, I’m worried, so lock her up. If she behaves obediently, make sure she’s fed properly.”

No one dared to disobey the Duke of Ardena.

Apparently, my possession was going to begin with imprisonment.

Is that really my biological father?

What kind of nonsense is this?!

I looked around the room.

It was an attic, but since it was where the Duke’s own daughter would be confined, it seemed to have the basic necessities.

There was a bed, a window, and… Hmm. A wardrobe, too? There was nothing inside it, though.

The bed was reasonably soft, so at least it wasn’t impossible to sleep on.

The bathroom also seemed to be somewhat maintained.

This was manageable.

Before I was possessed—or, I guess, in my previous life—

Before I died, I had been South Korea’s first female UDT combat operator.

Only those who knew how impressive that was would understand.

I had endured situations far more extreme than this.

I had undergone training that pushed me beyond the limits of what a human body could endure, without proper food or rest.

“This is nothing.”

I’d joined the military to escape the loan sharks who were chasing me around, trying to collect the debt my father had racked up.

I figured there was no way they’d follow me all the way into the military, and if I was going to run away anyway, I thought I might as well go somewhere as far away as the sea.

Then I thought it would be nice if I could at least beat up the average loan shark if they ever came after me.

I had originally intended to become a Marine, the famous “ghost-catching” Marines, but somehow I ended up taking an even more difficult path.

Natural physical ability, insane effort, and brilliant talent.

I had all three.

Eventually, someone noticed what I was capable of.

Thanks to that, I became the first female combat operator.

For someone like me, this environment was nothing.

And this was a ruined world?

Maybe this was actually an opportunity given to me by God.

“The male and female leads are going to save the world anyway.”

All I had to do was sit back, watch the show, and enjoy the benefits.

The problem was this body.

I squeezed and kneaded my soft, flabby arms.

As expected.

There wasn’t even a trace of muscle.

Still, my natural bone structure didn’t seem bad.

I tried some light stretches.

Fortunately, perhaps because the Ardena family was a family of knights, the body’s physical condition wasn’t completely hopeless.

To be born with such good physical potential and then let it become this pathetic…

It was all because of those people hiding behind the mask of family.

‘I want to learn how to use a sword too, Father.’

‘You really are hopeless, just like your mother, Rosana. Your role has already been decided! Listen to me and behave yourself. Then marry a good man from a family I choose for you and contribute to the family. Don’t waste your time on useless things. Just do as you’re told.’

I remembered everything.

Even the events that had caused Rosana to be rejected by her family and become twisted.

I understood why Rosana had become nothing more than a troublesome character who was all talk.

She had wanted to do so many things, and she had been capable of so much, but every opportunity had been taken away from her.

Whenever she rebelled, she was often locked up like this under the excuse of “discipline.”

And because she was never given proper meals, her body had become thin and weak.

Tsk, tsk.

So there really was another father like mine.

He reminded me exactly of my father before I died.

Was this what they called the parallel universe theory?

How did I end up meeting someone so similar to him?

Despite taking out loans from loan sharks, my father used to say that girls didn’t need to learn anything.

Now, let’s think about something productive.

It’s not like I’m going to die the same way, right?

Whether I want to or not, I’ll be dragged into the expedition party.

And if I want to survive there…

“I need to be good at running, at least.”

I carefully examined the muscles in my legs.

Hmm.

They were a complete mess.

I looked around the room.

To make this useless body into something I could actually work with, I was going to need some high-intensity training.

Still, considering it was an attic, the room was surprisingly spacious.

This should be enough…

It would work for exercising.

Bodyweight exercises were excellent for improving physical strength.

And if I cut this curtain up properly…

I could use it like a towel while exercising.

The Duke—that man who called himself my father—had already told me when the expedition party would depart.

One month from now.

I had to accomplish something before then.