«What… What is she doing here?!»

The commoner I sheltered looked completely different than I was ever used to seeing her.

Instead of a simple shirt made of coarse material, she had a magnificent robe decorated with precious stones on her shoulders. On the thumb of her left hand, an imperial family ring sparkled, the cost of which exceeded my annual allowance several times.

I froze and was as motionless as a stone.

«.....»

To be honest, after we broke up, I imagined our possible meeting in the future several times.

For example, we could accidentally run into each other on the street a few years later, and it would turn out to be a pleasant surprise that prompted us to recall our common, albeit short, past.

We would sit in some cafe and discuss the latest news from each other's lives. I would be interested to know how the fate of the commoner I once saved turned out.

Despite the fact that our acquaintance happened completely spontaneously, I could not deny that I had become attached to her. I was really sad when she left, leaving behind only a short note. And even though I tried to push these thoughts out of my head, they still came back to me from time to time.

It's been a little over a week since our breakup.

I couldn't have expected to see her again so soon.

And if the situation had been different, I might have believed that this meeting was just a coincidence. But now I couldn't close my eyes to it. The circumstances of the incident were more than obvious.

I would never have thought that I would feel like a trapped animal in the presence of a «commoner». Especially when a chilling voice rang in my ears:

— What's the matter? You're kind of quiet.

«......»

She said those words while covered in red blood. The liquid, which exuded an iron smell, was on her clothes, beautiful face, dark brown hair and flowed down like water after rain. The moment the golden eyes turned to me, I stopped breathing.

The realization of what was happening slowly dawned on me. Just as the information was being downloaded on the hard drive, I stood with my mouth open. Countless memories of the time we spent together flashed before my eyes. Until the last moment, I wanted to believe that I was wrong.

However…

No matter how I looked at it, I had to admit that the only person in the empire capable of such a thing was her. The main villain of this novel. A psychopath obsessed with bloodshed, bringing destruction and human suffering wherever she appears.

A man who, more than anyone else, deserved to pay for his actions.

Kaena Gessen de Ronan.

The comment that got the most likes was still alive in my memory.

[The author burns. The villainess genocides thousands of people in the first ten chapters, and how the hell is our heroine going to defeat her?]

In each chapter, innocent people suffered because of the main villain. Without her existence in this world, tens of thousands, if not hundreds of people, would still be alive. She was completely sick in the head.

— Yahoo! She's finally dead!

I didn't know how long I'd been waiting for this. I couldn't wait to see this scene when I was reading the novel. I clutched my mobile phone in my hands and was completely satisfied with the climax of the novel, which I read from the spoilers.

— Now the main character has a bright future ahead of her, right?

The death of the villainess, the tyrant who destroyed the country, became for me the best part of this novel. After all, that's the point of such stories—to wait with rapt attention for justice to prevail. Karma affects everyone. No one will go unpunished.

At least, that's the philosophy I've believed in all my life.

However… I was the one who destroyed it. To hell with everything.

I didn't even have an excuse for myself.

To be more precise, there was only one question that tormented me.

«Where was my brain at that moment…?!»

The girl I met wounded near my house did not arouse the slightest suspicion in me. Rather, with her clumsy and naive nature, she seemed to me even a little pathetic. She didn't look like a mass murderer at all.

But, as it turned out, I was the naive fool.

— Camille.

The voice that said my name seemed completely unfamiliar to me and made me shudder.

The Crown Princess stared at me intently and began to slowly approach. Her expression now gave her away as a maniac.

As the girl started to get closer and closer, I saw something dripping.

It was blood. Dark red blood was dripping from the tip of the sharp sword in her hand. Whose blood is this? The faces of our family's knights and my personal maid quickly flashed through my mind. All these people suffered unfairly just because they accompanied me.

An overwhelming sense of guilt made my throat tighten more than anything else.

«Elisha and everyone else, please forgive me…» — it was pointless to ask the dead for forgiveness, but nevertheless, I wanted to express my sincere regret to all the victims.

I thought about it, looking at the drops running off the blade. Well, obviously it's my turn this time.

The thought of running away didn't even cross my mind. I knew in advance that it would be useless.

Knowing about the terrifying skills of the Crown Princess, she only needs one move to chop off my head. More precisely, if I try to escape, I can only make my fate worse. The main villain was one of those who liked to mock their victims before they died. So she could probably kill me painfully and for a long time.

So I decided to accept my death quickly.

In the end, it was payback for my own mistake.

Nevertheless, I still recoiled, unable to contain my natural fright at the bloody appearance of a woman. As she got closer, the ground where she left her footprints turned dark red. Bloody, with a manic grimace on her face, she scared me more than if I had actually met the devil himself.

«Damn, can I at least pray before meeting God?»

But suddenly she threw the bloody sword into the grass and took a step towards me. I trembled even more.

— I've always been interested in one question.

«.....»

«You are the first person in my life who has given me a helping hand,» the main villain said hoarsely, «Everyone else just wants me dead.» Why did you do that?

I understood that my whole life depended on this answer.

My eye twitched nervously. Is she really interested?

Damn. Yes, if I had known who you were from the very beginning, I would never have done this!

I saved the main villain by accident. It turned out to be the most fatal mistake of my life. If I could rewind time, I would leave her to die, and I wouldn't even take a step in that direction!

But I felt that if I told her these words, I would accelerate the meeting of my head with the ground twice as fast.

So…

— Actually… I'm a fan of yours! I said suddenly.

Such a «sincere» confession on my part clearly confused her. The villainess's gaze wavered.

— What are you talking about? «What is it?» she asked.

— me… I want to say that I have always admired your talent! I exclaimed fervently, «Your Highness, you are truly amazing!

As I said these words, I carefully avoided looking at the mountain of corpses nearby. The metallic smell made me feel sick. The fake smile on my lips looked more and more like a neurotic one.

I struggled with myself with the last of my strength. I was really ready to cry.

But…

Since things have turned out this way, I will have to deal with the consequences of my wrong actions. If I can survive today, I must use any means to do so. And then… Well, it's too early to think about what will happen «later.»

At least I managed to surprise her.

— You. Do you really think so?

Her bloodthirsty expression was gradually replaced by a puzzled one.

I answered readily, sticking out a shaking thumb:

«Your Highness, please know that I am your number one devoted fan!»