The Villain is Being Suspiciously Kind

The day had finally arrived for the performance of Princess Iana’s ambitious opera.
Citrina slowly walked through the doors of the Imperial Opera House.

‘At last, I’ve made it this far.’

Citrina stood in front of the opera hall, her eyes glowing with excitement.
She wore a blue dress today with white fishnet gloves on both hands. Tiny opal earrings dangled from her ears, twinkling. It was an outfit befitting the mood of the theater.

“Lady Citrina Foluin?”
“Yes, I have the invitation here.”

“Please let me confirm that it has the imperial seal.”

The knight quietly took her invitation. This was a place where only those with the royal family’s permission could enter.

‘I’m nervous about what Princess Iana has up her sleeves, but let’s roll with it.’

Citrina took a deep breath. Whatever Princess Iana was planning, this was a place Citrina hadn’t experienced in either her past life or her current one. Her heart fluttered a bit.

“It’s confirmed. Please come in, Lady Citrina Foluin.”
“Ah… yes, thank you.”

The knight guarding the front of the Imperial Opera House stiffly escorted her.
Citrina walked into the opera house. There were already several patrons inside.
Some glanced at Citrina as she entered the theater, and others looked at her curiously. And…Elaina was also there.
Elaina smiled brightly at her. Citrina returned Elaina’s smile.
Then she stepped into the box seats to greet the princess.
Citrina understood the look on Elaina’s face.

“Citrina, you’ve made it?”
“Yes, I greet Your Imperial Highness.”

Citrina stepped into the box seats, the sweet spot of the opera house.
Unlike other opera houses where there were many box seats, there was only one box available at the Imperial Opera House.
Only those with royal permission could enter.
Inside the box were three chairs arranged side-by-side, along with a long table with three cocktails on top.
Princess Iana waved from her seat in the leftmost chair.

“Take the middle seat here, Citrina.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”

Citrina bowed to the princess, then sat down in the chair. The velvet chair, magically heated to just the right temperature, hugged her body tightly.
In the silence of the box seats, with even the lady-in-waiting remaining outside, Citrina suddenly had a question.

‘Why are there three chairs and three drinks?’

Before Citrina had a chance to form her question, the princess spoke up.

“The title of the play is <Diary of a Spiritist>, Citrina.”
“<Diary of a Spiritist>?”
“Yeah! Have, have you read it?”
“Ah, I haven’t read it yet due to my busy schedule. I apologize, Your Highness.”

At Citrina’s words, Princess Iana’s expression turned sullen. But she patted the bottom of her velvet chair and spoke quickly.

“It’s an operatic adaptation of ‘Diary of a Spiritist’.”
“An adaptation?”
“Yes, an adaptation! Of course, I was also involved in the adaptation. It’s been a long, hard road.”
“I understand that you’ve just returned from the knight’s academy, so that’s amazing.”
“Yeah, <Diary of a Spiritist> is one of my favorite works. I’ve been working on it since I returned from the academy, and I was lucky enough to have it turned into an opera this time.”

The princess scratched her head awkwardly.

“Oh, I see. Then…I’ll have fun watching.”
“Be sure to watch it all the way through!”
“Sure.”

You could do anything if you had a diamond spoon.
[T.L. Note: Being born with a golden spoon means you are born with wealth and power. Since it’s a diamond spoon, Iana is even more rich and powerful.]
She envied Princess Iana’s life.
Citrina smiled brightly and reached for the cocktail on the table.

‘Is it orange?’

She couldn’t eat oranges.
When Citrina and Elaina were young, they both liked oranges. Baron Foluin’s finances were already in a downward turn at that point, so the baroness bought a few oranges and gave them only to Elaina. Secretly.
The memory of watching that scene remained a mild trauma to Citrina.

‘Well, now even the smell of oranges pisses me off too. ‘

Citrina slowly removed her hand from the cocktail.
Time ticked by inside the box. The closer it got to the time when the opera would start, the more impatient Princess Iana looked.

“Why aren’t you coming….”
“Is something the matter?”
“Nothing.”

The princess said cutely. Citrina felt a question mark in her head.
The orchestra set up on the stage, the actors greeted each other, and the scene gradually faded to black. And just as the princess’ face filled with melancholy, the door to the box seats slowly opened.
A familiar face opened the door. Pale cheeks, dark eyes, and black hair.
Citrina was so surprised that she called out his nickname, forgetting that the princess was next to her.

“…Del?”
“Rina.”

Desian walked slowly towards her. It was as if he could only see Citrina among everything.
Princess Iana coughed audibly.

“You’ve come, Duke Pietro.”
“Yes. Thank you for the invitation, Your Highness.”

Princess Iana greeted Desian with an unusually happy face.
Desian casually sat next to Citrina and moved the cocktail away from her so that she wouldn’t have to smell it.

“Thanks, Del.”

Desian didn’t reply.
Her lips went dry at the everyday thoughtfulness. Her stomach rumbled strangely.
She could no longer smell the oranges, so why did her heart flutter as if she was getting seasick?
At that moment, Princess Iana spoke in a cheerful voice.

“It seems like the opera is about to begin! I hope you enjoy it, Citrina.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”

A bell rang as if the attendant noticed that the box seats were full. The lights in the theater slowly began to dim.
Citrina hadn’t yet read the romance novel <Diary of a Spiritist>, but the more she watched the opera the stranger she felt.
The hero and the heroine looked somehow familiar…

‘The main characters seem like Desian and me.’

Citrina glanced in Princess Iana’s direction. No matter how much she thought about it, something felt off.
<Diary of a Spiritist> was a short opera. It was about a young lady from a fallen aristocratic family who met a spirit, became a spiritist, and triumphed in love.

“The heroine is so much like me.”

The heroine eventually creates an atelier with the help of her gemstone spirit after much adversity.
She eventually falls in love with a nobleman who had been a friend in love with her all along. His name was Damian, and he had jet-black hair and black eyes.

“Hu, hu, hu.”
[T.L. Note: The sound of laughter]

Citrina gasped. Princess Iana was laughing deviously. The corners of her mouth seemed to be twisted to her ears.
When her eyes locked with Citrina’s, she let out a loud giggle and used her hands to pull down the corners of her mouth.

‘..What the heck is her true intent? I’m even more confused than I was when I guessed Desian’s identity.’

She was a little more suspicious at this point.
As Citrina continued to glance in Princess Iana’s direction, Princess Iana leaned back in her seat and quickly changed her expression to a stern one. And then…

“Rina.”

Desian whispered at her side in a low, gruff voice.

“Yeah?”

Citrina turned to look at him. Desian leaned in slowly, towards her ear. Desian’s lips touched her earlobe.

“Concentrate.”

The muscles tightened around her ear.
The hairs around her ear stood up.
Concentrate?
The sound of his voice distracted her.

“I’ll concentrate on the opera.”

Citrina spoke in a low voice. Desian listened to her before speaking again.

“No.”
“Huh?”
“On me, Rina.”

Desian’s large hand slowly covered both of her eyes.

“Concentrate on me.”

The sound of his voice sent chills around her left ear. It affected her more than before since her vision was darkened.

“Del.”

Citrina carefully pulled Desian hand down. The feel of her gloved hand on his bare skin was always odd.

“Do you need my attention?”
“…yeah.”
“Like a child?”
“That’s right.”

No what kind of child is this big?
Though Citrina couldn’t help but feel her smile twitch with the hint of a smile.
Pouting, her true feelings slipped from her tongue.

“…stop messing with me.”

Desian was still Desian, but it was the loud sound of her heart beating that messed with her the most.
Whether he knew or not, Desian said bluntly.

“I care.”
[T.L. Note: The word for messing with, or getting on someone’s nerves, is the same as care or concern. So Desian is teasing her while flirting.]

Desian’s face was almost innocent.

‘I’m not sure if this is the way you treat other people.’

Citrina coolly decided to admit it. She wanted to know more about Desian Pietro.
She wanted to know what kind of person he was.
She wanted to know what was beyond what he showed, to know the ‘real’ Desian.
Then…it could be dangerous, she pondered.

“I care, and…I’m also curious.’
“You want to know more?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m honored.”

Desian’s red lips drew into a beautiful arc. His eyes were crinkled in joy.
And her heart began to pound as she saw it.
And then…

There was a forgotten existence in that room,
Princess Iana could not contain her excitement. At this moment, her hearing was better than anyone else, and she had trained her senses at the knight’s academy for this very moment.
She could hear them if she concentrated. To her, it seemed her heartbeat was louder than the sound of the orchestra right now.

‘Aren’t you going to get married soon?’

M, may I have the bouquet?
Princess Iana shook her head. Now was the time to focus on the beauty of the two protagonists.
With a smile, she decided to be as quiet as the air in the box seat.
Princess Iana was terrible in so many ways. She watched the beautiful game she had set up with delight.

‘Now that the novel has come to life, I have no regrets if I die..’

Ah, she had to see them get married before she was ready to die.
Iana hastily controlled her expression again.
After three acts, the opera ended.