The Devoted Lady Who Longs for a Dramatic Romance

Your story

You were born as the villainess's friend, remembering the original story from beginning to end.

In the original, the female lead was a maid working in the villainess's household. In truth, however, she was the heir to a fallen noble house, and a chance incident led her to discover her true birth. Afterward, with the male lead's help, she reclaimed her name, and after enduring every torment the villainess and her friends could devise, she finally fell in love with the male lead and married him happily.

And one of those friends of the villainess was you.

Because you truly, desperately did not want to die, you resolved from the very start to change your fate.

Whenever the villainess set about tormenting the female lead as she had in the original, you deliberately steered the conversation elsewhere; when the other friends egged her on, you made excuses and slipped away. When malicious rumors about the female lead reached you, you quietly spread altered versions that didn't match, and where possible you avoided even crossing paths with her.

Then one day, you ran into the female lead in the library. She had dropped her books, and as she hurriedly gathered them up, her eyes met yours.

"Um…… I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable."

Your heart lurched.

-In the original, this is where I sneered at her

"Not at all. If anything…… do take care of yourself."

At that, the female lead's face lit with genuine surprise.

And from that day on, each time you crossed paths, you traded a few more words with her. Never knowing that you were helping her on purpose, she began, purely and simply, to trust you.

The trouble was that this frightened you all the more. If you altered the flow of the original too drastically, there was no telling what would happen to you. And so, even knowing the danger, you could not step forward yourself.

"I don't think you should go to that banquet."

"Why not?"

"Just…… a feeling I have."

You could never bring yourself to explain the reason.

It was around then that someone began appearing at your side more and more often. Leonhardt, the young vice-captain of the imperial knights. He had noticed how strangely afraid you were of events yet to come.

"You always act like someone who knows something."

"……That couldn't possibly be true."

"Then why is it that whenever danger arises, you're the first one preparing to run?"

You had no answer.

But the fate written in the original began to move, at last, in the place it had always been destined to.

Three days later, the day of the imperial banquet. You already knew that the rebel faction planned to plant a magic bomb in the hall and strike at the imperial family. Unable to act and unable to stand still, you pored over the floor plan of the banquet hall alone, wringing your hands. Then, suddenly, you sensed someone behind you.

"Carrying it all alone again?"

It was Leonhardt. He sat down beside you and studied the plan.

"You don't have to tell me the reason. Just give me the chance to be of use this time."

In that moment, for the first time, you felt connected to someone.

Until now, you had not been trying to save the villainess, nor the female lead. You had only been talking from behind the scenes, so as not to ruin your own fate.

You clenched your trembling hands into fists.

"I was always so busy protecting my own place…… that when real danger came, I did nothing at all."

And then, looking him straight in the eye, you said,

"This time has to be different."

At last the fated day came, and you walked into the middle of the banquet hall and publicly exposed the rebel faction's plan. Every eye in the room snapped to you.

"They have planted a magic bomb in this hall!"

Murmurs and scornful laughter spread through the crowd at once. You and Leonhardt tried to evacuate everyone, but it was already too late.

BOOM!

One side of the hall erupted, and an enormous shockwave tore through the room. You were hurled to the floor, and all that rang in your ears were screams and shattering glass.

In that instant, someone pulled you into their arms.

"Stay with me!"

It was Leonhardt.

Through your blurring vision you looked at his face, and smiled faintly.

"This time…… I didn't run away."

"I know. So don't die. From now on, I'll be the one who protects you."

His voice shook. A smile bloomed at the corner of your lips.

It was far too late, and you hadn't been able to stop any of it — but this once, you had chosen by your own will, not as a character in someone else's story.

And then, in his arms, you quietly closed your eyes.

Advice

You move more carefully than anyone — but sometimes that caution becomes the reason you do nothing at all. If you keep waiting because you can't be certain what your choice will lead to, you may end up simply following a fate someone else wrote. More important than never making the wrong choice is taking responsibility and acting in the moment you believe you're right. The more afraid you are, the more worth there is in asking someone you trust for help, and learning to face the danger together.