Elyza Archiz, the only daughter of Duke Xavier Archiz, was known as the villainess in the novel The Droopy Rose. Spoiled by her father, she became cruel, manipulative, arrogant, and jealous. She played with the feelings of all the male leads in the story, tried to kill Zeuz, ruin Aurelia, and even seduced Caelus's father, tearing empires apart in her hunger for power. Her actions led to the fall of Zeuz's empire.
Blinded by jealousy, she tried to kill the female lead, Aurelia, during her coming-of-age ceremony simply because she was too beautiful. But her final crime was trying to murder the Saintess, who was Aurelia herself. In the Empire, killing the Saintess is a crime punishable by death, no matter your status, because a Saintess only appears once in a thousand years.
At the ceremony, Elyza charged at Aurelia with a knife, aiming for her stomach. But before she could land the blow, Devin caught her. Then, something strange happened, something that wasn't in the novel.
Elyza fainted.
[[LOADING...]]
[SYSTEM]
[You are currently in possession of Elyza Archiz's body. You will live as Elyza. AFFECTION SCORE REQUIREMENT: 100%
FAILURE PENALTY: DEATH. Good luck, Player. Welcome to your worst nightmare.]
She immediately dropped the knife, because that was the exact reason she would've died.
She looked around.
Everyone was staring at her.
The guests.
The female lead.
The seven male leads.
And her father, Duke Xavier Archiz, who had hosted this grand debutante ball.
This was intense.
Too intense.
Panic surged through her chest as she tried her best to calm herself down.
She inhaled. Exhaled.
Again.
Slowly.
This was the mode she had played not too long ago, the "Very Hard" mode.
She had failed it countless times.
She had died multiple times in this exact setting.
And now…
Was this really her reality?
She gulped and dared to glance at the male leads.
Right above their heads, just like in the game, were the same negative affection scores she saw when she first entered the Very Hard Mode.
The one currently gripping her arms was Devin Eldonne.
Affection score: -85%.
Yeah. He definitely hated her.
And it wasn't just in the game, this mode was hacked to begin with, and now, it had literally bled into her reality.
The system interface had disappeared but the consequences hadn't.
All she had to do now was survive.
She looked around the ballroom again.
It was magnificent, lavish and elegant , decorated entirely to Elyza's extravagant taste.
Which, to be fair, matched Viviana's fashion sense anyway.
But that didn't help her now.
All eyes were still on her.
Especially the seven male leads, each one seething with fury.
Because attempting to murder the Saintess, Aurelia, was the highest offense in the Empire.
And the Saintess wasn't just a holy title.
She was protected by the Seven Chosen Ones, those very same male leads who were now standing between Viviana and certain death.
She scanned their faces one by one.
Caelus Clivus, the icy Crown Prince of the Empire: -82%.
Doomed.
Reuben Alden, the fallen patriarch from one of the fallen Empires: -80%.
Dead meat.
Leonard Laurier, the loyal baron and advisor from one of the future Emperor: -81%.
She was so screwed.
Jamin Whitlock, the Royal Councilor: -87%.
Nope.
William Berlowe, the grim reaper in human skin, who's also one of the "knights", the one who executed Elyza: -88%.
Absolutely not.
And finally...
Zeuz Venozoir, the male lead whose empire she destroyed in the original storyline: -86%.
She didn't even know where to begin.
Then, another notification popped up, floating in front of her.
[SYSTEM]
[You cannot reset the game until all affection scores reach at least -50%.
If you die…
You will die forever.]
Viviana—no, Elyza—felt her heart drop.
She cleared her throat.
The situation she was in was beyond intense.
"Ah… umm… Devin, right?"
She forced a smile at the man, Devin Eldonne—who was, in this historical fantasy world, the Saintess's most loyal bodyguard.
Devin, however, narrowed his eyes, staring at her with suspicion and confusion.
"Why did you faint earlier?" he asked bluntly. "And why did you try to murder the Saintess?"
Straight to the point. No sugarcoating.
She was doomed. But for the sake of survival, she was willing to do anything.
Anything.
She turned toward the female lead, Saintess Aurelia, who was currently watching her with a look of genuine worry.
That gave her an idea. A very risky idea.
"Greetings, your holiness, Saintess Aurelia! Welcome to my debutante!"
She beamed brightly, too brightly. It was obviously forced.
The entire ballroom fell silent, confused by her sudden, strange change in demeanor.
Even Devin, still gripping her arms, looked like she'd grown another head.
"What's your hidden intention?" he asked sharply, his voice now laced with anger and suspicion.
She gulped, already traumatized by the memory of being beheaded countless times in the game. Especially by the executioner who was now standing ominously close to the Saintess, William Berlowe, one of the seven chosen ones.
"Would you like some tea, Saintess?" she asked with a strained smile.
"Sorry about that whole… knife thingy. I was just about to…"
Her eyes darted frantically around the ballroom, searching for an excuse.
Then, like a gift from the gods, she spotted her savior, the cake.
"I was just about to cut the cake!" she announced cheerfully. "I thought I'd share a slice with you. Would you like some, Saintess?"
She smiled warmly, though internally she was screaming,
"Why wasn't this scene in the game or even the novel?!"
She wanted to facepalm, but not right now. Not in front of these executioner-tier NPCs.
Aurelia blinked, clearly confused but not hostile.
Before she could respond, Caelus stepped between them like a frozen wall of royalty.
"Be careful, Saintess," he said coldly. "It might be poisoned."
He shot Elyza a sharp, calculating look, his eyes like ice.
Elyza's heart skipped.
But she had to act fast, convincing and sweet.
She turned to Devin.
"Would you please let me go? I'm just going to slice the cake," she said. "And I promise I'll share a piece with you too."
She winked playfully.
Devin hesitated, eyes narrowed, but eventually let her go.
She bent down, picked up the knife she had dropped earlier, don't worry, it was clean, and cut a generous slice of cake.
She placed it on a small plate and presented it to the Saintess with a shaky smile.
Then, just as she promised, she cut another slice and handed it to Devin.
"See? I kept my promise." She grinned, trying to radiate innocence.
They all stared at her suspiciously, eyes darting between the cake and one another as if expecting someone to drop dead the moment they took a bite.
Maybe they thought it was poisoned, she wouldn't blame them. After all, this was Elyza Archiz, the infamous villainess who literally just tried to stab the Saintess.
Still gripping the knife, Elyza sliced the cake and distributed the pieces one by one, offering them to Zeuz, William, Caelus, Leonard, and Reuben.
All of them looked at their plates like she had just served them arsenic glazed with strawberries.
"Elyza…" Aurelia muttered cautiously, eyeing the cake with deep suspicion.
That made Elyza snap a little.
She narrowed her eyes, completely done with their stares and silent accusations.
With zero hesitation, she grabbed the last remaining slice of cake with her bare hands and shoved it into her mouth like a starving goat.
Crumbs smeared her lips as she aggressively chewed, her cheeks puffed like a chipmunk mid-heist.
"Shee? Ich nop poishon." she mumbled through the mouthful, sounding absolutely feral.
The entire ballroom went dead silent.
Everyone was stunned, not just by her blatant lack of manners, but because this was Elyza Archiz, the notoriously elegant noble lady, now chewing cake like a barn animal in front of the Saintess.
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, fingers still covered in frosting.
This wasn't Elyza. This wasn't even Viviana in her past life.
But this was Viviana in survival mode, trapped in Elyza's villainess body, doing whatever it took to live.
"Now, please, don't be rude," she said, smiling sweetly, "and let's all eat the cake fairly."
She seized the opportunity, there was no way she was getting handcuffed again, not like in the game. Never.
Right now, she had only one goal burned into her mind: SURVIVE.
She had to act as friendly as possible, even though this was entirely foreign to her. In her past life, she'd never played the charming noble lady. But right now? That was her only weapon.
Aurelia was still holding the small plate Elyza had offered. Slowly, she picked up the spoon and took a bite of the cake.
The seven chosen ones, her fiercely loyal protectors, gasped in horror.
"Saintess Aurelia! What if it's drugged?!" Devin shouted, eyes wide as he stepped toward her in panic.
Then, suddenly—
"Mmm! Yum!" Aurelia's eyes lit up, a delighted smile blooming on her face. "Where did you get this cake, Elyza? It's delicious!"
Elyza blinked, caught off guard but quickly recovering with a grin.
"Well, let's give credit where credit's due—to the chefs and bakers of House Archiz! They're the ones who made it, after all!" she said brightly.
One by one, the others who'd been suspiciously holding their cake slices finally gave in and took a bite.
And then… something shifted.
[SYSTEM UPDATE!]
[The seven male leads have updated their affection scores!]
The notification suddenly popped in front of Elyza, bright and glowing. She instinctively looked above their heads—and there it was.
Their affection scores were changing in real-time.
Devin Eldonne: -85% → -79%!
A whole 6% jump. Her eyes widened.
Zeuz Venozoir: -86% → -81%
William Berlowe: -88% → -80%
Jamin Whitlock: -87% → -76%
Whoa. Just for cake?! Was this the cheat code all along?
Leonard Laurier: -81% → -74%
Reuben Alden: -80% → -72%
Caelus Clivus: -82% → -74%
This cake wasn't just dessert—it was a blessing in disguise.
She had no idea sweets could save lives. Specifically, her life.
TO BE CONTINUED...