How to Win Back the Guide I Abandoned

Huh? I’m the Villainess of the Original Story?

Liria Devlin was famous.

First of all, she was the only daughter of the prestigious Duchy of Devlin, and an Esper who had awakened in her mid-teens and quickly distinguished herself.

The sight of her leading the duchy’s knights into battle, wreathed in brilliant flames, had earned her quite a bit of popularity among the people.

But what had truly made her famous was the fact that she was a stalker hopelessly obsessed with the Crown Prince.

So it was only natural that the Imperial Knights weren’t surprised when she suddenly appeared at the training grounds.

“The Ducal Lady’s here again.”

“She must be here to see His Highness again today. Doesn’t she ever get tired of it?”

“Hey, hey. Don’t you know what the Ducal Lady’s like? She probably wouldn’t give up even if His Highness entered a royal marriage.”

The knights whispered among themselves as they stole glances at Liria, who stood with her arms crossed and a prim expression on her face, staring intently at the Crown Prince as he sparred.

With vivid red hair as fresh as a newly bloomed rose and deep amber eyes like honey melted in sunlight, she was quite a beauty.

Although the upturned corners of her eyes did earn her a reputation for looking cold and vicious.

Eventually, the training ended, and Liria spoke to a nearby knight.

“Excuse me.”

“Ah, yes. I’ll call His Highness the Crown Prince for you.”

“No, please call the Imperial Prince.”

“Yes, just a moment… Pardon?”

The knight, who had naturally assumed she was looking for the Crown Prince, was flustered. Liria repeated herself with crisp enunciation.

“Please call Prince Ian.”

“Y-Yes…”

Unable to hide his bewilderment, the knight went over to Ian and relayed the message.

Ian swept back his sweat-dampened hair and furrowed his brow as he glanced toward Liria. His expression held a mixture of bewilderment and puzzlement. Perhaps a touch of discomfort as well.

Liria watched Ian walk toward her with sparkling eyes. His lean body, clad in a formal uniform embroidered with gold thread, crossed the training grounds with elegant strides before stopping in front of her.

“What is it, Ducal Lady Devlin.”

“Hello, Your Highness. Training must be terribly exhausting, isn’t it? I brought some snacks for you. Please try them.”

With a shy expression, Liria held out the basket in her hands. Ian didn’t take it. Instead, he sharply raised a brow and frowned.

“Why are you giving this to me? Is this some new scheme to get Alain’s attention?”

“What…? It’s nothing like that…”

“Who would believe that? I have absolutely no intention of playing along, so give up on the idea of using me.”

Ian warned her coldly.

Liria’s obsessive unrequited love had long since become infamous. She had fallen in love with the Crown Prince at first sight at the academy, and ever since, she had committed all manner of bizarre acts and atrocious behavior in an attempt to win his favor.

If anyone showed even the slightest interest in the Crown Prince, she tormented them by any means necessary. She had even gone so far as to deliberately throw herself into a lake just to get his attention.

“I don’t like His Highness the Crown Prince anymore! So please don’t misunderstand.”

Liria hurriedly explained as she grabbed Ian’s sleeve when he turned away from her without a shred of sympathy.

“I really made these cookies myself for you, Your Highness. Won’t you please take them?”

She curled up the corners of her lips, trying her best to soften her naturally sharp expression into something gentle. But when Ian merely stared down at her without moving an inch, she had no choice but to play the card she had been keeping hidden.

“Your Highness, you like me, don’t you?”

“……!”

For a moment, a flicker of agitation crossed Ian’s face, which had been so expressionless it seemed cold. His eyes twitched as if she had caught him completely off guard.

“I know everything now.”

Liria whispered with absolute confidence.

And she had grounds for that confidence.

‘You were the only person who came to save me, the villainess, in the original story.’

* * *

Liria had regained the memories of her past life only a few days ago.

‘Did you hear the news? His Highness the Crown Prince is going to be engaged to the noble lady of the Rogers Barony!’

‘Oh my goodness! Then what about Ducal Lady Devlin? What’s going to happen to her?’

‘What do you mean, what’s going to happen? She’s become a complete laughingstock.’

After hearing that the Crown Prince she had loved one-sidedly for years had gotten a fiancée, Liria had gone on rampage from the shock and tumbled down a flight of stairs.

She struck her head hard and remained unconscious for a full five days. When she finally regained consciousness, she had realized that she had reincarnated into the world of a novel called <The Crown Prince’s Fiancée Is Hiding Her Power>.

It was the story of Alain, the Crown Prince of the Berdia Empire, who possessed power so immense it consumed him from within, and Vanessa Rogers, a seemingly insignificant baron’s daughter who was the only person with the ability to guide him, falling in love.

Liria was one of the characters in that story.

The problem was her role…

‘Why did I have to be the villaineeeeessss.’