It's just as wonderful every time I read it.
Sophia and the Emerald Princess...
A tale of the friendship between a princess and a commoner girl.
It's just so beautiful!
Lady Catarina, if I may...
That same romance novel again?
Yes.
I can't fathom why such a wonderful story is considered low-brow reading in noble society.
I immersed myself in manga and anime in my previous life,
so frankly, I was feeling starved for a good story.
Oh, I wish I could talk about this with someone!
Incidentally, you've received an invitation.
An invitation?
From Geordo and Alan?
Huh... So the two of them are hosting a tea party.
Then I bet lots of people will—
That's it! This is the perfect chance!
I'm gonna find a fellow romance novel fan there!
My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!
What? I've been invited to a tea party?
Along with Nicol, of course.
Episode 3 I Met a Beautiful Brother and Sister...
Brother...
You need to get used to the outside world, even if only a little at a time.
Understand?
This is all awfully elaborate.
Well, lots of guests will be attending.
It must be the perfect tea party.
Perfect, huh? Typical you.
By the way, I guess there are things even you can't handle, huh?
It's not that I can't handle them.
I just don't like them that much.
I thought there was nothing you couldn't handle, and nothing you couldn't do.
Something I can't do?
Yeah.
Well, I'd say predicting what Catarina Claes will do is just about the only thing.
That's... true, I guess.
Just thinking about that face makes me...
She is my fiancée, remember.
Huh? Yeah, I know. So?
No self-awareness, I see...
Still, I have no intention of letting you have her.
It's all right.
You always say that, Brother.
It's just as glamorous as you'd expect a royal tea party to be.
You said it!
And everything is so delicious!
Sister?
Excuse me for a moment.
My stomach is sloshing...
But it's fine!
I've learned to get to the bathroom before I hit my limit!
A dog?! Why is there a dog here?!
Stay away!
Leave me alone!
It's finally gone. Now I can go to the bathroom...
Do you even get it?
You have some nerve showing up at a happy occasion like this.
Yeah, since you're cursed!
Cursed kids like you aren't welcome here!
There seems to be a big group over there...
What do I do now?
I can't believe you'd even show yourself in public looking so creepy!
If I go down now, everyone will talk about how I was climbing trees!
Just go away already!
Hurry... Hurry! Ugh, I can't hold it any longer!
You're ruining the prince's tea party!
Would you kindly get out of the way?
Huh? Uh, you don't need to run...
She's so pretty...
Excuse me!
Where in the world did she go?
Look, it's Master Nicol!
Oh, he's so adorable!
He's beautiful.
Just lovely.
Master Nicol suffers so much on his sister's account.
How painful it must be to hear him and his sister spoken of so.
The poor thing.
Now, which one should I eat next?
E-Excuse me...
Oh! You're that girl from before!
She really is beautiful!
She looks like she could be in Sophia and the Emerald Princess!
Sophia is a really beautiful girl.
The princess sees her while sneaking out into town
and is taken by her beauty.
U-Um, about what happened before...
Then the princess says to Sophia...
"Your hair is as lovely as silk."
"Do you mind if I touch it, just for a moment?"
Huh?
Oh! Um, I was just, uh...
The Emerald Princess?
What?!
A-A-A-A-Are you saying you know Sophia and the Emerald Princess?!
U-Um...
You do, don't you?!
Yes!
I finally found a fellow romance novel fan!
Um...
Please forgive me.
My name is Catarina Claes.
I'm Sophia Ascart.
No way! She's actually Sophia!
Lady Sophia! If you don't mind, let's have a nice, long chat!
Sister, I'm sorry to interrupt your fun, but...
The tea party is over.
Aw, but we were just getting ready to converse about our shared passion!
But, Lady Sophia, would you come to my house sometime?
Huh? Um, okay...
I'll be waiting!
Sophia, I've been looking for you.
Brother...
That girl just invited me over to her house.
Lady Catarina, you have—
Thanks for coming, Lady Sophi—
Who is this boy of unparalleled beauty?!
Pleasure to meet you.
Thank you for inviting my sister over to visit.
I'm accompanying her. I'm her older brother, Nicol Ascart.
Her older brother?!
Thank you so much for coming.
My name is Catarina Claes.
Wait... Nicol Ascart?
This is it! The fourth doom flag!
He's the son of the premier and a childhood friend of Geordo and Alan.
He's one year older and doesn't talk much,
and he's another conquerable route in the game!
We did not play Nicol's route in our previous life.
All we know about him is what we heard from our otaku friend Acchan.
Nicol's got a pretty hardcore sister complex,
Ultimate Strategy Guide
so your rival is his younger sister.
That means you have to have to win over his sister first!
The rival in Nicol's route isn't Catarina.
Emergency Meeting What we know about Nicol Ascart Sister complex
In other words, no matter how we interact with Nicol,
it shouldn't set a doom flag!
Then befriending Sophia shouldn't cause any problems.
Not to mention she's our first fellow romance novel fan!
Yeah, so we can't just let her slip by!
Yeah!
Oh, I'm sorry!
As I was saying, thank you so much for coming!
That was so great!
Wasn't it?
Your ride has arrived.
Aw, already?
Time sure flies when you're having fun, huh?
Your hair really is pretty.
May I touch it, just for a moment?
Huh?
Now I've done it!
Does she think I'm a freak now?!
Um, I mean...
...to you?
Huh?
Lady Catarina... my appearance doesn't seem creepy to you?
What do you mean?
Since I have hair as white as an old person's
and eyes as red as blood,
everyone always says I'm a creepy-looking, cursed child.
A cursed child?
It's slander.
People who are jealous of our family and our father's achievements
resort to spreading insults about us.
What?! That's...
But that doesn't change the fact that my hair looks creepy.
I think it's pretty, though!
Your white hair is as beautiful as silk,
and your red eyes twinkle like rubies.
I think they're both beautiful!
I hope you'll come to visit me again!
And...
If you wouldn't mind, would you be my friend?
Yes!
It almost feels like a dream.
What you said really was true, Brother.
Don't worry.
Someday, you'll find a wonderful friend who understands you.
I thought people like that only existed in books.
I'm happy for you.
Sophia and I continued to see each other after that.
Mary was hesitant at first,
but even she can talk openly with her now.
This book was wonderful, too!
It's part of the Devilish Count series!
What is it about?
It's a romance novel series about a beautiful count and a commoner girl.
With his black hair and black eyes,
the count has a devilish appeal that charms even men, let alone women.
Oh, my!
Actually, I think the count resembles my brother a bit,
though I am rather biased.
Yeah, I get it!
Like how he's so quiet and mysterious...
True. He does have a strange sort of charm.
Would you let me borrow that book, too?
And you can lend me another one!
In that case, you should come to my house next time.
Sister, calm down.
I'm so excited!
She said she has lots of great romance novels!
It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Nicol and Sophia's father.
My name is Dan Ascart.
I'm his wife, Radia Ascart.
It figures their parents would be gorgeous, too!
It's nice to meet you. My name is Catarina Claes.
I'm her younger brother, Keith Claes.
Our daughter has seemed so much happier since she met you.
Thank you so much.
We're truly glad Sophia has made a wonderful friend like you.
Huh? Er... I'm happy to be her friend!
Lady Catarina! Thank you for coming!
Thank you for such a lovely time.
And for lending me so many books, too.
And thank you, too.
Oh, no! I forgot the book I recommended to you in my room!
There's always next time.
No, I would love for you to read it as soon as possible.
I'll go get it now!
Oh... This feels familiar...
I forgot the manga I recommended to you!
Hang on a sec. I'll go get it.
I bet Sophia would have read manga, watched anime,
and played otome games with me in the world I lived in before, too.
I'm so glad I made such a wonderful friend.
Please allow me to thank you again on my sister's behalf.
Thank you very much.
No, I'm the one who's grateful.
You've both been so kind to me,
and your parents have been just as gracious.
Our parents?
Yes! You have such lovely parents!
I see... Thank you.
What?! What is this awkward silence?!
Let's see... How to make this conversation longer...
How to keep this going...
Oh! The old lady next door!
The old lady next door from our previous life.
Once she started talking to someone, they were stuck for at least thirty minutes.
Lucky you, snagging yourself such a pretty wife!
Yes! We'll use a variation of that!
With such lovely parents and such an adorable sister,
you truly are blessed, Master Nicol.
Blessed?
Huh? U-Um...
Do you really think I'm blessed?
Yes! You have such a wonderful family, after all!
Or... am I wrong?
You aren't wrong.
I'm truly blessed to have wonderful parents I can respect
and a sweet, adorable little sister.
Wha... Wha... What?
He looks even more gorgeous when he's smiling!
This must be how the Devilish Count's "smile that can charm anyone" looks!
Sorry to keep you waiting, Lady Catarina!
Here's the book.
R-Right... Thank you.
Well, we'll be...
Don't tell me...
Has Nicol's devilish smile stolen Keith's heart, too?!
Well, we should be going now!
Take care!
Today was fun, wasn't it, Keith?
It was, Sister.
Nicol's devilish charm is not to be underestimated!
How am I going to protect Keith from now on?
I can't believe I have yet another rival.
Just how many people does she feel the need to win over?
Secret Catarina
It's been seven years since the spring when I recalled my past life at age eight.
I'm finally fifteen years old now.
Lady Catarina.
Everyone has assembled.
Please come to the hall now.
I've spent the past seven years doing everything I could to avoid my doom ending.
Don't let Keith be alone!
Training in magic and the sword...
Sadly, it seems we didn't have much magical talent after all...
But we have ways to compensate.
Happy birthday, Catarina.
You look beautiful.
Thank you.
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday.
Thanks!
Everyone's grown up.
They all look just like the characters in the game now.
Now, please share the first dance with me.
With pleasure!
Catarina, I know I told you this before,
but I have no intention of breaking off our engagement.
All right.
But if anyone else ever catches your attention, just say so.
I'll back off without putting up a fight.
Right. I understand you don't understand at all.
It might be faster for me to come up with a fait accompli right now.
Fait accompli?
Um, Prince Geordo?
You may be another year older, but you're still as defenseless as ever.
With you like this, I could easily take you at any time.
Huh?
I'll leave it at that for today,
but someday, I will help myself to all of you.
Sister, hold still!
Huh? Keith, what are you doing?
There was a bug. It left a spot on you.
Oh, okay! So that was a bug! Thanks!
She's so dense. I worry about her.
Listen to me.
Please avoid seeing Prince Geordo alone from now on.
Huh?
Oh, you must think I'm going to try to pull something again.
Don't worry! As a noble lady, I'm fully—
Are we clear?
Uh... sure.
Catarina, would you dance with me nex—
What happened to your neck?
Oh, a bug bit me a minute ago.
A bug?
Anyway, you look... well... better than usual today.
Why, thank you.
My servants worked hard to fix me up.
They kept arranging and rearranging my dress, my hair, even my underwear...
Whoa! Hey!
Would you dance with me next?
Yes!
You look beautiful.
Oh, thank you.
You're so popular, Master Nicol.
He's still impossible to hold a conversation with!
Um...
So is there anyone you're interested in yourself?
Yes.
Who is it?
I can't tell you.
It's someone I really shouldn't have feelings for.
Huh?! What, so it's forbidden love?!
Someone's wife, then? Or maybe a guy?!
But I'm always wishing for that person's happiness.
Master Nicol...
I'm sure good things will come.
Lady Catarina!
It's no fair that only the boys get to dance with you.
Want to dance with me, then?
I can't dance the men's part, though.
Well, I suspected this might happen,
so I've been practicing both the men's and the women's parts.
Huh?
How unfair. I want to dance with you, too, Lady Catarina.
Sophia...
The last novel I read was a romance about a princess and a common town girl.
The scene where the two girls danced together was so romantic!
Huh?!
Sophia's getting deeper and deeper into this...
Okay! You can take turns, then!
And so, after a delightful fifteenth birthday party,
the countdown to my entry into the magic academy begins.
In other words...
the otome game I've feared all this time is about to begin!
I just hope I can avoid my own doom
and stay with all of my friends forever...