The green, vibrant screen that had appeared after my victory over the Archduke was more intoxicating than any drug. "Points earned: 150. New skill unlocked: Archducal Relations." The System had acknowledged my success. It couldn't deny that I had secured the private meeting, and it couldn't deny that I had "sabotaged" the Archduke's mediocre plan by replacing it with a better one. A flicker of something akin to joy, a feeling I hadn't thought possible in this new life, bloomed in my chest. The game had changed. My second life was still a prison, but I had just found the key to my own cell. I was no longer a victim; I was a master manipulator, and the System was my unsuspecting tool.
I spent the next few days in a state of high-alert, my mind constantly running through scenarios. The System's silence was a gift. It gave me time to study the plot in my memory, dissecting every future mission Selena was meant to perform. I wasn't looking for ways to avoid them anymore; I was looking for ways to twist them. The System was a literalist. It cared about the words in the command, not the human consequences. It was blind to nuance, a flaw I could exploit with surgical precision.
A few days later, a new screen materialized before me, its light a cold, familiar blue.
"Task: Publicly discredit your rival, Lady Beatrice, and claim her position as the head of the charity committee. Reward: 200 points."
This was a classic. In the original manhwa, Selena would have spread a vicious, baseless rumor that Lady Beatrice was secretly stealing from the charity funds for her own lavish spending. The rumor would have been just vague enough to be believable, and Selena's public feigned shock would have been enough to turn the nobility against Beatrice, leading to her swift removal and Selena's triumph. It was a cruel, baseless act designed to destroy a good person.
But the System's command was simple: "Publicly discredit" and "claim her position." It didn't say how.
My mind, now a machine of pure logic, began to work. The original method was a messy, high-risk affair. Rumors could be traced back to me, and the nobles were a fickle bunch. I needed a method that was clean, irrefutable, and still fit the System's parameters. Discrediting someone didn't have to mean telling a lie. It could mean revealing a truth, but a truth so powerful and overwhelming that it made their own achievements seem small.
The solution was both simple and ruthlessly effective. Lady Beatrice was the head of the Charity Committee, a position she'd held for years based on her tireless, but relatively small-scale, work. I would "discredit" her not by slandering her, but by revealing her efforts to be woefully inadequate in comparison to my own.
I called for my head butler, a stern-faced man named Rhys, who had been serving my family for decades. His eyes, like Lily's, were still filled with a quiet wariness. He had seen too much of the old Selena's erratic behavior. "Rhys, I want you to organize a meeting with the heads of the most influential merchant guilds in the capital. Tell them that Marquis Valerius is interested in sponsoring a new, large-scale charity event for the upcoming winter."
Rhys's eyes widened. "A charity event, My Lady? But we already contribute to the Committee…"
I cut him off, my voice laced with the cold authority I had now mastered. "This will not be a contribution. This will be a statement. We will demonstrate the true power and influence of House Valerius. Contact the merchant guilds, the Archduke's office, and send a personal invitation to every single major noble house. I want every important person at this event. And I want them to know that it is my initiative."
"Task Progress: 20%. Preparations for Public Discredit are underway."
I smiled to myself. The System saw my actions as steps toward villainy. In a way, they were. My motives were not charitable; they were purely for my own social advancement and to secure my power. But the result would be that a vast amount of money, food, and resources would be donated to the poor and needy. I was being a good person by being a bad one.
Over the next two weeks, I moved with a single-minded purpose. I met with the merchant guild heads, not to trick them, but to offer them a brilliant, mutually beneficial deal that would see a portion of their profits go to the charity in exchange for massive tax breaks and government connections. My "Archducal Relations" skill, a reward from the System itself, made my negotiations frighteningly effective. I even used a few of my new connections to get Duke Cedric and his family to agree to attend, a major social coup. The System kept a constant tally in my mind.
"Task Progress: 50%. Merchant Guilds secured."
"Task Progress: 75%. Major nobles confirmed attendance."
"Task Progress: 90%. Duke Cedric confirmed attendance."
On the day of the grand event, my heart hammered with a mixture of excitement and fear. The charity ball was unlike anything the capital had ever seen. The ballroom was overflowing with nobles, merchants, and even a few minor royalty. The sheer scale of the event dwarfed anything Lady Beatrice had ever organized. She was there, too, looking nervous and bewildered, her own committee's small-scale work now looking pathetically small in comparison.
I walked to the stage, the vibrant red dress I wore making me stand out in the sea of pastel gowns. I held a large, ornate parchment. I didn't announce any petty rumors or slanders. Instead, I announced the total sum of the donations I had secured from my contacts. The numbers were so large, the pledges so great, that a collective gasp went through the entire room.
"With the overwhelming support of the Archduke's office and the merchant guilds, we have secured a fund that will not only provide for this winter's needy, but will ensure they are cared for for years to come," I announced, my voice clear and strong. "It is a testament to the generosity of the capital's citizens. I'm afraid that such a grand effort requires a new level of leadership." I turned to Lady Beatrice, a smile of serene victory on my face. "Lady Beatrice has done commendable work, but it is clear that the Charity Committee needs someone with the reach and influence to manage an operation of this scale."
My words weren't cruel. They were simply a statement of fact. My actions had rendered her irrelevant without a single lie. She was discredited by my sheer success.
"Task Progress: 100%. Public Discredit successful. Position Claimed."
A screen flashed before my eyes, but it wasn't the green of a completed task. It was a cold, enraged red.
"Warning: Plot Subversion Detected. Task completed, but in a morally inconsistent manner. Recalibrating mission parameters. User has been flagged for 'Creative Villainy.' All future tasks will be specified in full, with no room for interpretation. Punishment for this deviation will be delivered at a later time. Consider this a final warning."
The warning was a victory in itself. I had broken the System. I had forced it to change its very rules. It was furious, but it was also defeated. The pain hadn't come, not yet, but I knew it was waiting. It was a small price to pay for the first true victory in my second life. I had not only saved myself from a cruel act but had done some good in this world. The System wanted a villainess. So I would be the most terrifying villainess of all: one who used her power for her own gain, and in doing so, somehow managed to save the day.