Of Course I'm the Villainess, Why Not?

Was I dead?

I stared up at the pristine onyx sky. My body was numb, refusing to move despite my best efforts. Each breath I took was hell; the air itself stabbed my lungs like powdered glass. But numbness and pain meant I was alive.

"How?"

A translucent black screen with white text opened in front of me in response.

NAME: AURELIE SCELERAT

HP: 100/100

MP: 100/100

END: 100/100

Aurelie? As in the villainess of Royal Hearts? I reeled at the implications. I knew that isekai had become a popular genre in anime. Power fantasies that connected with adolescent boys and let them imagine a world where they could be the main character. But this? The meager numbers further down the screen ensured I had no misconceptions about my place in my new world. I couldn't fully understand what they meant, but I knew anything in the lower teens was a bad sign.

It's alright. I'll be alright. Just take things one step at a time.

With that in mind, I focused my efforts on propping myself up. My limbs were like logs, stiff and refusing to bend, and it took several minutes just to sit up. Frosted trees and powdered snow were all that applauded my success. And for some reason I was wearing rags.

My heart raced and my lungs screamed as I began to hyperventilate. I was going to die, freeze to death and become a Suika Bar for whatever beasts or monsters were lurking nearby.

Or not? Despite feeling a bit chilly and numb, I felt completely fine and the more I flexed my body, the more limber I became. I even managed to stand up. Then I noticed a strange icon in my peripheral.

I rubbed my eyes to make sure it wasn't an eye floater then tried to touch it. My hand passed through and my only reward was 119:49:44 momentarily appearing above it.

"A timer?"

I tried to touch the status screen in front of me. Like the icon my finger passed through and after another minute of fumbling I figured out I could navigate the menus with just my eyes.

[SECOND CHANCE]

CHARACTER HAS BOOSTED RESISTANCES TO ALL NEGATIVE STATUS EFFECTS.

So that was it. It was like a new player buff. I vaguely remembered something similar during the Royal Hearts battle tutorial. While otome at its core, it was still a mobile game and like all mobile games it relied on microtransactions and gachas to make a profit. I'd dumped more than a few paychecks trying to pull new versions of my beloved Prince Stolz.

But that meant I was racing against the clock. It was the middle of the night and I was stuck in the middle of a forest that stretched who knew how far. That would steal several hours. Then what? Walk? Walk where? If I acted too rashly I would find myself wandering in circles until the buff wore off and I froze to death.

A painful grumble in my gut added to my problems. Judging from my emaciated body I hadn't eaten in days. The only reason I wasn't doubled over from hunger pains was probably thanks to [SECOND CHANCE].

What could I do? I racked my brain for anything I knew about Aurelie as I looked through my status menu. It was separated into tabs: CHARACTER, SKILLS, MAGIC, and INVENTORY. From what little I could remember Aurelie was a gifted Earth mage but when I checked the magic tab all the spells were greyed out.

I guess that means no magic. Her inventory is empty, too. God help me, I'm really going to die out here!

My saliva caught in my throat and I clenched and unclenched my fingers to calm myself. Panicking would get me nowhere but my lizard brain was in full flight mode. I wasn't equipped to deal with any of it! I was an accountant! Why couldn't the powers that be just let me die in peace? Had I done something to deserve being tortured even in a second life?

Movement. The pale moonlight gave me just enough light to see the shadow flitting through the trees. I dropped to the ground and held my breath, praying that whatever creature lurking hadn't noticed me. Then it walked out.

Over three hundred centimeters tall with skin darker than a lightless night, it approached. Its body was thin and lanky with hands equipped with claws the size of daggers. But its most notable feature was its eyes.

Two annular eclipses glowing on an elongated, featureless face staring forward, never blinking, never moving. A chill colder than the air crawled over my skin and I covered my mouth to stop myself from screaming. This was a creature of nightmares, a creature that I instinctually knew could eviscerate me on a whim.

It stalked closer, its steps unnaturally silent as if its feet never actually touched the ground. Would it notice me? Should I play dead? A torrent of questions drown logical thoughts leaving me paralyzed on the graveled ground. Could I run? No. My frail body would never be fast enough to outrun what I knew was an apex predator.

So I waited, tears in my eyes and teeth digging into the inside of my lips until I only tasted fear and copper. It looked down.

I don't remember what happened next, only that I found myself screaming and sprinting. I refused to look behind and even as branches slapped and cut my face, I kept running until my body finally collapsed atop a stone cliff.

Again I found myself peering over the precipice, though glowing signs had been replaced with a maw of consuming darkness. The longer I stared the more it drew me in, offering me a coin flip of escape or death.

I couldn't bring myself to do it. In reality I hadn't even done it the first time. I'd used fate as an excuse, leaving it up to a chance wind. I hadn't had the courage, the resolve, to jump myself.

It wasn't a surprise when I saw those pale glowing rings staring at me when I turned around. It was like a shadow casting a shadow, a paralysis demon looming over me while I could only stare. But it didn't move.

The creature had followed me through the forest, let me run away, and had me cornered like a rat, yet it made no move to advance. It just stood, regarding me with unreadable eyes. Was it toying with me?

"What do you want! Just leave me alone!"

I shouted with every ounce of air in my lungs until my lungs were deflated bags begging for oxygen. The creature stepped back.

It's like dealing with a bear. Maybe it'll run away if I keep yelling at it.

I screamed and hollered at the monster more, advancing in tandem with its retreat. It didn't seem scared. On the contrary, it seemed as indifferent as ever and I found myself remembering a feral cat I'd tried to befriend. It was trying to get close while respecting my space as I hissed and growled and I felt like an idiot.

"Can you understand me?" I asked. Perhaps a different approach would be more effective.

The creature didn't answer.

I stepped forward without yelling and it stayed still as a statue. Then I took another followed by another and then another until I was just outside its reach.

"What are you?"

I wasn't surprised that it didn't answer. I couldn't even see if it had a mouth. All I saw were those pulsing halos boring into me. It made my stomach churn, but I stood my ground, taking calming breaths while convincing myself I wasn't being a fool.

Hungry howls and eager barks burst from the trees.