Reborn As The Minor Villain In A Romance Fantasy Novel

Freya now understood that her Papa was a scary man in ways she hadn't anticipated… they were still at the rooftop and now her face was buried in the brilliant bosom of a woman called Vanessa as her back was being rubbed gently and soothingly by the same woman.

It was comfortable and warm, like being hugged by a pillow, but her face was turned to Lucius who was talking with Selene and she gulped nervously as she listened.

He was not telling lies at all… he had told Selene exactly what conspired and how he found out that they had been performing illegal experiments with her however at the same time, he was not telling the whole truth either, carefully omitting certain details.

He made it sound as if they were the victims when he had clearly given Matthias a heart attack in the office by making him lose all hope completely, crushing his research data into dust and even reaping him of a lot of money through what was essentially extortion.

But Lucius made it sound like they had simply gone to confront the man peacefully after destroying a few warehouses in self-defense and took his research as evidence and even a "bit" of money to deal with the damages and for her welfare and future too.

'What a scary man…' She thought while watching him talk so smoothly without a single stutter, his expression perfectly sincere and concerned.

He could lie with a straight face and make it sound like the absolute truth. Lucius let out a small sigh as he finished talking, as if the whole ordeal had been emotionally taxing for him.

Selene's face had twitched so many times during the explanation… she was barely concealing her seething anger, somehow he could feel the intensity radiating from the stigmata on her back even from this distance across the rooftop.

"Thank you for telling me this Hubby…" She said with a smile as she leaned in and gave him a kiss on the forehead affectionately, lingering for a moment. "You did the right thing and I'm glad Freya has joined our family… we'll try as much as possible to give her a life that she wants to live and deserves after everything she's been through."

Once Freya heard this warm declaration, she didn't know what to say or how to respond… She didn't even know how she wanted to live, her life had always been restricted to a sterile testing room where they collected blood samples and did so many painful things to her body… she was sure that there had been other subjects like her in different labs however she was sure that she was the only one that survived the forced awakening process from her batch.

Now that she was free from that horrible life, she had no idea what to do with her newfound freedom or how normal children even lived their lives.

'Do I go to school?' She thought, being in a classroom surrounded by other children her age sounded harsh and anxiety-inducing but it wasn't too bad as well.

She had done quite a lot of studying in the lab to be as smart as she could be, according to Matthias's strict and demanding curriculum, so school wouldn't set her back academically. 'I'll just ask Papa later when we're alone.'

She then snuggled between Vanessa's breasts like a cat seeking warmth… it wasn't her fault that they were so soft and comfortable and made her feel safe.

Lucius smiled warmly at the scene, finding it endearing.

"Sure.. however the vacation is almost over." He muttered, he hadn't counted the exact amount of days they had spent but it was a full seven day trip and honestly it was more fun than he expected initially. Once he returned to Aurelia, he had to prepare for the Academy entrance ceremony and figure out his living situation.

"So soon?" Selene asked with genuine disappointment as she pulled on a silk robe and gave him a smile. "I understand my love… I'll make preparations for apprehending that fucker, Matthias. Please don't wait on me, I'll be a little late coming back."

He nodded in agreement and she walked off purposefully, leaving the roof area and all of the girls looked at him expectantly, waiting for an explanation.

He leaned against the chair and shrugged casually.

"What? It's a seven day vacation and we've spent what? Four days already, of course time is going to elapse quickly." He said and then waved at a maid that was grilling meat on a portable grill. "Hey, give me some grilled meat. I'm starving."

…

About two hours later, everyone was in the living room section of the Moon Hotel's top floor… there were sounds of explosion echoing across the city and Lucius wondered what Selene was doing to cause that level of destruction to warrant such noise.

'Meh, it doesn't concern me…' He thought, sure he was the one that gave her the information and task but he wasn't going to interfere with her methods.

His fated one was an S-rank after all and could handle herself perfectly fine.

Now he focused on the present… everyone was seated around him and Lucius was currently shuffling cards really quickly with practiced movements that spoke of experience. This was a card game called Royal Suits.

Royal Suits was the most popular card game in the world… across several major and even minor countries spanning continents, it was played with a standard deck of 52 cards.

The deck had four suits with distinct meanings… Crowns representing power and authority, Coins representing wealth and prosperity, Blades representing conflict and courage, and Chalices representing bonds and emotion.

Each suit contained thirteen cards ranked in order: Ace (highest value), King, Queen, Jack, then numbered cards from 10 down to 2 (lowest).

Three Card Showdown was a gambling favorite in taverns and noble courts alike: each player received exactly three cards and assembled the best possible hand from those three cards.

A "pair" meant two cards of the same number or face. "Three of a kind" meant three cards of the same number. A "straight" meant three cards in numerical sequence, like 4-5-6 regardless of suit.

A "flush" meant three cards all from the same suit regardless of number. The ranking went three of a kind (strongest hand possible), straight, flush, pair, then high card (weakest). Whoever had the highest-ranking hand claimed the pot and all the winnings.

It wasn't that confusing for people who hadn't played cards before once explained properly.

'Plus I don't like to brag but I was pretty lucky in my last life when it came to gambling…' He thought confidently, he was certainly going to get a good stack.

There was a table in front of them and everyone was sat in a circle around it waiting patiently for the game to be prepared… It was either you went in or went to your room!

"I still think this is absolutely ridiculous," Vanessa muttered while taking her seat across from him, though her cheeks were slightly pink with embarrassment.

"You're the one who suggested betting in the first place," Emilia pointed out with a knowing smirk as she sat down next to her, adjusting her position.

"I suggested betting money, not... this." Vanessa gestured vaguely at Lucius with clear exasperation, who grinned even wider at her discomfort.

"Aw, don't be shy now. I'm a great prize after all," he said while sticking his tongue out again childishly, making Lilliane cover her mouth to hide a laugh. It seemed her Master was going all in to tease Vanessa today.

Freya was curled up on the nearby couch, completely absorbed in a puzzle game on Lucius's phone, her green hair falling over the screen as she tapped away with focused concentration.

She looked pretty cute while doing it however Lucius was concerned at the speed she was clearing those puzzles at an inhuman pace… had they turned her into a super computer too during the experiments?

She was solving puzzles that took normal people hours in mere minutes.

"Alright ladies, and me," Lucius announced as he finished shuffling with a flourish. "We'll be playing a three card showdown where the highest hand wins. The prize is sleeping in my room tonight as we all agreed earlier.."

He paused dramatically for effect. "However if we've slept on the same bed together at night before… even if you win, you can't claim the prize since you've already had that privilege."

Luna pouted visibly. "That's completely unfair. Why did I even agree to play then?"

"For the glory of beating everyone else obviously," Amber said while cracking her knuckles loudly. "I'm taking this seriously. I need to stick with him as per my Father's orders anyway."

Besides she wondered what it would actually be like to sleep next to a hot gu—

She clapped herself hard in the cheeks. 'Wait… why am I thinking about that?'

"Of course you are," Elara said with a gentle smile as she adjusted her position at the table.

Elena leaned forward eagerly, practically bouncing in her seat. "Let's start already!"

Villy pulled herself closer to the table, having to sit on her knees to see over the edge properly. "I've got this in the bag. The one sleeping in Master's room today will definitely be me."

"Sure you do, shortie," Rita said with a confident grin, earning a fierce glare from Villy. It seemed they were all hyped!

Lucius began dealing three cards to each player, moving clockwise around the table with precision and flair.

The atmosphere grew noticeably tense as everyone picked up their cards and examined them carefully, trying to keep their expressions neutral while their hearts raced with anticipation.

The game of cards was an emotional game after all… you never know what your opponent had unless you cheated or managed to rig the cards somehow and one of the maids had literally procured this deck from a reputable dealer plus it was extensively checked for rigging by multiple people and at last, Lucius banned them from using mana even though his own spatial element was the only one that could potentially cheat in this situation.

Vanessa's eye twitched visibly as she looked at her hand. Her hand was terrible… a 3 of Chalices, 7 of Blades, and King of Coins.

It was absolutely nothing. Just a steaming hot pile of garbage.

Emilia bit her lip hard enough to hurt, holding a pair of 8s with a 4 of Crowns. It was not bad but definitely not great either, especially if someone had three of a kind.

Villy grinned wide with barely contained excitement… She had three 5s, three of a kind. This was it… she could actually win this. Lilliane on the other hand held a straight… 4, 5, 6 of different suits. It made her heart race as she held them carefully, hoping no one had anything better.

Judea sighed at her random assortment of cards that made no sense together. Well, at least she couldn't win the prize anyway so there was no pressure.

Luna had a flush… three Blades all in her hand.

She perked up excitedly before remembering she was disqualified from claiming the prize and slumped again in disappointment. It was really comfortable sleeping with Lucius and having him hold you protectively throughout the night.

Amber studied her pair of Queens with a Jack kicker which was decent enough. Elara had nothing special at all, just high cards that wouldn't beat much while Elena clutched her three 9s excitedly, trying desperately to keep her expression neutral and failing.

Rita looked at her hand calmly and internally… She had three Kings which called for massive celebration but she kept her face perfectly neutral like a professional poker player

"Alright, flip on three," Lucius announced with a smile, building the tension. "One... two... three!"

All the cards hit the table simultaneously with a collective slap of cardboard on wood.

"Ha! Three of a kind!" Villy shouted triumphantly, slamming her three 5s down with force.

"Same here!" Elena declared proudly, showing her three 9s with a grin.

"Oh no..." Villy's face fell as she realized she was completely outranked by higher numbers.

"I have a straight," Lilliane said quietly, displaying her 4, 5, 6 carefully.

"Flush," Luna added with a resigned sigh, showing her three Blades even though she couldn't win anyway and the other girls showed their disappointing cards too…

However Rita calmly laid down her three Kings and the entire table went completely silent.

"Three Kings," Rita said simply, leaning back in her chair with a satisfied smile spreading across her face.

"WHAT?!" Villy shouted loud enough to make everyone at the table wince.

"No way!" Elena slumped in her seat dramatically.

Amber whistled appreciatively. "Damn, that's a seriously good hand."

Lucius clapped his hands together enthusiastically as if he was genuinely excited for her.

"Congratulations, Rita. You've won the grand prize of my company and warmth tonight."

Rita's confident expression wavered slightly as the reality of what she'd won hit her, a blush creeping across her cheeks and spreading to her ears. "I... well, I was just playing to win the game."

'FINALLY! HE'LL GIVE ME ALL THE WARMTH HE HAS TO OFFER!' She yelled inwardly with pure joy, it was a cause for massive celebration.

"Sure you were," Emilia teased with a knowing look.

"Totally believable," Vanessa added with a knowing look that said she saw right through Rita.

"This is absolutely rigged!" Villy complained loudly, crossing her arms indignantly across her chest. "How does she get three Kings out of nowhere?!"

"It's called luck, shortie," Rita shot back confidently, though her blush deepened considerably and spread down her neck.

Lucius stood up and walked over to Rita with exaggerated swagger, offering his hand gallantly like a prince. "Shall we celebrate your victory properly later tonight?"

Rita took his hand and stood, trying desperately to maintain her composure and failing miserably. "Don't make it weird."

"Too late for that," Luna said flatly from across the table, her voice deadpan.

From the couch, Freya's voice piped up without looking away from the phone screen. "Papa, I beat level 47."

"Good job, Freya!" Lucius called back enthusiastically before turning to the disappointed women around the table with sympathetic expressions. "Don't worry ladies, there's always next time. I'm sure we can arrange another game soon… maybe after Selene gets home. We still have some time on our hands before dinner."

Rita nearly moaned out loud as his hand held hers tightly, his warmth was seeping into her skin… she had been pulling herself together these past few days by touching herself thinking about him late at night but she was going to finally have direct physical contact for an entire night and she couldn't wait for bedtime.

Just then, the elevator door opened with a mechanical ding and Selene stepped in, she was wearing a pristine white suit with a flowing white cape attached to behind, her hair was flowing dramatically and she looked very pretty… but a lot more formal and businesslike than when she was relaxing with them.

She walked straight to the living room with purpose and looked at them gathered around the table then at the scattered cards.

"You guys were playing cards without me…? No fair." She let out a groan of disappointment.

"Ah Selene… what were those explosions we heard?" Vanessa pointed out, gesturing outside the floor-to-ceiling window… one could see a place in the distance where smoke was coming out from and rising into the evening sky.

"Oh that? I was just attacked by some newly promoted S-rank that didn't know how to act properly around his betters." Selene said dismissively. "I made sure he would never be able to attack anyone again…"

Lucius had a strong feeling that those words were far more cruel and final than they sounded but he looked at the documents she was carrying then let go of Rita's hand, making the Saintess whimper audibly in disappointment.

"What are those?" Lucius asked and she looked down at the papers in her hands.

Selene placed the document on the table carefully, there were two separate contracts bound in leather folders.

"I had my personal lawyer do it for us… the first one is a legal official parent child document. If you sign it and Freya signs it as well then you legally become her guardian with all the rights and responsibilities that entails." She said and Lucius nodded approvingly.

He was glad she thought it through so quickly and efficiently…

"The next one is a Marriage contract for the two of us. I want to be your wife." She said as she extended it to Lucius with both hands and he looked at the official document. "In the days we've spent together… all of us, I enjoyed every single bit of it. So I've decided, if I get married to you and become your legal wife then I'll get citizenship to Aurelia and be able to live there permanently as your wife."

Lucius took the contract from her hands carefully.

"I see… I have no qualms about you being my wife." He said and she blushed deeply however the other girls raised their hands in protest.

"WAIT!"