After a few days of practising my mana accumulation, it finally felt as if I was beginning to make progress. Rather than finishing my practise sessions and feeling only mildly different, I began to realise the big differences when I was outside in the garden. Normally, I would begin to feel tired after only "playing" outside for under an hour.

Now, an hour would go by and I would still feel as if I had energy left to burn. Whatever this mana was doing, it was working. Even Lettie seemed to notice the difference - a difference to which she attributed to being a part of me "growing up so fast".

Especially after my one year anniversary, when I was around three years old, she seemed to attribute my strength to youth. After all this practise I had been careful not to reveal too much around her. Although I hadn't improved a great deal, I was careful not to reveal too much. I didn't want another incident like when I had spoken too early for my age. Yet Lettie still never seemed to catch on at all.

Was it because she didn't suspect a toddler to be practising magic?

I smirked. All the better for me.

If I was to have any chance of avoiding death at nineteen, that meant I had to escape this hell before then.

Truthfully, I had to constantly refer to this place as a hell, otherwise I would fall victim to the easiness of life here. Everything was too comfortable. I was lucky.

But obviously not lucky enough.

I had to get out of here.

Initially, all I had had in my mind was ESCAPE, until I finally managed to recall a part of the book which caught my interest.

If memory served me correct, the heroine met the main love interest after he came back from a famous academy in another country. Then, on the night of Edythe De Villanova's debutante, the two came face-to-face.

How ironic.

The two love interests met on the night of the villainess's coming of age. The ultimate stab in the heart. Especially considering that Edythe had been waiting for him to return since she had first fallen for him when she had met him as her betrothed at the tender age of ten. He was meant to be her first partner for the dance, yet on the night she had not been able to find him, and eventually discovered him sharing his first dance with Eleanor.

Screw him.

What I was really interested in was the events that came after that.

A war.

A war erupted when Edythe turned eighteen , and it was during this tulmultous time that Edythe's fate was sealed. She made a deliberate mistake which had cost her life.

The more I thought about this, the more I realised how perfect this opportunity was. My new objective was clear.

Clearly, there were going to be cases that would be out of my control. Fate had a strange way of working itself out. Yet, there was no way fate could intervene if I wasn't even there to begin with. That left me with one thing I needed to do.

I needed to join the war.

The easiest way to escape my fate was not to even be present to begin with.

I was a genius.

My knowledge of females participating in wars was limited, but I did know that priestesses would often accompany the soldiers to act as healers. Although the novel didn't delve into the war politics surrounding Clove Kingdom, it had never really said that war wasn't a place for women. I was sure that there would have at least been some women there as nurses and doctors for the emergency hospitals.

The idea of becoming a nurse didn't really intrigue me, although I did practise pharmacy in my past life and I knew my way around drugs, emergency medicine had never really been my forte.

There was also the option of becoming a priestess, yet considering my...unfavourable heritage, I doubted that the church would take kindly to taking someone with demon blood into their ranks.

Talk about a bad omen.

Annoyed, I began to pace, lost in my thoughts. I walked through the garden after telling Lettie that I was only going to the fountain to play by myself. As I walked, I could feel myself frowning. I didn't really have anything going for me. Truly, being a villianess was wrought with obstacles and a fate that seemed determined to make everything difficult for me. Whoever the higher power was here, they seemed to have a personal vendetta against me. Why was it so hard to avoid not being killed.

Though it was ironic that I was considering going to war to avoid death.

Ha.

As I turned a few more corners amongst all the shrubbery, I could feel the sun kissing my pale skin. Although I had been out here for a while, I doubted the sun would be able to get through the numerous layers that the servants seemed determined to dress me in every day. Honestly, I could hardly move in these. There were so many frills and lace that I felt like a doll. Of course, on the rare occasions that I did happen to glance at myself, I was always taken aback over how much I looked like a doll. Pure black hair as if it was made by night, and big red eyes that were so red, it almost appeared as if they had been dyed in blood. My skin, being pale, only served to make my hair and eyes stand out even more. Although I was only a child, I could tell from Edythe's delicate features that she was stunning.

But not as stunning as Eleanor, the embodiment of light.

It annoyed me that I was considering going to war just avoid this stupid woman. Honestly, what was the point of having magic if I couldn't even use it?

It was then that I came to a clearing and I stopped as a thought occurred to me.

I remembered what I hadn't realised I had forgotten. It was as if a light had suddenly shone down on me. I smiled as it dawned on me.

The wizard tower.

When the kingdom went to war, the wizard tower would send out warlocks who specialised in attack and defensive magic.

There was my loophole.

Why hadn't I thought of it before?!

Elated, I looked around, ready to share my joy when I realised where I was, or - more aptly - where I wasn't.

I was certainly not at the fountain. In fact, I didn't recognise this area at all.

How long had I been waking? How far had I gone?

Gingerly, I took a few steps forward to examine the area properly. The clearing looked as if it was a small piece of paradise. I was inside what appeared to be a long forgotten sanctuary. It reminded of the Gate of All Nations in the ruins of Persepolis back home on earth.

The structure consisted of one large open outdoor room whose roof was supported by four marble columns with bell-shaped bases. Parallel to the columns of this pavilion ran a stone bench, interrupted at the archways. The outer stone statues which had been BBC served into the structure appeared to be made of a pure gold that glistened in the sun. The columnar structures themselves were bedecked with frequent niches. Pure gold also outlined the finer details, accentuating the building's beauty. Each of the three columns, on the east, west, and south, had a very large stone archway. A pair of massive bulls secured the western entrance; two in the style, albeit, of colossal proportions, stood at the eastern archway. Engraved above each of the four colossi was an inscription which I didn't recognise, yet for some reason felt important. The archway on the south, opening toward the garden, was the widest of the three.

It felt as if was an amazing display of Achaemenid architecture.

If it had been in its prime, I was sure it would have been even grander that it already was. My tiny frame only served to exemplify this place even more. It was absolutely breathtaking.

Yet it appeared as if this place hadn't been cared for in years. Vines and ivy were running rampant, covering portions of the cracked walls as if nature itself had decided to claim this place for itself, giving it an almost ethereal feel. It felt as if I had discovered my very own secret place.

In the ceiling, there were a few places where the roof had obviously caved to the elements and a few stones had fallen, allowing glorious light to flood down. Although this structure was already open, with only columns to hold up the roof, having patches of direct sunlight filter down made this place seem even more magical.

My body went rigid when I heard a voice speak behind me, catching me completely off guard and making my heart stop. It felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on me, bringing me out of my trance-like state.

Holy sh*t.

I didn't need to turn around to know who was right behind me. My body had frozen with fear, refusing to respond. It felt as if invisible hands were clutching onto my body, paralysing me and taking the breath right out of my lungs.

Nevermind war. I might as well die now.

There went my plan of avoiding him my whole life.

How was I meant to know how large his territory was?! How was I meant to know he had a PRIVATE ESTATE?!

WhatdoIdowhatdoIdowhatdoIdo

I was panicking, the fear making my mind become absolute mush. All I could do was breathe. Yet, you could cut the killing intent surrounding me with a knife. I was like a bug that could be squashed at any moment. Who knew how long I had left to live? Minutes?

Seconds?

Why was he here? Edythe wasn't meant to meet him until she was nine! I was only three and a bit!

As if under I had been under a spell, it suddenly broke and I was able quickly turn reflexively and make eye contact with the blood red eyes which haunted my dreams.

Help me.

I was so dead.

In fact, why wasn't I already dead? In the novel, it was had always described him as someone who had no hesitation killing someone. In fact, he relished it, like a true insane person would. Briefly, I noticed someone standing not too far behind me, but I was too distracted by my imminent death to take proper account of them.

he said, as if more to himself than to anyone at all. He was like god before me, the decider of my fate. Would I live? Or would I die? his voice was like daggers in my heart, laced with hate and contempt.

A poison.

For the first time, I saw him for who he was. No longer was he shrouded by darkness. His hair was as dark as the ocean depths, with eyes as red as blood.

A direct mirror of my own.

His hair was long and flowed around him in as if gravity played no part at all. He wore dark robes with golden threaded features. There were parts of the robe that naturally exposed his skin, showing the hardened muscles beneath. He was built to kill. The darkness in this pavilion seemed to seep into the shadow he cast on the ground. Not only did he suck in the darkness around him, but he also took my breath away over how inhumanely beautiful he was. It was like looking at a beautiful predator, one which used its looks to take their prey off guard...

Right before he killed them.

I swallowed.

I'd never seen him properly before, but I knew who was standing right before me. There was no mistaking this god-like demon with eyes that gave off a predatorial glow.

Kael De Villanova.