A Villain’s Regret

Seraphina descended the worn wooden stairs, her thoughts in disarray. Her memories of the novel swirled in her mind, filling her with mockery—not for the world, but for herself.

Seraphina Vale should have been dead the day she stole that piece of bread.

Yet here she was. Alive.

And as if fate hadn't toyed with her enough, she now remembered her past life and realized—this world was the setting of a novel.

She pushed open the door to the children's room, only to be greeted by chaos. The beds, which Julian—that crafty capitalist—had painstakingly arranged, were now in complete disarray. Worse still, the older children—Rose, Luke, Alaric, and Adrian—were nowhere to be seen.

Before she could react, two familiar figures rushed toward her.

"Sister! Where have you been?" Ralph cried, his small face scrunched in worry.

Jonny stood beside him, nodding in agreement, his sharp eyes scanning her, as if inspecting something.

"They went to look for you," Ralph added.

Seraphina let out a sigh. "I was on the rooftop, figuring something out."

Her gaze drifted to the center of the room, where a familiar silver-haired boy lay on the floor, swarmed by giggling children. Lucian groaned in frustration, struggling under the weight of his long, tangled hair and overgrown nails.

It was a comical sight—his usually sharp presence reduced to a helpless mess—but at the same time, it was troubling.

This boy… this is the future villain who will massacre the entire continent and enshroud it in darkness.

Seraphina's mind wandered again, her thoughts racing.

These children… they were never supposed to exist at this moment.

According to the novel, they should have died that very day, slaughtered by the pig boss's gang.

The book had always been strange. The chapters were disconnected, each one depicting different events without clear continuity. The flow had been messy, but the sheer rawness of the emotions had captivated her.

One chapter had stood out in particular—the villain's last moments.

In it, he was lost in memories of a best friend with hair as dark as night and a group of children he once called family. The novel had vividly captured his mental state—the agony of watching his best friend, Seraphina, die over a mere piece of bread.

And then, his true nightmare had begun.

The pig boss's attack.

It all made sense now. While Seraphina was alive, her manipulation had unknowingly kept the pig boss at bay, making the slum a relatively safer place for the children. But in the novel, there had been no mention of such a thing.

In the original timeline, when Lucian was captured, the horrors that followed had shattered him. He had been tortured beyond recognition, and one by one, his friends—his family—had been executed before his very eyes.

The more he stared at their lifeless bodies, the more his heart cracked.

That night, something inside him finally broke. His dark elemental magic had spiraled out of control, swallowing the entire slum in an abyss of destruction.

The villain did not shed a single tear.

He had repeatedly used his inherited healing skill, but no matter how many times he tried, he could not bring back his family.

And then—he vanished.

For six years, no one saw him.

Until, at the age of eighteen, he reappeared. He killed his older brothers, who had tried to eliminate him, and took the title of Duke of Blackwood for himself.

"Sister… sister!"

Ralph's worried voice pulled Seraphina back to the present.

She had lost count of how many times she sighed today.

Finally, she sat down. "Yeah?"

Ralph beamed. "We saved some food for you, sister!"

The four youngest—Richa, Irish, Oliver, and Sophia—happily rushed forward, their little hands pushing her toward the table.

"Eat, sister!" they cheered.

Seraphina's chest tightened.

It didn't matter if this was a novel or not.

She refused to let these children die.

She would become rich and build a safe home for them. She would make sure they lived as well as possible.

With renewed determination, she wolfed down the food before settling beside Lucian, who was still sulking. His silver hair, now tangled, fell over his eyes, and his long nails made even the simplest actions frustrating.

"How long do I have to keep this up?" he grumbled.

"Until you realize your mistake," Seraphina replied casually, shrugging.

Behind her, the children giggled, thoroughly enjoying their usually untouchable 'boss' being reduced to a helpless mess.

"Come on, Seraphina," Lucian groaned. "I'm dying here!"

Seraphina twirled a strand of her dark hair between her fingers, pretending not to hear him.

"Seraaaa," he dragged out, looking betrayed.

She raised an eyebrow. "Your mistake?"

Lucian huffed in frustration.

"Ugh… fine."

He squeezed his eyes shut, his lips forming a reluctant pout. "I was wrong, okay? It was my fault!"

Seraphina stared expectantly.

Lucian groaned, defeated. "I shouldn't have thrown my life away like that."

A satisfied smile spread across Seraphina's lips. She reached out, ruffling his messy hair.

"Good thing you finally realized it."

Lucian's heart thumped for a second, though he didn't quite understand why.

"Alright, kids," Seraphina called, "help your dear brother clean up!"

The children swarmed him with scissors, eagerly trimming his overgrown hair and nails. Lucian, alarmed, barked out, "Not too short! Don't mess it up!"

Their laughter filled the room.

At that moment, the door burst open.

"Finally you're back, miss!" Rose stormed in, looking exasperated. "We searched for you everywhere! It was like you vanished!"

Alaric crossed his arms. "She's right. We checked everywhere, but you were nowhere to be found."

Seraphina observed them closely.

Alaric always initiated conversations, while Adrian followed suit. That made them easy to distinguish. Now that they had bathed, their golden hair and amber eyes shimmered in the dim light—almost noble-like.

Now that she thought about it, all the children around her were either strikingly beautiful or ridiculously cute.

Luke stepped forward, his usual serious expression unwavering. "The guild master is looking for you."

Seraphina exhaled. "Got it."

She turned to Luke. "Oh—give me that magic stone you have."

Without hesitation, Luke handed it over.

Seraphina narrowed her eyes. That crafty capitalist is definitely looking for a way to rip me off…

Without another word, she made her way out.

Behind her, the children continued their chaotic attempt at grooming Lucian—the future villain... but right now, just a sulking, adorable mess.