I am Late so I am the Villain? - Chapter 6

The publisher was larger than she had expected.

It was a three-story building with offices on each floor.

But when she glanced through the open doors, she saw that they were all unoccupied.

‘Well, does this place have a dreary vibe about it, or is it just my perception?’

When she entered the ‘Editorial Department’ office, a desk was set up in a large open area.

A secretary, a lady with a hooked nose and silver-rimmed glasses, sat there.

The secretary reminded her of the witch she saw in her fairy tale book, and she chuckled uncontrollably before their gazes collided.

“Gasp!”

Did she see it mistakenly?

In the secretary’s eyes, a red laser beam blazed.

Riya, who had shivers all over her body, instantly stiffened.

“The editor is napping asleep. Please wait.”

Then Riya had no option but to sit in front of a gleaming glass table and wait.

The secretary went away and returned with a beverage cup on a tray.

“This is a nutritious drink.”

Riya, who couldn’t eat anything healthy, tried to grab it and drink it quickly , but suddenly stopped moving.

There was translucent green water within the transparent cup, and two yellow eyeballs floated above it.

Riya had a bad feeling when she saw that.

“What exactly is this?”

“A revitalizing combination of salamander saliva and tears.”

The secretary responded stiffly.

“So, this eyeball… Is it…? No way, no how.”

“You saw that accurately, salamander eyes. It will relieve the fatigue in your eyes if you chew it.”

“Argh!”

Riya, who has a weak stomach, shouted and bounced her body like a spring.

Then there was a roar from the chamber, as if a lion was howling.

“Who is it?”

Riya’s shoulders shrank in response to the gravelly voice.

“Thanks to you, the editor-in-chief is awake. You must take care of yourself since he will be in a terrible mood.”

Riya hesitated at the entrance, even more terrified by her severe warning.

By intuition, her entire body was urging her to get out of here.

“Hey, is the CEO the editor-in-chief?”

“Of course, please come in.”

The secretary came up behind her and pulled her back.

Riya tumbled into the room with such ferocity.

When she regained consciousness, she found herself at the feet of the frightening editor-in-chief.

“Gasp!”

Riya tried to get up and take a step back, but she couldn’t move as if her feet were stuck together.

Only then did she realize that she had been caught wrong. She was entirely confined to a bed.

“Are you the one who woke me up from my deep nap?”

A thunderbolt-like boom resounded over her head.

When she looked up, a man in black was looking at her with drowsy eyes.

He was a creepy man with black hair wrapped in a knot down to his shoulders, dark skin, and mysteriously twinkled blue eyes.

He was attractive, yet he didn’t appear to be a normal man.

The beast’s eyes and blood-red lips reminded her of a specific beast, rather than a person.

‘Don’t tell me, hyena publisher? It’s not a human, but a real hyena?’

Riya shook her head and hugged the bag around her chest.

As she glanced around, she noticed that bits of the body were rolling around like stones in every corner of the room, just as Miryu had stated.

Arms and legs that have been hardened roll around like toys.

Riya felt like she was going to puke because the objects that were meant to be fingers and toes were all over the place.

“So, tell me, who are you?”

The man covered his mouth with his palm and looked at Riya from head to toe, who was holding back her nausea, before nodding as if he recognized her.

Her entire body was engulfed in unspeakable terror.

“I……am Riya……Riya Lisburn.”

Her voice was trembling, and she barely responded.

“Riya Lisburn?”

The man’s cold blue eyes rolled around her face.

After a little pause, the guy gradually opened his mouth.

“You are the concubine of Seir Brian. In addition, you are the Princess of The Kingdom of Annabele.”

“How did you find out?”

Riya’s eyes widened in astonishment.

“So, what exactly are you doing here?”

The man’s gaze was fixed on her bag, which was clutched securely in her arms.

“Oh, well, that’s….”

She missed the confidence to present the obscene manuscript to the man.

“I came here to look at the publishing house. Haha. It’s very spacious and comfortable!”

Riya attempted to slide off of the man’s lap, but her bag fell from her grasp and floated into the air.

“Ah! It’s my bag!”

The button fell off as soon as she leapt and tried to grasp her bag, and hundreds of manuscripts were thrown around.

The guy raised his head and looked over the swaying papers.

Riya clearly saw. She clearly saw a blue laser beam coming out of his eyes.

The man scowled and let out a faint sigh.

“He devoured her hot fruit with his mouth wide open? So, what does this all mean?”

(T/N: The italicized sentence refers to the sentence in the manuscript.)

Riya covered her mouth with her hands, swallowing a scream.

It was a term used to describe a situation in which a male and female character were having an affair on a bed.

‘Damn you! How did you find out when you didn’t even read it?’

“You are quite daring. You’re taking a risk by detailing the love affair scenario. This marks the beginning of a new writer’s career.”

The man leaned back and looked at Riya.

Riya’s cheeks had gone as red as a beet.

No way, what sort of nonsense is this?

“Um, but the expression is childlike, his scorching pillars are blazing and prepared to move toward the deep swamp…”

“Argh! Stop!”

Riya shrieked and covered her ears.

Of all things, this man continued reciting the description of the love affair scenario.

“I am leaving right now! Please act as though the manuscript never existed.”

Riya, who had become red, tried to turn around, but he just murmured.

“It’s extremely shocking, and I’ve never seen such an eccentric expression before. What about a 3,000 gold royalties tax for each book?”

“Gasp!”

Riya made a fast turnaround as she prepared to leave.

She moved at a rapid speed.

“Gasp! Three thousand gold?”

‘Crazy! Crazy! Is this man really that wealthy? Three thousand gold is the price of a castle, right? My God, I could buy a castle and get out of that place with only one volume of this novel!’

Riya instantly knelt in front of him and sat down.

Then she gazed up at him with sparkling eyes, as if she were a kid awaiting his disposal.

Her forceful submissiveness drew a scowl from the man.

“There’s no need for you to kneel down.”

“I’m a professional writer, editor-nim. I can write anything you desire! I’m sure I could write it much more obscenely.”

Riya yelled, her eyes sparkling. She made the decision to revise her thoughts entirely.

She doesn’t need shame, pride, or anything else when it comes to money.

She intended to entice this man in front of her and get him to sign a contract as soon as possible.

“You know what, Editor-nim? It’s really scary out there, yet this book has everything that young ladies need. All of them will be satisfied by this novel. I’m confident it’ll be a big success!”

“Well, what is written in this book, is it your experience? That’s pretty real.”

‘Ugh, dude, what you’re saying right now is sexual harassment. Don’t tell me you imagine me doing that on the bed while reading it.’

Riya wanted to ask, but she didn’t.

In any case, she had no choice but to fulfill this commitment.

“Hoot, my imagination’s wings are really amazing. Anything else is conceivable in my imaginations.”

‘I have to make a good impression on this man. Riya Lisburn, clearly show your abilities as a professional writer!’

Riya tried to create an arrogant smile, but the man saw her uncomfortable expression.

“So you’re essentially admitting you’re a virgin?”

“No…Hey, that’s a story……You, this sexual harassment statement……”

Frustrated with Riya’s nonsense, the guy grabbed a scrap of paper from his desk and hurled it at her.

She took it haphazardly and stared carefully, but she couldn’t read any of them.

It has to be a written contract.

It had something written on it, but she couldn’t figure it out.

The letters were so small, yet curiously, they were out of focus, making it impossible for her to read them properly.

Riya opened her eyes and attempted to read them while the guy yelled at her.

“Just say something quickly! I’m sorry, but I don’t have time. Are you planning to sign the contract or not?”

“Of course I do! Also, are you certain about the three thousand gold royalty tax?”

“Definitely.”

“Where should I sign then?”

“Put your finger forward.”

“What? Which one?”

“Left thumb!”

Riya shouted and held out her finger.

Her fingers were wounded by something very sharp.

She felt as if a bee sting had stung her finger.

“Argh! It’s painful!”

Riya’s screaming eyes grew to the size of a bell.

Her contract was drenched as steam red blood trickled down from her lifted thumb.

“Argh!”

Riya shouted angrily and shook her arms and legs, much like in a horror film.

“That concludes the contract. Bye. There’s an exit over there.”

***

Riya was in a state of astonishment after visiting the publishing house.

It was a place she never wanted to return to, and he was a guy she never wanted to see again.

But three thousand gold!

She rolled around on the bed, clutching a pillow to her chest.

She couldn’t believe she’d made such a large sum of money.

She envisioned the things she would have to do once she moved to the lovely castle.

First, she’ll plant her favorite veggies in the bright front yard.

And she was considering beautifying a large number of rooms and launching a lodging company.

She can also use the additional money to purchase a beautiful villa in a scenic location.

Riya rolled around for a while and then remembered, so she pulled the contract out of her bag again.

Then she took a closer look and discovered something unusual.

“Huh?”

The contract, which had been hardly visible owing to the illegible handwriting the day before, was now plainly visible.

The contents were as follows:

[1. If the sales volume falls short of the publisher’s projected return within a month, the writer must pay the difference.

“Argh!”

Riya shouted and backed up. Her entire body shook in astonishment.

‘No, why didn’t I see this sooner?’

“What’s the problem, Madam?”

Miryu hurried away from the scream and glanced at Riya’s face.

She was happy that her Madam had not previously had seizure signs, but she was concerned that the symptoms had resurfaced.

“No, there’s nothing. Ugh.”

Riya staggered into her study, shaking as she held a pen on her desk.

“Don’t allow anyone in, Miryu. I’ll start writing right away.”

Miryu couldn’t comprehend what her Madam was saying at the time.

It was incredible that her Madam, who bought clothes whenever she had the opportunity and committed herself to looking good in front of the mirror, was solely interested in reading books and writing.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Riya was writing a late-night story at her desk when she heard something crackling outside the window.

She noticed a large owl slamming his head on the window.

“Wait, what kind of owl is that?”

The owl with blank eyes fluttered its wings and placed a letter on Riya’s desk as she immediately opened the window.

“Oh, you were an errand boy? That’s really sweet!”

Riya was ecstatic, so she ripped open the message and freaked out.

[Would you want to come to a publishing planning meeting?  ~Hyena~]

‘No, what sort of planning meeting is this?’ I’m not interested in going. How am I going to do that? Is it possible that we’ll have to hold a 19th-rate novel planning meeting at the workplace where the eyes and limbs roll around?

Riya was distraught and walked around the room, chewing her nails.

She desired to break her wrist, with which she had signed the contract.

She was now focused on the moment in which the filthy Prince Caius takes Julia to bed and spends a sensual night with her.

They had already spent a hot night together and had grown close, so there was no reluctance between the two of them.

[“Please don’t let me feel hurt today, Caius-nim.” 

“Well, that’s absolutely impossible. Please don’t ignore my passion.”]

Riya scribbled this childish line and then erased it.

The notion of Hyena reciting the text gave her goosebumps and made her nervous.

‘I’m sure he’ll make fun of me.’

Riya awoke frustrated, retrieved the script from the desk drawer, and read it again.

It’s horrible, but she needed to double-check on Charlson murdering her.

And she had intentions of reigniting her passionate desire.

[That day, Riya Lisburn made love to Prince Brian, who came to her every day.

Seir: (Kissing Riya on the back of her neck for the twelfth time) I’m afraid I can’t do this anymore, Riya. Your room will have to be directly next to my office. I can’t wait to see you. I just can’t seem to focus on anything.

Riya: Eiy, what’s wrong with you? (Shyly, she punches Seir in the chest with both fists.)

Seir’s time runs out after another intense kiss and numerous acts of nude love, and he pledges to return in an hour with a regretful expression and eventually leaves.

Riya hums cheerfully and falls asleep while staring at the mirror.

And in front of her, with a terrifying feeling in her sleep, her eyes flashed, and Charlesson stood tall in front of her, like a grim reaper.

Riya: (astonished) Charlson?

Charlson: Don’t expect any guards to come. I’ve sent everyone far away.

Riya: What are you talking about?

Charlson: I can’t stay still and see my lady grieving and distressed anymore. I need you to die right now.

Riya: (Stumbling with a pale complexion) Yes? Hey, hey.

Riya attempted to flee but was unable to avoid his onslaught.

Finally, his waist is severed with a harsh ax blade.

Charlson’s axe didn’t stop there, it went all the way down to her neck.

Riya Lisburn met a tragic end when she drenched the bed in her scarlet bloo