A Regressed Villain: Heroines, Villainesses and Me?

At its heart, the impressive Croceaus estate featured a mansion that truly set the standard for luxury.

The vast exterior was made of stunning white marble, polished to perfection, reflecting sunlight like a giant spotlight.

The architecture was adorned with a series of arches and columns, with detailed carvings of mythical beings that seemed to dance right out of the stone.

Surrounding the mansion were lush gardens bursting with a dazzling array of exotic flowers, arranged in striking symmetry, creating a vibrant color palette that matched the neatly trimmed hedges and shimmering fountains.

The garden statues stood tall, showcasing the incredible skill of the artisans, with hints of gold detailing indicating the endless wealth of the owner.

Even the air was charged with a sense of exclusivity and splendor, silently declaring the unmatched opulence of the place.

In the last two or three days, a series of changes had occurred, making the whole mansion bustling with soldiers, as important people arrived for meetings with the head of the family.

The mansion was clearly filled with several individuals, mostly heads of the minor branch families, who were either arriving or staying there, expecting to meet the Marquess and get answers to the ongoing ordeals in the territory.

In front, near the metal gates, which stood more than seven feet high, several maids and servants lined up on either side.

At the head of the group stood a man clad in a butler outfit, his white-gloved hand placed over his chest, looking toward the fleet of cars approaching the gates.

Beside him stood a woman, nonchalant, dressed similarly to how she had been four days ago, appearing to have not taken a proper bath, with hints of bloodstains near her closed hand that rested on a black amethyst sword.

This sword resembled her purple eyes, which were impassive yet anticipating the arrival of her master.

Both of them stood there, with the servants and maids of the mansion clearly maintaining a professional demeanor, their postures indicating their understanding of their status as subordinates.

Some had their heads lowered, standing appropriately, while among them stood a group of people clearly drenched in sweat, their eyes diverting from the purple-haired woman, with no one daring to look in her direction.

They had been waiting for the past two days, either to protect themselves or to at least have a visit from the Marquess.

The entire territory was bathed in blood, having lost too many important figures in the higher administration due to that particular woman, who now stood beside Butler Alfred, currently considered the highest authority after the head of the family.

This made everyone clearly on edge until they heard that the Marquess was arriving back in the territory today.

Vrooom

Screech

The engine gave a massive roar, followed by the crunching sound of tire friction—what they thought was their only shot at getting out of this mess.

As the cars came to a stop, it was clear they were finally going to get answers to all those questions that had been bugging them for days.

'Master....' Rivia stood there, clearly impassive, keeping her expressions in check, yet there was a slight flinch in her eyes the moment she noticed the figure of the man.

Though partially, it only revealed his hair swooping in silver coming out of the door, with boots on the ground, still, as if not wanting to miss a bit, her eyes remained fixed on him as slowly his face, the same as she remembered, with deep blue eyes, emerged from the car.

'!'

But it was instantaneous that the moment he did, a small metallic smell emanated from his body, appearing to be remnants of blood, even though it was dried, reaching her mind, causing her hand to tighten on her sword as her eyes trembled.

Clearly looking up and down his body, her eyes narrowed as she thought he was wounded.

Due to her heightened senses, she finally stopped her gauge near his suit's pocket, from where she was smelling the scent of blood.

Though it was dried, focusing more on her senses, she detected there was a hint of chemicals in it, prompting her to loosen her hand on her sword.

Given that, her eyes suddenly felt him gauging back at her.

"Welcome, Master," Alfred, with a perfect stance, moved forward with his hand on his chest, giving a professional bow, along with the servants and maids who also greeted him with a bow.

They did not move from their position, staying on either side of the path.

From where Avendial was able to clearly see the mayors of several territories, along with some of the people he had told Alfred to summon.

"How many of them are alive yet?" Avendial, observing the scene, clearly knowing that these people, mostly mayors and other higher officials present right now, would have a clear understanding of the situation after he asked this question, trying to convey that it was him who had ordered everything.

So, for now, they should not bring up this matter to him.

'!?!'

'Wh-what!?'

'Why would he?'

One after another, as he had expected, those people, including the mayors of the other seven provinces, were clearly taken aback, given they just heard that it was indeed his orders to get rid of the mayor of the northeast province, along with the massacre that had gone on for two days, causing their hands to clench, with their heads kept lowered.

Clearly fearing that if it was really an order from the head of the family, then they couldn't do anything, and even if they tried, they would be declared traitors and executed on the spot.

After all, they were here to complain about that woman, who, in herself, was an army, with the hope that she did all this on her own accord.

But it turned out that it was indeed an order from the higher-ups, so the most they could do was ask about the reason for formalities.

"None of them, Master," Alfred, understanding his intent with closed eyes, informed, keeping his professionalism while ignoring the presence of another figure who had just come out of the car, given he had already noticed her.

"I see...." Avendial nodded and then looked over at Rivia, noticing her eyes practically burning a hole in Aria.

It was obvious to him that she was back to her old possessive ways, glaring like someone who felt their loved one was in danger of being taken away.

'Why... Why.... WHY!' Rivia, who stood there, due to her enhanced senses, had eyes clearly reflecting her enraged expression at the figure of the woman in front of her, holding red eyes and black hair, who appeared to be looking at her in clear hesitation.

Rivia felt her whole body burn the moment her enhanced ability sensed the similar scent completely saturating the whole body of that woman, a scent that only belonged to her, now imprinted on that woman's whole body.

Due to Rivia's sharp senses, enhanced by Synergy, which she had been focusing on earlier due to sensing blood near her master, were now fixated on that woman whose whole body smelled like him.

No, not only was it just a bad smell coming from her body, but it was clearly the same smell Rivia had sensed that day.

Intensity is a pungent aroma that originates from two or three spots on her body, particularly from the areas that could be penetrated intimately.