Reincarnated as the mother of an otome game's villainess?!

Chapter 21. ABACAB

She had been standing in front of that door for almost a minute now.

Other students had starting to call her a saintess, the Eve of that generation, but all that praise was meaningless to the one who had summoned her. At the other side of the door, inside of the student council's room, was waiting Prince Julius himself.

She took a deep breath and mustered all the courage she had in her body to knock.

—Come in —his voice was stern and imposing, making her want to actually do the opposite.

—Excuse me —she said as she entered the room.

She bowed her head and kept her gaze directed at the floor, in part as a sign of respect, but also due to the intense fear she was feeling. Even so, she was also curious; she had only seen him from a distance, so she couldn't avoid throwing a quick glance towards the prince. His hair was distinctively silver, she has never seen anyone like that, though she had heard that his mother also had it. His green pupils seemed to look deep into her soul, but his general expression showed that he was hardly interested in her presence. He was very attractive looking, but he was also too pale, and the dark circles around his eyes indicated that he didn't sleep enough. As always, there was a raven sitting on his shoulder, who was rumored to be his familiar or a spirit that has taught him dark magic.

—You have been accused of stealing a jewel from Violett Dragonroot.

—Yes. I did take it —she admitted.

—You aren't going to deny it? Stealing other student's property can be punished with expulsion.

—I knew what was at risk when I did it.

He opened a folder with several pages, spreading them over the table between them.

—I have reports of other students and teachers; you used the jewel and your holy magic to heal those that were infected by the phantom plague. Shouldn't you use that as leverage to lesser your punishment, or even to demand a reward?

—I didn't help them expecting a reward, and I will not avoid punishment for any crimes I committed.

His expression changed a bit at that moment, it was almost unnoticeable, but the heroine thought she saw him smiling.

—You are quite the saintess, just as the rumors say —he spoke, almost in a mocking tone—, your opinion aside, I can't ignore your good deeds, so I'll lower your punishment. You will help the student council with administrative work after school's hours. However, there is a condition for this great deal...

—A condition?

—Yes. You'll have to help me in a personal project, and not tell anyone about it.

—Which is?

—To destroy my fiancée, Violett Dragonroot, before she destroys this nation.

—Ugggghhh, isn't this too much? —I remember saying after reading that scene for the first time, in a moment that felt so long ago.

Prince Julius was the hardest love interest to capture in Promises of an Enchanted Heart. Not only would anybody trying to complete his route have to face against Violett, which was a pretty difficult task on its own right, but the prince was cold hearted, arrogant, and short tempered. The other love interests would at least take an interest on the protagonist when they first met her. But Julius only saw her as a pawn because she could use holy magic, which rivaled Violett's power.

Even at the end, when he had "fallen" for the heroine, his affection couldn't go higher than 70%, while the rest capped at 100%. For all of this, I was really worried about how the relationship between Violett and Julius would develop. Their relationship was strained before they even started going to the academy together; their marriage was just something political, and Julius only tolerated her outburst and demands because he didn't want to have her as an enemy.