Chapter 0

## **Summary**

The chapter starts with Kayena's coming-of-age ceremony which was held in the imperial palace, and she's said to be the most beautiful woman in the Eldyme Empire. She is praised for her beauty by other noble men who ask her for a dance, and is said to be loved by everyone in the Empire for being the Emperor's only sister. Emperor Regef appears and congratulates her saying she will always be the most beautiful woman, and Kayena happily smiles at the compliments received from others. Kayena was a foolish and arrogant woman who trusted in her beauty, but she failed to realize that beauty doesn't give her power. Soon, she gets arrested by the palace guards for being the culprit who poisoned Olivia, and is made to kneel down in front of Regef.

She impulsively blames Olivia for taking Raffaello from her and justifies her deed by saying none of that would've happened if Olivia hadn't come between her and Raffaello, and shamelessly demands Regef to execute that 'wench' immediately. Regef snickers, and whispers to her that if she couldn't even kill Olivia and comes to him after being caught red-handed, he has no choice but to dispose her himself. Kayena sheds a tear, and asks him how he could do this to her since she was his sister who made him the Emperor, Regef mocks her saying that he only used her like a marionette to become the Emperor, and that all her power was lent to her by him. All of this is revealed to be part of a novel's story called "The Lady of the Black Rose".

Kayena was the novel's villainess who was a beautiful but foolish and wicked woman, and all the characters in the story are reformed by the heroine Olivia with whom they all fall in love. It's a predictable story in which Kayena looks at the heroine with jealousy, and is used by her younger brother Regef who wants Olivia in his hands. She poisons Olivia to death, but her plan fails and she is betrayed by Regef who sells her to the abusive Viscount Henberton Gillian, and hence Kayena soon meets a miserable death. This novel is read by a Korean woman who reads it just to see what happens to the villainess in the end, and feels that she is similar to the villainess since both of them are used like marionettes who are completely controlled by someone else.

The Korean woman's flashback is shown in which she's upset and her co-worker mockingly comforts her saying that he promoted her as the manager and that she has come this far thanks to his help. He asks her not to forget his help and 'understand' that all her power was 'lent' to her by him. The flashback ends and the woman laughs at her similarity with the villainess, and says that she's tired of living as someone else's marionette. It's night-time, and as the woman is about to open her car door in the deserted parking lot, a hooded man appears and says "it's all your fault!" in an intimidating tone. She freezes on the spot, and the enraged man quickly stabs her with his knife and smirks when she falls unconscious while bleeding to death.

In her last moments, she tells herself that all 'villainess's final moments must be the same and feels that dying this way might not be bad. After dying, she opens her eyes as 'Kayena'- the novel's villainess, and the attendees around her quickly rush to inform others. She is momentarily confused, but when Regef comes and kisses the back of her hand asking if she's alright, her memories of Kayena being betrayed by him come rushing to her and she sheds a tear. She quickly runs out of the bed to look in the mirror, and confirms that she's indeed Kayena. Thus, she beings her new life as 'Kayena Hill', and a preview of the upcoming chapters are shown.

## **Characters in Order of Appearance**

* Regef Hill
* Raffaello Kidrey
* Olivia Grace
* Easter Heinrich (Background)
* Unnamed male lead (Background)
* Henberton Gillian (cameo)
* Korean Kayena
* Korean Kayena's co-worker
* Korean Kayena's killer
* Noa Kidrey