Villainess's Survival Mastery

3. Pre-Marriage

Clementine pov

As I stood there, moments away from the dreaded marriage, I maintained a facade of icy composure, all the while acutely aware of my family's malicious machinations. It had all begun after the untimely death of my blood mother, a tragedy that left my father casting me aside, reserving his affections for the new woman in our house.

This woman, once my late mother's closest friend, had now become the lady of our household. It was under her influence that my father and she had conceived my younger sister, Ember, even as my own mother lay on her deathbed, a memory that haunted me still.

I couldn't help but remember my mother's plea during those final moments—an entreaty for me to forgive my father, to release the anger and resentment that had begun to fester within me.
How...weak and utterly ridiculous. I still fail to understand the compassion she holds for a man so cold. To not even visit her once when she has fallen ill. With the measly excuse of needing to work and not wanting to catch illness as the breadwinner of the family.

As I dressed for the impending wedding, these memories weighed heavily on my mind. These same maids who now tended to me had initially shown nothing but disrespect, neglect, and cruelty when my father had welcomed the new lady into our home. I had pleaded for my father's intervention, but he had turned a deaf ear to my suffering. According to him, a lady of the Evernight household is to be seen but not heard, admired but not a contender in the world he had mapped out for us.

In response, I had been forced to rely on my own cunning. With my own intellect and resourcefulness, I had managed to turn the tide. By bribing, scheming, helping and manipulating power dynamics, I have managed to transform some of the maids within the household into my loyal allies. Through my own capabilities, I had secured my family's wealth and influence, turning the tables on those who had once mistreated me.

While I didn't completely release the resentment that simmered ever so slightly deep within me, I made an effort, out of respect for my late mother, to demonstrate my worth to my family. I sought to prove that I could be an asset, but as we all know, those efforts bore no fruit in my father's eyes.
To others I was ruthless, malicious, a scheming villainess. To my own family, what I brought to the table is not a testament of my abilities but rather, what is expected of the eldest daughter of the Esmeralda Evernight household.

Even with my attempts to contribute positively, I faced repeated accusations from my sister, Ember, labeling me as malicious, a villainess who destroys others for my personal gains. The burden of my family's disdain was heavy, it became increasingly evident that my efforts to gain their respect and acceptance were in vain. The stark realization when news of this engagement is brought to my knowledge: they would never hold me in the same regard as they did for Ember.

As I prepared to enter the next phase of my life, entering into an engagement that concealed layers of treacherous intent, I couldn't help but reflect on this intricate dance of family politics and my relentless pursuit of power.