I, The Villainess, Will Seduce All The Heroines Instead
Chapter 127: An Awkward Double Date (2)

Chapter 127: An Awkward Double Date (2)

This woman is just so easy to read.

Petty games like this weren’t anything new. Back in her previous life, one of Verena’s exes had a habit of pulling stunts like this—getting clingy with someone else right in front of her just for the thrill of being validated. She loathed it. Love wasn’t supposed to be a spectacle or a bargaining chip.

Love, in her opinion, was never meant to be a transaction.

"Isolde..." Verena reached out and gently grabbed the woman’s wrist, her tone calm but firm. "Please... don’t do that again."

The entire table froze.

Isolde was startled. Verena, usually so bold and cheeky, rarely pulled out the ’serious voice.’ It threw everyone off.

"My apologies," Isolde murmured, withdrawing her hand with uncharacteristic restraint. She had expected to tease her way into Verena’s space like usual—after all, it had always worked before. But something about her felt different now.

She used to be easier to toy with. Foolish, albeit polite.

But this Verena was sharper. Blunter. And strangely... grounded.

The shift intrigued her.

Sera, meanwhile, sat stiffly, eyes darting between them. She didn’t even know what she was feeling anymore. Verena kept changing. Sometimes silly, sometimes cold, always unpredictable.

Maybe... she was the one being unfair.

"Ahem..." Selvis cleared his throat awkwardly, pressing a fist against his mouth. "Shall we, uh... eat now?"

...

...

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[Verena’s unexpected display of boundary-setting and quiet strength has left a ripple in the emotional matrix...]

[Sera’s Internal Status: SHIFTING]

[Pride: Shaken Confusion]

[Intensifying Feelings toward Verena: ???]

[Emotional Defense: Temporarily disabled Sera is beginning to question her own feelings... and her pride is no longer as certain as it once was.]

[Warning: Emotional vulnerability detected. Proceed with caution or chaotic flirting.]

...

[System Notification: Affection Update!]

[Target: Sera Anverre]

[+5 Affection Points Earned!]

[Affection Points: 4]

...

’Wow, finally?’

Technically, Verena had her own faults too, and she could understand Sera’s feelings knowing that she was one in such a position as well.

After everything settled, Selvis and Isolde made a tactful exit, leaving Verena and Sera alone just outside the restaurant.

The city was alive around them—streets crowded, footsteps hurried—but between the two of them stood a silence louder than the noise.

Breaking through that wall wasn’t easy.

Verena knew it’d be insensitive to press when the girl clearly didn’t want her in her space.

Meanwhile, Sera was coming to a bitter realization: she’d been a complete jerk. And the worst part was she didn’t even have the audacity to justify it.

"Hey..." Sera spoke first, her voice softer than usual.

"Ah?!" Verena jolted, posture snapping upright like she’d been caught red-handed, her eyes looking anywhere but at Sera.

"I’m sorry," Sera said, fiddling with the hem of her sleeve. "For the way I’ve been acting lately. You’ve been nothing but kind to me and... I guess I’m just not used to that. People don’t treat me kindly. And I’m even worse to myself."

That—hit somewhere deep.

Something she’d learned once stuck with her, from a random religious class she took out of boredom. She didn’t believe in gods or celestial mandates, but the lesson had stayed.

The difference between ego and soul.

"There’s something I learned a while ago," she began. "If you had to choose—ego or soul—which would you prefer?"

Sera scoffed lightly, arms folded. "Pfft, soul? Nah. Obviously ego. Ego means protecting yourself. Ego means loving yourself first so you’re not running on empty when you try to love anyone else."

That was what Verena used to believe too—until that one class turned the whole idea inside out.

"That’s true. Ego seeks wisdom..." Verena mused. "But the soul is wisdom."

"Huh?" Sera blinked, thrown off.

"Think about it. Why go through all that effort to preserve yourself and chase wisdom? Are you saying you’re so lacking, so fragile, that you’ll shatter the moment someone dents your pride? That you hoard all your love for yourself because you’re scared there’s not enough to share? But doing that only inflates the ego—and ironically, it breaks you more than it ever protects you because you become more susceptible to attacks. You just... create more walls in you. How can you ever find the love inside you if you’re like that then? How do you love when there’s more fear?"

Sera fell into silence, her eyes fixed on the passing crowd, but her mind was anything but still.

For the first time in a long while, someone had peeled back her defenses and actually seen her. And the worst part, was that it was Verena—the one person she had stubbornly decided to dislike.

She’d never really taken the time to understand herself.

Why bother, when the world never did?

As long as she had her own back, she’d always believed she’d be fine.

But now... that belief felt a little cracked.

"Goddamn it..." she muttered, voice tight as she turned her head away sharply. No way was she letting Verena see the tears welling up in her eyes. "Whatever," she added hastily, then—like a flustered storm cloud—bolted down the street.

"WAIT! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Verena called after her, utterly thrown.

Did she say something wrong? Or maybe... she said something too right?

***

It was time for another day again.

And this time, she escaped from Anastasia. It’s not like there weren’t any teachers everywhere anyway.

A lot of people surrounded her, and her running away would truly only prove everyone’s point. But her running away from Anastasia just basically meant she’s too overly controlling.

"I love you, but... Not when you’re like this," she sighed, her inner fangirl stressed out. This is why you don’t meet your idols.

"Verena!" Evelyn shouted her name, waving amongst the crowd through the hallway, and beside her was Sera.

"Oh... hey?..."

’Oh no, it’s gonna be awkward again...’

"Actually," Evelyn grabbed Sera’s shoulders, pulling the girl over. "She wanted to apologize..."

"Yeah..." Sera tried to sound soft, but her teeth grinding and scowling face said otherwise. "I’m... sorry..."

Of course, Verena didn’t really care. If her goal was to make Evelyn grow a spine, her goal was to make Sera lose her spine.

It was already surprising seeing the two girls together.

She really hoped they would be more independent without her. It was tiring being part of the plot.

"As long as you’re being a girlboss, and independent, just like how I told Evelyn, then YOU GO GIRL!"