Reborn As The Minor Villain In A Romance Fantasy Novel

Did he want to help her?

Yes…

But then again, thinking about it, Lucius decided he wouldn't intervene.

He wasn't always going to be around to protect Luna.

She needed to learn how to deal with people like this herself if she wanted to survive in a world like this.

A wicked world full of schemers, thieves, and people who smiled as they slipped a knife into your back.

Besides… he was curious.

He wanted to see what this Dominica really wanted from Luna.

"It would be an honor to work with you," Luna said at last, it was her dream after all. "But are you sure you should be working with me? Your last post said that you were going off the grid to work on a new project."

Dominica only smiled, unbothered by the sudden question.

Her pale blond hair caught the office light as she moved gracefully toward the coffee machine in the corner.

"You're sharp," she said warmly. "I like that. But yes, I'm currently on a break from mainstream network, I thought it would be better if my next idea was done in seclusion."

Luna nodded vigorously.

She poured three cups of coffee.

"You'll take coffee, right? I don't have anything more to offer," Dominica said, turning her head slightly as steam rose from the machine.

"Of course we'll take coffee," Luna replied quickly.

Dominica's lips turned to a smile as she carried the cups back, her eyes never leaving Luna's face.

She set one in front of Lucius, then one for Luna, before settling into her chair with her own.

Lucius eyed the swirling dark liquid in his cup.

He lifted it, tilted it against the light, then sniffed it suspiciously then he took a cautious sip.

Then another.

He blinked.

'Well… damn. For someone who looks like she wants to rob us blind, she makes damn good coffee.'

Across from him, Luna didn't hesitate.

She downed hers in quick gulps, sighing softly as she set the cup down on a side table. "That's good coffee. Thank you."

Then she took a deep breath. "Is there any way I can bring out my project?"

Dominica's smile widened. "Of course."

Within a minute, they had set up a projector in the corner of the office. Luna connected it to her phone.

A blue-white light materialized from the projector as he played on.

Lucius folded his arms, watching.

Luna picked up the remote, took a deep breath, and said.

"I call it D-430 DC. I named it after your old project where you created the first battle drone. It's… my own design. A drone meant for battle."

She pressed the button.

The schematic appeared on the wall.

Lucius squinted. He was looking at a diagram filled with lines, numbers, glowing nodes, and complicated labels.

Almost for the third time today?!

'But wait…' He thought as he brought out his own phone to double cross what she had sent him, the items apart from the Motherboard did not tally, 'Did she already figure it out?'

He blinked again.

'But seriously… Reactor? Mana supply cables? Mana feedback regulators? Electromagnetic stabilizers? What the hell is this? Absolute nonsense science. It looks like the blueprints of a spaceship, not a drone.'

He rubbed his temples.

But Dominica's eyes widened.

She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand as she studied the projection.

"This section here," she said after a pause, pointing at the glider wing schematics. "You've connected each stabilizer core directly to the main reactor. Won't that create instability once it enters a high-energy environment?"

Luna nodded. "It would, yes, if I kept the stabilizers uniform. But I designed them to run asynchronously, each with a separate mana-dampening loop. That way, if one overheats or collapses, the others can compensate. The load redistributes automatically."

Dominica's eyes narrowed slightly. "Interesting. And what about the power drain? Running multiple dampening loops would eat a lot of energy."

"I accounted for that," Luna replied smoothly.

She shifted the slide with a click, revealing another set of notes. "The mana channels are reinforced with resonant cables. They recycle twenty-five percent of the output, looping it back into the stabilizers. It's not perfect, but it extends the operational time by at least forty minutes."

Dominica tilted her head, visibly impressed. "Clever. Very clever."

Lucius nearly choked on his coffee.

'What the hell are they even talking about? This sounds like science-fiction fantasy soup. Asynchronous dampening loops? Resonant cables?'

Maybe being in a modern world is not as it was advertised.

Dominica wasn't finished though.

"And this part… here." She pointed again. "Your glider fins. The design is efficient, but if you're planning for combat, wouldn't they be too fragile against projectile impact?"

Luna smiled. "That's why the fins aren't just metal. They're layered. Mana-infused composite sandwiched between thin titanium sheets. Flexible, light, and self-repairing under minor strain. If one gets damaged, the mana lattice absorbs the hit and prevents a complete break."

Dominica leaned back slowly, crossing her arms. "Impressive."

Lucius could tell she meant it.

He also noticed the way she was watching Luna's design carefully, he wouldn't be surprised if she stole a thing or two from Luna.

After several more questions and answers, Dominica finally sat back and clapped her hands together once. "I like the design very much."

Luna exhaled softly, relief flashing across her face.

But she didn't stop there.

"Uhm… can I see your projects too?" she asked, tilting her head.

Her voice was polite, and her face was red so it made her look perfectly innocent.

Dominica's brows rose slightly.

Then she smiled. "Of course. It's the least I can do."

She handed Luna back her phone, stood, and moved to the projector herself.

She plugged in her own device and a new schematic filled the wall.

"This is my current project," she said calmly. "I call it Leo-3455."

Lucius's jaw slackened a little.

It was detailed.

Incredibly detailed.

Lines and symbols filled the wall, different from Luna's but just as complex.

Dominica gestured at the highlighted sections.

"It's not combat-oriented. I designed it for speed. A long-distance drone, capable of outrunning almost anything in its class. I've sacrificed firepower for agility and streamlined energy flow."

Luna's eyes widened.

She was mesmerized.

She leaned forward, drinking in every line, every curve, every notation.

Her lips slowly turned into a smile.

'So this is what I was missing…' she thought. 'This is perfect. I can make my drone so much better now.'

She didn't show Dominica her real project, It was 2025 for goddess sake… Nobody fell for all these kind of cheap tricks anymore.