The Villain’s Guide to Ignoring the Plot and Building a Nation

Alex didn't die saving a cat or a child. He died protecting a limited edition strategy novel from a mugger. To him, logistics were life, and people were just inefficient variables.

So, when he wakes up as Count Valerius Vermillion—the despised, love-struck villain of the trashy romance novel The Saintess’s Rose—he isn't despairing over his exile. He is relieved.

Banished to the "Hinterlands of Nibelung," a forest teeming with monsters and ancient ruins, the original Valerius was supposed to die a pathetic, off-screen death. But Alex sees something else. He sees a land untouched by the incompetence of the romance protagonist. He sees resources. He sees a foundation.

Armed with a [Sovereign System] that sells blueprints instead of potions, Alex ignores the original plot entirely. The Hero Prince is fighting duels? Alex is digging trenches. The Saintess is crying about destiny? Alex is smelting iron. The Kingdom calls him a reject? Alex calls them targets.

By the time the main characters realize the "Villain" is still alive, he won't just have a cabin in the woods. He will have a fortress of iron and blood that threatens to swallow their fairy tale whole.