I wasn't expecting her to be a saint but maybe to slowly soften or realize she can find happiness and gradually forgive those that were brainwashed. I still hope for this but not much happened in volume 4 besides uneventful kingdom-building isekai stuff.
the thing is, she goes on extreme lenght for people who showed her affection, she triggered the apocalypse on the og story to obtain williard's soul because he "loved" her, and doing this revenge because how they wronged emi who actually showed her empathy
she is along the line of a sane yandere, sane relatively speaking
the mirror scene is absolutely lovely. the ways she sees Emi in herself but needs to be 'Emi' at the same time. and reveling that her revenge is coming to fruition.
I'm glad that the manga has built it up like this
Okay, time to play devil's advocate. Since this is an RPG game with aspects of VN, I'll assume it's akin to the Persona series. I'm saying that since it's one of the more popular examples of such a game. Now, one of the highlights of the Persona series is that you have to help your teammates go through their problems, that they have to go through crisis events and overcome their shortcomings of character in order to become better. You see their weaknesses, physical, mental, emotional, all laid bare for you to help them out through. Yes, Emi did kind of force an aspect of their crisis events earlier when they were kids, and was supposed to help them, but Pina raised her favorability too high with them via a buyable item instead of actually working for it. Pina didn't go through their crisis events, she didn't help any of them grow, because she's a VN scrub. Remilia skewed the story enough that Pina couldn't actually earn their favor legitimately with making the right multiple choice answers for the characters, and had to use cheat items to do so. You know what I'm saying?
Willard and the others still have their hang ups. They still have their shortcomings. They haven't grown as characters in this story. Hell, we have had a lot of characters cut off from the original story, since the party has not gone out into the world. Things have changed here, and what we are dealing with are these characters, these people, who haven't properly overcome their shortcomings - they still allow them to dictate them. Essentially, according to the story, they are immature.
Say you were to go into a Persona game. If you don't allow the characters to go through their hardships, their crisis events, which, by the way, are REQUIRED for them to get stronger Personas and therefore much stronger stats and abilities, then they'll be low level, and they'll get wiped by the BBEG.
Yes, Willard and the people around Pina have not properly grown at all. They are still immature. They are still low level. I'm not condoning what they did at all, but you have to see how this is working. Willard has not overcome his inferiority complex, and that's going to stick with him since the original MC, Pina, is bad at VNing. And he can't even help not liking Pina, since she used a cheat item. However, his actions have definitely burned bridges, and he is a failure of a fiance. Same with all the others who are under Pina's charm. It really is all Pina's fault.
And it will be decided to be. Remilia sets it all up, that Pina becomes the symbol of sin, the bringer of ruin, for the country. That she deceived everyone, and almost ruined the world. Remilia portrays herself as the true star maiden due to her accomplishments, and can back it up with Angel; Pina is labeled as a fake, a temptress, and the harbinger of the corruption of the demon race. That Pina's goal was to stop the true star maiden from saving the world by turning the people around her against her. That is Remilia's final lie, and it'll work.
In that sense, those charmed by Pina are as much a victim as Emi was. They'll still be punished though, because their immaturity allowed it to go so far. Willard is seen in this chapter complaining that Remilia isn't coming back to him after what he did to her.
The others are complaining as well, even the "brother" wants Remilia to come crawling back to him, which is why he went with the condemnation event. He schemed that Remilia would leave Willard and come to him. Ain't happening, buddy. The others face similar fates and despair when they realize they lost everything due to their immaturity.
If Pina didn't have that cheat item to make them like her more than they liked Remilia/Emi, then this would all be moot. But no. Instead of doing the right thing, they are still immature and self centered. And these are the people who would have originally saved the world from a corrupted evil god. No. The favorability potion did not make them hate Remilia. It only raises favorability to the one who used it. They did it because they felt left behind by Remilia and wanted her high level self down to their level.
That is the reality of the situation, that is the reality of this world. Pina's actions have ruined so many lives in her selfish rampage.
So it's fitting what's about to happen to her. Do not cry for her. She is simply unable to feel remorse. Feel it for those ruined by her actions, even though they brought it upon themselves with their own hands.
The saddest part about this is that Emi already 'fixed' them during their childhood, from improving their lives (like saving her uncle from getting killed by bandits so he can have time to reconnect with his son) to giving them motivation and drive to pursue their dreams. Remilia isn't doing all this because they condemned her or for her own self-satisfaction, she's doing it because they mercilessly trampled on Emi's kindness just to satisfy their own ego.
People who think Remillia should have learned something/changed because of Emi's love are entirely forgetting that all of Emi's efforts had bad results.
In the end all Emi had to show for acting like a saint was a sea of betrayal and a soul roommate (lol) who saw firsthand what being good gets you. Not only is Remillia staying true to who she is, she's doing so from an informed place.
I really hope this artist tries out a gothic vampire horror series after this because WHOO BOY their art. It's so good. It elevates this story so much. The beginning nightmare sequence????? and the bloody smile marks painted on the shattered mirror??? hell yeah.
People who think Remillia should have learned something/changed because of Emi's love are entirely forgetting that all of Emi's efforts had bad results.
In the end all Emi had to show for acting like a saint was a sea of betrayal and a soul roommate (lol) who saw firsthand what being good gets you.
not really, Remilia go to this length for revenge exactly because of Emi kindness though. so acting all good is not as bad you say. since Emi saved Remilia cold heart. if not, remilia will not act like a saintess toward the demon folk either if being a saint in that world is dumb/will gives you bad result. (she can just treat them as slaves or even make the demon submit to her since she so powerful she actually held back her power when fighting the creator)
I'm in the minority here, but I hope Willard turn good and get back with Remilia there is no much story about villainess end up with original prince without them breaking off the engagement, but alas it's just me, even if she didn't end up with Willard I would still accept it as long Emi and Remilia get their happy ending, oh Emi you didn't deserve to live in such a cruel world 😭
it might be possible for other princes/stories, but in a story like this even if Willard breaks free from Pina's love potion i doubt he'd go back to being a potential good leader (not that Remi was interested in him after Emi's influence anyways/the story is pushing Remi and Angel getting married) , but unless he's stripped of his title/nobility, he'd still be royalty even if the first half demon prince takes over or so lol
it might be possible for other princes/stories, but in a story like this even if Willard breaks free from Pina's love potion i doubt he'd go back to being a potential good leader (not that Remi was interested in him after Emi's influence anyways/the story is pushing Remi and Angel getting married) , but unless he's stripped of his title/nobility, he'd still be royalty even if the first half demon prince takes over or so lol
He loses all influence, he looks like a fool, and he just plain looks bad. Also, as Remilia crushes him emotionally by not forgiving him, he just lives in despair. He wants to off himself, but can't 'because that would make Remilia sad'. Dude is put into a living hell of depression and self pity over making the absolute wrong choices. He becomes absolutely useless as a human being afterwards, much less someone who can come close to running a country.
goddamn this story is great and the art is fantastic
I love how "Star Maiden's" face always has some ugliness to it, be it the eyes, lips, whatever there's always some ugliness to it
LETS FUCKING GO REMILIA GET HER ASS
I feel rereading from the start even though I just this today and caught up
Remilia puts him out of business by undermining every single one of the ways his family makes money. She ruins him financially, lures away his workers to work for her, and shuts down anyone who attempts to work with him. Remilia is indeed a villain, and she goes all out. Emi tried to do the right thing, yet the dad, who knew the Emi Remilia, threw her out. Remilia won't stand for that.
Believe me when i say that it is the most lenient yet still worse that just a simple guillotine.
Basically, she got thrown into a mine to be the outlet of criminal that got sentenced to there. It is lenient since they didn't kill her outright and there is (technically) a chance for her to get out. But well, you know Remillia
