Warning: The following article contains spoilers for My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!
If you’re already in a good psychological place in life, a romantic partnership can be a great addition to your happiness, assuming that you find the right person to reciprocate your feelings. However, for many people, being surrounded by ideal romantic options remains a far-fetched fantasy. And yet, this fantasy becomes a reality for My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!‘s protagonist Catarina Claes, a former schoolgirl nerd who unwittingly attracts too many romantic interests after dying and being reincarnated into the world of her favorite otome game, Fortune Lover.
While being the center of attention sounds like a dream come true, such a situation is hardly without its downsides. If the person in question is clueless or indecisive, it can be a huge chore to weed out the less-than-ideal contenders for their affection, not to mention that they might simply desire friendship or solitude instead. With so many romantic choices available to Catarina in My Next Life as a Villainess, we can imagine it will be tough for her to come to a decision if she ever figures it out. Here’s a list of how we rank each love interest in terms of their suitability for our adorable nerd main character, arranged in reverse order from worst to best.
10. Sweets
Throughout My Next Life as a Villainess, Catarina’s toxic and codependent relationship with sweets is showcased as a running gag. While it’s often dismissed as a humorous and endearing trait, the fact remains, her unhinged sugar addiction could lead to diabetes or another health problem later in life. Although her adoptive brother, Keith, sometimes warns her to moderate her intake of desserts, his advice is always ignored. In contrast, her other friends are routine enablers of this unhealthy and inconsiderate habit, which frequently involves Catarina consuming as many treats at social events as humanly possible. At one point in My Next Life as a Villainess, when Catarina’s best friend Sophia asks whether or not she is preferred over sweets, our protagonist hesitates to provide an answer. It’s beyond obvious that some sort of intervention is necessary here.
9. Rafael Walt
Despite having the excuse of horrible childhood experiences, Raphael Walt (once known as Sirius Dieke) isn’t ready for a romantic relationship. Before he can healthily connect that way with anyone, he needs to heal from the negative feelings that prompted him to unleash dark magic on innocent people, and put his newly awakened interest in Catarina to the side for now. If the world of My Next Life as a Villainess has a therapy department, that’s where he needs to go first.
8. Geordo Stuart
At first glance, My Next Life as a Villainess‘ Prince Geordo Stuart seems like the perfect gentleman, the sort of fairy-tale hero many people would want to be with. He definitely has some good qualities, being polite, protective, and generous. However, he also has some noteworthy flaws, such as his carelessness regarding personal space. He often flirts with Catarina in inappropriate ways, making her feel flustered and uncomfortable. As a prince, he ranks above everyone in his peer group, and thus, needs to be more sensitive regarding the desired boundaries of his subordinate companions. He also kills Catarina with a sword in Fortune Lover rather than using a less lethal way to stop her, which suggests that a much darker side lurks beneath his calm smile when he doesn’t like someone.
7. Mary Hunt
Although Mary Hunt seems like she would be a great match for Catarina at first, sharing My Next Life as a Villainess‘ main character’s love of gardening, she also becomes extremely jealous and possessive after falling in love with her. Having latched onto Catarina after a childhood of family rejection, Mary quickly becomes codependent on her friendship with the kind protagonist, and even goes so far as to spy on and interfere with her interactions with potential romantic rivals. Although she’s willing to do anything for her love interest, she needs to work on gaining self-esteem and respecting boundaries before entering a romantic relationship.
6. Keith Claes
Despite being a positive influence on Catarina’s life, helping her to accomplish scholastic tasks, encouraging her to avoid making social faux pas, and urging her to moderate her dangerously sugar-heavy diet, Keith Claes from My Next Life as a Villainess still isn’t the ideal romantic prospect for her. His status as her blood relative and foster brother would make any potential romantic relationship awkward, not to mention the fact that he’s low-key jealous and possessive of her, always finding excuses to accompany Prince Geordo and his adoptive sister on their outings.
5. Alan Stuart
Although Prince Alan Stuart started out as insecure, hostile, and competitive early on in My Next Life as a Villainess, he becomes a confident and positive person through Catarina’s influence. Focused on their friendship, he only realizes his romantic feelings for her after she falls into a seemingly endless sleep, suggesting that he truly likes her as something more than a potential love match. Despite his tough, bad-boy demeanor, he ultimately respects Catarina’s physical space, blushing at the mere thought of committing an impropriety toward her.
4. Nicol Ascart
Quiet and placid to a fault, Nicol Ascart is the perfect gentleman, fitting the description better than anyone else in My Next Life as a Villainess. Even though he gets lots of attention from admirers, he is still modest and kind, even if he rarely smiles. He is a wonderful brother to Sophia, standing up for her against bullies who target her albinism, and is mortified by the idea of committing the slightest hint of impropriety toward Catarina. He also refuses to confess his romantic feelings for her out of respect for his childhood friend and her betrothed, Prince Geordo.
3. Maria Campbell
Possessing a kind, gentle, and calm disposition, Maria Campbell, Fortune Lover‘s original protagonist, would make a great romantic match for Catarina. Willing to do anything from baking the sweets she loves to risking her life to protect her from a dark-magic user, Maria easily proves her devotion to Catarina over the course of My Next Life as a Villainess, even confessing her love in the season’s last episode. She’s also studious and pragmatic, helping Catarina with her studies and remaining level-headed when her love interest disappears, along with other contenders for her romantic affection, into the Book of Desires.
2. Sophia Ascart
A close friend from Catarina’s former life, My Next Life as a Villainess‘ Sophia Ascart was reincarnated into the world of Fortune Lover owing to the wish to be reunited with her. Many people wouldn’t even move to another city for a potential romantic interest, but Sophia moved to an entirely different world for hers! And as if this wasn’t enough to prove her love, she also saves Catarina from falling off a cliff during the magic exam and brings her back from a deep sleep later on in My Next Life as a Villainess. She is also a passionate romance-novel and former otome-game fan, just like her love interest, and is kind, loyal, and self-sacrificial, even standing aside at one point so that her beloved brother Nicol has a chance to declare his love for Catarina. Since their soulmate-level friendship is already so strong, she would be a wonderful romantic match for our protagonist.
1. Catarina Claes
In spite of the lingering social stigma around it, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with remaining single and self-fulfilled. By the end of the My Next Life as a Villainess series, it would be interesting to see a conclusion wherein Catarina Claes remains romantically unattached, with her happiness culminating in treasured friendships with her love interests. Not being involved in a romantic relationship can grant a high level of independence, allowing people to chase goals, accomplish dreams, and fine-tune talents undisturbed. On her own, Catarina is fun-loving, kind-hearted, and optimistic, with various passions and hobbies outside of a potential romantic match. Her interest in farming, tree-climbing, eating sweets, and reading romance novels keeps her busy, along with the many fantastic friendships she forms over the course of My Next Life as a Villainess. We certainly wouldn’t mind an ending wherein she simply remains good friends with everyone whose lives she has influenced to change for the better.