Aileen's worst enemy, Villainess, may return in a new form.

I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss is an isekai anime of the Fall 2022 season where almost nothing is what it seems to be. In some ways, this otome series might remind fans of My Next Life as a Villainess and its reformed bad girl Katarina Claes, but I'm the Villainess also shares storytelling techniques from Spring 2022's Trapped in a Dating Sim.

Aileen is not who everyone thought she is, transforming herself into a creative, kind and resourceful antihero who now puts the needs of others first. However, she may not be the only isekai character in this otome game's world. The would-be protagonist Lilia Rainworth is almost definitely another isekai guest, and now the sequel's heroine, Rachel Danis, might be the same person -- or even a third guest.

Reasons why Rachel Danis could resemble Lilia Rainworth once more

So far, it's not entirely clear who or what Rachel Danis is, aside from being the protagonist of the series' second otome game. Now in her post-Lilia storyline of relative freedom, Aileen is a student at Mische Academy, but she's in for another surprise. Aileen has meta-knowledge of this sequel story, which explains how she knows the meek dandere Rachel Danis is not acting like her true self. Aileen sees a soft-spoken, meek girl who can't stand up for herself, but the original Rachel Danis is this game's villainess. And Rachel's "cute, helpless girl" routine is eerily similar to that of Lilia Rainworth.

In the first few episodes of I'm the Villainess, Lilia Rainworth used her charming, innocent exterior to hide her true intentions to score both Cedric and the kuudere demon king Claude as her lovers; she was a total villain in disguise. It's likely that Lilia was a second isekai guest using her own meta-knowledge to manipulate the half-brothers, earning their favor with her deceptions.

That made Lilia similar to Trapped in a Dating Sim's own Marie, a selfish isekai guest who used her innocent exterior to woo prince Julius and his friends to form a reverse harem based on manipulation and lies. I'm the Villainess' Rachel Danis is taking her first steps in that direction, probably to trick the school's most powerful boys into allying with her and form a reverse harem. Given how Aileen and Claude humiliated both Lilia and Cedric in Episode 4's battle, it seems plausible that the isekai guest would jump from Lilia to Rachel Danis to fight Aileen once again.

What Makes Me the Villainess Rachel Could Be Someone Completely Different

On one hand, it would make sense for Aileen's isekai rival to abandon her ruined Lilia disguise and strike again in a new form, that being Rachel Danis. But if there can be a secondary isekai guest, there could easily be a third too. Isekai is a subgenre that encourages experimentation and out-of-the-box thinking where anything can happen, and with that in mind, Rachel could be an unpredictable third party with her own motives. So far at least, she feels like a wild card whose only accomplishment is subverting the original Rachel's villainous personality into something more innocent.

If that is the case, then Aileen -- posing as the male student Ailey Calois -- should keep an eye on Rachel and carefully assess her. As a neutral third party, Rachel could be a helpful ally in Aileen's new quest to tame the kuudere student council president James Charles/Ashtarte. Aileen might even recruit this sequel game's original protagonist, Selena Gilbert, to her side if she can play her cards right.

Aileen has Claude and his men on her side so far, but in this sequel game she can scale up her operations and practically recruit half the school to her side. She has enough experience and skill with that by now, so Rachel can be viewed as an untapped resource. That said, Aileen should proceed carefully -- just in case Rachel is Lilia Rainworth. Aileen now knows better than to take everything in I'm the Villainess at face value.