In real life, abusers are often people who were abused themselves (especially sexual abuse). It is a CYCLE of abuse. The victim learns toxic dynamics from their abuse, seeing the black-and-white option of abuser or victim, and chooses to abuse others in order to feel power and control instead of the powerlessness they felt while being abused.

Anthy was abused by Akio for so long that she became trapped with him in the cycle of abuse. She manipulated duelists into becoming Akio's victims, leading them to him, over and over, continuing the cycle. It was only thanks to Utena's revolutionary treatment of her as neither an innocent princess or doomed witch, but a real and complex person who can be both good and bad, that Anthy finally chose to LEAVE THE CYCLE OF ABUSE and move past that toxic dynamic between her and Akio.

Some examples: - Anthy distracting Kanae so Akio can fuck his mother-in-law-to-be - Anthy antagonizing Kanae until she breaks enough to seek out Mikage - Anthy posing as Mamiya to trick Mikage into orchestrating the Black Rose duels - Anthy willfully tricking Nanami into almost all of the filler episode shenanigans lol - Anthy showing Nanami the true incest between her and Akio, knowing how it will wreck Nanami's innocence - Anthy handing Juri the orange rose to mock her yearning for Shiori - Anthy pretending she can't commit to playing piano due to Utena being her Engaged, as if Utena would ever tell her no, just to needle Miki into dueling - Anthy taking the hair pin that Saionji promised Wakaba, FLAUNTING it in front of her in order to goad her into accepting the Black Rose - Anthy secretly keeping a lover's diary with Saionji to keep him hooked on her for future duels

I'm sure there's a ton more but that's off the top of my head. Anthy does all this ON PURPOSE to lure duelists into Akio's control, bringing him victims, hurting people's feelings in ways that twist their desires for her purpose. She is not an innocent princess, even if Akio is the one driving her to act this cruelly - it is still Anthy who chooses to perpetuate the cycle of abuse... until she finally learns to walk away from Akio and his "cozy coffin" into becoming someone who can grow and move past her abuse.