《The Villain Began To Obsess Over Me》 Chapter 0 Prologue At the same time a throbbing pain in my head occured, something hard wrapped around my waist. I managed to lift up my heavy eyelids that I couldn¡¯t open, and a man¡¯s arm holding my waist tightly entered my eyesight. I couldn¡¯t remember what happened yesterday. All I can remember was drinking alcohol but after that, nothing remained in my memory, as if my consciousness was cut off. I could feel back throbbing and saw myself naked without a single thread. Above all, there was a man next to me who was also undressed, so I could predict what had happened. My heart was pounding. This pounding didn¡¯t come from excitement, but out of fear that my father would have known I stayed out. Well, I am a grown adult now. I¡¯m twenty years old, and one mistake can be made. However, If I snuck out before this man woke up, I would be able to treat what happened yesterday as something that never occurred. ¡°I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s hard to move, but seeing you move normally, it must have been a lie to say that you couldn¡¯t do it anymore yesterday.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Pitch black hair. A frighteningly handsome man with blood-red eyes was staring intently at me. I blinked because I didn¡¯t understand the situation yet. ¡°Why are you making such an innocent expression as if you don¡¯t know anything? Don¡¯t tell me everything that happened last night was a violation of me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ No. It probably isn¡¯t.¡± I just had no memories of last night. However, because there was a piercing gaze in the corner, I rolled my eyes around and avoided his gaze as much as possible. But wouldn¡¯t that have been an offensive act to this man? ¡°Perhaps?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ yes, maybe.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t remember, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to remind you.¡± He climbed on top of me, and stared at me with blood-red eyes that gleamed insidiously. His starving beast-like eyes looked like he would eat me any moment, which terrified me. I tried to push him off, but he didn¡¯t budge. ¡°Your name¡­¡­¡± ¡°Chester. Well, last night you cried and hung around me, calling me Chester. You can call me whatever you desire.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Chester?¡± I was nervous, but I shouldn¡¯t have been. Black hair and blood-red eyes. Although it was the emblematic color of the Duke of Siegbert, it wasn¡¯t a very rare color. ¡°Yes, Chester.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Duke Chester Siegbert?¡± No, it¡¯s not. Don¡¯t lie to me. Well, yes, they might share the same name. The name Chester was not unique to Duke Siegbert but I felt an ominous foreboding. ¡°Yes.¡± What? ¡°Huh¡­ AHHH AAAH AHHH!¡± No, that¡¯s crazy! Why are you here, you¡¯re the villain! And why were you lying in bed with me last night?! Everything was hopeless. But I wasn¡¯t even allowed time to despair. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to bully you at all, so don¡¯t be afraid.¡± As he spoke, the eyes looking down at me were filled with burning desires. My body trembled at the knee that dug between my legs. I felt like a herbivore in front of a predator. My whole body was stiff and my nerves were on edge. A large hand carefully caressed my chin. ¡°Relax, Yulia.¡± An exceptionally sweet voice penetrated my ears. As soon as our gazes entangled, his lips overlapped mine. The sensation of his tongue penetrating into the gaps between her lips felt unfamiliar. Her body stiffened as he moved in every corner of her mouth Feeling my stiffness, he gently stroked my cheeks as if to reassure me. ¡°Ha¡­..¡± When my head started getting dizzy, his lips fell off. It was only then that I could breath fresh air. When she tried to return original breathing state by exhaling and inhaling her disorganized breath, she frowned, feeling a strange sensation from the back of her head. ¡°Ugh!¡± A large hand covered my hand. I could feel with my whole body what it meant to be uncomfortable that I couldn¡¯t move. A faint groan leaked out of her mouth as a dizzying tremor wrapped around her head. I bit my lower lip with my teeth to swallow the groan as much as I could. ¡°You¡¯ll hurt your lips, don¡¯t bite yourself.¡± At the last words which resounded warmly in my ears, my breath suffocated and I was engulfed by unfamiliar stimuli. I closed my eyes tightly under the pressure that tightened my body. Chapter 1 Chapter 1 *** The woman¡¯s face reflected in the mirror was the definition of beautiful. Brilliant silver hair with lustrous sheen, and dreamy purple eyes that created the illusion of melting and indulging in self-purification. She looked very stunning, but her face was like a person deprived of vitality. Originally, the skin that was white as jade was imprinted with red marks. It was a trail of suffering from harassment that resulted from yesterday. I couldn¡¯t remember what happened last night. How can I go back home like this?! I, who has lived quietly and peacefully for 20 years look like this! How could I have the face to see my father and brother? ¡°Ha¡­¡­¡± I really wanted to cry. It¡¯s been 20 years since I reincarnated in a book, but I made such a huge mistake. Of course, I reincarnated as an extra named Yulia Beatrice. Usually in reincarnation books, my life should have been in danger by the male or female protagonist, but it was not. The setting I was born into, was the youngest Princess of the Imperial family who monopolized their love. I was raised so carefully that I developed an independent personality as a child. Although, that was Yulia¡¯s personality in the original story, not mine. Unlike her lucky background, Yulia was a character with a very tragic ending. She fell so in love with the villian that she chased after him to the point of insanity. Just because the villain found her annoying, Yulia had to witness her family members who deeply loved her, being slaughtered by the man she had an unrequited love for. In the end, she took her own life from shock and depression. ¡°Gasp¡­..¡± My legs became weak so I sat down. I couldn¡¯t let my father and brother die because of me, so I lived quietly for 20 years without getting involved with the villian. But 20 years of hard work went to waste. I had nothing to say because I accidentally had a one-night stand. It would be better if I slept with a supporting character, an extra, or a person who didn¡¯t appear in the story at all. I couldn¡¯t decide if it was better if I slept with the male lead, or a sub male lead. But out of everyone!! I slept with the villain who killed my family and was the reason for my death. Alcohol is my worst enemy! The worst! If I wasn¡¯t drunk yesterday, I wouldn¡¯t make such a mistake. Even in my past life I died from drinking alcohol. No matter what I had to do with alcohol in my previous life, there should have been nothing wrong with this life. I was told to drink moderately by my dad before I left. ¡°Yulia.¡± My emotions sprang up at the voice that was coming from the door. How can a person¡¯s voice be so deep? I would either die from a vase being thrown at me, or my neck would be cut off. Regardless of the reason, my death would be because of the villian. I obviously became stupid from the idea of pursuing true love through a natural meeting. Somehow, I was deeply blinded by the desire to meet someone. Others may not know, but I was frustrated from being single. ¡°Ahhhhhhhh!¡± (frustrated screaming noises) In the original story, Yulia was not only interested in the villian but obsessed with him and chased after him like a devoted stalker. Since the villain was deeply bothered by Yulia, he killed all of Yulia¡¯s family and took over the throne. I couldn¡¯t bear to let my loved ones die, so I deliberately avoided the villain for 20 years. But all those efforts went down the drain yesterday. ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t come in!¡± Although my position was a princess, my title was a little lower than the villain who inherited the Duke¡¯s title. Let¡¯s just tell him I don¡¯t remember anything, because if I remembered what I did yesterday I don¡¯t think I would have the conscience to talk to him, but since I don¡¯t remember, I have no remorse. But why do I feel sad? I should have listened to my father and brother and just stayed in the castle. ¡°Uh huh huh.¡± (crying noises) Why me! I wanted to hit my head on the ground from regret! What¡¯s the point of regretting it now? It already happened! What¡¯s over? My life is over! My innocence was taken away, and now I might lose my whole family¡¯s life! He was a man who pretended to be pure and noble on the outside, but only I knew he was a crazy guy who was faithful to his role as a villain. The villain came in with the sound of the door slamming open. ¡°Yulia! Why are you crying?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Do you think I want to cry right now?¡± What I¡¯m crying about is that if I committed suicide here, my body would disappear without a mouse or bird knowing. When I die, I want my family to see my corpse before being buried in the ground, and have a grand funeral. But if I commit suicide here, he would destroy the evidence without at single soul knowing ¡°What are you going to do about this!¡± The expression on his face was disgusting and showed he didn¡¯t understand at all. What happened last night was enough for a man and woman to lie in bed without anything on. If we could admit it was just a mistake, and go our separate ways¡­¡­. But this was an entirely different matter. There was not a single sacred part on my body. How would I explain this to my father and brother? ¡°How are you going to take responsibility for this?!¡± ¡°Have I ever said I wouldn¡¯t take responsibility?¡± His reaction came out hostile. I was amazed by his looks and bit my lower lips. ¡°Did I tell you I wouldn¡¯t take responsibility even once?¡± ¡°No¡­..¡± I felt upset. Although he never said he wouldn¡¯t take responsibility, this was all just a mistake. Deviance! Yeah, it was just a deviation since I didn¡¯t expect any of this, I just wanted to pretend it didn¡¯t happen. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­nothing happened¡­¡± ¡°What didn¡¯t happen?¡± ¡°I think I said it before, but this is a common and natural thing among men and women.¡± Even I thought it was a ridiculous excuse, not all men and women had this kind of accident. I didn¡¯t have the courage to make eye contact. Even if we spent the night together, he was the villain in the original story. If possible, I hoped I would no longer get entangled with him. ¡°Ha¡­..!¡± I was surprised, not because of his voice rather the look he had. I felt afraid of those eyes. The villain in the original novel, Duke of Chester Siegbert. Losing his parents at a young age, and a young heir that inherited his family, his relatives scrambled to take his position. Not only that ,the young boy was forced to take part in the empire¡¯s conquest for war. Not only did he return, he came back to the empire as a war hero at a young age. As soon as he returned to the empire, he personally beheaded all his relatives who threatened his place with the sword he used on the battlefield. It was said that he killed them while looking down at them with a cold expression. It was so cool and scary that I thought maybe the eyes of that time were the same as those of now. ¡°You don¡¯t want me to take responsibility?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I was so scared that my lips couldn¡¯t move. I thought I should answer that, so I nodded and expressed my affirmation. But what the hell is this ominous feeling? He stared at me threateningly. ¡°Then shouldn¡¯t you be responsible for me?¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± Did I perhaps hear it wrong or something? I couldn¡¯t fathom what I just heard, so I wanted to deny it, but reality made me face the harsh truth. ¡°Yulia, you have to take responsibility for me.¡± ¡°Duke, I¡­¡± ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°Duke.¡± ¡°You called me Chester until this morning, are you going to back out now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to talk about it! I don¡¯t have any relationship with the Duke!¡± ¡°The princess seems to be dismissive as having nothing to do with the one-night stand.¡± He held my jaw tightly with one hand and gave me a twisted smile. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen such a thing like this before.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± My heart was pounding. It was clear that this pounding came from fear. I wonder what possessed me last night! I couldn¡¯t remember anything, so I felt nervous. ¡°Yulia, you have to take responsibility for me.¡± He kissed every knuckle of my finger. He stared at me with a very thick look, and started kissing each of my fingers, and then my wrist too. Unlike his sweet behavior, his gaze contained a menacing look, as if wanting to eat people. ¡°You¡¯re not going to seduce an innocent man like me to steal my purity and run away, are you?¡± It was ridiculous for him to talk like an innocent person, who made the mess yesterday? His words were so ridiculous that I was speechless. ¡°¡­..No.¡± I couldn¡¯t bear to say anything, but I had to say something. In the first place, I had no intention of having a one-night stand with someone. I couldn¡¯t figure out why I was sleeping with the villian. No, maybe I should blame my stupid taste. He¡¯s a villain, but he¡¯s handsome at least. If I could go back in time to yesterday, I would grab my hair and throw myself in the castle to stay there. I felt resentful. ¡°Duke¡­..¡± ¡°Call me Chester, Yulia.¡± This time, he whispered to me in a very sweet and friendly voice. His eyes were staring at me so passionately, that I felt like he would swallow me at any moment. ¡°¡­.Chester.¡± I reluctantly called out his name. If I were stubborn, it would delay me more, so I thought I should just do what he wanted right away and get out of here. I¡¯ve already stayed out for a long time, but I couldn¡¯t make it known that I had this major accident. ¡°Yulia, don¡¯t even think about getting out of here.¡± His voice was so sweet, but his words were terrifying. He talked as if he would kill me if I left this place, but his voice was so gentle that I didn¡¯t feel threatened. ¡°What happens if I leave?¡± I had some expectations on how it would turn out, but I felt like I had to check if I was right. Maybe the villain might have an ethical mindset than I thought. I asked with false hopes. ¡°If you really want to check, you can try. Although, If you get caught running away, I won¡¯t let you get out of bed without your whole body aching.¡± There was creepiness in the gentle voice. I personally experienced the truth of those words and how they were not an exaggeration. Even if I have a throbbing waist, the reason I can walk around with two legs is because¡­ It was because he controlled it. I was so tired and exhausted but he didn¡¯t show any signs of hardship at all. Is it because he has capabilities beyond human limits? I felt my spine chill. ¡°You can¡¯t lock up members of the royal family.¡± ¡°Did I say I¡¯d lock you up? I¡¯m telling you not to leave for now. As soon as I leave the mansion, I understand that you want to leave in a hurry.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m going to report you once I leave.¡± ¡°Yes, if that¡¯s possible. I won¡¯t stop you.¡± It didn¡¯t work at all. I tried to threaten him, but even if the story line changed he played his role as the villain very well. Even as I blackmailed him, he wasn¡¯t even fazed. ¡°If my father and brother know, they won¡¯t let you go¡­¡­..¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just about getting in trouble. Aside from this I never had such an accident before.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± What? ¡°Because I¡¯m your first, and I¡¯m confident that I¡¯ll also be the last.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Don¡¯t you know who I am?¡± ¡°I know you very well. Princess Yulia Beatrice.¡± So you did know everything. I wish I wasn¡¯t a princess right now if there was a way. If it were to be like this, I wouldn¡¯t have lived quietly for 20 years! ¡°Do you want me to keep it a secret?¡± ¡°¡­.Really, can you?¡± ¡°I can shut up about this if you want.¡± For the first time I felt a glimmer of hope. I was worried that he wouldn¡¯t treat it like nothing happened, but I saw hope when he said he would keep it a secret. I looked at him with anticipated eyes, but his smiling face was unusual. ¡°Do you want me to keep it a secret?¡± ¡°¡­.How can I make you keep it a secret?¡± I could meet most of his requirements. I was the youngest daughter who grew up in the royal family. I could do anything as long as he didn¡¯t ask for the treasures of the imperial family. As thoughts crossed my mind, he smiled seductively and pointed his finger at his lips. ¡°If you want to make me silent, you have to block my mouth with yours.¡± He smiled softly and whispered in a low voice. Chapter 2 Chapter 2 *** ¡°¡­.Are you sure that¡¯s enough?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡­.I don¡¯t know? That¡¯s what I want though.¡± Just one kiss could cover up the situation¡­ ¡°Can you do that for me? It¡¯s not too much to ask.¡± His worries were absurd. If that¡¯s all it took to keep everything a secret, I was the one who benefited more than him. Standing on my tiptoe, I placed a hand on his shoulder, closed my eyes, and briefly kissed his lips. ¡°This should be okay, right?¡± ¡± I don¡¯t think this is going to make me keep it a secret at all.¡± ¡°Then what more can I do to make you keep it a secret?¡± He smiled, then put one hand on my cheek and made eye contact with me. With his other hand, he wrapped around my waist and came close to my mouth. Then, his lips overlapped mine. When his tongue penetrated inside my lips, my body started trembling. I could feel the warm body temperature emitting from his body. The illusion of being engulfed in swirling black ink surrounded my mind. After I started losing my breath, our lips fell off. Even after our lips fell off, the feeling of his lips still lingered. I gasped for breath and my face felt so hot, I think my face was tomato red. I met his bright red eyes and he showed a satisfactory smile. In a soft tone, he started whispering to me. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it a secret for a while.¡± ¡°¡­..for a while?¡± Only for a while? ¡°Yes. Did you think I¡¯d keep it a secret for the rest of my life?¡± I was speechless and at a loss for words. Isn¡¯t this a fraud? How can you be so cruel to scam people? Is this really the villain? Is he perhaps a doppelganger? The villain shouldn¡¯t be so cheap. ¡°Please patiently wait here. I would like to be with you all day, but unfortunately I have something to do. ¡°No¡­now wait a minute.¡± It would be too embarrassing to back down like this. Although my opponent was the villain, my stubborn personality would not let this just go. Besides, I don¡¯t think saying a couple words would get me killed. ¡°Do you have anything else to say?¡± ¡°Earlier you said you wouldn¡¯t stop me from leaving the mansion, didn¡¯t you?¡± My memory was accurate. Since I was sober, I could trust my memories. His eyes narrowed at me. When looking into those eyes, anxiety came over me but I still had to hear his answer nonetheless. Because I wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible. ¡°Yes.¡± I felt everything brighten in an instant at his positive answer. I hoped my future would not be a thorny path. It was at that moment the happiness circuit in my brain turned on. He stroked my cheek with his hand, grabbed a handful of my hair, kissed it, and warned me in a low voice. ¡°But you¡¯ll have to be prepared. I have no intention of letting you go.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Once something is in my grasp, I¡¯m very keen to hold onto it.¡± He tucked my hair behind my ear. His face wore a friendly smile but the words he uttered were the exact opposite of his warm expression. Ah, even if I was right I was still wrong. It was foolish for me to have hope. I¡¯m not usually a person who sheds a lot of tears, but why do I feel like crying again? I¡¯m not the female lead, and I wasn¡¯t exactly the villainess either. I was just an unfortunate soul who deeply fell in love with the villain who chased him around. Yulia wasn¡¯t a supporting character but it was hard to define it as an extra either¡­ Oh, my God, did I just call myself an extra. ¡°Oh! And don¡¯t drink in front of anyone else other than me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Why?¡± What did he mean? The eyes staring at me intently were burdensome. I couldn¡¯t understand why he was hesitating and sulking here instead of leaving to where he had to go. I was thinking of going home as soon as he left. ¡°Yulia.¡± In the midst of this, the voice calling for me was so sweet that my body almost trembled. I felt like he whispered my name in a sweet voice this morning too. No, let¡¯s get rid of all these nonsensical thoughts! ¡°I¡¯m warning you to wait here.¡± He first calmly threatened me. ¡°I¡¯ll reward you if you stay here quietly until I return.¡± Then he used a conciliatory approach. You think I won¡¯t run away even if you use a kind and gentle proposition? I won¡¯t be fooled even if you persuade me with ten thousand words! I had to get out of this gloomy residence as soon as possible and return to my safe haven. No matter how the villain feels, he won¡¯t be able to kill the imperial family currently. I would still be able to buy some time. Based on my age, I think it was two years after I became an adult that the imperial family was annihilated in the original story. There was still plenty of time. ¡°But when I get back, and you¡¯re not here, you¡¯d better be prepared.¡± ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± ¡°No way.¡± He was obviously smiling but he was emitting a creepy aura. ¡°But I¡¯m a man who will do anything to get my things back.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so scared. Anyone who sees you might think I¡¯m hurting you.¡± No? Isn¡¯t he threatening to hurt me now? I felt a little scared to talk now. He was speaking so sweetly and kindly this morning that I almost fell for it, but now I¡¯m not going to be deceived. ¡°Yulia, do I look like someone who will harm you?¡± Yeah, you look like that. In the novel, you slaughtered the imperial family in front of Yulia who was infatuated with you. After that, he told Yulia to no longer bother him anymore, and that was merely a warning. It gave me goosebumps to think about it. Even in my point of view, Yulia was extremely pretty. How can you not fall in love with such a beautiful woman, who was head over heels with you? Would you have thought of exterminating an entire family just because you were annoyed? If you say yes, then the victim should just quietly avoid you and not bother you, to protect her family. Since the plan of not getting involved with the villain failed, I should keep in mind every action I make. ¡°I¡¯m not going to hurt you.¡± Yeah. You¡¯re not going to hurt me. It wasn¡¯t you who killed me in the original, but the feeling of helplessness and self guilt. That¡¯s why Yulia killed herself. I was an extra with such a miserable ending. ¡°So, don¡¯t look at me with an expression of fear.¡± He hugged me and buried his face in my shoulder. Why did I feel a sense of guilt? I really didn¡¯t know the reason myself. Why was he trying to trick me again? ¡°What scares me is not you, but the situation of my father and brother knowing about this.¡± ¡°¡­Yulia.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°When would be a good time for a wedding?¡± I blinked my eyes at his words. What did I just hear? His words were unrealistic. I was embarrassed but I hid my embarrassment as much as possible and asked him a question. ¡°Who¡¯s wedding?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s me and Yulia¡¯s marriage.¡± He replied as if answering the obvious. Maybe it was obvious to him, but I was shocked. Ah. I really want to cry. How did my life end up like this? ¡°It¡¯s Yulia who seduced me first, so you have to take responsibility for me.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember anything at all¡­.¡± ¡°Did you have enough for breakfast?¡± He whispered softly in my ear. His lips slowly descended from my neck and touched my collarbone. Then, his lips overlapped mine. My head told me to refuse, but the kiss was so sweet that it paralyzed my sense of reason. I thought I had to push him off, but I got drunk on him as the kiss eroded my head. At that moment, his movements around his waist were unusual. As I regained my senses, I didn¡¯t want to continue anymore so I pushed him away as hard as I could. ¡°¡­¡­don¡¯t you like it? You seemed to like this kind of thing. Was I mistaken?¡± Don¡¯t like it You seemed to like this. Was I mistaken?¡± ¡°Chester, how am I supposed to take responsibility?¡± ¡°Chester, how do I take responsibility?¡± ¡°Of course by marrying me.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t get married, is there another way?¡± ¡°No there isn¡¯t.¡± He was very determined, but I was stubborn to find another way. ¡°There¡¯s a reason why I can¡¯t take responsibility through marriage.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± His eyes staring at me scared me, but I still wanted to say add more. Marriage is for a lifetime, so I didn¡¯t want a marriage without love. And, he eventually meets the heroine who he falls in love with. He gets so obsessed that he wants to possess her. I didn¡¯t want to be involved in any of that. He seemed to want to hear the reason so he stayed quiet. Ignoring my trembling heart, I confidently said my reason. ¡°I have someone else in mind that I like!¡± Chapter 3 Chapter 3 *** Thank You Lia for the Donation. It¡¯s very much appreciated ???? *** ¡°I have someone else in mind¡­..¡± For the first time, I felt like he was truly a villian. His voice sounded like a crazy man. His red eyes, which were originally cold, felt even more chilly now. He looked similar to the original character in the story. It was more frightening to face the creepy feelings I felt while reading the story in real life. I regretted what I said. I thought it would have been better if I just kept my mouth shut. As soon as I unknowingly stepped back and widened the distance between us, he smiled softly. His expression looked very unhappy. ¡°Yulia, that¡¯s a very bad lie.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not lying.¡± Cold sweat seemed to be flowing from my body. ¡°I know you don¡¯t have a fiance.¡± The distance between him and me that I accidentally created was narrowed in an instant with one step from him. He got even closer than before to the point my efforts were in vain. ¡°So, don¡¯t think about getting out of this mess under the pretext of being engaged.¡± Without realizing it, I took a step backwards and found my back touching the wall. Now there was no place to escape. His hand slowly ran down my cheek. I wondered why I felt bad when he looked angry. ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m not engaged to him.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± His hand which was caressing my cheek, stopped and he stared at me with a stiff look. I just decided to be honest. Because I didn¡¯t want to get married without love. The love I was talking about was not physical love, but a spiritual and mental love. ¡°¡­I¡¯ve been waiting for him for a long time.¡± I Spit out the words calmly. Before talking I was so scared and nervous, but after I uttered the words I felt relieved. But what he said after listening to me was a strong denial of my words. ¡°You¡¯re lying aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Do I look like someone who would lie about this?¡± ¡°Say it¡¯s a lie!¡± It was the first time he yelled at me. Perhaps he was surprised that he shouted, so he covered his face with his hands and spoke in a genuine tone. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I yelled.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Yulia. So you¡¯re saying that you slept with me, and there was someone else in your mind?¡± Why does he have a look in his eyes of deep pain? The look in his eyes almost weakened me. It was not an angry or frightened look, so his eyes that swallowed his anger were more compatible with him. The look in his eyes that he had been hurt was very strange. ¡°Answer me, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­yes.¡± I reluctantly answered him because it wasn¡¯t even wrong for him to say that. I was still waiting just for one person. I was waiting for a boy I had met a long time ago when I was very young. I don¡¯t even know his name, and I can¡¯t remember his face, but I clearly remembered that he was very pretty when he cried. I was confident that if I met the boy, I would recognize him at once. Just like finding your lost puppy. (T/N: Dogs look the same and if you pick two dogs from the same breed they probably share the same appearance but if asked to find your own dog you would probably know because of the feelings you have. Just like identical twins, they might share the same appearance but if you spend time with one twin for a long period of time you¡¯d learn to differentiate them. So I think this means that although Yulia doesn¡¯t remember the boy¡¯s appearance she would still recognize him because of the strong feeling she has. I think this is what the translation is supposed to mean.) ¡°Then just erase him from your mind.¡± ¡°What?¡± I heard teeth grinding. I started thinking I might have added unnecessary words, regret washed over me. He stroked my cheek. ¡°Oh! That¡¯s not necessary. I can just kill him.¡± His eyes looked creepy. He wasn¡¯t a liar or a person who talked unnecessary words so he would mostly likely follow his words. I started regretting and wished I never mentioned anything. I lowered my eyes because I was scared. ¡°Yulia, don¡¯t avert your eyes.¡± ¡°¡­¡­yes.¡± Since I valued my life, I rolled my eyes and made eye contact with his red eyes. As a reader, I know very well how cruel this person could be. ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll get him out of your head.¡± I was nervous about what to say. How? Do you mean by splitting my head? Or are you going to erase him from the world? But I didn¡¯t do anything wrong to him to the point of wanting to kill me. Although not a crime, having a one-night stand with the villain and arguing with him in the morning might get my neck cut off. ¡°Now I¡¯m thinking of filling your head with me.¡± He smiled languidly. It didn¡¯t seem like he was going to kill me, but I couldn¡¯t figure out why that smile was making my heart uneasy. The ominous feeling I had was right. His lips overlapped mine then his tongue poked between my lips. He held my waist tightly in his hand so I couldn¡¯t get away When I was out of breath, he removed his lips to give me a chance to breathe, but then quickly caught my tongue again. My legs collapsed due to the intestine heat. He completely mesmerized me with just a kiss. ¡°Yulia.¡± He hugged me as tight as I sat on the floor. I remember him saying that he was busy but he didn¡¯t act like a busy person at all. I think being busy was a lie to keep me off guard, seeing that he was dawdling here. I wanted to run away, but there was a wall behind my back and Cehster ahead of me. So there was nowhere to escape. He put his lips next to my ear and whispered warningly. ¡°Remember I¡¯m barely suppressing the urge to eat you right now.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll let you go today, but this won¡¯t be the end of it next time.¡± My spine felt cold. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what, don¡¯t meet anyone else and I¡¯ll stay calm.¡± ¡°¡­..why?¡± ¡°If you want to see me go berserk, go happily meet other people.¡± Seeing him smile so viciously, it seemed appropriate to warn me. I thought if I met someone, the other person might walk on the path of heaven earlier than their life expectancy. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can see anyone else next to you while I¡¯m alive¡± ¡°Chester¡­..¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t killed anyone since the end of the war, but that might change soon.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I couldn¡¯t help but keep my mouth shut. I thought I might not be able to get home if I kept talking. No, even if I go home, I don¡¯t think I would arrive alive. ¡°I think we¡¯d better meet again this week. I¡¯ll be right on time to meet you¡± ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s going to happen then.¡± I thought I should just listen to him because his smile was off. ¡°I¡¯ll write to you when I get back to the Castle. That should be good right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He smiled fondly as what I said was a satisfactory answer to him. Then, he lifted me up from the ground. The act of kindness was right, but I was not particularly grateful for it. ¡°Yulia. Do you think you can walk down the stairs?¡± ¡°¡­..I can walk down.¡± What tricks was he trying to play? My body was shaky, but it wasn¡¯t to the point where I couldn¡¯t move at all. So I could walk without his help. ¡°I¡¯m leaving now.¡± ¡°Yes. Let¡¯s have a date soon.¡± ¡°¡­..I¡¯ll think about it.¡± He didn¡¯t have to, but he personally escorted me to the carriage. It was a troublesome type of kindness. He suddenly came into the carriage. The distance was particularly close. ¡°Yulia. His hands gently wrapped around my chin. I had a rough idea of what would follow next. I closed my eyes resignedly. As expected, his lips touched mine. ¡°That¡¯s enough¡­..¡± I thought it would end as short as a goodbye, but it didn¡¯t. His tongue penetrated through my lips. I forgot how to breathe through my nose. His tongue clasped me as if he didn¡¯t want to miss a single moment. Unlike his mouth, his hands patted my hair affectionately. It was a careful movement like handing pottery that seemed to break in a single touch. His lips fell off my lips only when I was under the illusion that the inside of my mouth was tingling. He kissed the back of my hand and got off the carriage, while smiling languidly as if having no regrets. ¡°See you again.¡± There was no answer to that. I didn¡¯t look at where he was until the wagon started moving. Ignoring my complicated feelings I sat on the wagon alone, and tried easing my complicated mind. ¡°What am I going to do?¡± Now that I¡¯m on my way home, I had to think of an excuse. The red marks seen through the sleeves of my dress and on my neck seemed to explain what had happened so a plausible excuse was needed to cover up the situation. Or was there a way to sneak inside without my brother or father knowing. ¡°¡­What should I do?¡± A sigh came out of my lips . What should I do with this complicated situation? **** T/N = Translator¡¯s note. So not from the official author but the person who is translating it to a different language. Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Seeing that the wagon stopped, it seemed we arrived. Fortunately, my face didn¡¯t feel too hot now so it shouldn¡¯t look red. As I was getting off, I hurriedly covered my neck with my hair and pulled the sleeves of my dress to hide my wrists. Without an escort, I ran right inside regardless of dignity. As soon as I entered, Nanny entered my eyesight. ¡°Princess, why did you come so late?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Whoo! Nanny!¡± (Crying sound) ¡°Princess why are you crying all of a sudden now! What¡¯s wrong?¡± I was finally relieved. I started crying in Nanny¡¯s embrace because I was finally physically free from the villain. Emotions that I had been holding back burst out like huge waves. ¡°Who dares do this to the Princess¡¯s body.¡± ¡°Nanny, I want to wash up first.¡± ¡°Yes, I see. I¡¯ll warm up the water first though.¡± Since my mother died, the person I relied on the most after my father and brother was my nanny. My mother had a chronic illness before my brother was born, so my nanny was in charge of my parenting ever since I was little. Therefore, after my mother passed away, my nanny was my psychological support. ¡°Princess, the bath water is ready.¡± ¡°Yes¡­..¡± I felt better after soaking in the bathtub. I could have washed in the villain¡¯s mansion but I felt uncomfortable and reluctant because it was a strange place. ¡°My Princess.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Tell me who made our precious Princess¡¯s body like this.¡± If I spoke about him I would then have to explain everything. This was a secret I intended to carry to the grave. ¡°Keep it a secret from Father and Brother, I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be worried.¡± ¡°Who cares about that? Why did you come back like this? Do you know how much I was worried about you when you came in late?¡± ¡°¡­..I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re back though. I was very worried because the Princess, who had never had an accident, was late and stayed overnight.¡± ¡°Did Father and Brother visit while I was away?¡± What excuse should I stew? I couldn¡¯t say that I slept at a friend¡¯s house, I was too drunk for my mind to operate. But I couldn¡¯t honestly say that I slept with Duke of Siegbert! I think I can see my dad and brother collapsing from shock if I said that. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I said that the princess drank too much and went to sleep.¡± Oh, as expected, nanny¡¯s improvisation! Sometimes I thought I should learn something like that. Thank God. I felt relieved knowing Nanny solved my problem. My Father and Brother raised me preciously after my mother passed away. It¡¯s not easy to say such a thing to someone who raised you with their heart and soul. ¡°A certain child likes our princess.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Is he handsome?¡± ¡°Handsome and good-looking.¡± To be honest, he was really handsome. His face was the reason he received a lot of support from the readers plus he was the closest to my taste. If the male lead had a face that reminded people of an angel as warm as the sun, the villain had a face that reminded people of a cold-hearted devil. It was described as a scary but handsome face. ¡°Handsome guys are worthy of their face!¡± It¡¯s not good to be ugly. ¡°¡­¡­if His Majesty knew about this, the Princess would be banned from going out now.¡± ¡°Are you going to help me out?¡± ¡°Who is it? Tell me who it is and I¡¯ll help you.¡± ¡°¡­..It won¡¯t work, nanny.¡± Surely there was nothing good about hanging with the villain. My whole body still ached and his traces remained intact all over my body. Why didn¡¯t I refuse in the morning even though I could. I think it was because of that face and the craziness that didn¡¯t come out in the original. Perhaps it was because of that face and absurdity that did not appear in the original. ¡°If he¡¯s a decent person¡­¡­¡± ¡°Nanny knows, I don¡¯t want to get married.¡± ¡°¡­¡­His Majesty and the Crown Prince are the only ones who welcome the idea of the Princess not marrying.¡± ¡°Because I want to live with my dad, my brother, and my nanny. The nanny doesn¡¯t think the same?¡± The nanny smiled helplessly at what I said. And another reason why I don¡¯t want to get married is because I had no intention of destroying the original more than this. The goal of my life was to live happily while being loved by my father and brother. And I thought it would be nice if the boy I saw when I was young came back. The boy who didn¡¯t appear in the original story, who I saw when I was very young, looked like my age, and I didn¡¯t even remember his face. ¡°Princess¡­ you¡¯re not waiting for the boy you don¡¯t even know the name of?¡± ¡°That¡¯s just an excuse. I want to live with my dad and brother for a long time.¡± I meant it, I loved the affection my family gave me. Is it because I grew up receiving love from my family in my previous life? Whether the feelings lingered lingering in this life, I felt that the relationship between my family and me was important. It seemed regrettable that I couldn¡¯t even say goodbye. ¡°And you know I didn¡¯t mean to get married in the first place, nanny.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, normally, if it were a princess, the debut would have been very glamorous.¡± ¡°Yeah, I guess so.¡± I¡¯m sure my father had given me his full support to make my debut in the most superfluous way. But I wanted to live quietly. It was better to live quietly like a sheep than to live in a complicated head fight because you were noticed by other people. And you can often meet and have friends¡­.. ¡°But my nanny knows best that I¡¯m satisfied with this life.¡± ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s a shame.¡± I felt a little guilty. I started getting drowsy, and felt sleepy. Even though I slept before, I didn¡¯t sleep well and I was stressed, so I deserved this nap. After bathing, I changed into my pajamas. What¡¯s different from my usual, was that this nightgown completely covers from the neck to the wrists and ankles. It was a little frustrating, but I couldn¡¯t do anything. His traces remained intact like a stigma all over my body. ¡°Princess¡­..¡± ¡°I¡¯m tired, so I¡¯ll sleep a little, nanny. Wake me up if Father and Brother come.¡± ¡°¡­¡­yes.¡± Her eyes showed that Nanny was deeply worried about me. I really felt like I shouldn¡¯t be entwined with the villain anymore, whether it¡¯s for me or my family. My whole body ached. It seemed that the only muscles that were strong were my facial muscles. The muscles of my body groaned in pain. Oh, well, that¡¯s my fate. It was only when I heard Nanny going out that I could fall asleep. Why does the room feel so cold? I pulled more blankets over. How long did I fall asleep for? ¡°Ugh¡­..!¡± My body was too hot. No, it seemed right to say it was burning rather than hot. It was so hot that I was frustrated. At that moment, I felt someone¡¯s hand was stroking my face. It felt cool, so I grabbed the hand and rubbed it on my cheeks. I feel a little alive now. I felt the calluses on the hand, so could it be Older brother? Or was it Father? It felt like the hand of someone who wields and uses the sword. I couldn¡¯t see well because my vision was blurry. I didn¡¯t have the power to raise my eyelids to satisfy my curiosity. ¡°Are you¡­ Father?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± There was no answer when asked if it was Father. Then is my brother here? I seemed to have caused some concern. It was fortunate that he did not know I had returned in the afternoon. ¡°It¡¯s you brother. ¡­¡­.I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I should have listened to Father. Cough Cough Cough Cough!¡± I coughed out loud. Do I have a cold? What did I even do to catch a cold? Oh, I can only guess what it was. I felt sorry for my father because my body became weak. I wouldn¡¯t have gone out if it was another party, but it was hosted by Marquis Chloe. Even though I hadn¡¯t made my debut, I had a friend who I was able to communicate with thanks to the title of the beloved princess. That friend was the female lead in the novel. It was the female protagonist that caused the villain and the male protagonist to confront each other. Of course, the villain is defeated by the male protagonist and flows into love between him and the heroine, Cecil Chloe, the original heroine, was my only friend. It was a birthday party for the friend who had become an adult, and I, the best friend, couldn¡¯t help but attend. And since my dad and brother knew about it, they couldn¡¯t stop me. ¡°¡­sometimes it¡¯s better to not listen.¡± It was obviously a gentle voice like my brother, but it felt a little different from my brother¡¯s. But I liked this cool touch on my cheek. The hand that was on my cheek covered my eyes. ¡°Sleep.¡± I thought that it was not my brother, but at that moment, I had an illusion that my face, which was hot, was cooling down. And the strangest thing was I didn¡¯t hear the door open. It may have been a while since he came in, so I may not have heard the door open, but it was still strange. I fell asleep again before I could question anything. Chapter 5 Thanks to the red marks, when I went to see my dad the only skin that could be seen was my hand and neck. I usually don¡¯t wear dresses that reach my neck, but I had to take them out and wear them this time. ¡°Father!¡± I might get in trouble but I had to go in as lively as possible. When I checked the inside of the office, not only my father was there, but so was my brother. ¡°Brother?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± Me and my brother both had brilliant silver hair and pretty purple eyes that were inherited from our father. All three of us had the same hair and eye color. Since I often visit the office, there was a soft sofa and table in the room. ¡°I heard you were sick, are you okay now?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I told you not to go. You¡¯d better refrain from drinking from now on.¡± I was very happy to receive all the worries of my father and brother, but I would not reveal the truth even if I loved their concerns. The fact that I slept with the villain was a secret I had to keep for the rest of my life. Yulia, I¡¯m just coming here to ask, so don¡¯t be afraid.¡± I listened to my dad while drinking the tea that was laid out. It was the moment I sipped my tea¡­ ¡°The Duke of Siegbert sent you a letter of courtship.¡± I choked on my tea. The tea in my mouth flowed out of my mouth, and the teacup in my hand fell to the floor and shattered to pieces. It seemed to represent my feelings. I couldn¡¯t understand what the hell he was trying to do. He said he would keep it a secret for a while! ¡°If you don¡¯t want to, I¡¯m thinking of using it as firewood¡¯ ¡°Dad, I¡¯ve been telling you! I¡¯m going to live with you and brother forever!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it different from other aristocratic daughters?¡± ¡°Of course! I¡¯m going to live with you and brother for the rest of my life!¡± ¡°Other noble daughters said they would live with their father for the rest of their lives, but eventually, they left with their fianc¨¦es in the end.¡± ¡°You¡¯re worried for nothing. Burn the ominous courtship letter.¡± I wish I could burn it and get rid of it, because it made me psychologically uneasy if the letter existed. I hope I don¡¯t get tangled up with the villain from now on, but why do I have a bad feeling? ¡°Yulia by the way, if it¡¯s the Duke of Siegbert, I¡¯ll trust you and leave it to you.¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t want to. No way.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yes. If you¡¯re so adamant, I¡¯ll use it as firewood.¡± Why would you say such a terrible thing? I suspect it¡¯s someone else, because why would my father try to tie me up with him. But It¡¯s not anyone else, it¡¯s my dad! ¡°Yulia, Duke of Siegbert is not that scary.¡± ¡°Dad knows that there is someone I¡¯m waiting for. Until that person shows up, I said I¡¯d live with my dad and brother for the rest of my life.¡± I really don¡¯t remember him, but I was glad that he existed. Because he was such a good excuse. My father always tries to not let me leave the Imperial City because he wants to protect my innocence and pure heart. ¡°If that person shows up, will you go and live with him for the rest of your life? ¡°I will. Don¡¯t worry though, I¡¯ll never get married unless my dad or brother approves!¡± My dad and brother laughed at me as if I were cute. Now that I am an adult, I did not hate them looking at me like that. I thought it would be better if they continued to treat me like this in the future. ¡°Father, when you die, I¡¯ll take care of Julia so you don¡¯t have to worry too much.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I still have a lot of days to live.¡± (T/N: He means that he¡¯ll live for more years, not literal days.) ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll have to work for a while before I take over.¡± After spending a quiet dinner with my father and brother, my brother escorted me back to my room. ¡°Hey brother, did you come into my room yesterday?¡± ¡°No? Why? Did someone break in? Shall I tighten the security?¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to overreact like that. I think it¡¯s a good idea to let our expenses increase a little more so there¡¯s no need.¡± I got goosebumps. If it wasn¡¯t my brother, then who the hell was in my room? I couldn¡¯t figure out how they would¡¯ve entered and left without being noticed. Feeling frustrated, I went to the terrace thinking that it would be better to enjoy the cool breeze. Then, I stopped because I felt like someone had intruded into the terrace. I saw who the owner of the hand was. ¡°I guess I was worried for nothing.¡± The villain came over to me in a natural manner. It occurred to me that maybe the man who broke into my room last night was the villain. Because his movements were so natural, as if it wasn¡¯t his first time coming here. How did he even find my room and come in without me noticing? Even Cecil never came into my bedroom. Suddenly, more goosebumps than before came up. ¡°In your letter, you said you were sick and couldn¡¯t meet up but your complexion looks nice.¡± ¡°No! I mean it¡¯s, uh, it¡¯s, uh, it¡¯s, uh¡­¡± Perhaps because I was confused, I started talking gibberish. ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m relieved you¡¯re all better. I was worried that you¡¯d continue being sick.¡± He then hugged me. His touch was cautious, as if he were stroking a very precious artifact. Since it was a body that used swords, I could feel his touch through my clothes. I shouldn¡¯t have had such a thought, but I thought the villain was better than I thought. ¡°Yulia. I thought I was going crazy because I was away from you for a while, but I guess you were doing well.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°The night breeze is cold. I think we¡¯d better go inside.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s evening now so it¡¯s alright.¡± The villain forced me into the room. I came out to the terrace to get some cool breeze, but I was forcibly kicked out of the place. I suddenly remembered what I had to say to him. ¡°Hey, what are you thinking?¡± ¡°You were supposed to call me Chester.¡± ¡°Well, Chester, what the hell made you send me a letter of courtship?¡± ¡°My princess did not seem to have any intention of taking responsibility for me, so I warned her a little.¡± His hands touched my cheek. It felt similar to the touch of yesterday. I grabbed his hand and moved it over my face like yesterday. ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the person from yesterday, right?¡± At my question, he smiled languidly as if he was having fun. He then pushed his face closer to mine. ¡°Hm¡­.. I don¡¯t know?¡± That¡¯s right, the intruder who came yesterday was the villain. I didn¡¯t know that, and thought it was my brother. I was an idiot who couldn¡¯t even tell the difference between my older brother and the villain. ¡°I originally didn¡¯t have a hobby of touching sick people.¡± He said something meaningful. At the same time, his lips overlapped mine. It was quite different from yesterday. If yesterday¡¯s kiss was a rough, possessive kiss that didn¡¯t give you a chance to breathe till you suffocated, now it¡¯s a soft and gentle kiss. It felt so different that I suspected that people had changed. And it wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t hate it. It felt so different that I doubted if it was the same person. On the contrary, I didn¡¯t exactly dislike it. ¡°I want to touch you when you act so pretty.¡± He smiled alluringly like a languid wolf. I felt like I was going to be possessed. It was only now that I realized what had happened. My face seemed to be burning up. I thought I would be in danger if I was close to him. I had no choice but to be wary of him, so I pushed him away from me. ¡°There¡¯s a saying that a cold will get better if you move it.¡± (T/N: I don¡¯t really understand this part and had a hard time translating it correctly. Here¡¯s the Korean version: ¡°??? ??? ???? ?? ??.¡± If anyone knows a better translation, please tell me.) ¡°¡­If you¡¯re going to make a weird move, don¡¯t.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry. Still, I don¡¯t have a bad smell that bothers sick people so you don¡¯t have to be so wary.¡± I didn¡¯t believe his words because they weren¡¯t reliable. ¡°I¡¯m not going to eat you right now.¡± ¡°Then¡­.?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here because I¡¯m really worried about you. I¡¯ll send you a present tomorrow.¡± He smoothed my hair and kissed it. I felt burdened by the way he stared at me. It wasn¡¯t my favorite face, but it was heartless to ignore such a handsome face. If it hadn¡¯t been for that face, I wouldn¡¯t have had such a major accident or something I couldn¡¯t ignore like this. ¡°Send a letter again, Yulia.¡± He kissed me on the forehead. Then, as if he had no regrets, he went to the terrace and jumped off. This is the second floor. The way he jumped without hesitation seemed like an illusion. It was hard to believe, to the extent that I thought I might have seen something in vain. Of course, in the original book, the villain was said to have exceeded the limits of human beings, but I didn¡¯t know it would be this much. In fact, there was some certainty. If you¡¯ve lived on the battlefield since you were young, there must be some scars on your body. But there was no sign of a scar on his bare body. Less scars on their body means the greater the ability. My brother, who is really good at swordsmanship, even has some scars himself. I couldn¡¯t believe it, so I came close to where he jumped, but although I didn¡¯t intend to jump I already felt afraid looking at the distance. I can¡¯t believe he jumped this low casually. ¡°¡­¡­¡± I was dumbfounded. Only when I touched my forehead did I realise that it wasn¡¯t a dream but reality. Aside from going down, I couldn¡¯t even figure out how to get up here. It meant that it would be useless to strengthen security if he came up here from the first floor at once. ¡°You¡¯re a monster like that. Was it correct that he was defeated by the male lead .¡± He¡¯s like a monster in many ways, so is it right to call him a person at times like this? So how much more of a monster is the male lead. It must be very difficult for Cecil to overcome the villain as a female lead. * * * ¡°Princess! I think you should get up and check outside.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The nanny woke me up in an urgent voice. Worried that something had happened, I went out without a shawl over my pajamas. At that moment, I realized why the nanny was making such a fuss. No, I thought all the people who saw this would have no choice but to react like that. When I went outside, there were lots of flowers and boxes that looked luxurious. And on top of that, the name was engraved on them so that I could know who sent it. ¡°¡­¡­Chester Siegbert?¡± This crazy bastard! Did the gift he was talking about yesterday mean something like this? No, it¡¯s okay to send gifts, but I didn¡¯t need such a show-like present so that everyone else could see it. When I opened the box, I felt an urge to faint. Of course, I couldn¡¯t because I¡¯m a princess! I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because of my dad and brother, but I felt a lot of pressure from the villain. ¡°Oh my God! Princess!¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°These are such pretty jewels!¡± Yes, they were very pretty. But the problem is that the person who sent these is not my father or brother, but the villain. I felt like I had to send these brilliant things back to the person who sent them. While biting her teeth to suppress the anger in her head, she said¡­ ¡°Nanny, send all of this back to Duke Siegbert.¡± Right now! Chapter 6 **** After sending them all back to the Duke of Siegbert, I was able to return to my room and rest. My head was throbbing and my mind was confused, this was probably because of the flu. I really didn¡¯t understand. Why did he send such presents for everyone to see? Was he warning me? ¡°Nanny, bring me some notepaper and a pen.¡± Maybe the purpose of the gifts is for me to decide a date and send it to him quickly. ¡°Yes, and His Majesty said you should have lunch together with him.¡± ¡°Father? Then I think I¡¯ll have to change my clothes.¡± Although the dress I¡¯m wearing is comfortable, I couldn¡¯t wear this dress when meeting my father and brother. Because the traces of the villain still haven¡¯t disappeared yet! I had to wear a very stuffy-looking dress that would cover me from my neck to my ankles. ¡°Then what about brother? Will it be father only? ¡°His highness the crown prince will attend too.¡± ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s write a letter first.¡± How can I delay this as much as possible? Why was it so difficult to think of a plausible excuse for me to write? Although I would meet him, I had to postpone the date as much as possible but wrote that the villain would be fully responsible for it. So I made a perfect lie. ¡°Nanny. Send this to the Duke of Siegbert.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I¡¯ve finished one big problem today. Now, all I had to do was drink tea, and play after eating lunch. As expected, I liked being reborn as a princess because the lifestyle was amazing. I was very happy with this kind of life. Where I was loved by my family and lived as a wealthy person without doing anything. My dream in my past life was to be so rich I could live unemployed, and the dream came true in this life. ¡°Dad!¡± It¡¯s sad that I don¡¯t have a mother anymore, but I had a nanny, father, and brother who loved me very much so my mother¡¯s absence was not felt. My dad¡¯s expression looked very serious. ¡°Dad, what¡¯s going on today?¡± I didn¡¯t think anything big would happen, so I just sat in my usual seat. ¡°Yulia, I heard that the Duke of Siegbert sent you a present today.¡± I started sweating and didn¡¯t know what to say. I thought of anything to say because I had to make excuses. ¡°I sent them all back!¡± ¡°Yulia, it¡¯s very strange though. The Duke of Siegbert would never have seen you.¡± Oh sh*t. Officially, I¡¯ve never met the villain. If we haven¡¯t officially met, then I¡¯ll just say we have. ¡°¡­¡­It was Cecil¡¯s birthday last time, so he might have attended the birthday party. I think I might have saw him for a while.¡± ¡°Hm¡­.¡± ¡°As you know, I¡¯m very pretty!¡± To be honest, this beauty was uncommon. The more I stare into the mirror, the more I wonder how the villain in the novel was so cold to such a beautiful woman. It didn¡¯t make sense. If such a beauty, who is also a princess, pursues you, shouldn¡¯t it be worth paying attention too? ¡°Yeah you are. You look a lot like your mother.¡± The immediate crisis seemed to have been avoided. I smiled when my dad mentioned my mom. In the past, he used to be in a lot of pain. ¡°Yulia, it seems that you¡¯ve received a gift, but this father already has a suitor.¡± ¡°¡­¡­what?¡± ¡°The Duke of Siegbert looked like a man who would marry you even if it cost his life.¡± ¡°No!¡± There¡¯s nothing good about being tied to a villain. Even now, I¡¯m caught in a weak spot so I can¡¯t blatantly refuse him. Who dares think about marriage? Anyway, he¡¯s going to be obsessed with the heroine once he runs into her! In the original, there was a phrase he said the moment he saw the heroine. -Young lady, have we met before? For example, when I was young. At first, I didn¡¯t know that he was the villian, since I read the book from the female lead¡¯s perspective. In fact I read this because I liked sub male leads more than the male lead. I was rooting for the villain. I had a disease that made me like sub male leads, so I cheered for him until it was revealed that he was a villain. Above all, the reason I liked him the most was that he didn¡¯t bat an eyelid and only looked at the female lead, even though the pretty princess followed him around and kept saying how much she liked him. -We can understand each other. You and I know the pain of losing someone precious. I felt so sad when I heard that. I was cheering until it was revealed that he was a villain. Even when the scene of killing all her family members and taking the throne appeared in front of Princess Yulia, all I thought was, ¡°wow he was a villain.¡± I had no idea the seriousness of the action. Until I was reborn as Princess Yulia. ¡°¡­¡­Dad, you don¡¯t want me to marry soon, do you?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t like it, I can¡¯t help it, but I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a better son-in-law than the Duke of Siegbert.¡± ¡°The Duke of Blair.¡± ¡°Well, Duke Blair is not a bad son-in-law.¡± Then I heard the door open, maybe my brother came. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say I was the most handsome person in the past?¡± ¡°Brother!¡± In fact, my favorite character in the novel was Yulia¡¯s brother. He was a typical older brother who loved his younger sister very much and did not stop her from chasing the villain, whom she liked. So he was as popular as the villain, but in the end, he was an unfortunate extra who ended up with his neck cut off by the villain. ¡°When did you change your taste?¡± ¡°Of course, you¡¯re still the most handsome!¡± ¡°Yeah. Don¡¯t ever get married. I¡¯ll live with you forever.¡± Such a harmonious family was destroyed when Yulia met the villain. Because Yulia liked the villain, she found it okay to follow him. Finding his daughter¡¯s behavior lovely, the Emperor decided to marry her with the villain. However, the action caused tragedy. So, I just didn¡¯t have to like the villain. I could protect my family if I wasn¡¯t obsessed with him and followed him around. While receiving such overwhelming love from my family, I could marry someone who did not appear in the original story. Or I could just not marry anyone. It¡¯s a little risky to have a one night stand with the villain, but he¡¯ll probably stop paying attention to me the moment he meets Cecil. ¡°But when will you get married?¡± Now that I think about it, my brother didn¡¯t have a fianc¨¦ even though he was the Crown Prince. And even after a few years of adulthood, there was still no fianc¨¦e. It was strange. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be treated like a Crown Prince? Dad! When are you going to get brother married?¡± ¡°Yulia says that, but shouldn¡¯t you get married now?¡± He¡¯s the crown prince, so shouldn¡¯t he get married now? What if he dies without getting married with that beautiful face? ¡°Brother. If you don¡¯t get married, I think the Imperial family will end in our generation.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to get married, but my brother should still get married. And since you¡¯re the crown prince, shouldn¡¯t you fulfill this duty?¡± ¡°¡­Yulia, do you want me to get married?¡± No! Stay as my brother forever! I can¡¯t give it to anyone! That perfect appearance! His friendly personality! He¡¯s a perfect older brother that can¡¯t be given to anyone. Sigh. I was both happy and sad to be reincarnated as my favorite character¡¯s younger sister. ¡°No, I don¡¯t want you to get married.¡± ¡°Father. I¡¯m not getting married.¡± ¡°No! That¡¯s not what I meant!¡± ¡°Haha, I understand, Yulia. Sooner or later, I will find out if there is a girl who is suitable for the Crown Prince.¡± I was a little sad, but the fact he¡¯s my older brother would not change. And the time has come for him to get married. ¡°Dad, can I go out?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever said no.¡± He never said no, but when I said I was going to attend Cecil¡¯s birthday party, he tried to stop me! Don¡¯t pretend you¡¯re not reluctant! ¡°Then can I go out?¡± ¡°Alone?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take the escort with me, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m sneaking out anyway¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, be sure to take an escort when you go out. That¡¯s all. Losing one precious person is enough.¡± In the original book, I knew to some extent the biggest reason why Yulia was loved. Living as Yulia, I understood the reason why she was not restrained no matter what she did, and why she was rude and her personality was arbitrary. It was true that my father and brother loved me. But they didn¡¯t just see myself completely, they also saw my mother. The three of us have the same silver hair and purple eyes, but my father and brother resemble each other strongly as if they were copied and pasted. My features however, were the same as my mother. Perhaps Yulia in the original story, who learned about it, began to change her personality slightly. But I¡¯m satisfied with my life now. Even if I projected my dead mother, their love for me remained unchanged, so I didn¡¯t hate it. ¡°I¡¯m not going out today, but later!¡± ¡°Okay.¡± It was almost the end of the meal. Then the butler came and said something to my dad, he started staring at me with a very troubled expression. Why are you looking at me like that? ¡°Yulia. The Duke of Sigebert is waiting for you in the drawing room.¡± (T/N: A drawing room is a room where visitors are received and entertained. Although similar to a living room, a living room is generally for everyday whereas a drawing room is specifically for guests) ¡°¡­What?¡± I desperately hoped that I heard it wrong. ¡°You¡¯d better go to the drawing room right now.¡± ¡°¡­Dad!¡± ¡°Even if this father is an emperor, it¡¯s not easy to just send him back because he¡¯s a person who has made a lot of contributions in the war.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I think it¡¯ll work best if you refuse him yourself, or get engaged to someone similar to the Duke of Siegbert.¡± ¡°¡­I¡¯ll get going.¡± My head was already pounding. I had forgotten for a moment, but before being a villian, he was also a hero. A bouquet of flowers appeared as soon as the door to the drawing room, where the villain was located, was opened. ¡°¡­What is this?¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you have these items when you visit the person you¡¯re going to marry?¡± As soon as he handed the bouquet, it slipped from my hands and fell on the floor. The incident was fantastic but then I accidentally stepped on the flowers. It was clear that the biggest mistake of my life wasn¡¯t having a one night stand with the villain, but this very moment. And am I going to die like this? It was a short but good life. Chapter 7 Chapter 7 *** I slowly lifted my foot and moved it. I wanted to pretend that nothing had happened, but a messed up bouquet of flowers was right in the center of my vision. I felt like I made a really big mistake, so my spine shivered. Even when I tried to make an excuse, my mouth would not open. I couldn¡¯t see him because my head was down. I can¡¯t even imagine what kind of expression he had. All I could do was put my eyes down and look at the floor. ¡°Next time, I¡¯ll bring you a bouquet of flowers that you like so you don¡¯t step on them.¡± The villain picked up the trampled flowers and threw them into the trash can. I don¡¯t know why his low-pitched voice sounded so terrifying. Was it because I felt guilty? ¡°I received the letter from you.¡± ¡°¡­Are you angry?¡± ¡°Do I look angry?¡± I didn¡¯t know what to say so I just nodded my head. ¡°¡­No, I¡¯m not angry, so don¡¯t be scared.¡± ¡°You really aren¡¯t angry?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m not angry at all, so don¡¯t make that face.¡± His hand caressed my cheek. The moment I raised my head, we made eye contact. He didn¡¯t look angry, so I was a little relieved. His fingers ran down my cheek and stroked my neck, I was startled by the sudden action. ¡°Yulia. Am I the reason why you¡¯re wearing a dress that covers your neck?¡± ¡°The¡­who else would it be because of?¡± ¡°It¡¯s good that it¡¯s because of me.¡± Is he out of his mind? Is he crazy? By the way, the distance between us seemed too close. ¡°Let¡¯s sit down and talk.¡± ¡°All right.¡± He sat right in front of me. I felt burdened by his red eyes that seemed to only capture me in his eyesight. ¡°¡­Why did you come here? I wrote you a letter.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a proper date. I don¡¯t think the Princess wants to be responsible at all.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I don¡¯t want to marry someone I love. Does Chester love me?¡± ¡°Why do you ask?¡± Why do I ask? Of course, I¡¯m saying it with the intention of not marrying you. ¡°The Duke doesn¡¯t love me.¡± ¡°¡­Why do you think so?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want my body, not my love?¡± The moment he heard my words, he frowned. ¡°Do I seem like such scum?¡± Aren¡¯t you? You, in the original story, acted like complete trash. What should I call you besides trash when you killed a woman¡¯s family because you found her love annoying. Of course, that hast happened yet. ¡°¡­You never said that you love me.¡± I thought I could use this as an excuse. If I don¡¯t get entangled with the villain, there will be no risk of my dad and brother getting killed. For that reason, I should no longer be entangled with the villain anymore. ¡°I don¡¯t love the Duke either, but I don¡¯t want to marry you who doesn¡¯t love me.¡± ¡°Does love necessarily have to be spiritual?¡± Then? What else besides spiritual? ¡°I guess the princess doesn¡¯t seem to even treat physical love as love.¡± The moment I heard those words, I was at a loss for words. ¡°I want to have spiritual love.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°Should we start dating first?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I really couldn¡¯t say anything. I was just trying to say I didn¡¯t like you. Dating? There was never a desire to be involved with the villain. You want me to start dating you? ¡°No. The Duke is¡­¡­¡± ¡°You said you¡¯d call me Chester.¡± ¡°¡­..The Duke also calls me the Princess.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll call you Yulia from now on.¡± No, this was not my intention. ¡°So now, instead of calling me the Duke, call me Chester.¡± ¡°Anyway, I have no intention of dating Duke¡­.Chester. Of course, I have no intention of getting married either.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± I was nervous because I didn¡¯t know what he was going to say. The opponent was not a second male lead who pretended to be kind, but a villain. ¡°As you may know, I used contraception, but contraception isn¡¯t perfect in the first place.¡± ¡°Then what?¡± Is this how it feels to have blood reflux? I suddenly feel dizzy. ¡°You never know, maybe there might be my child in your stomach.¡± I felt like my blood was running dry. I worked hard to calculate the fertility period in my head. It happened to be a very ambiguous day. My mind felt messed up. ¡°Yulia. Again, I¡¯m a responsible person.¡± ¡°¡­No need, because it¡¯s never going to happen.¡± ¡°Do you really think so? It seems to me like you just want to deny the truth.¡± ¡°I heard there¡¯s someone you¡¯re looking for!¡± I heard that the villain was looking for someone. It was probably related to the female lead, so it was obvious that he was looking for Cecil. He didn¡¯t say anything, as if asking me to say more. ¡°¡­¡­I have no intention of marrying someone who doesn¡¯t love me and cares about others.¡± ¡°Then if I say that I would only look at you, Yulia, will you marry me?¡± ¡°¡­¡­I know who you¡¯re looking for.¡± For the first time, I saw surprise in his eyes. He always looked like a relaxed and languid beast, but now he appeared anxious. Yes, in the end, the villain was also a person who would turn around if he met the female lead. So it was right to cut him off. (T/N: ¡°turn around¡± to become a good person) ¡°If you find that person, you won¡¯t marry me.¡± ¡°Do I look like such an irresponsible person?¡± ¡°Even if you want to get married under the name of responsibility, you seem to be a person who will divorce just because you met the person you desperately wanted.¡± ¡°¡­You see me as such trash?¡± He frowned. He seemed very offended. But in the end, I wasn¡¯t exaggerating. He was really a crazy guy in the original. He wore a mask that acted good on the outside, but he was a very cruel and cold person inside. Such a person did not even know what kindness was, let alone the feeling of love. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know why you have that perception of me in your head, but can you give me a chance to change that idea?¡± Since I read a book I know he¡¯s a violent person, even in bed. It was close. ¡°Let¡¯s meet five times. If you don¡¯t want to marry me after meeting five times, I¡¯ll withdraw all courtships I¡¯ll send to you in the future.¡± ¡°¡­..Really?¡± It was a tempting proposal. ¡°Yes. But when we meet 5 times and you have the desire to get married, even a little bit¡­¡­¡± ¡°Okay, then I¡¯ll get married.¡± Of course, that will never happen. When the villain in the original story appeared as a second male lead, he was very caring and friendly, but the date with the female lead was a mess. Although, it was largely due to the circumstances and not his fault. And it was clear if he ran into Cecil under the guise of a coincidence, he would no longer show any interest in me. Because the person he was desperately looking for was Cecil. ¡°Yulia. You shouldn¡¯t say two words with one mouth.¡± (T/N: Like don¡¯t contradict yourself and go against your words. So in the future she can¡¯t go back on her words. I don¡¯t know how to phrase this correctly so here¡¯s the explanation) ¡°¡­Don¡¯t come any closer right now.¡± ¡°Yes. Let¡¯s keep this distance for now.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll see you tomorrow. Can I go over to the Duke¡¯s place?¡± I was worried that if the villain came to the castle, he would run into my family members. So rather than him, it was better for me to go. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll be on my way now. See you tomorrow, Yulia.¡± He rose from his seat as he was about to leave the drawing room. The moment he grabbed the doorknob, he paused as if something had come to mind. ¡°Yulia, you¡¯re so pretty today.¡± Maybe that was what he wanted to say, as he left as if had no more regrets. Alone in the room, the woman¡¯s tension was relieved. If I was really in one space with the villain, I could hardly relax. If there is only a comfortable space, it¡¯s on the bed. With staggering footsteps, I returned to my room. ¡°He¡­..princess¡­¡­the Duke of Siegbert sent you a gift again.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± ¡°These are completely different from what he sent in the morning.¡± Have you ever seen such a crazy guy? There was a letter here. {You seemed to dislike the things I sent you in the morning, so I bought new ones. I hope you like this gift.} And there seemed to be more written underneath it. {If you return the gift again, I will dispose of all the servants who chose the returned gift. Because there¡¯s no need to save things that didn¡¯t fit the princess¡¯s eyes.} It was a threat. My fingertips trembled. How was I able to stay calm when I stepped on the bouquet of flowers? No, and why are you passing on the lives of your servants to me! ¡°What should I do Princess?¡± ¡°¡­¡­The nanny should take care of it.¡± ¡°Yes! I will!¡± ¡°¡­¡­And I¡¯m meeting with someone tomorrow, so I wanted to let you know, nanny.¡± ¡°Of course!¡± It was very burdensome to receive the nanny¡¯s sparkling eyes. What was she thinking? ¡°Princess, that person is the Duke of Siegbert, right?¡± ¡°Hiccup!¡± Surprised by the sudden question, I hiccuped. ¡°I think the Duke of Siegbert is the most suitable as the princess¡¯s husband. Isn¡¯t he a war hero?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Hmm.¡± Well, I¡¯m not the person he¡¯s looking for. On the contrary, I have no desire to get involved with the person who will destroy the imperial family. I¡¯ll just have to let nanny misunderstand, because it seems like it would be good for her mental health. Chapter 8 Chapter 8 ¡°Princess! Hurry up and get up!¡± ¡°Um¡­¡­ I¡¯ll sleep for five more minutes¡­..¡± ¡°You¡¯re supposed to meet the Duke of Siegbert today!¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯ll sleep for another 10 minutes.¡± I was awakened by force. The influence of the villain seems to be greater than expected. It¡¯s already enough to excite my nanny with the name alone. I¡¯m all ready to wash up. Fortunately, looking at my reflection in the mirror as I washed up, the red traces near my neck were fading. But it didn¡¯t seem to matter. As soon as I came out, a gorgeous dress caught my eye. ¡°Nanny. More modest than this.¡± ¡°What? If you¡¯re meeting with the emperor ¡­¡­ but if you¡¯re meeting with the Duke of Siegbert then¡­¡­¡± (TN: she¡¯s implying that it would be fine if it was the Emperor [AKA Yulia¡¯s father] but not the Duke) ¡°Something simple.¡± I have to get away from the villain so a colorful and pretty dress will be poisonous. Still, I¡¯m a princess so I should not be too simple, so I chose clothes that are moderately colorful and not excessive. Wearing a dress properly encompassing light purple and white, the nanny took me to the dressing table. ¡°Nanny¡­¡­?¡± ¡°You have to dress up now.¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m not going to put on makeup.¡± ¡°Of course, the Princess is a beautiful woman with a naturally pretty face, but¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s not what the nanny thinks.¡± ¡°Then, just earrings and necklaces¡­..¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yes that¡¯s it.¡± The nanny looked disappointed, but I hurriedly bought her accessories because I feared she would say no. I chose dark purple earrings and necklaces. ¡°Princess, are you really going to stop here?¡± ¡°Yeah. Just bring me a hat.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I see.¡± She seemed to be very disappointed, but I couldn¡¯t help it. The villain is someone who will pay attention to me until he meets Cecil. In the original, Yulia had seen the villain even before she met the male protagonist, and it was said that she had been chasing him even before he became obsessed with the female protagonist. (TN: when it says ¡°the original¡± just know it refers to the original story¨t(¡ä?`)¨s) And even then, the villain did not pay attention to her. ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡± ¡°Yes, here¡¯s the hat.¡± I headed to the Duke of Siegbert in a carriage. Of course, I was accompanied by an escort because I was a daughter who listens well to her father. I never took the escort because I was afraid of the black screen. I tried to get off when the door of the carriage opened, but there was a villain right in front of me, so I almost died of a heart attack. ¡°Weren¡¯t you waiting inside?¡± ¡°It¡¯s natural for a husband to escort their wife.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m not married yet I don¡¯t wanna do it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to do it with me soon.¡± I wasn¡¯t a match for words so I wasn¡¯t confident of continuing the conversation anymore. ¡°Yulia. It¡¯s your first time here since that day, right? We have a room for you to come and stay here at any time.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we going outside?¡± If we stay inside the house, we may have a mishap as last time. It¡¯s best to avoid such worse situations. I shouldn¡¯t have forgotten. My purpose is to protect the peace of my family without being entangled with the villain. ¡°¡­¡­Hmm. You must have wanted to go on a date outside. Well, we still have a lot of time.¡± Guided by him, I saw him go into a wagon engraved with the patterns of the Duke of Siegbert. My opinion seemed to have been made clear. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go in there.¡± ¡°Why? Where is there a place with as many of our memories as there?¡± ¡°Not at all. It¡¯s a place where I only have memories I want to forget!¡± ¡°There must be no man who can satisfy you as much as I do.¡± How can you say something like that so casually! Because of his words, my face was so red. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you? For me, with the person I love¡­¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t physical love also love?¡± ¡°¡­¡­I want spiritual love.¡± ¡°I can fill that up, too.¡± ¡°¡­¡­The Duke doesn¡¯t love me.¡± Because you don¡¯t know love. It was like that in the original. ¨C Do I love her? Do I look like someone who can do what is called love? Chester was a person who knew love as obsession and possession. He was never talking about such feelings of warmth and affection. It must be true that love is crooked. Readers! That¡¯s what love is! That¡¯s what the comment said. Perhaps Chester may not know love because his parents died at a young age. However, that was what I thought when I was a reader, but I didn¡¯t want it at all from the perspectives of different parties. ¡°How do you know if I love you or not?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Then the Duke.¡± ¡°Did you forget my name again?¡± It was an implicit threat. I didn¡¯t know what would happen if I didn¡¯t call him by his name, so I changed my words right away to some extent to please him. ¡°What do you think love is Chester?¡± ¡°What about you, what do you think, Yulia?¡± ¡°I asked you first.¡± It was clear that he would say that he didn¡¯t know. I knew such an answer would come out. But he said something beyond imagination. ¡°Physical attraction is also called love.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± What are you talking about right now? I knew he was really out of his mind, but when I actually experienced it in person, it was more strange than I imagined. His eyes seemed to shake greatly. Of course, in the original, there was no line like that because the villain and the female protagonist had never slept at least once. My hands seemed to tremble. ¡°It¡¯s the opposite of me. I think spiritual attraction is love.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll match it for you. If that¡¯s the direction you want, I¡¯ll be happy to mold myself for you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I like kind people.¡± Because I knew he was not a sweet person, I said I liked kind people. No matter how much you imitate, you will never be a friendly person. Because you¡¯re the one who will eventually turn your back on me. ¡°I like people who are kind, sweet, and handsome.¡± ¡°Is that the person you¡¯re waiting for?¡± ¡°Yes, a very nice, handsome, and kind person.¡± It was probably like that because I was a very soft person. He was such a pathetic person that he couldn¡¯t even cry at the death of his parents. Like a puppy. (TN: I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s the type she likes) ¡°I¡¯ve already met all of Yulia¡¯s conditions.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± I doubted my ears. Of course, the handsome thing is satisfied, but the rest is not at all. ¡°I¡¯m a much sweeter and kind person than you think.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Don¡¯t you think that doesn¡¯t make sense?¡± ¡°I¡¯m confident that I¡¯m a sweet and kind person unless I¡¯m on the bed.¡± ¡°Why did you bring that up all of a sudden?¡± ¡°If you want, I¡¯ll be as sweet and friendly as possible in bed.¡± I wanted to cover his mouth. I felt my face getting hot. Just thinking about that day made me nervous. My biggest mistake was having a one night stand with the villain. ¡°Then when and where to do it¡­¡­.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bring that up again.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Sure.¡± Just in time, the carriage stopped. I don¡¯t know where the hell he came from, but he got off with an escort. ¡°Yulia, I¡¯m glad you liked the present I sent you again.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± ¡°It was worthwhile to ask to make things that would suit you.¡± Hold on. No way. Nanny! These earrings and necklaces were all gifts from the villain? No, perhaps all the jewelry that the nanny put on me to choose were gifts from the villain. ¡°¡­¡­I want to return it to the original owner.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all yours if you¡¯re the wife of Duke Siegbert anyway.¡± ¡°No! I¡¯m not going to marry you!¡± ¡°Yes. Think as you please, Yulia.¡± I was really annoyed. I hated it because I felt like I was the only one who was frustrated. Why is the villain suddenly acting like this to me? If I didn¡¯t know that he was a villain, I would have been tempted by him. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go to a place that Yulia would like.¡± As I walked a little, I saw a cute cafe. I¡¯m a person who rarely comes out, but I knew this place. When I came out, it was the place I usually went to. And it¡¯s a popular cafe among many young children. When did he do my background research? Such a scary person. As I entered the cafe, I saw Cecil. I was glad to see her, but I was very worried about what to do with this villain next to me. No, isn¡¯t this a better opportunity? I¡¯m sorry to Cecil, but it was clear that he would no longer show strange interest in me if he saw the original female protagonist, the object of the villain¡¯s obsession. So I ran to Cecil on purpose. ¡°Cecil!¡± ¡°Oh my! Yulia!¡± ¡°It¡¯s so nice to see you on your birthday.¡± My savior! Mr. Villain, did you see that? The person you¡¯re obsessed with is Cecil! It¡¯s not me! Can I finally escape from the villain? My heart was already pounding and seemed to be finding stability. ¡°Yulia, who¡¯s next to you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Duke of Chester Siegbert.¡± When I introduced him, he replied reluctantly in a lazy tone. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Cecil Chloe.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It was a typical short answer. It was very different from what I saw in the original, so I was dumbfounded. I was so embarrassed that I made eye contact with him. ¡°Yulia, if you don¡¯t have any more business, let¡¯s go up.¡± Why do you look indifferent as the villain? Wasn¡¯t the person you were looking for Cecil? Chapter 9 Chapter 9 ¡°Ce¡­¡­Cecil! I¡¯ll call you separately!¡± I was held by Chester¡¯s hand and was forced to move away from Cecil. It wasn¡¯t until the third floor that Chester let go of my wrist. ¡°Yulia. Wasn¡¯t today the day you were supposed to go out with me?¡± ¡°That, that, that¡¯s, right?¡± ¡°But why don¡¯t you focus on me and keep your eyes off other people?¡± ¡°¡­Cecil is my friend ¡­¡­ and Chester is looking for her.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll decide whether or not she¡¯s the one I¡¯m looking for.¡± I looked sideways, but there was not a single person on the third floor. Originally, this place should be full of customers, but it wasn¡¯t, which made me feel strange. He stroked my cheek and said. ¡°I rented a floor because I didn¡¯t want to be disturbed by anyone.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I wish there were people here.¡± I thought something would happen when I was alone with you. ¡°I¡¯ll be more careful next time.¡± ¡°¡­..¡± Do you know how terrifying it is to be alone with the villain? ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t Cecil¡­¡­ the person you¡¯re looking for¡­¡­?¡± It should have been Cecil. I read that the reason why he was so obsessed with Cecil, the heroine in the original work, was because she was the person who had visited him a long time ago. ¡°Yulia, even if the person I¡¯m looking for is her, I¡¯ll marry you, so you don¡¯t have to be anxious.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you? I¡¯m a person full of responsibility.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m not responsible.¡± I had to get rid of the responsibility I had. There was nothing I couldn¡¯t do if I could avoid marrying him. Seeing that my father couldn¡¯t respond strongly, he seemed to be an influential person. So I¡¯d better say no in a more moderate way. ¡°I know that Yulia is a person with no responsibility at all.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I felt weirdy bad about this. Of course, it was what I said, but it felt very strange to hear it like this. ¡°Chester, don¡¯t come to the Imperial Castle.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t go there?¡± ¡°¡­¡­I won¡¯t say anything about officially visiting. But, please refrain from secretly coming to my room!¡± Was it really the imperial guard¡¯s poor security, or was it because he was a villain that could come into my room without being detected? I didn¡¯t know which one was right, but I had to block him from coming to my room in advance. ¡°Right.¡± It was surprisingly straightforward. ¡°If we get married, I won¡¯t have to visit there anyway.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± That¡¯s right. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°..yes?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t we meet when we were young?¡± That¡¯s the line you say to the heroine. Why are you saying that to me? No, when and where would I have met you? If I hadn¡¯t met you at Cecil¡¯s birthday party, I wouldn¡¯t have met you in the future. My biggest mistake in my life was doing something like that with you! ¡°No. I¡¯ve never seen you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Is that so?¡± Why are you looking at me like that? It¡¯s very burdensome. It¡¯s not a common subject, but the villain is too good looking. ¡°Chester, stop staring at me.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You keep looking at me. It¡¯s uncomfortable.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right in front of me, how can I not stare?¡± The drink came out of my mouth as I was speechless. Come to think of it, I haven¡¯t ordered yet, so why did I get a drink? And the most suspicious part was that this was the drink I always have when I come here. I didn¡¯t drink coffee because it was bitter, but I drank fresh fruit juice and it came out. Did you know, because I was a regular customer or did this villain conduct a background investigation? How should I accept this? ¡°Chester, is there a reason why you have to marry me?¡± ¡°Do you need a reason?¡± ¡°¡­I think I¡¯ve said this several times, but I want to marry someone that I love.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Do you love me? No, you don¡¯t.¡± I know the answer when I see you remain silent without answering the question for me. Because you never loved me, you chose silence, the last piece of conscience. I want to be with my loved one for the rest of my life, and I just didn¡¯t want to be with him for the rest of my life. From my point of view, it¡¯s just overwork. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Blood red eyes, which had not been shaken so far, were shaking. ¡°I want sincere affection! I don¡¯t want a physical relationship¡­..¡± ¡°Yulia. Then should I treat you as an ordinary lover?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Eat delicious food, watch plays, and buy you gifts. If I do this for you, would that be okay?¡± No. I just don¡¯t like it because it¡¯s you. ¡°Yulia. If I whisper that I love you every day, will you marry me?¡± ¡°¡­¡­No. And don¡¯t tell me a lie that you don¡¯t mean.¡± Because you¡¯ve never said to me that you love me even if it¡¯s empty words. Even if I just move on now, and go back to the castle, you¡¯ll start a background investigation on the female lead when you go back to your Duke¡¯s office. And even if I marry you, it was clear that you would divorce me. Because I think that what you are doing to me now is just an illusion ¡°You¡¯ve never told me that you love me.¡± ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say anything you don¡¯t mean now.¡± In the meantime, the fruit juice was delicious. It should be a serious situation, but I just love this tatsw. The juice was a waste, but I got up from my seat. I don¡¯t think I can stand it if I stay here for a little bit. I didn¡¯t want to be with him anymore. Maybe he wanted me to disappear from here first. Because he¡¯s been searching for Cecil till now. ¡°Yulia. Stop.¡± He warned quietly from behind. But I had no intention of obeying the warning. It was the moment I tried to go down the stairs without looking back. ¡°Yulia.¡± He hugged me from behind. The moment I tried to go down the stairs, I was caught by him. I was lifted from the ground. What kind of person is this strong? I heard his menacing voice behind my ears. ¡°Listen to what I say and then leave.¡± ¡°¡­I have nothing more to say. So let go of me.¡± ¡°Yulia. What should I do to change your mind?¡± Boom! My back touched the wall. His face looked very angry. But at the same time, it seemed to have been hurt. His expression was like a person who was hurt a lot just to the point where I felt like I did something wrong. ¡°Yulia, I love you. I love you so much.¡± ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s a lie.¡± ¡°What should I do? To make you believe me?¡¯ How light it is to say that I love you now. How easy can it be said when used as a means to hold me? Whatever you do and say, I can¡¯t believe it. No, I wouldn¡¯t believe it. ¡±There¡¯s no way you slept with someone you didn¡¯t even care about, it¡¯s common sense, Yulia.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s possible.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Because I did.¡± ¡°Then, you, ha!¡± His expression looked like a wronged person. ¡°Can you kiss and sleep with someone you don¡¯t have in your heart?¡± ¡°¡­Yes. I thought I couldn¡¯t but I could.¡± His hand grabbed my chin tightly. He looked very hurt, but I didn¡¯t understand at all why he looked like that. His lips overlapped over mine. It was a sudden kiss.. I was very embarrassed, but the embarrassment soon disappeared. He was so rough that my mouth started tingling. I felt like he was only trying to quench his thirst without any affection and kindness. It was a kiss with no consideration at all so it was not strange when my lips started swelling. Like a hungry beast, his tongue swept through my mouth. Only after digging through my mouth could I breathe fresh air as his lips fell off. ¡°hu¡­¡­¡± ¡°I thought you could do this without love. Why do you look like you¡¯re going to cry?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°What? Yulia, hurry up and answer me.¡± I was scared. Once again, I was able to realize that this person was truly a villain. Externally, he is called a war hero who can overthrow the imperial family if he wants to. I forgot that he was a person who had the power to subdue the imperial family. I guess I lost my fear for a while. ¡°Can you do this to someone you really don¡¯t care about?¡± If I said that I could do that here, he looked precarious as if he would collapse. He got his face on my shoulder. I could feel his hand shaking. ¡°I¡¯m asking. Answer me, Yulia.¡± ¡°Chester.¡± His trembling voice was too different from what I knew. I felt impulsive, because of his trembling voice, his expression that was on the verge of collapsing, and his pleading. I was still scared of him, but at the same time, I felt sorry for him. I always feel like I¡¯m looking at my old self. For this reason, I made a choice that I might regret. I grabbed both his cheeks with my hand and I put my lips together over his lips. His personality was also revealed in the kiss. Like a man who wouldn¡¯t miss a breath, he tied my tongue with his tongue. Even a deep breath was swallowed by his lips. It was a kiss that was so possessive that it was painful that my eyes were burning. Chapter 10 Chapter 10 ~~ Thank you for the Donation Lamii. ~~ It was only when I couldn¡¯t breathe did I push his shoulder with both hands, and his touching lips fell off. I did something I would regret for a long time. If I could go back to the past, I would choose to not do it again. Time has already passed, so I can¡¯t go back, but I have time to regret it. ¡°Chester. I think this is enough.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t love me, you¡¯re just obsessed with my body.¡± He responded in a red flag to my remarks. ¡°Yulia, you have to take responsibility for making me unable to live without your body.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Why is that my responsibility?¡± I was speechless. I wanted to argue back, but I couldn¡¯t think of anything to say. His hand caressed my cheek and with his bright red eyes, he stared at me with deep desire as if wanting to eat me. ¡°It¡¯s Yulia who seduced me first, attacked me first, and actively took away my purity.¡± Can you get rid of things that I don¡¯t remember? I don¡¯t remember that! I couldn¡¯t even make excuses, because I didn¡¯t remember that. ¡°Now I can¡¯t sleep without Yulia.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not my fault!¡± ¡°Without you, I have nightmares.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Why are you acting like this to weaken a person¡¯s mind? If you pretend to be poor like this, I can¡¯t say anything. If you know that and act like this, you¡¯re very clever. ¡°I can¡¯t sleep comfortably without you, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Even if it is not me.¡± ¡°When I see you, I don¡¯t see hallucinations, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Can you please stay with me?¡± Is this really the truth? I was very suspicious. The original didn¡¯t tell us in detail about the villain. All that was said was that he had a poor childhood without his parents. At a young age, he went out to the battlefield and became a war hero as he crossed the limits of man and returned to become a Duke of the Empire. After meeting her for the first time at the funeral of the female lead¡¯s father, he became obsessed with pretending to be friendly. He then annihilates the Imperial family, saying that he is bothered by the princess who had been chasing him for a long time. Eventually, he degenerates into a foothold for the female lead and male lead to continue. It was the role of listening to the female lead, half of his mind and becoming a lunatic, eventually taking his own life and leaving the scene. However, there were no details of the character Chester in the original. Perhaps because he lived in the war zone at a young age, he might have hallucinations as an aftereffect. ¡°I can¡¯t marry you Chester¡­¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°And I don¡¯t know if you know, but my house is a bit strict. I don¡¯t like being with strangers.¡± ¡°My father is not the one to blame for being with me.¡± ¡°What will your brother say?¡± Honestly, my dad would welcome him with open arms because he liked me, not at all restraining me from being with Chester. But my brother was different. My brother didn¡¯t like me marrying someone. Maybe my father is free from mother, but my brother hasn¡¯t let her go yet. And I look very much like my mom. The past is just the past. It¡¯s true that you love me in any direction now. It was okay now. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Isn¡¯t Your Majesty the Emperor of the Empire your father now anyway?¡± Why does my dad¡¯s name become a father? ¡°No, wait a minute. Why do you call him father?¡± (T/N: this part made no sense but bear with me) ¡°You know that know one can reverse the decision if Your Majesty allows it, Yulia.¡± When he pointed it out, I changed my words. ¡°No. If I ask for it, he¡¯ll reverse the decision.¡± ¡°Do you really think so?¡± At first, he acted like a pathetic puppy as if he were begging, but now he acted like a beast. There was no distinction between what appearance was sincere. No, rather, I thought neither of them might be sincere. ¡°If I whisper to you that I love you¡­¡­¡± ¡°Chester, don¡¯t act. There¡¯s nothing you¡¯re serious about.¡± ¡°Yulia. Are you confident that you won¡¯t run away even if I treat you sincerely without acting?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Even now, you have such a scared face. If I treat you sincerely, will you be able to endure it?¡± Even this appearance, is it a mask too? It was difficult to know the sincerity of the villain. The original treated the narratives of the male and female lead characters as important, but almost omitted other characters. His eyes contained only me. ¡°What? Yulia. Hurry and answer it. Would it be better for me to treat you under the mask of kindness as I am now?¡± His hand stroked my cheek. With his eyes suppressing the want of eating me right away. ¡°Or should I treat you with all my heart?¡± ¡°What¡¯s your sincerity?¡± At the end of that, I couldn¡¯t continue or hear his answer. My lips were being eaten by his lips. Even if I wanted to push him away, my hands couldn¡¯t move. Because both hands were held only by one of his hands. All I could do was wiggle my fingers. I didn¡¯t hate his kiss. No, I rather wanted to make it deeper. When she opened her lips slightly, he pushed his tongue through the gap of her open lips. My lips fell off when I was out of breath. At the same time, a fluttering breath burst out. ¡°Sigh, ha¡­.¡± My head seemed to be colored with black ink. His eyes were bright red when I barely opened my eyes to look. (T/N: Black ink = like she was dizzy and everything was going black) His eyes looked very cold. ¡°¡­¡­Are you serious about this?¡± Do I just have to accept that cold gaze that seems only possessive, where I can¡¯t feel any emotion at all? Is the true face of the black screen the desire to own physically? If so, I didn¡¯t like it. However, that didn¡¯t mean that his masked appearance was good either. In the end, it means that this is his nature under the mask. I just didn¡¯t want to get tangled up with the black screen anymore. ¡°If this is what you mean, let¡¯s not see each other again.¡± ¡°If I treat you with all my heart, do you think I¡¯ll let you go to the Imperial City?¡± It was creepy. I thought he would do it if it was him. ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°You always call my name when there is a disadvantage.¡± Why does he have a face that is about to collapse? ¡°If I treat you sincerely, I will lock you in a room and make you unable to meet anyone other than me.¡± He swept my cheek with the back of his hand. His eyes didn¡¯t move a bit where I could feel no emotions in those eyes. I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s good at hiding his feelings or is he someone who doesn¡¯t feel emotions? ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll make you unable to get out of bed.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°I want to own you completely. From your head to your toes, even a strand of hair.¡± He took my hair and kissed me. But why does it feel so weird? His eyes staring at me while he kissed my hair was enough to make me forget how to breathe. Because he looked so handsome. ¡°I want to own every breath you exhale.¡± ¡°¡­¡­That¡¯s not called love.¡± Yeah. This was not love, but obsession. At this rate, I could see a future in which I was almost the only one to be hurt. Still, I had to say what I wanted to say. ¡°Chester. It¡¯s not love, it¡¯s just obsession.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong about obsession? What do you mean? That¡¯s not love! ¡°I don¡¯t want to lose you to someone else, after all, it¡¯s like the feeling of love you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant!¡± ¡°So what do you mean? I acted out of my character to fit the ideal type you wanted.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°All because you wanted someone sweet.¡± ¡°¡­¡­You acted? I¡¯ve never seen you being kind though.¡± ¡°Do you want to see what happens if I don¡¯t pretend to be kind?¡± His fingers were entangled with mine. Then, with appropriate strength he made me unable to move on the wall but he wasn¡¯t too rough that it hurt. As his face got closer I wondered if he was trying to kiss again so I closed my eyes reflexively without realizing it. But his lips did not touch mine. I opened my eyes out of curiosity and saw him untying my clothes with his mouth. Then the fixed ribbon turned into a piece of cloth in an instant. ¡°Chester!¡± ¡°It¡¯s just the two of us here anyway, so you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the problem!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not even the first time.¡± After his words, the knot that untied revealed the area around my neck. My skin, which was clean, turned red. Perhaps when I went back and checked, it was clear that there would be marks left. ¡°Chester!¡± When he was called by his name, he stopped moving. ¡°Yulia, are you crying?¡± He looked very embarrassed. I could see why he looked like that. Because, transparent tears poured out of my eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t cry Yulia¡­¡­ If you don¡¯t like me acting like this, I¡¯ll hide it for the rest of my life.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to see you crying outside the bed.¡± Everything you were starting to say was going well so why would you say that! If it weren¡¯t for that, I would have really let it slide. I almost felt that his embarrassed expression was sincere. ¡°Yulia. Don¡¯t cry.¡± He wiped away the tears running down my cheeks with his fingers. I was almost mistaken by this appearance. This is a person that can¡¯t be kind, as I said earlier, he¡¯s just hiding his true nature again. I didn¡¯t want to stay here at all. I pushed him hard and spoke strongly, wiping away the tears that flowed. ¡°¡­¡­I hate you!¡± A lot! Chapter 11 Chapter 11 ¡°¡­¡­I was wrong. You can hate me as much as you want. So don¡¯t cry, Yulia.¡± He hugged my crying self in his arms. ¡°Hu¡­.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to see you cry.¡± I didn¡¯t want to be in the same space with him anymore. ¡°Let¡¯s not meet. Ever again.¡± She pushed him down the stairs with all her might, but unlike before, he didn¡¯t hold her in place. As I went down the stairs, I tied the ribbon with my poor skills. I didn¡¯t want to see him again. As expected, I should never be intertwined with the villain. I hated this feeling left on my lips. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Why is the sky so clear today? I wanted to rinse my mouth with water. Yeah, this was right. Because I wasn¡¯t supposed to get involved from the beginning. It was right to cut everything off like this. Because he is more at fault. Unless my face is as thick as an iron plate, we¡¯ll no longer meet again, and I can rest assured. ¡°Lady?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Who is it?¡± Bright platinum colored hair that seemed to resemble the sun with blue eyes that seemed to contain the sky in which the sun is floating in. He was a man with a different atmosphere, compared to the villian, he gave off a warm impression. It felt as if I had encountered the male lead in the original. ¡°I¡¯m Idrian Blair.¡± It was really the male lead. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m seeing the male lead in person! ¡°I think Lady needs this.¡± He handed me a white handkerchief. Did I look so pathetic? Even now I think my condition is definitely a mess right now. ¡°Thank you.¡± He was the opposite of the villain. This personality may have been the reason he earned the heart of the heroine. Of course, under the precondition he has a handsome face, and a friendly personality. If I was the heroine, I thought I would have no choice but to like such a character rather than the villain. At that moment, I saw Chester coming this way with a very dirty look. My heart pounded. He was a person who made me feel what fear was and he was getting closer. ¡°Lady?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I tried to avoid Chester using the male lead as a shield. They were friends until they met the female lead. I could be sure that he could block him enough. If I could drive, I would run right away. ¡°Chester?¡± ¡°Get out of my way.¡± ¡°Do you have anything to do with this lady?¡± ¡°It¡¯s none of your business.¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s none of my business, but¡­¡­¡± ¡°So get out of my way.¡± When I peeked at the villain, our eyes met at that moment. My body was unknowingly startled by his angry expression. My heart pounded fast with fear. Again, the male lead was used as a shield to avoid the gaze of the villain. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I have nothing more to say.¡± Just in time, I saw a carriage design that may have been Chloe¡¯s. The carriage must have come to pick up Cecil. I should take this opportunity to get out of this terrible position and go with Cecil. Just in time, Cecil came out of the cafe. I ran to Cecil like that. ¡°Cecil!¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°Take me and run away.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Suddenly? I don¡¯t know what it is, but it seems like you¡¯re in a hurry. I¡¯ll help you.¡± With the help of Cecil, I was able to get out of this terrible position. ¡°Yulia. What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Ha. Cecil. I¡¯m going to stay in your house for a while.¡± ¡°Is it because of the Duke of Siegbert? Rumors are spreading in society these days.¡± ¡°What rumors?¡± I didn¡¯t even know what rumors were spreading because I wasn¡¯t interested in social circles. ¡°The Duke of Siegbert is falling for you and is even courting you with gifts.¡± Cecil asked with sparkling eyes. She looked very curious. It was burdensome, so I avoided Cecil¡¯s eyes without realizing it. ¡°Is that really true?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Mm.¡± To be exact, it seemed more of a threat than a courtship, and more of an obsession with my body rather than falling for me. I couldn¡¯t even tell Cecil the truth. ¡°No. There won¡¯t be anything to be involved or talked about anymore.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yulia.¡± ¡°As I always told you, I will live alone under the name of Princess.¡± ¡°Yulia. I don¡¯t understand you sometimes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy to play and eat like this without doing anything.¡± ¡°In the end, if you like it, then that¡¯s good.¡± ¡°My dad and brother can¡¯t let go of me until I die and they have no choice but to listen to me.¡± It wasn¡¯t just because they loved me. It was because my brother thought of my mother when looking at me, and my father felt guilty. If I hadn¡¯t read this book I would have mistaken it for pure affection. It would have been better if I had possessed Yulia, but I was reincarnated. I remembered my childhood. That¡¯s why I knew that my father and brother¡¯s affection for me was not just pure genuine affection. ¡°And my dad and brother will also want me to be around for the rest of my life. My dad doesn¡¯t know, but my brother is like that.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yulia. Are you going to attend the upcoming imperial New Year¡¯s festival?¡± ¡°If possible. Now that I¡¯m an adult, I¡¯ll do it if my dad says I have to participate in it.¡± ¡°I want you to come into society, Yulia.¡± To be honest, the biggest reason I didn¡¯t want to join society was because it was annoying. Is there a need to use your brain or fight for wits when you were born without such shortcomings? Regardless of the affection my family has toward me, the fact that I love myself remains unchanged, so I didn¡¯t want to do anything tiring and annoying. ¡°Cecil. As you know, I¡¯m very shy.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ll still attend. Because I can¡¯t hide forever.¡± Since I met the villain anyway, I don¡¯t have to stay in hiding. I didn¡¯t want to be entangled with the villain, so in the past I hid in the Imperial Castle, but now it¡¯s useless. ¡°Yulia. Tell me if you have a hard time. There¡¯s nothing I can do for you, but at least I can listen.¡± The carriage stopped. It meant that we arrived at the destination. ¡°Cecil.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Is there something urgent going on at home?¡± ¡°No, there¡¯s nothing special.¡± ¡°Do you want some tea?¡± The female lead. The happiest and most difficult person to be loved by the male lead and obsessed by the black villain, the second male lead. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Good! But I didn¡¯t even contact you. Will it be okay?¡± ¡°Why? What¡¯s the problem, Cecil? You are the only friend of this princess, and you should have this kind of privilege.¡± I meant it. No, for Cecil, I was always sincere to Cecil from the beginning until now, so there was nothing new. I got off the carriage first. ¡°Oh, my. Brother?¡± But when I got off the carriage, my brother was welcoming me. Why is my brother here? ¡°Did you come here with your friend?¡± ¡°Yeah. Why? Can¡¯t I?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s just my sister went out to meet Duke Siegbert, but didn¡¯t return in an Imperial carriage.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing to worry about. You don¡¯t have to worry.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I was going to pass my brother, but I turned my back because I remembered Cecil, which I had forgotten. At that moment, something unknown in the air flowed. How should I say this? I felt that it was filled with a very bright pink color. (T/N: love is in the air?) ¡°Um¡­..¡± Is it just me? When I squinted and saw Cecil and my brother again, the subtle atmosphere from before disappeared. ¡°Cecil! Let¡¯s go!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Am I just mistaken? To enjoy tea time with Cecil, we decide to drink tea together at a table in the middle of the garden. However, something was wrong with Cecil after getting off the carriage. ¡°Cecil.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± While drinking tea, her eyes were the eyes of a person whose soul was taken away. ¡°Do you like my brother?¡± ¡°Cough cough!¡± Cecil coughed sharply like a person choking on my words. I saw Cecil coughing without swallowing tea. ¡°Hmm. Yulia. It¡¯s not like that at all.¡± ¡°Well If you say so then it¡¯s probably not.¡± I didn¡¯t mean to ask more. Cecil even waved her hand that it wasn¡¯t like that, so I should believe her even if it¡¯s suspicious. Because I¡¯m Cecil¡¯s best friend! ¡°Cecil. What do you think love is?¡± ¡°Haha!¡± This time, she spat out all the tea water she was drinking. ¡°Ce¡­¡­cil.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± I didn¡¯t even ask something grand. Is that something to overreact to? ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Hmm, why are you curious about that?¡± ¡°Just. I¡¯m curious.¡± ¡°What kind of love are you talking about?¡± ¡°Just love between a man and a woman?¡± There was only Cecil around me to ask about this love. ¡°A lover¡¯s love is definitely kind, right? The reason why you¡¯re asking me this is because of the Duke of Siegbert.¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Hmm. Really?¡± ¡°It¡¯s true! I have nothing to do with Duke Siegbert!¡± ¡°Yeah. Even if it¡¯s not now, we don¡¯t know what might happen in the future later.¡± Somehow, I felt like I was being dragged into Cecil. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can say this, but I think Duke Siegbert was sincere to you?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I know. So you don¡¯t have to worry that he doesn¡¯t mean it.¡± Chapter 12 Chapter 12 ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± That¡¯s what it looked like to others. I swallowed a sip of tea to calm my complicated mind. ¡°Cecil. What¡¯s normal when you love someone?¡± ¡°Umm, Yulia.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t been in a relationship either.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± What? Aren¡¯t you in a relationship with the male lead? ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yulia. If I were in a relationship, I wouldn¡¯t be doing this with you right now, would I?¡± ¡°Oh, yeah.¡± Did the original really change? However, the heroine Cecil should be connected to the male lead Idiran. You two looked good together. And most of all, thanks to me. I didn¡¯t want the happy ending to change. I didn¡¯t want to ruin my friend¡¯s happy ending just to live alone. ¡°What does Cecil think about Duke Blair?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What do you think of Duke Blair?¡± ¡°Handsome.¡± ¡°Then¡­!¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to get involved in anything, and I can¡¯t get involved in anything.¡± ¡°Huh? Why?¡± I was embarrassed by Cecil¡¯s determined voice. ¡°Yulia, you may not care much because you are a princess, but the directions my family pursues are very different than that of Duke Blair¡± Cecil smiled slightly awkwardly. Perhaps what Cecil said means that the Blair family and the Chloe family are not in a mutually beneficial relationship, but in a conflicting relationship, right? ¡°Then, what about Duke Siegbert?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a symbiotic relationship. We share the same direction.¡± It means that the villain and the female lead are in the same faction. ¡°Then is Duke Siegbert not in your heart?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Huh? Why?¡± ¡°Hmm, should I say that I don¡¯t really want to be involved?¡± That¡¯s right. I don¡¯t want to be involved with the villain at all. ¡°Although, I never want to turn him into an enemy. But I don¡¯t even want to be close.¡± ¡°Cecil¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°When are you getting engaged?¡± ¡°Uh¡­..?¡± ¡°You can get married slowly, but you¡¯re not even engaged yet.¡± Or maybe she¡¯s not even engaged because she has someone else she likes? ¡°Cecil, do you happen to¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re thinking, but it¡¯s not it.¡± ¡°You have the Duke of Siegbert in mind¡­¡­¡± ¡°Never!¡± My goodness! ¡°Uh-huh¡­¡­ I get it.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You really have nothing to do with the Duke of Siegbert?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± There¡¯s nothing between me and the villain. I was on the way to drink tea to moisten my mouth. ¡°Then, is he your crush?¡± ¡°Pfft! Cough Cough!¡± You¡¯re scaring me. Why is the story flowing like this? When I came to my senses, I sprayed tea water on Cecil this time. I hurriedly handed Cecil a handkerchief. ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°No. Are you sure you have nothing to do with the Duke of Siegbert?¡± ¡°There¡¯s really nothing going on! We¡¯re not that close to each other, as you expect!¡± ¡°Really? Then be careful. Your rumors in society are no joke.¡± ¡°¡­..¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t matter if you had him in your heart, but if you don¡¯t, you¡¯d better make it clear.¡± I couldn¡¯t get a sense of how much Cecil would say this. ¡°A war hero who was a secret crush on a princess who never shows her face to the social world. It¡¯s a pretty provocative story.¡± ¡°What¡¯s stimulating?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s the secret first meeting between you and the Duke of Siegbert. They don¡¯t know how he met you, so everyone is writing a novel.¡± It should never be known how I met the black screen. Should I just quietly finish my sleeping life? Don¡¯t step into society for no reason and make complicated things happen. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I really want you to participate in this New Year¡¯s festival.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯ll think about it.¡± I¡¯m thinking about it, but it was difficult to make a decision easily. Because I¡¯ve never participated in society, Cecil got up from the chair. I organized the dress as if I were already going to go. ¡°Are you leaving already?¡± ¡°I have to go. If you miss me, call me again next time! Or you can come and visit me, Marquis Chloe.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± After seeing Cecil off, she took steps in regret because the carriage wasn¡¯t in sight yet. ¡°Brother?¡± I was going to rest in my room now, but my brother was blocking the door. ¡°Yulia, can you spare me a moment?¡± ¡°All of a sudden?¡± ¡°Yes. Suddenly.¡± ¡°Brother. Since when have you been waiting here?¡± You didn¡¯t wait for me here until I returned from Cecil, did you? ¡°Not for a long time, just a little bit.¡± He waited for a long time. Brother reached out his hand in front of me. It was an action that seemed to mean that he would escort me. I hesitated a little, but soon I put my hand over my brother¡¯s hand. ¡°Yulia. I¡¯m asking because I¡¯m really curious.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Are you dating Duke Siegbert? If that¡¯s true, break up.¡± ¡°Uh¡­!¡± (Surprised noises) No. I¡¯ve never had a private right with the villain. Why do you want me to break up with him? It was unfair. It was so unfair that I was going crazy. Why are you doing this to me, both Cecil and my brother? There is no shame if you ask me the truth! Why is there a rumor that I¡¯m dating the villain? ¡°I¡¯ve never been in a private relationship with that duke! What are you talking about? Cecil, too. What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you in a relationship?¡± No, I¡¯m not. ¡°You¡¯ve never met a man so far¡­¡­¡± I wasted my time for no reason. I thought we were talking about something grand, so I was nervous and prepared myself. It was unfair that I devoted my time to hearing such words. Even if he was my favorite brother, I was annoyed. ¡°¡­¡­Did you get dumped?¡± They even fan the flames. (T/N: So while she is clearly angry they¡¯re adding more stuff to make her mad.) ¡°No! What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡­ I don¡¯t think your friend mentioned it earlier.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your eyes are really red right now. Like a person who cried.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Is it that bad?¡± ¡°Yeah. Pretty much. So I thought it was the Duke of Siegbert who made you cry.¡± No, you¡¯re not wrong. Though the reason is a bit different. ¡°But if you¡¯re not dating, I was wondering if you were dumped.¡± ¡°Who do you think I¡¯m going to get dumped by?¡± I mean, Yulia got rejected a lot in the original. It was just the original, but it had nothing to do with me now. I never confessed in the first place, so I never got dumped, and that didn¡¯t mean I wanted to love someone enthusiastically. ¡°That¡¯s not true¡­¡­?¡± Why does it sound like a question? ¡°Then don¡¯t say such nonsense. And I have nothing to do with Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡°Yeah. If you say that, it¡¯s probably like that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going out for a while.¡± No matter how much I thought about it, there was no better way than hiding. You won¡¯t run into the villain if you stay home. Unless he sneaks into the Castle again, though the probability of encountering him is close to zero. ¡°Yeah. Whatever you think and do, I¡¯ll support you.¡± ¡°Oh¡­. Brother¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll always be on your side regardless of the reason.¡± ¡°I¡¯m relieved.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. Really.¡± You will be on my side completely? Will my brother be able to unconditionally side with me? * * * ¡°Princess!¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Princess, the sun has risen in the sky! You have to get up now.¡± ¡°Um¡­..¡± ¡°Princess. His Highness, Duke Siegbert, is in the castle.¡± What? The Duke of Siegbert? ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°He came to the castle in the morning and hasn¡¯t moved from that spot until now.¡± I got chills down my spine. Was it this scary to mention the name of the villain from the morning? Oh, it¡¯s ambiguous to say that it¡¯s morning anymore because the sun has risen in the sky. ¡°Just tell him to go back.¡± ¡°Of course, I told him I would deliver the message to the princess when she wakes up so he should go back first. But he said he¡¯ll stay until the princess comes out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Leave it.¡± I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll stay in moderation and go back anyway. It was annoying. He was so shameless to come here knowing how it would end. I really didn¡¯t want to see him. ¡°But you still have to eat. Wake up.¡± ¡°Uh-huh¡­..¡± I just didn¡¯t want to see him for a moment. I didn¡¯t want to see the existence of the villain. I didn¡¯t want to be close. I didn¡¯t like the villain. But I was curious. It would be okay to see what kind of expression the villain has. ¡°Nanny. Can you see him from here?¡¯ ¡°Yes, that way.¡± When she saw where the nanny¡¯s fingers were headed, he was holding a bouquet of flowers full of purple hyacinths. (T/N: aww the meaning is so cute in flower language. Search up Purple Hyacinth if you want to guess what might happen in the next few chapters. Don¡¯t search it up if you don¡¯t want a spoiler though) Perhaps because of the distance, his face was not seen properly. ¡°Princess?¡± Unknowingly, I was surprised and hid behind the wall. It may be an illusion, but his eyes met mine as he turned his head this way. ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± ¡°Would you like me to get those flowers?¡± ¡°No! Don¡¯t get anything! If he sends anything, send it all back. Got it?¡± ¡°Yes, I will.¡± I didn¡¯t understand. And I was scared. Even if I wanted to read the thoughts of the villain, I couldn¡¯t read them at all. I¡¯m afraid the results will be the same even if the process changes. I¡¯m afraid my ending will be a tragic death. ¡°I¡¯m hungry.¡± ¡°Do you want me to bring food here?¡± ¡°Yeah. Bring me a brush, too.¡± ¡°Yes. Wait a minute.¡± Because I just don¡¯t love him. At least I won¡¯t feel miserable like Yulia in the original. You will feel the sadness of losing your precious family. I sat on the floor as my legs relaxed. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die. I just want to live.¡± It¡¯s not like I want a lot! Who said I wanted to get along with the male lead? Who said I wanted to be the female lead? I just wanted to live with my family normally. Why did this ordeal come to me? I thought nothing would happen if I didn¡¯t do anything. ¡°I just want to be loved normally.¡± I spoke to myself with my face buried in my knees. Chapter 13 Chapter 13 As the door opened, the nanny brought in food and a brush. ¡°Princess, why are you sitting on the cold floor?¡± ¡°Huh? It¡¯s nothing.¡± I was eating in a chair using a brush handed over by the nanny. A bouquet of flowers consisting of purple hyacinth caught my eyes. ¡°Nanny?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I told you to not receive anything from the villain! Those flowers were clearly a bouquet of flowers held by the villain earlier. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why did you bring a bouquet?¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t get this, I think the Duke will continue to stay there, and the Princess seems to want the Duke to return quickly.¡± As soon as I heard the nanny¡¯s words, I got up from the chair and ran to the window. There really was no one in the place where the villain was last seen. ¡°Princess. If you put the flowers in a vase, you can¡­¡± ¡°Throw it away.¡± ¡°However¡­¡± ¡°Throw it away! I don¡¯t even want to see the Duke of Siegbert have it!¡± ¡°Yes, then I¡¯ll clean it up.¡± I didn¡¯t even want to see him. I didn¡¯t want to meet him forever. ¡°I want to be alone.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The nanny left with the utensils. When I opened the window wide with frustration, cold wind blew across my cheek. A bird flying far away caught my vision. ¡°¡­¡­Huh?¡± But I had the illusion that the bird was getting closer and closer to this side, and soon I could see that it was not an illusion. The big bird was definitely flying towards me. The bird stopped in front of me. If you looked closely, a paper was tied to its feet. ¡°Paper?¡± The paper tied to its feel was carefully removed and unfolded. {Sorry, Yulia. I miss you.} I crumpled the note with one hand. ¡°¡­¡­lies.¡± I could guess who sent it. There¡¯s only one person who can say this to me. It was clear that the villain sent it. Then is this bird, nurtured by the villain? ¡°You don¡¯t feel sorry at all.¡± I wrote down words that I didn¡¯t mean on paper. No, it¡¯s a lie, so it was easier for him to write the words than saying it in front of me. It was funny that a person that would never feel sorry sent a note like this. But there¡¯s nothing the bird did wrong. It would be okay if I gave it some water. When I pulled the string, a maid came in. ¡°Bring water for this bird.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± As soon as I put the water in front of the bird, it drank it well, perhaps it was thirsty. Come to think of it, a bird from the Duke Siegbert to the Imperial Castle. It¡¯s quite far to fly over. ¡°I don¡¯t like your owner.¡± I complained to the bird. The owner of this bird is the villain, but he¡¯ll never know I¡¯m gossiping about him here. ¡°He¡¯s not affectionate at all. He is a person who has nothing good left about him except for his face and body.¡± The kid I¡¯m waiting for must be a sweet and kind person. Because I have a very soft heart. (T/N: Since she has a soft heart, she likes kind and sweet people so the boy must fit in that category.) He was like a puppy who couldn¡¯t easily shed tears even after his parents died. (T/N: He¡¯s comparing him to a dog because dogs don¡¯t cry. Also, ¡°he¡± is the villain, not the little sweet boy) ¡°¡­..There¡¯s a person who I¡¯ve been waiting for a long time. I think he might have forgotten about me, so I¡¯m going to give up now.¡± I wanted to find him, but I couldn¡¯t remember his face because I couldn¡¯t see properly due to the side effects. But I only remembered that he had black hair. And now I¡¯m so tired. So now I want to be with my family who love me. ¡°I wish your owner would give up on marrying me.¡± The bird flew out of the window. So far, I have never longed for freedom. From the position of a princess who no one can ignore, the overflowing wealth, to the affection of my family. There was nothing lacking. I just longed for love. I hoped to receive affection in my past life, but now I just want to maintain a normal and peaceful daily life. ¡°Nanny.¡± ¡°Princess?¡± When I opened the door and looked left, I saw my nanny at the end of the hallway. ¡°Yes¡­.?¡± Why is a purple hyacinth in a vase that I¡¯ve never seen before? Why does it look the same as the flowers that the villain was holding? I desperately hoped that my eyes were deceiving me. ¡°What¡¯s that flower?¡± ¡°Ah¡­. the princess, that¡­¡­¡± ¡°No my nanny is, I told you to throw it away.¡± ¡°Princess¡­¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that what I¡¯m saying? The nanny belongs to the imperial family, not to the duke of Siegbert.¡± I threw the vase with flowers to the floor. ¡°Princess! You¡¯ll hurt your foot.¡± ¡°Nanny. Don¡¯t choose the Duke of Siegbert over me.¡± I was anxious. I was afraid that the nanny I had believed in would actually be the villain¡¯s person, and not mine. ¡°Princess. I¡¯m always on your side.¡± ¡®Then why did you put the flowers given by the Duke of Siegbert in the vase? Why do you keep disobeying me? Nanny is on my side, right? Then the nanny should never leave me.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll be by your side until I die.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t break your promise.¡± I hugged the nanny tightly. Hot tears flowed out of my eyes. I will never lose anything to the villain. I¡¯ll protect everything I have. My family, nanny, and the identity of a princess. ¡°Princess, don¡¯t cry.¡± Nanny¡¯s sweet voice penetrated my ears. Nanny affectionately patted me on the back to soothe me crying silently. Her arms were so warm. I wanted to keep this warmth. After dinner and taking a bath, I washed up with only a shower gown on. The bird I saw during the day was outside again. The bird came into the room. Looking closely, it had a note tied to its foot again. I was a little scared of what would be in the note, but I still checked its content. Because I was more curious than afraid. ¡°Are you here now?¡± It didn¡¯t take long to realize what this meant. I saw a black figure swaying from the terrace. Yeah. I thought he wouldn¡¯t come to my room in broad daylight, but I didn¡¯t think he¡¯d come at night. I was convinced that anyone with a conscience would be able to push that face into me. ¡°Why are you here?¡± A person¡¯s silhouette was seen behind the curtain on the terrace. It¡¯s probably the villain. ¡°I missed you, Yulia.¡± ¡°You know I don¡¯t want to see you at all.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°The fact that I don¡¯t want to see you, the Duke himself knows best.¡± The bird flapped its wings toward the terrace as if to return to its owner. He was seen at a glance through the open door in the wind. Is even his sorry expression an act? ¡°Take the bird. It¡¯s obvious that you¡¯re the owner. And don¡¯t send birds again.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°And a stranger can¡¯t enter the room of the Princess.¡± The only people who could enter the Princess¡¯s room without permission were my father, the Emperor, and my brother, the Crown Prince. There was no case of recklessly entering without knocking as the villain. ¡°Duke Chester of Siegbert.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s end our relationship here.¡± Please¡­¡­I want to break it off here. ¡°Because I¡¯m not the one you¡¯re looking for in the first place.¡± This is the way for each other. No, maybe it¡¯s just for me. I intend to protect my precious family and protect the name of the Empire, unlike in the story. And I won¡¯t love this many foolishly as Yulia in the novel. ¡°¡­¡­Say it again, Yulia.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s end it here. Please don¡¯t pretend to know me from now on.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Because the Duke has been looking for the Marquis of Chloe for a long time¡­¡­¡± ¡°Who am I looking for?¡± Having been sticking to silence, he opened his mouth. A dull voice that makes it difficult to notice the chill in it yet still gives an overwhelming feeling. ¡°No one can know.¡± It wasn¡¯t wrong. But I knew it. I know that Cecil is the person you were looking for. As a reader of this novel, I was confident that I knew the ending of this novel better than anyone else. I didn¡¯t mean to change the entire flow of the novel. I just wanted to prevent my tragic ending and live a normal and happy life with my family. How did everything go wrong? Because I wanted to change the content of the original? Or because of my greed? ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll correct what you just said. The person you¡¯re talking about is not the person I¡¯m looking for.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Lies. If not Cecil, who else? Is it some third party I don¡¯t even know about? Then we can go to the third person. Yes. I was relieved that I would no longer have anything to do with the villain. But why do I feel empty, and not happy? ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll be back tomorrow.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t come.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll come to you again and again until you show up to me first.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t come!¡± ¡°¡­Yes. I won¡¯t come to you at night until you approach me first.¡± The bird flew to the terrace and disappeared with the villain. Chapter 14 Chapter 14 ¡°Princess?¡± ¡°Ah¡­nanny.¡± ¡°What are you doing? No, princess, how could you dress so lightly like that!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll catch a cold!¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, you don¡¯t have to worry about it.¡± My nanny was always worried about little things like this. I could never catch a cold that easily anyway. I¡¯m not as weak as I used to be and I¡¯m no longer a child. I¡¯m a fully grown adult. On the other hand, I¡¯m still a good child that listens well. I was originally going to sleep, so I crept into bed. ¡°Princess.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I¡¯m worried because you don¡¯t look so good these days.¡± ¡°¡­Really?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s not like you didn¡¯t sleep or eat well, but why do you look so bad?¡± Is it because of the villain? ¡°If you have any worries, please tell me.¡± ¡°No, don¡¯t worry about it!¡± I don¡¯t have any worries. No, if I had any worries, it would probably be about the villain that will come tomorrow. My nanny stroked my head. ¡°Nanny.¡± ¡°Yes, princess.¡± ¡°Throw away everything Siegbert gave you, okay?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll do that if it makes you happy.¡± * * * ¡°Princess!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ what time is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s already morning, look outside.¡± I was still half asleep as I got out of bed and looked outside the window. Then, I saw it. At that moment, I became wide awake. ¡°Huh? What did he say yesterday?¡± So when he says he would not come at night means that he would come during the day? I meant that I didn¡¯t want to see him during the day or at night though. Even the villain was holding another bouquet of flowers. Didn¡¯t he ever get tired? Did I stare too intently? I felt like I had eye contact with him. I turned my body away instinctively. ¡°Princess?¡± ¡°I need to see my dad.¡± Suddenly, I come up with a way to kick the villain out of the empire. It was a pretty legitimate way. If he died there, my wish would come true, and if he was defeated, it would help to suppress his power. This is the best choice for me and my precious people. ¡°What? Princess, right now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I know you¡¯re in a hurry, but you¡¯d better dress properly first.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡­¡± I forgot. My mind was all jumbled up. I hurriedly changed my clothes and ran to my father¡¯s place through the other side, not the side where the villain was at. I had no time to care about my dignity. My life and my family¡¯s life are more important than dignity. ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± According to the flow of the original story, we are at a time before war in which the empire was defeated. And above all, I knew how bad it would be once we were defeated. This was a golden opportunity to change the fate of the imperial family by sending the villain to that war. He will either perish or return victoriously. Also, it was a chance to suppress the power of Duke Siegbert. As it was a war in which the villain did not participate in the original story, it was possible to usurp the throne through rebellion as the imperial family¡¯s power weakened. Also, it would be a great way to get rid of him. But what if the villain participates in this war and returns victoriously? What if he comes back here with triumph this time? What if it becomes a war to promote his reputation, not a war in which he fought to death? I was nervous, but soon I got rid of such worries. ¡°Dad, are you still preparing for the war?¡± ¡°Yulia? How did you know¡­?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not important, dad! Can¡¯t you ask the Duke of Siegbert to participate in the war?¡± ¡°But¡­..Yulia.¡± ¡°I¡¯m begging you!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ but this war has no reason to involve Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡°What?¡± It was an unexpected remark. ¡°Unless Duke Siegbert shows his intention to participate in the war, we can¡¯t let him go at will.¡± ¡°Is it really impossible?¡± My father said as if it was impossible and he looked at me apologetically for not accepting his daughter¡¯s request. In the end, my dad can¡¯t help me either? ¡°Yulia. I heard you¡¯re avoiding Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If the reason why you want to make him participate in the war is a way to keep him away from you¡­¡± I was curious about my dad¡¯s next words. ¡°Why don¡¯t you recuperate at the villa belonging to the imperial family instead?¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. If you want to. There is nothing that you, the imperial princess, can¡¯t do.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s a pity that I can¡¯t see you everyday. But if you want to, I¡¯ll allow it.¡± ¡°Dad.¡± ¡°I have to do what my daughter wants. If it¡¯s hard for him to stay away from you, why don¡¯t you stay away from him instead?¡± As expected, my family treated me preciously. Whatever the case, in the end, they love me. That alone was enough. That¡¯s why I love my family the most. ¡°Dad, I decided.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°New year¡¯s celebration. I¡¯ll go after that!¡± ¡°Yes, but you don¡¯t even have to attend this New year¡¯s celebration if you want to.¡± ¡°No.¡± I am willing to. I wanted to go there at least once. I¡¯m just afraid that my family will die if I move like the original. Until now, I had not directly stepped into society. So I think it¡¯ll be okay to do it at least once. ¡°I will participate in this year¡¯s celebration only and rest in a place with good scenery and few people¡± ¡°It¡¯s kind of weird to say this here, but don¡¯t you rest every day too, Yulia?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± That¡¯s true, I tried to refute my father¡¯s words, but there was nothing to refute, I¡¯m living a rich unemployed life everyday. ¡°Right. That¡¯s true! But resting at home is definitely different from going somewhere and resting!¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll tell someone to look for the perfect place for you.¡± ¡°Yes! Dad, work hard!¡± ¡°Alright.¡± I stepped out of my father¡¯s office with a lighter step than when I first came in. Yes. If I rest in a quiet place, I¡¯ll think of another good solution. But for now, I feel relieved. It¡¯s better to avoid places where the villain might be at, right? There were some inconveniences and I just didn¡¯t want to get involved with him. The thing that I don¡¯t understand the most is how could the duke spare me his time? From sunrise to sunset all day, does it not interfere with his work? Also at night. My head was full of questions, but it¡¯s not something I care about. He won¡¯t come here anymore if he gets really busy anyway. Until then, I could just treat him courteously. ¡°Nanny!¡± ¡°Yes, princess?¡± ¡°Which of the villas belonging to the imperial family has the best location?¡± ¡°Would you like me to pick up the list?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± When the nanny went out, my mind became all jumbled up. The best possible outcome is when the villain went to war and was defeated, but he didn¡¯t participate in the original story so I wouldn¡¯t know. It was best not to have this war in the empire in the first place, but it couldn¡¯t be, because this war was a matter of pride for the empire. Avoiding war means the empire¡¯s reputation and status will fall. We will end up being defeated anyway, so if the villain participates it would be wonderful. It¡¯s true right? The original framework won¡¯t be changed right? ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Princess, I narrowed down the list as much as I can and brought it here.¡± I received the list from my nanny. ¡°Nanny, wouldn¡¯t it be better to be near the sea? Or should I pick one near the mountains?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the sea be better?¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, because the sea is hard to see in the capital even though it¡¯s far away.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s up to you.¡± ¡°Yes, I can think slowly right?¡± When I looked out the window, Chester was still there. Didn¡¯t he ever get tired? Or should I say that he¡¯s full of patience? *** It was the same pattern everyday. When I open my eyes in the morning, I don¡¯t even know why he¡¯s here. He stood there, and as the sun went down, he went back. He repeated it to the point where I was sick and tired of it. Rather than being exhausted, I was going crazy because I was frustrated. In the end, I was the first to get tired and give up. Because I didn¡¯t want to stay in the Imperial Castle forever. If the person the villain is looking for isn¡¯t Cecil, who else is he looking for? In the original work, only Cecil is mentioned. ¡°I lost.¡± I have to acknowledge his persistence by saying this every day. In the original work, I was the one who acted like this, not the villain. The situation seemed to have been reversed from the original. According to the original, I was lovesick and if he didn¡¯t come to meet me I would go to the duke¡¯s office personally, and if he was outside, I would find him and follow him around. I was punished with death as I acted like a stalker in the name of unrequited love. When I thought about the owner of my body¡¯s actions, I got goosebumps all over. ¡°The duke won.¡± ¡°However, I won¡¯t ever approach him.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Now stop doing this. You don¡¯t love me anyway.¡± Maybe it was all just a show. Because I can¡¯t understand his thoughts. If it had been the behavior shown in the original, I would have understood. As it was an action that was not in the original work, I didn¡¯t know the intention of his actions. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t Cecil who the duke is looking for, look for her. Go to that person.¡± I can just say that. But my mouth didn¡¯t want to open. If he finds that person, he will definitely be obsessed with her anyway. It¡¯s useless. If that person shows up, he¡¯d be bothered by my presence¡­ so go to that person. After all, I am not the person the duke is looking for. ¡°Yulia.¡± The voice that calls my name softly. ¡°Whether you¡¯re the one I¡¯m looking for or not, now I can¡¯t live without you.¡± Chapter 15 ¡°Lies.¡± I couldn¡¯t trust him at all. ¡°¡­How are you serious? I can¡¯t even be sure if it¡¯s the truth or not from the beginning.¡± ¡°I mean it, from the beginning to the end.¡± ¡°No, I never trust the duke.¡± ¡°¡­Didn¡¯t I give you faith before?¡± I didn¡¯t think he¡¯s a reliable person. That¡¯s the type of person I think he is. It must all be acting, being sweet to me. Is he trying to change his words after saying that himself? Since the beginning, there was no trust between us. We just made a mistake overnight. ¡°If you were in my shoes, would you think that you are serious?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°You¡¯re lying, and acting in contradiction to your words.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll try my best so that you can trust me.¡± ¡°Try? You don¡¯t have to.¡± ¡°Yulia¡­¡± ¡°We just have to end it here. Honestly, I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re doing it to me.¡± ¡°I said it before, I can¡¯t live without you.¡± That sentence again? Is he nuts? Many thoughts crossed my mind. But, the moment I saw his eyes shaking, my mind became even more jumbled up. He somehow looked very vulnerable, as if he would collapse the moment I touched him. Why is he making that face? Is it just acting? I couldn¡¯t understand him at all. What does he want? Above all, is he sincere? ¡°Yulia, please don¡¯t abandon me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Is he resorting to begging now? Is he pretending to beg? ¡°Yulia, what should I do to make you trust me?¡± ¡°Have we ever had trust between us?¡± It was funny. In the first place, there had never been any trust between us. Such a relationship could turn into dust at any moment. That is our relationship now. ¡°You can¡¯t make me trust you when it didn¡¯t exist in the first place.¡± In the first place, we¡¯re not meant to be. According to the original work as well, we had a bad relationship. He was the cause of my death and tragedy. So even if he seems serious now, the moment the person he¡¯s looking for appeared, he¡¯ll turn his back on me. ¡°Yulia, I really can¡¯t live without you.¡± ¡°Why? You¡¯re the Duke of Siegbert. You¡¯re very young and is well-known.¡± Like a true villain, he¡¯s perfect in every way. ¡°What do you want to marry me for?¡± He have everything, but the only thing I could point out that he doesn¡¯t have is emotions. No, there¡¯s one more, lineage of the imperial family. Other than those two, he had almost everything. ¡°I can¡¯t find any reason why you¡¯re so obsessed with marrying me.¡± ¡°Yulia, you¡¯re the one who said it first.¡± He took my hand and kissed my palm. Surprised by the action, I brought my hand back. I calmed down my thumping heart. His eyes were filled with longing as he looked at me. It¡¯s the gaze of a person who wants to eat me right away. ¡°I¡¯m the first person you see to be more handsome than brother.¡± It was unfair. I didn¡¯t remember ever saying that. No, wait a minute, why does he call my brother as if it was his own? ¡°Don¡¯t call my brother like that.¡± ¡°He¡¯s the brother of my wife, of course he is naturally mine too.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not married yet.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to do it soon.¡± Who said that? I¡¯m not going to do it. Yes, let¡¯s just ignore him. That would be beneficial for my mental health. My mouth will only hurt if I argue with him. ¡°And when did I ever said you¡¯re more handsome than my brother?¡± Well, it¡¯s not wrong, but I never said that outloud. ¡°Yulia, when did you think you said that?¡± ¡°That night?¡± ¡°Yes, you know it very well.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s pretend it didn¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°How can I pretend it didn¡¯t happen? You took away all my firsts.¡± My eyes immediately shake as if it was hit by an earthquake. ¡°My first kiss is also¡­¡± ¡°Argh!¡± I shouted urgently and covered his mouth with my hands. There was nothing else I could say. I just hope no one around heard him. He needed to take the secret of that day to his grave. Neither my father nor brother should know that at all. And why is he bringing that up when he promised not to disclose anything about that day. ¡°You didn¡¯t act like whats promised!¡± He tilted his head as if he didn¡¯t understand me. It was clear that he was doing this on purpose. I told him that my brother and dad shouldn¡¯t know that! The villain gently held my wrist and removed my hand from his mouth. ¡°Yulia, the promise is already broken.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t feel like doing it and had no intention of holding the promise.¡± He finally showed his tru colours. I bit my lips without realizing it. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bite your lips, it¡¯ll bleed.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ What do you want?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it funny that someone who knows what I want best ask me that?¡± His hand wrapped around my cheek and his eyes contained strong desire. That alone allowed me to guess what he wanted. ¡°Do you want me?¡± ¡°Yes, I want you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± From head to toe.¡± He held a handful of my hair and kissed it as he looked at me. ¡°I said it before.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not an object, I¡¯m a human.¡± ¡°Yes, of course you¡¯re a human.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I don¡¯t want even a piece of you given to other people.¡± He was really out of his mind. ¡°I want even every breath you exhale.¡± As expected, my judgement wasn¡¯t wrong. He wasn¡¯t in love with me. It was merely an obsession because I took his firsts. I took a step back from him. ¡°Don¡¯t come to me from now on. I¡¯ll accept your apology so stop it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ How can I get you?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± Chester grabbed my hand and kissed it again. ¡°I¡¯ll visit you tonight.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to.¡± ¡°There¡¯s still a lot you want to say right?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Avoiding the eyes of brother and father, our conversation¡­¡± Of course, now he changes the topic to my brother and father. I don¡¯t want them to be involved any further! ¡°We¡¯re not married and isn¡¯t planning to in the future.¡± So¡­ ¡°Please don¡¯t call them so familiarly like that.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to definitely be married.¡± ¡°Who said that?¡± ¡°I can say whatever I want.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I don¡¯t like it!¡± Leaving him behind, I ran quickly inside. Even though he¡¯s the villain, he can¡¯t come inside without my permission. It would be a problem if he forces his way in. ¡­Is it a mistake? If he entered my room, I didn¡¯t know what he would dare to say and do. *** As soon as the sun went down, darkness consumed the place. I took measures in advance to prevent people from coming near my room, so I shouldn¡¯t worry about it. ¡°I¡¯m only allowing it this time.¡± ¡°Yes, Yulia.¡± ¡°Next time, don¡¯t ever come here. I won¡¯t allow it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I brought a white paper and pen I had prepared in advance. Verbal contracts aren¡¯t allowed. I have to write the contract on a paper like this so that there won¡¯t be any problem later. ¡°Come here.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t reveal everything that happened that night.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Why didn¡¯t he answer? ¡°Please marry me for that condition.¡± ¡°What? No¡­ why are you so obsessed with marriage.¡± ¡°Marriage is the most peaceful and pure way to show the world that you¡¯re mine.¡± He sat next to me. No, why is he sitting so closely? The bed isn¡¯t small, why would he stay so close in the spacious room? I really didn¡¯t like it. ¡°It¡¯s also an official way to prevent anyone other than me from brushing even a single strand of your hair.¡± He wrapped his hand on my cheek and pushed his face towards mine. His face is scarily handsome and it made my heart stop. I couldn¡¯t tell whether my heart was beating loudly because of fear or his handsome face which was close by. I pushed his shoulders and tried to keep my distance. ¡°Then what is the informal, unhealthy and impure way?¡± ¡°I think I could act it out faster than to say it.¡± His lips overlapped with mine, overshadowing what he was about to say. I pushed his shoulders away but he didn¡¯t budge. Rather, he hugged my waist tightly with his other hand so that I couldn¡¯t move. What is he doing now? He tried to enter his tongue on mine. Even though I tried pushing him away, I became dizzy because of the kiss. My mind went blank and I couldn¡¯t think of anything. My head, which is like a clean sheet of paper was dyed black making it impossible for me to think of anything. I was slowly consumed by him. ¡°Ha, ah¡­¡± His lips parted from mine just before I could do anything. His kiss wasn¡¯t painful enough to tear my mouth like before. Rather, it becomes gentle. I was so weak that I became out of breath just from one kiss. Still, it felt better now that my back was touching the soft bed. I felt very comfortable. But his eyes was still filled with unfulfilled desires. ¡°Yulia, this is the impure way.¡± What? This is the impure way? ¡°I¡¯ll tell you the unhealthy way now.¡± ¡°No! You don¡¯t have to tell me!¡± ¡°You said you like kind people right? Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be sure to be gentle this time.¡± Both of my wrists are being held by his arms. There was no room for me to move. Looking at him smiling drowsily, I could only imagine the dark future that was about to come. Again, his lips swallowed mine. My body responded to him well. Chapter 16 We stopped a few times to catch our breaths. As soon as his hand held the hem of my skirt, I suddenly came to my senses. What am I doing right now? One, two mistakes is enough. I couldn¡¯t make these terrible mistakes three times. And I don¡¯t want to regret it many times. I hurriedly pushed him who was on top of me and fixed my disorganized pajamas. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to know it at all.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I know very well what the impure intent was.¡± Even if I didn¡¯t want to know, how could I not know? I knew from the fact that he was obsessed with my body. I could guess to some extent why he wanted to get married. Didn¡¯t he want to play around, sleep with me while he looked at other women? Because he¡¯s a good kisser, I often felt like I was being swept away. I need to pull myself together. ¡°Stop it.¡± ¡°Yulia¡­¡± ¡°Okay?¡± ¡°It seemed to be an unfair contract.¡± ¡°Not at all! It¡¯s my loss!¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°And I really can¡¯t get married, there¡¯s a reason for that.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s about your heart, that¡¯s not a reason.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that.¡± I decided to let him go. ¡°Rather than that reason, I¡¯m thinking of living with my dad and brother for the rest of my life.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± What¡¯s wrong? Why did he sound so ominous? Why did I get some illusion about those eyes that amplified my anxiety? I wished my feelings were wrong. ¡°If your brother and dad died, you will live alone and miss them all your life.¡± As expected, is he thinking of severing my dad and brother¡¯s neck? ¡°Yulia, I hope you didn¡¯t mention the contract to stop me. Is there anything else you want from me?¡± ¡°¡­¡­. Can you pretend not to know me for the rest of your life.¡± He laughed as if the answer was obvious. He¡¯s acting again right? I could tell at once that he was smiling but he didn¡¯t actually smile. ¡°Yulia, you know that I can¡¯t do that.¡± ¡°I asked just in case.¡± Phew, that¡¯s too bad. ¡°Yulia, I can postpone the marriage.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t we just not get married.¡± ¡°Since the person who took my first time said so, what should I do?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ It¡¯s my first time too.¡± ¡°I know.¡± You know it! You can¡¯t act like this if you know! ¡°I yielded a lot, so let¡¯s get engaged first.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t yield to me at all.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve given a lot. I want to have the ceremony with you tomorrow.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± No matter how much I thought about it, the villain is absolutely insane. No, how could he claim to be sane? ¡°Duke, I don¡¯t intend to get married.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°As I said before, if I get married, I want to marry someone I love.¡± ¡°Then you were just playing with me?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t it make sense?¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. It¡¯s possible you play around as the princess.¡± I think he¡¯s being sarcastic to me. ¡°You might want to end it as a one night stand, but not for me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I have no intention of letting you go.¡± His voice was filled with obsession. ¡°Especially since you¡¯re the one who took my first time.¡± ¡°If there is something other than marriage you want, I¡¯ll do it for you.¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯m lacking in something?¡± ¡°¡­. That means you don¡¯t need me.¡± He suddenly looked at me sultrily. ¡°I really need you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ don¡¯t need the duke.¡± I wondered if there¡¯s any plausible excuses to avoid this marriage. A very good excuse suddenly come to mind. ¡°I might not be able to bear children because I¡¯m weak. Then, your successor¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need one. If the situation calls for it, I can just adopt a child.¡± ¡°How can you do that? Do you have any conscience?¡± ¡°Just looking at you not taking responsibility for me, I think you¡¯re the one who doesn¡¯t have any conscience¡­¡± I lost again to him. If I said I have a conscience here, it was obvious that he would ask me to be responsible and marry him, and even if I say I don¡¯t have a conscience, the result will be the same. No, there was no option to run away. Oh no, I dug my own grave. ¡°Can¡¯t I take responsibility without marriage?¡± ¡°No.¡± That was too firm. ¡°There¡¯s only one person I want and lack.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± The way he looked at me was like a beast who saw a delicious prey as it tried to save the best for the last. If he wasn¡¯t the villain, no if I wasn¡¯t the princess in the first place or that I didn¡¯t know the original story at all, I could have do it. However, as I know the original story and reincarnated as an extra that faced a tragic death by the villain, I couldn¡¯t believe him at all. It¡¯s all because I know he wasn¡¯t sincere and everything is fake. ¡°You might not need love, but I need it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I want to get married with love because I lack it.¡± ¡°No matter how much I think about it, I don¡¯t understand.¡± Huh? ¡°Where is a husband that is more suitable than me?¡± Who is a suitable husband for a princess? Okay, let¡¯s say I marry you with my eyes closed. But will he be satisfied with that? In the original, he had the emperor seat, would he be satisfied with his position as the princess¡¯ husband? Rather, I think he will take control of the imperial palace through me and eventually kill me and my family as he take the emperor seat. ¡°Are you refusing to marry me because you¡¯re waiting for that useless man?¡± ¡°¡­ I said I didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°What if I kill the bug you¡¯re waiting for and bring it here?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do it.¡± He could do it if he wanted to. He might really find that person before me, kill him, and bring him in front of me. ¡°¡­¡­ Don¡¯t do it.¡± ¡°Then what do you want me to do?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Yulia, what should I do?¡± He started getting closer to me but I pushed his shoulders lightlyy. ¡°Please stay away from me from now on.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like that.¡± As if he¡¯s in the mood, he sneakily comes closer to me than before. So I pushed him with more strength. ¡°You said you want to marry me.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it for you, however¡­¡± I could only do this one last move. Because he never seem to step down. He¡¯ll try every way to marry me even if I refuse. He¡¯ll persistently bother me until I give him permission. Anyway, if I had to marry him, I only had to put difficult condition for him to marry me. ¡°You know the empire is preparing for war right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Participate in the war, win it and come back. Then I¡¯ll marry you.¡± I didn¡¯t really want to go this far, but the situation is dire. It¡¯s a war he can¡¯t ever win after all. I know it very well because I read the original story. It was a war in which the empire was defeated and this is a golden opportunity for me not to marry the villain. If he die in the war, it¡¯s a pleasure because every risk disappear. Even if he come back alive, he would return defeated, so we are able to suppress his power and avoid marriage with him at the same time. He smiled languidly and stroked my cheek. ¡°Okay, I accept that offer.¡± I was going to have to think of something else if he reject me. However, I didn¡¯t know he would say yes so easily. ¡°However, I have a condition too.¡± ¡°Yes, what is it?¡± ¡°If I win and come back, please go and marry me without saying anything else.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I will.¡± I was going to write the contract but I was stopped by him. ¡°Do you really need to write it down?¡± After he said that, my body was thrown onto the bed. As my body touched the soft bed, I feel anxious. Perhaps it¡¯s a very wrong choice to put the villain in the same room as mine. His knee went into the gap between my legs. I roughly expected what would happen. My instincts were shouting that the incident that night would repeat. ¡°Yulia, you can¡¯t say anything later after I imprint your body rather than writing on paper.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not ever your first time.¡± As he kissed my hair, he calmly looked at me with a relaxed, victorious smile. His lips overlapped with mine as I closed my eyes. This night will be a long one. Chapter 17 Chapter 17 As soon as I opened my eyes, the scene from yesterday immediately replayed in my head. I¡¯m really crazy. I wasn¡¯t drunk. And I can¡¯t believe I repeated such a thing with the villain while being sober. When I tried to move my body, the muscles all over my body were screaming. This signifies that yesterday¡¯s incident wasn¡¯t just an illusion. When I realized this, my body hurt more than before. ¡°Ugh!¡± I was so ignorant. Still, it was fortunate that he heeded my wish of not leaving a trace on my body where people could see. Wait, how could I be glad about that? I¡¯m drained, and could only lift a finger. I really felt like I couldn¡¯t get out of bed. How could I take that as a kindness? I doubted my definition of kindness. ¡°He¡¯s not gentle at all.¡± As expected, the reason why I should never get married has been added. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be more ignorant if we get married. I didn¡¯t even feel that he treated me preciously this time. Rather, I could feel the depth of his possessive desire. ¡°It hurts so much¡­¡± I gave up moving. If I stay like this for a long time, I can move gradually. Seeing the sun rising in the sky, I could guess that morning was over and it was time for lunch. Sometimes I slept in like today, so they didn¡¯t think it was strange. So I chose to relax more. Ahm¡­ I really didn¡¯t have any power left to move. ¡°Princess!¡± ¡°I woke up already.¡± ¡°Duke Siegbert said he wanted to see you.¡± ¡°Say that I¡¯m still sleeping.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve already said. But he said he¡¯d wait until you woke up.¡± I can¡¯t believe that it¡¯s not enough to bother me last night. How could he come again that day? He¡¯s really the devil. ¡°I¡¯ll go now. But I need to change first.¡± Honestly, it doesn¡¯t matter what I wear when I meet him, but I have to think of other people. I¡¯ve already seen him naked, but I can¡¯t meet him in my pajamas because he¡¯s not my family member or a fiance. ¡°I guided him to the drawing room¡±. ¡°Yes, good job. And don¡¯t worry too much, nanny. I¡¯ll figure it out.¡± ¡°But¡­ princess. Your hands are shaking a lot.¡± ¡°Me?¡± I thought I hid it well, but that¡¯s not the case. ¡°Princess. Wouldn¡¯t it be better not to see him if you¡¯re nervous like this?¡± ¡°I think he will wait until I come out.¡± Or he might come again at night. I didn¡¯t want him to come again at night. I also want to figure out why he came in broad daylight. Why did he come here again? Didn¡¯t we finish talking last night? ¡°Nanny, please don¡¯t tell anybody.¡± ¡°¡­ Are you going to be fine?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no reason not to be fine.¡± ¡°But¡­ your face seems very tired.¡± Is my condition that serious? I know yesterday¡¯s aftermath will remain intact, but is it that serious? ¡°No, I¡¯m fine, nanny.¡± I tried hard to smile at my nanny and went into the drawing room. When I entered the drawing room, I could see him. His face looking out the window reminded me of an alluring devil that seduced humans. I shook my head right away, as I felt as if I was almost possessed. Really, he had a uselessly scary handsome face. ¡°Duke, why are you here?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± Why do I feel that he¡¯s so creepy when he smiles with that handsome face? Perhaps, it¡¯s because I suffered terribly yesterday with that face. As soon as I recalled yesterday¡¯s incident, I got goosebumps all over my body. ¡°Don¡¯t smile like that.¡± ¡°Why? Are you excited when I smile?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m scared.¡± It would be closer to feeling fear than excitement. ¡°Get used to it. You¡¯ll have to live with me for the rest of your life after I come back.¡± ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°Body.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I was wondering if you¡¯re okay. Fortunately, I¡¯m glad you look okay.¡± ¡°¡­ Do I look okay?¡± What kind of nonsense is this? I¡¯m not okay at all. My back hurts like it was smashed, and every time I move, it feels like every muscle is being ripped. Do I look okay to you? ¡°I¡¯m not okay at all.¡± ¡°But you could walk normally.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t have anything more to say, go back.¡± ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll be back after the war before summer comes.¡± It was a losing war and it will take even longer than that. But he¡¯s going to come back after finishing it before summer? I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s conceited. Can he say something that makes sense? I think he¡¯s overly confident and ignorant. ¡°Sure. If that¡¯s possible.¡± ¡°Do you think it¡¯s impossible?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it impossible?¡± ¡°¡­ I stopped by here after telling your father.¡± What? Tell my dad about what? ¡°Now you¡¯re showing interest.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°I said I¡¯d participate in the war.¡± ¡°You could be relieved because he didn¡¯t make any comments about it.¡± Is it okay to be relieved? ¡°I¡¯m a person who keeps my promises.¡± ¡°Duke!¡± ¡°And now you¡¯d better change how you call me. You called me by my name last night.¡± Apart from his handsomeness, I didn¡¯t like his smiling face. Others say that smiling faces are the best to seduce people, but his smile felt like a sneer instead. So I felt bad seeing it. ¡°You know my name, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°And it¡¯s too hard to call your husband a duke.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that at all.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the only one who I allow to call my name, Yulia.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t need that.¡± ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Call me Chester.¡± He snatched my hand. ¡°From now on, we have to practice calling by name so that we can get married and call each other more naturally.¡± He kissed the palm that he took. My palms that were touched by his lips were as hot as fire. I hurriedly pulled my hand away from him. ¡°I don¡¯t want to call you by your name in the future.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s like that now too.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t say anything right now. But after you marry me, call me by my name.¡± ¡°Say that when you come back from victory.¡± Since it¡¯s a losing war. There was no way for me to marry the villain. All I had to do was find the person I was waiting for or live alone. ¡°Your Highness seems to want me to be killed on the battlefield, but unfortunately, that won¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°Or I think you want me to lose the war, but I received the position of commander-in-chief at the war.¡± ¡°I see.¡± He took my hair and play with it. ¡°And I¡¯m telling you because Your Highness is not interested in me.¡± He whispered in my ear in a very drowsy voice. ¡°I¡¯ve never lost a war that I participated in as commander-in-chief before¡± ¡°It will be like that again, Yulia. So don¡¯t expect me to lose or die.¡± How did he know my wish? I wanted him to die in the war zone, but I never brought it out of my mouth, especially in front of the villain. His touch on my hair felt as if he was threatening me. I felt like I was caught in a trap set up by the villain. I hope I made the right choice.. ¡°I¡¯ll return with a notice of victory.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. Does it sound like I¡¯m saying something impossible?¡± Victory is impossible in a losing war. I felt bad because the villain was so confident for some reason, that I thought he would really come back with an announcement of the victory. But what if the villain¡¯s participation destroys the original story again? Anxiety suddenly felt by me. He hugged me and trapped me in his arms. ¡°It would be quite painful if I thought about not seeing your face for a while in the war zone. So until I go out to the battlefield, I¡¯ll see you every day¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Well, we¡¯ll see each other for the rest of our lives after the war. But I won¡¯t be able to see you when I¡¯m on the battlefield.¡± No, I don¡¯t want to see you for the rest of my life. Of course, the face of the villain exceeded my taste, but it was just that, and his personality was never my type. ¡°Yulia.¡± What are you going to say? ¡°I want to keep only you in my eyes and imprint only you in my head until the day comes when I leave for the war.¡± As he kissed my hair, he looked at me deeply. As if he¡¯s going to eat me up right away. Chapter 18 Chapter 18 I took a step backwards and walked away. His eyes look so dangerous. ¡°Yulia, you don¡¯t have to be so vigilant.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If anyone sees it, they¡¯ll think I¡¯m hurting you.¡± Probably not right now, but I couldn¡¯t let go of my vigilance for even a single moment. ¡°You don¡¯t need to be like that. After all, there is plenty of time.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Huh? He is a very confident person. Well, with that kind of mindset, he was able to become the villain in the original. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I heard that you are attending this year¡¯s celebration.¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right.¡± How did you find out? I never told him. And does his smile make me feel anxious? When a normal person smiles, I should¡¯ve felt reassured or comfortable, but why do I feel so anxious? I suddenly started getting nervous. ¡°I think you¡¯re hiding a lot from me.¡± ¡°¡­ I didn¡¯t hide it, I forgot to say it.¡± ¡°Just say yes.¡± I looked at him, bewildered. It wasn¡¯t a lie, but I was annoyed by such a reaction. If I had known that he would react like that, I would have just lied from the beginning. ¡°Yulia. Right now, even if you have something to hide, I will close my eyes, but when I come back, there should be nothing to hide.¡± ¡°¡­ I have nothing to hide.¡± ¡°I wish you didn¡¯t have a boyfriend with the thought that I would die or lose the war.¡± ¡°It will never happen.¡± Because you will never come back victorious from the war. ¡°If I come back and there is someone else by your side, I will accept it as a request to kill him.¡± ¡°Huh? Wha- what?¡± I doubted my ears. No, is it such an easy thing to say that you want to kill someone? ¡°When I come back, if you had a boyfriend, I would kill him.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m the only one who can be by your side.¡± Why is the obsession that should be directed at the female lead given to me? I couldn¡¯t understand. From the moment I stopped chasing after the villain, the original story might have changed little by little, but it was unthinkable for the aftermath to be this way. He hadn¡¯t done anything yet, but I didn¡¯t know when he would take his sword and kill the members of the imperial family. The treason in the original story also happened so suddenly. He killed all of the imperial family when their power was weakened by the defeat of the war. So I still couldn¡¯t stop being wary. Maybe it¡¯ll end up being even more tragic than the original. ¡°If you have a boyfriend and dispose of it before I come, I won¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°So I hope you don¡¯t do anything to get blood on my hands when I return.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you need to worry.¡± ¡°Yes. When I come back from the war, please help me so that I don¡¯t get blood on my hands, wife.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not married yet! Why are you acting like we already did?¡± ¡°Because we will.¡± ¡°Haa¡­¡± Should I find someone who can protect me? I felt so anxious that I couldn¡¯t live. Or should I secretly employ an assassin and get rid of him? No. He¡¯ll find out that I emplog him through a harsh torture because he was captured alive. ¡°Go back.¡± ¡°Yulia. I will give you the glory of victory.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need it?¡± ¡°Do you not like it? I thought you would like it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like it at all!¡± He took my hand and kissed the back of my hand briefly. ¡°It¡¯s a pity we¡¯ll be seperated, but I¡¯ll go. You¡¯re welcome whenever you want to see me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll never visit you.¡± ¡°Remember, if you visit me, you will be able to do anything there without any restrictions.¡± ¡±¡­¡­ I don¡¯t want to remember that!¡± It was really useless. I wouldn¡¯t even go near it anyway. ¡°Then go back!¡± ¡°There is no need to rush, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­ I¡¯m not rushing you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bit sad to just go.¡± What are you sad about? What other tricks are you trying to do! Why not just go completely? At that moment, something touched my lips. When I raised my head, wondering what it was, I looked at him. So I hurriedly took two steps back. ¡°You don¡¯t have to run away from me like that.¡± ¡°Go back!¡± ¡°I was thinking of going back.¡± ¡°Then why did you do it?¡± He didn¡¯t answer me, he just smiled without saying a word. So I was even more scared. ¡°I am very satisfied today. Well, I wasn¡¯t good enough yesterday, but I¡¯m a sweet person.¡± Sweet? If he is a kind and sweet person, what would all the kind and sweet people be? It wasn¡¯t funny, but I just kept my mouth shut. Because I realized that the best way to reply to this man is to not answer his bullshit. ¡°See you later, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I don¡¯t want to see you again.¡± *** The New Year¡¯s Celebration is already approaching. This is the first one I¡¯ll participate in since I was born¡­ ¡­ I was very nervous. Because I¡¯ve never been to a place where there are a lot of people. I haven¡¯t been to a more crowded place than Cecil¡¯s birthday party. However, as it is a national event, I was worried that there would be a lot of people. Unlike me, who was troubled like this, the maids in charge of me seemed very excited. ¡°Your Highness! We can finally show off our skills!¡± ¡°Should you wear the dress that His Majesty sent for the festival?¡± ¡°First, I¡¯ll bring you jewels that are as pretty as the princess¡¯s eyes!¡± It was the maids who were busy, but why do I feel tired? Is it just me? I already felt tired after taking a bath in the morning. ¡°Your Highness! Stay still! If you move, it will be ruined!¡± ¡°¡­ How much longer do I have to close my eyes?¡± My eyelashes trembled from the tickling. After closing my eyes for a while, I was able to open my eyes only when I was about to fall asleep. ¡°Your Highness! We Are done!¡± ¡°Wow¡­! You guys are so talented!¡± ¡°Now, I think it would be better to choose earrings and necklaces that match the dress!¡± The maids began to display a variety of necklaces and earrings sets. Here, about one-third was given by the villain, and the rest was given to me by my father and brother. It was the biggest challenge. Because I had no idea which were given by whom! My memory isn¡¯t as good as I thought, so I couldn¡¯t remember exactly what someone gave me Here, I had to choose only what the villain gave me. ¡°But it¡¯s a new year¡¯s festival, so wouldn¡¯t it be better to go with what dad gave me as a present?¡± ¡°Then shall we use this?¡± Well, the maid¡¯s eyes would be better than my eyes. Let¡¯s not believe in my eyes. Because my perspective is not reliable. It¡¯s an eye that I shouldn¡¯t trust. ¡°Your Highness¡­!¡± Everyone¡¯s voices were filled with emotion. My hair, which was always hanging down, was neatly pulled up. I also wore earrings and a necklace, a set of exquisitely crafted silver gemstones. The image of a woman in a dress that was not too revealing in light purple was reflected in the mirror. Obviously it¡¯s me, but it felt very unfamiliar. ¡°The main character of this festival is, of course, the princess! Because there is no woman in the world who has a higher status than you!¡± ¡°¡­ Thank you.¡± This compliment was awkward. ¡°Yulia.¡± I heard my brother¡¯s voice outside. My brother arrived just in time. I agreed to be escorted by my brother. ¡°Brother!¡± ¡°Yulia¡­¡± My brother must be surprised because he never saw me like this. Maybe he thought of our mother after seeing me. ¡°Yulia, you¡¯re beautiful. I thought an angel fell from the sky.¡± My brother reached out his hand to escort me. I know it was just a compliment, but it feels good to hear it. He always tells me I¡¯m pretty, but¡­ It¡¯s always nice to hear that I¡¯m pretty. ¡°¡­.. Mother would like to see it if she were alive.¡± ¡°Brother.¡± I grabbed my brother¡¯s hand and moved. We held hands tightly and went outside. It was the first outside event I attended. ¡°Right Yulia, dad will come as soon as work is done. He will probably arrive a little later than us.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous. There¡¯s nothing to be nervous about.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± The door opened. The moment I entered the room, I felt as if everyone¡¯s eyes were being swept in this direction. As soon as I walked in, I almost froze. Because there were so many people, I held my brother¡¯s hand even tighter. I felt like I was out of breath as a lot of people¡¯s eyes turned towards me. ¡°Yulia. If you can¡¯t stand it¡­¡­¡± ¡°No, brother. I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Yulia. You¡¯re saying this but you don¡¯t look all right.¡± ¡°¡­ I¡¯m fine. It might be all right when daddy comes, right?¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll stay by your side instead, so you don¡¯t have to look scared like that. After all, you will be the main character of the day.¡± I was led by my brother¡¯s hand, and headed for a seat. Right, I have my brother. I become energized remembering that. ¡°Yulia. Maybe here, you will meet the person you¡¯ve been waiting for so long¡­¡± ¡°I really hope so.¡± The boy was clearly a nobleman, judging from his clothes. ¡°I just want to see him again.¡± I¡¯m not going to actively search for him. Unless he did so first, I wasn¡¯t going to pretend to know him even when I recognized him. It would be difficult to talk to him because of the villain. ¡°Yes. Most nobles participate in the New Year¡¯s festival, so check it out.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Then I heard a voice announcing my father¡¯s arrival. ¡°The sun of the empire, His Majesty the Supreme Emperor enters!¡± The door opened and my dad entered. I was a little perplexed when I saw the man following him. No, why are you coming in with the villain dad? I wasn¡¯t the only one surprised. The people talked about it. Why did they come together? I was anxious. No, it¡¯s probably nothing to worry about. Because there is no need to be anxious. As dad sat at his seat, the villain knelt down on one of his knees in front of the stairs. Why do I feel a sense of ominousness in that action? My heart was pounding. I was anxious. At that moment, our eyes met. He smiled slightly at me. Why does a smiling face feel so ominous? ¡°Chester Siegbert. I swear allegiance to the imperial family.¡± Was there a scene like this in the original? Chapter 19 Chapter 19 ¡°I have told the emperor in advance, but I will use this opportunity to say it once again.¡± What is he talking about? I turned my head in anxiety and looked to see where my dad was. I couldn¡¯t read my dad¡¯s expression easily. I didn¡¯t know the villain¡¯s thoughts, but I couldn¡¯t read my dad¡¯s thoughts either. ¡°If I win the war, please make the princess my wife.¡± Startled by that statement, I got up from my chair. How could my ominous premonition never go wrong? I looked at my dad urgently, but it seemed that he already knew. Maybe the reason dad and the villain came together earlier was because they discussed making an announcement at an official event. ¡°Yulia. If you don¡¯t want that request, I can say no.¡± Since he had already finished speaking before, there were no words of denial. And maybe it was like an opportunity. A chance to be safe from the death by the villain. Hence, there was no reason to hesitate. There is no way that the main frame of the original will change. Because I know this war will never be won. I just had to accept it. But why is my mouth not moving? Only after I bit my lower lip did I be able to speak. ¡°¡­¡­ I will accept your request.¡± Wasn¡¯t it already said before? So, please don¡¯t make me regret my choice. If the flow of the original story is followed, the villain won¡¯t win and returns from the war with defeat. Actually, dying on the battlefield is the best ending for me, but I knew the villain wouldn¡¯t be that easy to die. So I had to be content with him just losing and coming back. ¡°The princess has accepted the request, so there is no reason to object.¡± Why do I have another ominous feeling? Why do I feel so anxious? ¡°Let¡¯s all enjoy the party.¡± After dad¡¯s words, the quiet party hall began to become noisy. As expected, it was uncomfortable because there were so many people. ¡°I¡¯ll come get some air. I can go alone!¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I thought it would calm down if I went to a place where there were no people, so I moved. At first, I tried to go outside, but because of my identity, I moved to the terrace instead of outside. It felt like I could breathe a little bit as I felt the cold air from the terrace. At that moment, a hand touched my shoulders. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± It was the villain. ¡°Duke?¡± ¡°What are you doing when you come here looking so pretty?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°To think that people who are not me have seen you¡­ I¡¯m very upset.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget that the duke is not yet qualified to say such a thing.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad that you say yourself as mine from the beginning.¡± He had a very sad expression on his face. At the same time, jealousy, longing, and possessiveness were evident in his blood-red eyes. ¡°At least the flies won¡¯t get caught by you when I¡¯m away.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I want to be alone, so go out now.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t see you for a while¡­¡­ I¡¯m sorry. I want to have you in my eyes, even for a little while.¡± He said that so smoothly. So smooth that I can¡¯t tell if it¡¯s sincere or fake. No, rather, they were words that shook people¡¯s hearts enough to hope that they were sincere. My heart kept on beating due to anxiety. But I reassure myself that it would be ok. Maybe the original story may be twisted. It may have been that me and the imperial family had already escaped from the threat of being killed by the villain. I had such a hope. ¡°Duke.¡± There was only one way to confirm that hope. Perhaps, the fate of me and my family may have shifted along with the flow of the original. Still, I can¡¯t help being scared, but I can¡¯t keep feeling it. ¡°Please answer me sincerely.¡± ¡°What are you curious about?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I promise to answer you sincerely.¡± He took my hand and put it on his cheek. Then, he rubbed his cheek against my palm. While smiling softly, he answered. ¡°If it¡¯s your question, I¡¯ll be happy to answer it.¡± He kissed my wrist and looked at me with enticing eyes. It was only me in his red eyes. ¡°Does the duke love me?¡± I also stared at him. I made eye contact with him to determine if he was lying or if he was sincere. ¡°Of course I love you.¡± Can I trust you? ¡°Did you think I wouldn¡¯t love you?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ I still can¡¯t believe it.¡± ¡°Yulia. How can I give you confidence?¡± His hands wrapped around my waist. He bent down and pushed his face closer to me. The distance between our faces was too close. Even our breaths collided. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can ever give you that trust.¡± ¡°But it won¡¯t be like that forever, is it?¡± I hurriedly covered his mouth with my hand. I roughly predicted what would happen, so I blocked his mouth in advance. With that in mind, I shut his mouth, and his tongue began to run through my knuckles. ¡°What are you doing now¡­¡­!¡± I hurriedly tried to get my hand out, but he grabbed my wrist and wouldn¡¯t let me go. His eyes looked at me as he kissed every tip of my fingertips and seemed to radiate a gloomy energy. ¡°I¡¯m giving you trust.¡± ¡°What kind of trust is this?¡± ¡°Then I will say that I am giving you faith.¡± No, that¡¯s bullshit! ¡°Yulia, is this not enough?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ What?¡± If I didn¡¯t know the original story, I would assume that nothing is wrong. I really had no idea what¡¯s going on behind that languid smile. ¡°I will assure you if your doubts about my affection have not gone away.¡± He let go of my wrist and grabbed my chin. When I was so close to the villain, in order to meet his gaze, or to even see his face, I had to lift my head. It was evident that he was smiling, but his eyes were blatant and full of longing. ¡°In the surest way.¡± I couldn¡¯t say anything after that. His lips were placed over mine. Taking a step back, he took one step forward. He couldn¡¯t help but grab my waist with one hand and the back of my neck with the other. I felt like I was suffocating. His overlapping lips did not fall off, so it was not strange if I suffocated and died. He ran through every corner of my mouth. To the point where it¡¯s hard to come to my senses. When I couldn¡¯t hold my breath any longer, I pushed his shoulder and fresh air entered my mouth. ¡°Ha, ha¡­¡± I slapped his lips with my hand. I didn¡¯t like his recklessness. I¡¯m worried about whether my lips will swell or not. ¡°Yulia. I hope my sincerity has been conveyed.¡± It was me who asked the question first, and even if he convinced me, I couldn¡¯t believe it easily. How could he think he can give me faith this way? In such a vulgar way? No, I¡¯m not the female lead, so he¡¯s acting recklessly like this. Because he didn¡¯t really love me. If I were the female lead, no, if I were the person he¡¯s looking for, would he have acted like this? Why am I miserable? ¡°Yulia. Do I look like someone trying to marry someone I don¡¯t even love?¡± ¡°I wonder if you love me or my body. I don¡¯t know that.¡± He took a step closer to me and wiped my lower lip with his thumb. No, it was like wiping something away. ¡°Your lipstick is smudged.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this important? I thought it was important¡­¡­¡± He had a languid smile that seemed to be in a good mood. ¡°You have to go back to your father and brother, but if you go with your lips smeared¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t touch it in the first place!¡± ¡°¡­.. I can¡¯t help it. It¡¯s a face I want to touch too much.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s because Yulia is so pretty. It makes me want to eat you right away.¡± Isn¡¯t it a foul to look so handsome in the dark? It was a face that was likely to make people fall in love. Of course, the face I like is my brother, but that doesn¡¯t mean that the villain is inferior to my brother. No, maybe it could be said that he¡¯s the most handsome man in the world. It¡¯s obvious that the male lead will be with the female lead. Should I keep the villain? However, he was too risky. It wasn¡¯t easy for me to accept it because of his role and behaviour. I was really worried about which choice would be right. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It is true that I love you.¡± If my relationship with the villain really twisted the content of the original, wouldn¡¯t it be possible to change the content of the original when my family died? I really couldn¡¯t believe him at all, judging from his behaviour up until now. Then, I had to kill the villain somehow. Because that was the way for me and my family to live, me and my family are more precious than him. ¡°Can I really believe you?¡± ¡°Yes. When I go to war, I will miss you. I¡¯m not afraid of war. But I am very afraid that I will not be able to see you for a moment.¡± Chapter 20 Chapter 20 ¡°¡­¡­ Really?¡± Now I couldn¡¯t tell what was the truth and what was a lie. No, what kind of woman can deny it if one of the most handsome men in the world says something like that. I understood Yulia¡¯s heart in the original. Like Yulia in the original, if I saw Chester without knowing the fact that he was a villain, I wouldn¡¯t want to have his heart. From Duke Siegbert¡¯s point of view, the princess pursued him first, and the imperial family had no reason to oppose it. Above all else, the emperor must¡¯ve calculated that it would be beneficial to unite with the powerful duke family by adopting him as his son-in-law. Eliminating the need to suppress their power alongside his daughter¡¯s happiness of course. ¡°Yes. Even now, I want to eat you.¡± ¡°That¡­ That¡¯s a bit scary.¡± Because the original is already twisted, is it okay to look forward to it? No matter how much I waited, the person I was looking for was nowhere to be seen. Chester is the perfect groom, except that he is the villain in the original. To be honest, if I were to fulfill my duties as a member of the imperial family, there was no one who had better conditions than Chester as the husband of the princess. Of course, the male lead, Duke Idrian Blair, was the best groom in the empire, but from the point of view of the imperial family, Duke Chester Siegbert was more suitable. Even though the Duke of Blair is also a prestigious family, he is not a threat to the imperial family as he hardly participated in the war. However, the present Duke of Siegbert was a little different. As the current head of a dukedom, Chester Siegbert, participated in all the wars as commander in chief so far, hence his influence has grown bigger than that of the Duke of Blair. And if he puts his mind to it, he could achieve anything he wants. Like the original, the history of the imperial family could be rewritten, and the name of the empire could be different. What if that risk is tied with my marriage? ¡°Yulia. Don¡¯t think about anyone other than me.¡± If I can¡¯t kill, no, unless he dies, it might have been better for me to submit to him. Because that will protect my family and give stability to the imperial family to which I belong. Maybe I could keep the empire peaceful. ¡°I didn¡¯t even think about it?¡± ¡°I will believe you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m leaving.¡± As I turned to get out, Chester grabbed my arm and pulled me back. Then he kissed my lips briefly. ¡°As I said before, I will be back before summer comes.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ You can¡¯t end a war that quickly.¡± ¡°It will be at a disadvantage if I drag it for too long anyway.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°And I¡¯ll miss you. I¡¯ll think of you a lot.¡± Chester hugged me tightly. I couldn¡¯t be sure of his sincerity, but wouldn¡¯t it be okay to trust him? His arms are so warm. Would it be okay to trust him just once? ¡°Yulia, if I come back before summer comes, then you won¡¯t be satisfied with this.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Pardon?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want me to go back early, can I do more than this here?¡± As he whispers softly in my ears, my face suddenly becomes hotter . Fortunately, I wasn¡¯t trapped in his arms, so Chester couldn¡¯t see my face. I was relieved because he couldn¡¯t see it. My face must be like a burning sweet potato. ¡°Yulia, can I kiss you?¡± ¡°What?¡± No, of course¡­ kissing is only kissing but¡­ Well¡­ if I thought about Chester¡¯s kiss¡­ I didn¡¯t hate to bump into Chester¡¯s skin. I didn¡¯t feel any repulsion, and it was rather good. Maybe it was because of his face . ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°Kiss me¡­ you can do it.¡± His expression, which seemed surprised, soon turned into a languid smile. He wrapped his hand gently around me. ¡°Yulia. Close your eyes.¡± I closed my eyes, as Chester said, and something soft and warm touched my lips. I opened my mouth slightly, and his tongue slipped through the gaping lips. As I staggered, his hand gripped my waist tightly and with the other hand he stroke my cheek tenderly. It was as if he was touching a delicate piece of glass. Chester¡¯s lips slammed against mine again. I felt like I was being eaten affectionately. It was more a gentle and caring kiss rather than harsh and violent. But, I still felt a strong possessiveness. A longing feeling that he would not miss a single moment. I didn¡¯t hate it if I thought that he wanted me. I wrapped my arms around his body. The moisture came and went for a while longer. ¡°Haa¡­¡± I didn¡¯t think that his lips would separate from mine until he was out of breath. ¡°Yulia.¡± My heart tickled at the sound of my name being called in a soft voice. I could feel the affection in his hand that gently stroke my cheek. I may be mistaken, but I wanted to believe him. ¡°You¡¯re so pretty. I want to eat you.¡± His blood-red eyes flashed dangerously, and I thought that perhaps this touch was holding back his true desire, not affection. ¡°Well¡­ I¡¯ll get going now!¡± I thought this would be dangerous, so I ran away from him. My face is hot. It¡¯s probably burning red right? ¡°¡­¡­Lady?¡± I suddenly bumped into someone. This voice seems to be of the male lead. ¡°Oh, I should call you the princess instead, right?¡± ¡°Duke Blair.¡± ¡°You can call me Idrian.¡± ¡°Why did you come to the terrace?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I will be able to see an old friend except for today.¡± Oh, he came to meet Chester. Perhaps, according to the original, the two were still friends. I heard that they had a lot of exchanges until Chester¡¯s parents died. And until they met the female lead, the relationship between the two was smooth So it wasn¡¯t strange, because both of them had yet to fall in love with or become obsessed with the woman. ¡°Hmm¡­ It might be rude to ask this, but¡­ What¡¯s your relationship with Chester?¡± ¡°¡­ Duke Siegbert?¡± ¡°If it¡¯s hard for you to tell me¡­ you don¡¯t have to tell me!¡± ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ it¡¯s nothing.¡± Just a one-night stand relationship? If we were to define our current relationship with numbers out of 10, it was neither more than 3 nor less than 3. Of course, still¡­ ¡°As he announced in front of everyone when he really won this war and returned¡­ We will get married.¡± That was it. Chester and I had that kind of relationship. A relationship that would be nothing if he lost this war or he died in the war. It was just a relationship like a sandcastle that would disappear when the waves swept it away. The reason I kissed him earlier was simply because I was seduced by that handsome face. ¡°Is that so¡­¡­ I¡¯m sorry, Princess.¡± I was going down the stairs to go back. I was going down the stairs to go back. At that moment, I felt something was missing. It didn¡¯t take long for me to realize why my hair was flowing. It was obvious that my headdress had fallen on the terrace earlier. I hastily returned. But then I heard a conversation on the terrace. Perhaps Chester and Idrian are in there. I hid unintentionally and overheard their conversation. ¡°You¡­ you love her right?¡± Her? Maybe he¡¯s referring to me? It was an opportunity to find out whether the words that he said were sincere or not. I knew that eavesdropping was bad, but in order to satisfy my curiosity, I was able to focus on the following words after holding my breath. Perhaps it¡¯s a moment when I can see his questionable sincerity. ¡°Love?¡± ¡°Yes. Because the actions you did were different from how you deal with other people. Even today¡­¡± ¡°Ha¡­ hahaha!¡± A soft laugh was heard. Perhaps the owner of that laugh was the villain. It was the sound of laughter that I got used to as I had heard it countless times. But why is he laughing? ¡°Ah¡­ It¡¯s been a while since I laughed. Did I look like that all this time?¡± I was anxious. I can¡¯t predict what Chester will say. ¡°¡­ Then?¡± ¡°Do I look like someone who can do love?¡± As soon as I heard those words, my heart sank. All those sweet whispers of love were lies. All the actions you¡¯ve done to me must have been pretense. There was nothing more to hear. I felt pathetic that I was shaken at the moment, thinking he was serious about me. I had no intention of being used, but I had the illusion that my heart was being used. My headdress was not important now. I need to flee from this place before being caught. ¡°¡­ bad boy.¡± I tried to believe his words. No, it was an illusion that he loved me from the beginning. I was also really stupid. He said he truly loved me. However¡­ all of it was a lie? ¡°You really¡­ don¡¯t you love me?¡± Why are tears pouring out of my eyes? Chapter 21 Chapter 21 Today was the day he left for the battlefield. I didn¡¯t have to see him off. No, actually, I didn¡¯t want to go. I didn¡¯t want to see his face. But I needed to know what he was thinking, and what he wanted by telling me such a lie. I impulsively went to the wall. I didn¡¯t want to see his face, but I wanted to make sure he was really leaving. I just wanted to see with my own two eyes that I was leaving, and that was all. A strong wind blew as I climbed up to the wall. ¡°Princess!¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I could see him leaving. At that moment, the villain headed toward me. It wasn¡¯t clear because there was quite a distance, but it seemed like we had eye contact. And smiled at me. It was all a bunch of pretenses. His smile felt disgusting. ¡°¡­ Liar.¡± ¡°What?¡± Still, I was a little relieved to think that I would not see him for a long time to come. It didn¡¯t feel bad for me to think about not seeing that disgusting face. And because there is hope that I can keep the story away from the original. Perhaps the reason why he is obsessed with marriage with me may be because he has his eyes on the throne like in the original story. Is he acting with the intention of making the imperial family feel safe with him and betray us later? Is participating in this war for that reason too? ¡°¡­¡­ Nanny, let¡¯s go back¡± ¡°Yes, Princess.¡± It was not a war that my precious brother or father went directly to. It was a war in which the villain participated in the war and he might die. So there was nothing to worry about. I just need to think about the well-being of me and my family. ¡°Princess, do you have any concerns?¡± ¡°¡­ No.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll listen to everything, I¡¯ll keep it a secret from His Majesty, so don¡¯t worry¡± ¡°¡­ Nanny. What do you think about me marrying the Duke of Siegbert?¡± ¡°Um ¡­. I don¡¯t know what the imperial family might think, but I want the princess to be happy.¡± ¡°My¡­ happiness?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s your choice. Don¡¯t choose something you will regret.¡± From the beginning, this war will end with defeat. So I never had to marry him. But why do I keep feeling anxious? ¡°Nanny, if I marry the Duke of Siegbert, that¡¯s a good choice for the imperial family, but for me, it¡¯s not a good choice.¡± ¡°I just want the princess to be happy.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Because you make all the choices.¡± The choice is mine. I was also responsible for my choices. What do I want to do? What do I want? ¡°First of all¡­¡± After hearing my nanny¡¯s words, I crawled into the bed in my room. As expected, it¡¯s dangerous outside the blanket. It¡¯s so comfortable when I¡¯m under the blanket. ¡°Nanny, should I run away?¡¯ ¡°Where?¡± ¡°¡­ Or should I just go on a trip? ¡°It¡¯s not bad if you¡¯ll feel energized again.¡± ¡°¡­ Then I¡¯ll go.¡± I have enough time anyway. I just need to go on a trip and sort out these fresh and unknown emotions. My dad and brother are busy people, so even if they want to go with me, they can¡¯t. I want to persuade them to come, but I don¡¯t want to bother them. It wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to just wander around the villa belonging to the imperial family so that the two of them don¡¯t have to worry about me while I look at the beautiful scenery. Then, it would be better if I could see the person I was looking for. It couldn¡¯t be, but it couldn¡¯t be helped to have some hope. ¡°I¡¯ll tell my dad before I come back. That way, I¡¯ll leave tomorrow!¡± ¡°Princess¡­¡± ¡± I will give my nanny a vacation. I wanted to travel alone anyway.¡± It¡¯s not a difficult request anyway, he will just give me an escort and grant me permission. Without hesitation, I headed straight to the office where my dad was working. ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°I want to go on a trip.¡± ¡°A¡­trip?¡± ¡°Yes! Of course, I¡¯ll be accompanied by an escort!¡± ¡°How long do you plan to be away?¡± ¡°I want to travel for about two months.¡± ¡°If you hadn¡¯t accepted Duke Siegbert¡¯s request¡­¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not because of that¡± For a while, I wanted to untangle my complicated mind while traveling. Then I might come up with a plan to protect my family. ¡°Just¡­ It seems like I¡¯ve only been in the castle so far, so I want a change in scenery.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Are you planning to go alone?¡± ¡°You can give me an escort.¡± ¡°You¡¯d better take your maid too.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll do that.¡± It¡¯s okay to go with anyone. I¡¯m not running away anyway, and I¡¯m coming back here. Because this is my home ¡°¡®I¡¯ll definitely be back in two months¡± ¡°Yes. You can stay longer if you want.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll come back as soon as I can. Dad¡­ you¡¯re very busy right? ¡°If it hadn¡¯t been for work, I could have gone with you, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°No! I¡¯ll go now.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± On my way out, my brother¡¯s face came to mind. I won¡¯t see him for at least two months. I think I should say goodbye to my brother, so I went back to the palace. My brother was obviously as busy as my dad, but he was definitely a person who would be pissed off if I went on a trip without saying goodbye. So I¡¯ll have to go see my brother. If it¡¯s dad, he will be okay for me to be away for a long time, but my brother is extremely sensitive if I leave without a word. Perhaps without me, he feel anxious. ¡°Yulia!¡± ¡°Brother! I¡¯m here to greet you today.¡± ¡°¡­ What greeting?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to go to the villa to play for a while and get some rest.¡± ¡°Yulia. I¡¯m asking because I think I¡¯m mistaken, but don¡¯t you always rest in the first place?¡± Oh my, I shouldn¡¯t have come to him. ¡°I¡¯ll go now. I just came to tell my brother that I¡¯m going on a trip.¡± ¡°How long are you going to be away?¡± ¡°Maybe for a month or two.¡± ¡°I see. I want to go with you, but you won¡¯t like it, so I¡¯d rather stay here, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re heartless. The answer came out right away.¡± Even if he said that, he was smiling kindly. ¡°¡­ Then be careful, Yulia.¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯ll bring a lot of escorts too. You don¡¯t have to worry about me.¡± He looked at me sadly. Is it because he¡¯s worried about me or I resemble my mother that he stared at me for a long time? I don¡¯t understand. *** ¡°Princess, I¡¯m ready. You have to get up now!¡± ¡°Huh¡­ already?¡± As expected, my dad is quick to act. Yesterday I wanted to go on a trip, so he prepared everything in one day. ¡°¡­ Ah. I¡¯m still very tired.¡± ¡°Sleep in the carriage. The carriage is enchanted, so you won¡¯t get motion sickness even for a long time.¡± ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± I changed my clothes and went outside. Then what I saw in reality is different from my expectations. I didn¡¯t think that the scale would be this big. Why are there so many escort knights? It felt like my head was throbbing, but I just dismissed it. There¡¯s nothing bad about having a lot of escorts. And it means that my dad is worried about me, so it was enough to take it well. I was escorted and got into the carriage. When I heard the door shut, I covered my face with both hands. ¡°Haha, what should I do?¡± There is no way I can get away from the villain anymore. I have no choice but to entrust my fate to the heaven. Why am I worried about this? It¡¯s a losing war anyway, but why do I think that he¡¯ll win and come back? This is why my thoughts are scary. ¡°Well, I¡¯m going on a trip now anyway.¡± I¡¯ll just have to go there with the mindset of having fun. Shouldn¡¯t I go on a trip with the mindset of taking a break? Don¡¯t think about anything, just think about myself. Maybe I should empty my mind and come back. He¡¯ll be on the battlefield anyway, so there¡¯s nothing to worry about in the meantime. So, it would be better to enjoy it as much as I can before he comes, right? Let¡¯s just think of myself. ¡°¡­ Ha.¡± I grabbed my head tightly with my hair in anxiety. ¡°What should I do?¡± That won¡¯t happen. It really shouldn¡¯t happen, but¡­ What if the villain really wins the war and returns? There was really no way to escape. No, there was only one. Escape this world! My death! Dying is the only escape. If I am completely bound by the villain, I will never be able to be happy. It¡¯s because we had no relationship before, so I guess that¡¯s natural. I closed my eyes and saw my future. A very dark future welcomed me. The ending of the character named Yulia is to face eternal misery. Still, I wanted to live longer while receiving a lot of love from the family. I wanted to live with a lot of love from the people around me. ¡°I want to live.¡± A beautiful cloud spread out in the sky seen from the window of the carriage. My attention were taken by the clear sky. I¡¯m not going to die. I will survive! ¡°I don¡¯t want to die.¡± For me and my family. I¡¯m going to do my best to prevent the ending of the Beatrice royal family from facing the ending of the original. If I have to kill the villain to avoid the ending of the original, I¡¯m willing to do so. Perhaps marriage to the villaim was the best way to keep an eye on him. So don¡¯t be too depressed. Let¡¯s not think too negatively but think positively! ¡°¡­. He just need ti die in the battlefield.¡± Then there won¡¯t be any danger, because he was a man full of deceit. I hope he just die because I can¡¯t read his emotions at all. I couldn¡¯t help but regret trying to believe what he said about loving me because I thought it was sincere. I can¡¯t believe I almost fall for such a sweet lie even though I already knew the original stoey. If I really didn¡¯t hear that, I would have believed it. I almost believed in the words that he would pledge loyalty to the imperial family in front of my dad at the New Year¡¯s festival. But I won¡¯t be fooled anymore. I won¡¯t fall for that handsome face. ¡°The weather is nice.¡± But wouldn¡¯t this trip be fun? If the weather is not bad, wouldn¡¯t it be a pleasant trip? With the expectation of being able to shake off this anxiety, I hope I can fully eliminate my worries on this trip. That will be enough. Chapter 22 Chapter 22 The trip was much more enjoyable than I thought. It was so much fun that it was disappointing to return home, and I was able to shake off all my trivial thoughts. Originally, I was going to come back within two months, but I sent a letter to my dad and had fun at the villa for six months. This is why I think I will also be happy even though I didn¡¯t marry someone. It was a very happy trip that made me didn¡¯t want to get married. Before returning to the castle, I was thinking of purchasing new clothes and jewelry from the capital. I entered a jewelry shop that is said to be the hottest in the capital these days. At that moment, someone with bright golden hair and a warm-looking face was in front of me. ¡°Your Highness, the princess?¡± ¡°¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤¡¤Huh? Duke Blair?¡± What a coincidence. When I met the male lead here, it felt like my heart, which had nothing to heal, was more completely healed. The male lead is a handsome man with gentle eyes just like my brother. Even though my brother is more handsome. Since I was reincarnated as my favorite¡¯s little sister, it wasn¡¯t too bad. I couldn¡¯t have his love to me as an opposite sex, but it was thrilling to have my favorite¡¯s love to myself. However, seeing the original male lead gave me a different feeling. My favorite is my favorite, the male lead is the male lead, and the villain is the villain. They gave me such different feelings. ¡°I heard you went on a trip, are you on your way back?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve been out for too long. By the way, what brings Duke of Blair here?¡± Apart from meeting the male lead, the location was strange. As it was a store that targeted women¡¯s tastes rather than men, I didn¡¯t understand why the male lead was here. ¡°I have a person I want to give a gift to.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Who?¡± By any chance? Is it the female lead? Did he meet Cecil at the birthday party where the thing between me and the villain happened? I was curious and I was a little jealous of their fateful encounter. No, not a little, but a lot. I can ask Cecil directly for the details later. Of course, assuming that the person the male lead referred to is the female lead, Cecil. ¡°Is the person who you wanted to give a gift to is the Marquis¡¯ daughter Lady Cecil?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± Is that right? No? The male lead was smiling lightly. So I was confused whether Cecil was right or not. ¡°Then is it a different person? Who is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll say it¡¯s a secret for now.¡± ¡°Do I know them?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ no. You probably don¡¯t know. It¡¯s just my crush.¡± Isn¡¯t that the female lead? Then who took the male lead¡¯s heart? I was curious. But then the flow of the original story changes enormously! I wanted to ask more, but now I decided to step down. For me, I know many things about the male lead, but from his point of view, I was just the princess who he had rarely encountered. Hence I can¡¯t dig this or that from his point of view. ¡°If it¡¯s not rude to Your Highness, can you help me choose a gift?¡± ¡°Yes! Of course!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a good eye for it¡­¡± ¡°But don¡¯t you usually order people for this kind of thing?¡± He laughed awkwardly when he heard my question. Was this also seen by the female lead in the original? Really, these moments made me understand the female lead¡¯s feelings. Even if I wasn¡¯t the female lead, that face and that behavior would attack my heart. If the villain had shown this pure appearance, it would have been better. What was I thinking again? Fortunately, the male lead¡¯s voice intervened and I was able to escape from my thoughts. ¡°As much as I like the person, I want to give them the best present.¡± ¡°Wow!¡± As expected of the male lead! How can he have such a sweet personality? It was different compared to someone with black hair. He wasn¡¯t the male lead for no reason. Having such a charming personality, he took the title of the male lead. I can¡¯t believe I met such a sweet person! ¡°With that sincerity, that person will definitely know how you feel!¡± ¡°¡­¡­Really?¡± ¡°It would be difficult if she was already married, but if she has a fiancee, the duke will be able to win!¡± The only person who can defeat the male lead is my brother. However, my older brother also said that he had no intention of getting married, and there was no lady appointed as the Crown Prince yet, so there would be no objection from the male lead¡¯s point of view. However, the male lead has not yet received his title. So unless my brother, who is the Crown Prince, likes the same woman, no one would be more attractive than him. Ummm¡­ and the villain could also win. Even in the novel, the villain and the male protagonist faced each other, but in the end, the ending is where the male lead married the female lead. ¡°Is that person very pretty?¡± ¡°Yes. That person is very beautiful.¡± ¡°Which part of her do you like?¡± ¡°¡­ Well?¡± No, doesn¡¯t wanting to give a present mean that he likes her? Then there must be a reason why he fell in love with her. I wondered. I don¡¯t know who it is, but I felt a little envious. Who will be loved by the man? I wanted to know as I was curious. Maybe the original story has changed. So, that gave me a glimmer of hope that I might be able to live. ¡°You can¡¯t even tell me that much? I need to help you choose a gift for that person.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you tell me her hair color or eye color? If you tell me, it will be helpful in choosing a gift.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bit difficult.¡± It seemed that he didn¡¯t want to reveal anything about her. I don¡¯t know who it is, but I was very envious to think that she was loved by such a man. Meanwhile, I was always anxious because of the villain. I¡¯ve been suffering from nightmares, worried about the tragedy of my family dying before my eyes. ¡°If you didn¡¯t want to, I can¡¯t help it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°What¡¯s there to be sorry about? If the duke just doesn¡¯t want to talk, it can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± The male lead smiled next to me. As he is a warm-looking man in the first place, he could grab a person¡¯s heart just by smiling. If he smiles like that, I¡¯m sure there¡¯s no woman in the world who won¡¯t fall for it. ¡°Hmm¡­ no matter what kind of person you like,¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a good person, so if you tell them how you feel, they¡¯ll definitely like you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­ How do you know if I¡¯m a good person or not?¡± Well¡­ because I read it in a novel. Because I know the original, I can¡¯t help but know that you, the male lead, is a good person. In the original, the male lead is written as a warm and friendly person . Of course, the villain also acted kindly to the female lead. But that was only for the female lead. ¡°I know just by looking at them. Whether they¡¯re a good person or not.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear that from Your Highness.¡± Previously, he gave me a warm smile, but now it was a very bright smile. The smile on his face, like a man who looked really happy, took my heart away. It felt like my heart was beating rapidly. However, I shouldn¡¯t like the man. Because I wasn¡¯t the man¡¯s fated partner. Even knowing that, I wondered if it was the power of the male lead who could make my heart tremble. ¡°Ah! Did you know that today Chester will return?¡± ¡°¡­¡­ Pardon?¡± I doubted my ears for a moment. Why is the name of the villain coming up? ¡°I heard that he will arrive around today.¡± Is he really keeping the promise that he will come back before summer? I thought it was at least next year¡¯s summer? So the war ends only after six months like this? I tried to be positive. The reason he came back early is that maybe he was defeated. ¡°¡­ Then, he¡¯s not defeated, right?¡± Damn it! This trip was so peaceful and enjoyable, it was my fault that I didn¡¯t pay much attention to the outside news. I sincerely hoped that the words of regret for losing this war would come out of male lead¡¯s mouth. ¡°When Chester was commander-in-chief, there was no history of defeat. Again, it¡¯s no surprise.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± I had a feeling that I might be wrong, so I was expecting a little bit. Honestly, I prayed earnestly that the original would be the same this time, but it didn¡¯t go as I wanted. No, it¡¯s like the original story changed from the fact that the villain participated in this war in the first place. Why didn¡¯t I expect this? In the original story, this empire is defeated so I hoped that at least the villain would die there. However, such a wish did not come true. All I wanted was the defeat or death of the villain. However, God did not listen to anything I had hoped for. The villain is a person who doesn¡¯t know love, no, emotions, I felt foolish when I tried to believe the lies that such a person tells. ¡°Yulia.¡± Someone called my name behind me. A very familiar but disturbing voice. Only my dad and brother can call my name carelessly. Other than my family, there was another person. ¡°Hmm¡­ I heard that you went on a trip, didn¡¯t you?¡± A familiar low voice came from behind my back. He was definitely angry. No, his voice is clearly different than usual. My heart pounded nervously enough to be afraid to turn my head and see the owner of the voice. I couldn¡¯t expect what expression he would make. Chapter 23 *** I turned my head slowly and looked at him. I immediately saw the villain, who looked very unhappy. ¡°¡­¡­ I was on my way back from my trip.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± He really lived. He also led the empire to victory in just six months and returned. He was really monstrous. ¡°I¡¯ll take you home.¡± ¡°I can go alone though?¡± ¡°I want to go with you. I have to see His Majesty too.¡± He held out his right hand in front of me. Judging from what he said, he did not go to the castle as soon as he returned. No, I didn¡¯t understand how he knew that I was here. ¡°¡­But how did you know I was here?¡± ¡°I saw you on the way.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Lie. It was an obvious lie. This was quite far from his residence. It is also a place far from the castle. And above all, he smelled like soap instead of blood. As soon as he came to the capital, it seemed like he went home and washed up. Seeing that his clothes are clean, he must have changed. ¡°I need to go to the castle, so I¡¯d like to go with the princess.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it fate to meet like this?¡± I glanced at the male lead behind me. ¡°I think I should go now¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. When I had time later¡­¡± I wanted to say let¡¯s meet again, but I closed my mouth. There was the villain behind me. Even though they were friends, if I made such remarks in front of the villain, he seemed like the type to kill his friend casually. I can¡¯t let him die. I tried to say something else, but I heard the villain¡¯s voice behind me. ¡°Don¡¯t approach the princess again.¡± ¡°I just ran into Her Highness. Unlike you.¡± ¡°Does that mean I didn¡¯t meet by chance?¡± I thought the two would fight if I left it like this. Weren¡¯t you two friends? Why are you growling at each other? ¡°I¡¯m going now.¡± I held the hand he held out. He stared down at the hand I held and smiled slightly. ¡°Sure.¡± It was fortunate that he stepped down. Originally, the imperial carriage was supposed to come here in the evening, but things went wrong. I was going to play a little bit in the capital and come back home, but my plan was ruined. My nice and happy memories of the trip disappeared, and I felt tired already because the villain, which made my head throb, was in front of me. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°You can meet other people, but don¡¯t ever get close to them, especially Duke Blair.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Why? Weren¡¯t you two friends?¡± Aren¡¯t you still friends? The villain and the male lead only began to be enemies when they fought for the female lead. ¡°I can¡¯t say that he¡¯s not a friend, but he¡¯s someone you can¡¯t ever get close to.¡± The person I shouldn¡¯t ever be close to should be the villain in front of me. ¡°I missed you, Yulia.¡± Why is he smiling like that? It looked good, but at the same time gave me eerie vibes. It looked good when he smiled like that with a handsome face, but the fact that he¡¯s a villain came to mind and that smile felt eerie. It reminds me of someone who will harm me with such a smile. ¡°Did you enjoy your trip?¡± ¡°It was nice.¡± I was so happy that I didn¡¯t have to think about anything. But now, my forgotten worries are coming back. It felt like I¡¯m back to reality. Of course, there was no certainty that the ending would change even if the original story had changed. The ending of the female lead and male lead is the only thing that possibly won¡¯t change. I was afraid as I didn¡¯t know how my ending would be. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief. Then, how did you like it?¡± ¡°¡­Yes?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you like going around outside?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°After we get married, we¡¯ll travel around. It¡¯s good to go before marriage.¡± ¡°I like traveling alone¡­¡± I just liked travelling alone, with no one to interfere with it. I don¡¯t know what will happen if I go with the villain, so how can I enjoy my trip? ¡°And¡­ getting married right away is a little burdensome.¡± I took a peak at the villain. If I really signed the marriage registration form, I couldn¡¯t turn back. And the villain doesn¡¯t love me from the beginning. Everything he said to me was just a lie. ¡°Let¡¯s just get engaged first. Because you might change your mind.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°What?¡± Will he say no? My fingertips trembled with nervousness. I hurriedly continued my words. ¡°If I get married, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll have much time to see my dad and brother!¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Before marriage, I want to spend more time with my dad and brothers¡­¡± It was questionable whether these words would work or not, but it wasn¡¯t a lie. Because I really wanted some time with my family. I wanted to be by their side even a little longer. He smiled brightly. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want, sure, but it won¡¯t change my mind.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Really?¡± ¡°Well. I didn¡¯t say I will cancel the marriage.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If we are engaged, we can postpone the wedding. It would also be nicer to make the wedding grand enough to go down in history, right?¡± ¡°¡­I¡¯ll discuss that with my dad.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I rolled my eyes and looked away from the villain. It felt like he was looking at me all the time, so it felt very burdensome. But I can¡¯t say anything about this. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yes?¡± ¡°Call me by my first name.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ If you forgot my name, I¡¯ll tell you again. Call me Chester from now on.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Yulia. Go ahead and say it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°You say well before.¡± I kept closing my mouth. In fact, I didn¡¯t have the courage to make eye contact with him. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too late to pretend you can¡¯t call my name now? In the future, I will kiss you whenever you don¡¯t call me by my name.¡± ¡°¡­Chester.¡± My gaze was fixed on the scenery outside the carriage and reluctantly say his name. Why does it feel like my face is getting hot just because I called out his name? However, he spoke as indifferently as possible as if nothing had happened. ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°Please call me that in the future, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Do you have no intention of looking at my face? I missed you so much.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say things like that.¡± I already know everything. It¡¯s all fake. I don¡¯t know what he wants from me. ¡°I¡¯ve always thought of you even on the battlefield. Yulia.¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s a lie.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The words you said you loved me. It was all a lie.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡­Did you think of it as a lie? Until now?¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s possible. I didn¡¯t expect it to be true in the first place.¡± Actually, I was shaken. I was shaken by his actions that looked sincere. No matter how many times I thought about it, I was like a fool to be shaken for a while. But it felt really sincere, so even if it wasn¡¯t for that time, I would have been shaken. ¡°¡­I don¡¯t intend to break my promise. I¡¯ll get married as promised. However, please postpone it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yulia. Who said that?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I blankly looked out the window. It was a familiar landscape, that means, we will arrive at the castle soon. ¡°Is it Idrian?¡± Why is the male lead¡¯s name mentioned here? Well, I overheard it secretly. There¡¯s no way you¡¯d know. ¡°That¡¯s what you said yourself.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you said yourself. Do you look like a person who will do love?¡± I said vaguely, and I was curious about the answer. I was very curious about what kind of expression he had, but I couldn¡¯t confirm it. I was too scared. ¡°Yulia. It¡¯s a misunderstanding.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what anyone would say.¡± ¡°¡­¡­At least I mean it when I say I love you.¡± It¡¯s obviously a lie. If he had given a plausible excuse, I might have believed it. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± Suddenly, I noticed a slight bloody smell. The carriage was filled with bloody smell mixed with soap scent. I didn¡¯t have a wound. And there are only two people in the carriage. If it¡¯s not me, there¡¯s only the villain left. The gaze that had been fixed outside the window for a long time was moved to the villain. There is no way that the villain was injured. ¡°¡­¡­Did you kill a person before you came to me?¡± The fishy smell clearly smelled like blood. He shook his head at my question. ¡°No.¡± Well, his clothes were too clean to kill someone. Or it might be that he changed his clothes without washing up. So it should smell like soap, but there is still a smell of blood. I had no choice but to ask just in case. Because he kept using only his right hand. ¡°¡­¡­.Are you hurt?¡± I looked at his left arm. Chapter 24 Chapter 24 *** It was definitely the smell of blood. My eyes naturally looked at his left arm. There was nothing wrong with his right hand and he didn¡¯t move his left arm as much. ¡°¡­Did you hurt your left arm?¡± ¡°Are you worried?¡± He had a smile on his face. ¡°Are you hurt? Please answer that first.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. And it won¡¯t scar.¡± That must be a lie. How can I accept it as a minor injury when there is a smell of blood? I¡¯m not a complete fool. ¡°Chestee. It didn¡¯t seem like a light wound.¡± ¡°¡­¡­It¡¯s not really a big injury. There¡¯s just a lot of bleeding.¡± A lot of bleeding means you¡¯re seriously hurt! I could see him sneakily hiding his left arm. When I saw it, I hurriedly grabbed his left arm. ¡°Yulia?¡± His sleeves were damp. When I checked the liquid on my hand, it was undeniably red. And the liquid smelled fishy. ¡°This is blood, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal. I often bleed.¡± He probably wrapped the wound with a bandage, but this blood stain meant that the wound was still open. I felt really strange too. I was the one who drove him to the war, and I was the one who wanted him to die there, but why am I so surprised to see him hurt? I was the one who wanted him to die, but why am I shaking so much just because he¡¯s wounded? ¡°¡­Does it hurt a lot?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt much,¡± He fiddled his left arm. Did I feel guilt? I couldn¡¯t figure it out. I didn¡¯t know where my anxiety originated and the cause. ¡°Yulia. You don¡¯t have to make such a serious face. This is a light wound.¡± ¡°¡­But you¡¯re hurt! No, it¡¯s serious enough for me to know, but you say it¡¯s a light wound? Do I look like a fool?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry. It¡¯s really a minor injury. I can¡¯t even say this is an injury.¡± ¡°But once you¡¯re back, you should have received treatment first!¡± ¡°I¡¯m the one who got hurt, why does it looked as if you¡¯re the one who got hurt?¡± I¡¯m serious, but he replied playfully. If he¡¯s hurt, he should at least show it. My head was pounding. I suddenly remembered a floor with blood in it. But soon I shook off the unknown memory. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about it. I didn¡¯t lose my arm, nor did I get hurt so much that I couldn¡¯t use it.¡± ¡°¡­¡­But.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you so worried about me.¡± He took out his handkerchief and wiped my hands. To be exact, his blood is on my hands. ¡°Yulia, your hands are dirty.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t touch it¡­ this handkerchief should be used to stop the bleeding properly.¡± ¡°I¡¯m on my way to see my father-in-law, and if his daughter¡¯s hands are covered with blood, what could he think?¡± ¡°¡­My dad will understand it. You didn¡¯t lose, and you came back after winning again this time.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t usually get hurt easily. It¡¯s a wound that¡¯s embarrassing to call it an injury even if I get hurt. It¡¯s not once or twice it happened anyway.¡± ¡°¡­Did you get hurt in the past?¡± In fact, has Chester been injured even a little during the war in the original story? Did I just do the description roughly in the original story? That part was not an important part of the original. So I wasn¡¯t interested. ¡°I¡¯ve never been hurt enough to say it¡¯s an injury.¡± ¡°¡­How can I not worry?¡± How did my mom die? My mom was sick but there¡¯s nothing I could do. Then eventually, my mom passed away. So I couldn¡¯t just wait if a person was hurt or sick in front of me. I immediately thought of my mom. ¡°Even if it wasn¡¯t Chester, I wouldn¡¯t have overlooked it if someone else had been hurt or sick in front of me.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t joke around.¡± ¡°I want all of your actions to be directed solely at me.¡± He smiled languidly with only me in his eyes. ¡°Yulia. I¡¯m greedy, right?¡± ¡°¡­Anyway, just don¡¯t get hurt.¡± Even though I didn¡¯t like him, I couldn¡¯t turn a blind eye to the one injured. Then, I felt the carriage stop. ¡°I guess we¡¯ve arrived.¡± ¡°Shall we go now?¡± ¡°¡­Will it be okay? Really? With that arm?¡± I was really worried. Maybe it was guilt. Of course, he won a war that should¡¯ve end with defeat. And maybe the original story had already been twisted. However, that did not change the character¡¯s setting. Maybe my choice rushed my ending. ¡°It¡¯s just my left hand. It is not an inconvenience because I don¡¯t usually use it.¡± Chester stretched out his right hand in front of me. He tries not to move his left hand as much as possible, so it must¡¯ve hurt. It couldn¡¯t have been fine. Still, rather than putting my hand on his wounded hand, it would be right to be escorted with his right hand. I grabbed Chester¡¯s hand. It was my first time coming back after six months. It seemed unfamiliar and familiar at the same time It means that the six months I spent have been so much fun that I could forget about my home. Since I was going to see them in the office anyway, I headed to the office where my dad was with Chester. ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°Yulia!¡± I let go of Chester¡¯s hand that I was holding, and ran to my dad as I hugged him. Perhaps because it¡¯s been a while since I saw him, I felt even happier. ¡°How was your trip?¡± ¡°It was great! I¡¯d like to go again next time.¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll let you go anytime if you want to go again.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re here with the Duke of Siegbert.¡± I looked back at Chester at my dad¡¯s words ¡°I see the Sun of the Empire, His Majesty the Emperor.¡± ¡°The duke¡¯s contribution in ending this war in such a short time is great.¡± ¡°Duke¡­ do you still want to marry my daughter?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I sneaked a peek at my dad. I couldn¡¯t understand his expression. I couldn¡¯t figure out what he was thinking. ¡°Yulia. What about you?¡± ¡°¡­Yes. I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Are you confident you won¡¯t regret it?¡± It wasn¡¯t that difficult to understand what my das said. The question was whether I really wanted to marry Chester. In other words, it also meant that I could say it if I didn¡¯t want to. ¡°¡­I¡¯m fine. Because promises are promises.¡± I¡¯ve already made a lot of regrets. I know I may regret it again, but it should be a problem for later. I don¡¯t need to get married right away, I can get engaged and delay the marriage. And I was going to let Chester break up the marriage at any time if he wanted. ¡°Dad. I said we¡¯d decided to postpone the marriage and just get engaged.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Also¡­ If we change our mind before marriage, we can break up anytime.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to do the engagement ceremony first.¡± Dad said and stared at Chester. In the past, he asked me how Chester was, saying that he was a nice candidate, but for some reason, he looked dissatisfied now. Rather, marrying him was more beneficial for the imperial family, is there anything I don¡¯t know? ¡°Dad. I¡¯ll be going now.¡± ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s have lunch tomorrow, Yulia.¡± I took Chester out of my dad¡¯s office, and ny steps naturally accelerated. ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°¡­Follow me. You came here without proper treatment for your arm injury.¡± ¡°People won¡¯t die from this.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.I¡¯m responsible for it.¡± I brought him to my castle and ordered people to heal his arm. I regretted that I asked him to participate in the war for no reason. If I knew he would get hurt like that, I wouldn¡¯t do it. Since I couldn¡¯t see people I know get hurt. It reminds me of the past. ¡°Your Highness, the treatment is over.¡± When I heard from the doctor that the treatment was over, I went inside the room where Chester was. His outerwear was hanging over a chair, and Chester was only wearing a shirt. His arms were covered with white bandages. I ran to him and looked around, then touched his arm. Still, I was relieved because it didn¡¯t seem like he cracked any bones. I felt like my voice was finally coming out. ¡°Chester. Don¡¯t get hurt.¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡± He smiled, looking very sweet. I didn¡¯t know why I felt awkward seeing that expression. Chester didn¡¯t smile much, so it¡¯s right to feel awkward. ¡°Yulia.¡± It was only after he called my name that I could escape from my thoughts. He grabbed my hand tightly which touched his bandaged arm. ¡°I wanted to ask you something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± His eyes now were sincere the first time since I met him. Because of that, I was nervous because I didn¡¯t know what he would say. I was so anxious that I didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°Do you love me?¡± Do I love you? I couldn¡¯t answer the question right away. It was because I was surprised, and it was a question that I had never thought of. I looked at him with shaky eyes, but he seemed very serious. So I decided to be honest to some extent. ¡°¡­I don¡¯t know.¡± At least it wasn¡¯t love. At one time, I was scared and hated him enough to want to die, but I didn¡¯t hate him enough to turn a blind eye seeing him hurt. I couldn¡¯t figure out how I felt. Because my family is still alive. Yulia in the novel is the one who died, not me. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°You said that you didn¡¯t love me.¡± It was the first time I used this kind of tone to him. This is the first time I speak firmly to him. ¡°It¡¯s the truth.¡± Chapter 25 *** My heart sank at the words. Maybe I wanted to dismiss what I heard accidently as a misunderstanding. But in the end, I was right. No, the original was not wrong. I was right to judge that Chester had never loved me for a single moment. The original story was right. Then, my ending and my family¡¯s death won¡¯t change? ¡°¡­Truth?¡± He will eventually be obsessed with the female lead. Maybe it was just that he didn¡¯t act like the original because it wasn¡¯t time yet. I already knew, but why do I feel so sad? And why am I surprised? There¡¯s nothing to be shocked about. Why do I feel like my head is pounding? Why does it feel so painful? ¡°Yulia.¡± I came out of the stupor with his voice. His voice was so sweet. At the same time, it was a very serious tone. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought back then.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°But I love you right now.¡± ¡°How are you sure about that? Are you lying to me again this time?¡± He shook his head at what I said. He meant that he wasn¡¯t lying. If it were usual, I would have thought that it¡¯s a lie, but his expression seemed very serious. For now, I decided to listen to him a little more. It would be better to listen to it. ¡°I had a lot of thoughts on the battlefield. And all those thoughts were only about Yulia, you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I felt empty because you weren¡¯t around, and I missed you because I couldn¡¯t see you, I was frustrated that I couldn¡¯t see you.¡± It was completely different from him that was described in the original. No, actually, he treated the female lead like this in the original. Of course, it was similar to the days when all readers thought he was a sub-male lead rather than the villain. Did the female lead feel this way at that time? ¡°And they said this emotion was love.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Who?¡± I didn¡¯t know who taught him. I know the relationship between the male lead and Chester, but it didn¡¯t seem like he would tell the male lead that. However, Chester did not have a friend other than the male lead. ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°The butler said that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s love when we feel empty when they¡¯re not around, miss them when they can¡¯t see them, and want to hug them when we see their back.¡± He had a gentle smile that looked harmless. ¡°And above all, there¡¯s nothing more certain than you, who¡¯s always in my eyes.¡± My eyes shook. ¡°If that¡¯s right, it means I¡¯ve been in love since the first time I saw you.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Really?¡± ¡± It¡¯s true. And I mean it. Yulia.¡± I was so surprised that I blinked quickly without realizing it. ¡°Everything I said today, there¡¯s no lie.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Really?¡± Chester laughed at my question. It was like the laughter of a very sweet person, while at the same time like an alluring devil. He grabbed a handful of my hair and kissed it. ¡°Yulia. I don¡¯t intend to let you go.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I won¡¯t force you to accept it. Just don¡¯t push me away.¡± I couldn¡¯t answer Chester¡¯s words. At this moment, I couldn¡¯t even think of what to say. It¡¯s my first time experiencing it, so I couldn¡¯t say anything. I only managed to call him. ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you really love me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Really? Do you really really love me?¡± I couldn¡¯t believe it easily. It was hard to believe that Chester, the villain, talked to me like that. It was also a line that did not appear at all in the original. ¡°Do you really love me?¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t love you, who else would I love?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Are you saying that you really love Yulia?¡± ¡°Then do you think I don¡¯t love Yulia, and I love someone other than you?¡± ¡°¡­Do you really love me?¡± It was my first time seeing Chester look so serious, so I felt strange and happy. The fact that it is a love without sympathy or compassion that I received since my mother left me made me feel relieved. There was something I had to check, so I pushed my face right in front of his face. I stared at Chester¡¯s eyes from a very close distance to see if he was lying, if he was serious. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°¡­¡­. Yulia. You¡¯re too close.¡± ¡°Answer me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure.¡± His eyes didn¡¯t seem to lie either. I felt it from the bottom of my heart. I wasn¡¯t doing this because I wanted to believe that he meant it. I just wanted to be sure that he really meant it. I could finally laugh properly at what he said. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You should laugh like that only in front of me. You can¡¯t show such a pretty smile to anyone other than me. ¡°¡­Even to dad and brother?¡± ¡°It¡¯s limited to men.¡± ¡°¡­From my point of view, Chester is also a man.¡± ¡°I¡¯m an exception. We¡¯re getting engaged soon and getting married.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but¡­¡± ¡°Yulia. Do you want to speed up our marriage?¡± When he said let¡¯s speed up our marriage, it came back to reality. Although Chester really meant that he loved me, I should be cautious regarding marriage. The story seemed to have already deviated a lot from the original, but the proper meeting between the female lead and Chester has not come yet. And, there were other reasons as well. ¡°¡­¡­ Let¡¯s get married in two years.¡± ¡°Sure, if you want to.¡± ¡°I want to spend more time with my family.¡± One of the reasons is that I couldn¡¯t let go of my family yet. For me, my family were very precious people. Because they were the people who made me want to be loved, and I don¡¯t want to be separated from them. So, my family still came first. ¡°¡­Is it fine?¡± ¡°Yes, I fully understand. Because you want to stay with your family a little longer.¡± Chester¡¯s parents died when he was young. In a way, Chester could have been a pitiful character if he wasn¡¯t the villain. Chester isn¡¯t the villain right now. He hasn¡¯t even met the female lead yet. But even if he was a villain, I just wanted to hug him. ¡°¡­Yulia?¡± That¡¯s why I hugged him. Chester seemed surprised at first by my actions, but soon hugged me back. This made me feel relieved. The sound of his heart in my ears made me feel nice although soon I felt a little uncomfortable. ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Only your left arm got hurt right?¡± ¡°¡­You don¡¯t have to worry about me.¡± He said that his leg was not injured, so I sat down on his lap. ¡°Umm, Yulia?¡± ¡°¡­You don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t do it?¡± As expected, it doesn¡¯t work. Sitting on his lap, I stared at him. Or maybe? ¡°¡­Am I heavy?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°Then why?¡± It wasn¡¯t that he hated it, he couldn¡¯t, and I was heavy. But I didn¡¯t understand why he was acting like this. And why is Chester¡¯s face so red? ¡°It¡¯s nice to act like this, but it¡¯s a bit difficult right now.¡± Chester put his right hand on my cheek and looked at me warmly. Then he stroked my cheek. It felt nice. ¡°Yulia. Should I come here or will Yulia come to me?¡± ¡°¡­Your arm is injured. I¡¯ll go tomorrow.¡± ¡°Then do you want to go out tomorrow? There is a place I want to show you.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Chester chuckled. How can a person smile so seductively? ¡°It¡¯s a little far away.¡± ¡°¡­Is it that far?¡± ¡°Yes. You can come after eating with your father.¡± ¡°How long does it take?¡± ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t know about that either.¡± ¡°How can you not know that?¡± He kissed my cheek briefly. ¡°Yulia. Remember this, all my beginning and end are yours. And that I love you so much, Yulia.¡± It was a very sweet confession of love, unlike what Chester would normally say. ¡°At first, I was going to let it go¡­ but I think it¡¯s going to be a bit difficult.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯re so pretty that I want to eat you.¡± I hope my face didn¡¯t show that I was surprised. My heart pounded nervously with anxiety. In addition, even the voice that came out of me was filled with trembling. ¡°Chester¡­?¡± When I called him, he swallowed my lips at once with a very drowsy smile. His hand affectionately stroked my cheek. I gently closed my eyes at the touch of affection. As if he was a thirsty man, he pushed his tongue in and persistently dug into my mouth. I opened my eyes slightly as our lips parted for a while. ¡°Ha¡­¡± His red eyes and mine looked at each other. As I was trying to breathe, our lips got intertwined again. His tongue, which was inside my lips, gently moved my tongue. As soon as his hand came into the hem of the dress, I came to my senses and hurriedly stopped his hand. ¡°Cherster! We¡­¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°¡­¡­Until we get married, let¡¯s just kiss.¡± Chapter 26 Chapter 26 Chester was startled by what I said. I could clearly see his eyes shaking. Perhaps for him, it felt like a bolt out of the blue. He even confessed to me, but what returned was a ban. ¡°Yu¡­lia?¡± ¡°You said you loved me. Was it a lie?¡± ¡°¡­I mean it.¡± ¡°Then please think of it as proof.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Okay.¡± He gently stepped down. He was so gentle that it felt strange. His hand digging into the hem of my dress was retracted, and he put my cheeks on his hand instead. With a very handsome face, even only with a slight smile, he could make a person fascinated. ¡°If I had to do that so that you could trust me, I¡¯d be happy to do that.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be hated by you, Yulia.¡± He stared at me as if he was seducing me. But soon the gaze disappeared. Chester closed his eyes and rubbed his face on my palm like a puppy. ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll listen to you well from now on.¡± Chester kissed my wrist and looked down at me with a drowsy smile. ¡°So see you tomorrow, Yulia,¡± He kissed the back of my hand, staring straight into my eyes. My heart thumped and reacted to him. How could a person be this handsome? Isn¡¯t it cheating? Who would be calm if he smiled and acted like that with that face? ¡°Yulia. I won¡¯t eat you up. I won¡¯t touch more than your lips until the period you said.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Yes, Yulia.¡± ¡°If you want to make me trust you, can you move away from me for now?¡± He seemed to have no intention of moving away. I think I have to say it out loud for him to get out of the way. Chester stood up without saying much. ¡°Cherster. You really love me, right?¡± ¡°Yes. I love you very much, Yulia.¡±. ¡°¡­You only love me, right?¡± The word ¡°not pretending to love¡± did not come out of my mouth. I wanted to believe that he loved me without any conditions or reasons, but I couldn¡¯t believe as much as I wanted to. ¡°If I don¡¯t seem to love you, and you feel it, I¡¯ll break up the marriage.¡± ¡°¡­Really.¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s how confident I am and above all, I mean it.¡± Can I really trust him? Looking at him described in the original, he was not such a reliable person, but he seemed to have already deviated from the details of the original. So, can I trust him? ¡°I love you. I mean it, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Come to me early tomorrow, Yulia.¡± I nodded unconsciously. *** I washed up, picked out a dress, and sat on the dressing table. The maids displayed the jewels. I point a finger at accessories that would go well with the sky blue dress I was wearing. ¡°Nanny.¡± ¡°Yes, princess?¡± ¡°¡­It should be okay, right?¡± ¡°Of course. There is no one more perfect than the Duke of Siegbert if you¡¯re going to get married.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­right.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no age difference, and he¡¯s handsome, his other qualifications are great.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°The best thing is his face. And since His Excellency demanded marriage with the princess first, he must have liked you.¡± ¡°Does the nanny think Duke Siegbert likes me?¡± ¡°At least, I don¡¯t think he doesn¡¯t have any feelings.¡± My nanny smiled slightly at my question. I hugged her tightly. In the past, I could only reach her stomach, but now I was so big that I could engulf her. She patted me on the back. My mind gradually regained stability. ¡°What is my princess worried about?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just so weird.¡± Especially when he said he loved me. Why is he so hard to believe? Because he¡¯s the villain? Or is there any other reason? ¡°Why did the Duke of Siegbert do that to me¡­¡± In fact, I didn¡¯t fully believe the words when he said he loved me. No, it was suspicious. It was strange for him to suddenly change his attitude like that. ¡°¡­Did he want the marriage? To connect with the imperial family?¡± ¡°The princess is the most noble person in the empire. There is no woman in a higher position than the princess, so be proud!¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°And above all, the princess resembles the late empress, who was famous for her beauty.¡± I couldn¡¯t get out of my mother¡¯s shadow. What would it have been like if I didn¡¯t resemble my mom and looked like my dad? If so, would he have loved me who didn¡¯t resemble my mother? It¡¯s better now, but it was so hard right after my mother died. ¡°¡­I¡¯ll go now.¡± ¡°Yes, princess.¡± But now I have a different feeling than before. At that time, I felt repulsed because I forced myself to do things I didn¡¯t want to do. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ve arrived at my destination, but the carriage stopped. I could see Chester outside the door of the carriage. ¡°Yulia.¡± Chester held out his right hand to me, as if to escort me. I gently put my hand on his. ¡°Why did you come out?¡± ¡°You said you were coming, so I should be waiting.¡± ¡°¡­Are you okay? What about your wound?¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad you worried about me, but I¡¯m fine. You don¡¯t have to worry.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If you¡¯re so worried, you can check it out.¡± Chester held out his left hand to me. On the outside, it looked nothing out of the ordinary, but I couldn¡¯t tell exactly. Is he pretending to be okay when he¡¯s sick? Because I didn¡¯t know if he was really fine. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t make that face. From now on, you¡¯re going to date me, but if you make such a face even before dating, I¡¯ll be upset.¡± I stared at his left arm. ¡°If you¡¯re that worried, check it out yourself.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What?¡± Without hesitation, he took off the bandage wrapped around his left hand. Fortunately, the bandage worked properly, and blood did not come out like yesterday. Still, there was a blood stain on the bandage. ¡°Because I¡¯m fine, don¡¯t worry, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­I trust you.¡± ¡°Can I walk with you for a while before I go on a trip? There¡¯s a place I want to show you here too.¡± I nodded at his words. Then he smiled, pulled my hand and took me toward the garden. As it was a place where I didn¡¯t even intend to look before, I didn¡¯t show any interest. But now, I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off it. The garden in my eyes now had numerous flowers planted here and there that he had sent me before. ¡°Yulia. I can¡¯t tell what you like, so I only decorated it this much. If you tell me what kind of flowers you like, I¡¯ll tell them to grow a new garden.¡± ¡°¡­Lisianthus.¡± ¡°The next time you come, it¡¯ll be filled with Lisianthus.¡± Chester¡¯s smile felt warm. But doesn¡¯t it feel ominous? Still, he looked handsome because of that face. ¡°After marriage, I want everywhere in the mansion to be plastered with your taste. Can I?¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If you want, I¡¯m willing.¡± Chester pulled my hand and kissed my palm. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be wary of anyone, change everything in the mansion as you want.¡± ¡°Why do you say that? Is it really okay for me to do that?¡± Chester kissed my cheek. Earlier, he kissed my palm. This time, it was a cheek. I was surprised and took back my hands that his lips touched. ¡°Is there anyone who won¡¯t be okay? You¡¯re the wife of Duke Siegbert anyway, so of course it¡¯s okay.¡± ¡°So where are we going?¡± He led my hand instead of answering and put me in a carriage with the patterns of Duke Siegbert. He won¡¯t answer me until the end? ¡°It¡¯s a secret. Yulia.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not really going to tell me?¡± ¡°No. It won¡¯t take very long. I hope you like it. Will you like it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Chester smirked. I didn¡¯t hate his expression. His face somehow reminded me of someone. But the memories aren¡¯t clear. ¡®If I meet you again, please stay with me then!¡¯ I couldn¡¯t remember the face of a boy my age who had black hair and held my hand eagerly. No, it was when I couldn¡¯t see properly in the first place. Therefore, I had no confidence in my memories. I¡¯m just being suspicious. ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°¡­Nevermind.¡± I called him, but couldn¡¯t ask him. I¡¯m not sure if he noticed that. Chester gently stroked my cheek and whispered gently as if not to feel burdened. ¡°If you want to ask me anything, ask me. I¡¯ll answer you.¡± Sitting face-to-face with Chester as he stroked my cheek, I didn¡¯t feel repulsed anymore. Rather, I stared at his face enough to pierce it. It could have been an illusion. No, there was a high probability that it was an illusion. Still, I felt like I needed to ask just in case. Both of them had the same hair color after all. Although he was too different to be the same person as the child, ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°Yes, Yulia.¡± There was no guarantee that Chester was not him. ¡°Have we met before?¡± Chapter 27 *** Perhaps it¡¯s because of the description in the original. Or have I really seen him at least once before? The more I saw him, the more I felt familiar with his face. It would have been memorable if I looked at a face as handsome as Chester. But why didn¡¯t I remember it properly? Well, if I met him when we were very young, the memory could have faded over time. ¡°The only silver hairs I¡¯ve met are my father-in-law and brother-in-law, except for you.¡± Now that was very natural. I thought about what to say, but I decided to leave it alone because we were engaged and eventually get married anyway. ¡°¡­You really didn¡¯t see me when we were young?¡± I couldn¡¯t trust my memory completely. That¡¯s why I asked. Since Chester said that if I ask him anything, he¡¯ll be happy to answer, I asked that. However, I had no choice but to erase the expectation as he shook his head. ¡°As a child, Yulia would never have seen me.¡± ¡°As expected¡­¡± ¡°When I came to the castle after my parents passed away, I was only given the title directly by His Majesty.¡± ¡°I must have been mistaken.¡± Because my memory is blurry. No, actually, I thought it would be nice if Chester was the one I saw when I was young. It was just my greed. It was just an illusion. In the first place, I had never participated in someone¡¯s succession ceremony. No, I didn¡¯t go out of the castle when I was young. There was only one time I went out of the castle. Except at that time, I never went outside of the castle and never met someone my age except for Cecil. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°What?¡± I came to my senses only when I heard Chester¡¯s voice calling me. ¡°I want all your attention to be directed solely at me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡­You¡¯re already with me.¡± ¡°Then I want your head to be filled with only me when the two of us are together.¡± Chester kissed my palm. Those bright red eyes staring at me while kissing reminded me of an alluring devil. I hurriedly took my hand out of his hand. Then, I felt the carriage stop at a good time. ¡°¡­I guess we¡¯ve arrived.¡± Chester looked a little disappointed, but got off the carriage first. He reached out to me. ¡°Yulia.¡± I hesitated slightly, but soon put my hand on his hand. Thanks to that, I was able to get off the carriage easily. When my foot touched the ground, his hand under my hand took my fingers between his. ¡°¡­¡­Chester?¡± I called his name because I was surprised by his behavior, but he looked at me calmly as if he had done nothing at all. I felt like I became a strange person. ¡°Yulia, this is nothing compared to kissing.¡± It wasn¡¯t wrong. No, exactly, it¡¯s more like I forgot exactly what I said. ¡°Do you want to hold hands?¡± ¡°Can you allow me to hold hands?¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll allow you.¡± Chester smiled a lot since he told me he loved me. I¡¯ve never seen such a smile before, but after saying that he loves me, he definitely smiles more often. I can¡¯t take my eyes off Chester¡¯s smiling face. It was not an excuse. ¡°It¡¯s good to see my face, but I hope to see the surroundings too. Yulia.¡± My face heated up at his words now that I realized that I was staring at Chester¡¯s face too much. As soon as I looked around at Chester¡¯s words, I blinked because I couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°¡­.Here?¡± It was my first time seeing this place. But the beautiful scenery caught my eye. The scenery was so beautiful that I was amazed, yet I got goosebumps all over my body. Is it just because of the height? Or is it because the sound of the waterfall is too loud? My body trembled with unknown coldness. Chester put the outerwear he was wearing on my shoulder, perhaps because I looked cold. ¡°Yulia. I heard you loved traveling, so I wanted to show you this place on your way back.¡± ¡°Chester¡­¡­¡± ¡°Every day, I was full of thoughts about you.¡± He hugged me carefully from behind. As a result, Chester¡¯s face could not be seen, but his warmth was felt. Chester¡¯s sweet whisper in my ears tickled my heart recklessly. At the same time, however, anxiety passed by. Can I really trust Chester? I was still unsure. Is it because he really loves me or is he pretending to love me for another purpose? As I was unsure of what Chester wanted, my hesitation grew. ¡°I missed you and come back as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Why did you miss me?¡± My heart thumped wildly. I was nervous that he might hear my heart even if he hugged me from behind. Above all, I was nervous about what Chester would say. I wanted to see in person what expression he was making now, but he didn¡¯t turn his head. ¡°Because I love you.¡± And I didn¡¯t have the courage to face him in case he had an expression different from my expectations. The moment I heard that, my heart beat was faster than before. I wanted to believe that he love me. I wanted to accept the sweet whisper as if the devil were seducing me affectionately. ¡°Cherster. You said you loved me, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Where do you love me?¡± Then a strong wind blew, and my silver hair fluttered. My hair fluttered in Chester¡¯s arm, which was hugging me. And he tightened his hold. I didn¡¯t hate it. ¡°Yulia. I love everything from head to toe.¡± ¡°¡­¡­What made you fall in love with me?¡± ¡°From the moment I first saw you, I fell in love with you.¡± From the moment I first saw you? However, I couldn¡¯t remember how my first meeting with Chester was. Maybe because I was drunk and lost my memories. So what I said or did didn¡¯t remain in my head at all. All I know is that I met Chester for the first time while drunk, but I didn¡¯t recognize that he was the villain. This was all I remembered. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the first day I saw Chester.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. I remember everything.¡± Until now, I have unconsciously been reluctant to see his face. However, his whisper strengthened the urge to see his expression. I lifted my head slightly and glanced up at his face. The corners of Chester¡¯s mouth were up. He looked as if he were in a very good mood. His gaze felt a little burdensome, so I straightened my body and moved my gaze to the landscape. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± I heard his voice ringing softly just above my head. ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to say it. And it¡¯s not what I want to give you, it¡¯s exactly what I want you to receive.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± What is he hesitating to say? The useless curiosity is piling up inside me. ¡°Yulia. We¡¯ve already promised to get married, and we¡¯re going to get engaged soon.¡± That¡¯s a fact that everyone knows. Why did he mention such obvious things? He let go of his arms which were hugging me. Then he took something out and put one knee on the ground in front of me. ¡°Chester?¡± He had a small box in his hand, and it contained a ring elaborately crafted at first glance. At the center of the ring was a bloody ruby reminiscent of Chester¡¯s eyes. I don¡¯t understand why he¡¯s showing me this and why he bent his knee. I looked at him, asking him to explain. ¡°I want to talk with you about our marriage. Yulia.¡± He said affectionately with a drowsy smile. His hand gently wrapped my left hand and took out the ring from the box. Just before the ring was fully fitted into my left ring finger, I looked up at him. Chester asked me with a friendly face and a very sweet voice. Surprised by his unexpected remark of ¡°Would you be my lover?¡± my eyes naturally blinked. Why does the sweet word ¡®lover¡¯ come out so naturally from him? ¡°¡­Lovers?¡± ¡°Yes, Yulia. I want to be your lover.¡± ¡°I¡­¡± I shut my lips, and no more words came out of my mouth. I was looking into his eyes, but I lowered my gaze and looked at his hand, which was holding my hand. ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure I love Chester. Is it okay?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s okay.¡± ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay?¡± ¡°Yes. Because I love you with all my heart.¡± When I raised my eyes to his face again, I saw his eyes that felt sincere. ¡°¡­¡­if you really don¡¯t mind, then, good.¡± The ring went into my ring finger. When I looked at his hand, his left hand was also fitted with a ring that looked like a pair with what he had put on me. He kissed the back of my hand briefly. At the same time, his red eyes which were staring at me, was like a beast who saw its prey. ¡°Yulia, if you don¡¯t like it, push me away.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, my lips and his lips interlocked. My fingertips trembled. How can I push him? I can¡¯t think of anything other than losing my mind. Our lips fell off for a moment. After I inhaled the air, our lips were interlocked again. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled them close. It was not until we were out of breath that we seperated. ¡°Ha¡­.¡± I breathed heavily. Chester swept my lips with his finger. Chester must¡¯ve felt it was still lacking, so he stared persistently at me with eyes full of greed. My heart would explode if we continued. Above all, I was embarrassed to think that my face would be red. ¡°We¡¯d better go back now!¡± I hurried out of his arms and went into the carriage. He didn¡¯t really stop me. While calming my thumping heart, I felt the carriage rattling. ¡°Yulia!¡± When I heard Chester¡¯s voice, I felt something was wrong. The scenery from the window of the carriage slowly went towards the blue sky, and my body was leaning on the carriage. I hurriedly tried to open the door of the carriage, but it only rattled. As if it¡¯s broken. At that moment, I could see Chester¡¯s face out the window, and he hurriedly came near the door. ¡°Chester¡­?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be scared, Yulia. Just trust me.¡± When I held his hand tightly, he pulled my body out of the carriage and held it in his arms. ¡°Yulia. Breathe in deeply. And close your eyes.¡± I didn¡¯t know why he told me to do that, but I closed my eyes and took a deep breath as he told me to do. His hands wrapped my head gently, and his hands holding my waist were more powerful. The coldness felt from my feet gradually came up to my head. We were in the water where the waterfall was. The cold temperature of the water felt scary. I became more anxious when I couldn¡¯t feel his body temperature while holding me. Above all, I think there was a time like this in my previous life, but I couldn¡¯t remember exactly. Will I drown again? I didn¡¯t want to die like this. This time, I really wanted to live. Chapter 28 Chapter 28 *** It was my limit. I couldn¡¯t hold on because I didn¡¯t have enough air. I wonder if I¡¯m going to drown again? I didn¡¯t want to die. I wanted to live. I regretted it. If I knew this would happen, I should have learned swimming in advance. I fell into the water and never learned how to swim in this life. Silly me. The moment I gave up everything, something soft overlapped over my lips and air came through my mouth. I desperately hung on to the air bubbles that prolong my life. I didn¡¯t want to miss it. ¡°Ha!¡± What I felt after the proper air entered my lungs and breathed heavily was the coldness that froze my whole body. My whole body trembled. I could only wrap my arms around Chester¡¯s neck and rely on him. His clothes were wet alongside mine, so I didn¡¯t feel warm at all. ¡°Ha¡­¡± ¡°Yulia, are you cold?¡± I don¡¯t want to die, so my arm hugging his neck is more powerful than before. The water-soaked dress felt heavier. Even though I¡¯m not heavy, how much harder would it be for him to support me with one hand? I felt sorry. I felt like a bag of luggage. Slowly, my mind became messed up. The feeling of wanting to close my eyes and fall asleep gradually became stronger. ¡°Yulia. Hang in there.¡± He took me out of the water first, and we came out of the water, he held my waist tightly with the other hand. He hugged me very lightly as if I was a feather, even though the dress must have been heavy from water. With my arms tightly wrapped around his neck, I buried my face on his shoulder. Chester patted me gently on the back as if trying to reassure me who was trembling. ¡°Yulia. It¡¯s okay, don¡¯t be afraid.¡± I couldn¡¯t hear him properly. In the past, I remembered the feeling of freezing in very cold water after falling from a high place. It wasn¡¯t that. In my past life, I died because I couldn¡¯t breathe rather than drowning in cold water. Then when is it? I couldn¡¯t remember properly. My eyes kept closing. I tried hard to open my eyes, but I closed my eyes without realizing it because of the sleepiness. Everything becomes dark. *** I stood on the railing with my feet staggering. A cold wind penetrated my flesh. An emotional feeling rose inside of me. The moment I meet the red eyes that didn¡¯t have any emotion, my eyes get teary and my heart gets hurt. I felt so sad when I saw that indifferent expression. He was a person who wouldn¡¯t even blink an eye when I plunged a knife into his body. ¡°¡­You will definitely regret it!¡± It was a wish, not a curse. He just stayed still and watched slowly what I was doing. The fishy smell of blood poked the tip of my nose again. I hated him. And I was resentful. But I loved him. Hence, I couldn¡¯t kill him. If I kill him, there¡¯s no one left for me, so I decided to kill myself. ¡°Chester.¡± Finally, I called him and let go of my body that was standing on the railing dangerously. Then my body tilted and I saw the beautiful night sky. My body fell over to the deep lake of the imperial palace, which reflected the moonlight. The Ice-cold water penetrated the body and did not allow any movement. The lake in the imperial palace was too deep. My breath was slowly running out, and the sensation of freezing from my fingertips was clearly felt. ¡°Oh my¡­!¡± My hands reflexively grabbed my chest with my eyes wide open. Perhaps because of the cold or the content of my dream, my body was trembling. ¡°Yulia?¡± The moment I turned my head at the sweet voice calling me, I was surprised. It overlapped with the face that was looking at me with cold eyes I saw in my dream. So I instinctively pushed his body away. When I blinked again and saw Chester, his face was fortunately clean, unlike his bloody face in my dream. I reached out and touched his clean cheeks. I was just glad that it was nothing but a dream. However, my dream was so vivid. Apart from that, the coldness that penetrated the whole body was still there. It felt strange to dismiss it as a dream. I felt as if what I have experienced in the past appeared as a dream. No, it had to be just my feeling. It would have happened if I hadn¡¯t twisted the original. It¡¯s going in a different direction than the original, so I can relax. ¡°Yulia, did you have a nightmare?¡± ¡°Chester¡­¡± His eyes when he looked at me were completely different from those I saw in my dream. Now, he was staring at me with very sweet eyes. I stretched out my arms again and hugged him tightly. The sound of his heart in my ears and his body temperature felt by my skin made me regain stability. But what is this unknown ominous feeling? Dreams are just dreams and are out of the original story, so I don¡¯t have to be anxious. Why am I so nervous? Chester patted me on the back as if to calm me down. ¡°Was it scary?¡± ¡°Chester¡­You don¡¯t hide anything from me, do you?¡± I was nervous. I wondered if the dream was telling me about my future. ¡°You don¡¯t look good, Yulia.¡± ¡°Answer me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯m not hiding anything.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. There¡¯s nothing to hide, so you don¡¯t have to be anxious.¡± I dug deeper into his arms. ¡°I had a nightmare.¡± ¡°Was it very scary?¡± ¡°I know it was a dream, but it was vivid as if it were real.¡± It was scary. I¡¯m afraid that dream will come true. And I¡¯m afraid that what I¡¯ve seen so far is false. No, actually, it felt like someone was warning me. Warning to stay away from Chester. If I¡¯m with him, I¡¯m sure the bad ending will be waiting for me. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If you put restrictions on me now so that I can¡¯t do more than a kiss, I¡¯m in a lot of trouble.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± I wasn¡¯t aware of the tendency until a second ago, but the moment I heard him, my face heated up. I was wearing Chester¡¯s shirt, and he was not wearing a top. After looking around, I saw that my clothes near the bonfire are not dry yet. The water was dripping. And this place looked like a cave. Wait, I checked again, and I was wearing only a shirt. That means¡­ ¡°Um, did Chester take off my clothes?¡± Did you take them off and change them into other clothes? Sensing the danger, my body slipped out of his arms to move away from him. I looked up at his face with shaky eyes. I was creeping away, but his hand grabbed my waist. ¡°Yulia. Are you going out?¡± ¡°Um¡­ no.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve seen it once or twice.¡± Chester¡¯s mouth was clearly smiling, but it looked like a beast¡¯s eyes that wanted to eat me up right away. I had the illusion that his arm, which was around my back, seemed to be more powerful than before. And if it¡¯s not an illusion, his face is a little closer than before. My heart pounded and beat fast. I instinctively sensed danger. ¡°Uh¡­Chester?¡± ¡°Can I do it?¡± ¡°What? What¡­?¡± His arm that wraps tightly around my waist. He had drowsy eyes, slightly raised corners of his mouth. My heart fluttered and went wild because I understood what he wanted. His other hand, which didn¡¯t hold my back, gently stroked my cheek and stroked my lower lip with his thumb. ¡°Kiss.¡± My face must be red. I was worried. ¡°Can I do it?¡± His red eyes contained a deep desire. He wants to swallow me right away, but he perseveres until he gets permission. He acted like a tamed beast. This was a word that could define him now. ¡°If I say no, you won¡¯t do it?¡± ¡°Yes. Because I can still stand it.¡± ¡°You can kiss me.¡± As soon as he got permission, his lips overlapped with mine. As his tongue urged me to open my lips, I closed my lips. He could easily open my closed lips and push his tongue into my mouth, but he didn¡¯t do it. He¡¯s so cute, so I opened my lips. His tongue came through the gap and at the same time, my breath was taken away. The hot heat from our contact makes the surrounding temperature even hotter. I wanted more of Chester. I wrapped my arms around his neck and made my body closer to him. His hand came right into my shirt. When his cold hands touched my bare body, I was surprised and said, ¡°Hmm, wait¡­!¡± Without any time to stop, he has overlapped his lips on mine again. His tongue came again inside my mouth. He had a strong possessive desire not to miss a single moment. My eyelashes trembled at his kiss that made me confused. My body was softened by the gentleness I felt alongside his possessive desire. At some point, he wanted more. His hand, which entered my shirt, caressed my waist. And little by little, I could feel his hand going up. It didn¡¯t take long for me to be sure. His hand, which was stroking near my waist, was now clearly under my chest and kept going up. This was dangerous, so I hurriedly grabbed his hand and stopped him from coming up further. I managed to stop our kiss and speak out as I fixed my messed up breath. ¡°Haa, Chester¡­We were only supposed to kiss each other.¡± Chapter 29 *** Chester smirked and burst into laughter at what I said, and briefly kissed my cheek. ¡°I won¡¯t eat you up, Yulia.¡± ¡°You just tried to eat me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a misunderstanding.¡± ¡°No¡­¡± But if I didn¡¯t block him, he must have tried to eat me. He couldn¡¯t say anything more because I said no. His eyes were still staring at me and were full of greed. His face is also frighteningly handsome, and above all, Chester was not wearing a top. I didn¡¯t know where to put my eyes, so I turned my eyes in the opposite direction. I changed the subject. ¡°Chester! So where are we?¡± ¡°Hmm, you asked me quite late.¡± No, you didn¡¯t give me time to ask! He comforted me as soon as I woke up and asked if he could kiss me! And he kissed me passionately! Of course, I liked it too. Wait, this is not important. ¡°So where are we?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a cave.¡± ¡°Oh, yes. I know that! I know that this is inside the cave!¡± ¡°You¡¯re too cold so I moved us here first. I thought we had to dry our clothes for now.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°The carriage disappeared, so I¡¯ll find it when the sun comes up.¡± ¡°What?¡± Does that mean I have to spend a day here with the most dangerous wolf-like man in the world? Of course, I didn¡¯t worry that a mountain animal would attack me, but Chester is a beast. Rather, I thought that mountain animals might be safer. Without realizing it, I must have looked at him suspiciously. ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll keep that in mind so that it doesn¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°How could you know what I was thinking?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ for example.¡± Chester swept my thigh with a subtle touch. ¡°Something like this?¡± He smiled faintly. Now I know that Chester is teasing me. My face was burning with shame. ¡°Chester!¡± ¡°Okay. I won¡¯t do what you don¡¯t like, so you can relax. Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I mean it. Please believe me this time.¡± He was very suspicious, but I had no choice but to believe it. And now I don¡¯t hate Chester as much as I used to. My dream was a bit chaotic, but a dream and reality would be different. Yulia of the original and me will be different. The original story has already been changed to some extent. So I don¡¯t have to worry. There was nothing to be anxious about, but I looked down and stared at the ring on my left ring finger. ¡°Yulia. It¡¯s a little late, but how¡¯s the ring?¡± ¡°What?¡± Chester¡¯s arm wrapped around my waist and his face touched my shoulder, so I was surprised. ¡°I hope you like it.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I really like it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± I sneakily looked at his face which was touching his shoulder. The smiling face is very handsome. His handsome face wasn¡¯t just ordinary. His face was so good that even the heart of a person who had no feelings would tremble. I fiddled my hand with the ring in it. ¡°Chester. Have we really never seen each other before?¡± ¡°¡­Unfortunately, we haven¡¯t. So erase him from your head.¡± He stared persistently at me with a look of disapproval, but with affectionate eyes. Does Chester think I¡¯m projecting someone from the past to him? ¡°Forget about that person. And only think about me, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need you to say that you love me with your mouth.¡± His hand stroked my cheek and touched my lower lip with his thumb. ¡°But if you don¡¯t love me, don¡¯t love anyone else.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Do you think there¡¯s a man who will stay sane if a woman they love says she loves another man?¡± ¡°First, I¡¯m a very jealous person. Furthermore, killing a person is nothing to me.¡± Chester was smiling affectionately, contrary to his eerie words. In a way, he looked like a boy who¡¯s innocent. ¡°I¡¯m kidding.¡± ¡°¡­ It seemed true.¡± ¡°And I never intend to break up my marriage. Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­ I keep my word.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t betray me.¡± I hoped that the word ¡®I love you¡¯ was not a lie. It¡¯s okay if you didn¡¯t love me from the first time you saw me. It¡¯s okay as long as all the words you said you loved me are not lies. Even if you fall in love late, if you still love me now, it¡¯s okay no matter what. The timing was not important, but his sincerity. ¡°I mean it. So there¡¯s nothing to disappoint you about.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Why does that remind me of the words he uttered with a cold smile? When he said that he doesn¡¯t love me. Why did it keep bothering me? ¡°¡­¡­I¡¯ll trust you.¡± Please, I hope your heart is sincere. ¡°Promise me this.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Promise me. Unless you love me, let¡¯s break up the marriage.¡± ¡°There will be no reason for us to break up unless I die. So you can relax.¡± I blinked at his words. Soon, a smile spread around my mouth. I held Chester¡¯s hand tightly. The warmth felt in my hands was good. I was relieved because it was not a low body temperature but a high body temperature. ¡°Yulia. From the moment I saw you for the first time until now.¡± He took my hand to his mouth. ¡°There¡¯s not a moment when I don¡¯t love you. Don¡¯t doubt my sincerity, Yulia.¡± ¡°For a single moment,¡± Chester kissed me on the back of my hand. No, he stared at me with a slight smile, putting his lips on the back of my hand. His gaze and my gaze were intertwined. ¡°Is there a moment when you don¡¯t love me?¡± There was a time when neither my dad nor my brother loved me. Yet, there is no moment when he didn¡¯t love me, who is a complete stranger and not blood related? It¡¯s suspicious, but it was such a sweet whisper that I wanted to believe it as it is. ¡°No. Even when I was in the war zone, you were the only one in my head.¡± ¡°Was it really full of me?¡± ¡°I wanted to see you as soon as possible.¡± I moved and settled right next to Chester. Then I leaned my head on his shoulder. His hand stroked my head. I didn¡¯t hate the touch. No, it was rather good. ¡°I want to have an engagement ceremony as soon as I go back, Yulia.¡± ¡°Okay. We¡¯ll get engaged when we get back.¡± When I felt comfortable, my eyes closed as I fell asleep. *** Yulia was asleep with his shoulder as a pillow. Chester carefully moved Yulia¡¯s head and put it on his lap. He thought that it would be more comfortable to lie down and fall asleep. ¡°Yulia.¡± He slowly moved the hair attached to her face with a careful touch and brushed it over behind her ears. Yulia, who fell asleep without any worries, did not have wings, but he felt like she was an angel. ¡°What should I do to get my hands on you?¡± He carefully held the silver hair. His red eyes clearly contained greed. Chester was craving something. ¡°One step closer, two steps away, you¡¯re really tricky.¡± Chester kissed the silver hair in his hand. It was a very careful kiss. As if a person suffering from a terrible thirst soothed their cracked mouth with a sip of water. ¡°I thought she was in my grasp, but if she sees a very small gap, she¡¯ll get out. How can I hold onto you?¡± Yulia tossed and turned as if something was uncomfortable. There was a deep smile around his mouth. And his eyes looking at her were like an alluring devil who coveted a pure soul. ¡°If I break your wings and cover your eyes and ears, won¡¯t I live without the anxiety of not knowing when you¡¯ll leave my side?¡± There was a loud noise outside. However, Chester just stayed still as he had already expected it. He slowly waited for people¡¯s footsteps and voices to get closer, while touching Yulia¡¯s hair lying on his lap. ¡°Your Excellency!¡± ¡°Shh, don¡¯t wake her up.¡± He ordered them to lower the volume. Even his voice was very small in case she woke up. ¡°I¡¯ll take the princess myself. Bring a big blanket.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°And prepare an accommodation at the nearest town¡¯s best location. Permanent residency is also fine.¡± When the order was issued, they moved in order, bringing the blanket first and handing it over to Chester. He wrapped Yulia¡¯s body in a blanket and hugged her carefully. He chose a horse rather than a carriage to move quickly. After wearing the top he was handed over, he rode the horse, holding Yulia in his arms. Chester raised the corners of his mouth as she fell asleep unprotected in her arms. ¡°Yulia, I¡¯ll be happy to wear a sheep mask if you want.¡± Unlike the corner of his mouth, his eyes were cold. The affection that existed when Yulia was awake disappeared, and only his blood-coloured eyes were seen. Chapter 30 *** The sun woke me up. Of course, I was still sleepy, so I didn¡¯t open my eyes. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The soft touch felt on my cheek and body made me feel cozy. Obviously it shouldn¡¯t be this cozy, I had to sleep on the ground, so why do I feel like I¡¯m sleeping on a bed? As soon as I thought of that, my eyes widened. ¡°Huh¡­?¡± No matter how much I looked around, it was a place I had ever seen before. There was no Chester next to me, and I was the only one in the room. Also when did I change clothes? I was wearing only one shirt, but now I was wearing a chemise. Did I even wash my body unconsciously? My body smelled good and there was no discomfort felt. When I got out of bed and held the doorknob to get out, the door was opened. ¡°Chester?¡± ¡°Is your body okay?¡± ¡° ¡­ Maybe? There is no pain.¡± ¡°I see. I¡¯ll bring you food here.¡± He left again. I was now alone in an unfamiliar room. I carefully opened the window to see where this place was, and a gentle breeze blew through the open window. The scenery outside was unfamiliar too. ¡°Where is it really?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re curious, would you like to take a look after dinner?¡± I heard Chester¡¯s voice behind me. ¡°Eat breakfast first. When you¡¯ve finished eating, I¡¯m leaving.¡± When I turned around, I saw plates set on the table. How did he enter the room without a sound? I sat down in the chair he pulled out and picked up the tableware. I just put it inside my mouth as I chewed and swallowed it. I have to hurry up so that Chester can take me out. ¡°I¡¯m done.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ ¡­ Are you going to leave now?¡± ¡°Why? Is there any problem?¡± ¡°As your husband-to-be, I can¡¯t allow this.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t wear pajamas.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ ¡­ that¡¯s right!¡± I am wearing a pajama now! I forgot for a moment. ¡°Chester, who changed my clothes?¡± Why is there no answer? In addition, he avoided my gaze. ¡°¡­Chester?¡± ¡°Do you want to know?¡± ¡°By any chance¡­¡± ¡°We already did everything until the end before I was your husband anyway.¡± He sighed as I stepped backwards while staring at him. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to leave you in the hands of others, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­Is that really all?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re sleeping, I can¡¯t just wake you up. I felt bad.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°Yulia ¡­please don¡¯t look at me like that.¡± As expected, Chester was the most dangerous person in many ways. ¡°I really only washed, changed and laid you down.¡± ¡°Please keep away from me for a while.¡± ¡°Yulia!¡± ¡°Get out, bring me some clothes for going out.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t bring it, I won¡¯t even hold your hand.¡¯¡¯ ¡°¡­Please wait! I will bring it to you soon.¡± I learned how to threaten him. Chester immediately left the room. But even though this threat worked, I had no choice but to doubt. That he doesn¡¯t really love me, but loves my body, is it a pointless doubt? No, I have to. There was the sound of the door opening. Chester was holding a bright light blue dress. ¡°Is this it?¡± I took the dress he was holding and looked at it. I thought that the dresses I usually wear already had very little exposure. But this dress really didn¡¯t allow the slightest bit of exposure. First of all, if I want to go out, I have to change into this dress but Chester doesn¡¯t seem to have any intention of going out. ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡° ¡­Why are you still here?¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll put it on¡­ ¡° ¡°Go away.¡± ¡°We¡¯re a couple, and-¡± ¡°Go away now.¡± ¡°Yulia. I¡¯ll put it on for you.¡± ¡°Stop talking nonsense and leave¡± Is he going to play tricks? The clothes looked simple to put on but the insides were quite tricky. I sent him out the door. I slammed the door and locked it. Even though I lived as a princess, I could wear it myself without the help of someone unless it was really complicated or difficult to wear. This dress was also not difficult to wear, so I was able to put it on by myself. As soon as I got dressed, I opened the door and left. Fortunately, Chester was waiting patiently by the door. He was like a big puppy waiting for its owner right now. ¡°Now let¡¯s go, huh¡­ are you okay? Can you really go?¡± ¡°Of course! I¡¯m always cooped up in the castle, isn¡¯t it obvious that I would be excited?¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad.¡± ¡°Hurry! I don¡¯t know where this place is, so I¡¯m not sure where to go.¡± Chester burst into laughter and held my hand. Then, he pulled my hand and said, ¡°I will guide you.¡± He really felt like a really sweet lover at times like this. Oh right, Chester and I are already in a relationship right? It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve forgotten such an important thing. I forgot for a second, I can¡¯t believe I forgot this important thing. I burst into laughter involuntarily at the warmth I could clearly feel while looking at our hand. It really made me realize that Chester was my lover. We came out holding hands, and there was already a carriage right in front of me. I was escorted by Chester to the carriage. ¡°Yulia. Shall we go to a crowded place? Or shall we go to a place where there are no people?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ well, it doesn¡¯t really matter. But if I had to choose, I want to go to a place with a lot of people this time.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Chester smiled slightly with his eyes. It was like a noble wolf smiling drowsily. As expected, a handsome face was dangerous to the heart. My heart. Which nearly lost its reason, was beating wildly. ¡°Is it more fun to travel alone?¡± ¡°At least there was no accident. And I did go alone, but I also took a lot of escorts!¡± ¡°Yes, you have to take a lot.¡± ¡°But, since my dad knew I went on a trip with Chester this time, he didn¡¯t give me as much escort.¡± Only one Chester would equal to many of the escorts. However, that means one Chester was more dangerous than 100 escorts. Protecting me is the top priority. Chester may protect me from external risks, but there was also an internal risk. ¡°When I¡¯m alone, escorts get in the way.¡± ¡°Is it that bad?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I brought only the minimum. The minimum dropped when you¡¯re here.¡± Perhaps the strongest person in this world is Chester, not the male lead? When the carriage stopped, he got off first and reached out to me. If it were in the past, I would have gotten off by myself saying I didn¡¯t need it, but now I got out of the carriage holding his outstretched hand. The surroundings were noisier than expected. Since I¡¯m mostly in a quiet place, I thought I would feel energized by the loud noise, but suddenly my head hurts. ¡°Yulia?¡± My head felt like it was going to break. It was difficult to breathe. Why? Why did my head hurt so much all of a sudden? And why can¡¯t I even breathe properly? Chester urgently hugged me, who was in pain. Maybe he was going to call a doctor, but the doctor didn¡¯t come with us. I grabbed the hem of his robe. A cold sweat was flowing on my forehead. ¡°Chester¡­ it hurts like my head is going to break.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to the doctor soon. So wait a little¡­¡± His voice was no longer heard. Darkness overcame me again. *** Strangely, I couldn¡¯t sleep today. Am I seriously ill that he would not even come to visit for a day or two? I thought I would get better if I got some wind, so I put on my coat and went out to the terrace. A cool breeze blew past me. ¡°It¡¯s snowing.¡± When I stretched out my hand to check it, it was raining mixed with snow. If I breathe outside for a long time, I may catch a cold. As soon as I turned back, I instantly felt strange. The imperial castle, which should have been quiet, was strangely noisy. There was a scream from somewhere and a strange fishy smell. The lights were also swaying. My hand instantly trembled. At that moment, the door swung open and my nanny hurriedly called out to me, breathing heavily. ¡°Princess! You must run away.¡± ¡°Nanny?¡± ¡°There is no time to relax here! You don¡¯t have time to change clothes, so just put on a cape here. And run away no matter what!¡± The nanny put a cape on me, she grabbed my wrist and took me somewhere. When I arrived, my brother was there. ¡°Brother? What about dad?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± My brother hugged me with a firm face. ¡°Father told us to stay here.¡± ¡°What¡¯s happening now?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a coup.¡± My heart nearly stopped. ¡°Who¡­?¡± ¡°It¡¯s caused by Duke Siegbert. I prepared a horse outside the castle. You can immediately see it.¡± ¡°Brother, why are you saying that?¡± ¡°If possible, I want to run away with you, but I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen with people.¡± ¡°Brother!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t stop no matter what and just leave.¡± My brother¡¯s face was so serious that I couldn¡¯t say anything. ¡°You have to hurry as our father will buy you time.¡± I held my brother¡¯s hand tightly and ran together in the darkness. ¡°Yulia, you just need to live. If father, me and the people are all dead, don¡¯t dream of revenge and live.¡± ¡°Brother¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t die, live, that¡¯s¡­ father¡¯s will.¡± He forced his legs to move as if he was about to die soon. I quickly ran. I didn¡¯t want to survive alone, I wanted to live with my brother. If only I get out of the Imperial Palace safely, my brother and I will be able to survive. So I ran while holding my brother¡¯s hand tightly. But that hope was soon shattered. I heard the loud sound of footsteps and shouts. That alongside the sound of blades clasing. A mixture of groans and screams of those who were trampled to death pierced my ears. And in the midst of it, I could see a man. His hair was pitch black. Bloody eyes gleaming despite the darkness. A frighteningly handsome face. The face I wanted to see every day was not as pleasant today. Chapter 31 The moment I saw him, my whole body hardened. His face, which was clean yesterday, was stained with blood. My body trembled due to fear. Perhaps that blood was not caused by an injury, but it was the blood of someone he killed. ¡°Julia!¡± It was my brother¡¯s voice that woke me up from my stupor. He put down his hood and threw his robe away. The brilliant silver hair, a symbol of the imperial family, shone under the moonlight. Then he took out a sword he had been hiding. However, the fact that my brother appeared and pulled out a sword meant that he was prepared for death. ¡°Brother!¡± ¡°Hurry!¡± He let go of my hand. The warmth felt in my hand disappeared. ¡°But, but¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll buy some time. Run away and never look back.¡± The sword my brother was holding was shining. As he was about to swing it, he said, ¡°Yulia. Make sure you survive. I¡¯m sorry¡­ this is the only thing our father and I can do for you.¡± After a while, my brother¡¯s words started to sink in and I ran as hard as I could. Behind me, I heard the clashing sound of the swords. After a while, the sound died down but I couldn¡¯t turn around. I just looked ahead and ran. As soon as I looked back, I was sure I couldn¡¯t move a step. Even if my legs faltered, my body staggered, my lungs felt like it was torn, I kept on running. I shouldn¡¯t cry, but the liquid flowed down and wet my cheek. The liquid was mixed with the snow and rain that fell on me. The tears wetting my cheeks slowly froze at the icy temperature. Right now, I¡¯m heading to the only place that can get me out of this castle. Only a few people know of its existence. Therefore, it was the last hope for me to survive. ¡°¡­Haa, brother¡­I¡¯m sorry.¡± I¡¯m afraid that I can¡¯t keep my promise to survive. When I escaped from the castle, I saw knights wearing unfamiliar uniforms, not the imperial uniform, as if they had already expected. How can I get out of their grasp with this weak body that can¡¯t even use sword? Brother, dad, I¡¯m so sorry. I wanted to survive too, I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t make that wish come true. Naturally, I was dragged somewhere with both arms held by the knights. They handled me roughly. It didn¡¯t feel like they were taking a sinner, but it felt like I was a livestock being taken to a slaughterhouse. I didn¡¯t have much energy to shout, so I was helplessly dragged by them. I was taken back to the castle. I thought I would be taken to my room, but they dragged me as we went up the stairs. I arrived on the top floor. The knights let go of my arm as if their work was over. Then my weak body sank on the floor. There was dried blood here and there on the floor. This was the scene of a massacre. ¡°Princess.¡± It was a voice that I wanted to hear every day until this morning. I thought I would not get tired of listening to it every day. But now it was the voice I didn¡¯t want to hear the most. As I looked outside through the window, he slowly approached me. As our distance narrowed, the thick smell of blood penetrated my nose. I adjusted my head and saw my brilliant silver hair with blood. I didn¡¯t have the courage to properly check my condition. ¡°Why?¡± There was nothing wrong yesterday. Tears poured out of my eyes. Because I was inside and it wasn¡¯t cold, my tears fell to the floor. I looked up at him. It was blurry because my eyes were filled with tears. ¡°Chester!¡± His black hair was full of dried blood. His white skin was splashed with blood. How many people died in his hands? Is my nanny okay? I just wanted my nanny to be safe. At that moment, someone familiar was also dragged in. ¡°Your Highness.¡± It was none other than my nanny who was caught by the knights. She was even covered in blood, and her eyes were not properly opened. ¡°Nanny!¡± Why couldn¡¯t you run away? My nanny could live if she ran away. But why did you get caught? He pulled out a sword and moved slowly. Is it really my fate to die? I closed my eyes in fear. But unexpectedly, he passed by me. ¡°Oh, no, no!¡± I know where that blade would go. So I moved my legs that were not in a good condition urgently. I reached out and grabbed his cape. However, it was an action that had no effect. He looked at me with an emotionless eye and hit my hand that grabbed the cape. My body sank down. His sword cut the nanny¡¯s neck. I could only stare at the terrible sight and shake as I could only wait for my death. ¡°Ugh¡­!¡± I felt nauseous and my hands were shaking. I¡¯m just a helpless and vain princess without the power to reverse this situation, but I badly want to survive. The red blood flowing from his sword fell over the cold marble floor. Maybe I will die right now. Maybe I¡¯m indeed destined to die. At least, I wanted to know why he did this before I died. Why does he killed everyone precious to me? ¡°Why? Why did you rebel?¡± Everyone around me died. That¡¯s also in the hands of the man I love. *** ¡°Gasp¡­!¡± My eyes were wide open. I could clearly feel the sound of my heart pounding. In order to calm my heart, I took a deep breath with my hand on my heart. ¡°Ha¡­ha¡­¡± Why did I have such a vivid dream? Now that I think about it, the novel doesn¡¯t describe how Chester rebelled and what Yulia went through. However, it was too vivid to dismiss it as a mere dream. Yet it¡¯s not like Yulia¡¯s experience in the novel. I was thinking that maybe my past life is a dream instead and it¡¯s not real. No. I shouldn¡¯t have thought that way. In my previous life, I lived happily with the love of my family in Korea until I died. Yes! It was just a warning from a dream. Let¡¯s not believe it. If I believed it, I was implying that my ending was death. ¡°Why are they doing this to me?¡± This is a novel! And the flow has already changed. Obviously in the book, Yulia was obsessed with Chester, and he hated Yulia for acting like that. Everything was already different from the first meeting with him. But Chester is still preparing for a rebellion? When many thoughts were in my head, I heard the door opening. ¡°¡­¡­¡± It was Chester. But why does my body keep trembling? My heart, which had barely calmed down, began to pound. Where did the fear come from? ¡°Yulia, are you feeling well?¡± My head was pounding again. The moment I saw his face again, I remembered the blood¡­ My body froze. I remembered his face which was full of blood, and his black gloves that were wet with blood. His eyes stared at me coldly. When I remembered that he had slaughtered my family and nanny with that hand, I got goosebumps all over my body. It was creepy. My hands were shaking. As he slowly approached me, I instinctively stepped back into the corner of the bed. Even though I knew it was a dream, I couldn¡¯t calm down. Blood was gathering from where he walked. ¡°Are you sick?¡± He stopped talking and did not approach me anymore. I closed my eyes tightly because of the hallucination. When I opened my eyes again, Chester was bare-handed without gloves, and his face was clean without any blood. Everything was a dream. I was relieved only then. My trembling body gradually regained strength. I carefully got out of bed, stood still, and reached out to him ¡°Chester.¡± Yes. It¡¯s true that you¡¯re looking at me with affectionate eyes. So¡­ dreams are just dreams. It¡¯s just a story in a novel. So there¡¯s no reason to be anxious. Chester pulled my waist tightly, hugged me, and buried his face on my shoulder. His hair tickled the bare skin of my shoulders. ¡°Yulia. I was worried.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine now. I¡¯m sorry to make you worry.¡± ¡°We shouldn¡¯t have gone to a crowded place.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not because of you.¡± Yes. The Chester I know is someone who cares about me like this. He is not the Chester in a novel who saw me with such cold eyes, made an insensitive expression, and killed my precious people in front of my eyes. And unlike Chester in the novel, the Chester I know says he loves me. ¡°We better come back.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to see you suffer.¡± I dug further into Chester¡¯s arms. His arms were so warm that I wanted to feel the warmth with my whole body. I could hear his pounding heart in my ears. His heart is beating for me like this, and it can¡¯t be a lie when he said I love you. I chose to trust in a warm reality instead of a sinister nightmare. Chapter 32 As soon as we returned to the castle, we prepared for the engagement ceremony. There was nothing special except that the scale was large. If I had to pick something special, I¡¯d pick my engagement partner? Because my fiance is the famous Duke of Siegbert, who the noble families vie for to become their son-in-law Will it be Lord Blair who becomes the best groom now? Engagement doesn¡¯t have to be grandiose, but I knew it needed to be large-scale because of our status. Above all, the fact that my brother, who is the crown prince, has not yet gotten engaged makes this all the more an important event for the imperial family. However, I knew that the reason why the scale was larger than expected was because I didn¡¯t make my debut. ¡°Dad.¡± ¡°My daughter¡­sniff.¡± ¡°People would think I¡¯m getting married. It¡¯s just an engagement ceremony.¡± ¡°You said you would live with me without marrying for the rest of your life¡­¡± ¡­I had nothing to say pertaining to that. My father looked sad as if he were watching his daughter¡¯s wedding, but my brother looked unhappy. ¡°Brother. You don¡¯t like it because I got engaged first?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°Then why are you making that face? If you¡¯re jealous, get married quickly!¡± It¡¯s time to get married. It is impossible to keep the crown princess position vacant, and his younger sister will get married first! ¡°Yulia. If you want to break up before marriage, I¡¯ll help you break up anytime.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Thank you for that.¡± I was surprised by the unexpected words. However, somehow, the appearance of my older brother overlapped with the appearance of my older brother I saw in my dream. Because my brother in my dream also sacrificed for me. ¡°Tell me if you want a divorce after you get married. I¡¯ll do my best to get you out of there.¡± ¡°Hey, we¡¯re not even married yet. You don¡¯t have to worry about that! But if that happens, do you have to help me?¡± ¡°Yes. Of course.¡± It¡¯s just an engagement ceremony. Both my dad and my brother treated me as if I was someone who would leave the imperial castle forever. They become like this with just the engagement ceremony, I was scared of how they would react when we really got married. When I got married, I thought my dad might cry a lot, and he would be very worried when I got married. ¡°¡­I like it now.¡± I like it now when I feel loved by everyone. Whatever the root of the affection was, it didn¡¯t matter. They can love me whatever the reason is. If my father¡¯s guilt became love for me, it could exist, and if longing for a mother was my brother¡¯s affection for me, I needed it. However, Chester has no conditions or other reason, he only loved me because of myself. Since my mother left, I thought there was no unconditional love I can receive again. ¡°And¡­ brother I think it¡¯s a little late, but I¡¯m in a relationship on the premise of getting married.¡± My brother looked shocked when he heard me. ¡°Wha-, what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m dating Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡°¡­Do you like him?¡± ¡°To be honest. First of all, he¡¯s handsome, and he¡¯s better than I thought.¡± ¡°As long as you like him. If you still want to break up your marriage, tell me anytime.¡± ¡°Okay, brother. It would be better if it didn¡¯t happen.¡± But my brother seems to want a broken marriage for some reason. It¡¯s probably my misunderstanding, right? I heard my dad¡¯s voice next to me. ¡°Yulia, the ceremony will begin soon.¡± ¡°Is it already the time?¡± ¡°Yes. But I will actively support you if you want.¡± ¡°Dad. Then can¡¯t you wipe your tears first before saying that?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± This tranquility was so beautiful that I couldn¡¯t help but smile. I wanted to keep this tranquility. So that the tragic situation in my nightmare does not happen. ¡°Dad, stop crying. And now, let¡¯s go! It¡¯s the engagement ceremony of the princess. I can¡¯t be too late even though I¡¯m the main character.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I grabbed my dad and brother¡¯s arms as we left the waiting room. Right now, the main event will start. My heart beat fast at the thought of seeing Chester waiting for me. I was very curious about what kind of expression he would have and what kind of clothes he would be wearing. I part ways with my family before entering. However, when I arrived at the entrance to start the meal at the main event, Chester was already waiting for me. ¡°Chester!¡± His pitch black swept over only to one side as usual, and his red eyes contained infinite affection. There was a soft smile on his lips. What¡¯s different from usual is that he always wore dark clothes, but today, his outfit was mixed with a lot of white. I wanted to jump into his arms and hug him, but I didn¡¯t want my clothes to mess up before the ceremony began, so I barely suppressed the urge. I just slowly approached him. ¡°Julia.¡± As I approached, Chester reached out to me. Looking at him, I smiled and gently put my hand on his hand. ¡°There¡¯s probably a lot of people out there.¡± ¡°Are you worried?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m worried about you. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll collapse again.¡± He¡¯s completely different from my dream. He¡¯s so sweet and above all, he¡¯s worried about me, he won¡¯t kill me and my family like the original. Chester kissed the back of my hand briefly. The word gentleman matched him well. I knew best how nice he looked on the outside and inside. ¡°After the engagement ceremony, everyone in the empire knows that Julia is mine.¡± ¡°Is it good?¡± ¡°I¡¯m very happy. That everyone will know that you are mine.¡± Now, he felt more like a big dog than a wolf. ¡°Yulia. If it¡¯s hard because there¡¯s a lot of people, you can lean on me.¡± ¡°Thank you for your concern, but it won¡¯t happen the same as before. So let¡¯s go now.¡± Chester smiled and opened the door. As the door opened, a loud noise hit my ears with a bright light. Fortunately, this time, I didn¡¯t have a headache or stiff body. After the engagement ceremony, I lay on the sofa in my brother¡¯s office and ate green grapes on the table. My brother was sitting on the sofa next to me reading a newspaper article. Well, I roughly knew the contents of the article. It must contain the engagement ceremony between Duke Chester Siegbert and Princess Julia Beatrice. I knew it was pretty hot news. The engagement of the princess, who had never appeared in public until she was an adult, and the Duke of Siegbert, who was called a war hero who got into the battlefield and always won since childhood. It was something that could make the empire noisy. I understood why my people were enthusiastic. ¡°It¡¯s everywhere.¡± My brother roughly put down the newspaper. I understand, but my brother didn¡¯t seem to understand them. Or he doesn¡¯t like my engagement. ¡°You don¡¯t like my engagement?¡± ¡°If you like it, I don¡¯t have the authority to interfere with it in the first place, but I¡¯m the only princess and I married a war hero. Isn¡¯t it nice?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t like it from the beginning.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The Duke of Siegbert. No, in fact, no matter who you¡¯re engaged to, you wouldn¡¯t have liked it.¡± I chewed a grape in my mouth. It felt good when the refreshing and sweet taste spread in my mouth. I didn¡¯t really know why my brother was like that. Maybe because I always said that I would not get married and live with my dad and brother. Maybe he felt betrayed because I couldn¡¯t keep that word. ¡°You have to get married too.¡± ¡°Does it make sense that the crown prince of the empire has passed the age for marriage, and there is no crown princess?¡± ¡°Julia.¡± ¡°I told you. I¡¯m in a relationship with Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡¤ ¡°¡­ The only people you can trust are me and our father.¡± ¡°Calm down, brother.¡± I raised my body from lying down. ¡°And you shouldn¡¯t worry about me, you should worry about yourself first. Are you not going to continue our bloodline?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Yulia.¡± ¡°If you said you weren¡¯t getting married, what about the imperial family? Now you should get married too.¡± ¡°Yulia. Do you want me to get married?¡± ¡°You should. You¡¯re the crown prince of the empire.¡± Of course! I got engaged first, but shouldn¡¯t my brother get married first? ¡°Okay. If you urge me like that, I¡¯ll do it.¡± I checked the time. I had to get ready to go out soon. ¡°Brother. I have to go meet the Duke of Siegbert now.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Yulia, do you like Siegbert more than your brother who¡¯s been with you for 20 years?¡± Ugh! I didn¡¯t know what to say when you said that. ¡°And even if the person you¡¯re waiting for appears, are you going to push ahead with marrying the Duke of Siegbert?¡± ¡°¡­He still hasn¡¯t appeared. And Duke Siegbert told me he loved me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t believe him. All men are wolves.¡± I was surprised because I felt stabbed by my brother¡¯s words. As expected, I should never have done that mistake. Chapter 33 As soon as we returned to the castle, we prepared for the engagement ceremony. There was nothing special except that the scale was large. If I had to pick something special, I¡¯d pick my engagement partner? Because my fiance is the famous Duke of Siegbert, who the noble families vie for to become their son-in-law Will it be Lord Blair who becomes the best groom now? Engagement doesn¡¯t have to be grandiose, but I knew it needed to be large-scale because of our status. Above all, the fact that my brother, who is the crown prince, has not yet gotten engaged makes this all the more an important event for the imperial family. However, I knew that the reason why the scale was larger than expected was because I didn¡¯t make my debut. ¡°Dad.¡± ¡°My daughter¡­sniff.¡± ¡°People would think I¡¯m getting married. It¡¯s just an engagement ceremony.¡± ¡°You said you would live with me without marrying for the rest of your life¡­¡± ¡­I had nothing to say pertaining to that. My father looked sad as if he were watching his daughter¡¯s wedding, but my brother looked unhappy. ¡°Brother. You don¡¯t like it because I got engaged first?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°Then why are you making that face? If you¡¯re jealous, get married quickly!¡± It¡¯s time to get married. It is impossible to keep the crown princess position vacant, and his younger sister will get married first! ¡°Yulia. If you want to break up before marriage, I¡¯ll help you break up anytime.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Thank you for that.¡± I was surprised by the unexpected words. However, somehow, the appearance of my older brother overlapped with the appearance of my older brother I saw in my dream. Because my brother in my dream also sacrificed for me. ¡°Tell me if you want a divorce after you get married. I¡¯ll do my best to get you out of there.¡± ¡°Hey, we¡¯re not even married yet. You don¡¯t have to worry about that! But if that happens, do you have to help me?¡± ¡°Yes. Of course.¡± It¡¯s just an engagement ceremony. Both my dad and my brother treated me as if I was someone who would leave the imperial castle forever. They become like this with just the engagement ceremony, I was scared of how they would react when we really got married. When I got married, I thought my dad might cry a lot, and he would be very worried when I got married. ¡°¡­I like it now.¡± I like it now when I feel loved by everyone. Whatever the root of the affection was, it didn¡¯t matter. They can love me whatever the reason is. If my father¡¯s guilt became love for me, it could exist, and if longing for a mother was my brother¡¯s affection for me, I needed it. However, Chester has no conditions or other reason, he only loved me because of myself. Since my mother left, I thought there was no unconditional love I can receive again. ¡°And¡­ brother I think it¡¯s a little late, but I¡¯m in a relationship on the premise of getting married.¡± My brother looked shocked when he heard me. ¡°Wha-, what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m dating Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡°¡­Do you like him?¡± ¡°To be honest. First of all, he¡¯s handsome, and he¡¯s better than I thought.¡± ¡°As long as you like him. If you still want to break up your marriage, tell me anytime.¡± ¡°Okay, brother. It would be better if it didn¡¯t happen.¡± But my brother seems to want a broken marriage for some reason. It¡¯s probably my misunderstanding, right? I heard my dad¡¯s voice next to me. ¡°Yulia, the ceremony will begin soon.¡± ¡°Is it already the time?¡± ¡°Yes. But I will actively support you if you want.¡± ¡°Dad. Then can¡¯t you wipe your tears first before saying that?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± This tranquility was so beautiful that I couldn¡¯t help but smile. I wanted to keep this tranquility. So that the tragic situation in my nightmare does not happen. ¡°Dad, stop crying. And now, let¡¯s go! It¡¯s the engagement ceremony of the princess. I can¡¯t be too late even though I¡¯m the main character.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I grabbed my dad and brother¡¯s arms as we left the waiting room. Right now, the main event will start. My heart beat fast at the thought of seeing Chester waiting for me. I was very curious about what kind of expression he would have and what kind of clothes he would be wearing. I part ways with my family before entering. However, when I arrived at the entrance to start the meal at the main event, Chester was already waiting for me. ¡°Chester!¡± His pitch black swept over only to one side as usual, and his red eyes contained infinite affection. There was a soft smile on his lips. What¡¯s different from usual is that he always wore dark clothes, but today, his outfit was mixed with a lot of white. I wanted to jump into his arms and hug him, but I didn¡¯t want my clothes to mess up before the ceremony began, so I barely suppressed the urge. I just slowly approached him. ¡°Julia.¡± As I approached, Chester reached out to me. Looking at him, I smiled and gently put my hand on his hand. ¡°There¡¯s probably a lot of people out there.¡± ¡°Are you worried?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m worried about you. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll collapse again.¡± He¡¯s completely different from my dream. He¡¯s so sweet and above all, he¡¯s worried about me, he won¡¯t kill me and my family like the original. Chester kissed the back of my hand briefly. The word gentleman matched him well. I knew best how nice he looked on the outside and inside. ¡°After the engagement ceremony, everyone in the empire knows that Julia is mine.¡± ¡°Is it good?¡± ¡°I¡¯m very happy. That everyone will know that you are mine.¡± Now, he felt more like a big dog than a wolf. ¡°Yulia. If it¡¯s hard because there¡¯s a lot of people, you can lean on me.¡± ¡°Thank you for your concern, but it won¡¯t happen the same as before. So let¡¯s go now.¡± Chester smiled and opened the door. As the door opened, a loud noise hit my ears with a bright light. Fortunately, this time, I didn¡¯t have a headache or stiff body. After the engagement ceremony, I lay on the sofa in my brother¡¯s office and ate green grapes on the table. My brother was sitting on the sofa next to me reading a newspaper article. Well, I roughly knew the contents of the article. It must contain the engagement ceremony between Duke Chester Siegbert and Princess Julia Beatrice. I knew it was pretty hot news. The engagement of the princess, who had never appeared in public until she was an adult, and the Duke of Siegbert, who was called a war hero who got into the battlefield and always won since childhood. It was something that could make the empire noisy. I understood why my people were enthusiastic. ¡°It¡¯s everywhere.¡± My brother roughly put down the newspaper. I understand, but my brother didn¡¯t seem to understand them. Or he doesn¡¯t like my engagement. ¡°You don¡¯t like my engagement?¡± ¡°If you like it, I don¡¯t have the authority to interfere with it in the first place, but I¡¯m the only princess and I married a war hero. Isn¡¯t it nice?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t like it from the beginning.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The Duke of Siegbert. No, in fact, no matter who you¡¯re engaged to, you wouldn¡¯t have liked it.¡± I chewed a grape in my mouth. It felt good when the refreshing and sweet taste spread in my mouth. I didn¡¯t really know why my brother was like that. Maybe because I always said that I would not get married and live with my dad and brother. Maybe he felt betrayed because I couldn¡¯t keep that word. ¡°You have to get married too.¡± ¡°Does it make sense that the crown prince of the empire has passed the age for marriage, and there is no crown princess?¡± ¡°Julia.¡± ¡°I told you. I¡¯m in a relationship with Duke Siegbert.¡± ¡¤ ¡°¡­ The only people you can trust are me and our father.¡± ¡°Calm down, brother.¡± I raised my body from lying down. ¡°And you shouldn¡¯t worry about me, you should worry about yourself first. Are you not going to continue our bloodline?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Yulia.¡± ¡°If you said you weren¡¯t getting married, what about the imperial family? Now you should get married too.¡± ¡°Yulia. Do you want me to get married?¡± ¡°You should. You¡¯re the crown prince of the empire.¡± Of course! I got engaged first, but shouldn¡¯t my brother get married first? ¡°Okay. If you urge me like that, I¡¯ll do it.¡± I checked the time. I had to get ready to go out soon. ¡°Brother. I have to go meet the Duke of Siegbert now.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.Yulia, do you like Siegbert more than your brother who¡¯s been with you for 20 years?¡± Ugh! I didn¡¯t know what to say when you said that. ¡°And even if the person you¡¯re waiting for appears, are you going to push ahead with marrying the Duke of Siegbert?¡± ¡°¡­He still hasn¡¯t appeared. And Duke Siegbert told me he loved me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t believe him. All men are wolves.¡± I was surprised because I felt stabbed by my brother¡¯s words. As expected, I should never have done that mistake. Chapter 34 Chester always met me in a sparsely populated place, not in a crowded place, after I collapsed in a crowded place once. Of course, it¡¯s not a filthy place but a place that¡¯s beautiful but devoid of people. Or a cafe. ¡°Yulia. I want to marry you as soon as possible.¡± Every time I met him, he whispered sweet words to me, but a seed of anxiety was growing in the corner of my heart. This is weird. There wasn¡¯t really any evidence, but my instincts were screaming that he was dangerous. To be honest, I have deviated a lot from the original story so far, but there is still one thing left. The decisive cause of Chester¡¯s obsession with the female lead was the death of her father, and he felt like it resembled his situation. They¡¯ve been through the same pain, so they can understand each other. ¡°Do you want to marry me soon?¡± ¡°Yes. Every day when I wake up, I want to see you sleeping next to me.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m working hard.¡± What¡­ what are you working hard on? Hearing his surprising remark, Chester reached out and touched my lower lip with his fingertips. He had a smile that seemed to seduce a person and whispered softly. ¡°You don¡¯t know. How hard I am enduring. How far is my greed.¡± ¡°Chester. We are getting married after my brother is married.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± I thought he would say he was okay and he could wait, but he suddenly looked serious. No matter how long I waited, he seemed to have no intention of answering. No, I felt like he was deep in thought. ¡°Chester?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been worried for a while.¡± ¡°No, why are you worried!¡± What¡¯s there to worry about? ¡°I was calculating how much longer I had to put up with it.¡± ¡°No! Why are you calculating that again?¡± ¡°It¡¯s important. No matter how much I think about it, if I want to get married¡­¡± He frowned while talking. ¡°I wonder if I¡¯ll ever get married in this life.¡± ¡°Um¡­.¡± ¡°I want to marry you as soon as possible and monopolize all your time.¡± His hand, which touched my lower lip, slowly went down to my neck. ¡°You seem to want to put off marrying me. It¡¯s my misunderstanding, right?¡± ¡°No way! My brother is not married, so it¡¯s kind of bad for me to get married first.¡± ¡°Is that a problem?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Then can you speed up the marriage with me when your brother gets married?¡± He took his hand off the back of my neck and held my left hand carefully. ¡°Uh, Chester.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you like it?¡± ¡°No! It¡¯s definitely not that I don¡¯t like it!¡± ¡°Yulia. Then can I marry you as soon as possible if your brother gets married?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ okay?¡± He smiled meaningfully. What are you thinking about? It was a face that looked very determined. ¡°Chester.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do anything weird.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t do anything weird.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t touch my brother!¡± Why aren¡¯t you answering? Did you really want to mess with my brother? ¡°I was just going to urge your brother to get married quickly. So don¡¯t make that face, Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m hurt because I¡¯m softer than you think.¡± Lies. You don¡¯t look soft at all. And what¡¯s wrong with my expression? I slipped my hand out of his hand. I held the fork again and put the cake in my mouth. The sweet taste spread in my mouth, making me feel better. ¡°Yulia, is it delicious?¡± ¡°¡­Yes, it¡¯s delicious.¡± Chester smiled languidly. And stared at me. Looking at me like that with a handsome face, I had the illusion that my heart beat had become faster. ¡°Why are you smiling like that?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re so pretty.¡± I hope my face didn¡¯t turn red. Oh my- My face got hot. In order to calm my flapping heart, I hurriedly put the cake in my mouth and chew it. Obviously, no taste was felt in the sweet cake until earlier. ¡°And lovely.¡± ¡°Cough, cough!¡± The cake I was eating was caught in my throat by his sudden remarks. When I coughed, Chester tapped on my back. Ah¡­ It was really embarrassing. ¡°Are you okay, Yulia?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay now.¡± I¡¯m okay, but now I want to die of shame. Unlike me, Chester was smiling. ¡°Why are you smiling?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re cute.¡± ¡°Chester!¡± ¡°I want to eat you up.¡± A dangerous glint was seen in his eyes. My body hardened on its own. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t eat you right away.¡± I covered his eyes with my hands. ¡°Then can¡¯t you say it normally?¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you if you look at me like that!¡± But why is this man handsome even if I covered his eyes? My heart is in danger! ¡°Can¡¯t you trust me?¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s not that I can¡¯t trust you, but you¡¯ll keep your promise, right¡­?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I took off the hand covering his eyes. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll go home now before it¡¯s too late.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± ¡°I want to marry you. Then I¡¯ll be able to be with you every day.¡± This man! How can my heart not react if he smiles kindly with these eyes while saying that? It was a face that made me have a heart attack. This is why Yulia in the novel also died because of this face. Wait, did she fall in love at first sight just by looking at his face? *** A few days after the date with Chester, my brother¡¯s marriage partner was suddenly decided. I felt something strange, but I was curious about who the marriage partner was, so I headed to my brother¡¯s office. ¡°Brother!¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± ¡°Brother, I heard you¡¯re getting married! Who are you marrying?¡± ¡°Oh, did that already go into your ears?¡± ¡°What? Did you try to hide it from me?¡± ¡°No, if you found out, it means everyone knows it now.¡± Was I really such a hermit? ¡°So who¡¯s going to marry you?¡± ¡°Your friend.¡± ¡°My friend? ¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I only had one friend. ¡°Cecil Chloe?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What? Really?¡± ¡°Um¡­ I don¡¯t know how you will react.¡± ¡°Why? Why are you marrying my friend?¡± I wondered why. ¡°Is it because of political reasons?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a big reason. And above all, my father is weak to the Duke of Blair family. ¡° I don¡¯t know in detail because I¡¯m not interested in politics, but the male lead¡¯s family was still more politically influential. Therefore, he seemed to marry and try to balance their power. There is no princess the same age as her older brother, but for the position of the Crown Princess, she must be at least a lady, a Marquis¡¯ daughter, so the lady who met the conditions was probably Cecil. Above all, she was like the center of society as she played an important role as a heroine. ¡°¡­I like it!¡± I was surprised, but my worries weren¡¯t that long. What if Cecil really marries him? The ending of the novel I knew might be completely changed. Does that mean the ending of me and him will change too? Me, my brother, and my dad will not die and live happily? ¡°I¡¯m grateful if you think so.¡± ¡°But are you really marrying Cecil?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t do it if you don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°No! I want my brother to get married.¡± ¡°Okay. Too bad, I wouldn¡¯t have done it if you told me not to marry.¡± ¡°Are you really not going to do it because I told you not to?¡± Of course, even in the novel, my brother is not really married. ¡°Yes. I won¡¯t do it if you tell me not to, Yulia.¡± Maybe in the novel, Yulia begged her brother not to get married. But if my brother and Cecil get married, will my brother become the male lead, not an extra who dies with me? Again, the scene from the dream was played. At the same time, I felt pain in my head. ¡°Ugh!¡± ¡°Yulia?¡± Suddenly a memory of the novel character Yulia came to mind. But why are they showing me these memories now? I didn¡¯t understand. Why are they telling me such terrible things? Is it implying that it is the future I will experience? Or should I try hard not to experience such a future? ¡°Yulia! Are you okay?¡± ¡°Doctor! Doctor!¡± ¡°No¡­I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°What do you mean, you¡¯re okay? My mother always said it was okay too¡­!¡± My brother stopped talking after realizing what he said. I looked at him. He still feels uncomfortable talking about his mother in front of me. I need to go out now. I shook off the past, but my brother still seemed to have not escaped. My brother hugged me tightly. ¡°Sorry, sorry. I¡¯m sorry, Yulia.¡± ¡°Brother. I¡¯m suffocating!¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. So don¡¯t overreact for no reason.¡± I patted my brother on the back. He was taller than me and got older, but he really seemed like a child at times like this. It¡¯s as if he was weakened after his mother¡¯s death. ¡°Brother. I¡¯m not sick. I¡¯m very healthy.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°Yes. I can¡¯t die easily.¡± ¡°Yes, Yulia. You must never leave.¡± ¡°I know. I won¡¯t leave neither my dad nor my brother.¡± I won¡¯t leave them. I don¡¯t want them to sacrifice for me like that terrible dream. I want everyone to live and be happy. But it feels too real to ignore the dream. ¡°So Yulia, if you¡¯re sick, you have to tell me.¡± ¡°Yes. I got it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be sick¡­¡± Yes. I hope our ending will be different from the book I remember. I hope my precious family will not die and live happily with me. All I want is the well-being of my precious family. Is this too much? I don¡¯t expect much. If it is a crime for us to live with such a nice fate, I would be happy to commit a crime. Chapter 35 The Crown Princess was already announced as Cecil and now they¡¯re preparing for the marriage. At that time, news came to me like bolt out of the blue. The news that Cecil¡¯s father died came to me. At the same time as I was sad about the death of my friend¡¯s father, I felt anxious that the original story was coming back. Rather than worrying about my future, worrying about my friend came first. After changing clothes, I headed with my brother to the place where Cecil¡¯s father¡¯s funeral took place. My brother put a white flower in front of the portrait. After the offering, my brother headed to Marquess Chloe and I headed to Cecil. ¡°Cecil¡­ I¡¯m here.¡± Before marrying my brother, the female lead¡¯s father died like the original. I didn¡¯t hear the reason, but according to the original, Cecil¡¯s father was murdered. They didn¡¯t know who killed him. The criminal who murdered the female lead¡¯s father did not appear until the novel was completed. ¡°Ah¡­ Yulia.¡± But in the end, the story went as it was. Just because the female lead and my brother are getting married, did you think that once Chester whispered that he loved me, the original won¡¯t go as planned? I¡¯m foolish too. I was fooled by my determination to escape from the original story. This time, it made me face the fact that our fate did not change. That fate never changes. ¡°It¡¯s okay Cecil. You can cry out loud.¡± ¡°Yulia¡­: ¡°Yes, you¡¯re very sad, right?¡± I came to pay my respects, but I couldn¡¯t stay for a long time because of my status. Above all, many mourners gathered besides me, and my brother came with me. When I looked around, there was also Chester. There¡¯s no way he won¡¯t come because he¡¯s in the same faction as them. This is how the villain became obsessed with the female lead. At the news of the female lead¡¯s father¡¯s death, he came to the funeral to meet the female lead. And after the funeral, he showed symptoms of obsession with her. ¡°Sniff¡­¡± When I saw Cecil crying in person, the sadness was transmitted to me. Cecil was crying so sadly that even I wanted to cry. After Cecil cried out, she gradually regained his composure. Yes. She can cry in my arms. I know the pain of losing someone precious. I remembered the past when I wanted to cry in someone¡¯s arms, but I couldn¡¯t. ¡°Yulia, you should go back now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, we¡¯re friends. I can give you my dress.¡± ¡°Yulia¡­!¡± I understand why the female lead becomes the female lead. Because even just her crying like this made me want to hug her. She was a person who could brought out sympathy from people. ¡°Cecil¡­ You still have an older brother. You¡¯re not alone¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡± Yes, Cecil still has a family left. It wasn¡¯t very important, but Cecil had an older brother. I thought by saying that, it could at least made her slightly relieved. ¡°¡­Yulia, thank you for coming. Truly.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll come again tomorrow.¡± Cecil nodded instead of answering. That alone was enough of an answer. When I came out, the wind blew and my hair fluttered. When I roughly organized my hair and turned my head, I saw Chester. When I saw him, I couldn¡¯t breathe. There were so many things I wanted to ask, but I just shut up and avoided him. If I wait in the carriage first anyway, he will come as soon as possible. ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°¡­¡­¡­What?¡± I was just going to pass by, but Chester blocked me. ¡°If you have nothing to say, get out of my way.¡± ¡°Are you angry with me?¡± ¡°¡­I¡¯m not.¡± ¡°Yulia, then why are you avoiding me?¡± ¡°Move¡­!¡± That¡¯s right. I didn¡¯t want to see him obsessed with the female lead. Until yesterday, I didn¡¯t want to hear that the person who told me that he loved me was interested in the female lead. ¡°Did I do anything wrong, Yulia¡­?¡± No. ¡°I¡¯ll go with my brother and get going.¡± I tried to avoid him, but he blocked me again with his body. ¡°Did I do something wrong today? Tell me and I¡¯ll fix it.¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing to fix. So get out of the way.¡± ¡°Yulia.¡± ¡°I just want to go back. So you don¡¯t have to care.¡± Even if you¡¯re interested in the female lead, I don¡¯t have the authority to interfere, but if you¡¯re obsessed with the female lead, that¡¯s fate, and the story of the original is just the process of finding its place. Why does my heart hurt? Why do I feel the throbbing pain? If it goes according to the original, my heart will be aching because me and my family will die. ¡°Yulia. Did I make you nervous?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I made you nervous. It¡¯s my fault. I shouldn¡¯t have made you nervous in the first place.¡± Chester carefully touched my cheek and slowly swept under my eyes with his thumb. ¡°¡­What are you doing?¡± ¡°Your eyes are red. I don¡¯t want you to cry for any reason.¡± ¡°I just¡­ because my friend cries¡­¡± She overlapped with my appearance left alone at my mother¡¯s funeral. It¡¯s similar to how I cried alone in a corner where I couldn¡¯t even cry out loud because I was afraid my family would be worried. She looked lonely when she couldn¡¯t cry. I was lonely too. I didn¡¯t even want someone to hug me. I just wanted someone to be next to me. And losing your family is a sadness that you can¡¯t adapt to even if it¡¯s repeated. ¡°More than anything else, the appearance of her crying looked lonely.¡± ¡°Yulia, I won¡¯t leave you lonely.¡± He hugged me carefully. When I was held in his arms, his warm body temperature was conveyed to me. ¡°I won¡¯t make you sad.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Chester.¡± ¡°Because you look the best when you smile. I hope you always smile.¡± As soon as I heard that, the anxiety inside me became dust and scattered. How did I think that the person who said this didn¡¯t love me? Perhaps I was unconsciously influenced by the dream. Dream was just a dream, but it was because I couldn¡¯t accept it as a dream. There¡¯s a person who loves me like this next to me. Above all, he is the first person to convince me again that unconditional love can exist since my mother passed away. If it went according to the original, Chester should be next to the female lead, Cecil, not hugging me now. He must have gone to comfort Cecil, who was in sorrow, and said he understood the pain. However, the current situation was different from the original. As the original, Cecil¡¯s father passed away, but unlike the original, Chester was next to me ¡°¡­Chester, do you want me to smile?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to suffer from being sad and having your eyes red like now.¡± I hugged Chester back. I hugged him tightly, not particularly embarrassed. His patting on my back was very nice too. I buried my face in his chest. ¡°I don¡¯t want to lose my family.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Chester¡­I want to be loved.¡± ¡°Your family and I love you too.¡± ¡°¡­¡­You must never betray me. When you say you love me it shouldn¡¯t be a lie.¡± Can I dismiss the original story now? Can¡¯t I just believe that Chester¡¯s behavior of not showing interest in the female lead has changed the ending of the imperial family? In this life, if I could protect my precious people, even if I were sacrificed I would do it. ¡°That can¡¯t be a lie, Yulia,¡± My heart pounded. His gentle petting of my head was sweet. I didn¡¯t want to miss this warmth. However, why does the dream keep bothering me? Dreams that continue to make me anxious and the current situations that take place because I can¡¯t completely escape the original story. ¡°Chester, don¡¯t betray me.¡± I dug into his arms. I put my ear to the part where his heart was. I think I can find peace of mind by listening to Chester¡¯s heart. I focused my mind on the sound of his heart. The sound of his heart was beating fast. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because of me or not. I didn¡¯t know, but I decided to believe that he loved me. I want to believe that this fast heartbeat is your heart for me, Chester. ¡°Don¡¯t leave me.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t. Even if you leave, I¡¯ll be by your side.¡± What do I feel right now? I don¡¯t know myself either.