<CHAPTER 4>

The fact that Hyojoo—a romance novelist, of all people—had absolutely no interest in real-life dating never ceased to amaze Sea.

It made even less sense considering every romance novel of Hyojoo’s that Sea had ever read featured soft, heart-fluttering atmospheres, with readers swooning over the delicious emotional tension between a handsome male lead and the devoted second male lead.

“How are you supposed to date a 2D character? You’re literally in different dimensions.”

“So what? Sure, there’s a monitor between me and my beloved 2D characters right now, but technology keeps advancing. Maybe someday they’ll become real. Or who knows? Maybe God will finally answer all my prayers, and I’ll wake up in another world like one of those fantasy novels.”

She’s hopeless…

Snorting, Sea picked up the chicken that had long since gone cold and took a bite.

“…Fine. I’ll pray that your wish comes true.”

“I seriously hope it does.”

She knew the fantasy she had just spoken aloud was completely absurd.

Even so, merely imagining herself living somewhere other than reality made Hyojoo’s heart race.

She had no family waiting for her. The only bonds tying her to this world were the writer friend sitting before her, the editor waiting for her next manuscript, and countless readers she’d never even met.

It wasn’t that she was dissatisfied with her current life. She was a successful novelist walking the path she’d always dreamed of.

Still…

Was it so strange to imagine what her life might be like in another world?

After that, she had passionately insisted to Sea that if God truly existed, someone like her deserved to be sent to another world.

She had celebrated for less than a single day, convinced that God had finally granted her wish—

Only to discover this wasn’t a romance fantasy at all!

Out of every possible genre… why this one?!

She had dreamed of being reincarnated into a novel where she’d do absolutely nothing and enjoy a carefree, rosy future.

Who would’ve thought that rosy future was actually drenched in blood?

This won’t do.

“A-achoo! S-Sorry… I’ve been feeling sick since earlier… Cough! Cough! I think I should head home.”

“Oh dear! Are you feeling that bad? Should we call a physician—”

“No, I’ll be fine if I get some rest. Cough! Cough!”

Despite the painfully unconvincing performance—one no one with common sense would ever believe—Alexis and Dane worried about Alosha until the very end.

Determined to prevent the story from progressing any further, Alosha hurried toward the waiting carriage as fast as her legs could carry her.

Before she knew it, tears welled up in her eyes.

“I’m doomed… My life is over.”

She wanted to cry.

More than anything.

But the shock was so overwhelming that her mind had gone completely blank.

If I’d known things would turn out like this, I would’ve deleted Sea’s manuscript forever with Ctrl + Delete instead of respecting her taste in stories!

Was I asking for that much? I just wanted to be reborn as the rich daughter of some noble family in a romance fantasy and spend my days flirting with a young, rich, handsome man! Was that really so much to ask?! Why can’t I ever be happy?!

And it wasn’t even a modest story.

She had ended up inside a massive fantasy epic spanning five hundred and sixty chapters.

With side stories included, it would probably exceed six hundred.

At this point, even one of those niche romance-fantasy thriller mysteries would’ve been preferable.

At least people fell in love in those.

According to the original novel, Alosha—one of the supporting characters—was murdered around Chapter 60.

…Then what chapter am I in now?

Now she finally understood why people who possessed doomed villainesses always wanted to gather up their valuables and run away to some remote corner of the world.

Dragging herself home with an aching head and a heart full of dread, Alosha locked herself inside her bedroom.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when—

Knock. Knock.

“Alosha, are you feeling any better?”

Gah!

That’s the protagonist who’s about to ruin my life!

Startled, she clamped both hands over her mouth and held her breath.

Wait… Didn’t the original story say Dane never came to visit Alosha’s room?

If she remembered correctly, their first proper meeting had taken place in the mansion—not in the Knights’ headquarters.

Confused by the gradually changing storyline, Alosha desperately recalled the original novel.

She distinctly remembered the two meeting in the entrance hall of the count’s estate.

Then Dane would dine with the Nocturne siblings in a warm, friendly atmosphere.

After dinner, Alexis tactfully excused himself, giving the pair some time alone.

The awkward couple would stroll through the garden, reminiscing together until Dane finally presented Alosha with a bracelet.

So why is everything different?

Did the story change because I acted differently?

When Alosha continued to remain silent, a long sigh came from outside the door.

“…She must be asleep.”

Please stop acting like a pathetic ex-boyfriend and just leave.

Better yet, leave House Nocturne altogether and go build your future somewhere else.

She genuinely meant it.

Then Dane spoke again.

“…Don’t worry, Alosha. This time… I’ll protect you from that bastard. No matter what.”

…I’m screwed.

He’s regressed, hasn’t he?

Listening to the male lead make such a determined vow to defeat the villain and protect everyone made Alosha want to burst out the door and grab him by the collar.

Stop! That’s a death flag!

It was the oldest cliché in existence.

Whenever a soldier heading off to war said something like—

“When this war is over…”

or

“I promise I’ll come back…”

—they always died.

And now she’d just heard the protagonist himself utter one of those infamous death flags.

…So my death is officially guaranteed now.

While Alosha paced the room in utter despair, she heard rustling outside.

Soon, Dane’s presence disappeared.

After waiting for a while, she finally relaxed and unlocked the door.

She cautiously peeked outside in case Dane was still there.

Instead, something bumped against her foot.

A small box.

Her trembling hands slowly picked it up.

She had always mocked horror movie characters for opening suspicious boxes instead of running away.

Yet now, as though possessed, she found herself lifting the lid.

“Please… don’t let it be what I think it is… Please…”

Inside lay a simple gold bangle.

At its center sparkled an emerald the exact color of Alosha’s eyes.

The bracelet itself wasn’t frightening.

What terrified her was the engraving hidden inside.

To Alosha Nocturne — From Dane.

In the original novel, anyone other than the heroine who received such a symbolic gift from the male lead…

Always died.

Readers might find the moment touching.

They might look forward to the protagonist’s growth.

But as the person destined to die…

Alosha felt her heart plummet.

“Oh, them? Of course they died. Around Chapter 60, I think. The younger sister was caught helping the protagonist, and the villainous duke sliced her down first.”

…If I die here… what happens?

Will I return to my own world?

She had never read a possession novel where the reincarnated character actually died.

Maybe survival was possible.

Then again…

Those stories starred protagonists.

She wasn’t one.

“No… It’s too early to give up. There has to be a way.”

To organize her thoughts, Alosha sat at her desk and began writing everything down.

In the original story, her first meeting with Dane happened during dinner.

She greeted him wearing a blue dress.

Now?

It was lunchtime.

And she was wearing a completely different dress.

She had avoided Dane to stop the story from progressing.

Yet somehow…

The bracelet event still happened.

“So I can alter small details through my actions… but the major story events will always occur?”

If small streams could eventually change the course of a great river…

Then perhaps changing enough little things would let her escape her doomed fate.

Eventually, the war would still break out.

She remembered Alexis Nocturne joining forces with Dane, gathering allies, and building enough influence to oppose Duke Whistler.

Then…

What if I stop these people from siding with Dane?

In that case…

Duke Whistler would seize power even faster, plunging the Empire into bloodshed.

No matter how she looked at it, the outcome remained the same.

House Nocturne would be destroyed.

Alexis and Alosha would die together.

“No! Why are villains in movies and novels always obsessed with conquering continents and ruling the world? Couldn’t they just obsess over the heroine like they do in romance fantasies instead?!”

The moment she muttered those words, something flashed inside her mind.

Like a bolt of lightning.

She could almost hear a familiar sound effect as an imaginary beam of light descended from the heavens.

“…That’s it.”

“Why does this novel have to stay a fantasy filled with blood, violence, and betrayal?”

There was no need for countless complicated characters.

No need for mountains of corpses.

There was one perfect solution that could give everyone a peaceful ending.

“I’ll just turn this genre into a romance fantasy!”

If she couldn’t completely rewrite the original story…

She would simply layer an entirely new story over it.

After all, she’d spent years reading—and writing—romance fantasy novels.

Armed with every cliché the genre had to offer…

A five-hundred-and-sixty-chapter epic?

She could wrap it up in one hundred and sixty.

There wasn’t a single female rival for romance in this world.

Naturally…

She would become the heroine.

As long as she carefully guided the story in the direction she wanted, she might just avoid the tragic future awaiting Alosha.

“So… who should I seduce to change the original story?”

Dane?

She immediately shook her head.

Even in the original novel, Alosha’s unrequited love for the protagonist had gone nowhere.

“Not the protagonist.”

The woman standing beside a hero was always kidnapped, threatened, or murdered out of revenge.

It was practically another cliché.

Then what about someone powerful?

She considered Duke Hemilston, leader of the conservative faction, and the Crown Prince.

No.

She only knew the story up to Chapter 50.

She barely knew anything about the Crown Prince.

She could hardly even remember what Duke Hemilston looked like.

There had to be someone with enough influence to prevent the war…

Someone who wasn’t the protagonist.

The master of the Laos Merchant Guild, who could buy and sell anything?

…No.

He seemed far more interested in money than women.

That left only one candidate capable of making romance bloom on this bleak battlefield.

“That’s it!”

“I’ll seduce the villain!”