Chapter 01
The Daughter of Count Duser of Prodia (1)
[The Heir Selection Contest of the Abem Empire]
A contest was being held to find a husband for the Empire’s princess, Arlin Abem.
Soon, the opening ceremony of the contest would begin at the Grand Arena.
Inside the arena, the stands were already packed with spectators.
A contest to select the princess’s spouse?
Everyone was busy talking about this astonishing event.
“Is it true that the winner of this contest will marry the princess?”
“That’s right! They said it doesn’t matter who you are. Anyone with the ability can marry the princess!”
“I heard the boy from the house next door is participating this time.”
“Oh, just their son? Every young man in the empire must have applied!”
This unprecedented contest had been the talk of the empire for days.
Moreover, Princess Arlin was renowned as the most beautiful woman in the empire.
Because of that, countless young men gathered, hoping to marry her.
But the contest was by no means easy.
Tens of thousands of participants applied, but most were eliminated in the harsh preliminaries.
And finally, today, the carefully selected participants would appear before the empire’s citizens for the first time.
Soon, the host stepped onto the stage.
His image was projected in huge form on the massive magical display behind the stage.
The host raised a microphone-shaped magic device and shouted toward the stands.
“Citizens of the empire, welcome! The Abem Empire Heir Selection Contest finally begins!”
“Waaah—!”
A thunderous cheer erupted from the audience.
The opening ceremony had begun.
On the stage, various dazzling performances unfolded.
Yet everyone’s attention was focused elsewhere.
The contestants would perform in the finale of the opening ceremony.
It was said that something incredible, kept secret until now, awaited.
What kind of performance could it be?
Since they were future heirs, would it be a refined classical presentation? Or a graceful sword dance?
Moreover, a strange rumor was circulating in the empire.
‘They’ were participating in this contest.
It was hard to believe.
No one else, perhaps, but there was no way they would appear in this contest.
Because of that, the audience’s anticipation reached its peak.
Everyone was eager to see the contestants.
…Of course, not everyone felt that way.
In a corner of the stands, someone sat with a serious expression.
Prodia Duser, daughter of Count Duser.
A woman with long, jet-black hair like the night sky and sharp features.
While everyone else enjoyed the opening ceremony, her expression remained solemn.
‘It’s almost time.’
Her violet eyes, fixed on the stage, seemed anxious.
Because she wasn’t a spectator…
She was a producer.
At that moment, the host raised his voice.
“Thank you for waiting! Finally, it’s time to present the combined stage performance of all contestants, to close the opening ceremony!”
“Waaah!”
The loudest cheer yet erupted.
The lights went out, plunging the arena into darkness.
The audience fell silent.
Prodia also focused intently on the stage.
Blue lights illuminated the stage.
Pop—
A beautiful melody began, and white smoke filled the stage.
The contestants began to appear on stage.
Clomp.
One by one, their faces were displayed on the massive screen behind them.
“…!”
The audience held their breath at the sight.
As rumored, these were extraordinarily beautiful men.
The contestants walked confidently to their designated positions on stage.
Each had their own charisma, creating a breathtaking scene.
Then—
As their faces filled the screen, the audience froze.
“Th-that’s…!”
Even seeing it with their own eyes, they could hardly believe it.
“He’s really the eldest son of the Northern Duke!”
That wasn’t all.
“There’s also the Grand Mage of the Magic Tower!”
The murmurs grew louder.
“Wasn’t that one supposed to be the Southern Admiral’s heir?”
“Why is the guild heir here? Heirs can’t have jobs!”
“Even the High Priest of the Grand Temple…!”
The rumors were true.
The audience was in chaos.
Prodia, too, had a crooked smile on her lips.
‘Yep, just as I expected… total chaos.’
Her contestant was already drawing attention. Not good at all—others would be wary of them.
But look at that face.
Her contestant smiled brightly at Prodia.
Nearby women squealed in delight.
“Kyaa! Did he just smile at me?”
“Is he even human? He’s so handsome—!”
Prodia sighed in resignation.
Well, the game’s already over just by looking at his face.
With that appearance, how could he not capture everyone’s attention?
Anyway, the audience was still in shock.
Then it happened.
“Citizens of the empire!”
“Please support us—!”
Suddenly, the contestants bowed 90 degrees to the audience.
The spectators sensed something strange.
These might be the future heirs, yet why were they bowing so respectfully?
But as the contestants lined up, the audience quieted down.
The performance was about to begin.
Seeing them in their elegant blue uniforms, it seemed a choir performance was planned.
The audience focused on the stage.
Then—
Da-dan da-ran~!
An unexpectedly lively prelude began.
Huh?
The royal family using such a frivolous melody?
And the lyrics that followed were… somewhat strange.
“We don’t know what kind of man the princess would like~”
“Eh…?”
“So we prepared all kinds of men.”
That wasn’t all.
Now the contestants were performing a synchronized dance to this bizarre, cheerful music.
“?!?”
It was neither a beautiful sword dance nor an elegant ballet.
Countless handsome men shook their bodies violently to the beat.
Yet not a single move was out of sync—perfectly choreographed.
Spectacular, yes—but still somehow strange.
While everyone else was confused, only Prodia Duser remained calm.
She knew the secret behind this contest.
And the climax of the song was about to come.
The next lyrics began.
“Surely one of us will suit you~”
“?!”
“Surely one of us is to the princess’s taste~!”
Everyone else was dumbfounded, but Prodia thought to herself:
‘What kind of contest is this for selecting an heir?!’
Prodia Duser.
From the moment she was born, she remembered her past life.
Of course, she knew exactly why.
It was to atone for the karma of her previous life.
‘Haa…’
Prodia recalled her past life.
She had been a variety show producer in South Korea, named Pyeonseong Yeon.
She had risen to fame by successfully producing the idol audition program After Work Produce!
To maintain national attention, ruthless editing—editing that destroyed dreams—was essential.
Countless boys’ dreams were crushed, but she didn’t care.
“As long as the ratings are good, that’s fine.”
She had been a producer who sacrificed participants for the sake of ratings, someone who would stop at nothing for profit.
Then one day, she suddenly died of a heart attack.
Overwork was the cause.
Her soul was summoned before God.
In a completely white void, where nothing existed.
Her soul looked around, confused.
‘Where am I?’
Moments ago, she had been at the broadcast station.
Then a faint figure appeared before her.
‘Is that… a person?’
As the mist cleared, the figure became visible.
Completely radiant in white light.
Seeing his face, she was speechless.
‘…!’
So perfect, too perfect.
If all the beauty in the world were sculpted into human form, it might look like him.
She couldn’t help but think:
‘Who is this person, appearing after the audition ended? Total center material.’
“Just thought he was totally center material, right?”
“?!”
The beautiful man in front of her read her thoughts, and she panicked.
“W-who… are you?”
He chuckled softly.
“Me? I’m God.”
God?
“You’re dead.”
“…!”
Then it all came back to her.
Earlier, she had clutched her chest and collapsed at the broadcast station.
‘I died like that? No—!’
She had been thriving, making her audition program a success, receiving high-paying scouting offers, at the peak of her career!
God clicked his tongue.
“Tsk. Still thinking about that sinful program? You haven’t learned a thing, have you?”
“Eh…?”
“Well, it’s okay. If you did wrong, you just need to be punished.”
“?!”
At that moment, God pointed at her.
Chains of white light shot out, wrapping around her body.
“Ugh, aaaah!”
No matter how she struggled, the chains only dug deeper into her body.
She groaned in pain.
“K-kee… p-please… save me…”
God approached slowly.
“Now, let’s pass judgment on the soul of the sinner Pyeonseong Yeon.”
God’s expression was cold.
“For harming pure souls through devilish editing.”
As he spoke, her vision shimmered, and memories of her past life resurfaced.
“…!”
When she had maliciously edited the program, one contestant was publicly criticized.
He suffered, but she laughed, saying the ratings were good.
“Th-this… so that means…”
She wanted to make excuses.
But… what could she say? She had done it knowingly. That child would be a scapegoat.
God spoke again.
“Originally, I intended to lock you in the Hell Editing Room for a million years…”
Hell?
He meant she’d have to edit for a million years? That’s actual hell! Better to be thrown into fire!
Then God smiled.
“But I will show mercy. I will give you one more chance.”
“O-one more chance?”
“Yes.”
With that, God waved his hand.
The chains of light around her scattered.
She was alive.
Prodia quickly knelt before God.
“I will do anything! Just tell me, God!”
If she could avoid the editing hell, she would do anything.
But God shook his finger.
Her soul began to fade into the void.
“…?!”
To her surprise, God smiled kindly.
“O sinful soul, this time, try doing something good using your producing abilities.”
Producing… for a good cause?
She shouted desperately.
“G-God, what do you mean by producing?”
But she could no longer hear his answer.
As the fragments of her soul scattered, her consciousness drifted farther away.
And some time later…
Her new life began in a small cradle.
