Chapter 8
The original Leta was the type of introvert whose social skills were practically nonexistent.
‘That’s why she was misunderstood so often.’
Personally, I don’t think she turned into a villainess because she loved the Crown Prince too much or was jealous of the relationship between him and the heroine.
After reading her records, I got the impression that Leta simply wanted someone she could talk to.
Gawen. Logical. Analytical. Genius.
The two of them had similar personalities, but I could confidently say that the biggest outsider in the story was Leta.
Gawen was also an extremely introverted person, so how did they become friends?
It was simply the law of nature.
When introverts gather together, one of them inevitably evolves into the “proactive introvert.”
Gawen. Introduced numerous promising theories necessary to suppress berserk episodes.
Gawen had been the one to approach first.
At the beginning, the two of them actually got along fairly well.
The problem was that everything Leta did in an attempt to become friends with her was incredibly easy to misunderstand.
Made a mistake.
Spilling water on the heroine’s dress at the party had genuinely been an accident.
She’d only been trying to bring her a drink.
Attempted to improve her public reputation. Failed.
She’d praised the heroine, but in the snake pit known as high society, her words had been twisted into poisonous rumors aimed at the heroine instead.
Successfully dealt with forces threatening His Highness the Crown Prince’s safety.
Sending the Crown Prince’s nanny to the Ice Palace through a scheme…
She’d only done it because she’d learned about his miserable childhood and wanted to help him.
Duke Aimon. Delivered truthful information. Subject displayed anger.
Telling the second male lead to give up on liking the heroine wasn’t an attempt to eliminate a rival.
From anyone’s perspective, the two leads obviously liked each other.
She’d probably just meant, “Don’t torture yourself over someone who’s already in a mutual relationship.”
…Hold on.
‘Is this really still the beginning of the story? Why has she already accumulated so much bad karma?’
Come to think of it, the Crown Prince had declared over and over that he had no intention of marrying the villainess.
“Whoa… That almost gave me a heart attack.”
I checked the dates.
It really was still the early part of the story.
As long as we hadn’t entered the middle of the novel yet, everything was still salvageable.
As long as that incident—the event that truly branded her as the villainess—hadn’t happened yet, redemption was still possible.
If I could just clear up all these little misunderstandings, everyone could become friends again.
‘This is why you always have to verify both sides of the story.’
How unfair it must have been for Leta, trapped inside the author’s biased perspective.
Looking back at everything she’d ever said or done to the Crown Prince, none of it had actually been flirting.
They were simply the innocent actions of someone who wanted to become friends.
Actions that were misunderstood because she completely lacked social skills.
…But then why had she become history’s greatest villainess and gotten her entire family destroyed?
‘Because misunderstandings pile up. And once enough of them accumulate, relationships become twisted beyond repair.’
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
I remembered what Father had said on the first day I’d transmigrated.
“…The Crown Prince said something unnecessary…”
Leta probably hadn’t understood the Crown Prince’s sharp words at all.
After all, all she’d done was gather her courage and try to become friends.
Then, out of nowhere, he declared he had no intention of marrying her.
…Okay?
What exactly was she supposed to do with that?
If she kept trying to get closer while the misunderstandings only multiplied…
If everyone around her gradually turned against her…
How had someone as intelligent as Leta dealt with a situation that frustrating?
‘Maybe there was more going on behind the scenes.’
But this was still the beginning of the novel, and the story hadn’t yet explained the political relationships in much detail, so I’d leave that alone for now.
Even if it had…
What would I know?
I was the criminal who watched the novel at 2.5x speed just because I wanted to hurry up and get to the kissing scenes.
“…Ugh, my head hurts. I’m getting sleepy.”
I’d been thinking way too much.
Besides, what was the point of endlessly analyzing fictional characters?
I couldn’t peer into Leta’s true feelings, nor could I ever be one hundred percent certain.
I’d just live my own life.
Let’s settle every grudge cleanly and become friends with everyone.
“Alright~ Time for the gossip section.”
I’d skimmed through Leta’s records.
Now it was time for something easy and entertaining.
Just as Father had said, Leta had been an obsessive recorder.
Apparently she was also both a collector and an organization fanatic.
Every newspaper in the Empire had been sorted by publication date, newspaper company, and information category.
‘So this is why Father told me to check out the private library.’
From the shelf labeled “High Society,” I pulled out one newspaper.
The Benoit Empire Daily
A pretty generic title.
It probably wouldn’t have the juicy gossip I wanted, but it should at least provide a general overview.
The publication date…
Oh.
“This is yesterday morning’s paper—the day before I transmigrated.”
Fresh off the press.
Which also meant that because I’d possessed Leta’s body, her work had been paralyzed for over a week.
It’s fine.
Really.
Her parents were so absurdly competent that they’d simply taken over all of her responsibilities.
“As expected… she was amazing at her job.”
She’d even underlined the important parts to make them easier to read.
No wonder the incredibly lazy Father kept sending doctors every day.
He clearly wanted me to recover quickly and get back to helping with work.
“His Highness the Crown Prince’s Dragon Core Stabilized…”
“The Crown Prince’s Dazzling Beauty Captivates the Hearts of the Empire.”
“The Abilities of Dragon Master Gawen Kuberto Hamunt…”
There were so many articles about those two.
Basically:
The Crown Prince is amazing.
The heroine is amazing.
Long live the Imperial Family.
Sprinkled in between were announcements about noble marriages and engagements.
I also found information about upcoming events.
“The Empire eagerly anticipates the August 20th Founding Day celebration…”
It was currently mid-April.
Every August, a grand banquet was held at the Imperial Palace to celebrate Founding Day.
A month-long festival also took place throughout the capital.
Naturally, this festival was one of the major story arcs where the protagonists’ relationship made huge progress.
Sure, it was the cliché episode where they wandered around enjoying the commoners’ festival together…
But still.
“Kind of romantic.”
Meanwhile, the socially maladjusted Leta had probably shown her face at the banquet for a few minutes before locking herself back in her study to work.
Poor girl…
I’ll go have fun in your place.
“I’ve finished this… Is there anything more straightforward?”
There was.
“Wow… They’ve got everything.”
Rakater: Your Gossip
The layout looked similar, but the headlines were much cleaner and far more direct.
Exactly the kind of gossip magazine I wanted.
I read one subtitle…
…and burst out laughing.
“Dragon Master Aiming for the Position of Crown Princess?”
Gawen?!
I’m dying!
They’re still in the early stages of the story!
They haven’t even realized they like each other yet!
They’re just flirting!
High society was getting way ahead of itself.
I honestly thought my stomach would burst from laughing.
“Hahaha! Hahaha… ha…?”
But my laughter instantly disappeared when I noticed another headline underneath.
It had been underlined several times.
“A Dangerous Love Quadrangle: Benoit – Hamunt – Suspenter – Aimon.”
Wait.
The article used family names, which made it confusing.
Let’s match them one by one.
〈The Imperial House of Benoit〉— Male Lead
〈House Hamunt〉— Female Lead
〈House Suspenter〉— Me
〈House Aimon〉— Second Male Lead
The moment I finished matching everyone together, I came to a realization.
“…Wow. I’m popular.”
I said it jokingly, but it really wasn’t funny.
If rumors like this surrounded me in real life, I’d enjoy them.
I’d happily become everyone’s favorite gossip topic.
It sounded entertaining.
But here?
How exactly was I supposed to clean this mess up?
“An Unpredictable Romance… Who Will Be the Victor?”
“…Yeah, right.”
How was I supposed to become friends with anyone now?
The introverts were already wary enough.
If society didn’t leave even the tiniest opening for me to approach them…
Then what exactly was I supposed to do?
Aaaagh!
“Are all of you blind or something? Haven’t you ever heard of friendship? This isn’t some ancient rule where boys and girls can’t sit together after the age of seven. These medieval people are even worse!”
Apparently Leta herself had found it ridiculous.
She’d even drawn a tiny question mark next to the article.
But the real kicker was beneath that.
“Love Quadrangle Scandal… Crown Prince: ‘Lady Suspenter and I are only close friends.'”
“Duke Aimon Issues Firm Statement Through His Representative: ‘The rumors are completely unfounded… We are bewildered.'”
“…Oh.”
After a long silence, I finally spoke.
“So what, you’re denying dating rumors?”
I never liked either of you in the first place.
…Ugh.
Now I’m annoyed.
