Chapter 8
“So, the reason you’re here is…”
“I got engaged today.”
“It hasn’t been announced to the public yet.”
“It’ll be officially announced after His Majesty returns.”
I smiled lightly and added that I still had both blood and tears.
Ate’s blue eyes began darting back and forth in confusion.
Well…
The rumors about me had been pretty ridiculous.
The cruel woman everyone talked about didn’t match the person standing in front of him.
“When you ignored my brother’s proposal, you acted like you didn’t care at all.”
“So why did you suddenly change your mind?”
He added that if I was after power, he wouldn’t forgive me.
Wow.
That’s quite a threat.
It was obvious Ate admired Ivan very much.
“That demon really fooled even his own little brother.”
“I should probably learn a thing or two about image management from him.”
It was honestly impressive.
Lying to the whole Empire was one thing.
But fooling your own family too?
“After talking to him…”
“I realized he’s actually a good person.”
“Of course he is.”
“Where else would you find a man as amazing as my brother?”
“…By the way.”
“Will you be okay?”
“…Hm?”
Okay?
I tilted my head.
Ate awkwardly cleared his throat.
“Well…”
“There are nobles outside the palace…”
His voice became quieter toward the end.
Even though I couldn’t hear everything…
I understood.
He meant the nobles would all be targeting me.
“That’s only natural.”
To the public…
I had spent weeks ignoring the Crown Prince’s proposal.
That alone made me unpopular.
If I actually accepted the proposal…
The position of future Crown Princess, which countless noble ladies had dreamed of…
Would disappear overnight.
“I’ll be fine.”
“We’ve already signed the engagement papers.”
“No one would dare openly attack the future Crown Princess.”
“…That’s not what I meant.”
“…Forget it.”
“My brother will handle it.”
“You were worried about me.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
I smiled gently and lightly tapped his little nose.
Immediately…
His soft white cheeks turned bright red.
Even if he acted fierce…
He was still just a child.
Just as I started feeling the urge to hug him…
He suddenly began coughing painfully.
Cough!
Cough!
The harsh coughing continued.
Then…
Bright red blood appeared between his pale blue lips.
“So this is the incurable illness…”
He’s so young…
Reading about Ate’s illness…
And seeing it with my own eyes…
Were completely different experiences.
For a moment…
I genuinely wanted to help him.
Shana had failed to cure him only because she’d been too late.
If she treated him now…
There was a much better chance of saving him.
“I can’t casually tell people I know about the prince’s illness.”
“I’ll have to naturally create a chance for Shana to find out.”
When I visit the temple…
I definitely need to become friends with Shana.
Thinking that…
I took a handkerchief from my pocket and handed it to Ate.
I wanted to wipe the blood away myself.
But…
He looked perfectly capable of doing it himself.
“…What’s this?”
“You should wipe the blood.”
“Your white shirt will get stained.”
Ate silently stared at the handkerchief.
His expression looked much gentler than before.
Finally…
He accepted it and casually wiped the blood from his mouth.
“I like that you didn’t make a fuss.”
“Whenever I cough once…”
“Everyone acts like I’m about to die.”
“People simply worry in different ways.”
“But everyone wants you to recover.”
“I know.”
“It’s just…”
“Even though I’m still alive…”
“They all look at me like I’m already dead.”
Because servants weren’t allowed inside the library…
He probably came here to escape those sympathetic looks.
“Now I understand why he read all those difficult magic books.”
I’d already found the book I needed.
So it was time to leave.
Holding my book, I smiled.
“Then…”
“I’ll see you again next time, Your Highness.”
“Hmph.”
“Why would I ever see you again?”
…He’s grumpy again already.
Despite his words…
His eyes quietly followed me as I turned away.
He’s still adorable.
“Oh, by the way.”
“That handkerchief is extremely precious to me.”
“So you absolutely have to return it.”
“After washing it properly.”
I stretched both arms wide and exaggerated my gestures.
Ate blinked before slowly nodding.
Mission complete.
Successfully won over the secretly soft little prince.
Feeling satisfied…
I left the library and headed straight to my laboratory.
Making magical potions wasn’t difficult.
It wouldn’t take long.
“Looks like Ivan wasn’t lying when he said he’d support my research.”
The laboratory he had prepared for me had apparently belonged to previous Imperial Court Mages.
Everything I needed was already there.
Actually…
It was even larger and cleaner than I’d expected.
Perfectly to my taste.
“Wow.”
“Rastul’s Beard!”
“This ingredient is almost impossible to buy.”
After fully enjoying the luxury of imperial resources…
I took out my magic book.
Following the recipe…
I quickly mixed the ingredients for the memory potion.
After a few more experiments…
I successfully completed it.
Of course…
It wasn’t easy.
If someone makes something difficult look simple…
That just means they’re a master.
Like me.
Ahem.
“Looks like spending my childhood locked inside a laboratory making hundreds of potions really paid off.”
Back then…
Every unfinished potion I’d ever made had somehow ended up in Rion’s hands.
I still had no idea what he’d done with all of them.
“Alright.”
Gulp.
Thinking about the memories I wanted to recover…
I drank the potion.
A short while later…
The forgotten parts of the novel slowly returned.
“……Right.”
“That’s how it happened.”
The original novel, The Monster Duke’s Doll, hadn’t been finished.
I still didn’t know the ending.
But I recovered every memory from the latest chapter I’d read before being reincarnated.
Leaning back on the sofa…
I sighed.
The story had progressed much further than I’d thought.
I’d assumed we were still near the beginning.
“So…”
“The current timeline is right before the story enters the middle part.”
“If I divide the plot into beginning, middle, climax, and ending…”
“We’re in the early-middle section.”
“And…”
“It’s exactly when the Butcher suddenly stops killing.”
The Butcher…
Ivan.
There had been a brief period when no new victims appeared.
Because Ivan had temporarily stopped hunting monsters.
The reason?
Very soon…
He would attend the Empire’s Founding Festival.
There…
He would fall in love with Shana at first sight.
“He said he’d act like a fiancé devoted only to me…”
“But the original story is already set.”
“Even Ivan can’t change that.”
No matter who he truly was…
He was still the second male lead.
That hadn’t changed.
After organizing everything I remembered…
I realized something else.
Shana would soon leave the temple for the first time.
She had spent years trapped there while the temple exploited her powers.
Then…
The male lead, Duke Barat, would help her finally step outside.
“I should visit the temple before the Founding Festival.”
After the festival…
Everyone would be trying to meet Shana.
It would become much harder to approach her.
Meeting her beforehand was the better choice.
Besides helping Ate…
There was something else I wanted.
I wanted to ask Shana about the mysterious power Ivan called Filtre.
Thinking I should arrange a visit to the temple soon…
I returned to my bedroom.
Sis hurried toward me.
She looked shocked.
“Lady Rine!”
“We just received news.”
“His Majesty will return to the palace tomorrow!”
“There’ll be a victory celebration.”
“You absolutely have to attend.”
“…Tomorrow?”
“I thought His Majesty wasn’t returning for another week.”
The story changed?
I had expected some things to be different.
But even this?
Originally…
The Emperor wasn’t supposed to return for another week.
What happened?
“I heard that His Highness the Crown Prince sent His Majesty a letter.”
“I don’t know what it said…”
“But apparently that’s why the Emperor decided to return early.”
Ivan sent him a letter?
What on earth did he write…
The Emperor is normally so relaxed.
How did Ivan convince him to return an entire week early?
“It can’t be because of our engagement.”
In the original novel…
The Emperor never interfered with anything Ivan did.
Even something as important as an engagement.
…I don’t know exactly what happened.
But somehow…
It feels like the demon simply did something very demon-like again.
