◊ Chapter 3 ◊
The Stepmother Does Makeup
The interesting topic immediately caught everyone’s attention.
Every noble lady’s eyes lit up.
“I heard the future Crown Princess will also be part of the Crown Prince selection. They say Prince Macaron is the strongest candidate.”
In the Romanti Empire, the eldest prince did not automatically become Crown Prince.
It had always been the Empire’s tradition that the most capable prince inherited the position.
The selection considered many qualifications.
Political ability.
Military achievements.
Connections across the world.
And one of the most important…
His future wife.
At the moment,
the Empire had two suns.
The First Prince already had a fiancée.
The Second Prince did not.
“So if he can’t find a Crown Princess, does he lose his chance to become Crown Prince?”
“Prince Macaron is incredibly talented. He’ll probably make up for it with his other scores.”
“Even so, not having a future wife would be a huge disadvantage. That’s probably why he’s sending out marriage proposals at the last minute.”
They were all wrong.
Because…
I was the only one who knew the entire story of La Vie en Rose.
Macaron wasn’t someone who needed marriage to improve his score.
He was acknowledged as the most talented prince in the Empire’s history.
Logically,
Prince Macaron becoming Emperor was practically guaranteed.
The Crown Prince selection was just a formality.
The result had already been decided.
The real problem was…
Macaron had absolutely no interest in becoming Emperor.
After spending years surrounded by political struggles and battlefields,
it wasn’t surprising that he had no desire for power.
To show his determination,
he planned to marry a woman completely unsuitable to become Empress.
That was the true reason he was sending out marriage proposals.
He wanted to fail the Crown Prince selection
and simply live as a Grand Duke.
But…
No sane woman would agree to marry him.
After the last war,
terrible rumors about Prince Macaron had spread throughout the Empire.
People called him…
The Monster Prince.
No matter how capable he was,
no woman wanted to marry a monster.
“I heard he became a monster after being attacked by magical beasts during the Refresh War. They even say every woman who spends a night with him dies.”
“Oh, come on. He’s still a human being. That can’t be true.”
“Then what about the child he brought back from the battlefield? No one even knows who the mother is.”
“So… those rumors are actually true? That’s so pitiful.”
“Even if someone wanted to become Crown Princess, would anyone really accept his proposal?”
The lady who had been speaking confidently just moments ago suddenly looked around nervously before whispering,
“No one would be crazy enough to do that…”
A woman who willingly married the Monster Prince.
Yes.
That crazy woman…
was me.
Or rather,
I was about to become her.
In the original story,
after Shuvil divorced Calypse,
she immediately sent Coral to an orphanage.
Trapped by Shuvil’s scheme,
Calypse was forced to take responsibility for all his debts.
She was even on the verge of going to prison.
That was when Prince Macaron’s marriage proposal arrived.
For Calypse,
standing at the edge of despair,
that proposal was salvation.
So she accepted.
The problem began afterward.
Having never been loved in her entire life,
Calypse became obsessed with Macaron’s beauty.
Like most contract marriages,
Macaron paid no attention to her.
Driven by jealousy and frustration,
she eventually accepted a tempting offer from the First Prince.
After that, Calypse was caught poisoning Macaron’s drink… and died a miserable death by his hands.
In the original novel,
Calypse’s death was described in only a few lines.
But those few lines were vivid enough to haunt me.
“And now… I’m the one who has to live through that.”
Every time I heard rumors about Macaron,
I couldn’t help remembering Calypse’s tragic ending.
Still,
I kept a calm expression.
It wasn’t as if this was the first time I’d heard those rumors.
They weren’t enough to shake me anymore.
After placing the beauty mark beneath her eye,
I finally finished the makeup.
“It’s done.”
The Cat Woman Makeup perfectly suited the night.
Not only Lady Marie,
but every noblewoman around her stared in amazement.
“Teacher, just who are you…?”
“You’ve brought life back to my dead face. Thank you.”
Lady Marie’s playful compliment made everyone nearby burst into laughter.
All of them had just received makeup from me.
Even though my fee was five gold coins each—a very expensive price—
they still competed to book me.
“You have to come again next week!”
“Of course.”
I smiled warmly.
Just then,
Lady Clie shyly approached me.
“Could you teach me the touch-up makeup you showed me before? I think I’ll be staying out late tonight.”
Applying makeup wasn’t the only important part.
Maintaining it mattered too.
Of course,
following them around and fixing their makeup personally would be ideal.
But I couldn’t spend my entire day chasing noble ladies.
Especially if they disappeared into private rooms.
That’s why I created…
Changer.
“Why don’t you try this?”
The moment I showed them my newest magical tool,
their eyes sparkled.
“This one contains Cat Eye Makeup.”
“This one has Flower Makeup.”
“And this one…”
Every makeup style I had done for them today
had already been saved inside the Changer.
“Please take the Changer that matches the makeup you’re wearing.”
As soon as I finished speaking,
they carefully picked up their own devices,
like obedient children protecting precious treasures.
“Line up your face with the marked frame and let the magic tool scan you.”
After a few moments of excited commotion,
everyone finished.
“Now…
just press the button.”
“It’s like my makeup has been applied all over again! It’s even clearer than before!”
The ladies repeatedly looked at each other’s faces,
then rushed to the mirrors.
They were completely fascinated.
“It lasts for thirty minutes. If you’d like it to last longer, you can purchase additional filters.”
“…!”
Immediately,
every noblewoman switched into customer mode.
They all started asking about the price at once.
Originally,
I had planned to sell them for one gold coin each,
since they only lasted thirty minutes.
But judging by their reactions…
I could definitely charge more.
“Two gold coins each.”
Changer sold out immediately.
On top of that,
requests for restocking flooded in.
At this rate,
I’d have more than enough money to fill an entire wardrobe with clothes for Coral.
I quietly hid my satisfied smile as I finished cleaning up.
Then,
Lady Lanetin approached me.
“Wait…
You know how to make magical tools too?”
“It’s just a small hobby.”
“A hobby? If our merchant company officially sold this magic tool, it would become our best-selling product. Besides, there’s no one else in the Empire capable of designing something like this.”
Lady Marie clicked her tongue in admiration.
As the owner of one of the Empire’s largest merchant companies,
she had excellent judgment.
She wasn’t simply flattering me.
Still…
it wasn’t the right time yet.
When I politely declined,
she smiled with disappointment.
“Is there anything you can’t do?”
“And you’re beautiful too. Life really is unfair!”
I didn’t know exactly how beautiful Calypse was considered in this world,
but I heard compliments like that quite often.
“If you entered the Coachella Competition, you’d definitely be chosen as one of the Queens.”
“Of course! You’re participating this year, right?”
Every four years,
the Romanti Empire held a grand social event where they selected three Kings and three Queens.
Together,
they were called the Empire’s F3,
and their popularity swept across the entire nation.
The event’s importance was beyond imagination.
If Calypse had ever participated in noble society,
there was a very high chance she would have been chosen as one of the Queens.
But because of her stepmother’s schemes,
Calypse had never once entered high society while growing up.
So I couldn’t honestly judge exactly how beautiful this face was in this world.
Still…
there was no doubt she was beautiful.
At least,
judging by the reactions of my fans.
“Thank you for the compliments. I’ll see you again next time.”
Many people tried to persuade me to stay longer.
But with a smile,
I quietly left.
*
One peaceful day,
after enjoying another mother-and-daughter outing with Coral,
we returned home from shopping.
Just as I expected…
The marriage proposal arrived.
From the Second Prince,
Macaron Crade.
It had finally come.
A divorced woman.
With a child.
A daughter from an insignificant baron’s family.
That was who Calypse was now.
For someone like Macaron,
who had no desire to become Crown Prince,
there couldn’t have been a more perfect marriage partner.
He had probably already proposed to countless women.
Divorced ladies.
Fallen noble daughters.
Women from every possible background.
And every one of them had rejected him.
Eventually…
the proposal reached me.
The letter bearing Macaron’s seal fluttered gently in my hands.
If someone else saw it,
they would probably tell me to tear it up immediately.
But instead…
I calmly wrote my reply.
I accept.
Do you think I’m crazy?
That I should come to my senses?
Yes.
I know.
Anyone would think I had a screw loose.
But there’s one important fact.
Kai lives there.
The unnamed child Macaron brought back from the battlefield…
was none other than Kai, the male lead.
“I have to bring Coral and Kai together. I can’t ruin that.”
In the original story,
Coral and Kai first met at the Imperial Academy.
Although Coral came from a low-ranking family,
her genius inventions caught the attention of a professor,
who personally recruited her.
Even so,
she suffered endless bullying because of her background.
The one who always protected her…
was Kai.
Just when their love finally began to bloom,
Shuvil divorced Calypse,
and Coral was abandoned in an orphanage.
She was sent to an orphanage in a remote countryside territory,
and completely lost contact with Kai.
Their separation was heartbreaking.
But…
the bond between Coral and Kai never broke.
Even after becoming Emperor,
Kai left the Empress’s seat empty for years.
Because the only woman in his heart was Coral.
Until the day they met again,
both of them endured countless hardships,
always longing for each other.
My goal was simple.
Bring Coral and Kai together.
Everything after that
would be their own story.
I could quietly step aside.
After all…
my marriage with Macaron would only be a one-year contract.
Knowing all of this,
I had prepared for remarriage while planning my divorce.
In the Romanti Empire,
once someone became an adult,
they could legally dissolve an adoptive family relationship,
and the process was simple.
“During our one-year contract marriage, I’ll give Coral the best life possible… then quietly divorce.”
After that,
everything could be left to Coral and Kai.
Since I had prepared for this remarriage for so long,
there wasn’t much to think about.
Still…
just before stamping my acceptance,
I hesitated for a brief moment.
I remembered the scene from the original story—
the moment when Macaron cut off Calypse’s head.
“Of course, she had poisoned his drink… but still…”
My neck suddenly felt cold.
But…
“For Coral… there’s nothing I can’t do.”
Once Coral and Kai were happily together,
I’d collect a generous divorce settlement
and quietly begin my second life.
*
One week later,
a reply bearing the seal of the Crade family arrived through the window.
