“…Hmm?”
Meredia, who had been staring blankly, opened her eyes again and rubbed them, sinking into thought.
‘Did I doze off? Was it me?’
As she tried to recollect her memory before falling asleep, she gave a small smile and straightened up.
‘Ha, really. I’ve gotten soft.’
It seemed that, while avoiding Whitney’s persistent gaze in the carriage returning from Lumen Ordo, she had dozed off for a moment.
Naturally, this was something that wouldn’t normally happen, and Meredia chuckled as she ran a hand through her hair.
‘All because of that guy…’
What would she think if she saw the version of herself from just a few months ago, blushing in the yard while confessing to Whitney?
‘She’d probably think I’ve gone mad and take a handful of poison, right?’
“Princess, what do we do now…?”
“!? “
“!? “
Suddenly, while Meredia was worrying about how to face Whitney’s face, a desperate voice reached her ears.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Hii, I’m sorry!?”
Meredia, who had just raised her head, was confused when she saw the old butler, whom she had fired before, kneeling in front of her.
“Huh? Where am I?”
“T-the Princess’s office…”
For Meredia, whose last memory was in the carriage, this was utterly confusing.
“Where is that Whitney?”
“Pardon?”
“Did you let him into the mansion without my permission? Even though he’s my fiancé…”
Nonetheless, after coming to the rational conclusion that Whitney must have moved her to the mansion while she was asleep, she began to mutter, her face slightly sour.
“Excuse me, but, Your Highness.”
The old butler, now even paler than before, trembled as he delivered the unbelievable news.
“Whitney Young Master… passed away at around 9 AM today.”
“…What?”
“He drank the poison from the tea party… and did not wake up again.”
For a moment, Meredia stared blankly at the old butler.
Then, she clenched her hands tightly and stood up.
“What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”
“I-I’m sorry! I’ve sinned greatly.”
Then, swallowing his words, he threw himself flat on the ground and repeatedly slammed his forehead against the floor.
“I-I made the poison to paralyze the nervous system, just as the Princess ordered… But for some reason, it had a lethal effect…”
“I will take responsibility. For now, we must focus on dealing with the situation…”
His words caused Meredia’s expression to become confused.
“He’s dead? Whitney?”
“…Princess?”
“That’s impossible. Even if I threw him in the stronghold of black mages, he should have survived. Why…”
Meredia murmured, her gaze unconsciously shifting to the calendar hanging on the wall.
When her eyes landed on it, they suddenly widened.
“Ha.”
And then, a cold laugh burst from her lips shortly after.
“Ha, hahaha.”
“…Princess?”
“Hahahaha… ha.”
Meredia, who had been laughing nervously for quite some time, finally collapsed back into her seat and muttered.
“…Was it all a dream?”
“…?”
“Yeah, I knew it would be.”
Her expression was twisted in a way she had never felt before.
“Someone like me could never be truly happy.”
Even though she had experienced all kinds of negative emotions, this feeling was unlike anything she had ever known.
Perhaps that feeling’s name was ‘emptiness.’
“…Has Whitney Lingard’s body been secured?”
“Yes? Ah, yes.”
“Then, guide me there so I can alter the cause of death…”
Sitting in the seat for a long time, Meredia shook her head and spoke.
“Whitney Lingard was originally frail, and he attended the tea party despite his condition, which aggravated his illness and caused his death. Do you understand?”
“Yes, yes! I understand!”
Her expression had already returned to that of a few months ago.
‘Yes, this will do.’
Her gaze, filled with a shadow of hatred, carried no smile.
‘This is how it should be…?’
And for some reason, everything she saw started passing by at a rapid pace.
*****
“Meredia, you really made a big mess again.”
“…?”
…?
As the passage of time accelerated, Meredia, who had been slumping with a dazed look, snapped back to reality and found herself facing someone she greatly disliked.
“You should think about the position of this older brother, who has such a horrible younger sister.”
Her older brother, Meyer Embergreen, who had always looked at her with a disdainful gaze, pulled out a stack of newspapers from his coat and threw them on the desk in front of her.
“The worst disaster since the founding of the Empire, who is responsible for summoning demons…”
While reading the headlines of the newspapers he threw, Meredia furrowed her brow in confusion.
‘Something’s off… This doesn’t match the story I know…’
But the more she thought about it, the more her mind became clouded, and she couldn’t figure out why.
“You know you’re responsible for all of this, right? You’re well aware that you deserve execution, don’t you?”
“What? No, I…”
“Meredia, when I’m speaking, you should keep your mouth shut.”
Even the attempt to protest was quickly forgotten as Meyer’s laughable remarks pushed them from her mind.
“It’s the Emperor’s decree. From today, you are stripped of your head of house position. I’ll be assuming the position of head on your behalf from this moment.”
“What is this… ugh.”
“That’s what happens when you act out of line, sister.”
As Meyer spoke, he grabbed Meredia by the collar and forced her back into her seat.
“…Huh.”
Meredia’s arm was suddenly filled with a magic restraint bracelet, which she didn’t notice until now.
“But consider yourself lucky. Even someone as disgusting as you would stain my reputation if you were executed.”
“……”
“You’ll never know how many gold pieces were wasted to cover your mistake.”
Staring at the restraint bracelet in confusion, Meredia’s eyes trembled violently as she heard Meyer’s next words.
“Because now, you can never leave this mansion.”
“What?”
“Meredia, I’m sorry, but you’ll have to stay here from now on.”
And in the next moment, her eyes started to turn red.
“How dare you, who gave you the right…?”
“Heh. You still don’t understand reality, do you?”
Meyer, who was watching her with amusement, made a quiet gesture.
– Gooooo…
“Aaaah!”
The restraint bracelet on Meredia’s arm vibrated violently and incapacitated her instantly.
“As soon as you lose your position as head, you’re done.”
With that, Meyer Embergreen, still holding her by the collar, spoke coldly.
“I have a royal meeting to attend, so I’ll be leaving. In my place, a new guest will be watching over you from now on.”
As he stepped back, the door to the office opened, and someone walked inside.
“……!”
“What’s this, an familiar face? Ah, right, you did show some interest in the past.”
Meredia, who had recognized the face of someone, exclaimed in surprise, and Meyer, with a playful smile, began his introduction in a smooth voice.
“Allow me to introduce. This is Dame Runiel Mistilane, the Emperor’s right hand and the new captain of the Imperial Guard.”
“If you take even one step outside the mansion, you’ll be making a life-or-death decision. Be careful.”
But Meredia, completely ignoring Meyer’s words, was fixated on the woman named Runiel.
‘Why is she the Emperor’s subordinate?’
A sense of unease, half-understood, crept over her mind.
“Haha. Are you thinking of fighting now? You should stop, it’s better that way.”
“……”
“No matter who you are, with that magic restraint collar on, you’ll be throwing your life away.”
But before Meredia could even get used to the unease, Meyer dismissed Runiel and, with a sneer, continued.
“Oh, by the way, don’t worry too much. I don’t plan on locking you up here forever.”
“…..”
“I’ll find you a suitable husband soon, so be thankful for that.”
As he finished his words and was about to leave, Meyer squinted slightly and added a cryptic comment.
“…Hopefully, this time, don’t kill him.”
“……!”
“I’ve been having quite the headache dealing with the intense protests from the Lingard family lately.”
At that moment, an overwhelming sense of unease, stronger than ever before, washed over Meredia.
“……”
But until the door closed and Meyer’s presence disappeared, Meredia could not figure out what the source of her unease was.
“Excuse me.”
How much time had passed?
“From today onwards, I will be taking care of Princess Meredia, my name is Parsha.”
“…I see.”
“Haha, as expected, my judgment was correct…”
Once again, a child who seemed familiar entered the office when the door opened, but Meredia could no longer feel that sense of unease.
“Well then, I look forward to working with you.”
And so, her time started moving quickly once again.
*****
“Haha, Princess. Truly remarkable…”
After what felt like an eternity, Meredia regained her senses and found herself staring at the Emperor, who was somehow covered in blood.
“You won. Congratulations.”
“…….”
“You’ve won, but now, you’re of no use. Would you like to sit on the throne? There’s no one left to hold you accountable, after all…”
Beside the Emperor, Runiel lay with a fatal wound, her eyes closed, and all around them, the bodies of the Imperial Guard lay in a tragic heap.
And outside the window, the Empire’s capital was burning.
“…Ha.”
As Meredia surveyed the scene, she recalled that she had achieved all of this with her own hands and turned her cold gaze toward the Emperor.
“Shut up.”
“…Cough.”
In the next moment, the Emperor, who still had a relaxed expression despite everything, was pierced through the chest by a jewel crystal summoned from thin air by Meredia.
“After all… is this all I am, just half a person?”
The Emperor, who had made a faint, almost imperceptible expression of regret, left behind a vague final remark and collapsed, and the silence began.
“Ha…”
Amidst the silence, Meredia, with a weary expression, approached the throne and sat down weakly, bowing her head.
“I… I just want to rest.”
But she vaguely knew that there was no time left for her to rest.
– Gooo…
From far away, near the Imperial Palace, a powerful energy approached her.
It was definitely the aura of the ‘Hero’ that had appeared in the world.
Having already fought fiercely with the Emperor and her captain of the Imperial Guard, could she defeat this Hero?
“…Well, it doesn’t matter.”
But such worries no longer held any sway over Meredia.
“My revenge is over…”
Having burned away all the hatred, anger, and fire that had been left inside her, there was no longer any meaning to living for her.
“…But.”
Yes, that should have been the case.
“Why do I feel like I’ve missed something…?”
What was this feeling of unease that had been nagging her since earlier?
“What exactly is it…”
She couldn’t shake the feeling of having made one huge mistake. The kind of mistake that would ruin everything.
“…Maybe…”
Caught in that feeling, Meredia, who had been clutching her head, suddenly recalled the moment when she had crossed a line for the first time in her life and let out a bitter smile.
“If it hadn’t been for that… maybe I could have had a better ending.”
The first innocent person who had died by her hand at the tea party, whose face was now a blur.
Perhaps the source of the continuing unease came from that original sin.
“His name… yes, clearly…”
Quietly closing her eyes, Meredia murmured his name as she searched through her fading memories.
“…Whitney Lingard.”
And as she closed her eyes, the world around her slowly began to flip.
*****
“Lady, I think it’s time to wake up.”
“…Ugh?”
Once again feeling dazed, Meredia opened her eyes and blinked, looking confused at the voice calling her.
“…My Lady?”
As always, it was wicked and eerie, but for some reason, today, the more she looked at it, the more the face in front of her seemed to bring peace to her mind.
– Swoosh…
Meredia, who had been staring blankly for a while, reached out and began to gently pinch her own face. The man, who had been looking at her with concern, looked at her in confusion.
“…Aaaah.”
Meredia, who had been silently gazing at him, suddenly pinched his cheek with force, causing a scream to escape from his mouth.
“I guess it’s not a dream.”
“Ow ow… Why are you pinching my cheek to check?”
“…Sorry.”
Realizing that she had again dreamed the same terrible nightmare, Meredia gave Whitney, who had been looking at her with an aggrieved expression, a soft apology.
“…I’m glad it’s not a dream.”
Meredia, who had been murmuring to herself, suddenly realized something and gently closed her eyes.
“Did you have a nightmare? Maybe you should get a talisman to chase it away…”
The person in front of her, who was rambling while staring at her, was the very cause of the unease Meredia had felt throughout her dream.
‘At this point, I can’t deceive myself anymore.’
As Meredia realized this, she murmured to herself with a resigned sigh and made a silent resolve.
“Anyway, it’s about time to get down.”
Whitney, who had been preparing to greet her with a worried look, suddenly adopted a serious expression and spoke.
“Ah, before we part, let’s make one thing clear.”
“……”
“I will never give up on solving your curse, my lady.”
Though Meredia had already made up her mind, she saw no reason to hesitate now that she had heard his words.
“You know why, right?”
Perhaps, the man in front of her had completely changed the course of her life, one that might have unfolded exactly as her dream had shown.
Before getting out of the carriage, the words she needed to say were already clear.
“Whitney, do you believe in destiny?”
“Suddenly?”
With that, Meredia, who had opened the conversation before getting off the carriage, gazed at Whitney and began speaking.
“…Just answer me.”
“I’m not sure, but I do believe that destiny exists.”
His answer only strengthened Meredia’s resolve.
“Every path we take and every action we make is part of our destiny.”
“……”
“In other words, our destiny can change depending on the actions we take.”
Meredia, feeling relieved, lightly smiled, trying to make it as subtle as possible.
“Does that mean there’s no such thing as a predetermined destiny?”
“…No, it’s not like that. Don’t you remember our destined meeting, my lady?”
It was a relief that Whitney had this appearance.
“…The day I almost killed you?”
“Haha, thinking about that day still keeps me up at night… Definitely, what happened that day was, without a doubt, both fortune and destiny.”
If that hadn’t happened, she would have never had the opportunity she did.
“Imagine if, that day, I had just drunk the tea and died. A lot of things would have changed, right?”
“…..”
“So, what I want to say is…”
And actually, when you looked closely, although Whitney did look quite intimidating, he could actually be considered quite handsome.
“…Let’s break our contract.”
“Pardon?”
“This is a unilateral termination of the contract, and I’ll take full responsibility for it.”
At least, that’s how Meredia saw it.
“My lady, did you think I would just accept that?”
“It’s useless. Even if I have to pour all my power into it, I will break this contract with you.”
“…Are you serious?”
Seeing Whitney make another eerie expression in response to her words, Meredia couldn’t help but hold back a smile and spoke.
“If you go that far, I won’t just stand by…”
“I’ll make a new proposal instead of canceling the contract.”
The one who was the embodiment of arrogance, with a heart as cold as ice and a hatred for humanity, the worst villain in the original story, the final boss, was not present that day.
“Instead of breaking off the engagement, marry me.”
For the first time, the girl who had fully opened her heart to another, full of wounds but shy, sat in front of Whitney.
“Marry me, Whitney Lingard.”
And the girl’s name was, indeed, Meredia Embergreen.
Cliche Novel 