Episode 19: Turning Point (4)
Who’s trying to correct whose behavior?
I stared at the chamberlain in disbelief, bursting into laughter.
He seemed to sense that the temperature around me hadn’t dropped, and he wore an excited expression.
It was clear that he was imagining what to do with me in his mind.
“When Empress Mother sees how obedient Princess Sienna has become, she’ll be very pleased… Ugh!”
I couldn’t take it any longer. I forcefully kicked the chamberlain’s shin, cutting him off.
And, glaring at him as if he were something repulsive, I briefly said,
“Shut up.”
“…?!”
I had to make sure everyone saw his face as he stood there with his mouth wide open like an idiot.
‘Oh, that’s refreshing.’
I smiled with satisfaction. For once, I sent a silent round of applause to the system that didn’t intervene in my actions and words.
‘You were actually irritated too, weren’t you? That’s why you let me enjoy my soda freely, right?’
If giving me the freedom to act was the reason for each of my soda explosions.
‘I’ll do my best!’
As I waited for the system’s response, the sweet potatoes rained down on me again. It was Gerard, the chamberlain, leading the palace eunuchs this time.
They all murmured in shock, looking at me with reproach.
“No, how could you commit such a severe assault on Sir Gerard, the chamberlain?”
“Sir Gerard, who has dedicated so many years to Emperor’s Majesty.”
“He’s the Empress Mother’s own blood, isn’t he?”
“Did you just witness how Princess Sienna was acting so recklessly?”
“We can’t just let this slide.”
Translation Note: “고구마” (sweet potatoes) is used metaphorically here to refer to something unexpected or surprising, often used in Korean web novels.
“Indeed, the flaw of the royal family, the evilest of all evildoers.”
Listening to their conversation where they completely shifted all the blame onto me, my stomach, which had momentarily felt relieved, began to boil once again.
‘Does this guy think I’m the only one who heard all the nonsense he spewed? Why are they blaming only me?’
He had said all sorts of trashy things to me, yet they were pointing fingers at me as if I were the only one at fault.
It felt like they had some kind of blinders on, a blinder that exposed my faults while concealing the faults of others. Could this be what they call the “villain patch”? When the main character gets all sorts of benefits because they’re the main character, could this be the patch that villains receive because they’re villains?
‘No way! That’s absurd! Am I a villain because I wanted to be one?’
I couldn’t hold back my frustration any longer and opened my mouth to speak. The system, as if waiting for this moment, presented me with choices.
▶ What kind of punishment are you going to give?
▶ Let’s hurry back to the palace.
Is this crazy?
‘Why are they suddenly so accommodating? They’ve been giving me insane choices all along, and now they act all reasonable? It’s not like they’ve suddenly regained their sanity.’
What’s the point of the choices regaining their sanity now when the person in front of me clearly hasn’t?
“…”
I tightly sealed my lips. I didn’t even bother looking at the choices. Was I going to choose between the two? Absolutely not. I’d rather it get even more dreadful.
As I engaged in this internal battle with the choices, it wasn’t the choices that became more dreadful; it was the Chamberlain.
“Oh my, oh my. It seems that Princess Sienna needs special education.”
The Chamberlain, who had been writhing in pain and groaning, finally got up from where he had been sitting for a while. Then, with a disgusted expression, he whispered to me,
“You’re going to become a good child again, Princess.”
Get lost.
I was about to raise my middle finger to express my frustration when suddenly, a massive figure stood in front of me, blocking my way. I widened my eyes in surprise.
“Percy?”
I called his name without even realizing it, but the man standing before me had jet-black hair.
‘Did I just call Percy?’
In response to my voice, he slowly turned to look at me, his deep gray eyes staring at me like an injured beast. Unconsciously, I tightly gripped my skirt.
‘Daniel Bohan?!’
The man who stood in front of me, protecting me from the Chamberlain, was none other than Daniel.
‘Why are you here? This is Duke Stewart’s house!’
What could possibly have led him to come here to protect me?
‘Did he really come because of what I said about being Duke Stewart yesterday?’
I shook my head vigorously. That was absolutely impossible.
‘In the first place, Daniel Bohan likes Beth, not me. Even if he doesn’t like her now, the story will progress that way soon.’
I couldn’t figure out why Daniel was here. At any rate, Daniel hid me behind him as if protecting me from the chamberlain. Then, in a cold voice, he said to the chamberlain,
“I’ll take care of my fiancée’s education. Please step aside.”
Upon hearing Daniel’s words, the chamberlain concealed his madness and once again put on the façade of a polite gentleman. He coughed politely and replied,
“Princess Sienna’s confinement is His Majesty’s will. Daniel, it’s not something you should interfere with.”
Daniel’s face showed a moment of hesitation. Unconsciously, I tightly held onto Daniel’s coat.
‘Could it be… are you trying to deceive me and hand me over to the chamberlain?’
If that were the case, my safety couldn’t be guaranteed from inside the carriage on the way to the palace.
Daniel’s gloomy eyes briefly flickered, and without realizing it, I had gripped his coat tightly.
‘You… you’re not falling for that, are you?’
If he did, my safety couldn’t be guaranteed from inside the carriage on the way to the palace.
Daniel’s gloomy eyes briefly flickered, and he brushed away my hand that was clutching his coat. Then, he calmly addressed the chamberlain.
“In that case, I will be the one to escort her to the palace. It’s my duty as her fiancé.”
‘Ugh.’
Since there was no logical argument to counter Daniel’s words, the chamberlain let out a frustrated sigh. He then spoke slowly.
‘Well… alright. Since Daniel Bohan, who is deeply loyal to the royal family, won’t take Princess Sienna somewhere else, it’s fine.’
With Daniel’s reasonable argument, the chamberlain couldn’t find any loopholes.
The Chamberlain, glaring at me hidden behind Daniel, cleared his throat.
“Let’s discuss this rudeness later, Your Highness.”
– Flinch
If it were my original wicked sister, she might have snorted in contempt, but I couldn’t help but flinch. It was my sister who was accustomed to violence, not me. And through the clothes he was holding onto, Daniel might have realized that I was trembling.
Daniel called out to the chamberlain in a low growl-like voice.
“You…”
What exactly was he trying to say? But I couldn’t listen to Daniel’s story to the end. Julius suddenly intervened in our conversation.
“Sorry, but Sienna can’t go to the palace today. She’s not feeling well.”
“Your Highness, the Crown Prince?”
The chamberlain looked at Julius with an expression of disbelief as he greeted him with a friendly wave. Julius, who had walked with Percy, patted the chamberlain’s shoulder casually and said,
“I brought this oracle with me, so you don’t need to worry about Her Majesty. It’s something you can report, chamberlain, isn’t it?”
Various complex emotions crossed the chamberlain’s face. After much consideration, the words he finally uttered were,
“Does Her Majesty know about Princess Sienna Liata and her presence outside the palace?”
It was a question about whether Sienna Liata’s actions were in line with the Queen’s intentions. Julius sighed.
“Everything I do is in line with Her Majesty’s wishes.”
“Even if that’s the case…”
The chamberlain was about to raise objections to Julius, but he quickly assumed a respectful attitude and lowered his head.
“No, I will step back, as Your Highness wishes. However, I believe you understand that Her Majesty cannot permit a lengthy absence.”
“Of course, I’ll keep that in mind.”
The Crown Prince’s words were so persuasive that the chamberlain couldn’t resist. As he was about to quietly withdraw, Percy, who had been standing a step away from this situation with his arms crossed, spoke up.
“Chamberlain Gerard.”
“My lord.”
Percy spoke with an expressionless face.
“Please come again. I couldn’t properly welcome an unannounced guest.”
“Thank you.”
In response to his pointed remark, the Chamberlain didn’t say a word and disappeared.
Anyway, Chamberlain Gerard withdrew. I heaved a sigh of relief. I wanted to raise my middle finger to his retreating figure, but I held back because I didn’t want to receive another warning that a wicked woman shouldn’t use vulgar language.
‘Ugh, what a pain.’
Anyway, since the Emperor had sent Chamberlain Gerard and ordered an audience, I should return to the palace soon.
‘But do I really have to go back to the imperial palace? Wouldn’t it be better to escape?’
As I contemplated, my dislike for the Emperor made me consider running away from the palace. The problem was that the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a viable option.
‘If I escape from the palace, I won’t have to worry about being killed by Daniel. Maybe that’s better.’
No, what am I thinking? If I try to escape, the system will surely control me so I can’t run away.
‘Ugh, this is so frustrating.’
There’s no one to listen to me, so I vented my frustration silently.
‘This damn system. If I really hope for a new ending, it should either increase my freedom or stop putting so many unnecessary constraints.’
※…
Strangely, the system window didn’t ring at all.
It was when I was grumbling to myself. Daniel grabbed my shoulder.
“Are you okay?”
I widened my eyes. Surprisingly, his gray eyes showed a faint trace of concern.
‘Why are you…? Weren’t you supposed to dislike me?’
I had no idea why he was blocking my path.
‘For now, I wanted this hand to let go.’
Of course, the options weren’t so easy.
▶ I don’t need your sympathy.
▶ Wipe that disgusting look off, move aside.
… Maybe he wants to kill me?
