Episode 9: Caught Your Attention? (Part 4)
Her name might be for the same reason. She might have just used Liata to not forget about her real name, Marrygold Liata.
‘Whatever the case may be, it’s not a big deal.’
This is all speculation, and according to common gossip, she might not have a single drop of the Emperor’s blood in her. Anyway, there’s no way to confirm it.
Even among the loyal servants of the Empire, Percy, who was loyal to the Empire, had bottomless respect for the Emperor. He judged the Emperor’s actions with a sigh.
‘It’s boring.’
It wasn’t interesting or unique.
And his assessment of Crown Prince Julius was no different.
‘A good-for-nothing who can’t do this or that.’
Percy also knew that the Empress was not in her right mind. And Crown Prince Julius had been attached to the Empress’s apron strings from a very young age.
‘It looks like that hasn’t changed even now.’
Percy’s dry gaze was directed at Julius. He scolded Sienna.
“If you didn’t have a face resembling the Queen, did you think you could set foot in the palace?”
Jumping around forcefully when facing a weaker opponent.
‘The Crown Prince is no better than the Emperor. His capacity is small, and his mind is unstable.’
Sienna listened to the harsh words but didn’t respond with a single word. It was as if she believed that enduring this time in silence would bring it to an end.
Percy, who was evaluating the nobles quite dispassionately, surprisingly had a relatively favorable opinion of Sienna.
‘Even in this situation, that woman handles herself quite well.’
Percy was aware of the fact that she was engaged to Daniel Bohan.
‘She comes from an appropriate family and is an appropriate person for her to handle.’
Daniel was a simple-minded person who didn’t realize his own simplicity. He even had feelings for Sienna, although he seemed to deny it himself.
‘…It’s unpleasant.’
Whether this discomfort was related to thoughts of Daniel Bohan or the one-sided unfairness unfolding before her, it was hard to say.
Percy approached one of the subordinates guarding the Crown Prince and asked, “What are you doing here?”
“C- commander!”
Then, he casually stood by the subordinate and observed the confrontation between Julius and Sienna. Julius continued his one-sided accusations.
‘How am I going to get out of this situation?’
When Percy looked at Sienna with an indifferent gaze, it happened. A faint whimper escaped from Sienna’s lips.
“Ah…”
Her head drooped, and her red hair flowed down.
Seeing this, Percy frowned.
‘Is she trying to shed tears?’
Just when he wondered how they would overcome this situation, as his interest waned, Sienna unexpectedly uttered blunt words from her delicate lips.
“This is so damn messed up; I can’t take it anymore.”
“….!”
Percy’s pupils dilated. Sienna raised both hands to her waist, stood confidently with her chest out, and faced Julius squarely. Her appearance was dignified, as if a goddess of war had descended.
‘Who is this woman?’
She was completely different from the Sienna who was grumbling just a moment ago. Percy doubted his own eyes and placed his hand on his chest.
Thump, thump.
His heart pounded loudly, as if it had just started beating for the first time in his life.
❀❀❀❀
Ah, I’ve messed up.
To offer a little explanation, I wasn’t entirely in my right mind due to excessive stress.
Think about it, merely being immersed in a game is a thrilling experience, but I also had to deal with my trash-like father’s scolding, ridicule, and contempt from the maids and my fiancé.
Isn’t it strange that I’m still sane?
Honestly, I thought the system would stop me from speaking so rudely even if I wanted to.
But what happened was unexpected.
Instead of stopping me, the system allowed me to hysterically pour out my rude words without restraint.
“If it weren’t for being the Crown Prince, would you even have a place in this palace? What’s wrong with my face? Was I born with this face because I wanted to? You must be so pleased, brother, since you look just like that dirty father of yours.”
Once I started pouring it out, Julius looked bewildered, as if he had been hit on the head with a hammer.
“…What?”
“What’s with the ‘What’? Haven’t you seen anyone respond before? If you’re not going to listen to my answer, why bother coming here to blabber? If you want to talk to yourself, go talk to the wall in your room.”
Julius, who had always quietly accepted everything, seemed taken aback by Sienna’s sudden outburst. After a while, he finally said this.
“Hey, are you crazy?”
That was all.
For me, who had already gone as far as poisoning, it was an irresistibly funny response. I smirked and replied, “The crazy ones are you guys who put something like a turquoise necklace on your sister even though you knew she would be beaten to death.”
When I was turning blue, they laughed slyly and teased me, but when I got angry and scolded them, their faces stiffened with anger. To be honest, they had no sense of reality at all. My mind was filled with one thought: ‘This is really tough, the life of a female game villain.’
No matter how much you say it’s the role of a villain, isn’t it too much to throw away a life with no dreams or hopes? How can I live properly here? It’s an unreasonable demand. Don’t you understand the concept of moderation? ‘Don’t villains have human rights?’
If System or the author were really in front of me, I’d want to ask that. I pointed at my eyes in amazement in front of Julius, who was staring at me as if he were dumbfounded.
“I mean, am I completely insane right now? Kill me or let me live, do whatever you want. I need to turn my blanket upside down and sleep first!”
“Hah.”
I really turned into a lunatic, but Julius didn’t grasp the situation. He muttered with pursed lips, “You’ll snap out of it if I hit you.”
“Oh, really?”
What, should I hit him?
“I told you not to touch me!”
Why is everyone in this neighborhood so deaf to my words!
I kicked Julius as hard as I could in the shin.
*Thud!*
“Ugh!!”
Julius fell to the ground. I looked down at him with cold eyes, feeling strangely satisfied.
‘Maybe those high heels the maids forced me to wear will come in handy at a time like this?’
There wasn’t even a typical pair of slippers in my room, so I had to go out wearing the high heels I had worn yesterday. I cursed as I walked out, but it felt refreshing to kick Julius like this.
‘As expected, the attack power of high heels is like a weapon.’
I whistled, and Julius foamed at the mouth but glared at me with reddened eyes.
“You, you dare to strike the Crown Prince of this nation, and then…”
“What are you going to do about it? Do you have any witnesses?”
It was something I had already done, and there was no brake left for me. If I were to use an analogy, it would be like a volcano that had been bubbling all day and had just started erupting magma. Who could stop a volcano that had already begun to erupt?
I smirked and taunted Julius.
“Or maybe you want to cry and tell your little sister, who used to worship you like a bug?”
Julius’s face turned pale for a different reason this time. I laughed and pressed my boot against Julius’s head.
“It’s amusing to see your noble face stuck to the ground. So, did you also whine while trying to mess with me?”
“Ugh!”
This time, Julius’s face turned pale for a different reason. I chuckled and pressed my boot firmly on Julius’s head.
“Why should I move my foot? It’s so satisfying like this.”
I should have done this from the beginning. Not just to the maids who gossiped about me or the emperor who made me play strange roles. ‘I guess I have a knack for being a villain!’
Without acting this way, this pitiful situation wouldn’t have been so enjoyable. I laughed and said to Julius, “Kiss my shoe, and then I’ll move it.”
It was a deliberately provocative remark to scratch his pride. I was currently stepping on Julius’s head, so how would he manage to kiss my shoe?
Understanding my taunts, Julius glared at me with bloodshot eyes.
“I won’t just let this slide! Hey, is there anyone passing by? Anyone at all!”
“Oh, you’re so loud. If there were anyone passing by, they would have intervened already…”
I mumbled, turning my head.
‘Can’t believe this.’
There was someone passing by, indeed.
‘That person is the handsome man I met last time!’
Beyond the hall, in the garden, a man with golden hair and crimson eyes was standing, silently watching this way.
‘No, seriously, how long has he been watching us!?’
Even though his face was mostly hidden by the bushes, why didn’t I recognize that incredibly handsome face? I quickly removed my foot from Julius’s head.
‘Will this prevent him from knowing what I’ve done?’
He probably couldn’t help but notice. I felt pathetic, covering my face with my palm.
‘Even now, should I pretend to support Julius?’
If I claim I didn’t know he was my brother, who would believe it?
While I was agonizing, our silence grew, and it felt increasingly unfavorable to me. Julius, who apparently thought the same as me, became more enthusiastic and shouted,
“Duke Stewart! It seems my sister has gone mad! Please, get her out of here!”
In response to Julius’s shout, the man who had been standing there motionless began to move slowly. He walked towards me with deliberate, slow steps.
So, the man who had come up to the hall…
‘Aah!’
Naturally, I thought he would help Julius get up. But he walked over to my side instead.
‘Why is he coming this way?’
In an unexpected turn of events, I blinked in confusion.
The man approached me and, like when he kissed the back of my hand in the morning, extended his hand in a perfect gesture.
“Ick!”
In a situation like this, all I saw was the man’s face. Unconsciously, I placed my hand on top of his offered hand. His hand was so large that it felt like it could hold both of mine with one hand.
He bent his waist and gallantly kissed the back of my hand. Then he said,
“Please marry me, Princess Sienna.”
