I Became the Youngest Sister-in-law of the Ruined Reverse Harem’s Male Leads

#.02

01. A Suspicious Guest

“The child is so pretty.”

I blinked as I looked at Rebecca Marchione.

Rebecca, the protagonist of this world, was more ordinary-looking than I had imagined.

However, her fiery red hair certainly caught my eye.

“How old are you, little one?”

“Six years old. You’re pretty too, unni.”

Whether it was out of shyness or fear of Rebecca, I unknowingly hid behind my eldest sister’s legs.

A month ago, during a severe fever, the plot of the dystopian reverse-harem novel Rebecca Marchione flowed into my mind.

The plot of Rebecca Marchione is simple.

The female protagonist, Rebecca, leaves her hometown, Trobancha, to settle in the Empire in pursuit of revenge.

There, she becomes entangled with the male leads and earns their affection.

The male leads use their power to desperately try to possess Rebecca.

Rebecca exploits their love to incite a war, turning her homeland into a sea of fire.

In that process, our family, who committed no crime, became victims.
My eldest sister, Alice, dies in battle, and the war ends in Trobancha’s defeat.

And I am taken as a prisoner to the Empire.

‘I need to do something to prevent the story from proceeding as in the original…’

The problem is, even though I know the original plot, I’m just a six-year-old child.

And, as far as I can tell, I don’t seem to have an unusually high mental age either.

Perhaps because the original story ends when I turn fifteen, I feel even younger than that.

‘Honestly, I don’t even know if I’ve been reincarnated or if I’ve possessed someone’s body.’

Until I knew the plot of the original story, I was just an ordinary six-year-old child.

Even now, knowing the original story, I don’t remember my past life.

It was as if, one day, I was suddenly struck by lightning and gained knowledge of the original story…

“She’s not usually this shy.”

“It’s okay.”

Rebecca took something out from her bosom and handed it to me.

It was a high-quality chocolate, something hard to find in Trobancha due to the isolationist policy.

“Wow…”

Without realizing it, I opened my mouth and reached out for the chocolate.

Rebecca casually gifted me the chocolate.

Meeting the original protagonist during a cruise party was already surprising enough, but to also receive delicious sweets!

“You like chocolate, don’t you?”

“Yes! Liliana loves chocolate!”

“Hey, little one. You should say thank you.”

At the advice of my younger sister beside me, I quickly expressed my gratitude.

“Thank you!”

“Um… May I pat Liliana’s head just once?”

“Yes. If Lili is okay with it, I’m okay too.”

“Liliana, is it okay if I touch your head just once?”

“Yes! I’d like that!”

With chocolate smeared all around my mouth, I allowed Rebecca to touch my head without hesitation.

She crouched down in front of me, met my gaze, and carefully patted my head.

Her long fingers gently combed through my curly hair.

“…I’m… so… sorry…”

“Huh?”

It seemed like Rebecca said something, but I was too distracted by the chocolate to hear properly.

“What’s your dream, Liliana?”

“I want to live happily with my sisters!”

“Really? That’s a wonderful dream.”

For some reason, Rebecca’s smiling face looked a little bitter. She stood up and said,

“Lili. Please grow up healthy.”

That was the last time I saw Rebecca.

That day, someone fell overboard from the ship’s railing, and despite a month-long search, no body was ever found. The conclusion was that she had died.

That person was Rebecca.

My sisters, burdened with cooperation requests from the investigation, were flustered, but I was deeply confused.

‘The original story ended before it even began…’

And it ended with the female protagonist taking her own life.

‘Is this even possible?’

Why? Why on earth?

My head was spinning, overwhelmed by the unprecedented event of the protagonist’s death.

If Rebecca truly died, then what was the original story in my head?

Transparent, shimmering sunlight, the warm air of a family home, and the smell of delicious food.

This cozy world is supposedly set in a dystopian reverse-harem novel.

One where the male leads are willing to go to war to win the female protagonist’s favor.

‘I can’t believe it.’

I sighed quietly while subtly picking out the bell peppers.

If the female protagonist died, does that mean the war in the future won’t happen?

Or, will the war proceed unchanged despite her death?

Politics isn’t something that changes easily because of one or two individuals.

“Ugh…”

“What’s wrong, little one? Why are you sighing again?”

My eldest sister lifted her gaze from the newspaper and asked in a kind voice.

Her jet-black hair shimmered in the sunlight. My eldest sister wasn’t just beautiful because she was my sister—she was genuinely stunning and admirable.

Kind, gentle… In short, Alice was the most wonderful person in the world.

“It’s nothing.”

“What? Did you make a secret without telling me? Can’t you share it with your Unnie?”

Alice unnie carefully patted the crown of my head, ensuring my twin braids wouldn’t get messed up.

“Unnie. She’s just doing this because she doesn’t want to eat the bell pepper.”

Emilia, the youngest unnie, interjected in a cold tone.

Since I had pushed the bell pepper to one side of my plate, I felt quite guilty.

The youngest unnie, perpetually sleep-deprived, issued her warning with a face that looked half-dead from the morning fatigue.

“Little one. Eat the bell pepper properly while I’m still speaking nicely.”

“Ehhhhh, but I don’t like bell peppers.”

Judging by her dark under-eye circles, she must have stayed up reading again last night.

In other words, she wasn’t in a good mood.

With Emilia glaring at me, her eyes wide and intense, I quickly shoved the bell pepper into my mouth.

“Good. You need to eat well to grow taller. You can’t stay short forever, right?”

Despite her current demeanor, she was the character who, when war broke out in the original story and I was taken to the Empire, risked everything to infiltrate the Imperial Palace and rescue me.

At that moment, Regina unnie came out of the kitchen holding a pot.

For reference, Regina and Emilia are twins.

Regina was born seven minutes earlier.

“Alright, Little one. Even if you hate bell peppers, you need to eat a balanced diet to grow tall and strong.”

“Hey. How long were you planning to make me wait? I only got an hour of sleep yesterday.”

Regina unnie ignored Emilia’s grumbling and lifted the pot’s lid.

It was a dish made with cream, octopus, and shrimp. I didn’t know its name, but it smelled so good my mouth watered.

Regina unnie scooped some shrimp onto my plate and said,

“Little one. Eat a lot, grow big, and stay healthy, okay?”

“Mm, okay!”

The moment I bit into the plump shrimp, I realized what I needed to do.

To continue enjoying delicious food like this and live happily with my loving family forever.

Since the original story had ended before it even began, all I had left was a peaceful life ahead.

“Mmhh! Regina unnie, it’s so delicious!”

“Eat plenty, Lili. Oh, by the way, unnie, I heard the Imperial family is visiting soon. Do you know why?”

“How do you know that? It’s supposed to be a top-secret unofficial visit.”

“A colleague I know was chosen as a chef for the government-hosted banquet for the Emperor. I might go too—I’m still thinking about it.”

The Emperor is visiting here, Trovancha? Was there such an episode in the original story?

I racked my brain, but the events before the start of the original story were never mentioned.

The story starts six years later when I turn twelve, so it’ll be a while before the events I know begin.

But since the heroine is dead, even that possibility is gone.

“Who exactly is coming?”

“Regina, you must not tell anyone about this. Understand?”

“Unnie, do you think I’m the type to blab about something like this?”

“The Emperor and Duke Baltrahein, his escort, will be accompanying him.”

My ears perked up at their conversation.

The Emperor and Duke Baltrahein were the main male leads in the original story.

“There might be an oath of souls sworn between the Emperor and our government representative to secure a peace treaty. Duke Baltrahein will serve as the Empire’s witness.”

For the past 150 years, the Empire had devoured almost every neighboring nation in its conquest.

The only country to remain free from its grasp was Trovancha.

This was possible because Trovancha is an isolated island nation far from the Empire and home to many exceptional talents.

Additionally, Trovancha had maintained a strong isolationist policy, keeping tensions high with the Empire for decades.

But what is an oath of souls?

I might have memories of the original story, but my understanding of this world is still that of a six-year-old.

“Emilia unnie, what’s an oath of souls?”

Emilia, still looking like a sleep-deprived zombie, answered as she nibbled at her breakfast.

“It’s an oath sworn on one’s life. If the oath is broken, the hearts of both the witness and the one who made the promise will explode, killing them. Don’t even think about making such an oath, Little one. If you do, I’ll be the one to kill you first. Got it?”

Her casual tone didn’t make her words any less frightening. Knowing her fiery personality, I knew she wasn’t joking.

“Okay! I’ll never do it!”

When I nodded, Emilia gave a satisfied smile.

I wanted to hear more of Regina and Emilia’s conversation, but Emilia suddenly insisted we had somewhere to go and pulled me up from my seat.

At least I was relieved that I wouldn’t have to eat the carrots on my plate.

“Emilia unnie, where are we going?”

“To buy pretty clothes.”

“Clothes? But I already have clothes.”

“No, you don’t.”

“But we bought some last week.”

“That’s not enough.”

Something felt off. Every time they said this, we ended up going to the doctor for a shot…

My unease grew as Emilia firmly held my hand.

‘It feels like she’s making sure I can’t run away.’

With a chill down my spine, I followed Emilia, who led me to a café.

At the café, Emilia scanned the room before approaching a man sitting by the window.

“Wow…”

I couldn’t help but gasp when I saw him.

His silvery hair sparkled under the light, and his stunning appearance was so captivating it felt almost unreal.

When he looked at me, his eyes softened into a gentle smile.

“Hello, little lady.”

“H-Hello…”

The man was so handsome that I clung to Emilia’s leg and shyly greeted him.

Emilia, completely unaffected by the man’s appearance, asked indifferently,

“Are you François Cassel?”

At those words, I froze.

François Cassel. The genius wizard and master of the Magic Tower, who played the role of the madman male lead in the original story.

He was the very person who locked up the heroine in his tower and forced me to serve her as a maid.