What happened next went smoothly.
Sephiel pretended to pick flowers and run into the Grand Duke Remdragon’s castle.
<Where do you think you’re running off to?! I knew it! You tricked me! I knew something was off!>
Even a broken clock is right twice a day.
Lotto seemed to come to his senses when he saw Sephiel running away.
And then he chased after her, shouting loudly.
No matter how evil she became, fear was unavoidable.
She barely managed to enter the castle, breathing heavily through her tiny mouth.
‘I only had this one new outfit.’
When she was locked up in prison, Sephiel looked very miserable.
But still, as a princess, she was given new clothes every season.
The autumn set was the prettiest among them.
The laundry maid only came once every two weeks…
‘I held on with one outfit until I finally got to change into something new….’
And she had even worn her only pair of shoes.
As she was running away from Lotto, her clothes ended up getting caught on tree branches and getting torn, and one of her shoes flew off.
‘At least they let me in because of the bloodline verification.’
Sephiel had entered with confidence.
The four Monarch families all came from prestigious magical bloodlines, and each family had a unique magical “pattern.”
Because of that, the Grand Duke’s family, known for its mysterious power, conducted a simple magic test at the entrance to verify the bloodline.
<The magic stone is glowing red. You may pass.>
The servant, with his face covered by a hood, said so and let Sephiel in.
<Well, well. There’s no dress code written on the invitation. You’re late, so go in quickly.>
Thankfully, the servant didn’t comment on her disheveled appearance.
But once she entered the banquet hall, it was a different story.
Sephiel felt intimidated by the gazes of the adults looking at her.
Unlike the young ladies who were wearing fancy dresses, Sephiel’s appearance was very shabby.
‘Do dragons, like humans, dislike people wearing dirty clothes?’
For a moment, she hesitated as she thought about that.
‘No, there’s nowhere left to run. Lotto is outside with a sword, waiting to strike. This is life or death for me now.’
She was still young. Thinking about dying made her chest tighten with fear.
‘I’m completely wicked and evil now. I can survive this!’
Sephiel clenched his small fists and steeled herself.
‘I have the right to be here.’
But more importantly…
‘Speed.’
This arranged marriage was on a first-come, first-served.
She recalled the past.
Mitara, despite having royal Allegro blood, was plain-looking and from a relatively humble family.
So how did she end up as the fiancée of the Grand Duke’s son?
<At that banquet years ago… How did you get chosen as the fiancée for a young master who was born after a hundred years?>
When Mitara returned from the Grand Duke’s castle, people had been dying to ask.
She sighed and answered.
<At that banquet…..Actually, I arrived last because my carriage wheel broke down. I thought I was doomed. On top of that, the Young master didn’t even show his face and looked at the candidates. Even the skincare I’ve been doing since I was four years old was useless.>
<Then how…?>
People looked at Mitara, desperate for the answer.
<Each family was given a chance to propose one condition for a political marriage.>
<so?>
<I simply said what my mother told me to say. If the young master told me to die, I would die. If he told me to live, I would live. I would obey unconditionally! And then I got accepted right away.>
Now, Sephiel understood.
Unconditional obedience. It was the will of the Grand Duke who wanted a bride who would follow orders without question—even if it meant accepting a divorce with no complaints.
So, before Mitara even arrived…
‘Divorce anytime! Minimal alimony! So choose me right now!’
‘I must offer that excellent condition.’
That was Sephiel’s little, evil plan, but “Pass.”
Before she even had the chance to mention alimony, the young master took the bait.
‘Wow, so you really don’t care who it is, huh?’
Sephiel wanted to shout that, but she was too exhausted and intimidated to say anything.
Still, ‘Pass’…
The voice of the young master, whose face she did not even know, sounded like a heavenly trumpet to Sephiel.
It was the first sound of salvation she heard since she was born, and it was the sound of the future changing.
‘Am I finally having a good time in life?’
Three full meals a day.
That dream was now right in front of her.
But while the young ladies might have accepted it, the adults were not so easily fooled by Sephiel’s wicked little plan.
“Does that make sense? A girl like that is a princess?”
“This has to be a scam!”
People cried out in protest against that situation.
The one who approached Sephiel was the butler of the Grand Duke’s family.
“Princess, have you heard what the Young master said?”
“Uh….”
“The young master has chosen you. My name is Elton.”
Sephiel nodded, frozen in place, surrounded by shouting adults.
“Tell me, Young master! Why did you pick her? Show your face!”
Among them, a particularly thin woman with glasses was furious.
Behind her, a young girl timidly clutched the hem of her dress.
‘Mitara!’
Sephiel recognized the young Mitara.
Which meant the raging woman must be Mitara’s mother.
Elton looked at her as if he was looking at an idiot.
“The young master was a half-dragon. He was from a race higher than ordinary humans, so he was not obligated to answer to lower beings.”
“What?! That’s ridiculous! My daughter has prepared for this moment her entire life. In the first place, there is no such child in the Allegro royal family! We are relatives of the Allegro royal family!”
“Huaaa!”
Mitara, four years older than Sephiel, dramatically burst into tears.
“She stole other lady opportunities!”
Sephiel slightly parted her lips.
‘Girl, you spent years drunk and regretting this marriage. You said you should’ve never married into the Grand Duke’s family.’
And her family……they had completely collapsed.
Meanwhile, the uproar continued.
It wasn’t just Mitara’s mother who was angry.
“You’re making fun of us! That kid, she smells! I almost died from the stench!”
“Kick her out immediately and choose a new bride!”
“Isn’t this some kind of scam? Are you trying to insult the three monarch’s families?”
The benefits for the family chosen as the political marriage partner for the Grand Duke of Remdragon were enormous.
Numerous treasures, including gold bars. And the right to develop resources in the Grand Duke’s territory, which is full of natural beauty.
Behind the children’s political marriages, there was adults’ greed for numerous benefits.
Not to mention, the Grand Duke’s family, feared and unmatched in power, had opened its doors for the first time in a long while.
That fear is slowly fading from people’s minds.
Only two people from the Grand Duke’s family had appeared:
A butler and a five-year-old boy.
So the adults became more arrogant and raised their voices.
Then, Mitara’s mother pointed straight at Sephiel.
“You!”
“Ah…..”
She tapped Sephiel’s head with her fingers.
“Speak up. If you’re truly royalty, did you get your parents’ permission to come here?”
“I…..I’m rweally a priwncess….” (I’m really a princess.)
Even though she was a cursed princess whose existence was kept a secret.
“Hah! Lying to adults now? Are you going to take responsibility for ruining these girls’ lives? Do you even know what you’re stealing?!”
‘What are you even talking about?’
But before she could protest further…
Sephiel closed her eyes tightly. Mitara’s mother raised her hand.
‘I don’t like being hit.’
Sephiel stepped back. More and more, further and further.
‘uh?’
But the moment she closed her eyes tightly…
What do all children have in common?
That is….
‘Compared to its body, a child’s head is… bigger.’
Sephiel stepped back to avoid the hit but unexpectedly fell backward beyond the translucent curtain.
She fell through the curtain that separated the people and the Little Young master.
—Thud!
It was a fall that seemed like it would produce a sound effect like that.
‘no!’
She closed her eyes tightly, imagining the pain that would come as she thought about hitting her head against the floor.
‘Soft?’
Something soft touched her head.
Slowly, Sephiel turned her head.
“H-huh?”
A pitch-black puma.
A sleek creature she had only seen in animal encyclopedias quietly pushed its large head forward, staring at her.
And in front of it…
Shhh…
A boy was sitting on a chair with a green snake wrapped around his hand.
“What is this filthy thing?”
At that moment, only one word came to Sephiel’s mind.
Absolute Zero.
There was one kind of theory written by a very smart scholar. It was about an absolute temperature that had neither warmth nor coldness. That temperature came to her mind.
Golden eyes. Eyes like those of a fearsome beast.
Right now, Sephiel was looking directly at the infamous child groom, the one Mitara hadn’t seen in over ten years.
‘What a pretty boy….!’
His features were so beautiful, it sent chills down Sephiel’s spine.
[Those born between dragons and humans are called half-dragons. Half-dragons boast heavenly beauty, and aside from their outstanding beauty, they have the appearance of ordinary humans when they are young. As they mature into true dragons, they gain the ability to shift between human and dragon forms…]
She recalled something she had read long ago about half-dragons.
‘His name was…..?’
Erga. He was called Erga.
“Are you my fiancée?”
“……..”
“I picked you because I thought you’d agree to a divorce easily, but… looks like I really picked recklessly.”
Erga’s gaze swept over Sephiel.
“Well, I suppose this works. At least the old dragons in my family will be furious when they see what I chose.”
The moment their eyes met, Sephiel felt his whole body tremble.
Fear.
A primal fear.
“They say that lower species get scared easily.”
Erga smiled faintly.
‘Is he really five years old, just like me?’
At the same time, a passage from a book she had read in her previous life resurfaced.
[Before reaching adulthood, a half-dragon’s physical growth rate is about twice that of a human, while their intelligence develops three times as fast.]
‘A monster.’
That was the only thought that came to Sephiel’s mind.
More than anything, the boy was far too big. He looked at least ten years old.
‘And that voice and way of speaking!’
He seemed like a fully grown young man.
“If your wish is to see my face, so be it.”
—Swishh!
The curtain was lifted. Seated on the floor, Sephiel saw the noble guests, their eyes wide in shock.
Grrrr…..
The black puma howled.
“What about the parents’ permission?”
Erga muttered.
“Do I need a reason to take the daughter of a lower species?”
—Bang, bang, bang!
At that moment, every window in the banquet hall burst open.
It was like a scene from a horror novel Sephiel had read as a child.
Erga raised his hand and pointed somewhere.
“Bring me the tongue of the noisiest woman here tonight.”
—Shhh
A rather thick-bodied snake lunged at Mitara’s mother.
“Young master.”
At that moment, a man called Elton spoke up.
“You want to end it don’t you? If so then you should do more, such retaliation can only be considered as self-defense.”
“Hmm. Yes. It can’t be helped, then.”
And Erga was convinced.
Sephiel felt absurd.
‘Huh? That butler… He’s not going to stop this?’
Krrrr…..
Puma climbed onto Mitara’s fallen mother.
“Kyaaaa!”
Mitara’s mother screamed.
‘Is… is he really going to kill her?’
Sephiel collapsed onto the floor.
And in the next moment…
“Ugh!”
Someone grabbed Sephiel by the scruff of the neck and lifted her up.
Since Sephiel was barely half the size of her peers, her feet dangled helplessly in the air.
“Up close, you’re even more ugly.”
‘No. I have to come to my senses.’
‘I’m the evil Sephiel now.’
‘I won’t ever show weakness again.’
‘I’m not the foolish, naive Sephiel from before.’
The new Sephiel……
‘Even if I’m scared, I have to be able to lie and pretend I’m not scared…’
“Ugh…..”
But honestly, at that moment, she was terrified.
<Terrible appearance>
<Ugly thing. Don’t come near me.>
<What can you do? Blame yourself for being born unlovable.>
And just like that, Sephiel became the naive, pitiful Sephiel from her past life once again.
Even as she was held up by the neck, she sniffled and forced a smile.
In her past life, whenever her family scolded her, if she made a miserable face, they would get even angrier.
So, she had learned to fake a smile.
“Yup….. that’s riwght. I’m uwgly.” (Yup, that’s right. I’m ugly.)
“…..”
“But ywou’re rweally prevtty. I mwean it.” (But you’re really pretty. I mean it.)
‘Ah, whatever. Forget being tough.’
‘Ah. I….. I’ve reached my limit.’
Sephiel thought.
And then—plop.
She lost consciousness.
“Kyaaaaah! Save me, please!”
Behind her, there was a munching sound of something being eaten up.
[Half-dragons become true ‘dragons’ only when they become adults.
What half-dragons and pure-blooded dragons have in common is that they are emotionally unstable during childhood. This is commonly referred to as the ‘hatchling period’.
During that time, dragons struggle to suppress their instinctual rage.
That is why, in records about dragons, it is often said that young dragons before adulthood…. are crazy.]
‘Yeah he’s really crazy.’
Sephiel thought as she fainted.
* * *
