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Chapter 4
“You’re saying it will collapse…!”
I asked the princess for an explanation, and this was the situation now.
The princess, who had been drawing something on the ground, wiped her nose with her dirt-stained sleeve.
‘That didn’t clean it. It just made it dirtier.’
Even more messy than before, she pointed the knife at the dirt ground.
Sub male lead — Main character (S) — Male lead
Lesius — Shabiyan — Kellian
What was drawn there was a simple relationship diagram.
“[……Wait a moment.]”
I pointed at the names the princess had written with the knife.
To be exact, Shabiyan and Kellian’s names.
“[Aren’t these two brothers?]”
“[Yes.]”
“[You said you read it enough to memorize the story. How many times did you read it?]”
“[……Ten times.]”
Oh my.
The princess, who had shrunk slightly at my expression, straightened her head proudly.
“[Strictly speaking, those two aren’t even blood-related!]”
They aren’t related by blood? That was something I didn’t know.
“[Alright. Continue explaining.]”
I composed myself and urged the princess.
“[Hailen wins the war against the enemy country Bahat, and the eighth prince of Bahat, Shabiyan, is taken here to Hailen as a hostage.]”
Oh. As expected, our Hailen wins.
“[So the eighth prince and Lesius fall in love. But why does the world have to end? If the two fall in love, isn’t that the end?]”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The princess struck the ground violently with the knife like hammering.
“[Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!]”
“[Then what is it?]”
The princess rested her chin on her hand.
“[If it ended like that, it wouldn’t be a novel. This is even a tragic dark novel.]”
Dark novel?
“[Bahat’s crown prince, Kellian, became curious. How did the eighth prince make the enemy emperor go so insane? Is there something special about him? And so he became interested…]”
The princess continued her explanation.
Kellian threatened Shabiyan, who had been sent as a prisoner, and called him back, then fell in love.
Shabiyan, who was forcibly brought back, was drawn to Kellian’s obsessive affection.
Meanwhile, Lesius didn’t know this and started a war to take Shabiyan back.
In short,
It was a love triangle over the hostage eighth prince.
But the problem was that they fought through war!
“[In the process, I die too. The princess tries to stop the crazy Lesius but ends up losing her head.]”
The princess spoke about her own fate calmly.
“[Then the war begins, and the two obsessive crazy male leads point swords at each other and kill each other. Shabiyan, tormented by guilt because two people he loved died because of him, commits suicide.]”
What? All three of them die?
“[But the main character is the chosen one loved by the gods! God’s rage spreads across the continent, and humanity ends up being destroyed.]”
Uh… That’s even more serious.
Not just collapse—humanity’s extinction.
Unlike my serious expression, the princess cheerfully chatted while holding a knife.
“[The book’s name is Legend of Bivalus. It ends with the story being passed down as a legend!]”
“[……Isn’t it a bit too cheerful to talk about something like this? We’re all going to die.]”
“[Then should I cry?]”
The princess tossed the knife she was holding onto the ground.
“[That’s why I was digging this escape hole.]”
“[…]”
“[Rather than watching filthy scenes inside this suffocating palace, I’d rather travel and live comfortably even if I die anyway.]”
The princess slightly opened her backpack.
It was filled with jewelry.
Just by looking, it was wealth enough to live without working for a lifetime. She had raided the princess’s palace.
“[Well. Either way, I’m going to die soon anyway!]”
Leaning against the backpack, her gaze turned to me.
“[And you, brother.]”
Brother?
Ah. I’m disguising myself as a man right now.
“[……I’m a woman.]”
The words I had kept hidden for a long time came out.
Honestly, there were other reasons too, like it being comfortable since we were from the same hometown…
But I looked at the dirty, blonde princess sitting in front of me.
Above all…
‘Who would believe the words of a crazy princess?’
…So I revealed it.
It was a decision I made after much thought, but the princess’s reaction was lukewarm.
“[Ah. So you were a woman in your past life.]”
“[No. I’m a woman in this life too.]”
“[Huh?]”
“[I’m a woman right now.]”
The princess scanned me from top to bottom.
Her hand tapped my shoulder as if saying it was impossible.
“[Ah, surely not.]”
“[It’s true…]”
“[You are beautiful, but…]”
I had concealed my identity using dark magic, so it would be hard to recognize me.
“[It’s thanks to dark magic.]”
“[Ah, dark magic.]”
I felt her gaze carefully examining my face.
“[Actually, there was one thing that surprised me after coming here. The story of the novel changed a little. One of them was about the Duke of Berwen—sister, about you.]”
“[Me?]”
“[Yes.]”
The princess rubbed her chin with her dirty hand. Hey! You’re just making my face dirtier!
“[In the book, you’re not a very important character. Rather, you’re someone like an idiot who gets pushed around by your vassals…]”
“[Well, it’s the original story. I’m fine with that.]”
I shrugged my shoulders.
“[Right? Anyway, in the original story, the Duke of Berwen was foolish, so Lesius grew up more twisted. Because the border lord couldn’t exert power, Lesius participated in all kinds of wars.]”
Hmm. Lesius was twisted?
“[……Lesius?]”
“[Yes. I also found it strange. Lesius’s personality is too different from the original story. He’s originally very cold and selfish. Why would he be called a madman for nothing?]”
Twisted, cold, and selfish.
‘That’s completely the opposite of how Lesius is described.’
Kind, gentle, and warm. Those were usually the words used to describe Lesius.
He was a cold-looking handsome man, but since he always smiled, the atmosphere around him was soft.
“[Calling him a madman… Really? That can’t be.]”
“[I want to believe that too. But…]”
The princess frowned as if remembering something.
“[I have the memories of the princess even though I’m possessed. And when I look at my childhood memories, something feels strange.]”
“[What memories?]”
“[From a young age, Lesius was good at lying. If he wanted something, he would act and deceive others to get it.]”
But that was just when he was a child.
Lying is bad, but calling a child a madman was a bit…
The princess sighed deeply and brushed her dusty hair back.
The princess, who was currently being called the “crazy princess” inside the imperial capital, was calling our Lesius a madman. Whose words should I trust?
‘As expected, I trust my Lesius.’
Still, I kept a poker face.
Of course, I knew she wasn’t really crazy. But I was still on my childhood friend’s side.
“[Maybe I’m just too sensitive.]”
Golden sand stuck to her blonde hair.
“[I know the book’s Lesius personality, so it’s hard to be objective. And I have a vivid imagination since I’m a playwright.]”
Playwright?
I looked at the princess shrugging her shoulders.
“[I’m not the author of this novel, just a playwright. And I’m only an undergraduate student, so…]”
The princess trailed off shyly.
“[Actually, I tried thinking about how to solve this situation. If I were the author of this novel, what would I do?]”
“[So did you find the answer?]”
The princess nodded.
“[Yes. It’s simple.]”
“[What is it?]”
“[Just make Lesius and Shabiyan not fall in love.]”
“[Isn’t it enough not to accept the eighth prince as a hostage?]”
The princess shook her head.
“[Shabiyan must come to Hailen. Otherwise, he will be sent as a hostage to violent barbarian tribes.]”
The princess looked at me as if she wanted something from me.
Why that look?
“[Someone in Hailen should fall in love with Shabiyan instead of Lesius.]”
“[Who?]”
When I asked, the princess stared at my face.
Don’t tell me… me?
The princess raised the knife in her hand.
“[The Duke of Berwen is the most suitable!]”
At some point, the princess’s knife was reflecting my face.
In the knife’s reflection was a man with ash-gray hair and mysterious silver-gray eyes. That was me.
“[The Duke here is perfect. A sword genius, a duke by status. Smart, and also good-looking…!]”
The princess swallowed hard. Why are you swallowing saliva?
“[Very attractive. Enough to rival the two obsessive crazy male leads.]”
“[But why…]”
“[Shabiyan’s beloved people are those obsessive male leads, right?]”
She dropped the knife and stared at me without looking away.
“[In other words, Shabiyan’s taste is obsessive dominant male characters. And sister has the potential to become one!]”
“[What?]”
“[All you have to do is seduce Shabiyan in place of them. If Shabiyan falls in love with you, he won’t become Lesius’s lover, and then Kellian won’t take interest in Shabiyan either!]”
Then, excited by her plan, she suddenly stood up.
“[That means the world won’t end! The end. Finished here! It’s a happy ending.]”
“[…]”
“[I think so. Even if they are main characters, we can’t leave the world to crazy people!]”
“[……Wait a moment.]”
“[Sister, please become a fake obsessive crazy male lead!]”
The princess held out her hand to me.
“[Let’s save the world together.]”
Her blonde hair, soaked in sunlight, sparkled like flames.
The moment our eyes met—her eyes burning with enthusiasm and mine—
My hand moved on its own.
But,
‘There’s something I didn’t say.’
What is… “crazy dominant male lead”?
“[Hey, is ‘crazy dominant male lead’ someone’s name? Or a nickname?]”
The princess, who had been shaking my hand enthusiastically, froze.
Terrified, she covered her cheeks.
“[Don’t tell me… you don’t know what a crazy dominant male lead is? You were listening to me without even knowing what BL is?]”
“[……What is it.]”
The princess fixed the backpack on the grass.
“[Follow me. Spartan training starts now.]”
She turned toward the imperial palace and waved at me.
“[What are you doing? Hurry up!]”
Sigh. I stood up with a sigh.
‘Even though I can’t fully believe the princess’s words that this place is inside a novel.’
I still have time to verify, so I should investigate slowly.
“Princess.”
I returned from my past life as strong Hanna to the Duke of Berwen.
“[Why are you acting so serious? Yes, this is it. This is the posture of a crazy dominant male lead… Ah! What are you doing?]”
I lifted the princess with both hands. She struggled in my arms.
“If we return like this, you will be scolded, and rumors about Your Highness will spread more.”
“……”
“Let’s just say you slipped and fell.”
She became silent, probably remembering the annoying lectures.
And then—
“Duke Berwen? Pri-Princess!”
The princess’s maid, Lady Roxon, fainted again as soon as she came out of the infirmary after seeing us.
“Did you hear? Duke Berwen was holding the princess…”
“Lady Roxon fainted at that sight. Could there be something more intimate…”
It was the beginning of a rumor that would last a long time.
