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CHAPTER 01
What kind of dream is this…?
It felt so vivid and joyful, as if it had really happened.
I had even protected the cute and lovable Roelin with my own hands!
Honestly, I never wanted to wash my hands again.
…Is this what it feels like to attend an idol’s fan signing? Haha.
Lately, I had become completely obsessed with the romance fantasy game based on the popular novel “The Baby Princess Is Starved for Love!”
I was sure the dream I had was because I was too immersed in the game.
Some might call me pathetic for it, but I honestly didn’t care what others thought.
Because this game wasn’t just a game to me—it was a ray of sunshine in my otherwise bleak and colorless life.
Especially the adorable, squishy Roelin… just thinking about her made my heart race.
I’d love to have that dream again tonight!
But wait… In the dream, everyone kept calling me “El.”
Who’s El, the interpreter?
I prided myself on knowing everything about the game, but I’d never heard the nickname “El” before.
Could it be some hidden character?
No way—surely they didn’t mean Ellufe, right?
I hated that character! There’s no way I’d dream about her…
“Subin-ss, are you even listening to me?”
Snapped back to reality by my friend’s voice, I quickly nodded.
“Oh! Right. You said you cleared the Lubelion ending today. Congrats!”
The original reverse harem novel ended with the true male lead, Zeros, marrying Roelin.
But in the game, you could reach alternate endings where Roelin married not only Zeros but various sub-male leads.
One of the many perks!
And Lubelion’s ending? Absolutely perfect.
“Haaah… save the congratulations. I can’t act all cool in front of the queen of walkthroughs herself. My friend Yoon Subin! I now officially acknowledge you as the master of reverse harem parenting sims!”
“Master? That’s so cringey. Ahem. But hey, can we drop the ‘self-proclaimed’ part? Let’s go with Reverse Harem Parenting Master Yoon Subin.”
“Yes, Master Yoon-nim, have you cleared all the endings gloriously?”
In this game, if you tried hard enough, you could get multiple endings with every sub-male lead.
And I worked so hard taking care of that baby princess to see them all…
At this point, I felt like I could understand Roelin’s cries down to her inner thoughts.
“Not yet. I just need to get the hidden character’s ending, and then my virtual babysitting is officially over.”
Though… the hidden character hadn’t appeared even once in the main story.
Only brief mentions. Not even a single illustration.
“How much have you played this game?”
“Heh. I’ve poured my soul into it.”
“Oh right, I saw a post on a fan café recently. Apparently the hidden character is a grand duke who showed up briefly in the novel. And he’s hiding a huge secret, too!”
“I need to look that up when I get home. Let’s start digging up strategy info to share. If I can just—”
As I was excitedly chatting with my friend while crossing the street, I suddenly felt my body float.
“Kyaaa! Subin!”
I saw my friend’s shocked expression. It looked so funny, I wanted to laugh—but no voice came out.
My body, lifted in midair, plummeted downward.
Am I… going to die like this? I haven’t even reached the hidden character’s ending…
[“Thank you for saving me.”]
Save…? What? Is that… directed at me?
I tried to make sense of it, but before I could understand, my consciousness flickered out like a TV switching off.
When I slowly opened my eyes, everything looked hazy—as if I were submerged underwater.
I groaned from the suffocating pain and rubbed my eyes, refusing to give in.
Gradually, my vision began to clear.
For a brief moment, I was breathing fine again.
Wait… is someone standing there?
Blonde head. Small figure. Lavish clothes, dazzling chandeliers, and an endlessly long hallway…
A hallway? Wasn’t I just crossing the street? How did I end up in a hallway with chandeliers?!
Startled, I blinked. Right in front of me was a blue-eyed boy glaring at me with visible annoyance.
His golden hair shimmered as he stared.
Is this… a dream?
“Why do you keep following me?”
What the heck? When did I ever follow you? I just opened my eyes and ended up here. This is absurd.
“…”
“Why so quiet all of a sudden? Cat got your tongue?”
The boy’s voice was in a foreign language, yet I understood every word.
Oddly enough, that irritated face looked familiar.
I cautiously rubbed my eyes again.
“Maybe it’s because it’s a dream…”
But it felt too vivid—goosebumps ran up my arms.
The boy shoved me harshly, and I fell flat on my backside with a thud.
“Ow…”
Ow? I’m not supposed to feel pain in a dream…
“Seriously? Crying over a little fall? Tsk.”
He clicked his tongue with a mocking expression.
I clenched my fists. His gaze sharpened further.
“What’s that look? Are you thinking of challenging me or something?”
He growled like a tiny kitten. I slowly got up from the marble floor.
Ugh, my wrist hurts.
“I’m way too old to fight with a kid like you.”
I gently rotated my wrist, glaring at him.
“What?”
“I’m a pacifist, you see. I don’t fight with little babies. Run along now.”
“Babies?! Ha! Please. Go learn to count again. I’m eleven, not some baby!”
He looked at me with disgust.
“I mean, I do look young, but not eleven-young…”
I looked down—and something was very wrong with my hands and feet.
Is this… because it’s a dream? Why do my hands and feet look so tiny?
I looked up in shock. The boy was staring at me like I’d lost my mind.
“Now you’re pretending to be crazy to get attention? No matter what tricks you pull, I want nothing to do with the Count of Inferna. Beat it.”
“Inferna… Count?”
I always said good looks should be a free pass, but this was taking things way too far.
“Yeah. Ellufe Inferna. Are you seriously going to pretend now?”
“Inferna my—what?!”
“You hit your head and went nuts, huh?”
The moment he said “Ellufe Inferna,” a bell rang in my head.
That was the name of the villainess from the game!
Even for a dream, why did I have to become her, the character I hated most?
This was a nightmare, plain and simple.
While I was frozen in disbelief, the rude brat turned and stormed off.
I snapped back to my senses and yelled at his round little head.
“Hey!”
“Did you just ‘hey’ me?”
I rushed over and glared at him fiercely.
“Yeah, I did!”
Our family motto was: Return what you get, but double.
It was meant for kindness, but I applied it to everything—including insults.
“Hah… how do you expect to look me in the eye when you grow up if you’re like this now?”
His blue eyes were full of arrogance.
Too bad I wasn’t some scared pushover. Not today.
“I could say the same to you. What kind of person are you gonna grow into?”
“I’m the daughter of Count Inferna.”
“If I’m the Count’s daughter, what does that make you? The Count’s son?”
“Have you completely lost it?! I’m Rekanon Eriten, Second Prince of the Empire—the Little Sun!”
There’s no way this bratty kid was a prince. He had zero dignity.
“Why are you making that face now?”
I shrugged my tiny shoulders at him. If you’re rude, you learn by rolling through life. That’s the rule.
Heh. Looks like he didn’t like me tagging along.
“I’m just not familiar with the place.”
He snorted in response.
“Don’t give me that crap.”
Then he hurried ahead like he was trying to escape.
But I had no intention of giving up so easily. It’s my dream, after all—so I chased after him faster.
“Stop following me already!”
To mess with him, I coolly lied.
“We just happen to be heading the same way. Are you narcissistic or something?”
“What’s that?”
“A self-obsessed person who doesn’t care about anyone else.”
“Hey! I’m royalty! You should be the one respecting me! And besides, you—”
“Me what?”
“You… You should look up to me as an imperial subject. I’m the Little Sun!”
Seeing him stammer like that, I smiled sweetly.
His face flushed red, and he jumped in front of me, shouting.
“This is as far as you go! Only royalty is allowed past this point—you clearly have no business here.”
Hiccup.
Suddenly, I hiccupped. Embarrassed, I glared at him and straightened my posture.
“W-what are you staring at?”
“Hic. Who cares about royal access? This is my dream. I just have to wake up and—”
He stepped toward me with a dumb expression and reached out.
“W-what do you think you’re doing?”
I tried to dodge, but he was faster.
His small hand touched my forehead—it was cool to the touch. A chill ran down my spine.
“Can a dream really feel this real?”
From the herbal scent of his sleeve to the soft warmth of his palm—everything felt too real.
It was like all my senses were screaming this is real.
“If this is reality… then what happens now?”
I blinked, staring into his blue eyes.
“You really have lost it, Ellufe.”
At that moment, I narrowed my eyes.
He’s still calling me Ellufe?
If he insists on calling me that… then I have to mess with him.
“Oh my! Was it that obvious?
