DVDD 02

Chapter 02

Even though it was called the Prince’s Palace, walking around in broad daylight, the sun didn’t shine at all because of the thick trees.
Moreover, it seemed like no one tended to the gardens; weeds grew anywhere and everywhere. Even now, it was only somewhat kept in order thanks to Lari, so it must have been much worse at first.

“Lady El, you have no idea, do you?”
“About what?”
“…Oh my.”

All El knew was the profiles of the main characters, that she was originally the villainess, and that if the story had unfolded as it should have, she wouldn’t have come to a place like this at all. She didn’t even know what the protagonists were doing or where they were.

“Why… is the prince ugly?”

Even if she could tolerate everything else, she would dislike him if he were ugly. But from what she saw at the wedding, even though she didn’t know his face, his body looked fairly decent…

“Uh… hmm.”
“Don’t worry about him. Just speak freely.”
“Actually, I haven’t seen him in person either, but they say he takes on the form of a monster during the day.”
“…A monster?”
“Yes, he was cursed by an evil wizard when he was young.”
“Oh…”

So that’s why the wedding was at night. The mystery was solved. Maybe that’s why he hides away and no one seeks him out.

El felt a twinge of sympathy but quickly thought: the duke’s family hurried to arrange this marriage, and they really were a perfect fantasy couple—an evil duke’s daughter and a monster prince from another country.

“I suddenly don’t like Duke Landmiken so much,” she muttered.

Even if she was a difficult daughter, would they really marry off their amnesiac daughter to a monster prince?

Chapter 2 – The Garden Lake Dog

Even after hearing that her husband was an unwelcome figure and that he lived in hiding during the day in his monster form, El’s daily life didn’t change.
After all, he was a complete stranger; hearing his circumstances wouldn’t change anything. Besides, she didn’t have time to worry about him—her own future seemed much more uncertain.

“Lari…”
“Lady El, were you sleeping again?”

El’s only companion remained Lari, the palace maid. The cursed prince’s palace had almost nothing, so it was impossible for Lari to manage everything alone; twenty-four hours were not enough.

It seemed no one wanted to visit this palace. So aside from waking El and preparing her meals, Lari was rarely seen.

Even though she carefully brought three meals and snacks a day—so technically she was seen four times a day—it wasn’t enough to call her a full-time maid.

By the time Lari brought water for washing her face in the morning, El had usually gone back to sleep and only woke up around lunchtime. The dim and sunless palace was the worst place for the already lethargic El.
When she finally got up at noon, she had no appetite and didn’t eat properly.

“Let’s go for a walk before lunch,” Lari urged.
“Ugh, too troublesome…”
“You wouldn’t eat otherwise anyway.”
“Even if we go, I won’t be hungry…”
“Just a little walk, in case.”
“…”

So tedious. She didn’t want to do anything. She already did nothing, but now she didn’t even want to do nothing more intensely.

Her body felt heavy from not moving for too long.

“Lady El! Hurry!”

Reluctantly, she rose slowly, but her head spun, and she plopped down again. Lari rushed over, alarmed, asking rapidly if she was okay, if her body was sick.
It wasn’t sickness—it was her terrible stamina. At first, it hadn’t been this bad.

Compared to the fertile southern lands, the desert kingdom was harsh, so even a noble lady needed basic stamina to survive.

The heroine, Simid, wasn’t entirely mild either; she had been a knight. El had also learned swordsmanship as a child but had no talent.
So the dukes had long given up on making her a knight and instead tried to prepare her to become a queen. El herself wanted that too.

Even though she wasn’t a knight, she had always maintained her own care. Her body was toned with no extra fat, her tanned skin healthy, but now, having stopped exercising and neglecting her diet, her body was sending her signals.

“If you’re not feeling well, would you like to rest a bit?” Lari asked.
“…Maybe,” El nodded.
“I’ll bring soup for you.”
“Okay.”

After eating some of the soup Lari brought, El lay down again, stretching only as it began to get dark. Lari came in with dinner.
El thought… “Fifteen years of eating dumplings only…”
It felt almost like being imprisoned.

“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing…”
“I brought food that’s good for dizziness: soup and salad made from Rem fruit, steak drenched in Rem sauce, and juice. After dinner, I’ll brew flower tea for you.”

Her appetite was still gone. The aroma of the luxurious food would have made her ecstatic back in Korea, but here, it felt repulsive.
Still, she ate a few bites for Lari’s sake.

“…Already finished?” Lari asked, dejected. El had to cut a few more small pieces of steak for her.

“Lari.”
“Yes?”
“Want to eat together?”
“Whaaat? How could I dare—”
“What’s the harm?”
“No, absolutely not.”

Lari politely refused, as she was used to always eating with her parents. The food was too rich anyway, and El, as a Korean, longed for kimchi.

“Do you have anything spicy?” she asked, putting down the fork.
“You like spicy food? We have it! I’ll tell the chef tomorrow.”
“Rice too?”
“Rice? What kind of food is that? Kingdom cuisine?”
“…Cabbage?”
“…Sorry.”
“No need to apologize, Lari…”

Spicy food was available, so she looked forward to lunch tomorrow, lying back in bed. Lari scolded her for lying down right after eating, but El plugged her ears to block it.

Having apparently slept too much, El woke in the early morning. Lying in bed, blinking blankly, she realized something was seriously wrong with her.

She had never been one to wander around much, but she usually adapted moderately to others. But never had she felt this unwilling to do anything, sleeping all day long.

A month had passed since she entered the story. She hadn’t said it out loud, but she missed her parents.

Am I dead? If so, what are my parents doing? If I really die, could I go back?

She got up, her headache worsening, and left her room. Though late, the palace was always eerily silent, as if advertising that the prince had left it for his child. The hallway had no lights, and Lari had probably gone to bed after finishing her work. The darkness felt chilling.

At the end of the hallway, shadows seemed ready to swallow her whole. Yet El wasn’t scared.

She walked as if entranced, passing the parts of the garden she had visited before, going deeper.

“….”

The garden’s entrance was always maintained, but walking deeper revealed its true vastness. Unaware of how far she had gone, El discovered an artificial lake.

The surrounding overgrown mossy thickets let faint morning light seep through. Only then did she fully awaken.

“…Dog?”

In the center of the lake sat a large, pure-white dog. Surprised to see a living creature besides Lari, El involuntarily gasped. The dog immediately assumed a defensive stance, growling lowly.

It was clear the dog didn’t welcome her. She didn’t approach and just watched it. Its fur was shiny, it was well-fed, and it seemed to have an owner. The dog met her gaze without averting its eyes, showing its teeth in a threatening manner—but for some reason, El felt it wouldn’t bite.

“I won’t touch you.”

She wasn’t scared, but her legs hurt from walking. She sat down near the dog, letting out a few pointless deep breaths to calm herself.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

It was the first time a dog had looked at her with such disdain.

When she opened her eyes again, the palace was in chaos. She had fallen asleep sitting down, exhausted from the little exercise, and now woke to the commotion.

“Lady El!”

Lari was crying.

“…Why are you crying?” El asked groggily, noticing other people around her.

“Who are these people…?”

“Waaah!” Lari’s cries grew louder.

The people seemed like knights, heavily armored and holding ornamental swords, but thinking back, this was the prince’s palace and yet not a single guard had been seen wandering about.