🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 20
Meanwhile, at the same time.
Earth, in a room somewhere in “South Korea.”
A live broadcast is in progress!
LIVE – I’m trapped inside that romance fantasy game, anyone want to watch?
On the computer screen, a lavishly dressed duke’s daughter named Elysia was being dragged across a mansion by servants. The colors were unrealistically vivid. The graphics and clarity were so realistic it was almost chilling.
One anonymous viewer tilted their head in confusion.
“…What is this stream even supposed to be?”
The viewer was someone with the username AnonymousKimAnonymous, who happened to be watching one of Elysia’s videos that day.
She called herself a Lady Marigold master — a hardcore fan who knew every ending and storyline in the game.
But lately, Lady Marigold had been acting strange.
At some point, the game had completely stopped updating.
KimAnonymous thought back to that time.
“There’s been so much buzz about hidden characters or storyline branches, but nothing’s come of it.”
She was frustrated with the game developers.
‘They have no sense for business. Strike while the iron’s hot! What are they doing?’
Lady Marigold was in its prime. It wasn’t just getting review content on MewTube anymore — the insanely high quality and engaging storylines were going viral on social media, and it had even started getting parodied in variety shows. Word of mouth was spreading fast.
This was the perfect time for new updates — to earn money and satisfy fans. As a fan, she was seriously exasperated.
‘Though, really, I just want to know what happens next. I want to meet the new characters already.’
For days, she’d been checking the official website and the company’s socials, scouring every piece of Lady Marigold content.
Then, by chance, she found something.
A brand-new video posted on MewTube.
“Wow, this person is such a noob.”
A freshly made account, with no fancy thumbnail, posting their first video.
She figured the algorithm had just started recommending beginner streams because she’d been obsessing over Lady Marigold content.
‘Eh, beginner streams are usually pretty boring…’
Most new streamers were awkward because they didn’t know how to speak well on camera, or they were just really bad at the game. Her expectations were low.
But—
The moment she clicked on the stream, her thoughts vanished.
“…Wait, what? Elysia is the main character?!”
That can’t be right!
She had been following every update from the developers. She prided herself on never missing a single clue or teaser. There was no way she could have overlooked something this big.
There had never been any mention of a storyline with Elysia as the protagonist.
She quickly searched online—but still nothing. Even combing through international sites, there was no record of anyone playing as Elysia.
This streamer was the first.
This was huge.
And the gameplay? The longer she watched, the more absurd it got. The protagonist was defeating boss-level monsters solo and even clashing swords with the crown prince in their first encounter!
“Wait… is this official content? Did the company make this?”
But then… why no announcement?
“And why does it only have a few viewers?!”
Granted, it was quite a few for a new streamer.
There were rare cases where a beginner had natural talent and attracted viewers quickly, but this wasn’t just good — it was unbelievable. Better graphics than the actual game, and a storyline no one had ever seen before.
“Is this a closed beta for a sequel? But still, how could they release something without a word? If it’s fan-made, that’s even more insane…”
She couldn’t wrap her head around it.
So finally, she grabbed her keyboard. If more people watched, maybe someone could help her understand.
Click-clack.
Her fingers flew across the keyboard as she posted a new thread in the Lady Marigold fan café:
Check this out — I think Lady Marigold 2 just got leaked????
There’s a streamer playing as Elysia, not Frillian.
(link)
Live right now, and the playable character is Elysia!!!
(screenshot)
(screenshot)
What even is this??? Watch the video — there’s no way this is fan-made.
I contacted the devs but got no response… If anyone knows anything, PLEASE comment.
─ Probably just fake.
└ No way, I saw it live too… It might be beta, a leak, or even a self-made 3D model or something.
└ Same here. Super weird. That channel is insane.
└ Someone said the chat mentioned moderators, lol — maybe it is official.
└ Is this some next-level marketing stunt?
─ Guys, you’re missing the wild part… Elysia BEATS A HELLHOUND ON DAY ONE and fights the crown prince.
└ …??? What are you even saying
└ Why would she beat up the crown prince LOL
└ I’m serious;;; I can’t believe it either. Just go watch. I’m confused too
└ What is even happening
└ lmao this is insane. I’m subscribing now.
Elysia had no idea, but that post quickly spread — captured and shared across every SNS and community site.
A MewTuber claiming she got isekai’d into a game, LOL (302 comments)
But she’s actually streaming content that doesn’t exist in the game;;
Latest update from a typical romance game streamer (206 comments)
Recently, Lady Marigold is the hottest dating sim.
But for some reason, this streamer is just fighting nonstop LOL
(screenshot) (screenshot)
Also, apparently none of this is in the official game??
‘Wait, weren’t they going out?’
Elysia looked around to assess the situation as the household staff dragged her back. Everyone in the duke’s house had looked ready to leave just moments ago, but instead, they had returned to the mansion with her in tow.
‘No way… were they planning to go out because of me?’
Were they looking for her?
But she didn’t have time to ask why.
The duke said nothing on the ride home or even after they arrived. Finally, after a long silence, he asked a dry question.
“Did you eat?”
“Huh? Um… no, I didn’t.”
She shook her head. Come to think of it, she really hadn’t eaten anything since morning. That damn crown prince didn’t even offer tea properly, and she got dragged into sparring before she could even touch a slice of cake.
‘Still ridiculous. What kind of person does that?’
Sparring on an empty stomach? Was he insane?
In Korea, people say if you don’t eat, you’re basically a corpse. The crown prince clearly had no manners or sanity. Just then, Howell spoke up.
“I haven’t eaten either. Should we talk over a meal, Father?”
The duke only nodded silently.
Elysia tilted her head.
‘I get why I haven’t eaten… but why haven’t they?’
Did they skip meals just to rush out?
Even if she’d gone missing, was that a reason for them to miss a whole meal?
Still, now that someone had brought it up, she finally noticed how hungry she was.
But honestly, she didn’t have much appetite.
‘It’s probably going to be poisoned again anyway.’
And she was right.
Warning! You have consumed a lethal poison!
As expected, the alert popped up again. Elysia let out a dry laugh.
‘Ugh… I really don’t want to eat at home anymore.’
Poison alerts with every spoonful, the tense atmosphere…
‘Even the cold palace was better. At least there wasn’t poison in the food there.’
The atmosphere at the table was truly ice-cold. No one said anything, but Elysia could feel the duke was furious.
“Alright. Let’s hear what happened.”
He finally spoke. Elysia answered calmly.
“…It’s classified, so I’m not sure how much I can tell you.”
Which was true. On the way back with Jerome, he had warned her repeatedly.
“The hellhound incident is still classified.”
“What about the duel with the crown prince?”
“Well… a lot of people saw it anyway, so maybe it’s not a secret anymore?”
“Hm…”
Maybe it was okay to mention the duel.
‘But if I do, the duke might have a stroke.’
Just look at his stiff expression. He already seemed furious and confused.
‘And besides… is it even my place to explain all of this?’
She glanced at the “Suspicion” and “Disappointment” stats floating over the duke and Howell’s heads.
‘How am I supposed to explain anything to people who clearly don’t trust me?’
Looking at the duke’s cold face, she slowly closed her mouth.
If she told him about the duel?
He’d probably say, “You must have done something wrong.”
He’d scold her for being disrespectful and possibly faint from rage.
“Elysia, how long do you plan to make us wait?”
“…I told you. I can’t say anything because it’s confidential.”
She replied defensively to his repeated questions, but the duke didn’t back down.
“Is your power classified, too?”
“….”
As she hesitated, the duke sighed, clearly hurt.
“…Fine. Go back to your room.”
And right then—
As soon as he finished speaking, servants rushed in around her.
“My lady, this way please.”
“…!”
Maids and guards from the duke’s estate lined up around her. There were more of them than last time — even more than the ones who had guarded her room.
The duke added sternly,
“This time, make sure she’s properly escorted.”
The maid holding her shoulder tightened her grip. The duke’s sharp voice continued.
“How could a servant not know when the young lady of the house is being taken away to the palace? If it ever happens again, there will be consequences.”
The servants, glancing nervously at the duke, tried to help Elysia up.
“M-my lady, please come this way…”
“…No.”
Elysia gently lowered the hand gripping her shoulder. Then, she rose to her feet on her own and turned toward the duke.
“This isn’t classified, so I can tell you. Like I said earlier, I have a power.”
She waved the napkin in her hand.
Whoosh!
“Ugh!”
It wasn’t a weapon, just soft fabric — but the gust of wind it created was sharp as a sword slash. The entire room changed.
The maids froze. The knights instantly shifted into battle-ready stances. Elysia added:
“I can at least defend myself without guards or surveillance. So please don’t worry.”
“…!”
“I’ll take care of myself. On my own.”
“Elysia!”
Ignoring the duke’s shocked cry, she exited the dining room.
Before the servants could stop her again, she walked swiftly out, without looking back.
