MVS 3

Chapter: 3

Even if she hated it, she had to pretend to be fine for now.

She could feel the corners of her lips trembling as she forced them up, but…

Rosiate quietly watched her daughter, who couldn’t even manage her expression in front of him.

Then he gently rubbed the quivering corner of her mouth with his thumb.

“My daughter is bad at hiding her feelings.”

Leaving behind only that light warning, he leisurely shifted his gaze elsewhere.

However, the atmosphere instantly grew heavy from that one casual remark Rosiate had tossed out.

Just yesterday, everyone in the Crown Princess’s palace had been massacred because of matters related to the princess.

Feeling the people gathered for the hunting competition subtly avoiding her gaze, Sieta felt wronged.

‘They’re scared the fire will spread to them.’

Normally, as the only princess of the Sikan Empire and the sole, unquestioned heir to the throne, countless nobles would have swarmed around her like flies.

But now, they were carefully watching the emperor’s mood and deliberately keeping their distance from Sieta.

‘Even the nobles are avoiding me.’

What on earth did I do for Rosiate to treat me like this?

Already depressed because of the unjust slaughter of the people in her palace, Sieta’s heart sank even further.

Before she could even collect herself—

Rosiate, smiling more gently than ever, spoke to Sieta.

“Why don’t you try catching a tiger?”

For a moment, she thought she’d misheard.

“Pardon?”

So she answered in a foolish voice, daring to question the emperor.

One knight, who had been fidgeting anxiously at Rosiate’s side, voiced the obvious concern.

“Y-Your Majesty, the princess is only six years old—”

“Do you think I wouldn’t know that?”

Just the fact that he stood right beside the emperor in this long procession—

‘No, he even dared to speak first to the emperor.’

It was clear the knight held a high position.

But Rosiate cut him off mercilessly, plunging the already tense atmosphere into complete ruin.

The knight glanced at the pale, trembling Sieta with pity, then barely managed to respond.

“Yes, forgive me, Your Majesty.”

Though the knight nervously read the room, Rosiate breezily ignored him.

“Then, my daughter. Shall we hunt a tiger?”

He was still obsessing over killing a tiger.

“You’re not going to back out now and ruin the fun, are you?”

At those words, Sieta shut her eyes tightly and sighed.

‘It was fun for six years.’

She had planned to escape “once she was a little older,” enjoying life as a princess in the meantime.

And now, such an abrupt dead ending.

‘I should’ve just run away…’

So much for holding out. Not just a failure—an utter, spectacular failure.

When Sieta squeezed her eyes shut without answering—

Rosiate directly grabbed her bow, even positioning the arrow for her and aiming it at a fox.

Then—

“Yes, like that.”

Without hesitation, he released the arrow at the animal.

At that moment, Sieta tightly shut her eyes.

“Did you close your eyes?”

But Rosiate…

“That won’t do.”

He had no intention of allowing her shallow escape from reality.

“You can’t see your target properly like that.”

“My lovely daughter.”

He urged her to open her eyes and face reality.

At his low voice, Sieta forced her eyes open, staring at both the prey and Rosiate.

“Aiming accurately at your target…”

Chilling.

“…is the most important thing of all, isn’t it?”

A shiver ran down her spine.

“Right? My daughter.”

In that moment, Sieta was certain.

The Sieta in the original story probably hadn’t died from false charges—but from a real rebellion attempt.

Because…

‘To survive, I have to—somehow—’

escape from Rosiate’s grasp.

At least, that was how Sieta felt.

‘Just you wait.’

She swore she would definitely escape from this damned emperor’s clutches.

And as if mocking that resolve, Rosiate calmly ordered,

“Now then. Let’s try hunting a tiger.”

Cruel.

Truly cruel.

How could someone teach for three seconds and then tell a six-year-old to hunt a tiger?

‘Y-you psycho bastard!’

Thus began the process of her favorite character turning into her most hated.

Rosiate, completely unconcerned with Sieta standing there in shock with her mouth open, smiled with crescent eyes, handed her the bow and quiver—

and said,

“I look forward to your results.”

…An utterly ridiculous order.

Behind her, she could hear nobles whispering in shock.

“My goodness, isn’t she the only heir? Telling a six-year-old to hunt a tiger…”

“She must’ve fallen out of favor because of her father.”

Among the murmurs were mentions of Sieta’s father, but—

Sieta couldn’t even bring herself to care.

She was forcibly sent off to hunt a tiger.

* * *

Left alone in the middle of the tangled forest, Sieta gripped her bow and thought,

‘Seriously…’

Is he insane?

This is too much, she thought.

For six years, she’d already guessed Rosiate disliked her since he never visited.

She had guessed, but—

‘Even so, abandoning your own young daughter in the forest in front of all the nobles?’

Not only that, but ordering her to bring back a tiger.

‘Is this a joke? At least ask for something possible.’

It was obvious he was just trying to torment a child.

In I Will Execute That Villain, Rosiate cared deeply about his image and reputation.

He had slaughtered his entire family in the struggle for the throne and become the first female emperor of the Sikan Empire…

So he’d tried to maintain a gentle image.

‘And yet that same Rosiate openly leaves me in the forest.’

It was an uncharacteristic outburst—but seen another way,

It was a declaration to the nobles.

That the emperor would restrain even his only heir, so if they intended to choose sides, they’d better be wise about it.

Before young Sieta could establish any real support, he struck first.

‘Putting that aside…’

Her small body—

in the unfamiliar forest’s presence—

began to tremble uncontrollably.

Cold wind swept through the empty space. There was no one else around.

‘Calm down…’

Calm down.

But no matter how hard Sieta tried, her body was only that of a six-year-old child.

“H-Hic!”

Tears streaked down her cheeks.

And then—

forgetting even her supposed mission of “hunting a tiger”—

she started running.

To escape this dark forest.

She ran, and ran—

“Your Highness!”

And after running again…

She arrived at—

a blue pond, standing in stark contrast to the dense black forest.

Only then did Sieta come to her senses.

“Huh?”

Where… is this?

Yes.

Where is this?

She hadn’t even realized where she was while running.

The way back? She couldn’t remember it.

Realizing her situation, Sieta panicked.

If I get lost, will Rosiate come save me?

That…

she didn’t know.

No matter how much he cared about public opinion, would he worry about the life of a princess he had deliberately excluded and restrained?

Staring blankly at the blue pond, wondering how to get back—

[Growl…]

“…Huh?”

A very small, but unmistakable sound came from behind her.

Sieta slowly turned around.

And there, standing—

‘A t-tiger…?’

And not just any tiger.

It was—

a blue tiger.

Before her eyes, the blue tiger stared coldly.

Facing it, fragments of original story knowledge flashed through her mind.

‘Originally, this blue tiger…’

Though only a legend, the male lead, Rashita, successfully hunted the real blue tiger.

And with that, Rashita gained the justification to stop the emperor, Rosiate, who had committed countless atrocities and corruption.

Which meant—

‘At least until the story begins, that tiger exists.’