PNA~39

 Chapter 39

Erne and Winzard were enjoying a rather leisurely breakfast.

Thanks to the two of them refusing to finish their meal, only the servants grew restless. The reason was that Erne, who had completely let down her guard around Winzard, began pouring out her grievances.

“I wanted to break off the engagement cleanly. Just cut ties and be done with it.”

“You can start now then. Break it off cleanly. Cut ties cleanly.”

Easier said than done. Erne pouted her lips.

And because Winzard spoke as if it were nothing, she found him a bit annoying and glared at him before speaking again.

“When I first became a princess, my etiquette teacher told me something. That if I fell out of the Queen’s favor, I’d end up like Princess Hestia. That’s why I was scared. I couldn’t push harder in front of my mother, who refused to let me break off the engagement. There must be political interests tied with House Babylon too.”

“You were afraid the Queen would kill you?”

Erne froze for a moment at Winzard’s piercing words and then nodded reluctantly.

At this point, she was already indebted to the very villain—the shadow behind the downfall of Neshard—so there was no point in hiding anything anymore.

She had already technically run away from home, and even her time in Vanessa, teaching children in Cheonghakdong, had been discovered.

“…I can’t say I wasn’t afraid.”

Erne furrowed her brow and sighed.

‘That’s just how trashy this novel is.’

Who in their right mind worries about their biological mother trying to kill them?

But this was a novel filled with every third-rate cliché ever to come out of South Korea.

A story where even the author admitted they had written it with their brain turned off!

The hope of returning had already dimmed long ago, ever since she grew up under Grandma Marshal’s care.

And once she gave up on going back, the knowledge of the novel’s plot—the future—became a sword only she could wield. But soon, she realized it was a double-edged sword.

‘Will I change the original story, or just save myself?’

It would be great if she could save everyone by changing the original, but that was only possible if she succeeded.

What if she failed? It would be horrific. That was why she had once thought about abandoning Lank and earning enough money to emigrate to another country. Because to her, nothing was more important than her own life and safety.

Looking straight at Winzard, who was patiently waiting for her to continue, she said,

“Isn’t it stupid? All I managed to do was run away to Vanessa. I wanted to make sure the children wouldn’t grow up like me. So I created Cheonghakdong to give them proper education filled with love. So what if she’s the Queen? So what if she’s my mother whom I haven’t seen in 20 years? I don’t even know who my real father is…”

As her emotions swelled, her breath grew unstable. Erne knew she needed to calm down, but she couldn’t.

No, maybe she had been waiting for someone to finally listen to all the heavy emotions she had been suppressing.

As the uncontrollable feelings overwhelmed her, Erne’s nose stung and tears welled up in her eyes.

Her chest throbbed with pain.

“Princess.”

It was the first time Winzard had seen Erne so emotional. Trying to calm her down, he called out to her, but Erne had no intention of stopping.

“So what if I’m a princess? All I ever did was attend boring lessons, memorize the names of people I didn’t even like, give up on my dreams, and be forced to inherit a country I didn’t even want. And on top of that, I’m supposed to become a Queen?”

“Erne.”

“Neshard’s policies are all rotten to the core. The government, the aristocracy—they all work in favor of the same bastards! I’m the one who got hurt, I’m the one who suffered!”

Beating her chest in frustration, Erne took a deep breath, then shouted at Winzard, who was trying to calm her.

“Think about it, Winzard! Would you want to take charge of a failing country like Neshard?”

Right. Truthfully, Erne never cared about Neshard’s politics.

She didn’t care how the factions were divided. Affairs? She thought they were someone else’s problem—until her fiancé cheated. Even then, she believed her status as princess would allow her to deal with him easily.

But the real reason she left the capital and created Cheonghakdong in Vanessa was simple.

Neshard is doomed anyway! At your hands! And even if it doesn’t fall by your hands, the royal family is already broke! The treasury is nothing but dust—it’s a kingdom of beggars!

That was the point. A Queen of a bankrupt country. Erne hated that idea with a passion.

Having lived in a capitalist world, she had a decent grasp of Neshard’s declining royal finances.

In a world where social class ruled everything, who would say no to the throne?

Erne just didn’t want to be the Queen of a poor country.

Even as she spoke, her tears streamed down her cheeks from the sheer frustration.

Winzard quickly got down on one knee in front of her.

“Don’t cry. When you cry, it breaks my heart.”

“Hicc! Even putting all the rest aside, Neshard’s finances are a disaster! I don’t need the Queen’s throne in my peaceful life, sniffle, sob!“

She was just overwhelmed. Erne didn’t even know why she was acting this way.

It probably didn’t help that Marquis Damian—her one source of support since becoming a princess—had been imprisoned. It was taking a toll on her mentally.

Winzard gently patted her, trying to show he understood, and asked kindly.

“Is it because Neshard is poor that you don’t want to be Queen?”

“Isn’t that obvious? I’m not capable of managing the kingdom’s finances. A bankruptcy wouldn’t be surprising. How am I supposed to revive this country? I don’t have the ability to drag a sinking Neshard back to life.”

Tears hovered on her long lashes, barely hanging on.

From below, Winzard looked up at the ever-beautiful Erne. He reached out and gently wiped the tear streaks from her cheeks.

Erne, so numb, didn’t even seem to realize Winzard’s hand was touching her face.

Despite her sharpness, she remained strangely oblivious when it came to him.

And Winzard liked that about her.

She always seemed just out of reach—even now, so close yet unaware of how near he had come.

Sometimes, he had wicked thoughts. That it would be nice if those pure eyes turned dark because of him.

Suppressing the boiling desire inside, Winzard opened his mouth.

A small ripple started deep within and shook him completely.

His voice came out a bit hoarse.

“What if I gave it to you?”

“What?”

Erne looked at him in surprise. As her tears dried, Winzard moved his hand down and grabbed her soft golden hair.

That sunlight-colored hair that looked as though it would vanish under the rays.

He had always thought he would never be able to hold it in his hands.

But now that he could…

Winzard smiled in satisfaction.

“I will make Neshard the richest, most prosperous kingdom in the world. Then, would you become Queen?”

Hic! Erne finally understood what he meant.

And like a spell breaking, she realized their current posture was strangely intimate.

Feeling the tension rise between them, Erne couldn’t help but hiccup.

To Winzard, she looked like a frightened little deer. He chuckled lowly again.

And fearing she might actually bolt, he hurriedly added,

“Didn’t I tell you before? That I’d be entirely yours. Even if that means turning the Queen—your mother—into my enemy. Even if it means running away from Neshard’s royal family forever. Even if you said you wanted to commit treason, kill the Queen, and wear the crown yourself.”

“…That’s scary, Winzard.”

Erne had good instincts.

She immediately sensed the obsession and possessiveness in Winzard’s gaze was beginning to distort into something even darker.

“No. You don’t need to be afraid, Erne. There’s no need to fear anything when you have Douglas by your side.”

Soothing her like a frightened deer, he let out a soft, suggestive shhh and gently pressed his lips to her hair.

“I have more money than I know what to do with. Which means I have the funds to support anything you wish to do.”

“Wow…”

At the mention of money, Erne was sincerely impressed.

Even that slightly materialistic reaction was endearing to Winzard, who smiled affectionately.

“And you have something too, Princess.”

“M-me?”

What do I have? Erne frantically glanced down at herself, but dressed plainly for breakfast, she had nothing of note.

And with Winzard still holding her hair, she couldn’t move freely.

Seeing her flustered, Winzard barely resisted the urge to pull her head closer and said,

“Legitimacy. Royal blood. The next Queen of Neshard. The one and only Princess of this kingdom.”

Legitimacy—that was the blood flowing in Erne’s veins.

“Didn’t you say that Babylon’s second son is using his status as your fiancé to serve as regent?”

At the mention of that scumbag, Erne’s expression darkened instantly.

Winzard watched her with satisfaction before asking,

“Shall we start with breaking off the engagement?”

“D-do you think that’s a good place to start?”

Thankfully, Erne seemed receptive to his suggestion.

Winzard wasn’t about to miss this opportunity.

“Yes. First, we need someone who can not only stand up to the Babylon family—but completely devour them.”

“Devour them?”

“A new fiancé, don’t you think?”

At his cheeky smile, Erne had a feeling she knew exactly who he was talking about.

“Don’t tell me, Winzard… you’re suggesting yourself?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“…”

“Let’s just go all in and get married. A contract marriage.”

Erne was so startled that she instinctively leaned back, causing her chair to nearly tip over.

“Careful…!”

Alarmed, Winzard quickly got up and caught her by the waist.

With a loud thud, the chair toppled behind them.

His heart nearly burst out of worry that Erne might be hurt.

But she just sat quietly in his arms, pouting.

“Please be careful. That was dangerous.”

“Normally, it’s the woman who proposes something like that, isn’t it?”

“Excuse me? What… ah, the contract marriage…”

Nod. Erne nodded lightly.

Even now, she was indifferent to the fact she’d nearly gotten hurt.

Winzard sighed, rubbing his aching temples.

“Is that a custom in Neshard I didn’t know about? Then I’ll wait. Until you say it first.”

“Are you serious? About the contract marriage? You’re okay with it?”

“Business partnerships often start this way.”

Ah. At Winzard’s words, Erne nodded like she had figured something out.

Of course he was a schemer too—just like a proper villain. Even the keyword ‘strategy’ fit perfectly.

Leaning in so close their noses might touch, Erne asked,

“Who are you, really?”

“Starting today, I’m yours.”

With this level of shamelessness, not only was he the villain—he was undoubtedly the scheming male lead too.

At this point, there was no room for denial.