🔊 TTS Settings
CHAPTER 04
Rekanon trembled violently before quickly bowing his head.
Like a fish flapping out of water, his earlier energetic defiance had completely vanished.
“Ahem. Lady Inferna, I ask again. Who damaged the cradle?”
The Emperor still refused to look at me. But at this point, I could guess what was going on.
‘He wants to pin the whole thing on me.’
Maybe that’s why Rekanon was bothering me more than usual.
He was already a nervous wreck, barely able to form a sentence—there’s no way he could confess in front of the Emperor that he kicked the cradle and broke it.
“Your Majesty, I… I’m not sure.”
The Emperor shot him a glare so intense it could’ve fired lasers. Rekanon, terrified, began to tremble even harder.
“For the sake of Count Inferna’s reputation, I’ll ask one last time. Did you break the princess’s cradle?”
The Emperor clearly had no intention of letting this go. His glacial eyes turned from Rekanon to me, and for a moment, my heart skipped.
‘So now he’s finally noticing me?’
He waited, staring me down, his pressure so overwhelming that it felt like even speaking would be a crime. I clutched at the hem of my dress nervously.
I was completely at a loss. Even in a dream, shouldn’t an Emperor be at least a bit more benevolent?
“No answer? I suppose that means you didn’t witness it.”
“I—I did it. So of course I couldn’t have witnessed it.”
“Enough. I don’t want to hear more. Lady Inferna.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“Only those with my permission may enter here. Did you have mine?”
I didn’t recall receiving permission…
“I’m not sure.”
“I never gave you permission. And yet here you stand, defying my command.”
Clank.
The sound of the royal guards gripping their sword hilts echoed ominously. It felt excessive to draw weapons on a child, but oh well—what could possibly happen in a dream?
“F-Father! Please, let me explain!”
As the knights drew their swords, Rekanon dropped to his knees and crawled to clutch the Emperor’s hem, his voice a desperate whisper.
“What explanation can you give with a voice so faint? Tsk.”
I watched the Emperor’s cold treatment of his own child and quietly took a step forward, offering my hand to Rekanon.
“Take my hand and stand.”
Rekanon blinked up at me in shock, then tears began to well in his blue eyes.
“I don’t want you to be punished because of me.”
“Me neither.”
I stared directly at the Emperor. I hated how he treated his own son so carelessly.
“After acting like nothing could ever faze you, you’re crying over something this small? That doesn’t match your character at all. For the sake of your pride, take my hand.”
Before I knew it, Rekanon had taken my hand.
I squeezed it tightly and helped him to his feet.
Once standing, he kept his head bowed, unable to bear the Emperor’s gaze.
Zap.
The Emperor’s fierce glare swept over me.
‘If even I, the dreamer, find the Emperor this intimidating, how could a kid like him handle it? He’s just a child.’
Just like the Emperor had dismissed me earlier, I now turned my head toward Rekanon with calm defiance.
“Are you okay?”
At the sound of my worried voice, I could feel the room collectively flinch. Only after causing such a scene did I finally begin to understand the gravity of the situation.
‘To think I ignored the Emperor… If this ends without any real punishment, I’ll be lucky.’
Rekanon nodded at me with an apologetic look.
“How dare you speak so rudely to His Highness! Your Majesty, this insolence must be punished!”
Suddenly, a familiar nobleman leapt at the opportunity to criticize me, clearly intent on making me an enemy.
“Enough. I’ve heard it all.”
“She dared to show no respect to the Imperial Family—she must be made an example of!”
“An example, hmm.”
The Emperor’s voice was low and full of displeasure. Even as Emperor, he couldn’t recklessly move against Count Inferna, a vital source of imperial funding.
“Leave her to me! I shall handle it in the name of the House of Slunt!”
So that man was the Marquis of Slunt.
I felt a strange sense of betrayal. In the game, the Marquis had always supported me.
‘No… Not me—he supported the heroine, Roellin. He was kind and warm only to win favor with the Imperial Family.’
Now, the Marquis looked at me like a starving hyena eyeing prey. So very different from the man I remembered.
‘But then again, I am the villainess now. This is how it’s supposed to be.’
As Lady Elufe Inferna, anyone close to Roellin was automatically an enemy.
“F-Father! I—I asked Lady Inferna to keep me company…”
‘What? Company?’
In the game, Rekanon despised his fiancée, Elufe Inferna. He tormented her until the end.
‘I don’t remember anything about her being his “companion”… Is he trying to protect me?’
It was strange. I hated narcissism, but the way Rekanon was going out of his way for me sparked a bit of curiosity.
The Emperor, on the other hand, seemed absolutely displeased with Rekanon’s attempt to defend me—even more so because it was clearly a lie.
He forced a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. Anyone could see his composure was cracking.
“Do you even understand the meaning of your words, Prince?”
“Haa… haa…”
Under the Emperor’s oppressive aura, Rekanon could barely breathe.
The Emperor just stood there, watching with cold detachment, while Rekanon clutched his chest in distress.
Watching the two of them filled me with rising frustration.
‘That’s your son. Can’t you at least pat him on the back when he’s struggling like this?’
Even if this was just a dream, Rekanon was meant to become the youngest Swordmaster, a proud protector of his beloved sister Roellin.
I didn’t like seeing his image shattered before me like this.
“Your Majesty, may I speak in the Prince’s place?”
The Marquis of Slunt glared at me.
“Insolent! How dare you speak out in His Majesty’s presence!”
Annoyed by the rude marquis, I frowned, and the Emperor raised his chin arrogantly.
“Lady Inferna, you certainly have some nerve. Speak, then, if you must.”
At his permission, the Marquis reluctantly backed off, though not without one final warning.
“If you lie before His Majesty, your family line shall be cursed for three generations.”
I smiled sweetly, locking eyes with the Marquis. This was my dream, and these petty squabbles were not the kind of drama I wanted.
I dreamed of Roellin being loved by all—and the people around her smiling in happiness.
That was the scene I longed for, and to create it, I couldn’t shy away from this moment.
“With His Highness watching everything himself, how could I dare lie?”
Everyone’s wary gazes fell on me. Living as Elufe Inferna meant enduring this kind of scrutiny every day.
For the first time, I began to understand the character I had always hated.
‘It’s like the whole world sees me as a villain, no matter what I do.’
Even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, they treated me as guilty by default. No wonder she grew up bitter.
And yet, in the midst of all this, one person’s eyes watched me with a strange curiosity.
It felt obsessive, dangerous… like something was digging into me with unsettling persistence.
‘It’s the same gaze I felt in the hallway earlier. Like getting caught sneaking a peek at something forbidden…’
Glance.
I slowly turned my head toward the source of the gaze—and met eyes with a dark-haired boy whose expression was faintly twisted.
‘What is this chilling feeling?’
His striking looks had nothing to do with the way he made my skin crawl. I quickly turned my head back toward the Emperor.
Raising my hand over my heart, I mimicked the imperial oath posture I had learned from the game.
“I, Elufe Inferna, swear on my family’s honor that I will never act in disgraceful ways. I vow this before the Guardian Deity of the Empire.”
