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Chapter 2. Give Yourself to Me
The half-naked man shimmered under the sunlight.
As her eyes brushed across him, the cords of muscle on his iron-like forearm twitched and pulsed dramatically. When Rose met his deep, abyss-like gaze, she flinched and quickly apologized.
“M-My apologies!”
Arsen glanced down at his disheveled state and let out a sigh. With a resigned air, he ran a hand roughly through his bangs—it was the kind of gesture that would’ve looked perfectly at home in a men’s underwear advertisement.
“In your current attire, Your Highness, you wouldn’t even be able to take a proper step forward.”
He was right. Her trailing dress made not only swordsmanship but even walking a challenge. It was embarrassing—like she’d exposed the fact that she never intended to take the training seriously. As if to confirm it, his blunt advice followed.
“If you’re not fully committed, it’s better not to take up the sword at all.”
“What I meant was… not right now, but in the future, I’d like you to oversee my swordsmanship training.”
“I cannot be your instructor, Your Highness.”
“Why not?”
His curt refusal made her ask again. A slight furrow appeared between his brows.
“I’m not a member of the Royal Knights.”
Arsen turned without hesitation, as if that explanation was enough.
Rose blinked, surprised. That’s right—he hadn’t yet been appointed Commander of the Royal Knights.
‘Ah, I forgot. He hasn’t officially taken that role yet. So right now, he’s…’
“Can the Remigis Order not train royalty?”
He stopped dead in his tracks.
“…”
“As far as I know, there’s no law stating only the Royal Knights may instruct royalty.”
Her voice held a touch of innocent curiosity as she mumbled, and Arsen looked down at her silently, as if trying to read her intentions. Then, without a word, he stepped into the stable.
That was his answer.
‘Ah, no—this won’t do.’
She couldn’t give up now. She had only three years left to live. That wasn’t a long time. And in that time, she had to convince the man who might end up killing her.
‘Besides, I have a very specific reason it has to be you.’
Rose followed him stubbornly, chattering.
“Wait! I’ll be serious about training from now on, I promise! So please—please teach me swordsmanship—”
Thunk!
Something blunt struck her, and she landed flat on her rear. Her vision spun.
“Ow, ow, ow…”
She had collided with a group of apprentice knights entering the stable, who hadn’t seen her.
“Ah! I’m so sorry—!”
A cloud of dust immediately followed, obscuring her sight.
“Pffft… cough cough…”
She couldn’t stop coughing. Her head spun—what just happened?
Only when she saw the pile of hay at her feet did she realize the knights had been moving a horse trough, and it had toppled over onto her. A strong stench of ammonia rose from all directions.
“Ugh, the smell…”
The knights who caught sight of her blue eyes paled in shock and bowed at a full ninety degrees.
“Your Highness! Forgive us! We didn’t see you while transporting the trough!”
The boys looked barely older than fifteen, trembling as they apologized.
‘Sigh. It’s not really their fault.’
They’d never have expected a royal to be here, unaccompanied by guards. And it had been her own carelessness not watching where she was going. Rose quickly waved her hand.
“No, no—it was my fault for not paying attention.”
A ripple of confusion spread across the apprentices’ young faces. Beyond them, her eyes met Arsen’s.
She thought he had gone inside, but the commotion must have brought him back out. Rose jumped to her feet and brushed off her now-ruined dress.
‘Ugh… How humiliating.’
First she begged him to teach her like some reckless fool, and now she was covered in filth. He was definitely going to think she was ridiculous. Her cheeks burned. As she stood there mortified, Arsen sent the apprentices away and approached her.
“Are you all right?”
Trying to hide her embarrassment, Rose buried her face in her hands, only for him to lean closer. Their eyes met, and she instinctively stepped back.
His solemn gaze… It was exactly how she had always imagined it. The way her heart fluttered at that moment was infuriating. What a terrible first impression. So much for leaving a strong mark.
“I-I’ll be going now. Let’s talk again later.”
“You’re going back looking like that?”
As she tried to slip away, Arsen caught her by the arm.
“Please wait a moment.”
“…Huh?”
She turned in confusion, only to find him scanning her from head to toe. Glancing down at herself, her eyes widened.
Her clothes were caked in dirt. Her hair was a bird’s nest full of straw and some sticky, unknown substance. She looked like someone who hadn’t bathed in days.
If she returned like this, the rumors about the foolish youngest princess would escalate to tales of a madwoman.
“Wait here. I’ll fetch something to clean you up.”
His tone was noticeably more respectful than before. Strangely, that made her feel even more ashamed.
Because who would want their favorite character to see them like this?
She wanted to vanish on the spot.
‘But I can’t walk around like this either…’
Stuck between shame and necessity, she anxiously stomped her feet.
“I’m telling you, I saw it! The commander was swinging his sword like he meant to kill someone!”
“But I don’t see him anywhere. And honestly, you wouldn’t last a second against him.”
“Hey! That’s rude!”
Voices echoed from behind the training field.
Rose’s shoulders jumped at the sound of two rough-looking men bickering as they approached.
At this rate, even more people would witness her dreadful state.
“Oh no… what do I do…?”
As she stammered, Arsen abruptly grabbed her and pulled her into the stable. The sudden force made her stumble, crashing into his bare chest.
“Ow—what is this, iron or flesh?!”
Her palms pressed against his taut, bronze-toned skin. The body of a warrior was nothing like the soft skin she was used to.
Peeking up, she saw his lips pressed in a firm line as he watched the approaching knights.
Then, with a faint sigh, he muttered—
“Tch. How unnecessary.”
The knights, presumably searching for him, lingered around for a while. Clearly annoyed, Arsen finally said in a reluctant voice:
“We’ll have to wait a little. They’re not usually like this… I don’t know what’s gotten into them today.”
He seemed uncharacteristically apologetic, speaking more than usual.
‘Just like in the novel… So upright and loyal.’
Even though she’d made a mess and embarrassed him, Arsen was still protecting her—simply because she was a royal. And not even an important one—just the third princess.
‘Right. This loyalty… That’s why I fell for him.’
But Arsen had pledged that loyalty to the wrong person.
In the latter part of the original novel, during the war, Tanasis sacrificed Arsen to defeat Duke Ludwig—the villainous mastermind.
She had cried so much watching her favorite character ride to his death, unwavering despite knowing his fate.
After Arsen died, she couldn’t even bring herself to finish the book properly.
‘How could the author do that? Kill off Arsen of all people?’
She turned and studied his handsome profile.
Here, he was still alive—still brilliant.
But if he continued following Tanasis, he would meet the same end.
She gently lifted her hand and caressed his chiseled jaw.
‘I won’t let my favorite die again.’
This was her second reason for making him her ally.
She wouldn’t treat him like a disposable pawn.
‘We’ll survive this together. You and me.’
“…Your Highness?”
Arsen’s voice cracked slightly. As the coral of her hair caught in his jet-black gaze, his entire posture stiffened awkwardly.
Peeking through a crack in the stable, Rose saw the training yard was now empty. The knights had returned inside.
Which meant…
Right now, it was just the two of them.
She lowered her hand from his jaw and gently rested it against his chest—right over his heart.
Thump, thump.
A heavy, steady heartbeat pulsed beneath her palm.
The moment she’d awakened in this strange and familiar world, she had searched for him first.
Before she could even adjust to this body, their meeting had already deviated from the original story.
And that small rift was going to change everything in her second life.
“In truth… I came here to see you.”
“Me?”
“Yes. I had something important to say.”
“What is it?”
Rose smiled softly, her eyes curling in that captivating way only she could.
In an instant, the filth of earlier was gone, replaced by a dangerously enchanting charm—like a succubus born of moonlight.
She beckoned him closer.
When Arsen bent down, she leaned into his ear and whispered like an incantation.
“Arsen… give yourself to me.”
