1 Chapter 1

"Lady! Lady!"

It was in the middle of the night that Sera rushed to my room. She had an urgent voice, so I quickly dropped my brush and opened the door.

"What's going on?"

I was quite surprised because nothing so urgent could have happened to Marquis Evgeny, who was so quiet.

"F-forgive me. But it's too important to wait till tomorrow morning!"

"So what is it? Say it quickly."

"Now the Crown Prince has sent his m-marriage proposal! The message has just arrived."

"What?"

I was so surprised that my mouth was wide open.

I thought that my relationship with him had already ended beautifully in the Capital, so I stood blankly for a moment because there was no sense of reality.

"You have to go straight up to the capital, right? I'll arrange it for early tomorrow morning.."

"What are you talking about?"

I sighed and found my cool at the sound of Sarah's excitement.

Having been handed the proposal by Sarah, I opened the envelope, checked the brief details, and spoke casually.

"I'm going to write a rejection letter tomorrow morning. You don't have to make arrangements."

"Pardon? R-rejection?"

Sera had a puzzled look on her face.

It was because there would be no woman on this continent who would reject Ixion's proposal.

It was the capital, no, the palace, that I knew best.

With black hair, white skin, and blue eyes that look like studded jewels, the future Emperor, 3rd Prince, Ixion was certainly so beautiful that people can't open their eyes. (This is basically because he's too handsome it's hard to see it xD)

Moreover, he was an undefeated war hero and had a good appearance, so he used to stand out everywhere.

"Does the Marchioness know about this?" (t/n : Marchioness is Marquis's wife.)

"No, she went to bed early—"

"Then don't let her know. I can't bother her for nothing. You have a lot of work."

"A-are you really sure you'll refuse?"

"That's right."

"R-really? Are you sure you don't want to? Really?"

If I keep answering kindly, she will repeat the same question all night.

"I'm really going to say no, so stop asking. Good night, Sera."

I checked one more time, then grinned and closed the door.

The Marquis of Evgeny is a periphery lord, so although monsters often appear, it was basically a peaceful and beautiful place.

I had no intention of going back to the capital and intertwining with the imperial family.

I stood in front of the mirror instead of going back into bed.

Shining silver hair and red eyes.

It's been a while since I came into this body, but it was still awkward.

Unlike when she first possessed this body, she has a slender form, fair skin, sweet features, and is now an outstanding beauty.

"Elsia, I saved him as you wished. Not only that, I'm going to live my life to the fullest from now on."

I remember the moment I possessed Elsia Artise in the book. It's because her earnest desire had been conveyed to me.

[Save him. I beg you, you can do it.]

I can do it. Because I've already read a book.

[And… Me… Me too… I want to live. I don't want to die like this.]

Of course you didn't want to die like that. I understood that mindset, and I survived so well after the possession and came in as the Marquis' adopted daughter.

The development of the book had already all gone awry, so it's just my life from now on.

"Well, I'll live well now."

Of course, I had no intention of accepting Ixion's proposal. Before, it was true that Elsia loved him, but that is not me.

"Prince Ixion, please take care of yourself. Do you know is it better to marry a young lady, an aristocrat who is more powerful? I don't know if you'll become the Emperor. But you will have a great castle."

I muttered, putting the proposal I received from Sera in a drawer.

"I didn't save you for something like this."

After turning off the light and lying on a soft bed, I soon began to fall asleep.

******

"What?"

Ixion, who came out of the practice field, looked dumbfounded by the absurd news he had been waiting for him.

"Rejection?"

Aiden, a member of the Knights of Peltron and an assistant to Ixion, sighed incredibly. It was something no one expected.

"Aiden Gibs."

Aiden recoiled at the cold words and bowed his head carefully. By the way, he didn't propose to Elsia because he had a thing for her.

"….Yes."

However, the reason why he has no choice but to be frustrated is that Ixion had a habit of constantly thinking about things that were beyond his expectations.

His cool-headed and meticulous personality could let him leave this alone by simply saying, 'Oh, Elsia rejected me.'

"I would have been dead if she hadn't told me about the assassination plan."

"T-that's right."

"It was none other than her brother who tried to assassinate me."

"Yes. That's true."

"She saved my life by abandoning her country."

"….Yes. That's right."

"When I said I didn't know why it would happen, it was her who gave me the answer."

Aiden closed his eyes tightly at the thought that something had come up.

But at the time it was a very reasonable inference.

'What kind of woman betrays her motherland and saves the Prince of the Enemy?' There was only one reason by any stretch of the imagination.

"It's because she loves me."

"R-right."

"It's because I helped her not to be insulted at the victory banquet three years ago."

"Yes— It was an impressive event for many people."

"Then why—"

Ixion looked at Aiden with sparkling blue eyes.

"Why refuse my marriage proposal?"

"…."

"She saved my life. I could've paid her back enough with marriage. With any common sense, shouldn't you come running happily when your crush proposes?"

It's a peaceful capital, but Aiden felt as if he was being questioned for the reasons of failure on the battlefield.

Aiden nervously put up with wanting to bite his nails.

"T-that's.."

It was Aiden, who is said to be the son of a socialite, but in fact, he didn't even dream that Elsia would reject the marriage proposal.

That's why he stumbled through words, acting unfavorably.

Everyone agreed that Elsia loved Ixion.

Not a single person who knew Elsia had doubts about that fact.

But he couldn't even guess why things turned out like this.

"I-I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"Yes…"

"You don't even have to ask anyone else, because you know the gossip of the capital has already been taken over."

Ixion spoke in a low voice. And he continued without hesitation.

"This fall, the destruction of the monsters is going to be the responsibility of Marquis of Evgeny."

"Pardon? Then Evgeny—"

"You'll find out when you meet him in person."

Aiden sighed and looked at Ixion.

Ixion wasn't one who left things he didn't understand in his life alone.

If love was not the reason why the enemy kingdom's princess saved him, she had to have another good reason.

Aiden sighed and thought about Elsia.

Three years ago, she was taken into the palace as a hostage to the Kingdom of Artise, a grim-looking woman who had her face down.

She was just a formal hostage with nothing exceptional in her impression, including a cluttered gaze and a trembling voice. And not long ago she saved Ixion's life.

Suddenly a storm began to rage, and she was at the center of it.

The woman, who seemed to not be a variable when she was first brought in as a hostage, changed everything.

Episode 1. Escape the Imperial Palace (1)

So—my reincarnation into this novel was not just a coincidence. I was reading a novel on my phone on the bus when I got into a car accident and died there.

In that short moment when the bus capsized with a roar, I really thought I didn't want to die.

I thought I didn't have any regrets, but after the accident, I thought I didn't want to die like this.

There were many things I haven't done yet. The yoga center that I opened a while ago was just settling down, but I haven't even achieved my dream of making money and being free in the countryside after taking an early retirement—.

Like a cell phone that flew far away and smashed, I've lived my life as it is. That was when I was convinced.

[I don't, I don't want to die!]

As I was dying, I heard someone else's voice.

[I am Elsia Artise—.]

'Elsia Artise? An extra novel I read right before I died?'

Her role was to have a miserable early death.

[Save him. I beg you, you can do it.]

Having read the novel, I knew who she meant by 'he'. She was referring to the 3rd Prince of Eastheim.

The empire, which had taken her hostage after being abused by her brother in her country, was cold to her.

He was the only one who reached out to her, who was so intimidated.

It was a simple act of sympathy, but with that single occasion, Elsia fell deeply in love with him.

It was the first favor she had in her miserable life.

[And I… I want to live too.. I don't want to die like this.]

Elsia was a hostage brought to the Eastheim Empire.

It was the 3rd Prince Ixion, who led the war against Artise to victory.

The defeated Kingdom of Artise sent Elsia, a royal daughter, to the Imperial Palace with huge war reparations.

For three years after the war, Elsia was locked up by herself in the palace like she was dead.

No one was interested in her like that.

Decan, the brother of Elsia and king of Artise, secretly prepared for war to defeat Eastheim again.

However, he was guilty of scheming a secret assassination of the royal family, knowing that he would have no choice but to be defeated if he had to meet the 3rd Prince on the battlefield.

And he had wanted to kill Elsia first just in case she would talk about the royal secret.

It was just before I was assassinated that I opened my eyes as Elsia.

******

"Princess, I've made tea with tea leaves from my home country. Would you like to drink that before breakfast?"

Elsia, who was stuck in the corner of the palace, had only one maid.

Sera was a very poor woman, but she was a warm and innocent maid of honor.

"Sera."

There was no time to be amazed or panicked by her reincarnation. If I drink that tea, I die.

"Throw away the tea now. Throw away all the tea leaves."

"Yes?"

Elsia's big brother, Decan, sent her tea leaves every quarter.

Supposedly, it was because she would miss the familiar tea from her home, but in fact, it was to get rid of her easily whenever she became a bother.

[I want to live too.]

I will try to live somehow. Her desperate desire to live was because I knew, who had already died in a car accident, knew the novel well.

Especially after sending her as a hostage, she had no intention of keeping her loyalty to her home country, which had only thought of getting rid of Elsia from beginning to end.

I stood up, recalling Elsia's desperate words. No, I tried to stand up—.

I couldn't get out as lightly in my old body, and I felt pain in my back.

'That's right, it's…obesity and lack of exercise!'

One more thing to pay attention to in the future has been added.