Chapter 14
Possessing Princess Eve
Even when I read the original story, I always thought this man was cold and arrogant.
But then again, for someone of his status, it would almost be strange if he were kind and gentle.
“Thank you for your honesty,” I said lightly. “After all, I’m only going to die because I’m your fiancée.”
He frowned slightly. “You speak as if you already know who the culprit is.”
“I do.”
I looked him straight in the eye and said clearly,
“It’s His Majesty the Emperor.”
“The Emperor?” The Grand Duke’s voice sharpened. “Why would His Majesty wish to kill his own daughter?”
“I’m not lying,” I said firmly. “He’s planning to have me assassinated on the wedding day. After that, he’ll frame you for my murder.”
At the word murder, the Grand Duke’s mocking calmness finally cracked. His perfect brow furrowed faintly.
“And how exactly did you learn of this?”
This was the most important part.
I took a quiet breath and answered bluntly,
“I saw it in a divine vision.”
For a moment, silence filled the dark chapel.
Even with all the windows shut, I could almost feel a cold breeze passing between us.
The Grand Duke blinked a few times, as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. His expression said, What kind of madness am I listening to?
“Pardon me,” he said politely, his voice dripping with disbelief. “Could you repeat that? I think I may have misheard. What you said sounded completely absurd.”
“You didn’t mishear me,” I said steadily. “I had a prophetic vision. You know I was born with holy power, right? The power I have lets me see the future.”
His violet eyes narrowed. “I was told you lost your holy power as a child.”
“Yes, that’s what everyone thought. But it turns out, it wasn’t gone after all.”
I kept my voice calm and told the story I had carefully prepared.
After I turned ten, I hadn’t had any visions, so I assumed the ability had disappeared.
But right after the engagement, the power suddenly came back.
At first, I couldn’t believe it myself. But after several visions came true, I was certain — it had truly returned.
Everything was fine until one day, I saw something terrible.
A vision of my own assassination on the morning of my wedding day — by assassins sent by the Emperor.
That was the story I had invented over the past few days.
Of course, I couldn’t tell this man the truth — that I wasn’t the real Eve, but someone who had possessed her body.
Thankfully, I didn’t need to. The original Eve actually did have the gift of foresight, so it was the perfect cover.
However, the more I spoke, the more his expression turned from disbelief to outright incredulity.
By the time I finished, that beautiful face of his looked completely dumbfounded.
“At first,” he said evenly, “I thought this might be another one of His Majesty’s tricks — that you were sent to toy with me. But this…” He gave a dry, humorless laugh. “This is too ridiculous to even call a scheme.”
“I’m not lying to you, Your Grace.”
His eyes were still cold, full of suspicion.
“So, according to your so-called vision, you’ll be killed on our wedding day,” he said slowly. “And the Emperor plans to pin the murder on me?”
“Yes. I saw it clearly. The assassination succeeded.”
He just stared at me. His look said, This woman is insane.
To be fair, it was an understandable reaction. Anyone would doubt such a story.
“Do you not believe me?” I asked carefully.
“I already knew my fiancée was reckless and self-centered,” he replied dryly. “But learning that she’s delusional is… new.”
“I’m not crazy,” I said firmly. “And this isn’t a delusion.”
Of course, I knew mere words wouldn’t convince him.
But that was fine — I had proof.
“Please trust me,” I said. “You’ll see for yourself in five days. There will be a solar eclipse that morning.”
Five days from now — thirty-five days before the wedding — an unexpected solar eclipse would occur.
Normally, the Astronomical Academy or the Imperial Temple would announce such celestial events in advance. But this one would catch everyone completely off guard.
In the original novel, the characters had panicked, claiming the sun’s path had shifted.
(Though in truth, it happened because the heroine, Sorel, accidentally unsealed a divine beast on the battlefield — but no one would learn that until much later.)
“That eclipse,” the Grand Duke said slowly, “you saw that in your vision as well?”
“Yes,” I nodded. “I saw it.”
He still looked skeptical.
“Surely you don’t mean to tell me you also found the location of the holy relic through one of these visions?”
“Yes,” I lied smoothly. “I saw it in a future vision — where the relic was discovered.”
“The Emperor truly intends to kill me and frame you,” I said seriously. “This isn’t a lie.”
But he clearly didn’t believe me. His eyes searched my face intently, sharp and suspicious.
“Or,” he said coldly, “did you perhaps overhear His Majesty’s private conversations?”
Ah. So that’s what he thought.
That would have made sense too — that Eve had somehow overheard the Emperor’s secret plot and was now inventing the story about divine power to protect herself.
It wasn’t an impossible theory.
But I shook my head calmly.
“No. I know you’re wondering if I might have overheard something, but that’s impossible. I haven’t met His Majesty privately in a long time — not since the engagement was announced.”
The Emperor was always busy with state affairs, and these days, he was away at the war front.
Even if he’d been in the capital, he wouldn’t have wasted time with a foolish, troublesome daughter.
He certainly wouldn’t discuss such a secret plan where I could hear it.
“If I had truly overheard him,” I added, “don’t you think I would’ve just said that from the start?”
At first, I had considered claiming I overheard the plan.
But that lie wouldn’t hold up.
Because in the novel, Eve had no chance to learn such secrets in advance.
And besides, there were spies from the Grand Duke’s household inside the imperial palace.
If I said something like, ‘I overheard the Emperor at this time and place speaking with so-and-so,’ the Grand Duke would easily confirm it through his own people.
Even if they couldn’t hear the exact words, they could still verify who met with whom, and when.
Once they found any mismatch in my story, they’d know instantly that I had lied.
“I never had a chance to hear such a plan,” I said. “If I had lied about that, you would’ve found out immediately. That’s why I’m telling you the truth.”
The Grand Duke’s violet eyes darkened — not with anger, but with something complicated.
He understood some of what I was saying, yet still couldn’t fully believe me.
“Then tell me this,” he asked. “If your divine power truly returned, why haven’t you announced it publicly?”
“Wouldn’t it be better if people didn’t know?” I replied calmly. “If no one knows about my ability, no one will fear or guard against me.”
“And yet,” he said quietly, “you decided to tell me?”
I looked up at his frighteningly handsome face.
“Because unless I prove I’m useful, Your Grace will never help me.”
A hard truth I had learned in a harsh life: no one helps you unless you have something they need.
“If I hadn’t told you about my prophetic power,” I said softly, “and had only spoken about the assassination plan, you wouldn’t have lifted a finger to save me. Isn’t that right?”
He didn’t deny it.
It was true — without proof of my worth, the Grand Duke would have let the Emperor’s plot unfold, unmoved.
At first, I had thought about hiding my foresight and just warning him of the assassination.
Maybe if I begged, he would at least investigate.
He might discover suspicious movements and realize my story was true.
That way, I could survive — or so I’d hoped.
But then I realized how naïve that was.
If all he cared about was avoiding a murder accusation, he didn’t need to save me.
He could simply gather evidence of the Emperor’s plan, let me die, and then expose the Emperor afterward.
That would make him a victim — the poor Grand Duke framed by a cruel tyrant — and earn the people’s sympathy.
He’d get rid of his troublesome fiancée and become a national hero at the same time.
Finishing my explanation, I crossed my arms and looked up at him.
“So if I hadn’t told you about my foresight,” I said quietly, “that’s exactly what you would’ve done… right?”
