Chapter 74………………………………………..
Who am I~ Where is this place~
Without knowing any reason, I had been dragged along until I completely reached a state of detachment. I even started mumbling a song I made myself, and I saw the coachman flinch.
First, I tried to guess the identity of the person who ordered my kidnapping.
If someone were going to kidnap me… only one person came to mind.
Yes, Vivian.
It made sense that if she had heard the news that Peredil and I had become lovers, she couldn’t control her anger and would want revenge on me. But physically, being trapped in prison, she couldn’t act.
The fact that the only plausible suspect seemed innocent only made my head spin.
Still, what if, just what if, she somehow managed to orchestrate my kidnapping?
Then I could really be dead!
Now that I had nothing left to lose, I thought that if it were her, she’d want to erase me completely. A rich imagination wasn’t always a blessing—it amplified my anxiety by conjuring the worst possibilities.
Would I be caught and punished by Vivian’s agents, or get hurt falling from the carriage?
Either way, it would hurt, so my conclusion was I couldn’t just let myself be taken.
Huh, it’s going to hurt a lot, right?
I braced myself to leap from the carriage when the coachman suddenly used telepathy.
“There’s no danger to your life, so please don’t worry. It’s best not to act recklessly.”
Advice from my kidnapper… should I trust him? What if he’s saying that to make sure I don’t run away?
I didn’t know which decision was correct, and my head felt like it was going to explode.
Jump? Or not? I couldn’t waste any more time. If I hesitated, I’d lose the whole opportunity.
I crouched and tensed my body to gain momentum, but the carriage stopped on its own.
I stared at the door in a daze and saw the coachman holding out his hand.
“Miss, please take my hand.”
Is this where I was kidnapped? Is this really what I’m seeing?
Of course, I expected to be locked in an abandoned house or a cave with no sign of human presence.
But no. I arrived at a stunning, magnificent mansion. Its well-maintained exterior sparkled and gleamed.
Inside, maids appeared instantly to attend to me.
“Welcome, Miss Joyce.”
“Miss Joyce, we’re glad you’re here.”
They even knew my name? Wasn’t this supposed to be a kidnapping?
Following their guidance, I entered and saw an array of snacks prepared for me. The colorful, glossy, and sweet-looking desserts were so tempting that I momentarily forgot my situation.
“Miss Joyce, what tea would you like?”
A delicate maid struggled to carry a tea box twice her weight. There were so many kinds of tea I had never heard of, I didn’t know which to choose.
“Umm… Blue Jasmine, please.”
It seemed familiar, though I had never tried it. Why not pick something I haven’t had before?
The maid brewed the tea on the spot. When I sipped, a tangy yet fragrant aroma filled my mouth. The finish was even sweet. Tea could taste this good?
My eyes went wide in amazement.
“Wow, this is delicious!”
I exclaimed like someone who had never tasted tea in their life. The maids giggled, and I awkwardly smiled back.
But wait… what if the tea was poisoned? Did I just drink it without a second thought?
Have some sense of caution, will you!
“Don’t just drink the tea; try some sweets too.”
I shook my head at my own carelessness, and then I heard a familiar voice behind me. Turning around, I immediately stood up.
“Emperor… Your Majesty?”
The person who kidnapped me was the emperor? Not Vivian?
“Sit comfortably, Miss Joyce. Since you are a friend of my son, there’s no need for such formality.”
A friend of his son… does that mean the man before me is not the emperor as such, but my friend’s father?
As the emperor sat opposite me, the maid poured tea into his cup. He drank it without taking his gaze off me.
His piercing eyes made it impossible to act recklessly.
“What is it that Your Majesty desires from me?”
With a businesslike smile, I asked the question. It was obvious he had arranged this meeting to discuss Theo.
Since I had lost my appetite anyway, pointless small talk was unnecessary.
My direct questioning seemed to intrigue the emperor.
“Oh? Why do you think so? I just want to talk with a friend of my son who took care of my runaway son.”
“If that were the case, you wouldn’t have discreetly brought me here while I was out, seating me in front of you like this. And not in the palace, but in this remote mansion…”
“A villa. A royal villa, to be exact.”
He calmly put down his teacup and studied me with his eyes. A half-smile reminded me of a thriller scene.
Swallowing nervously, I heard the emperor finally reveal his dark intent.
“Become a princess, Miss Joyce.”
I was speechless at the unexpected suggestion—or rather, command. Not only a noblewoman, but fated to become the emperor’s princess?
I was tired of unwanted honors clinging to me. All I wanted was honor I earned myself, but it never seemed easy.
I couldn’t tell the emperor my plans—pretending to be adopted in Woodville, returning to Bria—so I stayed silent.
“Your words are… quite surprising. I have never considered marrying Prince Theo, or Theodor.”
“Then are you rebelling against me?”
“Re… rebelling?”
“Refusing to become a princess is a rebellion against the empire. If it’s not rebellion, what is it?”
Seriously? What kind of rebellion is this guy talking about?
I tried to indirectly refuse politely, but the emperor was stubborn.
“However…”
“Miss Joyce, don’t make me threaten you.”
His icy gaze sent a chill down my spine. This was not a bluff. That look said he would use any means to make me his princess.
I decided to change tactics, invoking Theo’s wishes. He wanted me to return to Bria, so there was no way he’d accept me as a princess.
“…Prince Theodor would not want this.”
“Haha. You speak like Duke Seymour.”
Peredil? Now I understood his dark expression and why he came for me drunk.
“Theodor is calm and clever, suited to rule, unlike his younger sibling, but lacks passionate ambition. At the most crucial moments, he hesitates and misses what matters. He’ll secretly appreciate a father intervening for a son who only knows to flee.”
After rambling incomprehensible words, the emperor concluded his business and indicated the meeting was over. I had no chance to speak. This had never been a dialogue, only a one-sided message.
Despite my strong refusal, he insisted on escorting me to the carriage.
“A formal proposal will soon be sent to Woodville. Until then, end your relationship with Seymour.”
As the carriage was about to depart, a late action scene happened—I rolled out of the carriage I couldn’t hold back from jumping from.
Falling from a carriage hurts way more than I expected! If it had been moving, something would have broken!
I endured the pain and stood before the emperor.
Even at the ball, I had never seen the emperor’s shocked expression so plainly.
“Your Majesty, I feel compelled to say this despite the risk: Theo is nothing like someone who only knows to flee. Quite the opposite, in fact. He has never run from his stage. Wherever Theo’s feet lead, that is his stage. Your small stage was only too narrow for him. In any case, Theo is… very strong. Much stronger than Your Majesty… might think…”
I started confidently but trailed off, losing assurance. I realized I was standing tall before the emperor, speaking out impulsively yet regaining my composure.
Would I end up locked next to Vivian? I had defied the emperor so openly; I might vanish entirely.
A short but precious second life…
While imagining the grim future, a familiar voice called out:
“That’s right, Father. So please stop choosing a spouse without consulting the person involved—this isn’t the old days.”
