Chapter 3
“Ahh… I’m starving.”
William frowned as he wiped the sticky black blood from his sword, reacting to Eric’s complaint.
This was hardly a place that made anyone think of eating.
An endless stretch of sand shimmered beneath the blazing sun. Scattered across it lay the dismembered corpses of magical beasts, their thick, black blood pooling grotesquely on the ground.
They were in the Resher Desert, a treacherous expanse that lay along the route from Blake, through Servi, to Sincaster.
With its scorching daytime heat that felt like boiling flesh, its bone-chilling nights, and the constant threat of countless magical beasts, the Resher Desert was known as the “Road of Death.” It was not a place just anyone could cross.
And yet, the group of large, armored men seemed almost perfectly suited to such a place.
They were the delegation from Blake—and the personal guard of the Sixth Prince, Leonard.
“To say something like that while looking at these pitch-black monster corpses… you’ve got quite the appetite.”
“But it’s already been three days since we lost the supply wagon and started wandering this desert like drifters. With this blazing heat, I just want to roast something and eat it.”
Eric spoke to the man sitting on a rock, cleaning his sword.
“What do you think, Your Highness? You’re known to eat just about anything, aren’t you?”
The man turned his gaze toward him.
The first thing one noticed was his eyes—burning with a fierce, almost feverish intensity.
Having endured battle, they looked like molten fire itself.
Yet even more striking than his eyes was his hair.
Under the blazing sun, it flared brilliantly—clearly red, yet so vivid it almost appeared golden.
It was Leonard, the Sixth Prince.
“If we want to reach Sincaster in one piece through this desert, we’ll have to eat whatever we can.”
As he spoke, he picked up a severed piece of a scorpion.
“Though this one’s out of the question. It’s venomous.”
A drop of black blood fell from the scorpion fragment onto the rock.
Sizzle—
The rock began to melt on contact.
Watching this, Eric clicked his tongue.
“Damn Sincaster… it’s too far.”
At his lieutenant’s curse, Leonard let out a faint chuckle.
He rose from his seat and walked over to where the horses were tied, pulling something from the cloak draped over his saddle.
It was a small, tightly rolled piece of parchment.
Leonard tossed it toward the two men.
“Here. Something to take care of when we arrive.”
Eric and William each caught the parchment with ease.
Unfolding the thin sheet, they saw writing in a rare language—one not found anywhere on the continent.
“Just a little farther,” Leonard said. “Sincaster is right ahead.”
At last, my nineteenth birthday banquet was just around the corner.
It was something I went through every year, but preparing for a banquet involved an absurd amount of work.
From selecting the main dishes to deciding what outfits I would wear for nearly a month, to even inspecting the color of the hallway curtains—everything had to pass through me, the temporary lady of the kingdom.
In novels, banquet preparations are usually glossed over in a single chapter—or even half of one.
So why, in reality, did it take months?
“Princess, please try this dress too!”
“And this one as well!!”
I was currently in the powder room, making final checks on the dresses I would wear for the banquet.
I had no idea how many hours had passed.
I felt like I was about to die, but the maids, on the other hand, giggled endlessly as they dressed me, as if I were nothing more than a doll.
“I think the purple dress suits you best. How about wearing it on the first day?”
“Are you blind? The princess must wear the second gold dress from earlier. It’s the most luxurious and has the most jewels!”
Watching the maids bicker, I clutched my empty stomach.
Unbelievably, this world had fireball magic—but no magic to slim your waist.
Honestly, what were these mages even good for?
Instead of developing thunderstorm spells, they should have invented something like zero-calorie fried chicken. They’d have made a fortune.
“Ahem… ahem.”
Overcome by hunger, I subtly glanced around.
Thankfully, there was a three-tier tray of finger foods behind me.
My hand was just about to reach for it—
When I suddenly froze.
A chilling presence crept up from behind.
“Abigail…”
“Princess. Snacks are forbidden until tomorrow.”
I made a pitiful face, but Abigail remained merciless.
Having successfully married off her three daughters to wealthy, handsome, high-ranking nobles, she was now equally determined to turn me—whom she had raised since childhood—into the perfect bride.
“There will be over twenty unmarried men attending the banquet. If your dress doesn’t fit and you end up struggling to breathe, it would be most improper to lose the rhythm while dancing.”
Abigail smiled elegantly as she picked up a gold-embroidered waist ribbon.
That smile alone was enough to make me slowly withdraw my hand from the finger food.
“Now then, let’s tighten this.”
She approached me with the ribbon.
The gold sash, embroidered with lilies, looked less like an accessory and more like a noose for an execution.
The ribbon wrapped around my waist—
And tightened.
“Ghk!”
The moment I let out a strangled squeal, a knock sounded from outside the door.
“Princess, the Saintess has arrived.”
“Save me, Aurora! Abigail is trying to kill me with this ribbon!”
Dignity? Grace? Who cared? Survival came first.
I cried out desperately, and the door burst open.
“Charles? Oh my goodness!”
With a sharp gasp, Aurora rushed in, wrinkling her dress without a second thought.
“Lady Everhart, stop strangling Charles! It’s not like tightening it will make her waist any smaller anyway!”
What?
Even while suffocating, I shot Aurora an incredulous look.
Sadly, I couldn’t refute her.
Abigail seemed to agree as well, loosening her grip on the ribbon, which somehow made me feel even worse.
“Order the mages to develop a waist-slimming spell immediately!”
“Charlotte, calm down. As a princess, you must show composure in front of the maids.”
“I can’t calm down. Just because your waist is slim—!”
“That’s why you shouldn’t have taken over Jaret’s shop a month ago. If you eat cake from there every single day, of course you’ll gain weight.”
“That place uses zero-sugar ingredients. It’s perfectly healthy.”
Grumbling, I quickly slipped away from Abigail and clung to Aurora.
If I had to choose, I’d rather endure Aurora’s blunt words than Abigail tightening my waist.
Hiding behind Aurora, I tried to persuade Abigail.
“Merciful Abigail, how about we stop playing dress-up here? Whether I wear Madame Everlot’s gown or a trash bag, I’ll still be beautiful.”
“Princess. A member of the royal family of the Holy Kingdom must be all the more humble and courteous for their excellence.”
“So you’re saying I’m excellent?”
“……”
Abigail said nothing further.
I chose to take that as agreement.
Seizing the moment, Aurora stepped forward slightly, shielding me.
“She’s right, Lady Everhart. Let’s stop here. Besides, Charlotte still needs to go to the Altar of Sacred Blood, doesn’t she?”
“…Very well.”
Though still displeased, Abigail bowed her head and withdrew with the maids.
“Charlotte, you’ve worked hard preparing for the banquet.”
Aurora smiled and patted my shoulder.
I let out a deep sigh and collapsed onto the sofa.
“I know, right? Why are there so many banquets? The Founding Festival, birthday banquets, memorial rites, prayer ceremonies… I thought being a princess meant lounging around and enjoying life.”
“Don’t you already lounge around enough?”
“Excuse me, what do you take me for, Aurora? I want to lounge around even more intensely.”
Ideally, my aide would handle all the banquet preparations, and I’d just act as a figurehead behind the scenes.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option.
If I wanted a happy future, I had to interfere with the original story at least a little.
Not that I was getting involved just because I wanted to interact with all the handsome male leads and supporting characters.
“Honestly, Princess Charlotte…”
Aurora shook her head.
“You’re impossible. Now come on—let’s head to the ‘Altar of Sacred Blood.’”
