Chapter 16
Of course, a player in a game wouldn’t actually die, but what did finding one’s ideal type have to do with escaping?
Well… it is fun.
She found herself wondering what kind of feedback she’d given back when she participated in Echo’s beta test.
It must have been a good review.
After all, she had even managed to get herself a secret boyfriend inside the game.
This was the same her who had recoiled at even the thought of skinship with a man—yet she’d met a man who had supposedly lavished the secretary Chu with embarrassing compliments.
Clang, clash!
“Run!”
“Run? Protect the young lady!”
“My lady, are you all righ—”
Whish, swoosh!
“Get down!”
Outside the palanquin, thieves were busily moving about, trying to plunder the wedding procession’s dowry, while the escorting guards shouted as they fought them off.
Am I supposed to go out there?
Judging by the game’s tendency to throw the player into extreme situations to create encounters with various male characters, it might be better for Seung-eon to get out of this cramped palanquin and either run away or fight the thieves.
“That palanquin— is it the very one carrying the precious daughter of the Minister of Taxation?”
As if reading her thoughts, one of the thieves who had already taken down all the guards protecting the bridal procession shouted loudly.
Is that him?
Hidden Character No. 928.
According to the game logs, this man hadn’t just crossed paths with Seung-eon once or twice—he’d met her several times, and was even someone who had stayed with her all the way through the first trial: Theo. They would definitely meet again in the second trial.
Thinking of Theo’s calm face and the warm gaze he’d given her, Seung-eon’s lips curved into a small smile—and her body moved on its own.
No doubt, her past self had thought the same way.
She began shifting her body in the narrow space, intending to step out of the palanquin.
“Oh, my lady!”
The maid who had earlier told her to step down cried out, her voice on the verge of tears.
“Our young lady is on her way to marry the second son of the Minister of Personnel! Please, we’ll gladly hand over the dowry—just spare her life!”
Minister of Personnel?
Seung-eon froze mid-step.
Could this “second son” also be one of the male characters she could choose from?
While she was wondering, she heard the thief’s harsh reply to the maid’s tearful plea:
“That’s out of the question! I may be after the ill-gotten riches of the greedy Minister of Taxation, but I have no intention of letting go of that household’s precious treasure! What are you all doing? Bring the palanquin before me, now!”
“Kyaa! My lady, it’s dangerous—”
Swoosh!
Right then—
“Who goes there!”
“I’ve heard enough! To think you would threaten a delicate young lady from a noble household—do you call yourself a man of honor?”
A new male character had appeared, clearly agitated.
Clang!
“Grrk!”
“Ugh!”
With a hiss of steel, swords clashed.
A gust of wind followed, forcing the two men apart. They glared at each other with sharp, dangerous eyes.
“You handle a sword well.”
“And you— not bad for a thief.”
“Hmph! I give you a little credit and you get smug!”
“Your manners are worse than your sword skills. Come at me again!”
Clang! Clang-clang! Clash!
The sharp metallic noises stabbed at the eardrums, enough to make anyone tense up—yet Seung-eon’s lips merely parted, then closed again.
“…Yawn.”
Boring.
So boring that it was…
Dull.
Clang, clash!
“Where did you come from?”
“Protect the young lady!”
“What could the likes of you possibly do for her?”
“My lady, I will save you!”
One after another— a chivalrous thief, an inspector just passing by, an oddly loyal bodyguard, and even another thief who betrayed his comrades the moment he saw her face—
Four men all fighting over one woman…
Not exactly impressive.
Sitting on a large rock outside the palanquin, Seung-eon watched the four men square off with their respective weapons. She began nodding off, then shook her head at the sight.
“They’re truly remarkable men!”
The maid, in stark contrast, watched the scene with sparkling eyes.
“My lady, which of them would you like to rescue you?”
Her voice was giddy with excitement, squealing every time swords clashed. But Seung-eon, now propping her chin on her hand in boredom, simply looked at her flatly.
One of them?
She glanced at the four men again.
A normal player would probably be drawn to at least one of the men who were so eager to “save” her.
But—
Not a single one.
For some reason, none of them caught her interest.
Instead—
“Sola. It’s not an easy name to say aloud.”
Theo’s slightly troubled expression, as if the name was difficult to speak, echoed in her mind.
Thump, thump.
Though her heart beat in a different time now, her past self must have felt the same way.
She glanced at the fighting men again and sighed.
Where was Theo?
If even one of them bore a hint of resemblance to the Theo she had met in the first trial, she might have chosen him without hesitation.
But no matter how she looked, he was nowhere to be found.
While she was feeling disappointed, the fight dragged on—most of the palanquin bearers had already fled, and the guards had long since run away as well.
She sat by the abandoned palanquin, waiting for the duel to end, when she heard a rustling sound.
“Ah.”
She turned her head toward the sound— and saw a man hastily gathering the scattered dowry items.
“Caught me, huh?”
The man, with dark eyes, gave her an awkward smile.
Ba-dump.
Her heart reacted.
He was dressed like one of the palanquin bearers who had fled earlier. He scratched the back of his head while glancing at the four fighting men.
“My apologies, my lady. But I just couldn’t help myself.”
Still smiling awkwardly, he began putting the scattered jewelry back into a chest, one by one.
“Some sort of… tidying compulsion, I guess.”
“…”
“I’ll be out of your hair as soon as I finish this.”
With a light chuckle, he tucked the last trinket back into the box, bowed politely to her, then picked up a small bundle—probably his own belongings.
“Well then, take care of yourself.”
“You’re just going to—wait, my lady?”
The maid, stunned to see the man trying to slip away through the forest path opposite the fight, let out a bewildered laugh.
Before she could say more, Seung-eon removed her bridal coronet, shrugged off the red silk robe she’d been wearing—
And then—
“My lady? Why are you raising your han— Ack!”
Thunk!
Whether it was because this was in-game or not, a single, intentional strike from Seung-eon was enough to make the maid collapse limply forward.
That works.
Placing the unconscious maid near a rock, Seung-eon—now dressed in a pink dangui hidden under her bridal robe—set off after the palanquin bearer moving quickly through the forest path.
“Hey!”
The man stopped when she called out from right behind him.
Meeting his questioning gaze, Seung-eon gave him a bright smile.
