I Possessed the Villain’s Daughter – Chapter 126

For a long while, Ellia said nothing.
As the silence stretched on, I could feel my anxiety tightening inside me.
Unable to endure it any longer, I finally blurted out,

“Ellia, that’s not true… right?”

“…I…”

Please say no. Please.
I looked at her, my heart filled with desperate hope.
But cruelly, Ellia’s head moved in a slow, heavy nod.

“It’s true.”

“……!”

“I was… seeing him.”

The shock hit me like a blow.

“…How could you….”

Ellia’s violet eyes were firm and unwavering.

“Leave me alone, Laila.”

“How… how can you say that?”

My heart pounded painfully in my chest.
I had always thought of Ellia as my dear friend.
But… was she?
The way she looked at me—so cold, so unfamiliar—made me question everything I thought I knew about her.
Who was the Ellia I’d known until now?

“That thing you said you’d tell me before… Was it this?”

I remembered the night of the banquet.
Ellia had apologized to me back then.
She’d looked like she was about to cry, and I, foolishly, had thought she was just struggling with something personal.
Never in my worst nightmares had I imagined this was what she had meant.

“…I worried about you all this time, not knowing any of this….”

Ellia lowered her gaze.

“I’m sorry.”

In that moment, as she apologized, I saw a fleeting trace of the Ellia I thought I knew.
I took a step toward her, my chest burning with pain.

“Ellia, if you side with Prince Alteo… then you’ll be standing completely against me and Prince Tealoha.”

“……”

Please, I silently begged.

“You might not know everything, but I have reasons—reasons why Prince Alteo must be stopped. And why Tealoha must become the crown prince.”

I looked at her with all the sincerity I had.
If Ellia and Alteo were to stand in our way, I would stop them—no matter what it took.
But if even now, she could turn back—if she could let go of him—then maybe….

“So please—”

“Laila.”

But Ellia’s eyes were already set like stone.

“I’ll walk my own path.”

I fell silent.

“……”

We’d known each other long enough that I understood—when Ellia looked like that, there was nothing anyone could do to change her mind.

“My path has nothing to do with you. So…”

“……”

“You should walk yours too.”

Leaving those words behind, Ellia turned and walked away.
I stood there for a long time, watching her retreating figure until she disappeared from sight.

What is Ellia’s path?
And what is mine?

My mind was a tangled mess.
The only thing I knew for certain was that I felt unbearably sad.

I had thought—naively—that because we were friends, she’d at least listen to me once.
But I’d been wrong. Completely wrong.

How much of Ellia had I ever really known?
The image of her cold, distant eyes still wouldn’t leave me.

The palace was already bathed in sunset, and darkness was slowly falling, but I still couldn’t bring myself to rise from the bench.

‘What should I do now?’

I gazed blankly at the darkening sky.
First and foremost, I had to stop Prince Alteo.
He was rash and violent. If his ambition to become crown prince were thwarted, no one could predict what he might do.
I had to be ready—to stop him, whatever it took.

And then there was Lufé… my revenge against her.
To bring her down, I needed to weaken Alteo’s position as much as possible.

‘Tea has to become crown prince.’

Tea was slowly but surely earning the nobles’ support.
Even so, despite all the help he was receiving, it still wasn’t quite enough.
Just a little more—just a bit further—and the title of crown prince would be within reach.

Lost in thought, I didn’t even notice someone approaching.

“…Laila?”

The familiar voice startled me.

Standing before me was the very person I’d been thinking of.

“T-Tea?”

It was Tealoha himself.
He looked at me with concern written all over his face.

“What are you doing out here alone? And at this hour?”

He was still wearing his formal uniform—he must have just finished his day’s duties.
I darted my eyes around nervously.
I hadn’t realized how dark the palace grounds had become.
Getting caught sitting here sulking alone—it wasn’t exactly a good look.
Anyone would think something was terribly wrong.

“I just… had a lot on my mind.”

“Lara.”

Tealoha studied me closely.

“…Have you been crying?”

At his words, I hurriedly rubbed at my eyes, but that only seemed to confirm his suspicion.
He sighed softly and sat down beside me.

“What happened?”

His hand gently brushed away the traces of tears from the corner of my eyes.
His touch was warm and soft—it made me flustered.

“N-no… it’s nothing….”

“……Did someone make you cry?”

Tealoha’s face darkened.
If I so much as named a person, I was sure he’d go straight to them and knock them flat—just like my overly protective family would.
The thought made me laugh a little through my tears.

“I’m fine.”

It was as much to comfort myself as it was to reassure him.

“……”

But his expression didn’t ease.
He still looked deeply worried.

I gazed at him quietly.

Come to think of it, Tealoha hadn’t been an important character in the original story.
In the novel, the leads were Ellia, Alteo, the villainous Duke Rosahil, and Laila.
Tealoha had been nothing more than a side character, barely mentioned.

Even when Ye-eun—the reader whose body I’d taken over—had explained the story to me, all she’d said about Tealoha was:
“There are four princes in the Ulysses Empire.”
That was it.
So even Ye-eun probably hadn’t thought much about him.

But now… Tealoha had become such an important part of my life.
So much so that I could say with certainty—
My love for him, and the path we were walking together, weren’t written by Ye-eun.
They were my choices.

What should I do next?
The road ahead felt uncertain—so far away, and so frighteningly unclear.
But even so, I’d keep walking.
That’s what life is, after all.
Even if it means losing friends and getting hurt, I’ve already decided to protect what’s precious to me in this world.

I took a breath and spoke.

“Tea.”

“What is it, Lara?”

He was always kind to me—so kind that I felt like he’d pluck the stars from the sky if I asked.
I lowered my eyes slightly.

“…You know that Eddie got married, right?”

My question must have sounded strange, because he gave a short laugh.

“Of course. I even helped Lady Rosahil when she gave birth. I’m Raguin’s godfather, remember?”

I pressed on.

“…I don’t know when Ite will get married, but… there’s no law that says the elder brother has to marry first in the Empire, right?”

“That’s right.”

He looked confused, clearly not catching my drift yet.

“If the Rosahil family were to support you, things would get a lot easier for you…”

“Yeah, but they’re neutral.”

“……”

My chest tightened in frustration.
Seriously—after all that, he still didn’t get it?
I wanted to bang my head against a wall.
No, this was my fault. I’d been too shy and circled around the point.
Fine, I’d just say it straight.

“Tea, let’s get engaged.”

“……”

Even in the dim light, I could see Tealoha’s face freeze completely.
His reaction left me the flustered one.

“W-what’s wrong?”

“……”

He didn’t say a word—just stared at me, eyes wide in shock.

“Why aren’t you saying anything…? Don’t tell me…”

I narrowed my eyes.

“…You weren’t just toying with me all this time, were you?”

“N-no!!!”

Tealoha nearly shouted, his face turning crimson.

“I-I was just… s-so shocked…!”

He stammered like an idiot.
I puffed out my cheeks, sulking.
Honestly—if a girl mustered the courage to propose first, he should at least kneel and say, ‘Thank you!’
But no, here he was, flailing like a fool.

“Hmph.”

Seeing me pout seemed to snap him out of it a little.

“L-Lara, I mean…”

He was still stuttering, though.

“If you don’t want to answer, then forget it. I’ll just go home.”

I made a move to stand, but Tealoha quickly caught my hand.

“T-that’s not it.”

“……”

He hesitated, lips parting and closing, searching for the right words.
For some reason, his eyes looked a little sad.

“…I just think I’m not good enough for you.”

He really meant it.
Not good enough? For me?
I shook my head.

“Why would you think that? You’re amazing, Tea.”

“……”

“You’re kind, brave, and wonderful. There’s never been anyone else I’ve even thought about.”

At that, Tealoha smiled faintly.

That gentle smile reminded me of his past—how he’d grown up unloved and ignored, believing that no one in the world could ever love him.

A pang of sadness spread through my chest.
I couldn’t help it.
Even if his reaction had been silly, I melted and leaned into him.
Because of our height difference, it looked like he was holding me, but who cared?
Wrapped in his arms, I could hear his heartbeat against my ear—thump, thump, thump—quick and strong.
He could probably hear mine too.

“Lara…”

“Mm.”

The imperial palace was quiet now, the darkness deep and still.
It felt like the world had narrowed to just the two of us.
As his hand brushed through my hair, Tealoha spoke softly—but with absolute sincerity.

“I’ll make you happy for the rest of my life.”

“……”

“Even if it costs me my life.”

I couldn’t help but laugh gently.

“Don’t give up your life for me.”

“……”

“Just… live with me. For as long as we both can.”

“…Yes. For life.”

In the darkness, his golden eyes shone like twin full moons.
As his face drew closer, I closed my eyes.
And then, our lips met in a deep, lingering kiss.