MFWSP 67

Chapter 67

Grace sat at the table, nervously chewing her lips.

Beautiful men and women approached her to win her favor, but none of it moved her now.

She couldn’t understand where things had gone wrong.

For a while after her possession, she’d been so happy that she’d pinch her own cheeks just to check if it was real.

She had become the only daughter of a duke overnight.

Her father was a duke with both wealth and power, and Grace herself had a beauty like a delicate lily.

The original Grace seemed to have died in an accident, but the memories of that life had flowed into her mind without issue, letting her live as if she’d always been here.

She even knew this world very well.

After all, this was the world of the novel she had read before her possession—Damn Empire.

She had reviewed the story just before her possession, so she knew not only the protagonist but even the side characters—what they did and when they did it—clear as day.

The moment she realized that, she had shivered in awe.

Good thing I skipped all those university classes and group projects to read novels, huh?

Though the novel’s main focus was the imperial family, a maid from the House of Serbe appeared as a side character, allowing her to remember the various minor incidents that took place in the duchy.

The floods that occurred several times that month, the appearance of monsters, even various internal incidents within the duke’s mansion—she remembered them all.

Grace told her father, Duke Serbe, everything she remembered.

The third flood and the appearance of sea wolves had been predicted in the novel by a farmer and a fisherman who had observed the tides and weather. So she needed to make sure to warn them in advance.

“You really… have a special ability, don’t you?”

At first, Duke Serbe was skeptical, but when he saw the rain pour down just as she had predicted, he began to trust her.

From then on, things were easy.

The people of the Serbe family followed her prophecies to prevent natural disasters and monster attacks, and Duke Serbe spread rumors about every incident to inflate her reputation.

Grace rapidly earned a host of impressive titles:

“Prophet sent by the gods!”
“The Sage of Serbe!”
“The Goddess who will save us!”
“Incarnation of the Saintess!”

Every time someone praised her, Grace would smile gracefully. That beautiful smile only made her even more popular.

For someone who knew the original story, living after possession was like swimming with her feet on the ground.

Within just a few months, Grace had gained considerable power.

Unlike her previous life, where she was invisible, here everyone paid close attention to her every move.

With just a flick of her finger, knights would fight for her. Young nobles lined up to propose after hearing the rumors.

With a single word from her, the original story changed.

People who were supposed to die survived. Occasionally—very rarely—those who were supposed to live died instead, such as members of the hastily formed sea wolf hunting guild.

Strangely, it was the latter that thrilled her more.

People died carrying out Grace’s orders. Even in death, they praised her. No one blamed her.

They had all willingly thrown themselves into danger for the greater good.

That gave Grace conviction.

She was different from everyone else. She could see what others could not and knew what they did not—like reading her palm.

In other words, within the Paranas Empire, she really was the prophet, the sage, the goddess!

She just needed to start planning.

According to the original story, the empire was about to collapse due to war and a curse.

And stopping that? As always, it was a simple matter.

She had to avoid the evil god’s curse and support her favorite character from the novel—the First Prince, Carsiel—to ascend the throne.

It wasn’t even that hard.

As long as Carsiel survived, the rest would fall into place. He had always been superior to Baltazar.

That way, Grace could maintain the upper hand in her relationship with Carsiel.

Maybe she could even dream of a romance.

She was special. He was the most outstanding man in the empire.

There was absolutely nothing to worry about.

…Or so Grace firmly believed.

Until her plans—and the story’s setting—started going off the rails.

“The First Prince refused the reinforcements. Said they arrived too late.”

She had planned to delay her help a little, then sweep in dramatically to leave a stronger impression. But Carsiel coldly rejected Duke Serbe’s support.

“My lady! News from the capital! The First Prince has won the war!”

She had been trying to convince her father to send troops—since if Carsiel died, everything would fall apart—but he ended up winning the war alone.

But what irritated her most… was someone else.

“My lady? I heard some rumors about the victory. Apparently, aside from Count Morin’s support, Apellemeon played a major role.”
“What do you mean? Apellemeon barely has any knights!”
“Well, there have been some recent changes. For one, the lady of Apellemeon is now a duke.”
“What?”
“And apparently the key strategy that led to the victory came from her. The reinforcements were barely even needed—it was that effective.”
“What are you talking about?”
“They’re calling her the ‘Goddess of War.’ Rumor has it she not only captured King Tarr but even healed the entire battalion…”

Grace flipped the table in rage.

She didn’t hear anything else after that.

“Do you know how much gold we wasted gathering reinforcements we didn’t even use?”

Even Duke Serbe, who had once hung on her every word, looked furious. Grace couldn’t sleep from the anxiety.

She couldn’t understand it.

Someone fated to die had survived on their own.

And a woman who dared to defy the original story’s setting?

Everyone in the empire—except her and Duke Serbe—was celebrating Carsiel’s victory, which only made her more upset.

Her carefully memorized and organized timeline of major story events had been completely thrown off.

“Iris Apellemeon…”

Of all people, the one to disrupt the setting had to be her.

In the original story, Iris’s path had held great significance for Grace.

Not right now, but later—when Grace’s reputation peaked—Iris’s downfall was supposed to be a crucial comparison.

“I need to hurry.”

Lying in her bedroom a few days ago, Grace had reorganized her thoughts.

If the timing had moved up a little, then so be it.

She would just enter the capital sooner than planned.

She begged Duke Serbe to let her attend the victory banquet.

Her plan was to see Iris in person, act like she was delivering a prophecy, pretend to be an ally, and tie her down long enough to drive her out of the capital.

Of course, she also had to win over Carsiel. To do that, she planned to make a shocking impression at the imperial banquet.

Once her plan was set, Grace felt hope again.

This world was still in the palm of her hand.

There was no greater power than knowing the original story. Being a “possessor” meant you held unmatched power.

The joy she felt after introducing herself dramatically in front of the emperor—vanished the moment she saw Iris Apellemeon.

For a side character, whose main traits were reading people and being clever, she was too beautiful.

Grace’s light, as the beloved daughter of a duke, was instantly overshadowed by Iris’s imposing presence as a duke in her own right.

To regain control—and scare Iris into siding with her for now—Grace attempted a “prophecy,” but the result was disastrous.

Iris wasn’t even slightly friendly.

She even scolded Grace about etiquette, and Carsiel treated Grace like a weirdo and brushed her off.

If only I had the fruit in my hands…

Grace clenched her fists in frustration.

Soon, she would receive news from the guides she had sent to the Black Valley. With that, she planned to put everyone in their place.

Until then, it was urgent that she maintained her reputation as a prophet.

“Lady Grace, what was that you said to the First Prince earlier?”

A nobleman sitting a little way off tilted his head and asked her.

“What do you mean?”

“There was a rumor in the capital that His Highness had been poisoned by a monster and that he was saved thanks to Duke Apellemeon. It’s just a rumor, of course… but did you really not know?”