Chapter 2
‘Even if it’s true, I don’t care. I absolutely oppose it.’
My family is endlessly kind and soft toward me. If I cry and beg, maybe they’ll cancel the engagement, right?
Serina buried herself in Nereus’s arms and secretly used magic to create fake tears.
“Brother… can’t you not get engaged? Dad, you said we don’t need to worry about things like this. Was that a lie?”
Serina looked at her family and let a few tears roll down her cheeks.
Seeing her like that, Nereus and Lacus became restless and flustered.
Unlike them, Aura noticed Serina’s acting and shook her head again and again.
“Serina, I know you’re not really crying.”
Tch. I knew it—tricking Mom was too hard. I thought I’d try anyway.
After being caught, Serina puffed out her lips like a duck.
“…Hmph. I’m against the engagement. We don’t need to get engaged to the imperial family at all!”
“No. Every matter has its circumstances. This isn’t something that can be canceled easily just because you oppose it. Try to understand, Serina.”
Aura’s golden eyes shone sharply, like a beast’s.
In contrast, her hand gently held Serina’s puffed-out lips.
‘If Mom won’t agree, then I’ll persuade Brother Lacus!’
I wasn’t expecting Mom to agree anyway. The person getting engaged is Brother, so his opinion matters the most!
And Brother is super weak to me. He listens to all my requests!
Serina shook her head hard to escape Aura’s hand, then gestured for Nereus to put her down.
As Nereus bent forward, Serina hopped down.
“No! What matters is the opinion of the person getting engaged, right? If Brother doesn’t say it himself, I won’t accept it!”
Serina ran over to Lacus and grabbed his hand.
“Brother, you don’t want to get engaged to Princess Helia, right? You don’t, right? You promised to live with me forever.”
She tilted her head and launched her ultimate weapon—sparkling puppy eyes.
Her golden eyes reflected the sunlight, making her look even more desperate and cute.
‘Brother will obviously say no. He’s the weakest to my cuteness!’
Confident, Serina smiled brightly.
Lacus gently patted her round head.
“Serina, this engagement is something I agreed to as well.”
“Right? You don’t want to get enga— …Huh?”
What? Did I hear that wrong?
Lacus’s words were clearly a denial. Serina blinked.
“You’re upset because we went ahead with the engagement without talking to you, right? And you heard it from someone else, too… I’m sorry.”
My cuteness didn’t work. On Brother of all people. He always said I was his favorite! That I was cute!
Lacus apologized gently, trying to comfort her, but Serina was too shocked to hear anything.
As Lacus adjusted her messy clothes, he spoke again.
“Getting engaged doesn’t mean we won’t live together, so you don’t need to worry.”
‘How is that something I don’t need to worry about?’
The problem is who you’re getting engaged to! You clueless brother!
Serina roughly shook off Lacus’s hand.
“Idiot! That’s not it! You don’t understand my feelings at all! I hate you! I really hate you!”
Serina sometimes jokingly called him ‘idiot’ out of affection.
But she had never once said ‘I hate you’.
And now she added ‘really’ and ‘so much’.
Lacus froze like ice.
Nereus and Aura turned in shock, watching Serina run away down the hallway.
* * *
“How could this happen?”
Serina hurried to her room, threw herself onto the bed, and buried her face in the pillow. Soon, she began punching the soft mattress.
“Am I the weird one? Why am I the only one bothered by this? Or did everyone secretly plan together to trick me?”
In a way, it was natural for Serina to hate the engagement.
Lacus treated Serina—who was much younger than him—like a precious treasure, like a fragile glass artwork.
Naturally, Serina loved her brother very much in return.
Also, Serina’s family, the Duchy of Eustaine, was the leading noble house of the southern region. Even the imperial family and the North avoided clashing with them.
They reached this position thanks to Nereus, a master of water magic.
‘A man as deep and unreadable as the deep sea.’
Unlike the warm and free atmosphere of the South, Nereus was so cold that people often mistook him for someone from the North.
Of course, there was an exception—his family. To them, he was endlessly warm and gentle, even if he wasn’t good at expressing it.
Serina didn’t like the idea of Helia, who had a bad reputation, entering the family that her father had carefully built—especially as the fiancée of her beloved brother.
Being an illegitimate child didn’t matter.
What mattered was that Helia was someone people avoided enough to earn the nickname ‘Little Villain’.
“If this continues, the engagement will go through smoothly. I need to stop it—even if I have to protest!”
Serina jumped up, opened the desk drawer, and took out her diary and a sky-blue quill pen.
Then she lay flat on the floor and started writing.
<Operation to Stop Brother’s Engagement>
- Acting cute (Already failed)
- Complaining nonstop (They might give in from annoyance?)
- Interrupting work (If it interferes, they’ll have to care)
- Hunger strike (They always say I need to eat while growing—maybe they’ll give up?)
- Throwing household items (Absolute last resort! Be ready to get scolded!)
“Done! Perfect! This should be enough to make them listen, right?”
Serina lifted her diary and smiled in satisfaction.
“Alright! Then it starts tomorrow!”
* * *
The next day.
When birds announced the start of the day, Serina’s eyes snapped open.
Normally, she slept until the sunny afternoon, but today, half-asleep, she got up to carry out her plan.
Before sleeping, she had repeatedly drilled into her head, ‘I have to wake up early tomorrow.’
It worked.
“Ugh… wake up. Today is important!”
Serina washed her face with water she had prepared, forcing away her sleepiness.
After changing clothes, she quietly opened the door and checked outside.
Seeing no one, she tiptoed out.
She safely reached Nereus’s office and pressed herself against the door, listening.
She could hear Nereus and Aura talking inside.
“Good. They’re both in the office today. I can carry out the plan.”
The first plan was to follow them around and whine until they canceled the engagement.
I’m not a baby anymore—I’m basically an adult. But this time, I have no choice but to throw a tantrum!
‘I can do this!’
After clenching her fists to hype herself up, Serina burst the office door open.
“Oh my, Serina. You’re already awake?” Aura said in surprise.
Nereus looked at her with proud eyes.
Ignoring them, Serina put her hands on her hips and cleared her throat.
“Cancel Brother’s engagement!”
She looked like a proud little hamster.
Aura barely held back her laughter and spoke firmly.
“Serina. Mommy told you clearly yesterday. It’s not happening. If that’s why you came, go back to your room.”
“No! I’ll stay here until you say you’ll cancel it!”
“Sigh. Fine. Do whatever you want. Mom and Dad won’t pay attention.”
Knowing Serina’s stubborn personality, Aura stepped back.
“Hmph! If I keep staying, you’ll have to care!”
Serina declared confidently, then started whining in a cute tone.
“Mom, Dad. Cancel Brother’s engagement. Please? I’m begging you. You really won’t do it? Really?”
Time passed.
And passed again.
Eventually, Serina stopped talking.
‘Huh? This isn’t right. I’m the only one getting tired.’
Her throat was drying out, her voice growing weak—while her parents continued working as if nothing was happening.
Realizing the first plan had completely failed, Serina began thinking.
‘If the first plan doesn’t work… then I’ll start the second plan!’
And they’re both working right now—perfect timing!
Agent Serina, resuming mission!
With determined eyes, Serina dragged a chair over and sat down. Then she began repeating the same words rapidly, like a machine.
“I absolutely oppose Brother’s engagement. Cancel it! Cancel it!”
“Serina. Mom and Dad are working. Stop now.”
“I’ll stop if you promise to cancel the engagement!”
Aura ignored her again and continued working.
‘Tch! I didn’t want to go this far!’
Serina stepped onto the chair and blocked the documents with her whole body.
“…Sigh. This won’t do. Nereus, please take Serina back to her room.”
When Aura asked him, Nereus stood up.
‘Ah! No!’
Sensing danger, Serina jumped down and flopped onto the floor.
“I’m not going! I’ll stay here! I won’t leave until you listen to me!”
She flailed her arms and rolled her body around, trying to make it impossible to grab her.
But it was useless.
Nereus easily picked her up.
“No! Dad, put me down! I’m not going back! I have to stay here until you listen to me!”
Serina struggled desperately in his arms.
But without even shaking, Nereus calmly carried her out of the office.
