Chapter #02
I stared blankly at the man lying beside me and quickly flipped up the sheet.
Had he dragged me from the battlefield to Dorzen and done something unspeakable while I was unconscious? Thankfully, it didn’t seem like that had happened.
Though… maybe I shouldn’t even say “thankfully.”
“What the hell… What is going on?”
I jumped off the bed and backed up until I was pressed against the wall. In an open space like this, I couldn’t properly defend myself against a surprise attack. It was a matter of maximizing defense.
Still holding my breath, I tiptoed away so I wouldn’t wake him…
“What the—?! What is that?!”
Suddenly something caught my eye. A huge mirror covering one entire wall.
But the reflection staring back at me was strange.
“Wait… that’s me? Why do I look so… young?!”
Now that I was listening more closely, even my voice sounded youthful. I wasn’t imagining this.
But that didn’t make any sense.
I was definitely twenty years old now. But the girl in the mirror looked—at most—fifteen. Maybe even younger.
“No way…”
Golden hair that flowed straight down, green eyes, and that mischievous look in the eyes. Without a doubt, that was my childhood self.
Does that mean I’ve turned younger?
“This can’t be happening…”
One moment I pass out, and a god appears saying I died. I barely manage to come back to life, only to wake up in bed with that detestable bastard Theodore.
And now this—I’ve literally de-aged ten years.
“Maybe this is just a dream. Yeah… maybe I’m not fully conscious yet.”
I was desperately trying to deny reality when—
“…Who’s there?”
Rustling came from the bed. The man, who had been fast asleep moments ago, slowly raised himself.
His crimson eyes opened lazily and turned directly toward me, still sitting on the floor.
Damn. I’m so screwed.
“ Tsk.”
Huh? Tsk?
He clicked his tongue and furrowed his brow.
Wait a second.
I mean, sure, I expected a much stronger reaction, so that was a relief… but something about it annoyed me.
I opened my mouth, ready to demand an explanation.
“Sigh… So now you’ve even crawled into my bedroom, is that it?”
He sighed and rubbed his face with both hands.
Hold on—what the hell did he just say?
“Princess Theodore.”
I was still trying to make sense of things when he stood up and grabbed a robe from beside the bed, wrapping it around himself.
“I believe I already rejected your confession. Are you hard of hearing?”
“…What did you just say?”
“I said I can’t return your feelings, Your Highness.”
Excuse me—WHAT?
What is this guy talking about? Rejecting my what?
And what did I even do to him in the first place?
He couldn’t be talking about a declaration of war… right? Could he possibly mean… a confession of love?
My mind, already a chaotic mess, completely fell apart.
While I was spiraling, an annoyingly familiar face floated to the surface of my thoughts.
That damn god or whatever!
What the hell did you do to me?!
“I truly can’t believe this.”
You and me both, buddy.
This whole situation was so unbelievable, I thought I might faint.
And yet the surprises weren’t over.
“Yesterday, you suddenly ran over and threw yourself into my arms.”
Who did? Me??
“The day before, you deliberately tripped in front of me, which ended up injuring one of my attendants who was following behind.”
Wait—me again??
“And last week, you begged me to escort you somewhere, chased me down, and tripped so badly you sprained your ankle—Princess Calix, are you even listening?”
Uh. Sorry, no.
Not really listening. Or more like, none of this is registering because WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!
Why am I getting scolded by this bastard Theodore Dorzen? And what was that? I ‘deliberately’ tripped? Begged for an escort? Has the world gone mad?
My brain felt like it was short-circuiting.
After a long pause, I took a deep breath.
Okay. Calm down and think…
The man standing before me was undeniably my mortal enemy, Theodore Dorzen. And judging from the surroundings, this was clearly Dorzen’s imperial palace.
And for some reason… I had snuck into his bedroom.
Alright. That much was clear.
So then the question becomes…
“What are you going to do with me now?”
“…What?”
“I get it—you’re angry. So, what now? Are you going to kill me?”
I didn’t know why I was here, but one thing was certain: I was in enemy territory, and my life was hanging on this man’s next words.
I hadn’t even had a chance to put up a fight, and I was about to die? That was frustrating. Still, I had too much pride to grovel for my life.
Yeah. I’d rather go down with dignity than let him toy with me.
So I steeled myself.
“Kill you? I’d never do such a thing.”
He looked at me as if I’d said something utterly ridiculous.
What? So… he’s not planning to kill me?
Or maybe he’s just lulling me into a false sense of security before striking.
I stayed on high alert.
“Good morning, Your Highness! It’s time to—”
Suddenly, the door behind me burst open, and a man who looked like an attendant rushed in.
Beaming with energy, he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a half-naked Theodore and me, crouched on the floor.
His eyes widened like saucers.
“P-Princess Theodore?! Why are you in the prince’s bedroom— H-Huhk!”
Ah, no.
The attendant seemed to misunderstand something and started looking between us in horror before slapping his own hand over his mouth.
“It’s not what you think!”
I waved my arms frantically, trying to explain, but the man kept mumbling incoherently and slowly backed away.
I had a bad feeling about this…
“I-I’m sorry!!”
Yep. Just as I thought.
The man turned bright red, shouted an apology, and bolted.
I tried to run after him, but it was too late. He was gone.
Still staring at the now-closed door, I turned back toward Theodore.
He was frowning too, clearly not happy with the situation.
“Well, that complicates things.”
He shot me a look full of blame.
Hey, I’m about to lose it too, alright?
You think you’re the only victim here? If anything, I’m the biggest victim in this whole mess!
Of course, there was no way he could know the truth.
Grinding my teeth, I clenched my fist. I figured I’d knock him out first and then figure out the situation afterward—
“Theodore Calix!”
A loud voice rang out from somewhere.
Oh, great. What now?
The door flew open again—and this time, a woman came storming in.
As I watched the hem of her grand dress flutter with each step, I froze.
“…Cassandra…?”
It was unmistakable.
Standing before me was my one and only sister.
Cassandra Lil Calix, the first princess of Calix. The one who died five years ago.
No way. She’s supposed to be dead.
She was assassinated on the day of her wedding to the Dorzen emperor.
And yet… here she was.
I stumbled to my feet and slowly approached her, afraid she might disappear if I didn’t.
This whole situation was overwhelming—and now I was on the verge of tears.
As I reached out, breathing uneven, she also reached for me. I threw myself into her arms.
“Siste—!”
“Have you lost your mind?!”
Whack!
Stars exploded before my eyes.
Ow. That really hurt.
“Theodore! What do you think you’re doing?!”
She grabbed my shoulders and started shaking me violently.
“This is an outrage! A princess of the empire sneaking into a foreign prince’s bedroom? I can’t even show my face anymore!”
“…”
“Mother and Father would rise from their graves if they heard of this!”
“…”
“Syd! Are you listening to me?!”
“Sis…”
Cassandra paused mid-rant, waiting for me to respond.
“…Are you really Cassandra? Are you… alive? You’re not undead, are you?”
I needed to know—was she some sort of wandering spirit?
She paused again, then gave me a radiant smile—and raised her fist.
“You clearly haven’t been beaten enough, have you?”
Yep. That’s my sister alright.
That punch sealed it. This was Cassandra.
Which means…
“Calm down, Cass. Theodore’s clearly sorry.”
A gentle voice interrupted. I turned toward it instinctively.
A man was jogging toward us from afar.
Curly black hair, warm red eyes unlike his brother’s, and a soft smile.
Lillian Lucerne Dorzen…!
The older brother of Theodore and the young emperor of Dorzen.
Wait. He’s alive, too? And Cassandra…? What the hell is going on?!
“This is all my fault… I couldn’t fill the hole left by our parents. I wasn’t good enough…”
“That’s not true, Cass. You’ve done more than enough. I’m sure Theodore knows how you feel.”
The emperor wrapped an arm around my sister’s shoulders gently.
Was it just me, or was that oddly touching?
Since when were they this close?
I gaped at them, stunned by the unfamiliar dynamic. Then Cassandra’s eyes lit up with determination.
“Anyway. You’re grounded until the wedding day. You’re not leaving your room, understood?”
“But, Sis—!”
“This is your punishment, Syd.”
Ugh. I had a million unanswered questions, and now I was grounded?
And not just grounded—in enemy territory with that bastard Theodore nearby.
Seriously… what the hell is going on?!
“Sob… sniff… Why on earth would you do something like this?!”
Once the storm had passed…
A maid, sobbing and sniffling, came running in.
“Roman. You’re still Roman, huh? It’s good to see you. I feel a little better now.”
“Huh? What kind of weird thing are you saying?”
Roman gave me a baffled look.
She and I had grown up together—more like a sister than a maid. Even when I was still in Calix, she was always by my side. Luckily, it looked like she had accompanied me to Dorzen.
I breathed a sigh of relief and asked cautiously,
“Roman. Sis is definitely alive, right? She’s not… dead?”
