Chapter 2

So I was inside a video game, most likely a romance simulation. And my character seemed to be the archetypal villain: the lead character that existed to create obstacles for the player. Strangely, the sheer absurdity of the situation seemed to help me think more clearly. I snorted to myself at the ridiculousness of it all. For now, my first priority would have to be “survival.” Whatever that looked like...

I had to escape from my fate as the villain, because villains always ended up dying in these game scenarios. Considering this, I was a little relieved that I was a bug since it meant that I could possibly alter the system in some way or another. I decided not to consider the idea that this might actually be impossible. That would just make me want to immediately jump out the window in despair.

Whether this was a game, a different world, or even a dream, it didn’t change a thing—I had to survive. The rest I could figure out later. If I had one advantage, it was that I could also see those goddamn game system notifications. The ability to see the player’s choices in real time could serve as a powerful tool depending on how I used the information. I turned to the man who had silently sat next to me all this time, waiting as I collected my thoughts.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

He blinked. His eyes were a truly mesmerizing shade of violet. In a small voice that was almost a whisper, he breathed, “Nadrika...”

I at least wanted to know his name for myself, but from now on, I couldn’t act as myself. I had to become this character whose body I was in. I closed my eyes and let out a long sigh. All the while, the man’s gaze never left my face.

“Well, Nadrika, it appears I have lost my memory,” I said.

Something stirred behind his eyes.

“You are to tell no one else,” I commanded.

Treating him like a subordinate came a little easier than I’d thought. Based on his earlier behavior, it seemed like he was not of a very high social status, especially compared to my own princess character. I didn’t particularly enjoy ordering him around, but I would have to get used to it.

“Of course, Your Highness.”

I must have said the right thing because he immediately got down on his knees, his expression much calmer than before.

“Can I trust you?” I asked.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

He seemed on the verge of tears again, but when I shot him a look, he hung his head deeply so I couldn’t see anymore.

So I proceeded to gather information from Nadrika.

My name was Elvia Violetté Cecilia. I was 23 years old and the younger sister of the emperor. I was His Majesty’s only blood relative and the strongest candidate for successor to the imperial throne. The reason was as follows: the emperor had previously had relations with a myriad of women, but none of them had succeeded in bearing him a child. Nobody talked about it, but everyone knew the issue was on the emperor’s end, which meant that with each passing day, the princess’s authoritative power was only getting stronger.

A countless number of men had spent the night in the princess’s chamber in hopes of becoming her husband—some had even been dragged to her bed against their own will. It was widely whispered throughout the palace that the only man the princess had not slept with was her own brother, the emperor.

Naturally it became her well-known hobby to spend a single night with various men, only to mercilessly cast them all aside after. Nothing could stop the princess’s sadism, which displayed itself through all sorts of perversions, most particularly exhibitionism and domination. What many would find unthinkable happened regularly in this palace.

Most recently, the princess had paid a recreational visit to the neighboring kingdom of Velode, where she took a shine to the firstborn prince there. But the prince had flatly refused her advances. So, two months later, the princess had sent troops over to destroy the entire kingdom, taking Etsen Velode as her war trophy.

I was at a loss for words. This prince had witnessed his father and brothers die protecting their kingdom, losing his entire family and all his subjects in one fell swoop as their kingdom was degraded to a vassal state of the empire. The prince had voluntarily kneeled before Princess Elvia, begging that she spare the kingdom from complete destruction. That man...

I recalled his red eyes from the first time I saw him. Those fiery red eyes, full of nothing but pure loathing. I shuddered remembering how it felt like I had witnessed a black abyss stirring deep behind his gaze. The man, who had once been a regal prince, was now being held captive in this palace, and whenever the princess called for him he was dragged into her bed and forced to undress. This was the only duty he was allowed to perform while here.

I was told that lately he had been especially vehement in resisting his orders, and it wasn’t difficult to figure out why. He had fallen in love with another woman. This was, admittedly, an excellent storyline for the main character of a game. However, I had seen him not as a mere game character, but as a living and breathing human being. Everything about this felt like a terrible tragedy.

“Why... are you staying by my side?” I asked, wondering whether Nadrika didn’t find this woman detestable.

“I beg your pardon, Your Highness?” He had spent the last few hours explaining everything, all under the pretext of jogging my memory. Several times he had paused mid-sentence, clearly reluctant to explain all the details. The princess was too horrific for him to just plainly lay out the unadulterated facts. “Well, because... I’m your concubine, Your Highness,” he said.

I hadn’t expected that. Though, on second thought, it was only natural that a princess like this would have concubines. When I pursed my lips, Nadrika studied me anxiously again, but I didn’t take his hand to reassure him. I figured that wasn’t something this princess would do. There was a bitter taste in my mouth. It would be too dangerous to act like someone entirely different, even if I could claim to have lost my memory. For now, I would have to be careful. People, even in games, didn’t change so quickly.

At that moment, Nadrika added, “You took in a lowly, insignificant nothing like me, Your Highness... and you didn’t abandon me.”

I didn’t know what to say. One act of kindness could not justify all the other horrors I had committed. The scars covering almost every inch of his body seemed to echo my thoughts. And yet he seemed sincere. He was truly grateful. That infuriated me. As Nadrika lowered his head subserviently, I saw him in a new light.

Is your behavior genuine? Is this truly your personality?

I heard a few more details from him and learned that the princess had less concubines than I had thought. There were three in total, and one of them was away in battle, meaning there were only two left in the palace. I pulled on the bell rope to summon a servant. When a young lady-in-waiting walked in, I sent Nadrika away.

It was time to act before the day ended.

* * *

The woman in the mirror had an arresting, beautiful face. Lustrous red hair tumbled down in waves, covering her shoulders and waist. She was fairly tall, with a slender yet curvaceous body. Her casual day dress was exceedingly low-cut and intentionally revealing.

As I gaped at the mirror, admiring the princess’s—my—looks, a lady-in-waiting knocked on the door and ushered him in.

Etsen Velode.

The man who had stormed out this morning.

“What do you want?” he asked, standing stiffly and making no effort to hide his contempt. His disheveled appearance from this morning was gone, and now he was immaculately dressed in uniform, looking somehow even more stunning, if somewhat austere. But now was not the time to drool over men I couldn’t have.

“Sit down,” I said.

“This is the last time I’m coming to see you,” he responded instead.

“You’re saying you won’t come next time I call for you?”

He sounded extremely confident. Was this his hubris? Apparently the princess didn’t object to this attitude of his. I studied him for a moment. All I could figure was that this was an act of desperation. The last resort of someone driven to the very edge of the cliff, left with no other choice.

“You’ve done enough, haven’t you? Don’t you ever get tired of it?” he asked.

Maybe the princess enjoyed watching him like this. I imagined she must have provoked him constantly, laughing as he bristled in anger and then taken him to bed to crush his spirits again. A never-ending vicious cycle.

“All right, fine,” I said agreeably.

“What?”

“Do whatever you want,” I said lightly.

It was the reason I had summoned him in the first place. I didn’t want to drag him to bed again and bring about my own death any earlier than fate had programmed.

“What, are you disappointed that I’m letting you go so suddenly?”

“That’s insane,” he spat.

I had to agree with him there. When I chuckled at the irony, his face crumpled.

“What’s your current title?” I asked.

“I told you, I don’t want any titles from you,” he growled.

But he would need it in the future. Because I was planning to offer a deal the old princess would never have suggested. It was at that moment...

Ding!

Etsen has left your side for a moment. Nobody knows when he might come back. What is your next move?

A. Wait.

B. Look for Princess Elvia.

C. Go to Robért, who is waiting in your room.

I hoped the player would select B since then I would finally have the opportunity to see the face of the player’s character. However, the cursor moved to C, and the screen disappeared.

“Robért...?” I asked out loud.

“Now you want your other concubine?”

My concubine. Ah, that’s why the name sounded familiar. I couldn’t figure out what to do with my face, not knowing whether I should laugh or cry. This romance simulation was weirdly realistic. To think that stealing someone else’s man was an option...

“I will be bestowing some land on you tomorrow,” I said.

“What?”

“Leave the palace as soon as possible.”

“What are you—”

“There are no ulterior motives,” I said, cutting him off, “oh, and if you want, you may take one other person from the palace.”

“What?”

“A lover, for example.”

Etsen suddenly lunged forward and grabbed me by the neck. I couldn’t breathe.

“You...!” he hissed.

“What...would this...fix?” I rasped out.

“Shut up!” he roared, loosening his grip slightly but beginning to shake me violently. When my lady-in-waiting came running out in surprise, I gestured for her to stand back.

“One condition: you can’t return to your own kingdom. You must forget everything and start a new life with her. This is the most I can do for you right now.”

It was likely impossible for him to start a rebellion, but nevertheless, I couldn’t let that be a potential risk floating around.

“Don’t you dare touch her,” Etsen said through gritted teeth.

I snorted. Could it be that the princess hadn’t known about their relationship? That seemed unlikely.

“You know me well, don’t you?” I asked.

“...”

“Then tell me. Would I ever say something without meaning it?” It appeared not, since he didn’t deny it. “This girl... If I were planning to kill her, I would have brought her here and done it right now, in front of you. That’s pretty obvious, right?” I said, keeping my voice as even as possible. His hands were tightening dangerously around my neck again.

“I’ll kill you!” he cried.

“If you meant that, you would have done it already.”

Poor thing, I thought before I could stop myself.

“You... wouldn’t understand,” he said.

“...”

“She’s not like you! I made a vow to her.” Etsen finally released his grip. I wheezed quietly as I massaged my neck. Locking eyes with mine, Etsen slowly got down on his knees. “Spare her life,” he begged. “As long as you let Arielle live...”

Ding!

Robért is attempting to kiss you. He resents you for neglecting him for too long. If you don’t appease him, his love for you may weaken. But if you take too long, Etsen might return. Choose wisely!

A. Accept his kiss.

B. Reject his kiss.

C. Have sex with him.

“...I don’t care if you kill me,” Etsen finished.

The cursor moved to C. Once the action was selected, the notification disappeared and I saw Etsen before me, clenching his teeth in fear. I blinked.

“Don’t be afraid,” I said. “I won’t do anything to you.”

“But Arielle—!”

“If you want, I’ll leave her alone too,” I said. I couldn’t help it. I was feeling sympathetic for this man who might end up killing me in the future. If I was correct in understanding the trend of this game, the “Arielle” player was apparently not satisfied with Etsen alone. I would have done the same... if it were just a game. I had realized this was probably one of those “reverse harem” setups. Meanwhile, this clueless man was devoting his entire life to her way without a second thought.

“Do you want to know why?” I asked.

“...”

But I couldn’t tell him the truth.

“I’m sick of you,” I lied.

“...”

“You got boring faster than I expected. You know how it is—you lose interest the moment you get your hands on a toy you’ve been waiting for forever.”