A Fairy Tale Written by a Villain

Chapter 1

It was the first night of marriage.

Princess Isabelle, hailing from a small country, married an aristocrat of the empire. The aristocrat had everything: wealth, looks, and status.

But there was just one problem...

She would die tonight. She was the thirteenth wife of the cursed grand duke, whose brides died on the very first night of their marriage to him.

Isabelle, who finished taking her bath, sat on the edge of the bed wearing a thin robe. After gulping down some wine she placed the empty glass on the nightstand. Her fourth glass was already polished off.

Although it’s death I experienced going back in time repeatedly, it’s still strange. Fear as heavy as a mountain pressed down on her shoulders and paralyzed her limbs.

Click. The door of the bedroom opened, and her husband Grand Duke Karl Waschke came in. Unlike Isabelle, who was practically naked, he was still in his stiff formal suit. His exceptional height and robust body, built from swordsmanship, was a perfect fit for the suit. But Isabelle, who was expecting him to be in his nightgown, was slightly disappointed.

“Are you... ready, Princess?” Was he talking about being ready to die? Isabelle let out a sigh that was almost like a laugh.

“Seeing your face, it seems like it’s you who’s not prepared, Grand Duke,” she said. Wasn’t he the navy admiral who stood firm even against a tsunami large enough to cover the sky? But right now he looked anxious like a boy who set his paper boat to sail on a murky river. “It’s your thirteenth marriage. You should get used to it.” What was with that expression on his handsome face? If someone else saw, they would think the grand duke was the one about to die.

Getting up from the bed, Isabelle moved closer to him. Isabelle’s cheeks and lips were redder than usual. The grand duke glimpsed the wine on top of the nightstand right away.

“Where are you looking?” she asked. Isabelle grabbed the grand duke’s face with both hands and giggled.

The grand duke’s eyes opened wide. He hesitated then dropped his gaze. “Princess, you should leave... I won’t hold you back.” His voice was quiet, unlike usual.

Among the last twelve marriages, this was the first time the grand duke visited the bride’s bedroom. He came to her with great difficulty to tell her to leave. Isabelle, who could not know how he felt, only smiled sadly.

“Even if I leave this place, I will die today no matter what.” Isabelle hugged the grand duke tightly. He’s warm. It was something she would normally never do. Maybe because death lay ahead, or maybe because of the alcohol, her emotions surfaced without any hesitation. “You and I... we are so pitiful.” Isabelle sighed.

“What is?” The grand duke’s voice was gruff.

“We are treated as the villains when we are the ones who have been wronged.” It was a world she couldn’t understand. Isabelle looked out the window. A veil of darkness hung over the land. “The sun has already set for the day, but I see you are not turning into a beast.”

“The first night’s an exception,” the grand duke replied.

“It really is an odd curse.” Isabelle giggled and looked up at him. The moment their eyes made contact, the grand duke, who was a head taller than her, froze like an animal caught in a trap. He was at a loss for words and just stared at her.

“Thank you for everything,” Isabelle said. She meant it. After all, she had been able to live her remaining life without wanting for anything more thanks to him. “It would be a lie if I said that I don’t have any regrets, but I don’t regret this.”

She had chosen him. Isabelle tapped the tip of the grand duke’s pointed nose with her finger. At that moment, his face crumpled. He raised his tightly clenched fists and wrapped them around Isabelle’s face. Because of his steadfast grip, Isabelle could not turn her gaze elsewhere.

Their lips pressed together. Unlike his neat attire buttoned up to his neck, the grand duke’s actions were not hesitant. She could have had regrets about her life, but right now they didn’t matter. Just like that, she waited for midnight in his arms.

Ding. The clock on the wall struck twelve.

“Damn it, dear gods,” he muttered. No. The grand duke hugged Isabelle tightly. The dark curse that was to kill the bride rose from inside the grand duke’s body like a fog. It swirled its way over to Isabelle in an instant. However...

What’s this? The dark curse that should have strangled her started to get sucked away. Isabelle lowered her gaze. Yellow light that flowed out of her heart coalesced and created an image of a pocket watch. As the pocket watch’s hands spun rapidly, it absorbed the grand duke’s curse. Power depleted, it burst into a flash of light and fell to the floor.

“Isabelle...?” The grand duke’s lips that had moaned her name all night called her once again. He quickly bent down and placed his ear near her heart. He heard the sound of it beating clearly.

Isabelle raised her hand to touch the grand duke. She could feel his warmth vividly. I didn’t die. I think I’m alive. I really am alive. “I didn’t die, Grand Duke!” Isabelle hugged the grand duke’s neck and cheered.

The grand duke embraced her tightly in his arms, almost as if he couldn’t believe it. A miracle overcoming the curse was a first. The two stayed wrapped around each other for a while. Then, as if remembering their agreement, they became awkward with each other and slowly fell apart.

“Uhm... It’s a relief that you lived, Princess.” He meant it. The grand duke went red, rubbed his nape, and turned his gaze elsewhere.

“It is. I was so happy that I escaped the curse that...” Isabelle also covered her eyes with her hand in embarrassment. Yes. He would be shocked because the bride survived.

Didn’t they even write a contract agreeing that they would live apart like strangers if they survived? There was no way he would have feelings for her. Isabelle rubbed her face with her hand and brushed off any lingering emotions. Although yesterday’s actions were quite intense considering this... She would have to take that as a spur-of-the-moment thing when faced with death.

“What will happen to me from now on?” Since they said they would live as strangers, would they part ways? Or get a divorce?

Unlike Isabelle’s serious question, the grand duke gave a simple answer. “Aren’t you already a duchess, Princess?” The grand duke fixed Isabelle’s robe, as it had slipped past her shoulder, and got up from the bed abruptly. He whipped around to fix his clothes so she could not see his face. Is he flustered? Isabelle looked at the tip of his ear which had turned a vivid red.

“I will make space for a duchess in the house. If there’s anything you need, tell the servant at any time.” The grand duke did not give Isabelle any chance to refute and poured out his words quickly. He left the bedroom with busy footsteps.

“What’s with that reaction?” Isabelle mumbled, staring at the closed door. His being flustered, so unlike his usual self, looked quite like... a man who was in love.

***

Jung Seha was traveling through a rural village in Europe. The Rabbit Hole River that ran through the village was said to be a famous bungee jumping spot.

There, Jung Seha jumped energetically towards the blue river.

And died.

It was the company’s fault for using a rope that was too long.

***

She was sure she died.

“Where am I?”

Jung Seha opened her eyes on a strange beach.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock. She looked at an odd pocket watch floating in midair and tilted her head in curiosity. She realized a moment later that she had been transported into the fairy tale The Little Mermaid. She became the neighboring princess who marries the prince the Little Mermaid saved.

Jung Seha was faithful to the original plot. The prince was a scumbag, and the neighboring princess—whom she thought was just a supporting character—was actually an infamous villainess. And just like in the fairy tale, she successfully married him. Of course, married life with the prince was not easy. But since it wasn’t something she couldn’t do, she hung in there.

However, there was a twist: The Little Mermaid, who turned into sea foam, awakened as the elemental king of air.

Wait, wasn’t this the world inside the fairy tale?

The Little Mermaid destroyed the empire with her aide, and Jung Seha faced death once again. Exactly three months had passed after she revived.

***

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock. She saw the pocket watch in the air again. She opened her eyes to another strange beach. It’s the same as last time!

This time, she ran away. She left the prince, who collapsed and died from not being able to breathe properly. Isabelle in this lifetime was captured for the murder of a member of the imperial family and burned at the stake.

The date of her death was the same as the last one.

***

Tick-tock, tick-tock. She opened her eyes to the sound of the pocket watch.

“What the f*ck?” A curse escaped her instinctively as soon as she saw the beach.

This time, she lived kindly and set the prince up with the Little Mermaid. But the damn prince confessed to her instead. “Isabelle, marry me.”

“But you have Delphine, Your Highness!”

“I can’t take a mute as an empress.”

The Little Mermaid, who had been listening in on them in secret, ran up and stabbed Isabelle with the dagger she was holding.

“If you’re going to stab someone... you should have... stabbed that bastard prince.” It was unfair. She did nothing but be confessed to.

Isabelle’s consciousness slowly slipped away. The date she died still remained the same.

***

Tick-tock.

I’m going to die. Don’t save me. Don’t tick-tock. Although the sound of the pocket watch ticking—albeit less frequently—bothered her, Isabelle closed her eyes again. Are you playing with me? Even for gods, this isn’t right.

In the silence, the sound of the waves that she never wanted to hear again rang in her ears. Unfortunately, time did not stop.

First, let’s save the prince and avoid getting burned alive. Running to the prince, Isabelle placed her hand on his chest and performed CPR. She pressed down just three times.

Cough! The prince regained consciousness. What kind of person—who just came back from the brink of death—coughed graciously like that? Isabelle punched his chest one more time with all her emotions instilled in her fist, then took her hand off. The prince moaned and opened his eyes.

“Did you just hit me?” he asked.

“No.”

“Then did you save—”

“No.” Cutting off the prince’s question sharply, Isabelle pointed to the sea with an indifferent expression. “That mermaid saved you... but she’s getting away.”

The prince squinted his eyes. “I don’t see anything...”

“Maybe you can’t see because your eyes are small.”

“What did you just say?!”

But Isabelle didn’t bother to reply—probably because she had died three times because of him. Anger surged within her at the mere sight of his lazy face. Huh, so you can’t see her? All right, I’ll drag her here. Isabelle jumped into the sea and pointed her finger at the Little Mermaid hiding under the surface of the water.

“Hey! Are you going to stay there? You have to take responsibility if you save someone!” But the closer she got, the more the Little Mermaid withdrew to hide in a deeper place. Damn, really?!

“Just be honest! And don’t stick your knife in an innocent person’s stomach later!”

Although the seawater came up to her nape, Isabelle did not stop walking. The moment a large wave was crashing in, Isabelle’s body was lifted. The prince had lifted her.

“Are you out of your mind!? You are really trying to get yourself killed!” he shouted.

“No! You have to catch that red-haired woman! I told you: that woman’s your rescuer!”

The prince shook his head. “First, let’s get out. Then we can talk.” He got out of the sea with Isabelle in his arms.

If it continues like this, we’ll really be following the plot with the empire’s destruction. Isabelle rubbed her face in dismay. As soon as the prince placed Isabelle on the sand, she plopped to the ground.

“Lady, is something wrong?”

Isabelle huffed. “I think I’m going crazy.”

The prince agreed with Isabelle’s words without saying anything. He thought that, unfortunately, the somehow cold-looking beauty seemed to have an unusual inner world.

“Where are we?” he asked. It was a very strange place. The prince took a look around him and continued, “Seeing the castle built near the beach... It seems like the Dejar Kingdom.”

Silence was the only thing that followed the prince’s question.

“Hello...?” He turned his head toward where Isabelle was. To his surprise, she wasn’t there.

She had hiked her skirt up as high as it could go and was running in the opposite direction. She was unusually fast. The prince was dumbfounded. Her thin, fair calves were visible under her skirt. Blonde hair waved behind her, dampened by the seawater.

The prince mumbled a line most famous in this genre:

“You’re the first woman to run away from me.”