Chapter 69: The Villain's Ending is Only Death
I was startled and turned my head sharply to the side.
His golden hair, illuminated by the noon sun, shimmered brilliantly.
The man, who had not even been a subject of my concerns, let alone a thought, was boldly opening someone else’s gift box.
“Did you prepare it to match my hair color?”
The crown prince’s lips curled into a smirk as he looked at the golden amulet engraved with defensive magic spells.
‘What is this guy saying?’
I stared at him, my mouth agape, and then furrowed my brows.
I reached out to take the box back.
But at that moment, he raised his arm. It was just out of reach.
Feeling a surge of frustration, I tried to grab the box by jumping on tiptoe.
However, just as I was about to grab it, his hand shot up again.
I grunted and tried a few more times, but I couldn’t match his towering height.
While I was hopping around in frustration,
“You’re jumping like a child.”
A small gust of wind suddenly burst from his side, tickling my forehead.
I finally stopped trying to get the box back and turned to look at the crown prince.
His crimson eyes, filled with mockery, were curved into a half-moon.
My face flushed with anger.
“It’s mine, right? Stop pretending and just admit it.”
A. Ni. Ge. Don?! I wanted to shout in frustration but had to hold back.
This precious 10% was hard-earned during the main quest.
It was not a number that could be considered completely safe from death.
I clenched my teeth and forced a smile.
“It’s not a gift for Your Highness.”
“Then, who were you planning to give it to?”
“Tell me, who is it? I’ll deliver it for you.”
His crimson eyes darted around ominously as he said this.
Was it a habit, or was he stroking the hilt of the sword at his waist?
It seemed he would draw his sword and kill whoever I mentioned, whether it was me or the person I named...
‘Ah... In normal mode, he wasn’t this crazy.’
I swallowed my sigh with difficulty and replied.
“I was going to give it to my second brother.”
I apologized inwardly to Leonard. It was better than giving it to Bouter, a complete stranger.
Fortunately, the ‘family’ excuse seemed to work, and the crown prince didn’t draw his sword and attack.
“Unfortunately, it seems your second brother doesn’t care about gifts from you.”
He glanced in Leonard’s direction, as if mocking me.
I turned my head to follow his gaze and immediately frowned.
Leonard and Derrick were surrounded by noble ladies eager to give them gifts.
“Look, Father! Who lacks popularity?”
I saw Leonard, who had been scolded in the morning, now calling out to the duke with a delighted face.
The crown prince was right.
It was doubtful whether I could even get close enough to give Leonard a gift through the throng of women.
‘I don’t really want to go through all that trouble to give it...’
But I certainly didn’t want to give it to the crown prince either.
“...Your Highness, don’t you have many noble ladies to receive gifts from?”
He took the amulet out of the box and held it against his chest.
“Tell them it’s a token of affection for someone I once deeply loved.”
I stared at him in disbelief.
“I said it’s a gift for my brother.”
“Or you could think of it as a tribute to the crown prince as a citizen of the empire.”
He suddenly glared at me with his crimson eyes, threateningly.
He was saying he would take it by force if it wasn’t a gift.
“...Fine, do as you please.”
What could I do if he wanted the amulet so badly?
I hadn’t even decided who to give it to yet. Besides, the crown prince was technically the main character.
I looked at the golden amulet perfectly attached to the crown prince’s chest and muttered reluctantly.
“...It suits Your Highness.”
It was a polite lie, but the crown prince seemed to enjoy it, smiling.
His goodwill increased by 2% simultaneously.
‘Well, it’s not a bad result...’
Brrrrr-. A loud horn sounded from the dais.
It was the signal that the departure was imminent.
The crown prince mounted the large black horse he had brought and looked down at me arrogantly.
“I’ll personally bring you a suitable prey as a token of gratitude for the gift.”
“Huh? No, no! There’s no need to...”
“Feel free to look forward to it.”
Before I could refuse, he spurred his horse and galloped away toward the duke and my two brothers.
‘Not meeting me is his way of showing gratitude...’
I was still repeating the unspoken words in my mind when,
Someone suddenly called out to me.
I turned to see an elegant woman I had never met before, smiling.
“I was worried you might not come, but you accepted my invitation. I’m so happy.”
I immediately recognized who she was.
I hesitated for a moment about how to respond.
While my position was higher, she looked older than me.
Moreover, the empire had an unspoken custom of treating married people with more respect than the unmarried.
After some consideration, I bowed slightly and greeted her politely.
If it were the real Penelope, she might have said something arrogant like, ‘Who are you?’ or ‘I consider it an honor to accept your invitation.’
- This is a good opportunity for you to re-establish your position in society, Penelope.
The duke’s hopeful eyes during breakfast came to mind.
“Thank you for inviting me. Thanks to you, I can enjoy a pleasant afternoon.”
I didn’t really want to accept the invitation.
But it would be awkward to refuse after meeting the host directly.
Seeing my polite greeting, Lady Dortea’s eyes widened slightly, as if I seemed more normal than the ‘mad dog of the Eckhart family’ rumor.
After a moment, she wiped the surprised look from her face and smiled mysteriously.
“The tea party has already started at noon. Everyone is gathered. Would you like to join us?”
Lady Dortea turned and began to guide me.
As I followed her, I recalled her mysterious smile.
But then again, there were no main characters trying to kill me.
What could possibly happen at a gathering of delicate women chatting?
‘If it’s boring, I can just make an excuse and leave.’
I thought nothing of it and started walking.
And as usual in this game, something did happen.