My mind pulled my awareness lingering to an endless space surrounded by light from unknown sources. I stood, facing two people surrounded by malicious aura of darkness.

One of them was the adult Xenos, holding a dark glowing dagger as he bared his teeth at me with his grown fangs. He held an adult female’s arms behind her, holding her as a hostage.

The woman sobbed, with tears falling from her eyes, but her face were completely emotionless with her flattened lips. I couldn’t tell if she really wished to die or not. Still, my mind boggled me that she’s important to me.

Xenos spun his dagger before pointing it at the woman’s neck, drawing a dot of blood on its side. He drew out his tongue and wiggled it around his lips. He heavily breathed from the thirst of blood and people’s terror.

“She was my hostaged. I will killed her.”

What a great bunch of stale dialogues! Look at that use of wrong grammar! Was the word ‘hostaged’ even exist? And he said it before me… BEFORE ME WITH A STRAIGHT FACE!

I would like to punch him as soon as I could. I wanted to free the woman, and say these words: ‘Let her go!’

I would like to charge to him and prevent the incident from happening, but my body wasn’t following what my mind thinks.

Instead, my fists clenched as I looked down while biting my lip. “……Yes.” I CAN’T BELIEVE I SAID THAT!

“Okay.”

Without hesitations, he drove the blade towards her skin. I wanted to reach her out, but the paralysis left only my mind conscious.

As it pierced her skin, clouds of dark smoke leaked and filled my vision, until nothing was visible.

Soon, the morning light from the windows in my room illuminated my view. I laid in my bed, surrounding my body with a thick blanket.

Yes, it was a dream. For somewhat, the scenarios worsen, but I couldn’t remember that happening in the novel.

My head sat on a soft surface for which I dug and bounced my head repeatedly, creating comfort, but as I did it, I heard a moan accompanying it. Before I knew it, my clothes were already replaced with my pyjamas.

“Elara?” I asked, staring down at my stomach wrapped by someone else’s arm. Only Elara would do this.

Elara didn’t let her arms go. Instead, she gripped my body tighter where I could hardly breath. She cried like a kid,

“Miss Veniara! Don’t leave me!”

“You aren’t the ten-year-old here.”

“But—BUT, you’ll soon leave me, don’t you!?”

“Where do you think I’ll go!?”

I could only remember myself passing out from exhaustion yesterday. As I wander my eyes around the room, I realized that a day already passed.

“Hey, Elara, what happened yesterday—HEY! I C—CAN’T BREATHE!” I groaned while repeatedly tapping her arm as she gripped me tighter.

“Damn that devil!” Elara roared, turning her voice back to her serious tone. “He’s a devious, insensitive, suspicious boy with hellish plans! He played with everyone’s feelings and expectations. He even took Miss Mathilde as hostage.”

That’s what exactly I was saying about his traits! He was never a person for me, and never will be… Did she just mentioned having a hostage?

“A HOSTAGE!? WHAT HAPPENED!? DID HE MENTION SOMETHING LIKE ‘SHE WAS MY HOSTAGED!?’” I shouted, flinching back with my open-wide eyes, escaping Elara’s grip.

“What happened to you suddenly, milady? You looked like a thunder hit you… D—Don’t tell me you planned this with him all along!?”

“Who do you think I am!? I don’t know him, and I would never ever talk to that devious, insensitive, suspicious, deceiving, malicious, imprudent background character!”

“……I think you know him well.”

“I don’t!”

“Well, he did something mentioned like ‘I’m the killer of your real mom.’ It was too edgy. If I knew it was all a performance, I would have laughed up to my bones,” Elara chuckled.

“A performance?”

“For some reason, he and Miss Mathilde heard something we couldn’t, but they end up conversing with the kid inside the monster. With the prince’s idea, the corruption from the monster lessened, until it lose its energy and self-destructed.”

“And what in the jargon world does this ‘corruption’ mean?”

“It’s the desire to do evil deeds inside one’s heart. I think that’s what Elliot was using to attach human souls in monsters. The authorities don’t have a clear evidence yet, that’s why it’s still a theory.”

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“So, you knew it was Elliot’s doing all along?”

She looked away and hissed, biting her lip, holding her other arm. “I will never forgive him. I will bury his head deep down the mantle.”

“Elara, what’s important is that everybody’s safe— And by the way, what happened to the two?” I asked, widening my eyes and raising my tone midway my speech.

“They’re fine, milady,” Elara replied, turning her sweet tone back. “They we’re currently invited as the king’s audience today.”

I heavily sighed, putting my hand on my chest. “Thank goodness. It didn’t come to worst.”

“Oh, no, no, no! Miss Veniara, the worst came after that,” Elara exclaimed.

“What do you mean?”

“As you can see…” Elara then explained the terror that happened in my body while I’m asleep.

The moment she mentioned about the kiss, smokes puffed out my ears as my skin turned red from toe to head. I shook violently, clenched my fists, and bit my lip as my teary eyes widened.

My pulse pounded every corner of my ear canal. Clouds blurred my vision as nerves appeared on my skin. These mixed feelings harboring inside me excreted a deafening scream.

“NO WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!”

My first kiss… was stolen…

Xenos… Argh!! I really loathe that thief! I wished I could die right now.

I stood and readied my stance filled with rage, like I’m ready to fight anytime. Without changing my clothes, I casted enhance on my foot and stomped all the way towards the castle.

Ever did the people that I came across caught my attention as I leave footprints in the concrete ground. The knights in the castle panicked, gathered around, thinking that it was a monster attack.

Bang!

I crushed open the double doors in the throne room. The carpet remained still, yet underneath it, small craters controlled the elevation.

I reached the throne room; Mother wasn’t there, only Dad sitting on his throne. Red covered my skin from head to toe. I faced my father with my furrowed eyebrows, noisy breathing, uptight shoulders, and missing pupils in my eyes.

“Dad! Execute that criminal boy, right here, right now! Make sure to bring his head to me! I can’t let some despicable with a dirty mind breathe!”

Father left his mouth hanging open, shocked after I’ve said my verdict. For once, I never noticed what happened around me.

Only when I looked right, Miss Mathilde and Dion stood, glaring at me with the same expression as my father. My rage vanished in an instant, as I copy their expression.

Silence filled the air for a moment. When Dion had the opportunity, he kneeled on the floor, with his face facing the floor and body facing me. He shouted,

“I’M VERY SORRY! I DON’T WANT TO DIE YET! PLEASE FORGIVE ME FOR STEALING YOUR FUNDS! I DIDN’T KNOW THAT YOU’RE THE KINGDOM’S PRINCESS!”

“AH!” I gasped. I’m rooting another misunderstanding again! Then approached him to clarify what I’ve said. “Uhh—It’s not you…”

“I’M THE ONLY CRIMINAL WHO INTENDED A GRAVE SIN TO THE ROYAL FAMILY! I’M WILLING TO DO ANYTHING, JUST LET ME LIVE—”

“I told you…” I pulled his chin up and slapped his crying face. “It’s not you! Wake up to reality, you idiot!”

The impact from Dion’s face left him freezing for seconds. Touching his swelling cheek, he slowly turned his head towards me.

“T—Then… Who?”

I stood straight facing my father, chin up, shoulders in, chest out. “Dad! Please eradicate that prince from this land. I never wanted to see him again.”

“But that’s—” Dad stuttered with his lower lips trembling.

“What? Are you waiting for Mom to decide on this again? I won’t let you.”

“You really have the same blood as your mother… But still, I can’t go against your mother’s decision. You should wait for her—”

Dad deeply loved Mom, even if their marriage are forced. Because of that, Dad never denied a command from Mom. In short, he’s a simp, but that’s an advantage to me since he’s easy to manipulate.

“By the way, Dad, do you know where she’d been right now? It’s a secret only the two of us knew. Would you like to know where? It’s interesting, I promise.”

For a moment, he paused, pressing his lips together. After fidgeting his fingers, he squinted his eyes at me and asked.

“…What are your terms?”

“As I said before, it’s the cancellation of my marriage and Xenos Rutherford’s dismissal in this kingdom.”

“Hmm…” Dad leaned his head to his side, resting it over his standing arm. Moments of thinking after, he groaned. “Argh! As I thought, I couldn’t go against your Mom.”

“Tsk!” I clicked, turning my disappointed eyes away from him. My death flag should have been avoided already if he just said yes.

Dad shifted the topic to something else, completely forgetting what we’ve discussed.

“I dare tell to hold your matter for the latter priorities. There’s currently an urgent matter in need of discussion for the kingdom’s security. We should prioritize this information up to the maximum degree.”

To not bother their discussion, I replied. “I would like to participate in this meeting as a witness, your majesty. It’s about the kingdom, right? And Elliot?”

“Hmm…… Fine.”

This father doesn’t have his own decisions. He’s thinking a dilemma while pinching his chin? Of course, that’s fake!

“You, kid, continue the report.”

“Y—Your majesty, I humbly thank you for g—giving me a chance to speak on my experience. It was sad that I’ve c—caused eight casualties without my awareness. I couldn’t do anything e—equating those lives lost,” Dion stuttered.

“Since you’re already acquainted with my daughter, you need not to be formal. You’ll just have a hard time explaining. Why don’t you start your story from the last time you witnessed your mother?”

“I will consider it, your majesty. It was until then…”

From the moment he was jailed up to his arrival at the forest, Dion explained all that he witnessed. When he described a mad scientist harboring the forest, Dad was alarmed.

“’A corrupted heart will sure lead to a corrupted soul… And it’s my job to accelerate that.’ After that, I couldn’t feel my body anymore.

“But even if I’m unconscious, he kept whispering in my mind… something like a prophecy and a preparation to attack on the kingdom’s most important day,” Dion said, ending his story.

“Are you sure you’re not inventing anxiety?” Dad asked.

“I did commit an unforgivable crime, but I wouldn’t benefit from lying to you, your majesty. I deeply respect you and the kingdom.”

I haven’t heard of the prophecy he mentioned. After countless flashbacks of Adam and Eve, not even a moral lesson could be extracted from the backstories.

“What is this prophecy?” I asked.

Silence filled the dead air. When Dion turned towards me, he gulped and said, “a young red-haired saintess will soon hinder their plans. They will try to find a way to exterminate her while she’s still young.”

“What!?” I exclaimed, gasping and jerking my head back.

Since Veniara was the center of the book but not the story, there were many cases that the protagonist was the central target of assassination. That’s why I once wished to be reincarnated only as an extra.

And the entry of a prophecy was too sudden! How did they had a glimpse of my future? The only one who should know about my secret and my dark fate was me.

But that’s not just it. The matter of the most important day’s attack was the alarming one. Their target was me.

But when it would be? There’s no other notable important days I could remember. What if it wasn’t my important day… but the kingdom’s?

Don’t tell me—

I muttered,

“The alarming day… the grand ball.”