TPSIE 02

Chapter 2

Rattle—!

The carriage jolted violently.

Even with the dull vibration traveling up through my seat, I didn’t take my eyes off the scenery outside the window.

It was the first time in a week that I had seen the world outside.

I had never realized before just how refreshing the outside air could be.

A week ago, I had been dragged away by a group of thugs and locked inside some unknown hideout. They had also taken away my bag containing medicinal herbs, poisonous herbs, and my research journal.

After spending an entire week cooped up in a room that barely even had a window, seeing the world outside finally made me realize that I had actually survived.

But…

“Here, Your Highness. Open your mouth.”

I cautiously placed a hand over my upper abdomen.

‘They called this Helvine.’

That was the name of the poisonous herb they had force-fed me.

I thought I had studied medicinal and poisonous herbs quite diligently in this world, but this was the first time I had ever heard of a poisonous plant that used the human body as a host and lived as a parasite.

At first, I had laughed at them inwardly. If this really was some kind of poisonous herb, then the moment it entered my body, my body should have naturally detoxified it.

But Helvine was different.

Instead of being neutralized over the past week, it had settled firmly inside my stomach as though it had finally found a cozy little home.

Once a day. If I didn’t take the sedative, they said the thing inside my stomach would eat through my internal organs. The excruciating pain was an added bonus.

I’d nearly lost consciousness while experimenting with it.

“Think of it as the bare minimum precaution to prevent you from betraying us. If you utter even a single word about our guild… …the thing in your stomach will chew through every last one of your internal organs. Remember that.”

If I didn’t take the sedative, I would die.

If I said the wrong thing, I would die.

‘In most martial arts novels, people who are forced to swallow something like this end up being treated like slaves for the rest of their lives before eventually dying…’

At this rate, unless I could create an antidote, escaping from the Grand Duke’s estate would be impossible.

‘Once I arrive at the Grand Duke’s estate, I need to investigate Helvine.’

What kind of plant was it?

How did it work?

How could I make an antidote?

And…

‘How can I remove it?’

Hoo… This is really exhausting.

I sighed and turned my gaze back toward the window.

Then my eyes met my own reflection in the glass.

But…

‘Was I always this pretty?’

I gently rubbed my reflection with my fingertips.

Transparent, porcelain-white skin, deep blue eyes, and platinum-blond hair cascading down my back.

That was the result of the women who appeared to belong to the same guild as the thugs washing my body dozens of times and rubbing fragrant oils all over me during the past week.

Of course, they couldn’t get rid of all the old scars scattered across my body or the calluses that had formed on my fingertips and palms.

‘Still, this is practically a complete transformation.’

There was no trace left of Ebelin, the commoner who had spent her entire life crawling around in the dirt and gathering medicinal herbs.

Even if I happened to run into someone from Billot Village on the road, they probably wouldn’t recognize me.

‘Maybe that’s for the best.’

If I stayed holed up deep inside the Grand Duke’s estate in this appearance, I would never have to encounter the people from Billot Village again.

The problem was somewhere else.

“But… I don’t know anything about royal etiquette. Will that really be all right? What if they find out I’m a fake…? Wouldn’t it be better to use the substitute you originally planned for, someone who has actually been properly trained—”

In response to my concern, the leader of the thugs snorted.

“You don’t need to worry about that. The Princess of Delmar was a mad princess who lost her mind from the shock of the war, anyway.”

“…So no matter what I do, people will just accept it?”

“Exactly. Spout nonsense, crawl around on the floor, do whatever you want. All you have to do is seduce the Grand Duke and bear his child.”

“Ugh, I have my own preferences too. I can’t just do it with some random—”

“Then die here and now.”

“I will squeeze out every last ounce of my vitality and complete the mission at all costs!”

“……”

At the time, I’d agreed because I had no choice if I wanted to survive.

But seducing the Grand Duke?

For someone like me, who had never been in a romantic relationship in either my previous life or this one, it was practically impossible.

‘And besides, that Grand Duke…’

Grand Duke Varkan Escar was one of the secondary male leads in this novel.

‘How am I supposed to seduce a man whose eyes will turn completely toward the original heroine the moment she appears?’

In the end, was I destined to die no matter what I did…?

I’d even made plans to leave for the Eastern Continent so I wouldn’t get involved with the original story, but somehow I felt like I’d gotten dangerously close to it instead.

I suddenly felt dejected.

My modest dream of sailing to the Eastern Continent, running an apothecary, and growing old in peace seemed to be waving goodbye as it drifted farther and farther away.

Then, all of a sudden, I shook my head vigorously.

‘No!’

There was no need to get scared or lose heart in advance.

I’d survived being poisoned, and I’d survived the thugs who thought human lives were worthless.

‘Where am I going to find a life force more stubborn than mine?’

So this time, too, I would find a way to survive.

I’d survive, visit the Eastern Continent that was supposedly a paradise for poisonous herbs, and open a decent apothecary there!

I gazed at the magnificent estate visible through the window.

Walls sturdily built from dark blue stone, along with tall, dark-red roofs and spires.

Rather than being built for beauty, the old-fashioned estate had clearly been designed with practicality and defense as its priorities.

It looked exactly like the Grand Duke’s estate the thugs had described.

‘So that’s the Escar Grand Ducal Estate…’

That’s right.

Whether I died this way or that way, the end result was the same.

‘Now that things have come this far, I’m not going to die as easily as the princess in the original story.’

I’ll survive somehow.

I’ll survive and leave the Grand Duke’s estate like the wind!

As the estate drew closer and closer, I clenched my fists tightly.

And a short while later.

“Your Highness, we have arrived.”

The voice of one of the thugs disguised as a guard knight came from outside the stopped carriage.

I took a deep breath, exhaled, and straightened my posture.

Then the carriage door opened, and the cold northern air rushed inside all at once.

I took the thug’s hand and slowly stepped out of the carriage.

At that moment, the thug whispered in a low voice.

“Don’t forget your mission.”

“……”

Good grief. Did he think I had a memory problem?

Without answering, I walked toward the servants of the Grand Duke’s estate.

A large number of servants were standing in front of the estate to welcome me, seemingly matching the enormous scale of the mansion itself.

Yet there was no warmth or welcome in their eyes.

Their quiet gazes were directed at me, tinged with subtle wariness.

Then a white-haired servant standing at the very front of the group stepped forward.

Judging from his neat attire, perfectly straight posture, and flawless expression, he was undoubtedly the head butler of the Grand Duke’s estate.

And sure enough—

“Welcome to the Escar Grand Ducal Estate, Your Highness. I am Hendrick Terdano, the head butler in charge of managing this estate.”

His voice was polite.

However, the temperature contained within it was just as cold and chilly as the gazes of the other servants.

I smiled sweetly at Hendrick.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hendrick. I am—”

I paused for a moment before continuing.

“I am Ivelina Delmar, the sixth princess of the Kingdom of Delmar.”

It was an extraordinarily cheerful greeting for someone who was, ostensibly, a hostage from an enemy nation.

Hendrick’s eyes grew cold as he looked at me, as though he were trying to confirm the rumors that I was a mad princess.

“Yes, Your Highness. I will do my utmost to ensure that you have no inconvenience during your stay.”

He bowed politely.

I smiled even more brightly and replied.

“Yes. Please do.”

“……”

“But…”

I looked around at the servants and tilted my head.

“I don’t see the Grand Duke?”

Hendrick answered without even blinking.

“His Grace has gone to deal with the monsters that have appeared in the Millidren Mountains in the North.”

His voice was calm.

It wasn’t an excuse, nor was it an apology.

It was simply a statement of fact.

‘Wow. Even though I’m a fake princess, on the surface, I’m still a princess of a kingdom.’

And yet, instead of coming out to greet me, he had actually left the Grand Duke’s estate entirely?

‘What a jerk.’

When I blinked innocently, Hendrick continued.

“Unfortunately, the timing coincided with the appearance of the monsters. However, such incidents are common in the North, so His Grace left word asking that you kindly understand.”

I scoffed inwardly.

‘Monsters, my foot. He just ran off to the mountains because he didn’t want to see my face.’

Even in the original story, Grand Duke Varkan had hated the Kingdom of Delmar to an extreme degree.

Considering that he had lost countless subordinates during the war, it was understandable.

There was no way he would warmly welcome a princess who had been forcibly dumped on him by the Emperor, especially one who wasn’t even mentally sound, together with his knights.

The servants, who might have to accept that mad princess as their future Grand Duchess, probably felt the same way.

I nodded lightly.

“Well, it can’t be helped. I’m not so crazy… …I mean, I’m not so narrow-minded that I can’t understand something like that. I just hope he returns safely.”

Perhaps because my answer was far more normal than expected, Hendrick’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he looked at me.

“……Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. Then, I will show you to your room.”

“Yes, please.”

I followed Hendrick as he led the way.

Then, suddenly, I stopped walking.

“Oh, by the way.”

Hendrick turned around, and the servants who had been looking down also raised their heads to look at me.

“Yes, Your Highness?”

I raised my chin slightly and spoke calmly.

“I’m not crazy.”

“…Pardon?”

Hendrick asked a beat too late.

So I spoke even more confidently.

“I said, I’m not crazy.”

“……”

“……”

A brief silence fell.

Looking at the expressions of the butler and servants as though they were staring at a woman who had completely lost her mind, I smiled contentedly.

‘Phew. That was natural.’

It seemed the first act of my mad princess performance had gone quite successfully.