The Crown Prince's Secret
"Hey! Snap out of it!"
I grabbed Adrian by the collar and shook him.
But there was no response, like a limp doll.
His face was deathly pale. His lips turning purple.
Classic symptoms of respiratory distress.
My mind raced.
A hero who'd fought the Demon King, dying so pathetically from suffocation? That didn't make sense.
But the reality before my eyes was hurtling toward the worst possible outcome by the second.
"Damn it."
First things first, I had to get his airway open.
I roughly yanked at the tie choking his neck.
Snap.
The buttons popped off with the sound, and the tie came loose.
But Adrian's breathing didn't return.
"Guh... ugh... haa..."
Even unconscious, he clawed at his chest in agony.
As if some invisible force was crushing his ribcage.
Imperial uniforms looked flashy, but they were the worst for functionality. Thick fabric layered over and over.
No wonder he couldn't breathe in that thing.
Without hesitation, I grabbed the collar of his shirt.
"Excuse me for a sec."
I ripped open the top buttons like tearing them free.
The white shirt parted to the sides, revealing what lay beneath.
"...Huh?"
My hand froze in midair.
Under the white shirt.
His chest was wrapped tight in white bandages.
What the hell is this?
Some injury? No blood smell.
A fracture then? But what doctor wraps a broken bone like this, so brutally tight?
Just then, Adrian writhed in pain, twisting at the waist.
The shirt gaped open a bit more from the motion.
A soft curve peeked out above the bandages, not fully contained.
No way.
With trembling hands, I cautiously pressed down on the bandages.
It wasn't the hard resistance of muscle.
Soft. Yielding.
"Ha..."
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Crazy.
The puzzle pieces snapped together like lightning in my head.
That unusually refined face. The thin voice. And the way he always avoided physical contact.
She was a woman?
The empire's crown prince? The hero?
There was no such twist in the game.
A secret never revealed, not once throughout the entire story.
"Kuhk...!"
Adrian gasped roughly again.
Secret or not, I had to save her first.
Those idiotically tight bandages were clearly blocking her breathing.
I fumbled for the knot.
It was tied rock-solid behind her back. No room for even a finger.
"You psycho... You gotta leave enough slack to actually breathe."
I gritted my teeth and dug in my nails.
My nails nearly flipped back, but I couldn't stop.
Click.
Finally, one knot gave way.
The bandages loosened with a slither.
"Haa...!"
Blocked air burst from Adrian's mouth.
As the knot released, the forced-flat bandages gaped open.
And the curves they'd hidden swelled free.
How the hell had she stuffed that insane mass in there all this time?
Walking around compressed like that? Brutal.
No wonder she collapsed.
I stared blankly at the overwhelming sight, then snapped to.
Wait a minute.
What had I just seen?
The crown prince's secret.
This was no good secret to know.
If Adrian woke and realized I knew...?
Even if she didn't kill me herself, the empire wouldn't let me live.
Why keep alive someone who knows the emperor's sole heir is a woman?
Play dumb.
I decided fast.
I saw nothing.
Just loosened the tie.
I tightened the slackened bandages again.
Not as suffocating as before, just enough to look normal.
Then rebuttoned the shirt. One, two, three.
Finally, draped the torn tie loosely around her neck.
"Phew..."
Perfect.
Looked like just the tie had come undone.
As if nothing happened, I grabbed a water glass from the desk and wet her lips.
No, hers now?
"Hey, wake up. Drink some water."
I called out loudly on purpose, drowning out my stray thoughts.
"Mm..."
Adrian's lashes fluttered.
Breathing back, consciousness followed.
She slowly opened her eyes.
Hazy blue irises wandered the ceiling, then focused on me beside her.
"Be... lize...?"
"Feeling better?"
She registered her situation.
"Hik!"
She jerked back reflexively, clutching her chest.
Eyes full of wariness.
"You... you...!"
Her gaze dropped to her shirt.
Buttons done. Tie tied.
But the subtly disheveled clothes.
And above all, she could feel how much easier breathing was now.
Adrian's face paled, then flushed crimson in an instant.
Her eyes shot daggers, mixing shame, fear, and murder.
"What... did you just do?"
Low, gravelly voice.
But the tremor betrayed her.
"Do? I just saved your life, and that's the thanks I get."
I set the glass down casually, picked up a fallen pen from the floor, and tossed it on the desk.
"You were choking out, so I loosened your tie and a couple buttons."
"Tie...?"
Adrian felt her neck.
The tie was indeed loose.
But suspicion lingered.
She gripped her shirt placket tight.
The looser bandage feel.
She'd think someone tampered.
"Don't lie."
Adrian growled low.
"It wasn't just the tie."
"What then? Should I have given mouth-to-mouth?"
I shot back shamelessly.
Then casually picked up the document stack again.
"You're awake, so get back to work. We gotta finish this."
"..."
Adrian stared me down for a long stretch.
Probing my face for lies, obsessively.
A moment later.
"Sigh..."
She leaned back in her chair with a long exhale.
Still clutching her chest, but the blatant killing intent eased.
"Fine... just the tie, huh."
p>
She muttered, adjusting her collar.
"No need to thank me. I don't wanna hear it anyway."
"Hah, cheeky as ever."
Adrian swept back her tousled blond hair.
Her pale ear tips were faintly red.
I swallowed a sigh of relief inside and pretended to dive back into paperwork.
My heart was pounding like mad.
The suffocating silence stretched.
Adrian propped her chin, staring right through me.
Get to work already.
Her gaze burned into my side.
Still suspicious, probably wondering if her secret slipped.
"Belize."
Adrian called softly again.
"Yeah, what?"
I answered without looking up.
"You really..."
She hesitated.
"Really just undid the tie?"
Persistent.
Well, her whole life was on the line.
I stopped work and met her eyes straight.
Dodging now would be defeat.
"I said yes. How many times?"
"What about the shirt buttons?"
"You must've popped them thrashing around. Why would I bother with someone else's shirt? And honestly, your body's nothing special. Guys all look the same. What's there to see?"
"..."
Her face twisted oddly at my rapid-fire denial.
Relief mixed with bruised pride.
She bit her lip and looked away.
"Hah, fine. Good thing you're not interested."
She muttered, refastening her collar.
"Not like there's anything worth seeing anyway."
Self-deprecating tone.
No, there kinda was.
That overwhelming mass I'd glimpsed earlier filled me with awe again.
Passing as a man with a body like that.
How tough must it have been?
Even explained her vicious streak.
Adrian stopped prying.
But she kept fiddling with her chest and side-eyeing me.
Finally, the razor-thin work session ended.
"That's enough for today."
Adrian said wearily.
"Go."
"Yeah. See ya."
I stood without looking back.
Just wanted out of this choking room.
As I opened the door, her voice came from behind.
"Belize."
"...What now."
"Forget what happened today."
Her voice lacked force.
"I'll... remember you helped me."
Her version of thanks, I guess.
I waved dismissively and bolted from the office.
Click.
The door shut, and my legs nearly buckled.
"Haa..."
I survived.
Thought I was done for. Take back what I said—better off dead than facing Adrian.