Endless Eight - The Princess's Political Marriage
Endless Eight—a political marriage driven by calculated, pragmatic motives without the consent of those involved. In simple terms, it's a "contract turning people into breeding stallions."
"Ehehe, political marriage? You came all the way to my house to court me—this has to be a love marriage, right……?"
"What kind of etiquette has you showing up in men's clothes and proposing out of nowhere?"
"Imperial etiquette……!"
Huh. I let out a sigh of utter disbelief. The princess giggled and raised her index finger.
"Was my first impression that bad……?"
"Honestly? Not great."
Facing royalty like this was way outside my calculations. Royals are basically hikikomori by default. I hadn't expected her to show up in person. My plan was to approach via the Pantheon as cautiously as possible.
"Wait. Hold on. I wanted to make a good first impression, if possible."
But plans go awry. The world doesn't always follow my script.
"Are you dreaming right now, by any chance?"
. . .
I woke up, and suddenly there was a Golden Retriever sitting by my bed.
"Canaria?"
"Woof woof!"
"What."
Looks like she turned into a dog. That was the conclusion I reached after careful deliberation. A real dog.
. . .
A guest had arrived at the Nosferatu Ducal Residence. A suspicious woman in a hood covering her entire face. She had a document stamped with the Pantheon's golden seal and was asking for me. So I came out to see.
I couldn't help but flinch at the sight of the girl standing before me.
"……What brings Her Imperial Highness the Princess to such a humble place?"
"Oh? You recognized me right away?"
She replied in a voice laced with delight, pulling back the hood that hid her face. Playfully upturned eye corners, snow-white skin, faint lips that looked delicately thin without being too dark. Inside the hood, her collarbone peeked out just enough to stir the imagination. Like a princess from a fairy tale just roused from sleep in an enchanted forest, her pupils were softly unfocused. She looked ready to drop her head and fall back asleep any second.
The Empire's princess. One of Endless's worst shut-in NEETs. And here she was, standing right in front of me.
"Yeah, well…… Have we met somewhere before?"
"Who knows……?"
Her small, hazy voice trailed off, hard to catch at the end. She spoke in a slow, drowsy murmur, like she'd just woken up. She really did look sleepy. Her fading voice mixed with breaths that tickled my ears. Goosebumps prickled my skin.
"Have we ever met in your dreams?"
"Ahaha. Are you hitting on me right now……?"
Déjà vu. An intense wave of it hit me.
A princess of the Empire can control her own thoughts to some degree. So unless she was lying, reading memories via telepathy had its limits…… I knew this princess's ability. That's why my head throbbed.
This power wasn't meant to be used like that.
"How many times have you woken up?"
"Let's not talk about dreams. What matters is this moment, right……?"
"Don't dodge the question."
"Hng……."
Images flashed in the princess's mind. Memories of coming disguised as a proxy in men's clothes. Coming with the knight commander. Sneaking into the mansion. Inviting me to the Imperial Palace…… Each image was blurry, dreamlike.
No—they were actual dreams. Dreams the princess had.
"I don't remember well either……."
Dreams fade the moment you wake. So the fact that she remembered them meant……
They were precious enough that she didn't want to forget, replaying them over and over.
"Looks like ten dreams weren't enough to fix that first impression…… Fuheuk……."
She laughed weakly, whining anew as if it were unfair.
"Why is the first impression always so bad……?"
It wasn't a real question out of curiosity—just a pouty "Can't you cut me some slack now?"
I answered on reflex.
"Because it's the same person."
"Aha……! You're right. Of course. It's me, after all…… What matters isn't the first impression, but the experiences we build from here on……."
The princess's voice grew fainter. She started dozing off while standing, head nodding.
"You look exhausted. You okay?"
"Fuhe…… Can I borrow your bed……?"
"Not the kind of request you make to a stranger."
"Aha……."
"The maid's bed alright?"
"As long as I can lie down, even a doghouse is fine……."
"That's a bit……."
Come to think of it, is Canaria's bed basically a doghouse? Hmm. Worth pondering.
"Alright, got it."
I guided the princess to the maids' quarters. She leaned against my arm. Whoosh—a sweet pomegranate scent tickled my nose. Her hair smelled of ripe red fruit.
"Your head's heavy."
"That's proof of good health……."
I laid her on Canaria's bed and sighed.
"What a headache."
"Young master. You okay?"
"Yeah."
"And who is she that you're putting her in my bed?"
"The princess."
"Pardon?"
. . .
"A dream within a dream……?"
"Yeah. The ability to turn that day's events into a 'dream.' That's the princess's power."
A dream within a dream. Mongjungmong.
The princess is a kind of regressor. The moment she wakes from the dream, everything that happened that day becomes "just a dream." Over and over, repeating.
She wakes repeatedly from long, endless dreams. That's why her day holds more value than an ordinary person's lifetime.
This world only becomes truly "not a dream, but reality" when it pleases her.
"Isn't that cheating?"
"Eh. Not as convenient as it sounds."
But it's surprisingly limited in use. Sleep begets more sleep. Dreams blur upon waking.
The princess suffers from severe hypersomnia. Even after waking, fatigue doesn't lift—she's drowsy all day, and using the ability worsens it.
She can't remember dream contents perfectly, so more mongjungmong means more burden, less effect.
Plus, the "save point" is fixed at "waking from sleep"……
There's not much she can do.
"Hearing it explained that way…… yeah, not such a great power."
"It's good. Really good. But not enough to avert doom."
Royal powers are all like that. Individually overpowered.
But useless alone. Without the Imperial family's support, she's just a hypersomniac patient.
"That's why royals rarely leave the palace. So why'd she come here herself?"
As I gave Canaria a brief rundown on royalty, the princess woke.
Blink blink. She sat up abruptly, looking refreshed and bursting with energy—nothing like her drowsy self moments ago.
"Vigorously revived!"
"Uh, sure."
She could've slept more, no problem.
"We were talking about me, right?"
"Yes. Our maid's pretty pissed about losing her bed. She was cursing up a storm right in front of you while you slept."
"Me?"
"Aha. Sorry. The bed was great."
"……."
"Canaria. Her Highness is apologizing. Accept it graciously."
Canaria was cursing me out in her thoughts. I learned today just how colorful street mutt profanity can be. Fascinating. True gutter origins.
"No wonder the bed smelled so nice. Must be from such a pretty maid using it."
"So, what brings Your Highness to my mansion?"
"To see you, obviously!"
"Pardon?"
"Oops! Forgot to introduce myself. I'm Garnet. Garnet of the Pomegranate Stone. Call me honey, casually."
"Pardon?"
"So, where were we? The part where I ask you to marry me?"
"Pardon?"
"Didn't I say it earlier?"
"First time hearing it."
"Aha. Must've been in a dream. I space out a lot."
Garnet scratched her cheek. She got off the bed, dusted her knees, then knelt on one, grabbing my hand.
"Marry me. I won't let a drop of blood stain your hands."
"Isn't it usually 'not a drop of water'?"
"I'm a bit on the damp side. Might get pretty wet."
"Pardon?"
What did she just say? Sudden sexual harassment?
"Oops, that one flopped?"
"What."
"Wait. Hold on. Let me try again."
"Ah. Wait—"
"Are you dreaming right now, by any chance?"
. . .
"Vigorously…… revived……!"
"Doesn't seem all that vigorous."
"Still a bit sleepy……."
. . .
– "Too tired to speak…… Mind if I talk with thoughts?"
"Sure."
– "Aha. Feels like our hearts are connected. They call it ishimjeonsim, heart-to-heart transmission. Understanding each other without words……!"
Garnet beamed. Her upturned eyes softened, like a smiling fox.
"So, what's this marriage talk about?"
– "We promised. In the dream. Don't remember well…… But it was super important and precious."
Hmm. She's nuts.
– "More importantly, don't I look pretty? Cute and lovable, wanna bite me all over?"
"Poison mushroom."
– "At my level, dying from eating me would be an honor!"
"What."
– "Marriage right away might be too much, so how about engagement first?"
"Hard of hearing?"
Or maybe a headache.
– "I'm pretty, right?"
"Yes."
– "You wanna marry me, right?"
"No."
– "You hate me?"
"Yes."
– "Why?"
……Hadn't really thought about it.
Well.
– "Aha. You like me?"
"Ah."
Lie. How could I hate the princess? I've poured so much affection into Endless.
Just…… more fondness for the character than romantic interest.
– "One day. Just one day, date me?"
"……No."
– "One hour."
"No."
– "10 minutes!"
"No."
– "Tch. Too harsh? We've talked more than 10 minutes already."
"You'd loop it endlessly if I said yes."
– "Ahaha. Busted."
"……."
I could guess why she was doing this.
Princess Garnet was…… a Doomsday Button.
– "A nice dream deserves a little extra sleep, right?"
Somehow, I'd already cleared her once.
No. Precisely.
– "On good dream days, don't you wanna snooze 10 more minutes?"
I'd failed the clear. The world doesn't always follow my script.