Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: The Problem of Love
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It was a bit of a rushed development.
In other words, in the blink of an eye as one scene passed,
the genre shifted from thriller to rom-com.
"I understand why your brother sent me to you."
"My brother... You mean His Highness the Crown Prince?"
"Yes. His Highness the Crown Prince sent me here to introduce us. I didn't expect to meet someone who fits me so perfectly, though. In times like this, I envy your brother's eye for people. If I had to receive a blessing, maybe 'eyes' would have been better than 'ears' after all."
She didn't look like a girl in love.
Her appearance was girlish enough,
but that meant she didn't look like someone in love.
A snake eyeing a frog right in front of it was a more fitting metaphor.
Her expression screamed that she wanted to swallow the small, cute thing before her in one gulp.
"First of all, I have a personal fondness for you. I'm fully willing to develop that into romantic affection, and I also intend to form a strategic partnership with you through a marriage contract."
She explained her position in a highly businesslike manner.
But if you listened closely, you could tell she was slightly excited.
Anxiety, tension, desire, pleasant thrill...
Her voice, laced with a mix of emotions, sped up little by little.
"I've stated my position, so now it's time for yours. Your ideals clash with ours. Eventually, those two ideals will clash in the real, concrete world. You said you value your life and won't let that happen, but you know fate doesn't work that way. You're already a hero. A hero's fate is decided not by people, but by history."
"......"
"You're highly likely to clash with us, and when that happens, our authority will surely overwhelm you. What you're up against isn't the inert imperial family bound by convention, but the conventions and order of this world itself, protected in the name of the imperial family."
She had seen all my cards.
That's why her predictions were all things I had no choice but to accept.
I tensed slightly,
and the princess gave a faint smile.
"When an extreme opposition that could lead to mutual destruction is foreseen, we have a fine custom to resolve it."
Custom.
That word, which I'd heard so often it was tiresome, popped up again.
Having sorted out our positions, the princess returned to the main topic she'd started with.
"Marriage alliance."
Now, the word 'marriage' no longer sounded absurd.
"Become a member of the imperial family. Become authority itself."
I came to understand a bit more deeply the meaning of the word 'custom' that the princess kept repeating.
"If one without authority denies authority, it's a revolution where one side must die. But if one with authority lays down their own authority to liberate others, it's mercy and salvation that must be repaid eternally. Like how our imperial family once surrendered most of its power to the parliament and remained as the eternal 'masters of the empire'."
Customs are repetitions of history,
the source of authority,
and the order that governs this world.
"You want to abolish slavery. Do so. But as the legitimate master of the empire yourself. Marry me, become part of the imperial family, and declare it thus: In the name of our merciful Heavenly Lord and His great Imperial Majesty the Emperor, I shall end the slave system where one person privately owns another's soul, and liberate all slaves. The nobles will kneel before greater authority, the church will proclaim your declaration a miracle and support it, and the freed slaves will praise your mercy."
500 years—the lifespan of a race like the Joseon Dynasty.
80 years—the age of a woman like the Republic of Korea on August 15, 1945.
The imperial family rules the empire through customs.
So, what the princess was saying now
was closer to 'prediction based on data' than a vision of the future.
Having presented me with 'one path' I could take, the princess now twisted one corner of her mouth upward in a smirk.
"Now, I've explained the benefits of the marriage alliance, so it's time to discuss what you should consider if you refuse this 'marriage alliance'."
"......What I should consider?"
"We can render your currency worthless anytime through currency reform. Of course, the empire's credit will plummet again, and a terrible panic might ensue, but if we do it under the pretext of resolving war debts after winning the war with enough 'war prestige' accumulated, we can suppress the backlash to some extent. After all, the war was for 'humanity'. Then, you'd lose most of your wealth, and per House Riddle's tradition of prioritizing gold, you'd be ousted from your position as head—in the form of death."
Death. A pretty concrete scenario.
That path was one I absolutely had to 'avoid'.
She reminded me of that fact.
Of course, I'd anticipated the empire's panic too,
and was preparing to preserve assets and make money for it,
but thinking of such a future was chilling nonetheless.
As if reading my thoughts,
the princess snorted and changed tack.
"Or, like with the treasurer, we could brand you a traitor. The intelligence network among slaves scattered across the empire, information on citizens from banks, insurance, and debt collectors, detailed maps of city internals and security vulnerabilities from reconstruction projects... What's so hard about turning all your 'strengths' into evidence of treason? If things go that way, not just you, but all your loyal vassals and slaves would die."
This time, it was more blatant.
"Is this a threat?"
"Heavens no. What woman confesses her love with threats? That's not romantic."
She's openly threatening me, and now she pulls out the 'romantic' card.
Impossible to pin down.
Are all dragons like this? Or does living 80 years while staying young turn people into such monsters?
"Monster—worst expression to think of when a woman is confessing her love."
"......"
"To reiterate, it's not a threat. We won't resort to such undignified methods as I described. Why would we blatantly swing the sword when it would tarnish the imperial prestige, face, and credit? The imperial family isn't obsessed with power to begin with. We just do what's necessary for 'humanity'. If you come to us like the treasurer, we'd swallow you, but if you stay in your lane, no need."
If they won't use such methods,
why bother spelling them out?
She's trying to save face late, but it's still a threat.
"Just making the difference in our positions crystal clear. Ultimately, your plans are possible only with our tacit approval. They'll succeed if we don't get capricious, but in other words, even a 'slight whim' could cost you your life."
"......"
"But why take on that risk and proceed amid 'fear of death'? If you value your life, don't gamble it. I understand you see us—who nearly killed you—as a threat, but that's precisely why redefining our relationship like this is better."
The princess framed all her persuasion as being for my benefit.
The gains I'd get, the risks I'd eliminate,
she drilled into my mind everything I'd gain through marriage.
"......What's your goal?"
And.
From my experience, anyone offering a choice that's 'all gain no loss' for me is always a con artist.
Lately, I've been seeing a lot of con artists...
"......Isn't that a bit much? I just want to be with you. Even now, I'm liking you more and more. It's all upside for you anyway. Back your plans with imperial authority, just in a milder way."
"Too good to be true—I can't trust it."
"Overthinking everything is a bad habit of the overly thoughtful. Love isn't such a rigid emotion. Don't view my proposal so calculatively. I'm sincerely smitten with you."
Assume the princess before me is a top-tier con artist like Kraus.
Content doesn't matter.
Just because what she says is right doesn't mean her intentions align with that 'rightness'.
Con artists always seduce with the truth.
This woman reads minds.
Having lived 80 years that way, she's surely adept at manipulating hearts.
What am I missing?
What is this princess trying to divert my thoughts from?
["Don't view my proposal so calculatively."]
Assume the princess before me is first-rate con artist Kraus.
The meaning is crystal clear.
Calculate it properly, over and over, until your doubts clear and you confirm it's a gain for you.
Her proposal benefits me.
So, she's trying to divert my gaze from what 'isn't' a benefit.
What I'm missing.
What I failed to think of, dazzled by the princess's carrot and stick.
["Ah. I actually came here to steal you from your fiancée."]
"......"
Right. Thinking back, the princess said exactly that from the start.
"......Your Highness."
"Ah. Darn."
I felt a slightly odd sensation.
Because if my guess was right...
"......You really have fallen for me."
She truly was a 'girl in love'.
Meaning,
love at first sight with me.
"......Damn it. Didn't I say I like you? Calling a girl in love a monster or con artist—aren't you too much?"
"Haha..."
She deliberately packaged marriage as a 'marriage alliance'.
Defined it as a 'political contract for mutual gain',
then laid out risks and benefits,
confirming over and over that it was a necessary contract for me.
Because,
marriage isn't a 'political contract' to begin with.
"I'm sorry."
"No need to apologize."
"I'm grateful, but I don't think I can accept Your Highness's proposal... or feelings."
"......Damn."
Ah.
Since selling that Ponzi schemer to the northern stone mines,
my mind has been a bit... off.
I thought I'd felt relieved,
but actually, I'd been crashing.
That's why I nearly made a foolish mistake.
Why was I thinking so extremely?
I'm just an ordinary person.
Who do I think I am to overthink like this...?
"I already have a fiancée."
Lady Goldenwood.
Diana Pino Goldenwood.
Dana.
I hired her as the family's etiquette instructor, but that doesn't mean our engagement is broken.
She is still my fiancée.
If she enjoys enough freedom, learns to make choices outside her cage, finds someone she truly loves, and decides of her own will to end our engagement, then I'd accept the breakup...
But not now.
It couldn't be now.
I didn't want to force her choice like this.
"I do have a sense of fidelity."
"You don't even rationally like her, do you? That engagement was political to begin with... and you're not 'the Golden Ear'. Breaking it off isn't such a big deal."
"You read my thoughts, so you know it's not about that."
"......Damn."
She's the fiancée of 'me', not 'Karl Riddle'.
Right. So, one could say this engagement isn't mine.
"There's a woman who lived her whole life in a cage with clipped wings to be sold to one person."
I could say I'm not 'Karl Riddle',
break the engagement,
and set her free outside the cage.
"Because of this blessing engraved on my hand, she couldn't even suffer the fevers of puberty that everyone else endures."
But no,
I couldn't.
Her cage was still on the back of my hand.
I had already
seen her entire life through the blessing engraved on this hand.
The name of the cage she was trapped in
was none other than the 'Winter's Blessing' I'd used so usefully.
Having exploited the blessing freely,
it'd be cowardly not to bear the responsibility.
"If I suggested breaking it off, Dana would surely nod. Because of her innate blessing, she can't do anything that looks bad to others. The responsibility would be mine, so my house would pay her house a hefty sum, and it wouldn't be bad for her family either. Since the imperial family stole her fiancé, they might even arrange a marriage with a higher noble. As Your Highness said, it might benefit everyone."
"......"
"And Dana would never do aerial acrobatics again. No new family she'd marry into would allow such a face-losing act."
"Aerial acrobatics...?"
The way to repay the 20 years she lived soullessly 'to be sold'
isn't to be sold more expensively to a better buyer.
"I have a responsibility to hold Dana's hand."
"......"
"When she tries to grasp something on her own, it's my job to place my hand over hers and hold it together until she gains enough strength in her grip. Once she can hold what she wants by herself, then I'll let go."
"......"
"But that's not now. So I can't accept Your Highness's feelings. I want to respect Dana, and..."
"......"
"I want to respect Your Highness's feelings too. If I got engaged to you just for my gain, it'd be rude to you, wouldn't it? You'd feel even more hurt since it's your heart on offer. Probably."
"......Damn. Damn. Damn. Why'd you have to be born with that blessing..."
The princess swept her face with her hand and bowed her head.
She sniffled.
Or maybe holding back laughter.
"Hearing that all those honeyed words are sincere just makes me like you more..."
"......"
"I like you. I like you. I want you. I want to have you! Damn dragon bloodline, how greedily it's lolling its tongue—damn it. Why is everything I want always owned by someone else...?"
"Your Highness."
"What now?!"
"It's not about possessing."
"Fuck."
"I'm not an object. Marriage isn't possession. I just want to respect people as people."
"......Haha."
Now it was clearly laughter.
After laughing like a madwoman with her head down for a while, the princess raised her head again
and looked at me with those signature snake eyes.
"Fine. Then, let's change the terms."
"Pardon?"
"I won't kill you here and let you live. In return, show me that 'respect' too."
"......Pardon?"
"You said holding your fiancée's hand is your responsibility. Do the same for me."
The princess extended her hand.
I stared blankly at it, then belatedly grasped the meaning and looked blankly at her.
"You mean... read Your Highness's memories?"
"Yes."
"Why..."
"Do I need to convince you again?"
The princess asked with a fierce expression like she might bite me any second,
and after a moment's thought, I shook my head.
"......No. Give me your hand."
"This is a precious hand that's only ever held my father's—consider it an honor."
"......Pardon?"
Father means His Imperial Majesty the Emperor.
"How long are you going to make me wait?"
"Ah. Yes. I'll hold it."
"Wait, just a moment. How do you usually hold hands with your fiancée?"
"......Just normally."
"I heard lovers usually interlock fingers."
"Well, yeah."
"Do it that way."
"Pardon?"
"Interlock fingers."
"Ah, yes."
"As deeply as possible. So you feel every groove between the fingers. Yes."
"......"
There were a lot of instructions, making it a bit burdensome,
but somehow I took her hand.
And so, the princess's memories began flowing into my mind.