The Fiancée Was You!
Mint hated her name. Seol Bakha. What the hell was that even supposed to mean? From what she’d heard, her biological father had been sucking on a peppermint candy when she was born, so he’d slapped the name on her without much thought. If you’re going to name a kid so carelessly, the least you could do is give them some love. But neither her biological father nor her biological mother had offered anything resembling affection—only abuse. Later, with some half-assed excuse about “going their separate ways,” the so-called parents dumped her with her grandmother and never came back. Because of that, Seol Bakha hated her parents even more than she hated her own name.
She neither hated nor particularly liked her grandmother. The old woman was icy cold, but she possessed a rigid sense of responsibility, duty, and principle, which was why she hadn’t abandoned the girl. It was still better than the abuse her parents had dished out. Looking back now, Mint suspected her grandmother had simply been bad at expressing emotions. Maybe, if they ever met again, she’d find it in herself to like the woman. Not that it would ever happen.
Anyway, although she hated the nickname Seol Babo that came with growing up under that grandmother, she actually liked the kids who teased her with it. Despite the awful home environment, Seol Bakha had grown into a surprisingly smart and upright girl who never veered off the proper path. She knew all too well how stupid it was to let a grim reality ruin your life.
Still, everyone needs an escape. Something to break away from that bleak world, even for a little while, and feel joy. Anime, games, movies, and novels were perfect refuges that brought her immense pleasure. For someone like her—who had come to dread human relationships after the atrocities committed by her biological parents—it was an ideal hobby. After all, she could enjoy them completely alone.
That was when she learned about a boy named Gu Gyumyung. He was famous throughout the school. Handsome face, tall build, pretty good grades… but his endless bizarre antics completely tanked his appeal. Their circumstances differed, yet they shared many things: no parents in the picture, the same hobbies, and plenty of common ground. The only issue was that his hobby had evolved into full-blown chuunibyou. Back then, when she kept people at arm’s length, Seol Bakha thought that maybe—just maybe—she could get close to Gu Gyumyung.
…She listed all sorts of logical reasons, but honestly, it had been love at first sight. His ridiculous behavior looked cool to her. The girl was completely smitten.
Seol Bakha thought hard about how to approach him. The conclusion she reached was to start committing bizarre acts together.
…Maybe she really was as much of an idiot as her nickname suggested.
Like the saying goes, proximity to ink makes one black. She had begun acting like a chuuni with a heart full of ulterior motives just to get closer to Gu Gyumyung, but before long she had genuinely caught the chuunibyou bug. Was chuunibyou an infectious disease…? In the end, it wasn’t so bad. She gained a mountain of cringeworthy memories that left her blankets in tatters, along with the title of Gu Gyumyung’s best friend. Those were fun times—right up until the day before high school graduation, when she got hit by a truck and died without ever confessing her feelings.
Seol Bakha—or rather, the girl now reincarnated and called by the nickname and alias Mint—regretted that most of all.
The moment the girl died and opened her eyes again, she knew immediately. She had reincarnated in another world.
Mint’s new life was so abundant and happy that comparing it to her previous existence was laughable. Born as the only daughter of a ducal house—one of the highest tiers of nobility—her father and mother showered her with boundless love instead of abuse. Aside from the boredom of lacking all the media she had loved in her past life and the sorrow of never seeing the person she had cherished again, Mint believed without a doubt that she would live a peaceful, happy life until the day she died.
If only the ducal couple hadn’t suddenly brought up an engagement without consulting her.
“Oh? You ran away from home because of an engagement too?”
The incredibly beautiful and cute girl in front of her grinned and added, “Wow~ a fellow comrade in arms!” One of her canines was noticeably longer than the other, giving her a mischievous look. It wasn’t just cute—it somehow pulled off an annoying charm as well. It looked dangerous enough to provoke anyone, regardless of gender or race, especially if she tacked a heart on the end of an insult.
Mint found herself involuntarily captivated by the girl’s charm, yet her heart was in turmoil. And for good reason—this absolute beauty was none other than the reincarnation of Gu Gyumyung, the boy she had liked so much in her previous life.
Why the hell did you reincarnate as a girl, you idiot!
…Well, if she’s this pretty, maybe gender doesn’t really matter…?
Snap out of it! No matter how you look at it, dating someone of the same sex isn’t right!
Anyway, in this life I absolutely refuse to marry any other man, so I came to Minoris and became an adventurer. There’s no problem here, right…?
All sorts of conflicting thoughts swirled through Mint’s head.
That’s not what’s important right now!
Mint shook her head, clearing away the distracting thoughts that weren’t really distractions. That wasn’t what mattered at the moment.
What had Gu Gyumyung just said? “You too because of an engagement”?
“What do you mean by that? ‘You too’?”
Gu Gyumyung had lined up several large elephant plushies of different colors on the bed and was seriously contemplating them. “Which one should I hug tonight…” It was apparently about choosing which doll to cuddle while sleeping… What the…?
“One day my adoptive father suddenly drags someone over without asking me and announces I have a fiancée. Am I crazy? I’m already annoyed to death from all the assassination attempts and being targeted by some shitty cult’s apostle.”
The answer that came back was that she had run away for similar reasons, but the background was far from ordinary. Gu Gyumyung spoke lightly, but Mint felt her breath catch in her throat.
Adoptive father? What happened to her real parents? Assassination attempts? And what the hell was a cult apostle?
“A-assassination attempts! Why?”
The best friend she had met in another world was living a life under constant threat of death, unlike her. Mint suddenly felt ashamed of herself for running away simply because she didn’t like her fiancée. Of course, if you looked deeper it wasn’t that simple a reason, and it seemed Gu Gyumyung wasn’t much different, but the intensity—the weight of it all—felt different.
“Hmm… probably because I’m a Saintess candidate? I’ve been through a ton of shitty stuff because of it. So I’m quitting. I’m gonna run away and hold out until another candidate becomes the Saintess instead. Hehe!”
Saintess candidate! A word extremely familiar to Mint had just come out of Gu Gyumyung’s mouth. Mint saw a spark of hope in it. If Gu Gyumyung was a Saintess candidate, maybe she could help.
“Want me to help?”
“Huh?”
“If another candidate becomes the Saintess instead of you, it’ll be at least a little safer, right?”
“Well… yeah, the assassination attempts would probably stop. But don’t. It’s seriously dangerous. One of the cardinals is a total psycho.”
…Gu Gyumyung had always been like this, even back then. He would complain about how annoying everything was, but the moment someone close to him was in danger or got hurt, he would throw himself into the fire without hesitation. Even now, he was rejecting Mint’s offer because he was worried she might get caught in the crossfire.
Mint became even more determined. She would help Gu Gyumyung. After the hardship of reuniting with this connection from her previous life, she refused to let it slip away.
“It’s fine. If we borrow the power of my family, it should work. From what I know, there isn’t much time left until the Saintess is decided. I can keep you safe until then.”
As far as Mint knew, the Saintess was chosen at the same time as the Hero. And the Hero would be decided… next year. A few months should be manageable.
“Oh! You’re a noble? A young lady? Ooh~ born with a golden spoon~! But it’s okay. I’m ridiculously strong. Assassination attempts are nothing. If it comes down to it, I’ll just beat them up myself.”
The claim of being strong wasn’t a bluff. Gu Gyumyung’s speed had already surpassed Mint’s, and… the breastplate she had flicked with her finger had dented with a clear, ringing sound.
“No. If you cooperate, things will get much easier. You just have to support my fiancée.”
At Mint’s answer, Gu Gyumyung tilted her head in confusion. To Mint, the gesture looked unbearably cute. Her heart nearly overloaded for a second.
“Support… your fiancée…? I don’t get it…?”
“My fiancée is another Saintess candidate. If you support her… wouldn’t the assassination attempts on you decrease? They’re trying to eliminate you from the running, right?”
“That does make sense based on the cases I’ve seen, but… uh… um… were you a guy…? Did you also reincarnate with your gender swapped…?”
Gu Gyumyung gave Mint a pitying look. Then her gaze drifted downward as she muttered “As I thought…” in a sympathetic voice. Her eyes were fixed on Mint’s flat chest.
“No!!!!!!!!!”
Mint exploded at that wretched gaze.
“Huh? Then it’s an engagement between two girls?”
“Yes! That’s why I ran away! They told me to pretend to be a man!”
It was true. Mint’s parents—the ducal couple—had ordered her, without any prior discussion, to live as a man for the sake of the world and to protect the Saintess candidate. They claimed that since she never attended the giggling tea parties typical of young ladies anyway, only devoted herself to sword training, and had no intention of marrying, she only needed to act like a man during official events or public appearances alongside the Saintess candidate.
Mint had been overcome with a sense of betrayal she couldn’t quite explain. Honestly, given all the love and grace they had shown her, she couldn’t say she wouldn’t repay their kindness. But they should have at least talked to her first! If it had ended there, she might have argued with them but never would have run away. If only her mother hadn’t added those next words.
‘Your figure won’t cause any problems with cross-dressing, so it should pass without suspicion. They’ll probably just see you as a pretty young lord.’
That very day, Mint had left home, arrived in Minoris, and become an adventurer.
“Hmm… yeah, it probably wouldn’t have raised any suspicions…?”
Now Gu Gyumyung was saying something with a similar meaning. Mint couldn’t hold back anymore and slammed her fist down on Gu Gyumyung’s head. Bang!
“Ow! That hurts! I had double barriers up and you broke through them in one hit?! Just how strong are you?! Aaaargh…”
“You said something that deserved it! It was the truth! Anyway, from what I hear, my fiancée the Saintess candidate is pretty famous. And really strong. With my family’s power and her strength combined, there won’t be any problems, so just cooperate! It’ll be comfortable and safe that way!”
“Oh. So there’s a famous Saintess candidate besides me whose name actually gets around? What number is she? What’s her name?”
Hearing Gu Gyumyung’s question, Mint began digging through forgotten memories.
What number… what number was it…? What was the name…?
Ah, she remembered.
“The thirteenth…? Yeah, I’m pretty sure it was the thirteenth…”
“Huh…?”
Seeing Gu Gyumyung’s reaction, Mint realized something. Her expression had turned strangely twisted (though it still looked cute), but it felt like she was hearing about someone she already knew. That was actually a good sign. The expression was weird, but it didn’t seem like dislike. She probably wasn’t on bad terms with the thirteenth Saintess candidate.
“Her name was… Levia Leviathan, I think? It was a really funny name.”
“...”
Gu Gyumyung’s expression grew even more bizarre. It was a mixture of shock and utter disbelief. Mint couldn’t quite read the meaning behind it.
“Why..? Looks like you know her. Have you met before?”
“…Yeah, I’ve met her. It’s someone you know too.”
“Huh?”
Mint couldn’t understand Gu Gyumyung’s answer. Had she met a Saintess candidate before running away? She didn’t think so.
“We’re meeting and talking right now.”
“???”
“The person right in front of you is Levia Leviathan.”
“What?”
“It’s me! I’m Levia Leviathan! Your fiancée! Fuck, my fiancée was you?!”
“Uh…?”
Mint’s mind went completely blank at the shocking truth. She couldn’t form a proper response.
My fiancée’s name is the thirteenth Saintess candidate Levia Leviathan… and that’s Gu Gyumyung? I’m engaged to Gu Gyumyung…?
Uh… um… it’s not bad? Actually, it might even be good?
The worries that had plagued Mint vanished completely.