Chapter 1

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 1

Chapter Title: Actually, I Was the Original Heroine

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“Please abduct me.”

A lovely girl with pink hair said it provocatively.

She had clearly come here with a request.

Yet no one could have anticipated such an absurd demand popping out.

No, this couldn't even be called a request or a demand. It was straight-up blackmail.

Directed at a burly man whose head was a good foot and a half taller than hers.

Thanks to that, the man who heard this ridiculous statement simply voiced the thought that crossed his mind.

“Are my ears playing tricks on me right now?”

“I'll even specify the time and place for you. Tomorrow just before noon, when the carriage carrying me passes through the square in front of the imperial palace—abduct me there and perform the bride abduction marriage.”

“You want me to abduct you in the middle of that crowded square?”

“Yes! Exactly! You get it perfectly!”

The girl nodded enthusiastically, her mysterious purple eyes sparkling. Her whole demeanor radiated excitement.

She didn't look like the insane type who would make such an outrageous blackmail attempt.

The blackmailed man pressed his temple as if his head was throbbing.

“Do you even realize what you're saying right now?”

“It can't just end with the kidnapping. You have to sign the marriage contract right away, and don't forget to get it notarized at the temple too!”

The conversation wasn't going anywhere.

“...You're clearly out of your mind.”

“And! The most important part! Everyone has to know that I had absolutely no say in any of this!”

Gerald, the Mercenary King, owner of this hideout and the victim of this blackmail, let out a sigh.

He reached for the bell to summon his subordinate waiting outside.

“Drag this crazy woman out right...”

Grab!

But surprisingly, the woman was a beat faster.

She practically lunged at him, clinging to prevent him from ringing the bell.

She was utterly unpredictable.

“You have no choice but to hear me out.”

“Not unless I lose my mind first.”

The woman shot back with a confident smile.

“Then you'll be losing it soon. No, you have to lose it.”

Her voice sounded almost prophetic.

This petite woman flicked her cotton-candy-sweet pink hair and flashed the most innocent yet wicked smile imaginable.

She issued the command once more.

“Abduct me.”

And in a whisper, she dropped a bombshell.

“Or you'll die.”

“...!”

The Mercenary King even missed his chance to get angry.

The hand gripping his was lighter than a feather, her skin as soft as milk—it seemed like it would bruise just from brushing against his rough clothes.

It didn't suit someone making such a threat.

The Mercenary King scoffed at her.

“You don't look like you have what it takes to kill me.”

And just as he tried to shake off her slender, soft hand—

Her voice stabbed into his lungs, sharper than any blade.

“If you refuse the offer, everyone will find out that Mercenary King Gerald is actually Crown Prince Arpad.”

The smirk vanished from the man's face. Tension took its place.

The woman grinned.

“Especially if His Imperial Majesty the Emperor finds out. That'll be fun, won't it?”

‘This isn't just a bluff.’

This woman was a real threat.

A sharp blade hovering over Arpad's neck.

So the man decided to drop the mask.

He didn't know how she found out, but she already knew his true identity.

Denying or protesting here would be pointless.

He had only two choices.

Accept her blackmail, or...

“Even if you kill me right here, you won't silence me.”

“...What?”

The woman flashed another sharp smile.

“If I don't return by the set time, a letter revealing your secret will be sent to the imperial palace.”

“...Hah.”

He was so dumbfounded he almost laughed. Though it wasn't the pleasant kind.

Arpad let out a hollow chuckle before grabbing the woman by the scruff of her neck.

He hadn't even used much force, yet her toes lifted off the ground.

“Ah!”

In a way that didn't suit the bold, crazy blackmailer, she was dragged along far too easily and pathetically.

To the point where Arpad felt more flustered instead.

“You're serious.”

“Yes. I'm making this request in all sincerity.”

“A blackmail disguised as one, you mean.”

Even with her scruff seized and subdued, the woman showed no signs of agitation.

Not even his own father could stay this composed in front of him.

Arpad yanked her face right up to his nose and growled like a beast.

“So, what's your reason for telling me to steal the bride from my cousin's wedding tomorrow?”

The woman's purple eyes trembled.

“You... know who I am?”

“Of course. Hilia Delphin, the duchess who's set to become my cousin's wife tomorrow.”

The girl called Hilia broke into a beaming smile.

“Good. Saves me the trouble of explaining my personal details.”

“Then I need some other explanations.”

“Other explanations?”

“Besides threatening to tell the Emperor my secret—what exactly do I get out of this?”

“What do you get?”

“Right. Otherwise, there's no point in calling it a ‘request.’”

The woman smiled with a hint of triumph. Her choice had been the right one.

The crown prince, with his madness-glazed red eyes, was far sharper than the rumors suggested.

Sharp enough to catch the hidden meaning behind a single word.

Hilia declared confidently.

“In return, I can ensure Your Highness ascends to the throne safe and sound, without losing your mind.”

And Crown Prince Arpad realized he was caught in a trap he couldn't escape.

Because that ‘reward’ was something he could never refuse.

Chapter 1. Actually, I Was the Original Heroine

“Farewell, Miss Original Heroine. Everything that's yours is mine now. Don't worry. I'll treasure it all dearly.”

“...What?”

“So go ahead and die with peace of mind.”

It was utterly shocking.

‘And she's speaking Korean right now? How...?’

But before the words could fully sink in—

Thud!

The guillotine blade came down on my neck.

The impact shook the world, and my consciousness faded.

“I wondered why I'd possessed such a half-baked body... Turns out it was all for this moment...”

In the midst of it, I heard one last line.

“Ahaha! Now I'm the real heroine.”

And then, darkness.

“!”

When I opened my eyes again, only one phrase came to mind.

“Holy shit!”

I spewed curses I never would have imagined uttering in my first life.

Once more.

“You fucking bitch!”

The first curse was for the situation itself.

But the second was different. Directed at a very specific target.

Aimed at the one who uttered those shocking words right before my third death.

The woman who stole everything from me across my past three lives.

She'd approached pretending to be kind and friendly, always becoming my husband's mistress.

And in the end, she framed me for adultery and treason, leading to my execution.

Only now did I finally learn her true identity, foolish as I was.

‘That woman... she was possessed?!’

All the lingering questions were answered at last.

Why she'd obsessively tormented me and tried to take everything I had.

“Farewell, Miss Original Heroine.”

Because I was the true heroine of ‘this world.’