Chapter 13

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: Chapter 5. The Heroine is in Danger (1)

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엔딩인 줄 알고 돌아왔더니 장르가 바뀜

21화

The bell tolled.

The great bell of the grand cathedral, which rang only twice a day at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., was pealing in broad daylight to bless the future of the newlywed couple.

To Edelaine Bertrand, it sounded not like a blessing, but a curse.

Ding, ding.

Or perhaps the tolling of her life's end.

If only I'd seduced some crazy guy to burst in and kidnap me right now. Edelaine regretted it too late. I should have worked harder on dating...

"With this, you two are now husband and wife in the name of the Goddess. May blessings be with you in the days ahead."

Genevieve clasped her hands together and bestowed the blessing in a reverent voice.

Edelaine could no longer stubbornly insist that her position had swapped with the heroine's.

It wasn't that she didn't think swapping places with the male and female leads would make everything perfect, but Genevieve already had a husband. No matter what, she couldn't encourage an affair.

"Edelaine. Lift your head."

"......"

Besides, it was even more sorry if the affair partner was this mad dog, the root of all evil with those deranged eyes.

Shane lifted Edelaine's veil with his gloved hand.

"Smile."

"...Would you smile if you were me?"

"I think I could."

Shane lowered his voice and dipped his head slightly. Edelaine turned her head sideways, following his gaze.

The central worship hall in broad daylight brimmed with sparkling sunlight. The air was so clear and crisp that she could see every face distinctly.

The late Duke Blancard had stayed away for health reasons, but the Crown Prince had filled in, bearing the emperor's letter of congratulations.

Branches of the Blancard Family and prominent figures had turned out in force.

She spotted Emma and Gregory dabbing at their teary eyes in emotion, along with Patrick and Jeff.

Lloyd was somewhere in the crowd, and Lucian was probably watching from hiding. Everyone she knew even vaguely had gathered.

Shane looked back at Edelaine.

"They're all safe. Thanks to you."

"You're a real bastard."

"Since you're complimenting me, give me a smile."

"......"

"A bride receiving the Saintess's blessing at her wedding, looking just like a sacrificial offering being carted off..."

Edelaine let out an involuntary chuckle.

It wasn't as if she was being sold, but she was a hostage who couldn't budge. If she hadn't been threatened with Genevieve's and her family's safety, Edelaine would have escaped long ago and never set foot in Delmuse—or anywhere in the empire—again.

"Yeah, whatever."

"Ah, hey, wait..."

Shane's finger propped up her chin, forcing her gaze upward.

'Uh...'.

Edelaine's eyes widened.

She knew Shane was handsome.

As a kid, in this boring world without entertainment, she'd often admired his face like a silent film. Even if it had been a movie, it would've swept awards without a single line of story or dialogue.

Just being a named character guaranteed good looks, and as the male lead, he went without saying.

So she'd thought she knew it well... but no.

Edelaine made a bewildered face. It must've looked hilarious to Shane.

It was a joyless wedding.

A rushed affair thrown together in a month, a union devoid of any trace of happiness or love.

She had no desire to peer into the inscrutable mind of the madman who was marrying her just to make the woman who'd deceived him miserable, but no matter how fun screwing her over on life's biggest stage was, it was far from happiness.

Yet.

Smack. His lips brushed slantwise against the corner of hers and pulled away.

Whether it happened or not, Edelaine stared blankly at Shane's face.

The face smiling as if he owned the world.

The wedding feast was skipped.

After the ceremony, Edelaine was transported straight to the Blancard estate.

Dressed up nicely, but what was the difference from a prisoner?

A prisoner would be better, at least...

Prisoners had fixed terms and weren't threatened in real time. Edelaine, on the other hand, had to live with a man who wished misery upon her, with no clue how her life would unfold.

If he's doing this because he wants me unhappy, should I just burst into tears right in front of him?

Would screaming in his ear that she was going mad with unhappiness satisfy him? Or should she hole up in her room all gloomy like a proper miserable person?

Of course, Edelaine would do even more if it meant Shane would be satisfied and let her go.

But cheap theatrics wouldn't work anymore.

Her Oscar-worthy acting was useless now. She'd already used it once. Shane and her family alike wouldn't fall for the same trick twice.

Meanwhile, oblivious to Edelaine's turmoil, the servants neatly stacked her large suitcases.

It had been just over a month since she'd arrived in Delmuse with one suitcase, yet her belongings had multiplied like they'd bred on their own.

Lloyd had stepped up to direct things, looking as natural as if he'd worked there a decade, just like back at the Bertrand estate.

How did someone with such a handsome, character-worthy face blend so seamlessly into any environment...?

Still, it's a huge relief Lloyd came with me...

Edelaine observed Lloyd anew.

It had been eight years since she met the boy who was turning seventeen this year. They'd lived almost alone together for five of those, making him closer than anyone.

The child who was meant to assassinate 'Edelaine Bertrand'... or die by her hand if he failed.

Edelaine had decided to take him in because his future held only death either way.

She'd thought it better than dying, but living with him, she realized Lloyd could've thrived anywhere, even without her.

He was so capable, clever, and kind-hearted deep down. Of course—who's brother was he, after all?

Sensing her gaze, Lloyd looked her way.

"Please get up, ma'am."

"Ugh, why? I don't even have the strength to lift a finger. I've been tormented since last night. Mom kept crying, and from dawn it was makeup, hair..."

"You can greet the household staff later, but you can't turn away guests. You need to get up."

"Were guests scheduled? I didn't know, but you did?"

"I guess I have ears, while you don't. The butler just informed me."

Edelaine waved him off.

"Fine. Turn them away."

"Is that okay?"

"Of course? I'm the lady of the house now. Who'd argue if I say no?"

"But."

"I just got married today, for crying out loud. Creepy to have visitors my first day as a bride—ugh, fuck, they're the unreasonable ones."

"I see."

Normally, after a long feast, the bride and groom would return for their first night.

But Shane had sent Edelaine to the Blancard estate first, assigning Lloyd to her.

With the hype around the Blancard Duke and Bertrand Marquis union, even the interviews meant for the feast were left to Shane alone.

She already dreaded tomorrow's headlines.

"I wasn't planning to be a good wife anyway. If they get annoyed and leave, even better. Chase them off. Sprinkle salt for good measure."

"Saintess Genevieve and Crown Prince Edwin are scheduled to visit."

"Ack, cancel!"

She grabbed Lloyd before he could fetch the salt.

Thanks to his compliance, Edelaine averted a scene where a servant doused the prince and Saintess with salt.

The guest was just Edwin.

"Think of it as a small wedding feast, Shane. After helping with this absurd wedding this much, you can put up with this, right?"

"I know. That's why I'm enduring it."

The groom was there too. Edelaine was deeply disappointed. Should've sprinkled the salt.

Shane spotted Edelaine waiting to greet them and flashed a bright smile. She deliberately looked away and asked Edwin about Genevieve.

"Genevieve went outside the city walls for a purification. It was a last-minute thing, so it'll be night by the time she finishes."

"Shouldn't she rest at night?"

"She insisted on coming. The church's security tightened after the recent attack, so she's sneaking in..."

"Attack?!"

"Oh, didn't I mention?"

Edwin elegantly lifted his teacup for a sip and continued. For a moment, Edelaine wondered if she'd misheard and he'd said Genevieve choked on a fishbone at dinner.

"It wasn't serious. Just some poison arrows meant as a threat."

"Poison arrows... aren't serious, huh."

"That was two weeks ago."

Edelaine's mind reeled on her own.

Genevieve, who'd been safe all this time, suddenly attacked—it felt like her fault.

Because she'd revived 'Edelaine Bertrand'? Or.

Because this world had noticed a character meant to die hadn't, and started moving?

"No need to worry, Edelaine. She wasn't hurt."

Shane said. Edelaine glared at him.

"As long as she wasn't hurt? Poor Genevieve—how scared she must've been."

"Dunno if she was scared, but she went right back to work, so she seems fine."

Edwin chuckled, adding, "She's tough, that's for sure."

Edelaine stared incredulously at the leisurely male lead and sub-male lead, casually making their attacked heroine work.

Cognitive dissonance hit, but even that was becoming familiar. Humans adapt, after all.

"Just to check, Shane."

"Yes, Edelaine?"

He answered readily.

"You're giving Genevieve two days off a week, right?"

"She rests more than I do."

"......"

"What, no concern for me?"

"Ever seen a mouse worry about a cat?"

"Cold."

Genevieve was something else too.

After an attack, she should've taken a day or two to recover, not rush back to work. She wasn't some K-worker who'd clock in during a zombie apocalypse...

Maybe because she's from a Korean author's story.

The Korean DNA shone through: feed her even if kidnapped, work even if in danger.

It felt like a convincing hypothesis.