Chapter 4

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 4

Chapter Title: The Duke's Interrogation

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"Get up."

"Five more minutes..."

"Get up, you lazy, lowly slave girl!"

Forcing my heavy eyelids open, sticky with exhaustion, I saw a familiar face.

It was Remeia Salt, the jewel of the Salt Kingdom—beautiful like a blooming lily—and my half-sister.

"Why has the princess come all the way here...?"

"To give you a good scolding for being so slow and sluggish, you insolent wretch. Who gave an illegitimate child like you the right to sprawl out and sleep in my father's house?"

If I were truly April Salt, her barbs about my bloodline might have wounded me deeply...

But fortunately—or unfortunately—I was a 21st-century Korean, thoroughly detached from any caste system.

'Yeah, my blood's sewage, and yours is pure gold or something.'

Pretending to be meek, I flipped her off inside my pocket and hastily sat up.

"What is it?"

"The old fogeys are asking why the imports for food and daily necessities are increasing next quarter! I had no idea what they meant and thought my head was going to explode!"

Flutter!

A thick stack of documents Remeia tossed hit me square in the face and fell to the floor.

Only then did I grasp the situation. The finance minister must have spotted something odd while compiling the budget report and gone to Remeia.

"Well..."

But for some reason, the words stuck in my throat like a fishbone.

'Because the Kletan Empire plans to cut off exports to our kingdom in the second half of the year.'

I knew that afterward, countless people of the Salt Kingdom would suffer.

But this was a future written in the novel. To Remeia, it would sound like utter nonsense.

No, there was no guarantee she could even comprehend the sentence "the Empire cuts off exports to the kingdom" with that brain of hers.

"Well, looking over last year's reports, it seemed like we weren't prepared enough for a poor harvest, so..."

"Do you think you're some kind of god?"

Before I knew it, Remeia's face was right in front of mine.

Coming face-to-face with her twisted expression made my breathing ragged, like I was suffocating.

It was strange. Remeia never smiled properly for fear of wrinkles—how could she twist her face so freely?

"A mere extra like you. Did you think possessing a novel would change your pathetic life?"

"How—how did you know?"

"Don't worry. You're slated to die from overwork in this life too."

Thud.

My heart sank at her ultimatum-like verdict.

"Work like a slave, like an ant. Take comfort in the saying that even a dingy mouse hole gets sunlight someday."

"Wait a second!"

"You'll be locked in my office until you die of illness, buried under towering stacks of documents!"

Whoosh.

With Remeia's echoing voice, the surroundings went dark as if a light had been switched off.

Ah, I'd been through this situation before.

In the end, I'd secretly convinced the ministers to just slightly increase food imports and let it slide.

There had been something similar before, but the location and conversation were different.

So this was a dream.

Remeia had no idea I was possessed, and she had zero interest in such matters—she'd never come to my room.

'What kind of bullshit dream is this...'

Once I pieced it together, my eyes snapped open.

"Hah, hah..."

Like anyone waking from a nightmare, I sat up, gasping for breath.

My back was already soaked with cold sweat.

'Even after possessing, I'm still doomed to overwork death?'

There was no curse like this.

With the tension gone, my dreams were turning vicious, it seemed.

Glancing around, the sun outside the window was already high in the sky.

"Eek!"

Trying to get up, I nearly slipped on a book on the floor.

Looking down, the crumpled cover boldly read History of the Kletan Empire.

The letters were like powerful sleeping pills—I must have dozed off after just a few pages.

'If I'd read a comic instead, maybe I'd have had a decent dream.'

After washing up in the bathroom, I grabbed the meal left by the door and ate lying down in luxury.

The room, now familiar, felt like the coziest nest imaginable.

...Had it really been four or five days living like this already?

Surprisingly, no one here cared what I did.

It was incomparable to my old life, where I lived by the minute and barely slept past dawn.

This was pure bliss.

Of course, after a while, luxurious thoughts of boredom crept in...

'But that's just luxury talking.'

Liam occasionally checked on me, but since I wasn't trying to escape—or even peeking out—they seemed to find it odd instead.

"Um, Liam..."

"If you're thinking of tempting or bribing me, don't even consider it. I am sworn to Duke of Brail..."

"No, I was just saying you don't need to make time in your busy schedule to come check on me."

"Trying to lull me into complacency so you can escape? What a childish trick."

A few days after being confined, the man who finally revealed his name as Liam turned out to have quite the humorous side.

To him, every action of mine seemed like a scheme to evade surveillance and flee.

Not bothering to clear up the misunderstanding, I'd given up explaining.

Then, a sudden knock echoed.

Knock knock.

"It's Liam."

Speak of the devil.

At the calm voice, I grumbled a bit peevishly.

"I said I have no intention of running."

"I'm not here for that today."

Creeeak.

The door, which I'd thought would stay shut forever, opened, and Liam—glasses perched with his middle finger—beckoned me.

"The Duke summons you."

"Me?"

"Yes."

Yes, you.

Seeing Liam stand there imposingly, as if saying exactly that, a bad premonition hit me.

No way... this sweet confinement life—this ultimate kidnap victim welfare—wasn't ending now, was it!

Feeling my heart shrink in fear, I began preparing.

And so, now.

Having my honey-like vacation forcibly cut short and dragged before the Duke, I couldn't bring myself to lift my head. Or rather, I couldn't.

First, an overwhelming pressure crushed me, suffocating. Second...

"Are my words not reaching you?"

"No..."

"Then why won't you meet my eyes? April Salt, second princess of the Salt Kingdom."

It was because of the Duke, mocking me with that twisted smile.

'Caught way faster than I thought.'

I hadn't expected to hide it forever.

These people had infiltrated a royal palace and kidnapped someone—they wouldn't fall for my flimsy lies.

Even if they'd mistaken me for someone else.

I looked up at the Duke with my eyes shaking like mad.

His nicely curved eyes seemed to glint with deceptive kindness.

'The smile makes him even scarier...'

It felt like being a herbivore before a predator.

I let out a shaky sigh.

"S-strictly speaking, it wasn't a lie. I'm not an official princess. I'm illegitimate... never formally acknowledged, never treated as part of the royal family..."

As the Duke's gaze turned icy, I swallowed my excuses and quickly apologized.

"S-sorry."

But I had no choice!

If they found out the useless illegitimate was kidnapped instead of the Remeia the crown prince desperately wanted, they'd be furious.

And if they negotiated with this body's father, King Berga would reject it outright. I was truly worthless to him. Then the enraged Duke would be even angrier.

In short, I just didn't want to anger this terrifying man—that was why I'd hidden my identity!

As I pondered how to explain, the Duke spoke first.

"Before that."

With those words, the light atmosphere turned heavy in an instant.

The smile vanished from his face as if it had never been, and he looked ready to draw a sword at any moment.

"How did you figure it out?"

...Figure out what?

That I'd be kidnapped?

I'd read the original story, but even I didn't know that.

Lost in irrelevant thoughts, I froze at his following interrogation.

"The Salt Kingdom's food imports have increased dramatically."

"Pardon?"

"Normally, I'd overlook it, but the timing is suspicious. Come to think of it, every policy approved by Princess Remeia lately has thwarted the crown prince's schemes."

Ha, haha, hahaha.

I'm screwed.

I quickly fixed my gaze on the floor. Meeting his eyes felt like he'd read all my thoughts.

Then the Duke—unnecessarily—stood and descended from the dais.

"As if you knew everything in advance."

Clack, clack.

His polished shoes approached right before me. My comically distorted face reflected in the black toe.

Was that nightmare last night actually prophetic?

I wasn't stupid; I knew what the Duke was grilling me about.

And during their investigation of me, I'd constantly worried how much they'd uncover.

Especially since the remaining Remeia wasn't the type to plug any holes.

"So."

Smooth.

The Duke's fingertips lifted my chin.

Ridiculously, even then, I could only muster a servile, awkward smile.

"Will you tell me how you saw through the Empire's scheme, Princess?"