LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 1
“The princess… has no intention of going outside, does she?”
At the calm voice, I froze with a forkful of cake halfway to my mouth.
“…Pardon?”
The one speaking to me was the man sitting across the table, a figure as if he had stepped straight out of a classic painting.
His strikingly dark green eyes and raven-black hair were features of a world-class beauty that made me feel strangely humbled when our gazes met.
Though I’d grown somewhat accustomed to it, the aura of intimidation he exuded was still overwhelming to confront directly.
Unbothered by this, he spoke his mind anyway.
“How about going outside for a bit today?”
“…Excuse me?”
“They say a walk or some light exercise after a meal is good for your health.”
To an outsider, it might have sounded like a thoughtful suggestion from a handsome man, but I had a slightly different opinion.
‘As expected, today as well…’
I swallowed my disappointment and put the fork down.
The man’s gaze followed the movement of the crystal fork, locking onto me.
“I am a sinner, after all. Just being invited to share a meal like this is already too much.”
Putting on a deeply apologetic expression, I avoided his gaze, lowering my eyes and biting my lip.
Based on past experiences, in situations like this, the best course of action was to play the pitiful victim.
“So… I think it’s only right for me to spend the day reflecting on my misdeeds.”
If possible, I’d prefer not to step outside tomorrow—or ever again, for that matter.
“Do you realize your ‘reflection’ has now lasted two weeks?”
However, the man—no, Duke Blaire —replied with an utterly cold expression.
“And wasn’t it because you claimed it was too hot outside?”
“Ah… haha.”
To explain his point, yes, I thought it would be inconsiderate to make the attendants accompanying me suffer in the heat.
But in truth, as Blaire suggested, it was just an excuse. I simply didn’t want to go out.
Perhaps knowing this all too well, he pressed further.
“And the prior ‘reflection’ was because you fell asleep on your comics, wasn’t it? You said you felt sorry for the illustrators.”
“Uh…”
Please, stop pointing out the painful truths.
Maybe sensing my desperate plea, the duke fell silent but continued to assault me with his piercing gaze.
‘Persistent, isn’t he…’
An awkward silence fell between us. I turned my head to escape his sharp eyes.
But then, unable to help myself, I offered a feeble excuse.
“…Since I dared to disrespect the comics you so kindly provided by sitting on them with my unworthy self, I deserve to be punished, don’t I?”
For the first time, the duke’s lips twitched into something resembling a smile.
“If anyone hears this, they’ll think I’ve been cruel to you.”
“Oh no, that’s a misunderstanding. Haha.”
Though our little tug-of-war had gone on for days, I had no intention of surrendering.
“Um… the thing is, I happen to have a very high moral standard. My conscience feels at ease only after I’ve been punished.”
“And?”
“As such… sharing the same space and even breathing the same air as Your Grace feels like a sin in itself.”
“Go on.”
The duke crossed his arms, as if to signal he was enjoying my excuses.
There was a subtle but unmistakable resolve in his demeanor, making it clear that he was determined to pester me.
‘Why is he so insistent on sending me out?’
Wasn’t I supposed to be a useless outcast?
When did he go from telling me to stay locked up in my room to nagging me to go out for my health?
I couldn’t understand why his once-cold eyes now carried the pressuring concern of a mother.
Trapped by the bizarre pressure, I swallowed a sigh and made my move.
“Well… in that case…”
Scraping my chair back, I stood up abruptly. The relentless gaze followed my every movement.
“Since I’m already suffocating with guilt, I, April Salt, will now return to my room.”
Before he could respond, I bolted upright.
This was the best strategy: run while I could. There was no way he’d follow me into my peaceful and cozy cell.
“Wait…”
I heard the duke’s voice behind me, but I pretended not to and hurried away.
Clutched in my arms was a slice of sweet whipped cream cake.
‘Surely, he won’t scold me for taking some cake, right?’
Cake was calorie-dense.
If I polished this off, I could probably survive until lunch tomorrow without eating anything else. That was my grand plan.
And as long as I stayed in bed, my calorie consumption would plummet to near-zero, so I wouldn’t even feel faint!
Fearing the duke might follow, I quickly darted into my room.
“Phew…”
Finally back in the comforting darkness of my specially made, blackout-curtained sanctuary, I felt my heart calm.
As expected, I was nothing if not a homebody.
* * *
was a pitiable, overworked 20-something office worker who had died of exhaustion.
To sum it up, I died a meaningless death, only to find myself reincarnated into a novel I’d been reading that morning on my commute. So far, so cliché.
The problem? The novel was The Forced Empress, a dark romance filled with obsession, featuring a madly possessive crown prince and a tragic princess.
‘Couldn’t I at least get some reincarnation perks?’
Tears of frustration welled up.
In the story, the protagonist was Lemeia Salt, the treasure of the Salt Kingdom—a rare beauty who could have been king if only she’d been born male. She was fiercely courted by the bloodthirsty crown prince, Raiden.
But unlike what was revealed in the novel, all of her achievements were built on the sacrifices of someone unknown.
That someone was April Salt, the true tragic princess, who, being an illegitimate child, was barely treated as royalty.
‘And guess who I reincarnated as? That’s right: April.’
In one word, I’m screwed.
Lemeia, praised with all kinds of flattering adjectives like kind, wise, and virtuous, was actually someone without a shred of empathy.
She would lock me in the office without food until I cleared mountains of paperwork.
And even after finishing the paperwork, my day wouldn’t be over.
“April, I’ve been feeling so tired lately. I think my body is worn out. Could you give me a massage tonight?”
My grueling day would only end after doing mental labor during the day and personal chores at night.
While other transmigrators in novels often enjoyed dramatic protagonist privileges, I had none of that.
Instead, I lived as a slave for three long months in an environment that was as bad as, or worse than, the one I died from overworking.
But then.
Then…?
An unexpected opportunity to escape came knocking. Though calling it an escape might be a bit of a stretch.
“Shh, stay quiet, or your pretty face might get hurt.”
Late one night, while I was stuck in the office handling Lemeia’s backlog of documents, I was abruptly silenced before I could react to the sudden intrusion.
“Mm-mmph! Mmph—!”
“We’ve secured Princess Lemeia.”
Amid my panic, I clearly heard the voice of the man who was presumably one of the kidnappers.
‘Lemeia?’
What? No, you’ve got the wrong person!
I looked up at the man, eyes wide.
The real Lemeia is lounging in her room right now after working me to death!
I’m not Lemeia—I’m her overworked slave!
“Mmmph!”
This is insane!
The kidnappers moved silently, like well-trained professionals, not making a single unnecessary noise in the darkness.
Who were these people? Enemies jealous of the protagonist Lemeia? Or just common criminals after a ransom?
As tears threatened to fall, the man covering my mouth leaned down and whispered.
“If you don’t sleep now, your beautiful skin will suffer, Princess.”
I’m going to lose my mind—this is so unfair!
I tried twisting my body to communicate somehow, but it only made things worse.
“A stubborn princess, are we? Knock her out.”
Just before the edge of a rough hand struck the back of my neck, a flash of realization crossed my mind like lightning.
Up until this moment, I thought the character I had transmigrated into was an unnamed extra who wasn’t even properly mentioned in the novel.
But April Salt, the illegitimate princess, was briefly mentioned in the middle of the story.
Her kidnapping in place of Lemeia was such a minor detail that it had escaped my memory.
“Grand Duke Blaire, who had arranged a deal with Raiden to deliver Princess Lemeia, later realized the target had been switched.”
‘So April was…’
Her life and fate were left unresolved until the end of the story.
In other words, she was a minor character who met an unjust and vague end, with a 99.9% chance of never seeing the light of day again.
And that was the fate I was now about to face.