I, the Female Lead, Ruined the Original

Rakrensius’s low voice echoed eerily as he asked. So, he was angry at the situation, which caused sadness for Selleana. Seeing the sorrow on his face, Selleana quickly shook her head.

“N-No.”

Selleana’s gaze turned once again toward Michi and Prince Erenst. Fortunately, Erenst, upset by the disrupted atmosphere, had retreated to his original seat on the single sofa.

“As expected, someone who values face so much wouldn’t try again after such a disruption.”

Thankful, Selleana gave Rakrensius a painful smile and took out the map of the capital from her bosom.

“Next, please take me here.”

“This place…” Confirming the spot her finger pointed to, Rakrensius looked at Selleana in surprise.

“Can we go here secretly as well? To the 5th floor.”

“Well, it’s possible, but…”

The place she pointed to was No. 17 Edellun Street, a bustling area in the capital. In other words, it was the building of the Benichi Salon.

Moreover, not long ago…

Hadn’t Priestess Agnesia troubled them by suddenly changing?

“The heir of the Benichi Trading Company, the high priestess of Orot, and Lady Glen, the leader of the neutral faction, are all friends of mine.”

Selleana was always confident in her bonds with her friends. Rakrensius couldn’t even imagine how much she had struggled and felt conflicted until now, causing his throat to feel tight. The joy of being someone she could trust had long since faded.

“Lady.”

“…Yes?”

“After we finish today’s schedule, can you tell me what’s really going on?”

So, Rakrensius had been angry all along.

* * *

It was in Doloret’s office. The visitor appeared after Selleana and Rakrensius had observed Doloret working alone for about thirty minutes.

—a polite knock was followed by the entrance of a tall gentleman with brown curly hair.

“…”

Seeing the expected scene, a bitter smile appeared on Selleana’s lips.

With warm green eyes, the man entered, holding a bouquet of pink roses and baby’s breath. “May Orot’s blessing be upon you in this peaceful afternoon. You look beautiful as always, Lady Benichi.”

“Welcome, Lord Hargen. What have you brought again… Please, sit over here.”

The hideout, always bustling with the venting of transmigration club friends, now tingled with the fresh emotions of the two.

“By the way, it seems all the secretaries have left?”

“Yes, there wasn’t much work today, so I told them to leave early. I’m sorry, I couldn’t even serve you tea properly…”

“No, it’s quite alright. Having it served by you… it brings back old memories, and it’s nice.”

Doloret gently smiled and poured tea for both Urihi Hargen and herself. Until now, tea to Doloret had been merely a prop for business meetings. Even when meeting friends, she drank coffee from the Benichi Salon, so serving tea herself was quite a significant gesture. It was like displaying the basic manners of a lady, just like other noblewomen…

“I am pleased to see you earlier than usual, but… come to think of it, the atmosphere in the office has changed a lot. It looks much brighter…”

“Recently, I reduced my workload significantly. I have friends who have helped me since I was young, and I gave them long-term rewards for their hard work.”

Selleana’s brows furrowed slightly as she listened.

“So, you’re saying managing the guild has become too bothersome…”

Guild? Though Selleana’s words seemed contextually irrelevant, Rakrensius chose to wait for further explanation.

Meanwhile, Doloret and Urihi Hargen chatted about the silver grass fields outside the capital, the current situation of Count Hargen’s couple, and how Doloret, who had vowed to remain single, considered making her brightest nephew her heir. These were all topics Doloret had never brought up before.

As their conversation grew warmer, Doloret slowly lifted her head after sipping her tea. “Lord Hargen.”

“Yes?”

“How about we start addressing each other by our names like before?”

Doloret, who suggested this, had an expression that Selleana hadn’t seen even once in the past eight years.

“Then…”

“Yes, Doloret.”

It was a face full of shyness.

“Master of Tower.”

“…Yes.”

“I’d like to have a martini… Could you make one for me?”

“…”

Even if Selleana’s eyes weren’t glowing crimson, Rakrensius couldn’t refuse her.

* * *

“I tailed Michi recently.”

“Tailed, you say?”

“We had a small argument while returning from an outing.”

Those two, who were always so close, arguing…? Though it was hard to imagine, Rakrensius calmly waited for the next part. It wasn’t as shocking as what he had seen today.

“Neither of us was at fault. We were both just on edge… Anyway, Michi said she would buy pudding to cheer up.”

“Pudding.”

“I like the pudding from Rollina’s in the capital. It’s the same one you bought when you visited me when I was sick before. Anyway, Michi was looking for that pudding to cheer me up.”

“Indeed… Lady Branto.”

“Yes… she should have suggested wine instead, right?”

“…”

Selleana fiddled with the martini glass Rakrensius had made for her. It was the same triangular glass he had prepared for her last visit, indicating he expected such a meeting again. This, too, was a subtle indication of Rakrensius’s concern.

Smiling slightly, Selleana continued. “So, I asked one of my guards to find out where she was going…”

“It was that safe house from earlier, wasn’t it?”

“Yes,” Selleana nodded with her head hanging.

“Then, when she came home that day, I asked what we talked about earlier. What if Pavellian never lets me go….”

Selleana often called the crown prince whatever she wanted in private, so Rakrensius wasn’t surprised anymore.

“But Michi would never ask such a thing.”

“…”

“Michi is the kind of friend who supports whatever I want to do and believes I can do anything.”

Selleana recalled the nightmare she had after falling into the water during the hunting competition. The same situation. Two choices.

The current Selleana, who decided not to participate in the crown princess selection, pursued her desires. And the dream version of herself, trying to navigate the situation to walk the paved path as the crown princess.

In both reality and dreams, Michi was always on her side. She supported whatever Selleana wanted to do without worrying about it going wrong. But that same Michi doubted Selleana’s decision now.

“And then… she started sneaking out frequently, making various excuses.”

“Could it be… Lady Branto changed her mind?”

“…”

“Didn’t Lady say that Priestess Agnesia acted contrary to her usual ways? Could it be the same with Lady Branto…?”

“I don’t know.” Selleana bit her lip. “Now, I wonder if the friends I knew were just one facet of who they really are. At home, in the face of love, they could be different people…”

Hearing this, Rakrensius’s brows furrowed.

Selleana smiled softly, stood up, and sat beside Rakrensius.

Her hand naturally reached his forehead.

“…That’s why I didn’t want to tell you, Master of Tower. I thought you’d blame yourself for everything.”

“No, it’s just…”

“But there’s no one else I can talk to about this than to Master of Tower.”

Even if she told her family, they would just think her rowdy friends had come to their senses.

“Most importantly, no one else can help me now. It used to be just Doli and me, but as you saw earlier…”

Selleana’s bitter smile deepened. In fact, the day Michi met Prince Erenst, Selleana secretly met Doloret using Rakrensius as an alibi.

Seeing such a lukewarm reaction had shocked her deeply.

“But there’s something I’m curious about.”

“Yes?”

“Seeing Lady Branto earlier, you said it shouldn’t be like that…”

“Master of Tower.” Selleana gently interrupted him, placing her hand on his thigh. “Even I should have one secret, right?”

“That’s true, but…”

Selleana didn’t feel comfortable making secrets from him. However, revealing her past life and original story would mean exposing her friends’ secrets too. Instead, she chose to tell him what needed to be said today.

“You know, I got a message from the imperial palace.”

Rakrensius’s eyebrows lifted.

“The empress wants to see me.”