I Was Adopted by the Villain Grand Duke Who Killed My Favorite Character - Chapter 2

Even the most delicious food becomes tiresome if eaten continuously. What if you were forced to be reborn and live again endlessly?

That was exactly my life.

I had been born thirty-two times in the world of “The Saint’s Kiss of Happiness.” And each time, I was reborn as a character unrelated to the original story.

Especially the first time I was born, it was hundreds of years before the original story began. If the country names hadn’t been familiar, I might not have realized I was in a novel.

I lived as a tenant farmer, digging potatoes, and died of old age, completely unrelated to the novel.

‘Why was I born again?’

When my second life began as a blacksmith’s daughter, I sensed that something was wrong. There was still quite some time left before the original story would begin.

With a positive mindset, I ended that life as the first female blacksmith. Should I be grateful that I was born a woman every time?

After that, my lives continued endlessly.

I was a florist, a merchant, a knight, and various other things.

At some point, the idea of achieving something in life felt distant. I had enjoyed power and fame to the point of boredom, so what else could I want?

When I closed my eyes, I could hear voices from my previous lives calling for me.

“Sword Master Kashian, please look this way!”

“They say that person is the youngest Grand Magician…!”

“Are you the young master of the merchant guild? I have a deal to propose to you.”

“They say the sword you made as a blacksmith is the best?”

Isn’t living becoming a bit tiresome?

Through countless lives, both emotions and memories have worn away. Perhaps if I saw the ending of the original story, this terrible cycle of life would end.

‘Because it’s a world inside a novel.’

At some point, my only goal had been waiting for the ending of the original story. In my fourth life as a magician, I cast a spell on my soul to not forget the memories of the original story.

Thanks to that, I could clearly remember the original story even as many other memories became hazy.

‘It was a cliché romance fantasy.’

Hella, an innocent girl raised in the countryside, suddenly receives a revelation from God and becomes a saint. In her first prayer after becoming a saint, she sees the future crisis that will befall the empire in the form of a dream.

[Flames rose from all directions. The face of the man holding the sword was unrealistically beautiful. Hella realized that the man who would bring the empire to ruin was Yurian del Astarote, the Grand Duke of the North.]

Hella tries to prevent the future she saw in her dream by cooperating with the male lead, the Crown Prince, but eventually, Grand Duke Yurian’s rebellion occurs as predicted.

‘The Grand Duke uses the illegitimate Princess Juno as justification for the rebellion and occupies the imperial palace.’

The emperor is killed, and Crown Prince Michael, who becomes a fugitive, succeeds in counterattacking with the help of the female protagonist Hella, who can see the future.

The novel ends with a typical happy ending.

[Hella, who defeated the villain Grand Duke, lived happily ever after with Crown Prince Michael.]

How long I had waited for the timeline of the original story?

In my thirty-second life as a slave, I finally met Juno, the extra princess from the original story. At last, the original story had begun.

‘It must end exactly as in the original story.’

At that time, I had no intention of interfering with the original story at all. If left alone, things would progress according to the novel, so why should I?

It would be troublesome if the original story got twisted because I unnecessarily intervened. So I ignored the kindness Juno showered on me, a mere slave child.

I also thought that kindness given without expecting anything in return couldn’t be trusted.

“Your kindness is just hypocrisy.”

“Liat, you’re so smart. You even know difficult words. But does that mean you won’t eat this bread?”

“…Give it to me.”

Juno, the extra princess from the original story whom I met after waiting for hundreds of years, was a hopeless pushover. You, who shared your bread even though you had been starving for days.

A face that smiled brightly even in despair.

The Princess Juno illustrated in the novel had an expressionless and overbearing appearance.

‘It’s not the same at all.’

Juno’s ash-gray eyes, sparkling with various emotions, were like beautiful jewels. Even the harsh surrounding environment couldn’t hide the radiance she possessed.

‘How can you smile like that?’

That appearance of not losing hope even in the worst situations stimulated my worn-out emotions.

When was it that I started to give my heart to Juno, who had slowly seeped in? A new wish arose in me, who had only been waiting for the original story to end.

I thought it would be okay to change the fate of just one extra. I wanted to see Princess Juno become happy, unlike in the original story.

But she died wishing for my happiness.

“…Don’t cry, Liat. Even if I die, you should be happy.”

This can’t be happening!

In the original story, Juno was rescued by Grand Duke Yurian, used as a puppet emperor, and ended her life by suicide as an ill-fated extra.

At least she wasn’t destined to die lonely in this cold iron cage.

Why? What went wrong?

Right. This was all because of the Grand Duke who didn’t come as he should have in the original story. I couldn’t forgive the Grand Duke who caused Juno’s death by being late.

‘No. This isn’t right.’

Even though I poured out my resentment to the Grand Duke I had been waiting for, my heart felt empty.

Ah. I had been resenting the wrong target.

What I truly couldn’t forgive was my powerless self who couldn’t protect Juno. The memories of living countless lives were useless.

If only I had been strong enough to protect you.

“…I’m sorry, Grand Duke.”

That’s why I apologized to the Grand Duke just before my breath was cut off. The Grand Duke’s purple eyes, which had rippled, sank deeply.

The Grand Duke’s following voice was tinged with question.

“Why are you apologizing?”

Well. I wonder why.

The Grand Duke caught my hand as it fell, losing strength. The Grand Duke, who had knelt on one knee, looked down at me without taking any action.

For someone watching a person dying before his eyes, his gaze was terribly cold.

I rather liked that gaze that didn’t pity me. I couldn’t know how the original story, destroyed by Juno’s death, would flow.

‘If this is punishment, I’ll gladly accept it.’

I thought I felt the Grand Duke’s cold hand touch my wet cheek where tears were flowing. I hoped this life would be the last and I wouldn’t be reborn again.

I closed my eyes, ruminating on my last wish.

***

It’s been a while since I’ve had a life flashing before my eyes.

The thirty-one previous lives passed by one by one. Some lives were just blurry passages with only memorable moments of impressive scenes.

‘This life was short.’

When I felt the end of this life approaching, I heard Juno’s voice calling me.

“Liat. You promised to be happy in my place.”

I don’t know about such a promise.

I wanted to say that it was impossible to be happy without you, but a gentle touch from the darkness pushed my back toward the light.

Reflexively reaching out my hand, I saw a blurry figure melting into the darkness.

“…You!”

Don’t leave me behind and go alone.

My hand, which had swept through the air, didn’t touch anything and fell downward.

When I opened my eyes, I was in an unfamiliar room.

The chirping of birds outside the window and the soft touch of the blanket. I lay dazed, basking in the sunlight pouring in from the window.

‘I was surely dying.’

Moreover, I could feel that my body condition was much better than before I lost consciousness. I wiggled my skinny fingers and then threw off the blanket.

‘Let’s move for now.’

Someone seemed to be arguing outside, as I could hear bickering voices behind the open door.

“This is a direct order from His Grace the Grand Duke.”

“But how can you put a sick child in a maid’s room?”

“Sir Gerard. His Grace only said to keep her alive.”

A pink-haired knight in uniform was arguing with a maid. Looking closely at the knight’s face, I realized it was the knight who had been standing next to the Grand Duke.

So that knight’s name was Gerard.

That meant it was indeed the Grand Duke I met in the iron cage who had saved me. I slowly moved towards where they were.

“Don’t you know she was trapped in the dark mage’s tower?”

“I only followed orders. If she’s unsatisfied with the room, tell His Grace directly.”

“How can that young one speak directly to him?”

“Then you’ll have to accept it.”

It seemed they were talking about me.

I turned my head and scanned the room visible behind the open door. A simple room equipped with a large, soft bed, a dresser, and a bathroom.

Compared to the iron cage filled with filth and blood, it was no different from heaven.

“…Excuse me.”

I opened my mouth cautiously, but Gerard, distracted by his conversation with the maid, didn’t hear me.

I stood on my tiptoes and pulled Gerard’s trouser leg with all my might. Only then did Gerard turn to look at me, surprise settling in his green eyes.

‘What should I say?’

I was conscious of my slow development and inarticulate pronunciation as I didn’t speak much. In fact, it was amazing that I could stand like this right now.

Gerard bent one knee to meet my hesitant gaze. His gentle eyes, softly curved, eased my tension.

“You’re awake. Are you feeling any pain?”

“…Good.”

“Pardon?”

“Good. That room. Not dark and clean.”

As I pointed to the room with my finger, Gerard’s brow furrowed. Gerard, who seemed to be holding something back as he bit his lip tightly, soon smiled faintly.

“Soon you’ll be able to receive treatment befitting a princess.”

“Princess?”

“Yes, Princess. Is there a problem?”

My mind went blank at Gerard’s casual question.

He’s calling me a princess?

Could it be that the Grand Duke mistook me for Princess Juno and saved me? Come to think of it, my hair was red like Juno’s in the original story.

But Juno, who was thirteen, and I, who was six, didn’t look alike at all.

At that moment, a piece of information from the original story that I had glossed over flashed through my mind.

[Because the imperial family had hidden information about the illegitimate princess, the Grand Duke only knew that she had red hair and was born with a special power passed down in the imperial family.]

“…This can’t be.”

Only then could I understand why I, who should have died, woke up alive in the Grand Duke’s residence.

To think I’d be mistaken for Princess Juno and saved.

I hadn’t wished to live from the moment Juno died. How long would it take for the Grand Duke to realize I wasn’t the princess?

‘This isn’t what I wanted.’

There seemed to have been some misunderstanding in the process of bringing me from the iron cage. I opened my mouth urgently, wanting to tell the truth.

Imagining Gerard’s eyes turning cold when he learned the truth, I suddenly felt scared.