The Villainess Proposed a Contractual Marriage

The late Second Empress was Yulian's mother.

The First Prince's mother was the Empress, while the Second Prince's was the First Empress. Among them, only the Second Empress had passed away.

The Second Empress's crimes were twofold:

First, she underestimated the dangers of palace intrigue.

Second, she bore a child of extraordinary talent.

Either would be an unforgivable sin in the eyes of the palace's master. Even the lowest servant could guess that the Empress had orchestrated the Second Empress's assassination.

The First Prince brought up these well-known circumstances, confronting Yulian aggressively.

"How dare you return here? I've long known the Court Count favors you. Do you know why I've left you alone despite that?"

"..."

"..."

"If you want to cling to your pitiful life, renounce your succession rights and go into seclusion like Rayners. I'm sure they can spare some coin for you."

It was too painful to listen any longer.

I stepped forward, intending to grab Yulian's wrist and flee. But Elphisia caught my wrist instead, quietly shaking her head.

She silently watched Yulian with an intense gaze.

I understood her intention moments later.

"You seem afraid, brother."

"What?"

"The Empress was the same. Worried about a brother who could achieve nothing on his own, she greatly feared the young boy who taught himself statecraft from age four."

I was shocked by this unfamiliar side of Yulian.

It stunned me that a mere ten-year-old could wear such a bitter sneer, and I only just realized the boy could utter such cutting insults.

It was jarringly different from his usual efforts to hide his childishness, leaving me shaken.

"And your premise is flawed, brother. I assure you, no matter who you sent or what orders you gave, your sordid desires were impossible to realize from the start."

"You're overflowing with baseless confidence, little brother."

"I have plenty of reasons, actually."

"What?"

The First Prince furrowed his brow at his brazen youngest brother's attitude. Yulian glanced our way, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Whoever the assassin was... I doubt they're better at word chain games than me."

"Have you lost your mind...?"

"The mad one is you, brother, still seeing me as that young boy of old."

Yulian's expression seemed utterly serene at first glance. Yet he didn't yield an inch to the man who was practically his mortal enemy.

Elphisia's assurance had proven correct.

The aspects of Yulian I'd seen until now were merely fragments of his true self.

"You should have killed me while I was still at the Court Count's residence, brother. To ensure your indolence comes back to haunt you...

I'll do my utmost."

"Your arrogance knows no bounds, backed by a duke and a count. You still have nothing. The world has forgotten you even existed."

"That's why I intend to carve out my place, step by step."

Yulian slowly counted on his fingers, like a child doing arithmetic. Finishing his brief calculation, the boy confidently declared war.

"Five years. I'll take your place within just five years."

"Five years is a long time. I'll be named Crown Prince within those five years."

"You still don't understand His Majesty the Emperor? He's nothing but a machine running the empire. The type of man who'd readily replace you if he found a better specimen. Just as he ignored the Empress's atrocities, deeming a mother unnecessary."

"You-"

"Do take care, brother. Everything but your limbs will ultimately become mine... so please don't damage them in the meantime."

The First and Third Princes faced each other.

Though none dared approach closely, a crowd inevitably gathered. Yulian had just formally declared his intent to participate in the succession struggle, right here and now.

The day had suddenly arrived for the nobility to place the greatest bets of their lives.

Having unilaterally stated his intentions, Yulian turned and walked away without a backward glance. The crowd parted like the Red Sea before the dignified little boy.

We stood at the end of his path.

As Yulian opened his mouth to speak, I placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Well done."

"Director..."

"Papa is proud of you."

For a moment, Yulian's warmth, tinged with emotion, cooled abruptly.

"... Oh, for f*ck's sake."

"Puberty already? Kids these days grow up so fast."

I piled on with another joke.

"Deep down, you acknowledged my word game skills while pretending not to. You're just like Elphisia, unable to be honest. What a pair."

"W-Why are you suddenly dragging me into this?!"

"I only meant to provoke my brother!"

Looking at them now, Elphisia and Yulian really do seem alike. To think this world's male lead and villainess would be the most similar. What an ironic contradiction.

'Wait... could this also be considered the original route in some way?'

Tina and Glen had undoubtedly diverged from the original storyline, but Yulian alone had returned here.

So I couldn't help but wonder:

'In the original story... why did I die?'

With a baptismal name, my head would reattach instantly even if severed. Logically, the only way I could die would be from natural causes due to old age.

'In the original timeline, I was only in my 30s... so it definitely wasn't old age.'

What on earth happened behind the scenes of the original story? As absurd as it sounds, suicide seemed the most likely possibility.

I looked up, taking in Yulian and Elphisia.

A rabbit-like child and a fox-like wife stood by my side.

Would I ever be capable of abandoning them to commit suicide?

'If my cause of death was suicide, it'd be the furthest thing from who I am now.'

For now, I can only live on as cautiously as possible.

The future can change with even the tiniest actions, after all.

I just need to be mindful of my choices going forward.

Just as I resolved this-

"How splendid."

A woman of obvious wealth and status approached, clapping her hands.

Her dress was adorned with every precious gem imaginable. And atop her head sat a crown of gold and rubies, matching the Emperor's. Even a country bumpkin could instantly recognize her identity.

Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress.

The woman who wielded full authority over the empire's affairs, unless the Emperor intervened.

"To think that little child from back then has grown so. Perhaps it's thanks to the man behind you. How is caring for the Third Prince?"

"Not particularly-"

At that moment, Elphisia quickly cut me off, stepping in front of me.

"Don't say anything, Harte."

"Hmm."

With a flourish, the Empress unfurled a bright yellow fan, as if weaving the sunset. Only then did I recognize the tiger's maw before us, seeing the disappointment in her eyes.

'The principle of separation of church and state...!'

As long as my name was registered with the temple and I held a baptismal name, I absolutely could not interfere in politics. That would be a grave sin against the will of the deity.

Yet today, Yulian had declared his intent to fight at the center of political strife. From that moment, he had shed his identity as an orphanage child and emerged as a prince.

If I were to say I was still caring for such a boy now...

Those words would be interpreted with a very special meaning.

'She was trying to bait me into digging my own grave with the temple... with just a few words of greeting.'

What a cunning woman.

I had let my guard down far too much.

Of course she'd be a formidable opponent. After all, the Empress was the final hurdle Yulian and Tina had to overcome.

"You have a fine wife. To think a duke's daughter would care so much for her husband... how unexpected."

"Someone in a glass greenhouse once said the joy of supporting one's husband is quite addictive."

"And how is it?"

"Thoroughly satisfying. For both the giver and receiver."

A clear provocation.

She mocked the Empress, who could neither give nor receive with a man like the Emperor as her partner.

The Empress's eyebrow twitched, but that was all.

She did not lose her composure.

"I didn't recognize you, since you've been so quiet in social circles... but you have quite the sharp tongue, don't you? Duchess Luminel."

"Sharp enough to make widows with three inches of tongue?"

"My, I can't imagine who you mean."

The Empress feigned ignorance. Then her gaze turned to the tense Yulian.

"The world's storms will be relentless, child. Gales will assault you from all sides, yet you have but two walls to shield you. A precarious situation indeed."

Yulian didn't falter before her threat.

"Walls can be built over time. That's what people have hands and feet for."

"With those delicate little hands of yours? When will you start building?"

"I-"

Just as Yulian was about to retort, a resounding cry came from across the ballroom.

"I-I will...!!!"

The man stammered. His voice lacked any hint of confidence, and his stumbling gait seemed on the verge of collapse.

Yet the sincerity of his resolve was palpable.

"I... I will be my brother's third wall."

It was the Second Prince, Rayners.

The man who stiffened at the mere sight of the Empress came to a stop near Yulian.

"Not as the Second Prince... but as a future duke of the empire, I support my brother as the next emperor."

"Hah."

The Empress let out a derisive laugh.

She found the Second Prince laughable - sweating just from crossing the ballroom, yet stubbornly declaring his support for Yulian. The situation must have seemed utterly ridiculous to her.

But Yulian felt differently.

"Thank you, second brother. I gratefully accept your words."

"N-No, I should thank you. You still call me brother, even though I'm a hypocrite who ignored your plight all this time..."

"That very hypocrisy was desperately needed by someone."

"... I see. I'll change, I promise. After that, I'll properly support you. I'll become a brother you won't be ashamed of. My little brother..."

It was truly a beautiful resolution.

The Second Prince's eyes burned like blazing torches. Just an hour or so ago, he had been prostrating himself in the grass, casting aside his dignity. Yet now, he had transformed beyond recognition.

But for someone, such passion seems to grate.

"Rayners! Where do you think you're butting in, you overgrown oaf who can't tell up from down?"

It was the First Prince.

He strode forward aggressively, looking ready to grab Rayners by the collar.

"Mind your impudence! How dare you side with that commoner brat who strutted around some orphanage...!!!"

Mind your impudence...

Who could have guessed those words would be thrown right back at him?

The First Prince's intrusion was abruptly cut short by yet another intruder.

BANG!

As if an explosion had gone off, the heavy ballroom doors flew open. The recoil even caused them to half-close again.

All eyes inevitably turned to the commotion.

The intruder's grand entrance was heralded by the doorkeeper's trembling announcement:

"H-His Grace, Cardi Luminel, Imperial Sword of Protection... has arrived...!!!"

Another wave of shock swept through the room.

Every pair of eyes in the ballroom gaped at Duke Luminel in astonishment.

That man.

Perched proudly on his shoulders was a young girl, while his right hand firmly grasped a stiff-as-a-board boy of similar age.

"D-Daddy!"

"Ugh... Director..."

It was Tina and Glen. No matter how I rubbed my eyes, there was no mistaking Tina and Glen.

"W-Why are you two... here...?"

In my bewilderment, I lost part of my language ability.

As I struggled to find words, Cardi Luminel's deep voice rumbled with barely contained rage.

"Who dares..."

Amid the forced silence, his sharp gaze flashed dangerously.

"Who dared utter the word 'commoner'?"