When the Villainess is in Love

Chapter 5

* * *

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“Princess. Why have you come?”

The emperor stared down at me with a frosty gaze. He had always disapproved of Libertia because of the rumors surrounding her. I forced myself not to roll my eyes at how quickly he’d cut to the chase and consoled myself with the thought that I’d never have to see this man again after today.

I put on an unaffected, elegant smile and answered him directly, “Your Majesty, I mean to give up my right to the throne.”

The emperor froze. He eyed me up and down with narrowed eyes before asking, “What did you just say?”

“I said that I mean to give up my right to the throne. I do have a contingent wish, of course.”

I retained my smile and tried not to let all the words fall out at once.

The emperor scoffed and coldly replied, “A trade? How brazen of you. Just who do you think you are speaking to? Do not tell me you are relying on your mother’s side of the family in asking this.”

My mother’s side of the family, huh? To be fair, Libertia’s mother’s family belonged to a great noble house worthy of respect. However, there was no way I could rely on them. House Vanus was one of the founding noble houses of the empire, but most of its members had deserted the politics of the empire and were lying low. That was the whole reason Libertia had no power as a princess. This was all thanks to Lysian Vanus, Princess Libertia’s mother and the most evil villainess the world had ever seen.

“Of course not, Your Majesty.”

Frankly, it made sense that the emperor was so irritated by this shameless proposal. But instead of panicking, I straightened my back. I might have angered him, but I could tell I had caught him off guard too. I needed to push forward.

“Your Majesty. If I abdicate the throne, it would be incredibly advantageous to His Highness the crown prince, would it not? Not to mention, you would not have to worry about my mother’s side of the family any longer, since they would be losing their only tie to the imperial family. Don’t you agree?”

Since the emperor had brought up Libertia’s relatives, I decided to clarify that point as well, especially since the emperor still seemed wary of the influential House Vanus despite its members being powerless now.

“You… Has the devil taken leave of your senses?”

The emperor was angry at how directly I spoke.

Hiding my glee, I continued, “Actually, Your Majesty…”

I smiled faintly, appearing solemn yet also slightly wistful. I practiced so many times to nail down this expression! Frowning, he wondered what I’d say next, but I gave him no time to think and delivered my final attack.

“Just yesterday, my physician told me that I do not have much longer to live.”

The emperor stared at me in silence, blinking for a moment in clear confusion. Then his expression turned into another scowl. He obviously didn’t believe me.

“What sort of ruse is this?”

“This is no ruse, Your Majesty.”

“I doubt that, Princess. You appear to have underestimated me. Do I look like the kind of man easily swayed by such petty lies?”

Oh come on, why are you being so stubborn? Some emperor you are. Shouldn’t you ask what the other person wants first, even if it seems like a trick? The conditions I had proposed were tempting enough, after all.

I scoffed internally and faced him calmly. Still smiling faintly, I answered, “If you really doubt me, please verify my claim.”

He let out a huff of exasperated laughter. “As you wish. I shall do so. I expect this to be nothing but a fabrication. However, even if you speak the truth, you should not expect to gain anything from me, Princess.”

I smiled again as I looked up at the man who had yet to call me his daughter.

“Your Majesty, what could I dare to ask of you? All I wish for is my freedom.”

“Nonsense.”

The emperor waved his hand dismissively, clearly not listening to me. He was gesturing for me to leave. Despite being part of the cast of characters from the novel, he was really getting on my nerves.

But I put on an even gentler smile and said, “It is the honest truth. Please, Your Majesty. If you would grant me freedom, I will gladly give up my right to the throne. I require nothing more. No title or servants—none of it.” Just some cold hard cash, please!

The emperor still seemed very suspicious of me, but he didn’t wave me away again.

“I will also leave the palace.”

“What?”

Aha! I’ve got him now!

The emperor seemed slightly rattled. “You mean to simply leave? Are you saying that you will give up your position as a member of the imperial family entirely?”

Oh, is that what that means? No wonder he looked so surprised.

Without hesitation, I replied, “That’s right—as soon as three months from now, in fact. I will endeavor to retreat from the public eye and stay out of everyone’s way once I leave the palace.”

I’ll fangirl for three months, then take all the money I can carry and disappear!

I quickly fixed my expression, having nearly let my lips spread into a dopey grin. I lowered my gaze in the most subdued expression I could muster.

“What is the true meaning of this, Princess?”

If I don’t take this seriously, he won’t believe me! He looked more confused than irritated, but I continued as if I hadn’t noticed, “I wish to be free, for the short time I have left. That is all, Your Majesty.”

The emperor fell silent.

Man, I deserve an Oscar. That was flawless!

As I trailed off in a whisper, the emperor blinked at me slowly. He still looked doubtful, but he was clearly more puzzled now. Compared to how the conversation had begun, he seemed to have nothing to say. His fiery temper had cooled, and soon his confusion seemed to ebb away as well. I was pretty sure of my success as I watched him fall into reverie. Now, hurry up and make a decision!

“Freedom, eh? How ridiculous. However…”

However? However what?

He met my calm gaze in a similarly calm manner. This time, his silence didn’t linger, and the change in his expression was very obvious. For a moment, utter bewilderment crossed the emperor’s countenance, but he slowly blinked it away before continuing in a dry tone.

“We will speak of this again… tomorrow. Leave me now.”

Aww, man. I should have known that he’d needed to confirm with the doctor first. But still, he hadn’t reacted poorly. In any case, now that the emperor had dismissed me in earnest, I had no more right to speak.

Maintaining my smile until the very end, I curtsied respectfully. Then I turned around and slowly left the throne room, the emperor’s eyes boring into my back.

* * *

Two whole days passed before the emperor summoned me. In the meantime, I had managed to befriend my personal maids, Linny and Irene. Their eyes sparkled as they answered every one of my questions about being a maid in a fantasy setting. They’re just too cute.

My pleased smile was interrupted by a cough. Blood stained the corner of my mouth. Ignoring the shocked look of a maid who was just passing by, I merely wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and continued to walk along.

“This must be a memory from when Libertia was two.”

I could hear the sound of a toddler whining. In Libertia’s memory, when she was a year old, the only thing I could hear was a baby crying. The wonderful sound of the amazing Libertia as a baby! I cleared my throat to avoid being distracted by the new memory and tried to focus on what lay ahead. Everything about Libertia was just so amazing.

Resolving to inspect this new memory closely once I was done with my audience with the emperor, I realized I had already arrived at the throne room.

The emperor looked tired today. He stared at me for a moment before speaking up.

“You were speaking truth.”

I smiled faintly in acknowledgment, and the emperor furrowed his brow. He gazed into the distance, narrowing his eyes, before scowling again.

“The day before yesterday…”

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“You told me what you wished for. Tell me what else you want.”

Unlike the other day, his expression was unreadable.

I gazed into his eyes for a moment before replying, “Nothing.”

The emperor waited for me to continue.

“I already told you everything I wanted, Your Majesty.”

My instincts were telling me not to bring up money right now. I figured I would save that request for three months from now. He didn’t ask again, simply staring at me with that inscrutable expression. He seemed to be staring at my mouth in particular.

But why? When I blinked at him in question, he quickly avoided my gaze and spoke up again.

“When you said you wanted freedom, what did you mean exactly?”

“Spending the rest of my life somewhere far away, living without worries.”

Even I could tell that my tone was incredibly gentle. All that practice really paid off! Oh, also…

“And I wish not to be bound by a political marriage.”

The emperor gazed at me in silence.

Finally, he said, “I grant you this wish.” Just as I was ready to rejoice, he added, “But for the next year, you must remain in the palace as the princess.”