I Plan to Repay Kindness with Enmity (1 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 14
Today, I had only intended to deliver a letter.
I figured there must be some prejudice against me, so I wanted to explain the situation before meeting at the banquet.
Of course, merely writing a long-winded letter wouldn’t solve anything. That’s why I enlisted the help of a “miracle potion.”
In the dark alleys of Amtein, where all sorts of shady characters in the kingdom gather, there’s an apothecary run by the quack alchemist Kai, who sells special concoctions.
Love potions that bewitch the heart, tonics so potent they’d rouse the dead from their slumber, skin elixirs that transform plain women into beauties—every potion bore a name that sounded utterly dubious.
What I bought at the apothecary was the “Warm Miracle Potion That Makes Even Detested People Seem Acceptable.” In short, it was merely a calming agent.
I’d used this potion often during my days on the streets; sprinkling it before approaching someone would lower their guard. It was, at the very least, a remedy whose effects had been proven.
Kai’s claim of having inherited the powers of a desert sorcerer was surely just boastful nonsense, but his talent for identifying herbs was undeniable.
If I delivered the letter sprinkled with this potion to the prince, it would at least slightly ease his wariness toward me.
That was my plan.
While Jenny, disguised as me, secured my alibi, I’d sneak into the prince’s chamber.
I’d place the pre-treated letter—prepared with the potion—beside his pillow.
When the prince absentmindedly read the letter, the calming agent would take effect, softening his suspicion of me.
He’d be left shaken and curious about my sudden, unseen appearance and disappearance.
Simple, yet perfectly executed—wasn’t it?
It was a plan that let me fully utilize the skills I’d honed as a former thief.
‘But how on earth did he find out I was here?’
Had my skills grown rusty?
Back in my prime, I’d even managed to sneak into the vault of a merchant infamous for his cruelty.
Admittedly, my smaller frame back then made movement easier, but now I had even more tools at my disposal—it should’ve been simpler than ever.
Indeed, hadn’t I slipped in here effortlessly just by hiding inside the gift box prepared for the prince? No one had noticed I was inside.
The only variable was this man’s beast-like intuition.
I glanced back at the prince.
In a room lit only by a single large candle casting dim light, he radiated an overwhelming presence.
His massive frame—rarely seen in Riorsa—gave the illusion of black heat haze rising from his body.
Thump-thump.
A memory from the past flickered through my mind.
[Then rest if you must, or do as you please.]His indifferent back, clearly signaling he had no intention of bothering me. Though his sharp eyes and towering build should’ve been frightening, strangely, I’d felt calm.
His low voice, which seemed to lodge firmly in my ears, had also left a strong impression. In that instant, my resolve to flee at the slightest provocation had vanished like smoke.
Among all the people I’d ever met, he was undoubtedly the most overpowering presence.
Most street criminals are superstitious—some even more devoutly so than they are toward Riorsa’s goddess, Marta.
I even knew a friend who believed that spitting in the morning meant he’d be scammed that day.
I, too, tended to trust my gut instincts. Back when I lived with my father, whenever something felt off, I’d stop him from going out on a job.
Without fail, something would go wrong—detectives would flood the streets, and pickpockets would be rounded up one after another.
The moment I met this man, I’d felt something—a flash of golden light before my eyes.
What else could that possibly signify but a golden future?
Anyway, I decided to bet on him.
‘At the very least, he’s worth abandoning the rotten rope that is Hubert Lorenst and switching sides.’
I rose to my feet. The sharp tip of a crudely fashioned weapon followed me like a shadow.
Its point pressed between my chest and navel.
I locked eyes with the man. His predator-like gaze narrowed ever so slightly.
Gulp.
I swallowed hard.
“Did King Hermannon send you?”
“You might think so, but this is entirely my own will.”
People trust low-pitched voices more than high ones!
I deliberately deepened my voice as much as possible, yet the prince didn’t even blink.
Right. You can’t fill your belly with the first spoonful.
“I haven’t even properly introduced myself yet.”
I cleared my throat with a soft “hm-hm” before continuing.
“I am…”
“Igraine Lorenst?”
“You know me!”
Overjoyed, I clapped my hands—then froze instantly. The prince had raised his terrifying weapon high, merely at the sight of me.
“Wait, wait, waiiit!”
I frantically reached out my hand.
‘Now that I think about it, him knowing my name isn’t a good thing at all!’
If he’d already heard stories about me, he’d surely formed prejudices. I’d taken this gamble precisely to erase those biases—but now that things had turned out this way, there was no choice.
“I understand exactly what’s on your mind, Your Highness! Just hear me out first! You won’t lose anything by it, I promise!”
Begging was my only option.
“You won’t lose anything?”
His dark eyes scanned me from head to toe.
“The new princess of Riorsa.”
His voice was terribly low yet richly resonant.
Oddly, despite the situation, I found myself thinking how pleasant it sounded.
Staring at him dumbfounded,
“Why did you come to me in such a state?”
“Huh?”
“What’s your intention?”
When I followed his gaze to where his eyes had landed, my face burned hot.
I’d borrowed these clothes from Chui during my recent visit to Amtein. Chui, once the youngest courtesan there, had since become its owner.
When I asked for a decent outfit they could spare, she’d laughed oddly and handed me this, saying it was the latest fashion or something.
Regardless, the sheer, translucent slip did look exactly like something perverted nobles would go wild over.
My plan had been to pretend I was a woman summoned by the prince if any servants caught me.
I hadn’t expected to be caught by the prince himself.
His face showed not a trace of lust, yet shame—uncharacteristic for me—welled up inside.
“Remarkable. You’re even more forward than the women of the desert.”
My face must’ve turned bright red, but I deliberately held my chin high.
“It’s due to personal circumstances.”
“Oh? Circumstances?”
“Yes. There’s something I need to discuss—would you be curious to hear it?”
“…Me?”
The prince responded a beat late. When I nodded, he fell silent, seemingly pondering whether to swing his weapon. I quickly changed tack.
“The reason I’ve taken such liberties to see you in person is, of course, to have a conversation—a constructive one that benefits us both.”
Though I’d never intended to even show my face, now that things had come to this, I spoke as if that had been my purpose all along.
“So this is how the kingdom requests a conversation.”
Ignore awkward remarks.
“For today’s meeting to be mutually beneficial, honesty is essential.”
“…”
“Your Highness, you must desire something from the kingdom, don’t you?”
“If I did, would you grant it?”
Just as I was about to answer, his dry voice cut in swiftly.
“Did you ever have the right to ask me such a question in the first place, fake princess?”
“Normally, no. But perhaps a fake princess who can marry the prince might?”
“…”
“If His Majesty the King wishes it—and if the Imperial Crown Prince desires it as well.”
Bracing myself for a blade to my gut, I stared straight into his eyes.
“Could you refuse?”
He smiled. His thin lips stretched into a long, sharp curve. The deep shadows cast by the hollows of his cheeks made him resemble a wicked statue seated at the gates of hell.
Gripping my pounding heart, I asked again.
“Why are you laughing?”
“If my elder brother truly desires it, then yes—it would be troublesome. So, what is it you wish to say? Are you here to call off this marriage?”
“I, who became a princess because of this matter, would never dare suggest such a thing. But if it’s what Your Highness wants…”
“…”
“I’d consider it.”
For the first time, the prince’s eyebrow twitched.
Even to my own ears, it sounded like, “If you want it, I’ll do it.” Which was partly what I’d intended.
“But more than such trivial matters, what I’m truly curious about is Your Highness’s purpose.”
“…”
“You didn’t come all this way just to marry the princess of Riorsa, did you?”
His eyebrow rose slightly higher. Though his gaze—clearly urging me to continue—made me nervous, I’d already gone too far to turn back.
“Especially not for a marriage whose success is uncertain.”
“…”
“Shall I take a guess?”
The prince’s purpose.
Hubert had wondered why the Empire truly sent the prince. For a political marriage? Impossible.
I’d never set foot in the Empire—having lived and died my whole life in the kingdom—but I remembered clearly the prince’s arrival in the kingdom.
After the marriage arrangement fell through, the only thing he took back to the Empire was a person.
If it had been a stoic barbarian warrior falling for a beautiful maiden of the kingdom, it’d make a perfect pulp novel—but sadly, that wasn’t the case.
The man he took was a middle-aged fellow with a thick beard.
His profession? A geologist—one who could locate underground water flowing deep beneath the earth.
‘The Empire needs water.’
What the prince truly desired was water.
“You wish to make water flow through the desert?”
The prince’s gaze, which had been looking down at me with amused disdain, froze solid.
Silence fell—a silence so dry it parched my throat.
“At first, I thought you were just a madwoman…”
“…”
“But you’ve got real guts.”
My hand trembled slightly.
My heartbeat thundered in my ears. I steadied my mind, refusing to let fear or weakness take hold.
The core spirit of a street rat is tenacity.
‘Never forget—this life is a gamble. What you need is…’
I stared straight into the man’s chilling eyes.
‘Courage!’
I focused all my will into my eyes.
Trying to make them blaze even brighter than the prince’s, my eyeballs quickly ached—as if blood vessels might burst.
Did my resolve get through to him?
Frowning, the prince took a step back.
“…You really are a madwoman.”
“I’m sorry.”
Before his weapon could move, I quickly relaxed my eyes. I must’ve overdone it.
I decided to just state my business plainly.
“I know how to summon rain to the desert.”
At that instant, my skin prickled—due to the aura radiating from the prince.
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
_____
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