The Princess Wants to Live (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 19
“Yes. She was the one who always carried around a tattered doll, claiming it was her daughter’s keepsake, so I’d been worried about her—and now they say she’s been absent from work without a word for quite some time….”
Ambre recited the Branch Manager’s words verbatim, down to the last particle, then quickly waved her hand.
“Oh, right—so this is just speculation, too. I’m not certain whether it’s connected to those disturbing incidents happening in the guild district.”
After all, she’d just presumed a grand love epic earlier and had been instantly shot down.
“Then we’d better find out for sure.”
Taren. Disappearance. Incident. The next Marquis Taren standing right before her.
Olivia finished her calculations in an instant.
If the fastest and most efficient way to reassure the Taren family was…
“Lady Taren.”
“Yes.”
“I need your help to solve this case.”
She’d be reassuring someone the Taren family could never afford to ignore.
Naturally—quite naturally—Olivia had no intention of revealing the full truth of the case to Ambre.
She only meant to clearly convey this much: the matter would be resolved this way, so there was no need to worry.
Scarcely had Olivia finished speaking when Ambre clasped both hands together and her eyes sparkled brightly.
What greater joy could there be than helping her family overcome a crisis?
Moreover, resolving this incident would benefit not only her family but the entire Empire.
She cried out wholeheartedly,
“I’ll do my very best to help!”
Ambre Taren once again eagerly threw herself into the case, filled entirely with goodwill and loyalty toward the Imperial Family.
While Olivia was meeting with Ambre,
in one corner of the Imperial Princess’s palace, a knight with a sharply defined jaw swiftly crossed the corridor assigned as lodging for foreign knights.
Stopping before a certain door, he glanced around to confirm no one else was nearby before raising his hand.
– Knock knock.
“Come in.”
Hearing the voice of the person he sought from inside, the knight turned the doorknob without hesitation.
“Huh? What brings you here at this hour? Shouldn’t you be in training right now?”
The knight with the sharply defined jaw was greeted by another knight whose face was half-shadowed, who tilted his head in puzzlement.
“I’ve come because there’s news you absolutely must hear.”
“News? Sit down first.”
Hardly had they seated themselves when the sharp-jawed knight began speaking.
“A martial tournament will be held.”
“A martial tournament?”
“Yes. It hasn’t been officially announced yet, but I heard it’ll happen soon.”
As he relayed this, the sharp-jawed knight instinctively scanned the surroundings and lowered his voice significantly.
Seeing this, the half-shadowed knight frowned.
Though it was plainly obvious they were alone, such behavior made it seem as if he distrusted him.
Just as he opened his mouth to say something—
“It’s reliable information—I heard it directly from a servant in the Central Palace where His Imperial Majesty handles state affairs.”
At those words, the half-shadowed knight fell silent.
Of course one would be cautious—after all, this rumor originated from the palace where the Emperor himself resided and conducted official business.
Didn’t they say that birds overhear daytime whispers and mice catch nighttime words?
Especially within the Imperial Palace, at the very heart of the Empire, no amount of caution was ever excessive.
Then the half-shadowed knight looked anew at the sharp-jawed knight with fresh admiration.
“To have acquired such information—you’re quite impressive.”
At this sincere praise, the sharp-jawed knight offered no reply, though his shoulders rose proudly toward the sky.
But they failed to realize:
how could news of an event decreed by the Emperor himself at the Empire’s pinnacle leak so easily to a foreign knight?
Under Bolshayk’s rule, such a thing would never happen—not even once in ten thousand chances.
Blinded by his inflated confidence, the sharp-jawed knight overlooked the fact that the Imperial Palace could never be that careless—but every bit of information he’d heard had been meticulously calculated and deliberately spread.
“We don’t know the exact date yet, but at least we’ll have time to train beforehand. Since it’s an official Imperial event, Her Imperial Highness the Princess will surely attend.”
The rest of his words were unnecessary to hear.
If one stood out among the Empire’s strongest fighters gathered at the martial tournament, they might gain access to the Princess.
“That’s….”
Yet unlike the sharp-jawed knight who’d delivered the news, the half-shadowed knight’s reaction was thoroughly unenthusiastic.
And for good reason—the sharp-jawed knight possessed skill worthy of his title as ‘knight,’ whereas the half-shadowed knight was little more than a nominal knight.
His strength lay not in defeating foes in battle, but in embracing everyone with love.
Thus, he too was waiting for his turn.
For those perilous nighttime outings….
There’s nothing new under the sun.
Ideas people conceive are all fundamentally the same.
‘The Princess is human—she must sleep.’
‘And in her bedroom, there’d be nowhere to run.’
Soon other knights began having the same “brilliant” idea: a nighttime excursion not merely to see the Princess, but to claim her—born from one wretch’s rotten mind.
The problem was that more than just one or two had this notion, and naturally, conflicts arose.
Soon enough, however, they reached an unspoken agreement to take turns.
No one wanted to waste precious energy fighting each other when their common goal was already so difficult to achieve.
Besides….
“If things go well at the martial tournament, the chance of dying in an ‘accident’ will disappear, won’t it?”
Though the half-shadowed knight frowned at these words from the sharp-jawed knight, he offered no real objection.
After all, every night another foreign knight would vanish quietly—and none ever returned, all having met their end in supposed ‘accidents.’
“So don’t just sit there! Get up already. Come on!”
“Hey, I told you not to grab me like that!”
“Well, if I didn’t pull you like this, you wouldn’t budge an inch!”
The sharp-jawed knight yanked the half-shadowed knight’s arm forcefully, and the two tussled briefly.
Such contrasting reactions were repeating themselves throughout the quarters where foreign knights stayed.
And naturally so—foreign knights fell into two clear groups: those resembling genuine knights, and those who were knights in name only.
Yet despite differing reactions, both groups shared the same goal.
“If there’s a martial tournament, Her Imperial Highness the Princess will surely attend….”
“Even if I can’t defeat the strongest, if I can just catch Her Imperial Highness’s eye at the event….”
“They say the fellow currently glued to Her Imperial Highness’s side was simply brought back from the tournament, right? So if I can just stand out before Her Highness, I might have a chance too….”
Though Olivia never so much as thought of giving out rice cakes, people everywhere were already gulping down entire bowls of kimchi soup, lifting their chins high in anticipation.
Thus, the martial tournament—where people would test their strength against one another—had already hardened into a competition to win the Princess herself.
While rumors of the martial tournament were being systematically and quietly disseminated throughout the Imperial Palace,
“A martial tournament?”
“Mm-hmm.”
Olivia, standing confidently with both hands planted firmly on her hips, tilted her chin upward.
Cryer looked down at her—so much smaller than him—and chuckled softly, seeing her shamelessly flaunting an expression that clearly meant ‘Look how amazing I am.’
“So that’s what you’ve been scheming with that sly look.”
“Ah—ahem!”
Since the smile on her lips when thinking of the tournament had indeed been excessively sly, Olivia couldn’t deny it and instead cleared her throat a few times before speaking.
“Here’s the list. I’ve already sent it all out, so remember—don’t kill anyone! And try not to injure them either! Just spar and come back. Once everyone’s had their turn, I’ll have a good idea of their current skill levels.”
Still uneasy, Olivia emphasized it again.
“Absolutely no killing. And no injuries either—”
“If you stress it that much, my hand might slip and accidentally lop off an arm or leg.”
Though his mouth smiled, his eyes remained utterly cold, so Olivia scowled deeply but said nothing more.
A large, dense shadow fell over her.
Cryer stepped right up to her, took the list from her hand, and lightly tapped her furrowed brow.
“I get it, so stop frowning.”
Olivia rubbed the spot his fingertip had touched and stepped back one pace.
“Hey hey! Even His Majesty hasn’t done that! You seem to be seriously misunderstanding something here.”
Much shorter than him, Olivia stood on tiptoe and poked his chest firmly.
“I’m not a child.”
“Oh, right. Of course not.”
“What’s with that half-hearted answer?”
Cryer stared down at her silently.
She certainly wasn’t a child.
By any measure, she was unmistakably an adult. But still….
“To me, you’re still far too young.”
“What? What do you mean…?”
Olivia, who had been about to insist they were clearly of similar age, suddenly stopped short.
Seeing her fall silent, Cryer added lightly,
“I’m from a very long time ago.”
Though his memories from the moment of his resurrection were hazy, Greta had whispered to him shortly afterward:
‘…from a pure age, before the world became this corrupted one.’
She hadn’t specified exactly when, but the use of the word ‘age’ alone confirmed it had been very long ago.
That was perhaps the only clue to his past.
“Well, that’s… no, wait!”
Olivia rolled her eyes and shook her head vigorously.
“Even if you’re from the old days, you still died around my age, right? And you were resurrected at that age! Surely you didn’t get younger when you revived—or did you? Could it be?”
Her finger, which had been confidently pointing at him, shrank back.
If he really had grown younger, he might actually be old enough to be her grandfather. If resurrecting someone from a bygone era was possible, then reversing a person’s age couldn’t be entirely impossible either.
Cryer gave an enigmatic smile, lifting just the corner of his lips.
“Who knows? I have no memories of my past. Maybe that’s exactly what happened.”
“If you say it like that, I’ve got nothing left to say.”
With a deep sigh from Olivia, Cryer chuckled softly and spoke again.
“I feel the same way.”
“What?”
Confused by his seemingly random remark, Olivia tilted her head—and Cryer answered once more.
“My hand just moved on its own.”
At that, Olivia could only press her lips tightly shut.
When someone says it just happened—what other reason could there be?
Besides, wasn’t that precisely what she herself always said whenever she reached out to touch Cryer?
Cryer gently smoothed out her creasing brow once more with his fingertips, then rose to his feet.
“We should get moving.”
He took a step, then paused.
Olivia, who he’d assumed would naturally follow beside him, was merely waving from behind.
“Aren’t you coming with me?”
At his question, Olivia blinked wide-eyed like a rabbit and pointed to her own chest.
“Me?”
Top Celebrity Younger Brother Bears Her Child (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: Forced to live stream romance with a top celebrity in a female-dominant world.
Yan Jin transmigrated into a brothel, with a fellow transmigrated junior beside her.
Hearing the obscene words coming from outside, the unfortunate junior covered his ears tightly, his cheeks flushed red, and whispered to comfort her, “Don’t worry, I will definitely help you escape.”
“Don’t worry, I will definitely defend your chastity.” Yan Jin looked at the flawless and delicate features of the unfortunate junior and gently comforted, “Because we have transmigrated into a female-dominant world.”
※※※
Top celebrity Yu Shu suddenly fell into a coma during a concert.
Research scientist Yan Jin fainted in the lab after working overtime.
Two people with no connection were rushed to the same hospital.
Three days later, neither of them had woken up.
Suddenly, the entire nation discovered that a live streaming app had been forcibly installed on their phones.
Upon opening it, they heard the two discussing how to escape from the brothel.
The entire internet was in an uproar.
After the two successfully escaped from the brothel, Yu Shu’s fan group rushed to make a banner and sent it to the hospital overnight.
“Big sister bravely took action to defend the chastity of our idol!”
※※※
When Yu Shu was diagnosed with pregnancy, Yan Jin stared at his belly for a long time.
Covering his stomach, he muttered gloomily, “If you don’t like it, I’ll go get an abortion.”
“It’s not that I don’t like it.” Yan Jin hugged Yu Shu and said softly, “I just feel like I’m not human.”
Yu Shu comforted Yan Jin, “I was already an adult when we got together.”
Yan Jin hesitated, “But you won’t be of legal marriageable age even after giving birth to the child.”
At the same time, a flood of bullet comments appeared in the live streaming room that the two couldn’t see.
[Although it’s inappropriate, I also want a young and handsome boyfriend to have my child.]
①Male pregnancy (highlighted)
The female lead is five years older than the male lead, and the male lead is already an adult when he appears.
Most Commented This Week
The Villain Has Gone Mad For Me (Completed Main Story)
I’m The Lowest-Ranking Daughter Of A Martial Arts Villain (2 Chapters Left to Complete)
I Became the Assassin Family’s Foster Daughter (Completed Main Story)
The Duke Only Needs My Child (Completed Main Story)
Men of the Harem (137 Chapters Left to Complete)
At the End of Ruin, There You Are (56 Chapters Left to Complete)
She’s a Villainess but her Husband is Handsome (Completed Main Story)
People Aren’t Meant to Be Fixed! (4 Chapters Left to Complete)
My Discarded Fiancé Returned (Completed Main Story)
Summer Must Die (16 Chapters Left to Complete)
Regret With All Your Might (Completed Main Story)
I Received The First Time Of My Extraordinary Superior (9 Chapters Left to Complete)