Episode 45
“I know these kinds of people. They’re always looking for a chance to leave, yet they desire a stable place to stay.”
“…”
“Listen carefully. My brother won’t protect you. If you show even the slightest interest in me, his sword will pierce your back before mine does.”
He spoke as if I was wavering between the Crown Prince and him, the Second Prince. In reality, I, a bird turned human, just wanted to get rid of both of them and live freely.
Cardian gestured to his knights, ordering them to lower their swords pointed at me. Then, he whispered to me in a soft voice,
“I can give you what you want. If you need a place to stay, I’ll gladly provide it, and if you need money, I can give you a fortune.”
A heavy pouch was placed before me. I could see glittering gold coins through the slightly loosened ribbon.
A wise romance fantasy heroine wouldn’t be tempted by the pouch offered by the suspicious Second Prince.
But there was so much money shimmering before my eyes.
‘The threatener seems better than the person supposedly protecting me right now…’
I couldn’t help but feel tempted.
‘I’m a K—Korean, steeped in capitalism. Or should I say, a K—Bird?’
“I’ll give you time to think. I have many uses for your power. However,”
My gaze, fixated on the gold coins, was drawn to him.
“If you refuse, I’ll kill you. Or you can die at the hands of my suspicious brother. If I can’t have you, it’s better to dispose of you.”
On second thought, the Crown Prince is better.
My energy was completely drained. He was a villain in the novel for a reason. My legs felt weak.
I didn’t even remember how I got out of the palace.
‘What should I do now? I’ve crossed too many bridges to turn back.’
I wondered if I was better off at the Dukedom. At least there were people there who genuinely cared for me.
Not here. Everyone was choosing sides, always ready to stab each other in the back.
Summer was approaching, and the air was hot and humid, but my heart felt cold. A weak voice escaped my lips,
“I miss you…”
Cesar.
As I muttered my former owner’s name, ungrateful despite having run away, I saw silver hair fluttering in the wind and thought it was a hallucination. But then, I saw the shimmering purple eyes, the cold expression, the condescending gaze, and I snapped back to reality.
It was Cesar.
‘Uh… I didn’t mean to say I missed you out loud.’
I had just been grumbling to myself. When you’re tired and lonely, you tend to think of people you have a love-hate relationship with.
So, as a former pet bird, my natural reaction to unexpectedly encountering my owner was to run.
‘Let’s escape. I didn’t see anything.’
But my steps towards the left were blocked. I lowered my head and tried to go right, but I was blocked again.
The shadow looming before me wouldn’t move.
‘Why isn’t he moving? Did he really come all the way here looking for me? Does he already know who I am?’
My heart pounded relentlessly. It was clearly a reaction of fear, yet I felt my hands clench and my gaze drawn upwards.
I must have lost my mind. I wasn’t a puppy wagging its tail at its owner.
“You…”
A low voice resonated in my ears. It was a voice I hadn’t heard in a while.
I recalled the voice I heard when I caused an uproar at the Dukedom after a short outing.
‘I was worried about you.’
My usually cold owner’s occasional displays of affection had been so sweet that they made my heart flutter.
‘Then don’t disappear without my permission again.’
‘Chirp?’
‘That means stay by my side.’
His desperate voice made my heart pound.
As I was confused by the surge of guilt and longing, he continued,
“Why are you blocking my way?”
“Ah.”
His chillingly cold voice brought me back to my senses.
I finally looked up at his face. I saw his tightly closed lips, as if displeased, and his utterly indifferent purple eyes, devoid of any interest.
He didn’t recognize me.
That realization pierced through me. The emotions that had surged within me like a tide receded.
A hollow laugh escaped me.
‘What were you thinking? Why did you think he would recognize you instantly as a human and say he was looking for you?’
I was wearing a robe. And my hair and eye color were different. I didn’t resemble Lily, the bird, in any way, so there was no way he could recognize me.
Then why did I think that?
‘…Whether you’re the monster from the old book or something else special, to me, you’re just Lily, my bird.’
I must have been crazy. I was disheartened that he didn’t recognize me, even though I no longer wanted to be his pet bird.
‘Pull yourself together, Lily.’
I chanted that inwardly and calmed myself down. My breathing evened out as I regained my composure.
He was still looking at me askance. His gaze seemed to be telling me to move. It was a little absurd.
‘He says I’m blocking his way. He’s the one blocking me.’
My owner clearly still had a bad temper.
But whether I was a bird or a human, my position as someone who couldn’t even talk back to him remained the same.
“I apologize for blocking your way.”
I stepped aside. But Cesar’s gaze remained fixed on me.
‘Does he have something to say to me? And this is in front of the Second Prince’s palace. What is Cesar doing here?’
According to the novel’s timeline, it wasn’t time for Cesar to join forces with the Second Prince yet.
As I was wondering what was different, Cesar spoke to me.
“Why were you staring at me like that? Do you know that’s rude?”
I tilted my head at his question.
‘Was my gaze disrespectful? That can’t be right. I’ve been catering to Cesar’s moods as his pet bird for months.’
I had no intention of provoking my ill-tempered owner. I was planning to wait until he left and then quickly run back to Pona without looking back.
“I apologize if my actions were rude.”
I wondered why he was nitpicking and wouldn’t let me go. I didn’t understand his behavior.
“Shouldn’t you take responsibility?”
“Pardon?”
‘Responsibility? What is he talking about?’
The unexpected word confused me. Was he going to punish me? The lack of any deception in his shimmering purple eyes made it even more perplexing.
“I consider the act of being rude to me a grave offense.”
“…What should I do to be forgiven?”
“Normally, I would exert pressure by severing all trade relations with your family, but you don’t seem to be a noble. Your attire is also suspicious for a maid.”
It would be strange if I didn’t look suspicious, wrapped tightly in a black robe within the Imperial Palace.
“Why don’t you satisfy my curiosity?”
‘Curiosity?’
It was better than accusations or a harsh punishment. But I couldn’t help but feel puzzled by his sudden words.
I had noticed from the times when he used to waste time talking to me, a bird who could only chirp, that Cesar seemed to enjoy wasting time on trivial matters.
“If it’s just curiosity, I don’t mi…”
He suddenly grabbed my robe and pulled it off, revealing my face. My eyes widened. My soft, wavy hair tumbled down.
I saw the corners of Cesar’s lips curl up slightly.
“I thought you were hiding something valuable since you came out of the Second Prince’s palace.”
I flinched as his hand brushed my hair aside. I had been used to being petted when I was a bird, but his touch felt unfamiliar now that I was human.
His hand moved away, as if it had gotten tangled in my hair.
“You’re just an ordinary woman.”
His breath, so close, made my fingertips tingle strangely.
But as if that was all he wanted, Cesar turned around and left without hesitation. His guards followed him.
I adjusted my robe and frowned, feeling a strange sense of unease.
‘Did he just confirm whether I was suspicious? Is that why he stopped me?’
Judging by his nonchalant attitude, he didn’t seem to suspect anything. If he had, he wouldn’t have let me go so easily.
I glanced at the Second Prince’s palace, where he had entered, and started walking. If the original story was diverging, it was a problem. I needed to go back and meet the Crown Prince.
As I turned the corner, I heard a voice calling me as if waiting,
“Lady Valerie!”
“Pona?”
“I was worried. Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Despite my words, she looked at me with a worried expression and held my hand tightly.
“You can’t be fine. You know how creepy and snake-like the Second Prince is.”
‘That’s true. He tried to lure me to his side and even threatened to kill me if I refused.’
Come to think of it, he was a terrible person. I suppressed my urge to curse him out and asked Pona,
“Where’s the book?”
“Ah, I’ve sent the book you were looking for to your quarters. But you even remembered to take it with you when the Second Prince appeared. You’re so calm, Lady Valerie.”
“Of course. Since His Highness the Crown Prince was kind enough to lend it to me, I didn’t want to cause any trouble.”
‘Because if I had to go back there and run into the Second Prince again, I don’t think I would survive.’