A Korean Office Worker Who Became a Nuisance Villainess in a Zombie Story - Chapter 172

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Final Chapter. The World I Saved
“You seem quite taken with my dress. You’ve lost yourself completely.”
I thought Praha was going to faint. He was swaying so badly.
I nearly stumbled myself after seeing twelve boxes of diamonds in person.
We almost both lost consciousness and missed the ball entirely.
I poked his side teasingly, and he laughed with a grin.
Those amber eyes, still slightly hazy, devoured my face and dress with unbridled intensity.
“That’s not it…”
“You don’t like it?”
“That’s not it…”
“Then what is it?”
“Your dress is the same color as my shirt.”
“So you nearly fainted because of that?”
“It looks like we coordinated our outfits.”
“But we did coordinate them, didn’t we?”
“Exactly.”
“Huh…?”
“I like that we coordinated our outfits.”
“Oh my.”
Praha, nodding earnestly that he truly loved it, extended his hand to me.
Rather than having me step on the staircase installed for boarding the carriage, he lifted me effortlessly and placed me inside.
The Imperial Knight Order was still conducting inspections at the front of the Imperial Palace to screen for zombies, but we had no need to wait.
Why?
This is Praha’s home.
Who waits to enter their own house?
Passing through the knights who saluted in perfect unison, I whispered to Praha as we entered the Imperial Palace.
“It would be far more beneficial for security to simply construct a Temple here rather than go through all these pointless inspections.”
“I entirely agree.”
“His Majesty still shows no sign of changing his mind?”
“He has no intention of begging for his life from a god who takes humans hostage and extorts them, rather than caring for them.”
“Oh my.”
That’s his own opinion.
I wouldn’t mind begging, you know?
“Once tonight’s ball concludes safely and His Majesty is in good spirits, I’ll propose it again.”
“You would do that?”
“Yes. I’ll have Cyprus do it. He knows how to please His Majesty best.”
“I can see that—hey, stop touching me! I’m going to wear out!”
“However.”
“If you keep doing that, I’ll do the same to you.”
“That is precisely what I desire.”
“How troublesome.”
I indulged his every whim.
Praha gazed at me as though enchanted, marveling at the most absurd observations—”your eyes blink,” “you have five fingers,” “you’re wearing gloves”—and I found myself gently caressing his cheek as he continued his litany of wonder.
The carriage came to a halt directly before the building where the ball was being held.
“What is this place?”
“It is the Crystal Hall. It opens only when the Emperor himself hosts an event.”
“The ceiling is truly magnificent.”
“I myself have not set foot here since the Covenant Ceremony.”
“Wow.”
To think such a hall would be opened merely for a ball.
Perhaps the Emperor wished to assert his authority in defiance of the God of Light himself.
The space was so towering and vast that I felt as though I had stepped into the Egyptian Temple.
“Crown Prince Praha and Grand Duke Yusara have arrived!”
I entered the colossal hall grasping Praha’s hand, feeling myself no larger than an ant.
White columns stood at regular intervals, open windows framed the walls, and rich violet flowers adorned the ceiling and walls in profusion.
Every person already present turned their gaze upon us.
“…The Grand Duke?”
“The rumor about inheriting the title…”
“Is it truly…”
“Then the Minor Duke…”
“Everyone seems quite surprised, don’t they?”
I chuckled softly and whispered to Praha, and as he tilted his head to hear my words, the onlookers gasped once more.
They had surely heard the rumors that our relationship was no longer as strained as before, but witnessing it firsthand was another matter entirely.
To arrive at such a major event as partners, hand in hand no less.
I would wager that within thirty minutes, extras would be circulating throughout the Capital.
“Everyone I know is here.”
Mascarpone, her expression refreshed as though an experiment had concluded, was eating fig lokum; Yujein wore a bracelet I had not seen before; Tangerine attended the ball in the capacity of a noblewoman rather than a knight today; Dazling…
“When will the Emperor arrive?”
“We have been informed he will arrive shortly.”
“Yusara! Praha!”
Cyprus, spotting us from across the hall, waved enthusiastically.
Reluctant to go in that direction, I tensed my legs, but Praha pulled me forward toward Cyprus.
Cyprus, dressed in the most flamboyant and experimental attire among the men present, gestured toward the wall and whined.
“See? I personally inspected and approved every single one of these countless scented candles. My eyes nearly fell out.”
“My goodness.”
“And.”
As Cyprus bent his waist toward me, Praha blocked him with his hand.
Deftly evading the gesture, Cyprus continued.
“When my sister heard the news that you had inherited the Grand Duke title, she was absolutely delighted. She asked me to convey her congratulations and said she would love it if you could visit the Southern Region when you have the time.”
“Really?”
“Yes. The former Grand Duke and your younger brother arrived in the Southern Region by Portal yesterday…. I heard your sister went out to greet them herself.”
“Oh.”
“It’s been a while since your sister was so delighted. Her letter went on and on about how much she’s looking forward to what comes next.”
Cyprus laughed, saying it was all thanks to me.
Cyprus’s sister was one thing, but Cyprus himself seemed excited too.
His face, which was always bright, positively radiated today.
Cyprus smiled constantly, but genuine smiles like this were rare from him.
It felt like a ten-year-old weight had finally lifted from my chest.
“I haven’t really done anything….”
Feeling awkward, I averted my gaze toward the center of the hall.
Where the dance floor should have been, I spotted something massive draped in heavy fabric.
“What is that?”
“His Majesty prepared it specially for today, but we haven’t been told what it is.”
“A sculpture?”
The size and the fabric-covered appearance definitely gave off sculpture vibes.
“Is it okay to get closer and look?”
“There’s no reason you can’t, but if you accidentally pull the fabric away, His Majesty might have your wrists cut off.”
“I’ll just look from a distance, absolutely no touching. Mascarpone, aren’t you curious?”
I gestured to Yujein and Mascarpone, who had gathered around me, suggesting we all go take a look.
“Do we really have to look right now?”
“Aren’t you curious?”
“I’m not curious at all.”
Mascarpone grumbled while eagerly following along with the rest of us.
“The knight guarding the sculpture is my senior, so should I challenge him to a duel and pull the fabric away?!”
Tangerine appeared out of nowhere, eyes gleaming with excitement.
“Yusara, are you curious about what’s inside?”
“Of course I am.”
“Then if I pull away that fabric, will you admit I’m a greater man than Praha?”
“Stop spouting nonsense, Cyprus.”
“I asked Yusara, so I did.”
“I’ll pull it away, so I’d appreciate it if you’d use formal speech with the Grand Duke from now on.”
“Oh, both of you stop. Just stop fighting.”
A strange voice cut through our childish banter—the kind that would make anyone’s ears doubt what they were hearing.
“What are you all discussing so animatedly?”
I turned to look at the woman who had naturally inserted herself into our group.
She was a woman.
A woman with golden hair tinged red, dressed in an incredibly expensive and refined emerald gown.
A dazzling beauty who clearly held a position in high society smiled as she smoothed her cascading curls.
She didn’t seem to mind that our conversation had stopped the moment she interjected.
And the person she addressed first was me.
“It’s been a while, Princess.”
“Me?”
I blinked, having naturally assumed Praha or Cyprus was her target.
“You know me?”
“Of course I do. And you know me too, don’t you?”
“….”
“You even gave me a gift before.”
“Huh…?”
Me…?
There’s no way the old me would have given a gift to a woman….
Did I give her something like a slap as a present?
But looking at the woman who was smiling with unmistakable confidence, clearly holding the upper hand, that didn’t seem to be it.
She clearly didn’t harbor any goodwill toward me, yet I couldn’t remember her at all.
First, I corrected the facts.
“I’m not a Princess anymore. I’m a Grand Duke.”
“Ah, my apologies. You obtained your title by driving out your mother and younger sibling, correct?”
“….”
“And today you’re attending with the Crown Prince. I was under the impression the two of you weren’t particularly close, but when did you become so intimate? Do teach me your secret.”
The woman spoke with a mocking smile.
For someone to slip into a group of peers and attack one person so openly—that took more than ordinary nerve.
Or perhaps she had something to rely on.
I studied the woman quietly.
Receiving my silent gaze, the woman smiled without flinching, deliberately hunching her shoulders and wrapping her arms around herself.
“But isn’t it a bit chilly? Is it because the window is open?”
“It feels quite pleasant to me….”
“No, it’s cold. I should have brought a scarf if I’d known.”
The woman touched her neck and moved closer to Cyprus’s side.
“Wouldn’t you agree, Grand Duke?”
Yet for some reason, Cyprus’s expression, which had been cheerful and chattering moments before, had turned sour.
[Imperial Palace]
– Yusara, Praha, Cyprus, Yujein, Tangerine, Mascarpone, Dazling (Alive)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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