A Korean Office Worker Who Became a Nuisance Villainess in a Zombie Story - Chapter 35

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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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The meeting ended, leaving only an awkward tension behind, and the Emperor rose to depart.
The remaining nobles remained bowed until the Emperor’s Knight and all the guards had filed out.
“Phew.”
They straightened their spines and began chattering amongst themselves.
“This is no easy matter. Heh heh.”
“I suppose it’s time for me to step down. Heh heh.”
“Heh heh heh. I’m in the same boat.”
“Heh heh heh.”
Whether here or there, the words people speak after a meeting are always the same.
In the bustling atmosphere, Praha walked straight toward me.
“My lady.”
With no way to pretend I hadn’t noticed, the nobles watched with curious eyes as Praha approached me directly.
“It’s been a while.”
As Praha stood before me, the jade earrings hanging from his handsome ears came into sharp focus.
The waist ornament matching the earring’s color as well.
Unlike the casual attire at the Villa, these vibrant clothes suited him impeccably.
‘After all, it really does come down to a man’s face.’
“Miss Mascarpone, it’s been a while as well.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Has it really been that long?
“Your Highness, it’s only been four days.”
“Yes. It felt like a long time.”
Dazling, standing behind Praha, blinked his eyes rapidly at both Mascarpone and me.
Noticing Dazling’s attempt to express the maximum warmth possible for someone on official duty, Praha glanced at him and spoke.
“It seems Dazling also wishes to pay his respects to both of you.”
With permission granted, Dazling approached us immediately.
“My lady!”
“Sir Dazling!”
“I was worried!”
“I know! You even sent a card!”
Are you alright, Sir Dazling?! I’m perfectly fine! And you, Miss Mascarpone?! I’m perfectly fine too!
Like high school classmates reuniting after four years, the three of us chattered away noisily.
‘Now that I think about it.’
Didn’t the Troublemaker curse at Dazling that day?
That felt like a bigger problem than the fact that the one who cursed had already become a zombie.
When I brought it up, Dazling’s face flushed red.
“You remember that?”
“Of course! How could I forget?”
“I’m fine with it. I was mad anyway.”
“What?”
“It’s a world where you can’t survive without losing your mind.”
“Gasp. Right. You’re right!”
While we spoke, Praha waited patiently.
Only after Dazling thanked him for the opportunity to speak and stepped back did Praha open his mouth again.
“My lady, might I request a moment of your time?”
His expression had grown quite rigid.
Somehow, his manner toward me seemed even stiffer than the last time I’d seen him.
He seemed tense.
‘No, that can’t be it. Why would Praha be nervous in front of me?’
I hesitated before answering, lost in thought.
Normally, this would be where my connection with the protagonists ended.
Praha would soon set off on an adventure with Yujein and Cyprus, while I remained here.
I had to stay if I didn’t want to die.
‘But the situation has changed now.’
I was the only one who could see the crimson stone in the zombie’s chest.
The only person who possessed a clue to this crisis.
‘Let me hear what he has to say first.’
“Yes, of course. I have plenty of time.”
“I’ll contact you, my lady.”
“Yes. Please do.”
After Mascarpone tactfully excused herself and I made plans to meet her later, I stood beside Praha.
Praha, who had been about to stride forward briskly, paused and slowed his pace to match mine.
“You don’t need to match my pace.”
“I’m comfortable like this.”
If that’s what he preferred.
As we passed through the Corridor and hallways where flower petals scattered in the breeze and returned to Praha’s Palace, we endured the astonished gazes of onlookers.
‘Is it really such a shocking sight for me to walk with Praha?’
I was more surprised than anyone as we entered the Palace.
The entrance was crowded with people.
“When will Your Highness finally….”
“We’ve been waiting since dawn….”
Petitioner 1, who had been gleefully slandering me earlier, widened his eyes in shock upon seeing me actually arrive with Praha.
‘Hmph.’
I lifted my chin.
This was the very definition of riding on someone’s coattails.
“Your Highness!”
“Crown Prince!”
More than twenty Petitioners, unable to approach, desperately bowed their waists.
The Aide who had come near Praha whispered awkwardly.
“Your Highness, the officials requesting an audience have been waiting since this morning.”
Oh.
This feels like he’s hinting that I should give way.
“Should I wait a bit? I have nothing else to do anyway.”
“No.”
Praha cut off my words sharply and spoke to the Aide.
“Which guest I meet first is my decision.”
“But, Your Highness….”
“Those men wait because they wish to meet me, while the young lady is someone I requested an audience with. Isn’t it obvious who should wait?”
All the Petitioners were flustered by his words.
“Your Highness!”
One man among them gathered his courage and stepped forward.
A purple velvet vest and a golden watch chain. Hair slicked back with pomade.
It was Petitioner 1, the one who had mocked me earlier.
Petitioner 1, bowing deeply, forced a servile smile.
“Your Highness, I am the eldest son of a house that holds exclusive supply rights of incense to the Imperial Family. Recently, across the sea….”
This and that. Complaint after complaint.
“…therefore, would it not be possible for you to hear my account first?”
A veiled threat that grave problems would befall the incense supply if Praha didn’t listen to him.
At that threat, Praha tilted his head.
“Is it truly a catastrophe if the Imperial Family lacks incense?”
“Pardon?”
“At worst… we would simply have to smell your sweat more directly, wouldn’t we?”
“Pardon??”
“Holding one’s nose would solve the matter.”
“….”
“The Imperial Family will not face true catastrophe without incense, but I will face a catastrophe if I don’t speak with the young lady right now. Since I’m an adult, I can tolerate the smell of sweat—so wait.”
“….”
Thus, I—the “catastrophe” of the “adult” Crown Prince Praha—disappeared into the Palace, leaving the stunned petitioners behind.
Praha led me to his private quarters.
The ceiling was relatively low, like an ordinary household, and an entire wall of windows flooded the space with light, making it bright and cozy.
The moment we entered, Praha removed his earrings and placed them on the table.
‘I suppose they were bothersome.’
They suited him, though.
Of course, removing a pair of earrings didn’t make the rest of his dazzling appearance vanish.
Standing before this man, adorned like a peacock, I—dressed like a beggar—looked around awkwardly.
Exercise equipment hung from the ceiling for calisthenics, and a leather-bound play script rested on the table.
‘I know that book.’
I saw it in a history text yesterday….
“Ahem.”
“…Young lady?”
“I apologize. I slept late yesterday.”
The truth was I’d been awake all night.
I quickly changed the subject.
“Your Majesty also looks exhausted, if I may say so?”
“I had some matters to attend to.”
“I see.”
“If I may ask, the Grand Duke’s daughter…”
Praha, who had been hesitating, finally spoke.
“Why did you sleep so late when you have nothing to do?”
This man…
“People with nothing to do tend to sleep later, don’t they?”
“I suppose so.”
And then silence.
‘When we were fighting for our lives, I didn’t notice, but being alone like this feels so awkward.’
Then again, we were never comfortable with each other.
“…Were you up late reading the book you’re currently holding?”
“Yes, well. …Ah. Thank you for the card you sent me.”
“Yes.”
“…”
“…”
Awkward.
Pure awkwardness.
Maybe now was the right moment to ask the question I’d been wanting to ask since earlier.
“Your Majesty.”
Praha watched me silently as I addressed him.
His gaze felt so piercing that I quickly corrected myself.
“Crown Prince Praha, Your Majesty.”
“…Yes.”
“Why are you going?”
It was a question that skipped the preamble, but Praha understood.
‘Why are you going to the Investigation Team?’
No matter what the Emperor’s orders were, you didn’t have to go. Wouldn’t it be better to stay in the Capital by apologizing profusely and begging forgiveness?
Praha answered.
“Because it is my duty.”
“What is Your Majesty’s duty?”
“To ensure the safety of the Empire’s people.”
“…”
“Even without the Emperor’s command, I would have volunteered.”
“What if Your Majesty dies in the process?”
If something happened to Praha, the Emperor wouldn’t escape unscathed either.
Establishing a successor is one of the Emperor’s most fundamental duties.
At least, that’s what I understood it to be.
What if Praha were to die? His younger brother is still far too young.
Yet Praha’s answer to my concern was remarkably simple.
“For my mother, only her own reign matters. What comes after holds little importance to her.”
Hm.
She certainly has a resolute character.
‘Come to think of it, since she doesn’t believe in God, she probably doesn’t believe in the afterlife either.’
“My mother, I suspect,”
Praha continued.
“Wished for me to admit my wrongs and bow before her. But I do not believe I was wrong.”
“….”
“Even if I could go back, I would take the same actions. So I cannot apologize with false words.”
Even if I could go back, I would take the same actions….
That’s just like me.
“So you chose to accept punishment instead?”
“It was something I had intended to volunteer for anyway, so it’s acceptable.”
“….”
This person must have been bamboo in a past life.
‘Such unwavering integrity.’
Praha, whose earlobes had reddened from the weight of heavy earrings, spoke again.
“The favor I wish to ask of you is also connected to this matter.”
A brief silence fell.
And upon hearing Praha’s request, I was astounded.
“You’re asking me to join the Investigation Team?”
“Yes.”
“Me?”
That?
Why?
But once Praha overcame his hesitation and opened his mouth, his words flowed without restraint.
“I’m not asking you to follow me blindly. This matter is dangerous. I cannot guarantee your life, so it would be far safer for you to remain in the Capital. Personally, I would recommend that course.”
“What?”
Just now you asked me to join the Investigation Team?
“But it is also true that I wish to receive your help.”
“….”
What are you saying?
Praha spoke.
“I wish to recommend that you remain safe, yet simultaneously I desire your assistance. But these contradictory feelings are mine alone. They are not important.”
“Then whose feelings matter?”
“Yours.”
“….”
“Whether you participate in the Investigation Team or not is entirely your choice. Rather than presume to judge your decisions, I thought it more appropriate to speak honestly and give you the agency to choose.”
This is your affair—you must judge and decide for yourself.
“….”
I fell silent.
It was entirely unexpected.
The Investigation Team.
In the novel, where the villainess Yusara is forced to follow along and dies.
A man who would have done anything to leave me behind was now asking me to accompany him first.
And he was even giving me the choice to decide.
And yet.
“Why?”
“…?”
“I can’t use sacred power like Yujein can, and I don’t know how to fight. I’m just a passing civilian. Why would you take me along when I have no abilities and would only be a hindrance?”
Why insist on bringing me with you?
Praha’s answer was simple.
“Because of the judgment you displayed at the Villa.”
“Judgment?”
“You remained calmer than any of us, and you saved us at every critical moment. You devised the decoy strategy in the Gallery, contributed to finding the Portal in the Kitchen. You even set traps.”
“That was….”
I’d just watched a few zombie films back in Korea….
It was experience rather than ability.
‘Though experience is a form of strength in its own right.’
“And if we’re speaking of abilities, don’t you possess one as well?”
“…Me?”
Do I have an ability?
[(Temporary Safe Zone) Imperial Palace]
– Yusara, Praha (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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