Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 43

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

Chapter 43
* * *
So it seemed today was not going to be the peaceful day I’d hoped for after all.
The seal stamped boldly in the center of the white letter Auredhian had produced was deeply familiar to me. A green seal shaped like two willow leaves crossed in an X—the symbol of Lebovni.
My hand reached out before my mind could even process it. A reply. A reply from Lebovni had arrived!
“Please give it to me…!”
“Here.”
Auredhian handed me the letter without hesitation. The moment I took it, I was startled by its unexpected weight.
Auredhian spoke slowly.
“Read it, and if there’s anything about the Glucaman Road Agreement, tell me. Leave nothing out if you can.”
“Yes.”
That was only natural. I was grateful enough that he hadn’t opened a letter from a hostile nation beforehand.
I hurried to sit before the tea table and tore open the envelope. The envelope felt oddly thick, and inside there were five or six sheets of paper.
I quickly began reading from the first page.
The letter began with “My beloved Yerenika.” It appeared my father had written the opening. His round, flowing handwriting filled the pages densely.
And as I read further, my expression grew increasingly distorted. What on earth was this?
Seeing my deeply furrowed expression, Auredhian called out to me.
“Princess?”
I had no time to answer. The contents of this six-page letter were truly shocking. I lost my words and read it again and again like a fool.
Most of the letter was worry about me. How was I living, was the cruel Belgot Emperor tormenting me, was I in pain. But the part that made me gasp was not these trivial concerns. I stared wide-eyed at the bombshells contained in each page of the letter.
To summarize the main points:
1. The Glucaman Road Agreement negotiations are dragging on without progress.
2. Fernandis caused an incident.
As for what “incident” means here… well, I trust everyone understands without detailed explanation. Even the most docile cat will jump on the stove first!
And finally, the main event.
3. Sister Tezebia gave birth.
Now, select the most important point I should focus on here.
“….”
Yes, what on earth is this situation? I muttered blankly.
“This can’t be right….”
“Why? What is it?”
The man who understood nothing of my inner turmoil still had that languid, predatory face. My voice rose without my realizing it.
“All of it!”
“All of it, then.”
I counted the days stupidly in my head. Today, today—how many days had it been exactly? Today was precisely more than a month and a half since I’d arrived in Belgot. It was also the day the second week of May had just begun.
I read through the letter frantically again. Never mind the rest—let me start with number 3. Sister Tezebia had given birth.
Brizni was born. Sister Tezebia’s daughter, my niece, and the heroine of “Brizni Wants to Be Happy.” It truly was something to celebrate and be joyful about. And yet I couldn’t bring myself to smile.
It’s still May. Al… already?
Since Sister Tezebia hadn’t been kidnapped to Belgot, Brizni should have been born in June as scheduled. Not now, in May.
Brizni being born early was something that only happened in the original work. The pages of the original “Brizni Wants to Be Happy” flipped through my mind. The original was already twisted from the moment I came to Belgot, but Brizni was born in May according to the original?
Why? Tezebia wouldn’t suffer physically or emotionally—she’d be healthy. So why is Brizni already…?
My spine went rigid with cold dread. I heard Auredhian calling my name.
“Princess.”
He seemed to be saying something, but I couldn’t quite hear him. I stared blankly at the passage that followed, my mouth hanging open.
“Fernandis…”
My escort knight, Fernandis Cardier, had caused a scandal. The wedding would take place next month. His bride-to-be was already nearly three months pregnant. I muttered in disbelief.
“This man really…”
Auredhian regarded me with an odd expression. Normally I would have met his gaze with a smile, but that hardly mattered now. My face had gone pale as I continued my thoughts.
The problem wasn’t that Fernandis had belatedly awakened to love. Fernandis Cardier would have a child. That child would almost certainly be a son. And his name would be Alexio Cardier—the male protagonist of “Brizni Wants to Be Happy.”
Yes, the timing made sense; Alexio should have been conceived about three months ago. Yes, yes. Even so…
Brizni had been born weeks early, exactly as in the original work. And the Glucaman Road Agreement, which I’d thought would be resolved in a month or two at most, showed no signs of conclusion. It was no coincidence that I recalled the original’s content—how Tezebia had been bound to Belgot for ten years.
“Then… could it be…?”
I gasped in horror.
“No…”
Could the original story be unchanged after all?
I suddenly realized I must have been misunderstanding something fundamental all along.
This world was unmistakably the world of “Brizni Wants to Be Happy.” No matter that it was a generation before the original story, it was still a world arranged for the protagonists. The protagonist’s birth. Growth. Crisis. And finally, a beautiful resolution or tragic future. The things that never changed in this world were precisely these—the protagonist’s life!
And right now, this world had reached that very stage of “the protagonist’s birth.” In other words, no matter how much chaos I caused around it, the protagonist’s birth was already a predetermined sequence.
I, who had been causing chaos so diligently, suddenly felt utterly hollow.
In “Brizni Wants to Be Happy,” Yerenika was a supporting character. Not even an important supporting role—an extra. The heroine’s aunt. A background character who could be there or not.
So did this mean that no matter how much an extra thrashed about, she couldn’t change the fundamental flow of the original story?
“Ah, my head…”
I groaned, pressing my throbbing temples.
Well, Brizni and Alexio were the couple I’d been wholeheartedly supporting anyway. Besides, Brizni was my niece and Alexio was the only son of my escort knight. Their births deserved to be blessed, naturally.
So my shock just now stemmed from something else entirely.
“Brizni Wants to Be Happy” didn’t have just those two as protagonists.
The author herself had explicitly stated in the afterword that “this novel has three protagonists”—and there was one more person.
“Decarve…”
“Who is that?”
Auredhian’s brow furrowed. I couldn’t meet his eyes and looked away. Decarve was your future son…
Brizni had been born as in the original. Alexio would be born before this year ended. What remained was Decarve.
“…”
I looked up at the man sitting across from me again. My reflection shimmered in those reddish eyes. Auredhian clicked his tongue softly.
“You’re definitely unwell somewhere.”
“That’s not the important part…”
My mind snapped into focus. This was no time for complacency!
I’d prevented Tezebia’s suffering, stopped Duke Lebanon’s death, and kept Fernandis from becoming crippled—but hadn’t I ultimately failed to change the flow of the true protagonists? If that were the case, then Decarve too would follow the original story…
“It is important.”
Auredhian spoke flatly and leaned toward me. A large hand, suffused with clear sanctity, gently pressed against my forehead.
“Do you know what expression you’re wearing right now?”
“…I’m in shock.”
“Why? About what? What was written in that letter?”
It was an unusually persistent question. I slowly lowered my hand from my forehead. My mind spun like a small boat caught in a tempest, yet my energy surged upward with sudden intensity.
I murmured with an expression that was neither laughter nor tears.
“My niece was born.”
“That’s something to be happy about, isn’t it?”
“I am happy. I’m happy, but…she was born earlier than expected. I’m worried about that….”
Brizni. Our precious niece. Why did you come so early…! You’re making your aunt anxious!
Fortunately, the letter said Tezebia’s condition wasn’t bad. That was truly a relief. At least I was certain she had avoided the original story’s gruesome ending.
The problem is, the problem is!
I muttered as a fresh realization dawned on me.
“I’ve been going in circles for far too long.”
“What?”
“This isn’t the time to weigh my options….”
That’s right. This wasn’t the time for me to engage in petty push-and-pull with this man. If I kept this up, he would truly end up marrying Soleia and fathering Decarve.
I didn’t have the luxury to hesitate and calculate! This wasn’t the moment to read the room!
“Father.”
My lips moved before I could think. Auredhian immediately furrowed his brow.
“Again, again. The form of address—”
I had no intention of letting him point out something as trivial as a form of address. My hand reached out of its own accord and covered his mouth with my palm. I saw questions bloom instantly in his crimson eyes.
I spoke without drawing a single breath.
“Please marry me!”

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