Chapter 278: Room 204, Mission Room – ‘Hotel Cinema’ (2)

– Elena

After the Crown Prince told me about the fox hunt, the surrounding space began to waver.

I wasn’t surprised, I had already experienced this once after all.

The film was skipping through the boring parts and transitioning straight to the fox hunt.

At that moment, my body suddenly vanished, and I found myself in a ghost-like state, observing a scene unfold.

“Galleon! Can’t I just say I’m sick for this hunt?”

“Your Highness, have I not told you multiple times? The fox hunt is a grand tradition that dates back 232 years, established by the founding Emperor himself, serving as a key event for fostering camaraderie among the nobility—”

“Ugh, fine! I’ll go! But just thinking about Pendleton showing off again is already pissing me off!”

“Your Highness, what matters is not the number of foxes caught, but—”

“I said I get it!”

Alright.

I get what’s happening.

This is a scene where the heroine isn’t present.

It’s meant to develop the male lead, the Crown Prince’s character.

And the male lead of this movie, the esteemed Crown Prince, is…

An idiot.

「An idiot.」

“…Uh, is that narration not going to be a problem?”

At Songee’s concern, Eunsol let out a long sigh.

“That’s what’s been worrying me. If we can hear it, then that means the ‘audience’ can hear it too!”

– BANG!

“Oh! Lord Pendleton, truly a perfect shot!”

“Haha! George, it’s nothing. The fox practically begged to be hit after stopping in front of the tree. Missing a shot like that would be foolish. This reminds me of two years ago when I was deployed to the northern front—”

– BANG!

“…”

“…It seems Your Highness is still unfamiliar with shooting.”

As expected, the fox hunt proceeded accordingly.

The ever-glorious Lord Pendleton, who even had a grand title for his achievements on the northern front, struck every fox with pinpoint accuracy.

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince?

His face turned red every time a fox appeared, and his bullets consistently missed their mark.

At this rate, the foxes would be better off hunting him instead.

I needed to calm down.

I had to think about why this event existed in the movie.

The first event, the ball, was where the Crown Prince fell for the heroine.

So then, the purpose of the second event?

“I’m done! I’m going back!”

“Y-Your Highness! It’s still morning!”

…Isn’t it to cheer up this elementary-school-level male lead and boost his confidence?

If I wanted a happy ending, at the very least, the male lead had to be happy.

“Sir Galleon, may I speak with you for a moment?”

“Lady Crossbell? Is there something you wish to discuss?”

“His Highness doesn’t seem to be enjoying himself.”

“Well… the world is not always full of joy.”

“But if those around him ‘help out’ just a little, wouldn’t that make His Highness happier?”

“Help him…?”

Will my plan work?

Honestly, not everyone in this hunting party was a fool, so there had to be a limit to how much I could deceive them.

If someone smart was watching, they’d see through it immediately.

– BANG!

Pendleton’s latest shot missed.

Seeing the painfully obvious acting as he regretfully sighed at the near miss, I became convinced of my plan.

I started pulling some strings with the attendants.

I subtly tilted my parasol to reveal more of my face before leisurely making my way toward the Crown Prince.

He had been whining like a child just moments ago, but now, noticing my approach, he suddenly straightened up like an obedient student.

“Lady Crossbell! Did you come to see me?”

“Of course. Your Highness, are you enjoying today’s hunt?”

“…”

“Oh my, you haven’t caught a fox yet?”

“D-don’t mock me!”

“Mock you? Not at all. A hunt has its ups and downs, after all. On my way here, I noticed Lord Pendleton missed three shots in a row and hit a tree instead. It seems he’s lost his momentum.”

“R-really? But even so—”

“Your Highness, why don’t you try aiming at the foxes in the northwestern brush this time?”

I guided the Crown Prince toward the spot where I had already prepared something.

And thus, the most ridiculous charade began.

– BANG!

“Oh! Your Highness! The fox in the bush has fallen?”

“Huh? Huh?”

– BANG!

“How… How did you manage to hit that one?!”

Every time the Crown Prince pulled the trigger, the whole hunting party moved in sync.

Some discreetly placed already dead foxes in the right spots.

Others fired at the same time as the prince so it looked like he had landed the shot.

Thus began the Crown Prince’s VIP Treatment Fox Hunt!

At first, I was worried.

The naive Crown Prince would obviously fall for it—after all, he barely knew where he was pointing his gun.

He might actually believe he was hitting the targets himself.

But what about the rest of the noblemen here?

They weren’t idiots.

Surely, they wouldn’t be fooled by something this blatantly rigged, right?

Wrong.

Instead of calling it out, they played along.

In fact, it wasn’t long before the sharpest nobles actively participated in the scheme!

A young man from the Antidum County discreetly slipped his fox into the Crown Prince’s trophy bag.

Viscount Toybruck fired at the same time as the prince, ensuring the fox the prince had “aimed at” would go down.

And Pendleton?

Lord Pendleton, the great northern front hero, deliberately missed five shots in a row.

“Hahaha! Another one! I got another one!”

“Congratulations, Your Highness!”

The Crown Prince’s laughter echoed across the hunting grounds.

There was still a lot of time left in this movie, and the thought of spending all of it babysitting this fool was nauseating.

If only someone else were in that position.

Someone savvy would have at least made an effort to blend in and have fun with the nobles, regardless of their hunting skills.

Even if their pride was wounded, they would have schemed and handled things their way.

After all, in these elite gatherings, shooting skills weren’t what mattered.

The imperial throne wasn’t meant for the best marksman.

Hmm…

If Kain were the Crown Prince, what kind of scheme would he have pulled?

“Cough!”

What the—?!

My name came up way too suddenly!

I nearly dropped my cola.

And what was that last line?!

Across from me, Songee burst into uncontrollable laughter, clutching her stomach.

“Kain-oppa, please… just stop scheming.”

“W-wait! What does Elena think I’ve been doing all this time?!”

Ahri snickered and added, “Honestly? Most of the time, you are scheming. Didn’t you pretend to be a ‘divinely chosen apostle’ back in Room 104? I really wonder what was going through Elena’s head when she played along with that!”

This should be enough to say that the second event, the fox hunt, went well, right?

The Crown Prince, grinning from ear to ear, proudly brought over a trophy chest overflowing with fox carcasses.

I couldn’t help but wonder—out of all these foxes, how many had he actually caught himself?

Around that time, the surroundings wavered once again—a signal that the scene was transitioning to the next event.

Moments later, I woke up strolling through the brilliantly lit capital of the empire.

“…”

This time, I was really confused.

During the previous events, like the ball and the fox hunt, there was always some kind of lead-in that let me know what was coming.

But this time, there was nothing.

The scenery simply changed, and I was suddenly dropped in the middle of the capital.

When I hastily asked a nearby maid, she told me that the New Year’s Festival was currently underway.

From the looks of it, quite some time had passed since the fox hunt.

What’s going on?

This is a movie. In the beginning, the maid explicitly told me, “You’re attending a ball,” and after the ball, the Crown Prince immediately mentioned the fox hunt.

Thinking about it, both lines were meant for the audience.

They were hints to help the viewers anticipate the upcoming scenes.

But now, with no transition or explanation, the setting had suddenly shifted.

How were the viewers supposed to follow the story like this?

As I wandered the city, surrounded by lively music, realization gradually dawned on me.

“There was a scene I wasn’t shown.”

Between the fox hunt and the New Year’s Festival, something must have happened.

The audience—my comrades watching from the outside—must have seen it.

But I, the heroine, wasn’t allowed to.

A creeping sense of unease settled over me.

They had shown the scene where the Crown Prince revealed his inferiority complex in a conversation with his attendant.

But this scene, whatever it was, had been hidden from me.

Which meant… the heroine wasn’t supposed to know about it.

What the hell happened?

Suddenly, I realized that the maid who had been escorting me had disappeared without a trace.

Strangely, the surroundings had darkened.

A moment ago, I had been walking through a city filled with music, but now, as if it was only natural, I found myself standing alone in a dimly lit alleyway.

Somewhere nearby, heavy footsteps echoed.

– Click.

A chilling sense of tension ran down my spine.

Is it just one person?

“…Who sent you?” I asked, spinning around.

The hooded man in a black robe flinched for a moment.

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about—“

“You’ve been following me to attack me.”

“O-oh, you misunderstand! Attack you?”

“You’re lying.”

A glimmer of light flickered from my eyes, and in an instant, a surge of explosive energy filled my body.

One breath. I leaped forward, shattering the ground beneath me.

Two breaths. The man hastily raised his arms in defense, his stance faltering.

Three breaths. I grabbed him by the throat as he stumbled.

“Guhhh—!”

“Who sent you?”

“I-it’s a misunderstanding! I-I’m Galleon!”

…Huh?

Galleon?

The Crown Prince’s attendant?

Caught off guard, I yanked back his hood, and sure enough, it was him.

The elderly attendant who always served the Crown Prince.

“W-wait, weren’t you the one following me?”

“Of course not! His Highness invited you! Have you already forgotten the meaning of the New Year’s Festival?”

I blinked, completely thrown off.

S-shit. I messed up.

Thinking about it now, this kind of festival was obviously supposed to be a romantic event where the male and female leads confirmed their feelings for each other!

Countless books and movies flashed through my mind.

The prince, disguised as a commoner, enjoying a nighttime stroll through the festival with his beloved, surrounded by dazzling city lights.

As the sun sets, amidst a heart-fluttering atmosphere, the prince finally reveals his true feelings.

That’s exactly the flow of this story!

Letting out a deep sigh, I lowered my head and followed the attendant.

“…His Highness didn’t see what just happened, did he?”

“He did not. But, my lady… what was that movement just now? I swear upon my honor that what I just witnessed from you was on par with an imperial knight.”

What do you mean, what was that?

That was just the retribution granted when I detected a lie.

Then—

My breath hitched.

Just now, I definitely detected a lie from him!

I instantly tried to back away to put some distance between us, but a thick mist suddenly filled my vision.

Hah! As if a mere fog could stop the power of Justice! If I just used my blessing—

…Wait.

Is using my blessing the right move here?

A sudden wave of confusion washed over me.

This isn’t an action-fantasy movie.

This is a romance movie.

In a romance film, if the heroine is in danger, the prince dramatically swoops in to save her.

I’ve never once seen a love story where the heroine suddenly obliterates a group of assassins with supernatural powers.

Wouldn’t using my blessing here ruin the story?

That brief moment of hesitation cost me my chance to fight back.

“Capture her alive! Anyone who harms her will lose their limbs! Be careful—she knows how to fight!”

My consciousness faded.

Just before everything went black—

A face flashed through my mind.

“What the hell, Elena?! Why was she even thinking about that?! She should’ve just used ‘Justice’ and wiped them all out! Her hesitation got her caught!”

“Actually, I think Elena made the right choice. Now’s the part where the male lead is supposed to barge in and save her, right? Since when does a romance heroine brutally slaughter assassins? Honestly, wasn’t her real mistake fighting the attendant earlier?”

Listening to Mooksung and Ahri argue, Kain felt his head spinning.

A romance movie where the heroine violently annihilated her enemies would be ridiculous.

But then… did that mean she should have held back and let herself get captured?

Kain felt a migraine coming on.

This mission… is way more complicated than I thought.

Meanwhile, Songee, who was so immersed she looked ready to jump into the screen, had a different question.

“What was that last image? It looked like Elena suddenly remembered something right before she blacked out.”

“It happened too fast. Maybe she lost consciousness before she could fully process it?”

Of course, someone did recognize what that image was.

Leaning against her seat, Ahri felt an indescribable, strange emotion stir within her.

…In her moment of crisis, Elena subconsciously thought of her true prince. Even knowing full well that he was in no position to save her.

A weird sensation settled over her.

She had always known Elena was mindful of Kain, but seeing it visualized so clearly felt… different.

If… If I were in that situation, would I think of someone too?

Before that thought could fully form, Ahri abruptly kicked the seat in front of her.

“Ow! What the hell?!”

“…Nothing. I just wanted to do it.”