Ch.226226. True Form

This wasn’t what I had hoped for.

The title of prince that I had carried since birth was heavier than I expected.

But I had no intention of abandoning it.

I wanted to become stronger.

I wanted to become someone who wouldn’t lose to my other siblings.

One day, a purple door appeared in my room.

There was nothing written on this unfamiliar door, but for some reason, the moment I saw it, I moved toward it as if being pulled inside.

And there, I met a man.

“Welcome to Claire’s General Store.”

A being whose gender, age, or identity I couldn’t determine—whether man, woman, elder, or child.

The moment I finished my transaction with him and stepped outside.

The Kingdom of German began to twist strangely.

This wasn’t what I wanted.

Surely, it couldn’t have been.

* * *

The carriage provided by the royal family for traveling to the Kingdom of German was not only fast but also absorbed external shocks remarkably well.

With almost none of the typical carriage jostling, it was definitely more comfortable than other carriages for long-distance travel.

“Ah, I’m tired.”

Deia, sitting across from me, yawns and shifts her body restlessly.

Even though there was no rocking that would make it difficult to sleep, she seemed uncomfortable somehow.

Originally, she should have returned to Norsweden with Darius, but she joined me saying she wanted to visit the Kingdom of German once.

Though this wasn’t a pleasure trip, I allowed her to come along since she wasn’t just tagging along for fun.

In the carriage following behind us were gifts for the Kingdom of German, along with Aria Rius.

I would have told her not to come, but she joined under the pretext of helping her friend Elenoa.

Whether she truly came with such benevolent intentions, I wasn’t sure.

In any case, Elenoa would probably be happy to see her.

“I can’t sleep well in carriages.”

Grumbling, she kept changing positions but continued to look dissatisfied.

Then she glanced at me and quietly moved to the seat beside me.

“Let me borrow your lap.”

“…What?”

Before I could respond, Deia naturally rested her head on my lap.

As I moved the book I was reading aside and looked down at her, she had already crossed her arms and closed her eyes.

“What are you looking at?”

Yet she calmly answered as if expecting me to be watching her.

I had always felt a certain closeness with her. I thought if I considered it a sibling relationship, it wouldn’t be a problem.

But is this really the appropriate distance between siblings?

“Deia.”

Even though I called her name softly, Deia remained silent. She couldn’t have fallen asleep already, so she was deliberately not answering.

“Deia.”

“Ah, what?”

Finally, seeing that I wasn’t going to back down, she slightly opened her eyes and petulantly acted offended.

“There are certain boundaries that even siblings shouldn’t cross.”

I never had brothers or sisters, so I don’t know for certain, but there must be lines that should be respected even among family.

“A grown sister falling asleep on her brother’s lap doesn’t seem particularly appropriate.”

Seemingly offended by my words, Deia snorted dismissively.

“Everyone does this, you know? What’s wrong with family members lending their laps?”

“…”

“If anything, aren’t you the one acting strange by thinking of me in a romantic way?”

When she put it that way, I had no response.

I was indeed ignorant about the concept of family.

Had I been uncomfortable because I was unconsciously seeing her not as a sister but as a woman?

If so, perhaps I was the one who needed to come to my senses.

“Then…”

But her tone was classic gaslighting, wasn’t it?

“Could you lie on Darius’s lap like this too?”

When I bluntly asked, Deia fell silent for a moment. Then she quickly sat up.

“I’m not sleepy anymore.”

“…”

“Really. I just got up because I’m not sleepy.”

I sighed but began to focus on my book again. I preferred reading since I also had trouble sleeping in carriages.

“Ah, I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

Just as I was about to concentrate on my book, I heard grumbling from beside me.

I wondered what it was now, but Deia’s complexion had genuinely worsened.

“Motion sickness?”

I thought the royal carriage didn’t shake much, and Deia was used to riding in carriages, so there wouldn’t be any issues.

I wondered if I should give her some medicine for motion sickness, but she covered her mouth with her hand and mumbled.

“It’s because you made me imagine lying on Darius’s lap.”

“…”

“Ugh!”

She really hated that idea.

As Deia’s expression grew increasingly pale with nausea, I sighed and said:

“Lean on my shoulder.”

“…”

“It might help if you rest a bit by leaning on something.”

Deia slowly approached and rested her head on my shoulder. Her expression seemed to relax as if she felt a bit better.

And soon after.

Through her disheveled hair, I could hear the faint sound of regular breathing.

“Did she fall asleep?”

I checked briefly and saw her sleeping peacefully with her eyes closed.

I briefly recalled how she had complained about having trouble sleeping in carriages.

“I suppose this much is acceptable even between siblings.”

I closed my book carefully so as not to wake Deia and turned my gaze to the window outside.

* * *

“Don’t worry.”

Rahul German, the First Prince of the Kingdom of German, smiled gently, trying to reassure Elenoa.

“I’m not particularly worried.”

Elenoa responded indifferently, genuinely unconcerned, but Rahul laughed as if even that pleased him.

“Haha, that’s Princess Elenoa for you. You’re different from other women.”

‘Oh, sh…’

Barely swallowing the curse that almost escaped her lips, Elenoa gulped.

She had heard that the German royal family had always been fond of women, especially Jehul who kept many women around him.

But she never expected them to make such blatant advances toward her, a princess of the Griffin Kingdom.

‘How do they plan to take responsibility later?’

When his father, the current king, steps down, he, as the eldest son, would be first in line for succession.

If by chance he were to form a serious relationship with Elenoa, she would naturally become the mistress of German.

That’s probably not what the Kingdom of German would want.

Even if there were to be a marriage, they would prefer it to be with one of the other brothers, not the eldest son.

After Rahul German left, other brothers came one after another.

Particularly the second and third princes, who were participating in the giant monster subjugation today, were quite explicit in their romantic advances.

“Haha, my older brother was here? Don’t take it to heart.”

The second prince, Rehul, spoke with gentle and considerate words, but it was hard to tell what he was really thinking.

“Keep your wits about you. You are a princess of Griffin.”

A cold voice.

The third prince, Serhul, who rarely showed affection to people and found meeting others unpleasant.

The two competed for Elenoa’s attention, neither willing to relinquish control of the conversation.

‘What on earth is wrong with them?’

But Elenoa was coolly assessing the situation. It wasn’t just one or two—all the princes were suddenly courting her.

She couldn’t help but think the Kingdom of German was up to something.

So she remained vigilant, but…

‘Is this for real?’

Looking at the princes’ behavior, they seemed to be genuinely in love with Elenoa.

Having a good eye for people, she was particularly confused.

The princes were courting her with sincere passion, as if under some spell.

After the second and third princes left.

She wondered if the others would come next.

By the way, the youngest, the sixth prince, was just eight years old.

A whole 10-year age gap with the still-young Princess Elenoa.

When that child professed his love, it really felt like she was committing some kind of crime.

‘I hope they don’t come.’

She wanted to lock the door, but doing so in the German palace might arouse suspicion.

Finally, Elenoa sighed and looked out the window.

The desert spread out behind the city.

Beyond the horizon would be the Griffin Kingdom, and there…

‘Deus…’

For the first time, she missed the man she had thought was her destiny. She wanted to go back quickly.

Soon the vacation would end, and she would have to return to the academy.

Elenoa was hoping the princes would succeed in their monster subjugation.

Just then.

Creeak.

The door opened, and a man entered.

Thinking it must be another of the six princes, she put on a mask-like smile, but…

“How are you finding your stay at the palace?”

A well-groomed beard.

Wrinkled skin.

Yet, a still-imposing tanned physique.

The old man sitting on the throne of the Kingdom of German.

Ramahul German had personally visited her.

“Yes, I’m very grateful for the hospitality.”

Elenoa responded with a smile.

Though she hadn’t had many lengthy conversations with Ramahul German, seeing him up close like this made her skin crawl.

How should she put it?

It felt like a scorpion’s poisonous sting was lurking behind that smiling, benevolent old man.

It wasn’t a good feeling at all.

The old man approached, making no effort to hide his greed.

“I hear my sons have been behaving quite rudely.”

“Not at all. They’re just teasing me. I’ve been taking it with a smile.”

“Hehe, is that so?”

The desire in Ramahul’s eyes. It wasn’t for nothing that he was responsible for an entire kingdom—his desire itself was extremely grand and selfish.

‘Is he crazy?’

Elenoa faced the disgusting desire seething in his eyes head-on. However, without changing her expression, she maintained her smile and naturally deflected.

“By the way, the other princes will be coming soon. They visit my room once a day.”

“Ahem, my sons are being quite disrespectful.”

That didn’t seem to sit well with him as he took a step back. Stroking his beard, Ramahul left with a smile that promised a next time.

“…Wow.”

Incredulous, Elenoa stretched her neck and exhaled.

What kind of situation was this?

From the eight-year-old sixth prince…

To the old man with six sons and five daughters.

Having directly witnessed and felt the licentious and passionate lust of the German royal family, Elenoa’s irritation began to boil over.

Moreover, King Ramahul didn’t genuinely have feelings for her.

He probably just wanted the perverse satisfaction of stealing a woman his sons liked.

“I see.”

Gritting her teeth, she brushed her forehead.

Having lived innocently while being saved by Deus Verdi and attending the academy…

“So this is how they want to play it?”

Elenoa Luden Griffin, like Findenai, was a boss in charge of a chapter in the game “Retry.”

In the original work, she was known as the Fallen Princess.

The Rebel Who Spent Nights Awake.

The Dignified Ringleader.

Judging that Orpheus, whose mind had collapsed or whose body had been taken by the Griffin’s evil spirit, was unfit to be king.

The very person who incited numerous students, led knights, and made the cold-blooded judgment that overthrowing the country was the right thing to do.

“Let’s see how this goes.”

Elenoa gritted her teeth and began to unleash the schemes and true nature she had kept hidden.