Chapter 282: Room 204 Mission Room – ‘Hotel Cinema’ (6)

– Yu Songee

Hearing Evelyn’s words, I couldn’t help but laugh.

Is she trying to say that some “nobody” had seduced the Crown Prince?

She totally had the mentality of a middle school girl. Even by romance fantasy standards, this development was a bit childish. These days, well-written romance fantasies had way more sophisticated build-up!

The childish development didn’t end there, no, it was only the beginning.

– Grab!

“Hmm?”

“Let’s dance.”

“Huh? Josh—“

I didn’t even get time to reply.

The boy, his face flushed red, gritted his teeth and dragged me towards the square where couples were dancing. Behind us, the disguised guards who had been watching us with a “What should we do now?” attitude began to move urgently.

A dance that suddenly started before I could even grasp the situation!

I frantically took two steps to the left, two steps to the right, spun around once, then took one step forward. Suddenly, I realized the absurdity of this situation!

What on earth are these kids doing?

It was like an ex-boyfriend and ex-girlfriend showing off to each other, saying, “Look, I have a new partner~!” Unfortunately, I’ve been dragged in the middle, playing the role of “the current girlfriend”. Even if I was Seungyub’s age, such a development would have definitely made me cringe.

“S-Songee! Let’s go over there!”

I watched the excited boy leading me towards the center of the square.

As I spun, trying to keep up with the boy who was doing his best to dance convincingly, I witnessed the absurd show put on by the prince’s guards.

Even if the Crown Prince acted childishly and naively, who position did he hold to them? To these guards, he was their lifelong lord? Unless they were fools, they must have grasped the situation.

The guards started forcing the surrounding civilians to applaud us. Seeing their tearful loyalty, I finally couldn’t hold back my laughter and burst out.

Ah…

I looked up at the sky. Gazing at the sky studded with stars shining so brightly it hurt the eyes, I glanced at the boy and girl now blushing furiously—all too aware of each other.

This development was so childish and over-the-top, it could have been written by a middle school girl—but that was what made it fun.

The truth was…

Even the most famous romance movies boasting tens of millions of viewers often had childish elements and silly troupes when one broke down their plots.

A wealthy person who could buy a ship on a whim, a powerful figure who could command thousands with a gesture—these people suddenly met and fell head over heels for someone of insignificant status, and acted as if they were ready to throw away everything they had built up over a lifetime.

That kind of thing could never happen in reality, right?

But audiences worldwide had laughed and cried over these developments. Of course, talented film directors might use their skills to disguise this “childishness” as much as possible, but there was a fundamental reason for it.

People were inherently childish, even as they grew older.

We had just hidden our childhood innocence, calling it childishness as adults. But deep down, everyone had their own inner child inside their heart. Right now, I felt the child inside me rejoicing like never before.

“Ugh…”

I looked at the boy, who was gritting his teeth with a serious expression in the middle of this ridiculous atmosphere. His bright red face couldn’t hide the sense of defeat radiating from him.

The reason was all too clear. Compared to Pendleton and Evelyn, who looked like they stepped straight out of a fairytale, our side seemed lacking, no?

Even if he tried not to be conscious of it, there were countless people around us, and it was obvious which side they were cheering for more. Indeed, the girl on the opposite side couldn’t hide her sense of victory as she smiled. It was childish, funny, it was even entertaining—and honestly, these characters were just adorable in many ways.

Maybe I should add a touch of spice to this scene too!

“Joshua.”

“T-that’s really—“

“Joshua!”

“Huh? What is it, Songee?”

“I’m sorry I’m not Elena.”

“Huh? What are you suddenly—“

“But we’re the protagonists of this story, not them.”

The protagonist of a movie must triumph. Even if the battlefield wasn’t some northern wasteland under siege by barbarians, but a battle of wills with an ex-girlfriend!

I reached out towards the air. Then, an object at the boundary of miracle and technology created by a super-civilization from the far reaches of outer space emitted a “flash of victory” and worked a miracle.

“Kyaaaah!”

Suddenly, Pendleton started acting like a madman.

As if the girl who had been nestled in his arms like a lark had transformed into a man-eating monster! He shoved Evelyn away, shouting into the air and swinging his fists before finally coming to his senses.

But it was already too late.

Evelyn rolled in the dirt, her dress ruined in an instant. Everyone around looked at Pendleton with expressions that said, “Is this guy crazy?” Tears had already started welling in Evelyn’s eyes.

And besides me stood another lunatic.

“Hahaha! Ahahahaha! What’s with him? Is that guy insane?”

“Your Highness, are you enjoying this?”

“Huh? Ah, no! I-I mean, how could I enjoy seeing a l-lady rolling in the dirt? I just want to reprimand that fool for his stupidity!”

“Then let’s go.”

“Huh?”

“To reprimand. Let’s go now.”

I might as well go all the way with it.

I took the initiative and led the Crown Prince along. The boy, though flustered at first, seemed to realize this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and moved towards Pendleton, who was floundering after causing a major incident, with an increasingly bigger grin.

“Lord Pendleton!”

“…Y-Your Highness?”

“What was that just now? Suddenly throwing a lady into the dirt! If the Duke had seen this, he would have struck you. I, as the future leader of the empire, cannot help but reprimand you. And—“

“Your Highness, this way!”

“Huh? What?”

As the boy looked in the direction I was pointing, his eyes filled with undisguisable mischief. Now, perhaps the happiest boy in the world reached out his hand with a broad smile.

“Lady Evelyn, take my hand and rise. And… next time, find a partner who at least knows how to dance in a place such as this.”

“You…!”

Oh my? Oh my? What’s with that look?

If looks could kill, Yu Songee would have died exactly 27 times just now. The murderous intent in Evelyn’s eyes was so fierce it made my heart skip a beat.

Did you perhaps sense something? Even the Crown Prince dancing beside me didn’t notice the peculiarity of the bracelet.

Is this some kind of exceptional intuition that the “female lead’s rival” possesses?

Somehow, I felt I shouldn’t lose in this atmosphere either, so I approached the girl who was standing up, holding the Crown Prince’s hand, and whispered, “Lady Evelyn, if you feel so wronged, become the female lead yourself.”

“What? What are you—“

“If you’re upset, climb the hotel. Capiche?”

“W-what on earth!”

“Evelyn! It was Songee who suggested helping you up from the ground. Shouldn’t you at least say thank you?”

The girl, who had been trembling for a while, finally opened her mouth, unable to withstand the gazes around her, “…Thank you.”

That voice, as small as a mosquito’s, was probably the highlight of this movie.

…Ha!

I’m really going crazy!

Did you all see my skills?

From start to finish, I’ve been wielding the flow of this movie with the palm of my hand!

My resolute decision-making!

My insight that penetrates the Crown Prince’s psychology!

Keu! It’s too perfect. I’m intoxicated with myself! Right now, I am “Perfecto Songee!”

Everyone was momentarily speechless as they watched Songee blatantly boasting for us outside to hear.

Noona, her mouth half-open, couldn’t help but mutter, “She… seems completely intoxicated with the movie atmosphere.”

On the other hand, Ahri, who had been giggling madly from earlier, showed a positive reaction, “Ahahahaha! What’s wrong with that? She’s killing it, isn’t she? Go, “Perfecto Choco Songee”, go!”

Considering the time, this movie was nearing its end. Evelyn and Pendleton had long since disappeared, and the New Year’s festival events seemed to be winding down. Around that time, the Crown Prince approached me.

“Um… Songee.”

“Joshua?”

“Today was so happy. Really.”

“It looks that way.”

“Ah, you probably already knew, or rather, everyone knows, but E-Evelyn…”

“I heard she had a good relationship with Your Highness in the past.”

At this moment, Joshua Pearson was not the Emperor’s son or the Crown Prince of the Empire, but just a boy. His expression was so similar to that of someone caught looking at old photos of their ex-girlfriend still saved on their phone.

“No! What are you saying? W-we just happened to date because of the circumstances.”

“Circumstances?”

“Evelyn is a distant relative of Mother. So Mother introduced her to me about two years ago, saying we would be a good match.”

“Did you match?”

“I told you we didn’t! Really. I never felt comfortable when I was with Evelyn. She always tried to make me feel conscious of something. We broke up because of that in the end…”

What did the boyfriend do with his ex-girlfriend to break up?

Honestly, I could guarantee there was not a single high school girl in the world who was not interested in this topic. This was the kind of subject that could make one the center of attention in the entire classroom the moment it was mentioned!

“What happened?”

“Before, about two months ago? I fell while trying to ride Motian. That crazy horse—“

The Crown Prince briefly looked at me and changed his expression.

“…I mean, the horse that hadn’t yet adapted to me, and everyone around panicked. But Evelyn, instead of comforting me, just looked at me with cold eyes. What did she say then? That I needed to train my horsemanship more? I was so angry that I told her never to come to the palace again.”

I think I understand that girl’s personality now.

Rather than truly loving the Crown Prince, she probably saw him as one of the most precious jewels to adorn herself. She was merely angry when that jewel revealed its flaws.

“At that time, I often regretted breaking up so impulsively. Mother nagged me a lot, too—but.”

But.

With those words, the boy turned to me with a pure smile.

“Now… I think that incident was the greatest fortune of my life. Maybe Motian wanted to show me there was a better person for me by throwing me off. So…”

“Go on.”

“There’s something I really want to say today. I want to formally introduce you to Father. In, in an official setting.”

The most important moment in a romance fantasy has finally arrived. That’s right!

The Proposal Event

The festival’s excitement settled on the boy’s embarrassed face. For this moment at least, the Crown Prince felt a bit like a “male lead”. If this wasn’t a movie, if it was reality, I might have felt my heart flutter a little.

It was a bit of a shame that the Crown Prince wasn’t a little more handsome, brave, and smart—the atmosphere would have been better.

“Oh my! Oh my! Oh my! Kids these days! How can they say such embarrassing things so easily!?”

“…Ahri, what you just said is really… and Songee didn’t say it, she just thought it.”

“Bah! Eunsol, how is that an ordinary thought? It’s the same as if she had said it to us!”

From the side, the “real grandfather” shouted as if he had been waiting for this moment, “Kids these days! They should consider the eyes watching them!”

Kain expressed a slightly different view, “No… Everyone seems to have found it very romantic, but didn’t the ending completely ruin it? ‘If only you were a little more handsome, brave, and smart’? At this point, it’s basically saying she wishes it was someone else.”

Beside him, Jinchul let out a hollow laugh.

“Anyway, this is the flow of breaking it, right? Seungyub, wipe the drool flowing from your mouth. You look like you’re about to jump into the screen.”

– Clatter!

“Ugh!”

“My Lady! Are you alright? You fool! Didn’t I tell you to drive carefully?”

When I came to my senses, I was moving in a carriage. I quickly understood the situation. Today was the day the Crown Prince could introduce me as his fiancée in an official setting.

Finally, I can see the ending of this movie!

Of course, it’s the happy ending created by the great Yu Songee!

I could barely hide the laughter bubbling up from deep inside me.

Keu! Songee, aren’t you too smart? You’ve succeeded so splendidly in something even Elena failed at?

I was intoxicated with my own perfection. Just for today, i’d allow myself to indulge in such a feeling.

As I grinned to myself while leaning on the carriage seat, the old man sitting across from me smiled slightly.

“Seeing My Lady so happy makes me happy as well.”

This was Galleon, the servant the Crown Prince sent to bring me.

He seemed to misunderstand that I was happy because of the Crown Prince’s proposal. Well, it wasn’t a complete misunderstanding. That proposal would be an essential element of the happy ending.

“Thank you.”

Suddenly, the old man’s eyes became moist.

“I… I have served His Highness since he was a newborn. Shamefully, I sometimes feel as if I’m looking at my own grandson.”

“Lord Galleon…”

“Please take care of him. My Lady—“

Suddenly, the sharp intuition of “Perfecto Songee”, shining more brightly than ever before, flashed.

Why on earth is this “scene of riding in a carriage” happening now? Has there ever been a detailed “travel process” shown in this movie before?

From the party venue, the fox hunting ground, the Crown Prince’s zoo, to the New Year’s festival—not once had there been a scene of moving somewhere!

That was because in the limited screening time, there was no room for “boring scenes” like travel processes. So the identity of the current “process of traveling by carriage” was…

An “interesting scene”.

– Clatter!