Chapter 1.1

Alcohol was the enemy.

That was the first thought that crossed her mind when she woke up and saw the person lying next to her.

“……This is crazy, just crazy.”  

She clenched the blanket in her hands and let out a silent scream.  

She hadn’t even drunk that much just because she was a little more excited than usual.  

She almost kicked the blanket away in frustration, but held back, worried she might wake the man lying beside her.  

“Haa…….”  

Only deep sighs kept coming out.  

When she glanced to the side, the man was sleeping soundly, oblivious to the world.  

Silvery hair with a nice sheen, pale skin, and lean muscles.

She was instantly drawn in by his appearance, staring blankly before snapping back to her senses.  

‘First, I need to get out of here.’  

She decided to leave this place and think about it later.  

Moving slowly so as not to make a sound, she slipped out of bed.  

She picked up her underwear and dress from the floor and tied the ribbon.  

But since she couldn’t tie it tightly by herself, it ended up a little loose.  

She struggled to tighten it a bit more, but was startled when an arm wrapped around her waist, nearly making her scream.  

“Where are you going?”  

“……What?”  

“Why are you leaving just like that?”  

His words were gentle, yet had a growling undertone, making her body stiffen.  

Unable to turn around, she forced an awkward smile and spoke.  

“I… I have to return to the mansion now.”  

“…….”  

“Because our fiery night is over.”  

No sooner had she finished speaking than the man suddenly spun her around and stared intently into her eyes.  

Then, with a slight smile, he said,  

“What should we do about this?”  

“……?”  

“Unfortunately, for me, it’s not over yet.”  

Suddenly, his face came closer, and she reflexively shut her eyes tight.  

Then, a gentle sensation touched her lips, making her flinch.  

“Ah, mm….”  

Her mouth naturally parted, and his tongue slipped inside.  

She tried to push him away, but her body wouldn’t cooperate.  

When she staggered, he wrapped his arm tighter around her waist, pulling her closer.  

As he pulled away, he whispered in a low voice into her ear,  

“Do you remember what happened last night?”  

“…….”  

“You cried, begging me to go deeper in you.”  

“That’s because…!”  

She had been so drunk, she didn’t even realize the person she was sleeping with was him!  

She pushed against his chest and quickly backed away.  

Taking a deep breath, she looked up at the man.  

Amethyst-like violet eyes were gazing at her.  

His name was Feroza Calliette.  

He was the older brother of the current Emperor of the Empire, newly granted the surname Calliette and raised to the position of Grand Duke.  

And in the novel 〈The Male Lead Is Obsessed with Me〉, into which she had possessed, he was none other than the male lead.  

How had things ended up like this?  

Time rewinds to a few weeks earlier.  

* * *  

Soon, the empire’s grand event, the Founding Festival, would take place.  

An invitation to the party at the Imperial Palace was sent to every noble in the empire, and her family was no exception.  

“Ellie!”  

“…….”  

“Ellie!”  

“Yes, yes?”  

She had been staring blankly at the salad in front of her when she suddenly looked up.  

With a dazed expression and wide eyes, the woman sitting across from her—Ellie’s mother—looked at her with clear disapproval.  

“What’s wrong with you?”  

“The Founding Festival is coming up soon. Are you preparing thoroughly?”  

“Preparing…?”  

Even the name ‘Ellie’ felt awkward, and she couldn’t make sense of what was being said.  

It was only natural.  

Because she was ‘Lee Soo-ji’ who had lived in South Korea!  

She had been excited for her first trip abroad and gotten on a plane, but of all things, the plane crashed.  

They say the odds of a plane crash are extremely low, but she never expected it to happen to her.  

Her last memory was banging her head hard against the window as the plane shook violently.  

When she opened her eyes again, she was lying on a huge bed in a completely unfamiliar room.  

At first, she thought she was dreaming and tried to wake up by jumping out the window, but someone entered the room at just the wrong moment and stopped her.  

To make things worse, she was told she’d lost her mind and almost ended up in a mental hospital.  

After a few days of observation, she realized she was inside the novel 〈The Male Lead Is Obsessed with Me〉.  

How did she know?  

‘Ellie Archenna was a character in the novel who always hung around the villainess, did her bidding, got blamed for everything, and ended up a hated character demoted to a commoner!’  

At first, she denied it.  

But her cheeks hurt when she pinched them, and the newspapers were filled with unfamiliar, squiggly letters.  

The only small mercy was that, even though it wasn’t Hangul, she had no trouble reading or writing.  

‘Did I die in the plane crash and end up here?’  

Fine, possessing was one thing.  

But why did it have to be as such a hated supporting character?  

She sighed deeply, and the woman suddenly raised her voice.  

“Ellie! I told you over and over, the Founding Festival is where all the nobles gather, so you must find a good husband!”  

“Ah….”  

For reference, Ellie—meaning herself—was only twenty years old.  

But this woman, her mother, was already making a fuss, saying she was of marriageable age.  

“I’ll take care of it.”  

“But you’re already twenty!”  

Her sighs started up again.  

Yes, in this world, it was customary to marry as soon as one’s coming-of-age ceremony was over.  

But she was from Korea, where twenty was just barely out of a school uniform. Marriage? Ridiculous.  

“Anyway, I hope you find a marriage partner at this Founding Festival.”  

“Yes…….”  

“That’s what the Founding Festival is for, isn’t it?”  

Swallowing another sigh, she nodded half-heartedly.  

After listening to the nagging until her ears hurt, she lost her appetite and stood up abruptly.  

“I’ll be going now.”  

“Oh my, hey! Ellie! I’m not finished yet!”  

“Enjoy your meal.”  

She gave a half-hearted bow and left the table.  

Before the dining room door closed, she could hear grumbling from inside about how the once obedient girl had changed so much.  

She trudged back to her room and flopped onto the bed.  

“I want to go back home… But I must be dead by now….”  

The odds of surviving a plane crash were slim.  

If she tried to jump out of here in hopes of going back, she’d probably die a dog’s death.  

Tears welled up in her eyes and she sniffled.  

No matter how much she thought about it, the only conclusion was to accept reality and live here.  

Turning her head, she grabbed a handful of the pink hair scattered on the bed.  

It was as soft as cotton candy and felt nice to the touch.  

Ellie was a beauty.  

Her soft pink hair and fresh green eyes reminded one of cherry blossoms.  

“What’s the use of being pretty! I’m just a hated supporting character!”  

Not that she wanted to be the lead, of course.  

She had no desire to become the protagonist of the story.  

Kicking the blanket in frustration, she suddenly sat up.  

“Right, well, as long as I don’t get involved with the main characters, I can live just fine, can’t I?”  

The Archenna family was a fairly wealthy marquisate, so she could enjoy a life of luxury she never had in Korea.  

The only thing she hated was being forced into marriage like this.  

If it weren’t for that, it would be a truly perfect golden spoon family.  

Ellie wasn’t the only child of the Archenna Marquisate, but it seemed her mother was worried she’d never marry and end up alone.  

She decided she’d hold out until the Founding Festival and then declare she couldn’t find a suitable man and would stay single.  

‘She’ll oppose me at first, but if I keep pushing, she might give up.’  

No parent can win against a stubborn child, so maybe she’d eventually give in.  

Thinking that made her feel at ease.  

Just then, there was a knock, and an unfamiliar voice called out.  

“Miss, it’s Roni.”  

“Oh… Please co— I mean, come in.”  

It still felt awkward to speak informally just because someone was a servant, but if she acted too strangely, she really might end up in a mental hospital.  

She still remembered how hard it was to convince everyone she was fine after being caught trying to jump out the window.  

The door opened cautiously, and a woman with braided brown hair and freckles walked in.  

“Miss, the dress you ordered for the Founding Festival has arrived. Would you like to see it?”  

“Yes, I mean, yeah!”  

Roni tilted her head and left, and she followed after her.  

But the moment she saw the dress, she was appalled.  

“You… you want me to wear this?”  

“You designed it yourself, Miss….”  

“What? Me?”  

She wanted to grab the former Ellie by the collar and yell, ‘Are you crazy?’  

The dress was covered in so many frills it looked childish.  

And the decorations—there were so many it hurt her eyes.  

She stared at the dress in disbelief and asked,  

“Can this dress be altered?”  

“Um… probably? But Madame has to approve it.”  

“Tell Madame that I don’t care how much extra it costs, but it must be altered.”  

“Y-yes.”  

When she grabbed Roni’s shoulders and spoke, Roni flinched and nodded hurriedly.

She tore off all the terrible frills.  

She left only the minimum amount of decoration, just enough so it wouldn’t look empty.  

She prayed that the Madam would agree to the alterations.  

Fortunately, two days before the Founding Festival began, the dress arrived, altered exactly as she wanted.  

“Ha, now I finally feel alive.”  

Seeing the dress without a single frill, all her frustration seemed to melt away.  

Roni glanced at her and cautiously asked,  

“Miss, why did you remove all the frills? You really loved frills, Miss.”  

“…Well, they just seem a bit childish, I guess?”  

She shrugged her shoulders and spoke as if it was nothing.  

Looking around the dressing room, she noticed that all the other dresses were also overloaded with frills. She thought she should just throw them all out and buy new ones.