Finally, the last day of the festival dawned.
As it was an official event where the most prominent nobles from across the country gathered, the unseen competition was fierce. It felt different from the first day’s banquet, which openly flaunted extravagance and luxury.
Nobles, dressed formally but not too plainly, gathered in front of the altar.
Although everyone was curious about the oracle, they refrained from speaking out.
After a short wait, the Emperor, Empress, and Crown Prince appeared.
The imperial family, dressed in black ceremonial robes embroidered with a large hawk carrying the sun, looked more solemn than ever.
I made eye contact with the Crown Prince and coldly turned my head away. Unfortunately, Gined was in that direction.
Unable to find a place to rest my eyes, I decided to focus on the altar.
Just then, I saw the Emperor placing the offerings on the altar.
‘Damn that old man…!’
It was even more annoying because he looked like Pinion.
I thought he had a slightly better personality than his son, but after yesterday, I realized I was wrong.
The sacred flames in the giant brazier flared up, signifying that the Sun God had accepted the offerings.
The Emperor reached into the brazier.
The merciful flames of the god did not burn the living.
The Emperor’s blue eyes, lost in a trance, looked dazed. He slowly began to speak.
Finally, the oracle was delivered.
Everyone held their breath and listened intently to the Emperor’s words.
“Destiny will wrap the new sun and plunge into the sea of chaos.”
For a moment, the audience was silent, followed by murmurs of confusion.
“What does that mean?”
I didn’t understand either.
Did my parents understand? I glanced at them.
My parents were looking at the Emperor with rare stern expressions. My father’s face was especially frightening, so I didn’t dare speak to him.
‘What’s going on?’
Suddenly, a thought struck me like lightning.
Lina, the original girl of destiny, was gone. And I had taken her place.
If that’s the case, then this oracle is probably…
‘Could it be me?’
Coincidentally, inserting myself into the oracle made perfect sense.
Although it was grandly phrased, destiny referred to me, and the new sun likely referred to Pinion.
In conclusion, it meant that if I were to be with him, the world would fall into chaos.
I heard people whispering around me.
“Destiny, it’s similar to last year’s oracle, but different.”
“Destiny aside, what does the new sun mean?”
“Obviously, it refers to His Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Then the destiny that will plunge the sun into chaos is perhaps…”
Suddenly, some people looked at me. They whispered to those beside them.
Their whispers spread like a plague to everyone present.
My mother hugged me protectively from their gazes.
But I didn’t mind. In fact, I could barely contain my laughter.
So, this was a perfect opportunity to break off the engagement without any cost!
“What will happen to the imperial marriage?”
‘What do you think? There’ll be a break up.’
The Sun God’s oracle was absolute. With such a foreboding oracle, even the Emperor had no way out.
Pretending to be at a loss, I buried my face in my mother’s arms and smirked.
In the meantime, I felt an unusually intense gaze.
When I lifted my head slightly, the Crown Prince was glaring at me. He had an expression I had never seen before.
He stormed down from the altar. His fierce demeanor made people step aside.
In no time, the Crown Prince was right in front of me.
My father stood in front of me and my mother.
“What are you doing, Your Highness?”
My father protested, but it seemed the Crown Prince didn’t hear him.
“I…”
His voice trembled a little.
Surprisingly, he looked genuinely shocked.
A whirlwind of emotions swirled in his violet eyes.
His evident turmoil was so intense that it made me more flustered.
“I cannot accept this.”
He spat out fiercely with a contorted face.
As I stared at him in astonishment, the second oracle was delivered.
“But finding order within chaos is also the work of destiny. Destiny, believe in yourself.”
***
“My goodness, isn’t that the young lady from the Dronay family…?”
“I thought she’d be bedridden with lovesickness, but she looks fine?”
“Actually, there were signs of a breakup even before the oracle was delivered.”
“I heard that the day before the ceremony, the Emperor and Duke Dronay had a heated argument about the marriage at a tea party.”
“Maybe the Emperor didn’t want to be tied to the Dronay family and used the oracle as an excuse to break off the engagement?”
“No way. The oracle is absolute. Even the Emperor can’t manipulate it…”
“Perhaps the Sun God also thought he couldn’t hinder his descendants’ future.”
I heard stifled laughter here and there.
“But what about the second oracle? Surely, the young lady of the Dronay family isn’t the one to find order?”
“We’ll have to wait and see, ah!”
I looked down at the flustered woman with a gentle smile.
“Long time no see, Ines.”
“Y-yes, indeed. What brings you here…?”
“It sounded like an interesting conversation. Mind if I join?”
No one readily answered.
Well, it didn’t matter.
I confidently took one of the empty seats.
“By the way, your hair has grown a lot since we last met.”
Ines flinched at my casual remark. But soon, she glared at me with eyes full of venom.
Ines, the eldest daughter of Duke Foel.
Though her presence was relatively overshadowed by mine, she was also famously infatuated with the Crown Prince. In the past, she had her hair pulled out by me several times for that sin.
“You know how much I love your hair, right, Ines? It’s so smooth and soft every time I grab it. I’m curious how you manage it.”
“I envy your firm grip, Lou. Once you find a target, you never let go. Not to mention, you’re always spot on when you splash tea.”
Ines responded quite firmly.
‘Oh.’
I was genuinely impressed.
“I’ve been feeling quite itchy lately, but hearing that makes me tempted. If you ever feel like cooling off in this hot weather, just let me know.”
“Unfortunately, there’s no water here.”
Ines shrugged, looking at the empty table.
Without hesitation, I grabbed the teacup of the girl sitting next to me.
“Gasp!”
I heard a sharp intake of breath. Ines’s face turned pale.
“We can just have someone bring it.”
I looked at the teacup filled with tea and pondered for a moment. Should I tease her more or not?
Ines seemed ready to bolt out of her seat any moment.
Seeing that, my excitement waned.
After all, the breakup was imminent.
I decided to show mercy.
Instead of splashing the tea on Ines, I sniffed its aroma.
“The tea smells nice.”
“If you really splash it on me, I won’t stand for it.”
Ines’s voice trembled, probably thinking my words were a threat.
I put down the teacup and pretended nothing had happened.
“What are you talking about? Ines. It’s just a joke, a joke.”
Ines’s pale face turned red this time.
Watching her face change color, I stood up.
“Well, the uninvited guest will be leaving now. Have a good time.”
‘Hmph.’
It had been like this ever since the oracle was delivered.
People who didn’t know the situation thought I had been abandoned by the Crown Prince.
Every time I went out, I was met with reactions of mockery and pity.
I scoffed and held my head high.
No matter what anyone said, I was now free. The burden on my shoulders was gone, and I felt light.
Of course, the future still looked bleak.
With the Crown Prince out of the picture, my remaining options were the overly rigid holy knight Gined, and the seemingly clueless minor Iscallion.
The former guaranteed personal safety but had a very low success rate, while the latter had a relatively higher success rate but offered no assurance of survival.
For the past few days, from the moment I woke up until I fell asleep at night, that was all I could think about.
‘If only I could mix and split them…’
I eventually drifted into a light sleep.
In the hazy boundary between reality and dreams, someone whispered in my ear.
[Lou Dronay.]
In my drowsy state, I forced my eyes open to see a dark figure standing beside me.
[Do not be afraid.]
Far from being afraid, I was annoyed at having my sleep disturbed.
‘What kind of dream is this?’
I wanted to go back to sleep, but the clueless figure kept talking.
[Your efforts are commendable, but we regret to inform you that the results are insufficient… lacking. Therefore, it has been decided to grant you the strongest and most beautiful partner from both the earth and the underworld. We hope you achieve meaningful results.]
‘It’s just a silly dream.’
And by the time morning came, I had completely forgotten about that dream.
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Torryy
Thank god! Because if I were in her shoes, I wouldn’t have been able to accept any of the three. Living as a replacement and having a forced Love with one of the mls that the ogfl ‘discarded’ is disrespectful AND burdensome.