TPSR 20

Chapter 20

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Even though I had expected this, my body began to tremble uncontrollably, against my will. It wasn’t just because of the pain from hitting the ground.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Damian hurried down from the horse and supported me. With shaking arms, I pressed my hand against the ground and forced myself to stand.

“I’m fi—ugh. Ha…”

Fortunately, nothing seemed broken.

I lifted my head and glared at the figure approaching us.

A threatening stride. Carelessly tousled, wavy silver hair. Arrogant golden eyes that looked deliberately distorted with contempt.

A man who looked like the Emperor in his youth.

If there was one person in the imperial palace I avoided, even though I had once feared nothing there—it was him.

“…Vincent.”

The disgusting name slipped through my clenched teeth.

The Emperor’s legitimate eldest son and first in line to the throne.

The man destined to become Crown Prince exactly five years from now.

The First Prince, Vincent Elvon Friese.

‘I knew it would be him.’

Just seeing his face made nausea rise in my throat.

During the eighteen years I had stayed in the imperial palace, Vincent had been desperate to devour me alive.

Until the day he became Crown Prince, the matter of the refined magic stone had been a secret known only to me and the Emperor. Perhaps that was why Vincent treated me like a thorn in his side—watching me regularly meet the Emperor alone and whisper secrets.

Whenever I got entangled in troublesome incidents or was unexpectedly injured, Vincent was always behind it.

There had even been times when I felt a twisted sense of superiority watching him struggle—thinking that I, though not of pure blood, was more valuable than the legitimate heir.

After all, the Empire had once felt as if it lay beneath my feet.

At least, until the moment the Emperor abandoned me and dragged me to the underground prison.

‘Arrogant.’

Looking back now, that conversation had been the beginning of everything.

That day, as usual, I had just finished discussing the refined magic stone with the Emperor and was leaving. If Vincent hadn’t been standing crookedly in front of the garden, waiting to provoke me, I would have simply passed by.

But perhaps I had been too full of myself that day.

“Vincent, you must be quite insecure to feel threatened by someone as incomplete as me.”

“…What?”

“I understand that your incompetence and inferiority make you anxious and jealous. But if you truly think you’re fit to be Emperor, wouldn’t it be better to read one more line of political theory instead of picking fights?”

“What did you just say?”

“It’s the truth, isn’t it? A half-blooded princess who doesn’t even know her real mother—and the Emperor’s legitimate eldest son, who has only just completed his Crown Prince ceremony a year ago. If you compare just the two of us, I could never possibly be your rival.”

“…You filthy little worm of a woman. Just because you have a mouth—”

“How vulgar.”

I had never been interested in the Emperor’s throne. That was why Vincent’s competitiveness and anxiety toward me had seemed pathetic. I had only meant to irritate him a little.

How could I have known that my provocation would strike him so deeply that he would investigate the source of the refined magic stone and manipulate the Emperor?

Foolish.

‘Who’s the real worm?’

Unaware of my thoughts, Vincent looked down at us arrogantly, grinning.

“I wondered what kind of wretched temper made you run off again…”

His gaze shifted to Damian, who was supporting me.

“Well, this is more than I expected.”

A low, unpleasant chuckle escaped him.

From Vincent’s perspective, this was a stroke of unbelievable luck. He would never miss such a heavenly opportunity to eliminate a thorn in his side.

Damian stepped in front of me and pointed his sword at Vincent.

“I’ll skip the formalities. How about you simply pass by, Your Highness?”

“Oh my, have you lost your mind?”

Vincent smirked.

“This is exactly why I begged Father to wipe out your entire house long ago. Look at you—so fearless it’s absurd. Are you openly declaring rebellion?”

“I don’t recall ever being treated as a citizen of the Empire.”

“How shameless.”

Vincent scanned him mockingly.

I frowned.

‘There are far too many of them. This is bad.’

I hadn’t expected the Emperor to dispatch the entire Second Royal Guard along with Vincent. We had already lost one horse. If we weren’t careful, we could fail to escape.

Damian couldn’t attack Vincent.

To engage the First Prince directly here would give them the perfect excuse to destroy the Grand Ducal House on the spot.

Fortunately, perhaps because of the fierce aura Damian exuded, the knights hesitated and did not completely surround us.

“Let’s see, Young Master of the Grand Duke. They say you’ll soon become a Sword Master.”

Vincent giggled and drew another arrow. The sharply honed, prince-exclusive arrow gleamed coldly beneath the dawn light.

“Shall we test your skill?”

He even hummed as if amused. It was the smile of someone who knew Damian could never attack him here.

Damian clenched his teeth and adjusted his grip on the sword.

‘No.’

This situation was terrible.

“Hahaha! How entertaining! It reminds me of when I used to hunt rabbits as a child!”

Vincent aimed his arrow at us.

We were in a forest. The terrain was uneven, and aside from Vincent, the knights were armed only with swords. The distance was sufficient for Damian to deflect that bastard’s arrow, and our remaining horse was still within reach.

‘If we stay calm, we can do this. It’s fine.’

We had anticipated this.

Quietly, I moved my hand to the dagger sheath at my waist. With my other hand, I tugged lightly at Damian’s sleeve.

His green eyes flicked toward me briefly.

“Don’t answer him, Young Master. When I count to three, get on the horse and run at full speed. That way—where the knights haven’t surrounded us.”

“…What?”

“I know you don’t trust me. But do as I say for now. Even if you block one arrow, it’ll be troublesome to fight the knights while protecting me, won’t it?”

Damian’s eyes widened.

Of course. I was referring to myself as baggage.

But there was no time to preserve my pride. It was the truth.

“Understood?”

When I asked again, he reluctantly nodded.

“Fine, I’ll deal with the Grand Duke’s son myself! Someone bring the princess to me! Spare her life and you’ll be richly rewarded!”

Vincent laughed and drew back his bowstring.

“One, two…”

Just before the arrow was released, I pulled the pollen-covered birch branch from the sheath and hurled it at Vincent.

Thud!

“Ugh—!”

“Three! Now!”

Vincent staggered, and the arrow flew off in the wrong direction. Seizing the moment, Damian lifted me onto the horse and spurred it forward at full speed.

“Hyah!”

Behind the frantic sound of hooves, I heard coughing and urgent shouts.

“Cough! Cough—ugh!”

“Your Highness! Your Highness!”

“You crazy—cough! Ugh! Cough! Help—cough!”

“Protect His Highness! At once!”

I cheered inwardly.

‘It worked!’

Birch pollen.

Birch flowers that bloom in spring were infamous for causing allergies. And it was well known within the imperial palace that Vincent suffered from that allergy.

It was information I had learned by chance before my regression. I never imagined it would prove this useful.

The knights panicked, surrounding Vincent instead of pursuing us.

I faced forward again and lowered my body.

“Don’t stop! Head southwest!”