NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1 - Prologue
“It’s time to put an end to what has been delayed.”
“Shouldn’t there be no more conflict?”
“Saintess. Please make a decision!”
“For the eternal peace of the Empire…!”
I sat in the center of the conference hall that resembled the court and stared at them.
All the men who came out on behalf of each force were screaming with an agitated face. And the three men representing their own forces were looking up at me. It was like brides waiting for the selection of a spouse for the Imperial Family.
The Prince and Sword Master of the Illide Empire with impressive red hair and red eyes.
‘Kyle Alexis Illide.’
He was sitting in front of the officials of the Imperial Palace.
[Choose me. Otherwise…]
Suddenly, when I saw his eyes, I felt like I was hearing hallucinations. Unknowingly, Kyle’s long sword on his waist made my spine shiver.
And… the bright blonde, golden eyes, and pretty-looking High Priest, Reihausd El, who looked like he jumped out of a painting. There were numerous believers sitting nervous behind him.
[I’ve prepared a prison just for you. My Goddess.]
He twisted his red lips and showed a decadent smile.
Finally, Cass Lloyd, the owner of the Lloyd Merchant with dark navy blue eyes that resembled his cold-blooded personality. Behind him were members of the Lloyd Merchant, the largest company in the Empire. It was meaningless to read Cass’ poker face that didn’t show his feelings well.
“Saintess… Please make a decision.”
I heard the officials urging me around my ears. And a message of the excited Gods was shown in the sparkling blue window in front of me.
[The God of Art, Mond, preaches about the aesthetic value of Reihausd’s appearance.]
[The God of Destruction, Ciel, argues that only those who are strong like Kyle can win love.]
[The God of Knowledge, Hessed, recites information about expensive buildings owned by Lloyd’s owner.]
[The God of Love, Odyssey, is dancing fan dance excitedly.]
It was time to decide a choice I could no longer step back.
‘How did I end up in this situation?’
I sighed and lost in thought.
***
“Haa…”
When I opened my mouth slightly and made a sound, a sweet voice that was mine but not exactly mine flowed out. High ceilings with chandeliers and luxurious interior decorations caught my eye.
“Are you not feeling well today?” I turned my head to the maid’s voice. “Two days ago, the Saintess suddenly asked for your name… I’m worried because you seem to be confused.”
Brown hair tied in pigtails, face full of freckles, and dark brown eyes that shine under a little torn eyelids. Her name was Annie, and she was an extra among the extras whose name didn’t appear in the original story. At the age of 17, she wore a navy blue made dress with frills.
“No, I’m fine now.”
I answered as I hoped that my answer wouldn’t be awkward.
“Shall I prepare your meal? If you’re not feeling well, I’ll call the priest. What if you can’t give a congratulatory speech at His Highness’ birthday banquet?”
She quickly continued to talk in a worried tone.
“Even the merchant has prepared the dress that you wanted. How much they say it was…”
I was listening to her words without saying anything.
If I were the original Ariel, I would’ve jumped and said,
‘No way! I will give the best congratulatory speech. So that he will never forget me!’
But I calmed down and uttered, “First of all, the meal… Bring it to me. Except for the crappy salad.”
“Yes, Saintess.” Annie smiled and added a word. “You also didn’t eat it before, but it’s unexpected.”
After a while, she opened the door and disappeared.
I woke up slowly after the door was completely closed. Then I approached the full-body mirror. I still couldn’t believe it, that’s why my heart pounded whenever I looked in the mirror.
“Haa…”
I think she was about 17 years old. While looking at the young face, I touched the gold hair covering half of my back. Her eyes were a little pale of sapphire color as if they contained the light of the sea, and her skin white and soft. The girl’s face in the mirror was clearly very beautiful. And there was a mysterious atmosphere.
But what’s clear is that it’s not my face. And it’s also not the face of the main character in the original story that I remembered.
The hair of Camilla, the main character, was brighter platinum, and her eyes were fresh green, like an embedded emerald.
“It’s… Ariel, right? So I’m Ariel…”
I could see the girl in the mirror, that was me, giving a small sigh and clattering her lips.
Hence… How should I explain my situation?
[The Return of Saintess Camilla]
The piece of work that I read in my previous life was a reverse harem web novel mainly about Saintess Camila, who had a noble character, being courted by three men from different backgrounds. The main characters’ emotional lines dominated the story, and in the process of pushing and pulling, I could feel the catharsis as I saw the three men becoming the four out of love.
‘It was a little shocking that all three men became Camilla’s husbands.’
Still, it wasn’t a bad piece of work for killing time.
And I possessed the body of the novel’s character, Ariel, two days ago.
Ariel, who was born as a poor daughter of a baron, had lived as if she were an extramarital child because her mother was a servant. Although she had no faith, she had a goal of meeting the young lord of a good family and raising her status. She went to the temple regularly, but she accidentally came to the Temple of Elium because she caught the High Priest, Reihausd’s eye.
She had been steadily playing the role of a ‘fake saintess’ since two years ago through a deal with him.
The problem was that she was the villain in the novel.
Ariel was a time-limited saintess that was established as a stand-in for the political stability of Prince Kyle and High Priest Reihausd.
She was a foolish evil woman who knew that she’d be thrown out when the real thing appeared. Yet she interrupted Camilla with her twisted love for the High Priest, whom she relied on as a guardian, and also Prince Kyle, whom she secretly had a crush on.
‘Are there really five years left until the real saintess, Camilla, appears?’
I thought, biting my lips.
[The moment she reached out to Camilla, who forgave her, the three men’s swords headed for her at the same time. And she was killed without a moment to scream.]
In the original work, Ariel died like that and gave the readers good riddance.
‘But I don’t want to die.’
In the end, I stayed up all night for two days and tried to organize the situation coolly. And about my life before the possession…
That dying moment was still vivid. My body in the past is dead, so there is probably no body to return to. That means I have to live my whole life with Ariel’s body from now on.
“…”
I alluded to the colorful, large windows. The bright sunlight slightly entered the room. I approached one of the windows and raised the closed window up.
“I have no choice but to accept what happened anyway.”
I quickly judged and adapted to the situation.
The cool wind outside blew through the open gap, causing my long hair to scatter.
“But this isn’t that bad, isn’t it?”
Because I possessed this body by the time before she became the villain.
“If I don’t live as she did, the future can be changed.”
Fresh air was felt in my nose. It’s a privilege that only the living can feel.
At the time when the coldness of death flowed from my fingertips to my heart, I realized that anything was better than dying. The life of a child who was born as an illegitimate child of a rich family and lived with awareness, as soon as she became an adult with money, she became independent and got out of the house, but she died in vain in just a year.
Considering my past life, wouldn’t the life of a fake saintess in the novel be better than that?
Foolish Ariel died while running around without knowing what it was all about, but I am different from the original one. I’m not interested in the male leads who will become another girl’s men or the saintess position.
Since there are still five years left, I have to save money and learn how to live in this world.
And when Camilla, the real saintess, comes, I’ll calmly give up my seat, leave the temple, and buy a building… I’ll spend the rest of my life doing things I want to do.
As I cleared up my complicated feelings and made future plans, my anxiety seemed to fade a little. It’s just a waste of time to deny the current situation, anyway. Two days of concern was enough.
“Ariel. Yeah… I’m Ariel from now on.” I calmed my beating heart and clenched my fist as if I was instilling confidence for a new beginning.
But at that very moment.
[A shining path lies in you who accepted your new fate.]
“What is this?”
A blue window suddenly appeared in front of me, and a strange text popped up.