Prologue
It was a romance fantasy.
Yet he was neither the protagonist nor the antagonist, but merely a simple Imperial Guard.
Even so, that did not mean the situation was beyond control or that his role could not change the story’s direction.
“Good morning, Vergil.”
“Good morning, Princess.”
Even as an Imperial Guard, he could feel the pieces falling neatly into place.
In the novel ‘The Frozen Hyacinth Does Not Wither,’ the female lead, Princess Anneliese Sibylle von Friedeberg, was fated to die at the hands of the main antagonist.
Her death would push the male lead toward a journey of revenge and grief.
The story was, in most cases, a romance ending in tragedy, and nothing ever changed that outcome.
“It’s a lovely day, isn’t it, Vergil?”
“It is, Princess.”
With his sudden appearance here and his new identity as Vergil Eichel-Streiber, the Princess’s Imperial Guard, he realized that the tragedy could be rewritten.
The premise was simple enough. If he removed the antagonist before the man ever had the chance to kill Anneliese, then the main plot would never begin.
It would leave the world suspended in a peaceful and endless prologue where nothing tragic had reason to unfold.
Yet no matter how simple a plan looked on the surface, there was no such thing as a flawless one.
“Vergil Eichel-Streiber, for the offense of harboring improper and intimate intentions toward Her Highness, Princess Anneliese Sibylle von Friedeberg…”
He had acted too early.
“For conduct unbecoming of an Imperial Guard, for exceeding the scope of your mandated duties, and for actions that have been deemed a threat to the dignity of the Imperial Household, this Council has reached its judgment.”
By trying to prevent the tragedy that awaited the Princess, Vergil had walked directly into the antagonist’s scheme, using his own efforts against him.
“In recognition of your exemplary service on the northern front, your decisive actions in safeguarding Imperial territories, and the distinction you have brought to your station, the Council has elected to commute the harsher penalties customary for this offense.”
“...This is ridiculous.”
“You will not face execution. Instead, you are hereby relieved of your post, divested of your rank, and ordered into formal exile from the Empire, effective immediately.”
Even as he looked at her one last time, all he found in the Princess’s eyes was fear and contempt.
The distance between them felt wider than the hall itself.
“....”
He had believed she cared for him.
That the moments they shared had meant something.
Yet the expression in her face felt as if every memory he treasured had been nothing more than a shallow illusion to her.
“P-Princess…”
On that day, Vergil let the last of his attachments fall away.
Whatever hope he had and whatever feelings he thought existed between them crumbled the moment she looked at him as if he were a monster.
‘You can go die, then. You damn bitch.’
