Chapter 55
‘If it’s a generic fantasy novel, can’t it just stick to the romance? Why throw in the “save a crumbling country” growth arc keywords and complicate things?’
The novel, His Majesty the Emperor Started to Obsess Over Me, was a romance fantasy novel where Lilian meets male lead candidates, goes through push-and-pull relationships, and grows along with them. Even though it was a typical rofan novel with all the familiar tropes, it was praised for its solid worldbuilding and plot progression.
‘What’s the point of a well-structured world if it’s all on the brink of ruin?’
Of course, they’ll somehow win in the end. The high-stakes setup makes it more entertaining, but the story changes when it’s my daughter going through it. Isn’t there some way to secure at least a minimum level of safety for her?
With that desperate hope in mind, I gestured to the men, trying to instill some positive perception.
“Well, I hear the young Crown Prince is already exceptionally bright!”
At that, the three men holding their potatoes gave me incredulous looks.
“How can you tell if a little kid’s smart or dumb?”
“Miss, did you come from the capital? You said you were from Köln earlier.”
“Suspicious. Are you lying? You’re not a noble, are you?”
One of them suddenly grabbed my hand to inspect my palm, clicking his tongue sympathetically.
“…You need some cream for those calluses.”
“You’ve worked a lot. You’ve had it tough.”
“Pretty face, but why are your hands like that?”
Who knew I’d be grateful to have been reincarnated as a maid in my life.
Tears came to my eyes naturally. No matter how much Ernst kissed and pampered me, the signs of over twenty years of labor didn’t just disappear. Even before I took over this body, Julie had done enough hard work that her hands were far from delicate.
“No, they’re beautiful. The prettiest hands in the world.”
Of course, Ernst always loved them, kissing them as if they were adorable. He’d even show his own hands, calloused and hardened from holding a rifle for half his life, saying that if status were measured by hand softness, then he’d be far lower than me, comforting me with sweet words.
How could someone like that come to me? Looking back, I’m so fortunate. I thought I’d be a maid mistreated by the Grand Duke, bearing his child and then abandoned, but an unexpected twist awaited me.
And suddenly, I paused, lost in thought.
Perhaps that’s what life is like, after all.
“When you think it’s all over…”
I mumbled absentmindedly, and they glanced back at me.
With lifeless, bleak eyes, they were clinging to survival, playing the role of kidnappers that didn’t even suit them, utterly defeated, as if everything had ended.
But is that really the end of life?
Isn’t there a twist waiting for us when we think it’s truly over?
Without even realizing it, I found myself saying, almost entranced,
“When you think it’s all over, maybe it’s not actually the end.”
Their faces held expressions of confusion. I suppose it sounded far-fetched to them, but didn’t Yogi Berra have a famous line like that?
It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
Am I not living proof of that saying?
“So, don’t give up. Not at any moment.”
I persevered through every crisis and turning point, holding out to the very end.
Not once did things flow naturally, nor was anything just handed to me.
I struggled to escape, fought to survive without rest, and each choice I made led me to this point.
If I hadn’t fled the grand ducal residence, I’d never have discovered Ernst’s feelings. In the life-or-death situation of being captured by the rebels, I didn’t give up on survival. Above all, when it came to my relationship with Ernst, it was my decision to protect Lilian within me. That choice ultimately saved my life.
So, while Lilian may be the protagonist of the main story, in the story of my life, the protagonist is none other than me.
The same goes for these people, for anyone, really.
They just need to hold on and get back up. Eventually, a path to survival will open up, and they’ll need to carve out a way to live in their own stories.
Only then, after overcoming hardships and struggles—will they have truly lived their lives.
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