The Romance Fantasy Novel MC is Only Into Me

It was quite a spectacle.

That was the only way Lancel could describe the current situation.
Truly, a spectacle.
“I have long admired you, Miss Meri! Please accept my proposal!”
“Uh… were we already… acquainted for a long time?”

The first pattern: mindless lines.
These were the kind of suitors who threw out a cliché confession regardless of whether they’d even met her.
Surprisingly, this was the most common type.

“Meri, when I see you, my heart feels like it’s flying over the fields of Ronaronia. A woman like the shining sun setting and the shyly rising moon! This empire without you is like an empty night sky, and my heart without you cannot be described in words…”
“Excuse me!”
The second pattern: the poet.
They put in a lot of effort but gained nothing.

Wasn’t it too extravagant?
And where was Ronaronia? Lancel had never even heard of that place.
Their speeches dragged on, so Merigold always interrupted halfway and ran away.

“Look, I’m the man who will become the strongest on this continent. I will surely earn merits in this war and enter the empire’s finest knight order. Isn’t that enough for a woman of humble birth like you?”
“……”
The third pattern: simply a proud man.
At this point, it was hard to tell if they were flirting or insulting.

“Now, Miss Meri, how about this: I’ll give you 100 gold coins out of the 300. It’s easy. Just pretend to fall in love with me for a while. You just sit there and earn 100 gold coins. Sounds good, right? Brilliant idea, isn’t it?”
The fourth pattern: the negotiator.
When emotional approaches failed, this type crept in.

Not a single one was willing to give away more than half.
“A woman. Marry me, or die by my hand.”
The fifth pattern: outliers.
“Ha ha ha! These stupid fools are really trying hard.”

The Sixth Prince was laughing loudly from a distance at this farce he had created.
“Since they can’t even seduce a woman, I guess they’re all married. What fools.”
He hadn’t approached Merigold for days.

He just sat back calmly as if confident he could have her anytime.
Lancel found Meri hiding in a corner, avoiding the men.
“What are you doing?”
“Eek! Ah, Master.”

She looked miserable.
“…What do you think the prince is up to?”
“Probably nothing.”
Lancel pinched his throbbing forehead as he looked at the slumped figure.

‘Sixth Prince, you’re trouble wherever you go.’
That guy treated this expedition like a game.
He seemed to have completely forgotten that this royal reinforcement unit was sent to rescue the Fifth Prince’s troops in danger.

What if they lost the war?
Everyone here would take the blame.
Except the Sixth Prince, the sole cause of all this.

The dishonor of failing to rescue the prince wasn’t something to overlook.
I guarantee every knight and commander would have to give up their titles and flee to the provinces. Some might even face harsher punishment.
Lancel wasn’t confident it wouldn’t be him.

“What were you thinking when you made this bet?”
“Huh?”
The Sixth Prince chuckled.
“Why do you need a reason to bet? It’s fun, isn’t it?”
“Fun…”

It had already been two days.
The pack of vultures chasing after the 300 gold coin prize and Merigold’s game of wits had already lasted over two days.
Lancel couldn’t forget the sight of the nearly dead-eyed prince dozing off.

—...Master, please hide me. Wherever I go, people follow me. Everywhere...
===========
—Merigold saw greed lurking in the eyes of those approaching while shouting their love. Humans are truly scary, very scary.
※ Merigold’s stamina and condition have drastically declined. Fatigue continues to accumulate.

“Why? Do you want me to stop? Then just admit one thing.”
The Sixth Prince lowered his voice chillingly.
“If you just admit that your relationship with Miss Meri isn’t simply superior and subordinate, but something much stickier, I’ll immediately make it as if nothing happened.”
“……”
“Rumors will spread all over the empire that a man married only three days ago is already running around with a lover…”

‘That figures.’
The empire’s nobles were serious when it came to love affairs. Once the news spread that Lancel had abandoned his legitimate wife and was having an affair, those idle fools would chew him up for months.
The Sixth Prince was using this to keep Lancel out of the bet.

And he seemed quite certain.
That Lancel and Merigold were indeed in such a relationship.
“Then the Lady of Iceford will hear the rumors immediately. What would the court count say? You know he looks kind, but he’s actually a scary man.”

The Sixth Prince’s hand crept up onto Lancel’s shoulder.
“So, Meri is mine, Lancel. Think of it as the price for stealing the Lady of Iceford I had my eye on. That’ll comfort me a bit.”
Suddenly, his eyes met Merigold’s in the distance.

‘Hmph... The goal was to marry her to a prince, but somehow she walked right into my trap.’
Maybe this was the easier path.
Given how things had gone, connecting Merigold to the Sixth Prince might be the fastest way to make her empress.

A mess like him was still a prince. One of the eight characters responsible for one of the game’s ‘main endings.’
Why had Lancel spent decades searching for Merigold?
Wasn’t it to connect her with a prince?

And now all conditions were set before him.
The only thing left was the choice.
But.

“……”
Lancel chuckled.
“Why are you laughing?”

The Sixth Prince’s expression stiffened briefly.
“Was my joke funny?”
“No.”
Ignoring the sharp glare from the Sixth Prince, Lancel continued.

“You might be overlooking something important, Your Highness.”
“...What do you mean?”
Even if he was a prince—
‘You’re not allowed.’

Lancel’s eyes moved toward the Sixth Prince.
“Why are you so sure Meri will fall for you already?”
“...?”
The Sixth Prince looked genuinely baffled.

Maybe it was something he hadn’t considered—a common mistake for a man in his position who could have anything he wanted.
But Lancel knew.
The protagonist of this world, Merigold, wasn’t soft enough to be had by just any prince.

Especially if Lancel was by her side to interfere.
“You’ll see soon enough.”
The next day.

Merigold received a dinner invitation from the Sixth Prince. A private meal for just the two of them.
Merigold refused.
This wasn’t an ordinary person’s invitation, but a prince’s.

.
.
.
“Arrogant bitch!”
The Sixth Prince furiously overturned the table. The dishes and food he had prepared to set the mood for inviting Merigold shattered and scattered everywhere.

The things he had arranged to invite Merigold were now broken into pieces and scattered about.
“...Did she really say that?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I clearly heard her say she didn’t see the point of dining with you alone.”
“Hahaha.”
The Sixth Prince’s face twisted with disbelief. He had never been refused an invitation before. He felt heat rise to the top of his head.

“I’ll go myself then.”
He stomped hurriedly down the train corridor.
He harshly flung open the door of the dining car where Lancel and Merigold were.

“Lancel Dante!”
“...? What is it, Your Highness?”
Lancel and Merigold were shamelessly sharing a modest meal in the corner of the dining car.
Just some bread and a few pieces of ham.

It was a pitiful comparison to the feast the Sixth Prince had prepared.
“I wondered what the woman who refused my dinner is doing now, and this is what I find…”
Lancel stared at the prince without a word for a while.

“I see.”
Wiping the grease from his hands, Lancel continued.
“Don’t be too discouraged, Your Highness.”
“What?”
“You’re currently courting Merigold, right? Such things are usually refused.”
“Co-c-court? Courtship?”

The Sixth Prince looked utterly shocked.
“Your Highness?”
After standing dumbfounded for a long moment, he abruptly spun and left so roughly it sounded like the wind.

Was he so shocked he lost his words? Lancel thought it was for the best.
“Maybe he’ll calm down now.”
“I hope so…”
Merigold sighed deeply.

It was a bet with 300 gold coins on the line. People continued to appear even now, throwing themselves at her.
But they weren’t completely foolish.
Seeing even the Sixth Prince walk away empty-handed, they were beginning to realize there was no way to seduce Merigold.

As despair spread, defeat showed clearly on the men’s faces.
“It’s hard to even start a conversation. How are we supposed to seduce her?”
“Three hundred gold coins? Even if they gave me a thousand, I couldn’t do it. She dodges even eye contact…”
This expedition wasn’t just a pleasure trip.

‘These men who gathered to fight in the war can’t waste time obsessing over such a ridiculous bet forever.’
Only a few days remained until their destination.
The First Royal Reinforcement Unit’s troops were slowly waking from their dream and returning to reality.

What awaited them wasn’t 300 gold coins but a bloody battlefield.
===========
TIP: Merigold’s condition is very low. How about going on a picnic soon to lift her spirits?
Under Merigold’s drooping eyelids, a shadow appeared.

“Let’s go somewhere quiet for a break after this.”
“Huh?”
Merigold said nothing at first, then nodded slightly at Lancel’s words. The tiredness on her face seemed to vanish for a moment.
“...I’ll go. I want to go.”

 
===========
—Empire Year 818, October 13, early morning.
—When a man hiding in Merigold’s bedroom attacked, she reflexively struck him down. She repelled the intruder in one blow. Her diligent training paid off.
※ Merigold has achieved the ‘First Kill’ achievement. (Emotion, Faith, Grace Down!! Charm, Allure UP!!)
Bang!

Lancel flung open the door of Merigold’s room.
She had just woken from a deep sleep, but exhaustion was long gone.
In front of him, Merigold trembled.

The bloodied hilt fell from her hand. Bright red blood dripped and soaked the floor.
“Ma-Master.”
Lancel silently examined the man who had collapsed ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) before Merigold.

No pulse. He was dead from a single strike. Eyes wide open in disbelief, he died without closing them.
Of course, it wasn’t the Sixth Prince. But it was definitely someone sent by him.
The dead man held a small pouch in his hand.

‘Could it be?’
Inside was a finely ground purple powder that smelled sweet.
Lancel already knew what it was.

“Silmyungcho.”
It was an extremely expensive poison that first caused unconsciousness and later blindness.
Something seemed to flare inside Lancel. An emotion he had forgotten since meeting Merigold.

“Sixth Prince Karin… you really caused trouble, didn’t you?”
Only the noise of train wheels cutting the rails broke the silence.