The Princess's Script-Flipping Survival Chapter 1

My father ordered me into a political marriage.

Mother gestured to my handmaidens, Lyra and Elara. "Pick one to go in your stead."

As I raised my hand, shimmering text appeared:

["What a snake—sacrificing her maids!"]

["Relax, the Crown Prince will save Lyra."]

I hesitated, then pointed at Elara.

More text:

["Worse choice. The General will storm your palace."]

["Your fiancé hates you—he’d rather elope with the heroine."]

My face paled. The words kept coming:

["Valerak’s King secretly loves you."]

["But sending a substitute will enrage him. War is coming."]

I lowered my hand. "Fine," I sighed. "I’ll go myself."

* * *

The moment the words left my lips, a profound silence fell over the Queen’s Rosewood Wing. The expressions on everyone’s faces were a complex tapestry of shock and relief.

From my seat of honor, I saw it all clearly. A flicker of undisguised joy crossed the faces of both Lyra and Elara. They were just as unwilling to go as I was.

Only my mother, seated beside me, looked both furious and panicked by my declaration.

“Aurelia, do you have any idea what kind of place Valerak is? It’s a bitter, barren wasteland where nothing grows! Have you considered the suffering you will endure there?!”

Having been a diligent student of history and an avid reader of regional chronicles since childhood, I knew all too well the harsh reality of the northern kingdom. When I first learned of my father's command, my heart had felt as heavy as lead. My mother had schemed tirelessly, offering me a sliver of hope, a chance to escape my fate.

But now, seeing those strange, prophetic words floating in the air, I understood. If I sent a substitute, I would bring ruin upon our kingdom.

It was a gamble I dared not take.

As I searched for the right words to persuade my mother, she spoke again, her voice hardening with resolve. “You are my only daughter. I will not send you into the lion’s den! Since you cannot bear to part with them, then I shall choose for you!”

Her finger stabbed through the air, pointing directly at Lyra.

Lyra’s body went limp, and she collapsed to the floor, sobbing. “Your Majesty, I beg you, have mercy!”

[The Queen is so cruel. She can't bear to send her own daughter, so she forces someone else's to go!]

[Just like mother, like daughter. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, and the female lead's mother is truly rotten.]

[Don't you worry, baby girl. Our Crown Prince will be here in T-minus three seconds!]

[Is anyone else noticing that the princess actually changed her mind and said she'd go herself?]

[Upstairs, she was obviously just saying that. That woman is the very definition of a hypocrite!]

I finished reading the last of the floating text with a deep frown. Just as the final word faded, the grand doors to the Rosewood Wing were thrown open with a violent shove.

A man in the formal robes of the Crown Prince stood silhouetted against the harsh light.

My eyes darted from him back to the spectral words.

My brother, the Crown Prince… he had actually come.