How to Live as the Mad Duke's Fake Daughter

“Yes.”

Benny answered without hesitation.

A little bewildered by the resolute affirmation, a copper-skinned young man abruptly popped his head from behind the tree I leaned against.

“I think so too. People can’t always be the same, right?”

The man, who arbitrarily interrupted the conversation, had a smirk as always.

I clicked my tongue and got up. Looking around, I saw Alan, Pedro, and Hugo approaching.

“I can’t believe you chose a place like this as a meeting point. Didn’t you ever think that Lily would be scared?”

Hugo raised his eyebrows. He used formal speech, but his tone was sharp.

“The war in the Eastern Continent has been intensifying in recent years. Just looking at this battle right now, it’s cruel…”

“Little Brother, Lily needs a chance to get used to the battlefield too!”

Pedro patted his brother on the back, making a popping noise and smiled at the man behind the tree.

“It’s been a long time, Crown Prince.”

“Haha, it’s nice to see Lilietta’s family after a long absence.”

Crown Prince Garou tightened his cloak and smiled kindly.

It was a friendly atmosphere, but I folded my arms and went straight to the point.

“Garou, say it,”

“Huh? What?”

“After killing Her Majesty, how will the empire remain on the World Tree?”

“WAAHHH!”

The people on the hill shouted as the head of somebody’s knight got cut off.

They were so interested in the war that they did not seem to know that the Bauner family had gathered in a corner. It was fortunate for me.

“You said you had a way. We agreed to meet here today so that you can tell us about it.”

Garou said that there was a way to protect the empire even after cutting down the world tree, but those words alone did not satisfy me.

I must figure out the exact method before I have the reception with Benny.

If it was Garou’s unreasonable bluff, I could hold back from standing on his side even now.

“Ah, that? Simple.”

Fortunately, it wasn’t a lie, and Garou shrugged.

“I’ll do the same with black magic as what my mother did with white magic.”

In the shadows, Garou turned his hands into a demon’s.

His hands, which flowed down like sand, soon turned into pointed rakes.

Perhaps because of the scattered shadow, the figure looked like a giant tree branch.

“I will become the new world tree.”

He put it so simply that I was momentarily stunned.

“…What?”

“It’s like cutting down a white tree and planting a black tree. Wasn’t there a fairy tale like that? A fake world tree trying to take over Mother’s place…”

The fairy tale that Garou spoke of was one of the most famous stories in the empire.

I saw an illustration of that fairy tale in Hugo’s lab.

“Is that possible?”

“Of course. Although day will no longer come in the world I have created.”

Before the shock could go away, a new shock hit the back of the head. Would the day never come?

“You mean only the night will continue?”

“I can’t help it. The only illusions that black magic can create are nightmares.”

Garou spread out his arms as if to purify.

“It’s impossible to create such a sky. Because black magic is the power that puts people into despair, it does not have the ability to instill hope like white magic.”

I clenched my toes and looked at Alan.

It was him who would listen to Garou and make the final decision.

“After all, Lilietta, this world has never been so beautiful.”

As if persuading, Garou spoke smoothly and pointed to the blue sky. The sky over the eastern continent was clear even in winter.

“The sun and the moon, the meteor shower that I showed you… The illusion that the barrier showed. It’s all fake.”

Then Alan turned to me. When I met the vivid jade-colored eyes, I instantly felt suffocated.

Garou looked at me and Alan in turn and smiled.

“Illusion will be shattered someday. Whether you’re prepared or not.”

At that, Alan lowered the hand that was holding my chin.

“I’ll hold a reception.”

This meant that he would continue to stand by the crown prince.

Preparations for the rebellion continued without stopping. Until the sun set and my wedding day approached.

***

“Ugh…”

I grabbed my splitting head and barely opened my eyes.

It was dark all around.

Even when I switched my left eye to a reverse eye, I couldn’t help but be flustered because I couldn’t see anything except darkness.

“This is…?”

“Are you hurt, Princess?”

A familiar voice tickled my ears. When I turned around, Benny was close to me, supporting my fallen body. From the part his hand touched, the sensation slowly returned.

“Benny. Where is it? What about Garou…?”

“It’s outside the empire.”

Benny shook his hand in the air without telling me what had happened to Garou.

The darkness split in half.

Now it seemed that Benny had locked me up with his black magic for a while.

Whoo, whoo. A dazzling tree came into view, surrounded by evil spirits which were crying sadly.

This was definitely the wilderness outside the barrier.

“…Did you bring me out?”

The last sight I saw before fainting was the shattered barrier of the Imperial Palace.

There was no way the emperor would have sent me to a place beyond her control, so it could be assumed that Benny escaped with me.

“Yes.”

“…Thanks.”

I got up on the floor. Then I walked straight to the world tree.

“Let’s go back. We should.”

My weak body staggered like a broken branch. But there was no time to lose.

“Princess, you need to be more calm.”

“There was a traitor!”

The moment Benny was about to grab my wrist, I turned around violently.

I didn’t mean to shake him off.

However, I could not control the anger boiling from my stomach.

“I don’t know who it is, but that bastard put us in a trap.”

“…….”

“If it weren’t for that, there would be no way that a double barrier was placed inside the Imperial Palace. It’s as if they’ve been waiting for the battle to take place throughout the empire…”

I ruffled the sections of hair that had fallen down my forehead. The sensation felt smooth as if someone was brushing a fainted bird.

‘Who the hell is it?’

Several faces flashed through my mind.

Among those who conspired with the rebellion, there were countless suspicious suspects. To be precise, I doubted everyone except those I loved.

“…Is it Count Bert? He’s like a bat, isn’t he?”

I wandered through the wilderness and shuddered. Once I had doubts, the thought bit my tail.

“No, no. On the contrary, there’s no way he could have been used as a spy. Then the young lady of the Barony of Argo…? No, the young lady followed me saying she admired me, but she didn’t know anything…”

“…You must rest.”

Benny held me in his arms and patted me to calm me down.

I leaned my head against his chest and lifted my head.

“Viscount Solfin! The Duke said that he would exclude him from this task, but he may have figured out our assassination plan before that.”

Viscount Solfin was a person that even Alan was suspicious of.

This time I was sure, but Benny had a somewhat puzzled expression on his face.

“Viscount Solfin was killed a few hours ago.”

“…What?”

Benny covered my eyes with a large hand.

The dark vision gradually brightened. Before long, a view of the battlefield filled with smoke filled my eyes.

“It’s the memory of the moment the Viscount died.”

Viscount Solfin fell at his feet with a dull sound.

The magical spear stuck behind his back disappeared like dust, and the blood of the dead soaked the grounds of the Imperial Palace.

“It seems that he did not accept that he was excluded from the war and led his own private soldiers.”

I watched the battlefield in confusion.

No matter how long this battle lasted, there was chaos wherever I looked.

“Then who is the traitor…”

I swallowed the words halfway. My throat was stinging from intense thirst.

At that moment, a problem that I had never cared about ran through my mind.

“…Benny.”

The hoarse voice trembled at the end.

“How long have I been asleep?”

How many minutes? Or how many hours?

How long has the fight been going on without my knowledge?

“Now, what day is it? H-How is the Duke?”

The figure of Alan who had rushed straight into the Imperial Palace shone in front of my eyes.

Since Garou and I could not kill the emperor, the Imperial Army would have kept the line of defense and attacked Alan.

“The duke has retreated… hasn’t he?”

I hoped so, but Benny’s following words shattered my hopes.

“The Duke has been fighting until now.”

Benny put his lips to my ear and added shocking words.

“Today is the last night of the carnival.”

The landscape in front of me turned upside down.

People were on a battlefield more chaotic than before. A familiar beast caught my eye amidst the cries of the dying.

‘Alan.’

A black jaguar the size of a house stood on top of the ruins.

As soon as I found Alan, I was horrified. He was covered with wounds.

“Duke!”

Even though I knew it was a fantasy that Benny showed me, I called him and strained my throat without realizing it.

Instead of looking back at me, Alan pushed his body with four broken spears forward and slaughtered the enemies that were rushing in.

His intense breathing was irregular, as if it was about to go out at any moment.

Benny took his hands off my eyelids. The illusion disappeared and a huge world tree came into view.

I pursed my lips and ran towards the empire. There was only one thought in my mind.

“…I have to stop it.”

Benny and I arrived at the Imperial Palace on the second day of the carnival.

In other words, I was knocked out for five days, while Alan continued the life-and-death fight waiting for my news.

Dugh!

My foot was caught by a stone. My face fell flat onto the barren wilderness; it felt like my nose was bleeding.

Benny, who was standing still, supported me from behind.

Without rubbing my face, I got up straight away and grabbed his hand.

“I have to tell the duke. I want him to retreat right now…!”

The tears in my eyes warmed with sadness.

I felt sorry. Alan trusted me, who was not even his daughter, and took risks, but I couldn’t complete my mission and fell into a trap.

“Benny, let’s go. Before it’s too late…”

The body that was about to rush stumbled backwards.

I looked back in panic. Benny stood tall, holding my hand.

It was as if he had no intention of returning to the empire.

“Benny? Why did you…”

Whoo, whoo.

The cry of an evil spirit resounded from nearby. Instantly, a dreadful piece of doubt pierced a corner of my heart.

I slowly let go of Benny’s hand.