My Life Was Taken by My Charm-Wielding Sister—But It Ends Here (The Mind-Reading Noble Lady’s Journey to Happiness After Escaping Her Toxic Family) - Episode 60

(Alright… that’s all the borrowed books returned.)

Otilie was currently in the large library within the castle. It contained every kind of book collected from throughout the kingdom.

‘My grandmother was a huge literature enthusiast, you see. My grandfather built this library for her. Initially, only the royal family could use it, but now it’s open to civil officials and knights too, and the collection keeps growing.’

Varick had explained this to Otilie with what seemed like genuine happiness. After work and on holidays, Otilie began visiting the library frequently.

(I still don’t have enough knowledge as an assistant, and I need to read many more books.)

The books Varick had given her when she first started working had been read over and over until they were nearly worn out. The documents she encountered during her work received the same treatment.

However, the knowledge required for an assistant wasn’t limited to practical matters directly related to work.

Without exposure to politics, economics, culture, traditions, and all sorts of miscellaneous knowledge and literature, she wouldn’t be able to keep up with conversations around her or handle work emergencies. This was especially true for Otilie, who had lived almost like a recluse in her family home.

(Oh, this book…)

While selecting new books to borrow, Otilie suddenly stopped at a particular bookshelf. It was the shelf containing collected novels. One of the titles looked familiar, and Otilie gently picked it up.

(‘Someday My Prince Will Come’)

It was a bestselling book that had been popular several years ago when Otilie was still young. It had been tremendously popular at the time. Whenever Otilie left her room, she’d overhear maids and servants gossiping about the book’s content or mentally picturing scenes from it. Though Otilie had never read it herself, she felt a strange sense of familiarity.

(I never imagined back then that I’d be able to hold the actual book like this.)

For Otilie, who had been terrified of others’ inner voices and barely managing to survive, being here in the castle away from her family home felt like a miracle. Moreover, having the mental space to read books leisurely made her feel truly blessed.

Otilie flipped through the pages right there, skimming the content. She knew she should take it back to her room to read properly, but she couldn’t resist finding out what happened next.

After reading for a while, Otilie quietly stopped when she reached a certain page. It depicted the scene where the heroine meets the prince.

“Oh, ‘Someday My Prince Will Come.’ That brings back memories.”

Just then, that voice came from behind her, making Otilie let out an undignified squeak. When she turned around, Varick was there.

“Lord Varick!? What are you doing here?”

“Today’s a holiday, right? I thought I might do some reading for once.”

After saying this, Varick glanced around before looking at Otilie.

[To be honest, I thought I might run into Otilie if I came here.]

His teasing smile made Otilie’s heart skip a beat as she replied, “I see.”

“You recognized the title from the illustration. Does that mean you’ve read this book, Lord Varick?”

“Yeah. I read it right after it was released. My mother loves romance stories and practically forced me to read it. She said, ‘You should become this kind of man someday.'”

Otilie couldn’t help but imagine the scene and chuckled. Varick happily narrowed his eyes.

“What about you, Otilie?”

“This is my first time reading it. But since the maids used to talk about it, I roughly know the story. If I remember correctly, it’s about a heroine who’s mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters, then suddenly catches the prince’s eye and finds happiness, right?”

Otilie explained while recalling what she’d just skimmed and her past memories.

The heroine in difficult circumstances. When thinking about this story, the women would often superimpose themselves onto the heroine, fantasizing about ‘someday having a prince notice me too…’ Since everyone imagined their ideal prince differently, young Otilie had found it fascinating.

As for Iama, however, she’d been annoyed by the heroine’s indecisiveness, thought she deserved the mistreatment, and was angry at the prince for poor judgment.

“That’s right. Back then I was just a child, and since I’m a prince myself, I honestly didn’t really understand what made it interesting.”

Varick smiled while looking at Otilie. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, Otilie snapped the book shut.

“Um, I just remembered the adults around me talking about this book when I was little, so I picked it up without thinking.”

Even to herself, it sounded like an excuse as she slightly bowed her head. Then Varick replied, “I see,” while gently patting her head.

“Maybe I’ll read it again too. —My perspective might be different now.”

“Huh?”

Before Otilie could ask why, Varick narrowed his eyes.

“Because I want to become Otilie’s ideal prince.”

“Huh?”

Suppressing the urge to ask what he meant, Otilie gulped. Her heart was pounding loudly. Her face must have been bright red too. Otilie raised the book higher to hide her face and agitation.

“It might be helpful as reference. So, Otilie, when you heard about this story, what kind of prince did you imagine?”

“What kind…?”

“Like hairstyle or atmosphere, didn’t you have an ideal image of what would be nice?”

“I-I can’t answer that, it’s too embarrassing.”

As she replied, Otilie’s heartbeat grew stronger. She was profoundly grateful Varick wasn’t a mind reader.

“Why not? It’s important.”

“Please stop teasing me. Besides…”

Otilie glanced at the book she was still holding, then looked at Varick.

“The only prince for me is you, Lord Varick.”

A noble, beautiful, and kind prince who surpassed Otilie’s ideals. No matter what books she read, even if she had the chance to meet princes from other countries, there was only one prince for Otilie. It couldn’t be anyone but Varick.

“…I see.”

Varick covered his mouth with his hand and gently averted his gaze from Otilie. His cheeks were faintly flushed. Otilie tilted her head, wondering why he reacted that way—but she couldn’t hear Varick’s inner thoughts. Varick gave a slight wry smile.

[I really want to be Otilie’s prince and no one else’s—I wish I could tell her that much.]

Not a prince for everyone, but a prince for Otilie alone.

While using his nullification ability to desperately hide his true feelings that he still couldn’t voice, Varick smiled and said, “Thank you.”