The Tyrant Empress is Obsessed with Me

21 – The Prince of Night (3)

Serena stretched her legs.

As the tension that filled her entire body was released, a faint moan escaped her lips.

Despite possessing the powerful background as the princess of the empire, the tension before the stage was still her weakness.

“Serena. Are you ready?”

“Yes. I’ll be going soon.”

Serena liked this theatre troupe.

It wasn’t as large as the Moonlight Troupe, but the facilities were not bad, and the people were kind. It had a truly family-like atmosphere.

Above all, they would give opportunities to anyone with talent, no matter their background.

＜Isolde and Jerome＞

Before starting her performance, Serena opened the script one last time.

When she was in the Moonlight Troupe, she had performed using her own script.

It was a kind of stubbornness- believing she could write a much better story than this popular and cliché love story.

And she also believed, without justification, that the public would recognize her superior story.

-However, the public was harsh.

They did not care to spend time listening to the lackluster and dull story spun together by a girl.

They only came to see verified and entertaining stories.

Serena now understood that fact.

But still, she doesn’t change the thought that her story had a piece of pure artistry to it.

More importantly, one person had proved it to her.

That was enough.

For now.

‘Let’s give a pleasant laugh to those who came to see me.’

With that thought in mind, Serena opened the script. Isolde and Jerome were one of the most famous stories in the empire.

Even without looking, she could recite all the lines.

However, as is the case with famous works, Isolde and Jerome are slightly rearranged in each troupe. She just needed to memorize those parts separately.

Serena turned to the first page.

＜My mother told me that a woman in love becomes strong. But Isolde didn’t understand what that meant. This was because her mother died the following year.＞

‘…’

Serena’s arm trembled as she held the script.

Serena’s mother, the empress, died when Serena was six years old. It was sudden.

“Isollet’s father didn’t pay much attention to Isollet. He treated her as if she were a plant that would grow into an adult on its own as time passed.”

The story of Isollet and Jerome is a love story between two people from different families. It’s a touching story of a love that seemed impossible, but eventually comes true in the end.

However, Isollet’s childhood is briefly mentioned without much detail, as it was a boring part of the story.

But for Serena-

“Serena? The play is starting soon.”

“Just give me a moment, please.”

Serena took a deep breath and turned to the next page.

“Isollet fell in love when she went through puberty, but quickly realized it was no different than collecting pretty pebbles in her room. Pebbles soon become boring.”

That’s enough.

Her heart was pounding too fast.

With pain, Serena clenched her teeth and flipped the page.

“Ultimately, it was because the parents who could have taught her about love had died too soon.”

Upon realizing this fact, Isollet no longer indulged in fake love. She coldly responded to knights who offered roses and laughed at proposals from noblemen’s sons.

Isollet knew she was a fake.

Confessing love to a fake only served to remind oneself of one’s own phoniness.

-Isollet often stared at the balcony.

“Serena! Serena! The stage is starting!”

“…Yes.”

Pulled away from the script, Serena finished her makeup and headed toward the stage.

The role she would play was Isollet.

The Mountain Breeze Theater Company was a small group.

Yet every time they had a performance, their loyal patrons filled the seats. Talented actors and well-written scripts made this possible.

“I apologize! There was a problem with the makeup, so the performance will be slightly delayed!”

The theater’s director bowed apologetically.

The audience clapped, signaling that it was alright.

After a while, the stage props were set, and one by one, the actors appeared.

“Today’s Isollet will be played by rookie actress Serena. Although she is a newcomer, she has excellent acting skills, so please give her your full attention.”

The director bowed and exited the stage.

Click.

The lights went out.

The stage darkened.

It was now the actors’ time.

And in that darkness, a masked man stood watching the stage.

The stage was ripening.

The acting of the other actors was not bad. The audience’s reaction was good too. This was the first time they had received such a response.

However, for some reason, it still felt a step short.

The actor playing Jéron knelt down.

It was the part where he talks about his childhood and confesses his love.

“Isolde, do you remember? When we were children, I promised to give you a diamond ring. Back then, I picked up a pebble from the riverbank and gave it to you instead.”

A playful smile appeared on Jéron’s lips, and then he became serious.

“Do you know the meaning of the diamond?”

“An unchanging love.”

Much time had passed since Isolde and Jéron spent their days as childhood friends.

They were no longer children. Yet, Jéron still talked about that day.

Jéron pulled a ring from his pocket.

One with a shining diamond.

“Run away with me, Isolde.”

It was the highlight.

Jéron confessed that he had been loving Isolde unchangingly since that day.

Realizing that only Jéron truly loved her, Isolde disappeared into the sunset with him.

That was the ending.

It was time to play the final scene.

Slowly turning her back, Isolde walked barefoot along the riverbank. Each step she took, she reminisced about the old days. The sound of the audience’s breath grew louder.

“Jéron, I…”

As she turned her back, Isolde looked at the audience. In the end, Serena could not completely immerse herself in Isolde’s role. The Prince of the Night did not come.

“…What?”

Isolde let out a choked sound.

There was a man in black cloak wearing a half-mask.

He was in the audience.

Serena had become Isolde again.

“Isolde?”

The actor playing Xenon from behind called out, his voice laden with bewilderment.

Yet Isolde didn’t look in that direction.

She was looking towards the audience.

Towards where the Prince of the Night was seated.

Serena wondered,

‘How does my acting appear to you now?’

The Prince of the Night shook his head.

He didn’t even open his eyes.

As if he was asleep.

Her heart froze at his cold reaction.

But she couldn’t stop here.

Isolde raised her voice.

“So this isn’t good enough for you? Liar. You said you’d come to see me, but you didn’t keep your promise.”

Isolde took off her wig, and her natural red hair was revealed. She wiped off her makeup with her sleeve. What was revealed was Serena’s face.

Serena took a step towards the audience.

It was a shocking move.

“Shouldn’t we stop her?”

The director asked worriedly. The troupe leader shook his head.

“Leave her be. It is best not to interfere with an actor’s ad-lib. … This may become a legend.”

The distance was just two steps.

Serena looked at the Prince of the Night, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

And with a burst of indignation, she said,

“Liar! I really hate you!”

The audience began to murmur.

Everyone was in confusion. Was this a pre-agreed directing? For an actor to enter the audience like this, it was unheard of.

And who was that man behind the mask?

An invited actor?

The man, now with open eyes, silently gazed at Serena.

There was not a single line of dialogue, but there was something captivating about it.

“…So noisy.”

It was a cold remark.

The voice was even irritated.

Serena glanced around the audience.

Everyone was overwhelmed.

It felt as if a spike had pierced their hearts. But they could not back down like this.

Serena took a step and raised her hand to her chest. It was a gentle gesture.

“I love you. Let’s leave together.”

…

There was silence.

Serena looked into the eyes of the Prince of the Night. His eyes held contempt for her.

As if he had never expected her to be such a person.

‘Why?’

From No ble mt L dot c om

Then, the Prince of the Night stood up.

“Don’t go. You… you…”

She wanted to call his name.

But she didn’t know it.

She didn’t know his true identity.

The Prince of the Night began to turn away and leave.

That was the last of it.

Serena reached out her hand, but she could not hold onto him.

She had crossed the line.

What had she done to him, who once loved art? Was it not art, but merely throwing a tantrum?

Her legs lost their strength.

“No… no. I don’t even have the right to hold him…”

Serena, who had hesitated to sit down, could not hold back her tears.

And she sat there crying for a long time.

“Hic… hic… ahhh!”

No one could approach her like that.

Empire’s Second Princess Serena Varba.

It was my first love and my first heartbreak.

‘Wow. That was a really close call.’

Ascal, who had frantically run away until he could no longer see the end, gasped for breath. His heart was pounding from all the running.

He had been sleeping soundly with the lullaby of her voice.

But then it suddenly got noisy, and when he opened his eyes, there was the actor who had been acting as Esolytte. His throat ached, as if he had been talking in his sleep.

And when Esolytte suddenly took off her wig and revealed her true identity… he almost passed out.

‘I can’t believe the sleeping gas was the Second Princess.’

As soon as he saw her face, it came to his mind. The red-haired woman who acted as a hobby – it was none other than the Second Princess Serena Varba.

And depending on one’s perspective, Serena was a greater disaster than Yulia.

How could Serena counter the nearly perfect superhuman Yulia? It was because she had a terrible obsession and persistence that never gave up.

In the original work, Serena eventually succeeded in cornering Yulia.

Even though she failed in the end.

Anyway.

‘Thank goodness I wore a mask. Seriously.’

Although there was light, it was relatively dark, and he was wearing a thick coat and a half-mask. It would be difficult for Serena to recognize him even with her keen eye. Even if they happened to meet later.

“Haaahh…”

But why did Serena say such a thing to him? Was it an ad-lib?

The one fortunate thing was that he still managed to sleep well, thanks to her.

He thought he would be able to start work refreshed the next day.