There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]: Chapter 28

There Is No Place for Fakes (2)

“Now, escorting Her Highness is our priority, so we must take our leave.”

Everyone held their breath at the sight of the Grand Duke’s gaze as he turned towards them.

The amiable expression from moments ago had vanished, replaced by a chilling blankness.

“You will need to provide a thorough explanation as to why this situation occurred. I’ll leave some Averidean knights here, so don’t even think about escaping.”

The oppressive aura emanating from the mere seventeen-year-old was unnerving.

“Nasar, just a moment.”

“Yes.”

At the Princess’s intervention, the Grand Duke reverted to his gentle demeanor as if nothing had happened.
The Princess stepped in front of the public safety officer she had been arguing with before Nasar arrived.

“Here.”

A pale, slender arm extended.

“Y-yes…?”

The man, now pale-faced before the Princess, stammered.

Not only the chief but also the officers realized that this woman was still the Princess.

“You said you’d break my limbs if I turned out to be a fake princess. I’m giving you a special opportunity to do as you said.”

“I, I… how could I dare….”

“Why, can’t you do it? Then you were lying to me earlier.”

“No, it’s not that… I was mistaken at the time….”

The man, rambling incoherently, prostrated himself, pressing his forehead to the ground.

“I have committed a grave sin against Your Highness! Please, spare my life, and the lives of my family!”

The man, realizing he had unknowingly committed a crime that could wipe out his entire clan, pleaded desperately.

“It’s all my fault as the person in charge! Please, kill me instead!”

“Kill us!”

As the chief prostrated himself, the other officers hurriedly followed suit.

“Whether she is a fake princess or not, it is a crime to punish a detainee without a trial. Instead of preventing a colleague’s crime, you aided and abetted it. Is that what you call protecting Velleroph as public safety officers?”

Faced with such a fundamental reprimand, they were speechless.
The Princess, glaring at them, then stood before the detention cell bars.

The section she had been in, right next to it.

“You.”

At the Princess’s gesture, the group of prisoners instantly split into two.
The figure hidden behind them was revealed.

It was the man who had hurled the most vulgar insults at Philomell.

“Am I worse than you?”

Unlike the officers, the man couldn’t even make a proper sound and only trembled.

‘Not even worth talking to.’

Philomell looked down at the man. It was truly a pathetic sight.

He had proudly spewed words to disgrace others, yet he couldn’t even utter a word of apology.

No longer wanting to even look at him, she headed to the hallway to leave.

As the Princess’s figure disappeared, those who had been trying to catch their breath froze again.

“……”

The Grand Duke, holding his sword, radiated a palpable murderous intent.

With an expression half-crazed, he glared into the cell.

“Hieeek!”

The prisoner, overwhelmed by the murderous aura, convulsed and foamed at the mouth.

The rumors of the young Averidean heir being a genius were well-known, but to reach this level before the age of twenty… Even in the midst of the chaos, the chief of public safety was genuinely impressed.

Even if all the officers present were to attack him at once, it would be impossible to stop him.

Everyone expected the man to die soon.

Clack, clack. Perhaps because everyone was holding their breath, the Princess’s footsteps echoed clearly down the hallway.

The Grand Duke, with veins bulging in his hand, returned the sword to its scabbard and turned his gaze elsewhere.

Then, he asked the officer who had mentioned the Princess’s limbs.

“What’s your name?”

“…Ian Solbrit.”

“I’ll remember it. The same goes for the others here. I will be returning here in the near future, so don’t even think about running away.”

“……”

“No, I wish you would run away. I am not as merciful as that person.”

With those final words, the Grand Duke strode quickly into the hallway.

In the aftermath of the storm, only bewildered people remained.

Everyone sensed it.

The moment they tried to escape, they would face a fate worse than death.

***

“Your Highness, that’s not the way.”

Nasar stopped Philomell, who was trying to go in a different direction in front of the public safety office. She had tried to slip away in the confusion, but it was no use.

“I have secured a carriage. I regret to say that we all came on horseback… It’s just a regular hired carriage, so it may be uncomfortable, but once we get to Saengen, you can rest comfortably.”

“I wouldn’t mind staying here tonight.”

“That won’t do. There is no place in Angelium suitable for serving Your Highness. Let’s go to the hotel in Saengen.”

Nasar said, glaring at the public safety office building. He clearly wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.

“Please, get in.”

As the carriage arrived, he escorted her politely.

Passersby stopped to stare at them.

Nasar, dressed in uniform, and the elite knights of Averidean were too conspicuous.

‘There’s no way I can insist on staying here any longer.’

She was concerned about the luggage left at the inn. More than anything, the book was there. If she tried to retrieve her luggage, the book would end up in Nasar’s hands.

He would hand over Philomell’s belongings to the Imperial Family according to the extradition procedure, and if others were to check the contents of the book….

‘That’s the worst.’

The book contained a truth she absolutely wanted to hide: that the fake princess, who pretended to be kind, was actually a villain who deserved to be executed.

‘Let’s give up on the book for now.’

If she succeeded in persuading Nasar from now on, she could come back for it later.

First, she needed to talk to Nasar alone, away from people’s eyes.

Philomell called out to Nasar, who was giving instructions to the knight who had brought the horse.

“Nasar.”

“Yes.”

“Get in too, Nasar.”

“……Me, in the carriage as well?”

“Yes. I have something to say.”

Nasar entrusted his horse back to the knight and followed Philomell into the carriage.

He looked both nervous and pleased, a strange expression.

Inside the carriage, which had begun to move, the two remained silent for a while.

Something warm touched Philomell’s cheek as she was lost in thought.

“Your cheek… is swollen.”

Nasar carefully touched the reddened skin.

“Were you perhaps hit?”

The gaze he met seemed a little sharper.

“I fell.”

“……I see.”

It was clearly a bruise from being hit, but Philomell’s pride wouldn’t allow her to explain in detail.

Having experienced it, being slapped was an extremely humiliating thing.

“It’s an ointment made by the family’s mage [a magic user who specializes in healing].”

Nasar took out a flat medicine container from his pocket.

“It’s what I use, and it works quite well. Unless it’s a major injury, it heals quickly.”

As a knight who wielded a sword, Nasar often sustained minor injuries.

“Applying it for you… I suppose you wouldn’t want that.”

“I’ll apply it myself.”

“Yes. Here it is.”

She received the medicine container. It might be a small act of kindness from him as her fiancé, but Philomell felt burdened.

Philomell opened the lid and applied the green ointment with a strong herbal scent to her cheek. The heat definitely subsided a lot.

Nasar smiled softly.

“Soon, even the trace will disappear.”

“……Thank you.”

However, Philomell couldn’t comfortably smile back. She had a headache, not knowing how to overcome this situation.

Nasar was under a huge misunderstanding. Or perhaps he was just too rigid in his personality.

Logically, the Emperor wouldn’t have ordered a search for Philomell with the heart of a father looking for his lost daughter.

The reason he hadn’t revealed her as a fake at this point was probably because it wasn’t too late to announce it after capturing Philomell and confirming everything. Using his misunderstanding to intimidate the annoying humans had been somewhat satisfying, though.

‘What to do? How can I get out of this situation?’

No matter how much she racked her brain, no brilliant plan came to mind.

Nasar was different from the public safety officers. He wasn’t someone who would be fooled by a lie made up on the spot.

……In this case, it’s all or nothing.

“Your Highness, is there something troubling you….”

“Nasar! I have a favor to ask!”

Philomell cut him off before Nasar could speak.

“Please, pretend you never saw me today!”

“Yes? That’s….”

“I’m begging you!”

She lunged forward and grabbed his sleeve.

“W-wait a minute! It’s dangerous to get up suddenly. And… you’re too close!”

Nasar flustered at Philomell’s face suddenly thrust in front of him.

Afraid that Philomell would fall in the swaying carriage, he grabbed her waist. As a result, she ended up being embraced by Nasar.

There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]

There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]

No Place for the Fake Princess Philomel the Fake (Serialized Title) 가짜를 위한 장소는 없다
Status: Completed Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] Philomel's life takes a dark turn when she's executed for impersonating a princess and causing a devastating war. But fate has a twisted sense of humor. After her death, she finds herself reborn as the very character she despised from a mysterious book. Determined to escape her doomed fate, young Philomel embarks on a perilous journey of survival. She seeks out the real princess, Ellencia, hoping to forge a new life far from the palace's treacherous intrigues. Yet, her past refuses to stay buried. The emperor, who once loathed her, now desperately seeks her return, while her indifferent fiancé suddenly vies for her attention. Even her biological father emerges, disrupting her carefully laid plans. Can Philomel unravel the secrets of the ominous book that foretold her demise? Will she ever truly escape the shadow of her past and discover a future where she can finally be free? Dive into a world of royal secrets, hidden identities, and unexpected romance in this captivating fantasy series!

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