I will not die a Villainess's death

"So, can I ask you another question? When will you both be holding that Royal Wedding? The public is anticipating your union for a long time."

The reporter looked at the Royal pair with shining eyes. He was not the only one who was looking forward to getting a simple answer.

All the other reporters and even the nobility looked forward to getting an answer. It had been a long time since such a peaceful party had been held in the Royal Palace.

It was just a shame that the Dirac sibling pair was not here for now. They were the true targets of the reporters and the nobles. But the royal pair was a good second prize as well. Especially with the temple advertising their wedding plans.

"W-Wedding? That is not going to happen. We are just engaged for a year because of personal reasons. It has nothing to do with both of us liking each other."

The Saintess denied the gossip with firm words. But no one took her words seriously. Both she and the Crown Prince denied lying to each other but they still ended up engaged.

And because of this, the belief the public had in them ended up being even stronger.

They could both try and say that they felt nothing for each other but they ended up being pulled together and closer anyway. Not to mention, they showed no signs of liking anyone else or being close to anyone else.

The only one they were even seen to care about was Elysia Dirac but that was a different case for her. She was just a stepping stone for them and it was not like they spent a lot of time with her.

The public was ready to get more spicy gossip about their relationship and they were going to analyze every small action that the royal pair was going to take.

"There is no need for you both to deny your relationship any longer. The temple has even let out a notice that is announcing your engagement date. Elysia Dirac, the stone in your path is also gone so your way is clear-"

The reporter felt his life flash in front of his eyes as soon as dodged the magical blast. The emperor had missed him by inches.

He looked up at burning amber eyes, only to feel his death staring back at him.

"Do not speak her name with your filthy mouths. You all are not worth to even calling her, much less thinking about her."

Their emperor looked angry like he had never looked before. His eyes were not only blazing but also serious.

Everyone gulped their nervousness down and looked toward the Saintess as one. She was the only one who could calm their emperor down now.

And since she was a tender-hearted lady, the reporters were sure that she would help them out right away. Especially since she was annoyed by the emperor's closeness with Elysia Dirac as well.

The nobility had seen it all and they knew how possessive the Saintess could be at times.

"L-Lady Eve, please calm the emperor down. He will end up killing someone at this rate-"

"Why should I? You all made the mistake of speaking against Elysia Dirac of all people. I might have kept my neutral ground this far but I am no longer going to sit around and listen to her being slandered."

It was at this point that everyone realized that maybe the Saintess did not have a bad relationship with Elysia Dirac.

The protective glance in the Saintess's eyes was more than enough to make even the most stubborn of people step back.

But they were not done digging for the truth. They needed just one spark from the royal couple. This party was their best bet in getting that since Lucas Dirac was not there.

Elysia Dirac was a hot topic ever since she had come back home. People were eager to see her fall and be blamed for everything that was happening.

"Listen here you fools. I have no intention of going through with this marriage in the end so do not cook up your fantasies on your own. Now either enjoy the party or leave. I no longer care about you."

Their emperor left the party after speaking his words. He looked annoyed and pissed off.

But what was the most concerning was that he had left his fiance, the Saintess behind all alone. And even the Saintess looked like she was not concerned about this embarrassment she was forced to endure.

She did not even look at the emperor even once when he was leaving.

To think they had been walking arms in arms only a few seconds before and now they were separated as if they had no care in the world.

Did they both even like each other at all? This indifference did not convey any of it.

"M-Maybe we are all wrong and there is nothing between the emperor and the Saintess?"

A reporter questioned as he watched this all happen. It was his first time gathering with this many high nobles and he had come here with anticipation. He had expected to see a lovely-dovely chase between the Saintess and the Emperor.

But what he got instead was a cold scene where both parties did not care about each other. They were happier being alone than being with each other.

"Don't take their talks seriously. The Emperor and the Saintess like to joke around with us like this. They both will come to the next gathering with each other and then you will see that it is common for them."

A nobility smiled and laughed the tense atmosphere off. They seemed immune to the tense atmosphere they were in.

The commoner reporter was sure that they had become insensitive to the danger they were in because they had become immune to them. Even the commoner had a hard time facing the reality because he had been convinced that the emperor and the Saintess were in love.

Both the temple and the Royal Palace had always pretended like this was the final pairing and Elysia Dirac's involvement in this all was just a fluke. A placeholder if you even cared to bother with this situation.

Everyone in this nation believed the temple's words to be the truth so they never looked past the mask they were being subjected to.

But it was different now. The danger was snapping the commoner reporters to take a firm stand and finally face the truth.

There was nothing between the emperor and the Saintess. They looked like they were over with each other.

That day, a lot of reports and paper clippings were made about the truth of the 'royal pair'. The common newspapers chose to go with what they saw while the nobility's newspaper chose to flatter this false relationship.

And that was the clipping that made it to Elysia in the end.

The truth of this matter was, everyone knew that both the Emperor and the Saintess did not favor each other romantically but this was the ideal pairing they wanted for their nation.

They were forcing this paring together not because the nobility believed that they both loved each other, but because it was beneficial for them.

It would keep the royal family and the temple in check. At the same time, it would eliminate the only duke household in the nation from gaining more powers.

Any children born between the pair of a dragon descendent and the Saintess would hold a lot of power as well and become an ultimate shield for their empire.

It was a greedy outcome everyone wanted to see. So they encouraged the temple in their agenda.

It was all political in the end and the nobility had a role to play in this world.

"Ugh, so annoying. Why don't these people get what I mean anyway? What do I need to do to convey that I am serious about Elysia and not Adam?"

Eve groaned as she collapsed on her bed. She was done with these fools and everything they wanted from her.

Threats, violence, and even pleading, nothing worked on the Head Priest. And the worst thing was, there was still a year of this engagement left to bear. Eve felt like she was going to go mad at this rate.

"I miss Elysia. I wish I could see her right now."

Eve had a lot she wanted to say to Elysia. She might even end up helping Adam in keeping Elysia captive. But that was a concern for the future.

For now, Eve just wanted to see Elysia again.

While she was busy feeling bad about it, Adam was kept busy with another kind of work. He was stressed to see that another place had been attacked by the wild beasts for no reason.

It was all somehow kept under wraps for now but this peace would not last forever. And with even Lucas Dirac gone, Adam had no idea how he would handle everything that was happening.