Rosie cleared her throat to clear her nervousness. She had unconsciously voiced her mind. Duke Aslan just nodded, as if he wasn't impressed by Rosie's answer.
"Thank you, Princess," he replied simply. "Is Princess Roseanne feeling better now? If you need anything, let me know. So I can prepare it right away."
Howland stood up, tidying Rosie's blanket.
"Roseanne just needs more rest. She hasn't fully recovered yet," Howland replied.
Rosie couldn't help but smile when Howland kissed her forehead. Her face blushed a little because this was the first time a man kissed her forehead. It turned out that having a brother felt so warm.
Rosie always had bad luck with creatures named men. She had never been in a relationship, so she didn't know how it felt like being cared for by a man. Once she had a close friend like Bryan, it turned out that the man tried to get close to her because he wanted to get her best friend's heart.
Rosie's father was long dead, and she was the only child. Her mother was also too busy working to feed her to the point of almost neglecting her. Luckily, Rosie had survival skills.
Her friends always made fun of Rosie. They said Rosie couldn't get a boyfriend because she had a high standard. Her ideal type was too unrealistic that men felt insecure.
That was indeed true. She read too much fiction, so sometimes she felt she couldn't fit in with men in the real world. Once there was someone as good as Bryan, it turned out that she wasn't the one he liked.
And… Now, she was in a fictional world. She had an older brother, Howland Villiers, a gentleman and her favorite character of all the books he had ever read. How lucky Rosie was to have that man as her brother!
"Brother will talk to Aslan for a while. You should rest. If you need anything, you can call me, understand?"
Rosie was completely mesmerized by the power of a male lead's charm. The girl nodded, unable to take her eyes off her brother. Her gaze turned to the white-haired man who was wearing all black clothes like a grim reaper. Rosie gave her best smile to Duke Aslan, who only nodded his head, then went after Howland, who had left her room.
"Fucking Montgomery… Why are you so handsome…? I can't do anything about it," cried Rosie alone in her room.
Aslan Montgomery was just a second male lead, also the villain in this story. How could they make him so handsome…? White hair with a neat cut, intimidating eyes, and sharp jawline. Rosie hoped she wouldn't get the second lead syndrome.
The girl stood up. She had to come up with a plan as soon as possible.
Her feet walked back and forth around the room in thought. She bit her thumb, contemplating whether she should continue to follow the original storyline and live a prosperous life as an extra or step up to interfere in this matter?
Plan A: Rosie would still marry her childhood friend and leave the palace forever. Even if news of her fictional father's condition deteriorated, Rosie would not return to the palace so she could escape Aslan's madness.
"But that will be the same as letting Howland and Savy die!"
The girl shook her head once again. She tried to remember what misunderstanding caused Howland's and Aslan's friendship to fall apart…
Aslan was the adopted son of the Montgomery family. Twenty years ago, the Montgomery family was attacked by an unknown group, leaving Aslan alone, who was later rescued by his father. Aslan was raised by the family of a royal knight of Westalis.
Aslan met Howland at the academy and became close. From the information Rosie got in the book, it was said that a criminal group aimed for the power that the Montgomery family had, and they slaughtered the Montgomery family for it. Since Aslan was an adopted son, he was not taken into account.
In chapter 12, Aslan met one of the criminal group members and the criminal gave him fake documents as evidence that the Villiers were the mastermind of his family's death. Aslan believed the fake documents more and cut ties with Howland. Then, Aslan plotted revenge against the Villiers.
Plan B: Rosie had to find the original document and give it to Aslan before he met one of the criminals.
But when? What must Rosie do to get Aslan to believe her?
"Ah!"
Rosie came up with a not-so-bright idea.
Aslan had never been in love before. Later, the man fell in love with Savannah. That would make things worse. Rosie had to keep Aslan away from Savannah and marry off her brother to Savannah as soon as possible. Aslan shouldn't have the slightest feeling for her sister-in-law.
Plan C: Made Aslan fall in love with another woman besides Savannah.
There was one sentence ringing in Rosie's head. The night Aslan confessed his feelings to Savannah, he said, "I just want the Montgomery family to come back alive. I want to rebuild the Montgomery family with the woman I love. If you accept me, Savy… I will let go of all my hatred. Let's live together in a peaceful place… build a simple family with no one else."
That way, Aslan would leave her brother away and live alone with his wife… but who could Rosie pay for this? Who could she pay to seduce the duke and make him fall in love?
"Shoot, should I give it a try?" Rosie asked herself, dropping her back on the bed. Her body bounced a little.
Rosie recalled Aslan's face. The man was drop-dead gorgeous.
Rosie tried to put herself in the man's shoes. Came to think of it, Aslan wasn't that fully mistaken. He was just too easily burned by a grudge. He was also just a man who loved Savy very much.
His only fault was that he forced his will on Savy in a drunken state. It was a mistake Rosie could never forgive.
"And I have to try to keep that from happening in the future," she muttered under her breath.
Rosie tilted her head. From her current position, she could see her reflection in the mirror. She was also as pretty as a picture. Roseanne Meyer was a 32-year-old woman with thick eyebags. Even at the age of 23, Rosie already had grey hair. Maia found it when they were staying together.
And look at the girl in front of her right now. So young and innocent… Rosie Villiers was so beautiful. Her skin was so smooth and soft. The blush on her cheeks and her naturally pink hair without the need for bleaching made her look so cute.
What a perfect fictional character, even though she was just an unimportant side character...
Rosie was curious. How was the life of Roseanne Villiers before this?
Wait a minute… Howland said she fell into the river? What made her fall into the river? Could it be that there was something that made the real Rosie choose to jump into the river?
Hm… Rosie might overreact. Could she accidentally fall?
Rosie's curiosity couldn't be contained. She was curious now. The girl opened her wardrobe and cursed softly.
"Shoot. I forgot their clothes are like clown's," she cursed angrily.
Rosie opened the door to her room and smiled awkwardly at the maid waiting outside.
"Is there anything we can help you with, Your Highness?"
"Uhm, Hi! Can you help me get dressed?"
"Very well, Your Highness."
"Thank you."