Adele blinked at his unexpected words.
"Er, thanks?"
If it were any other time, Adele would've been ecstatic hearing someone praise her somewhat passable acting skills. But the woman had a feeling that the man did not mean it as a compliment.
As his words sank in though, her ears abruptly caught onto a name that was surprisingly very familiar to her.
"Wait! Did you just call me .. Odile??" she gasped.
The towering man stared at her in disbelief.
"Is that not your name? Do not tell me that even that, you've forgotten!" he replied mockingly.
Dumbstruck, Adele unwittingly took a shaky step backwards. The more clearly she expressed her obliviousness, the greater the prince's irritation grew.
"What are you looking so confused about? Did you really think that you could get away by acting innocent yet again? I think we both know by now that we are far past this, Odile."
'That... That can't be!'
Adele couldn't even pretend to be offended by his biting words. Her mind was already jumbled as it is!
'Odile ... as in the Black Swan? THAT Odile?'
Her heart thundered beneath her chest as she habitually rested her bandaged hand on her pale, empty neck. It was too unbelievable ... too much of a coincidence!
Did she really transmigrate into the world of Swan Lake after making that silly wish on the Blood Moon?
(Flashback)
"Please please please." She murmured. "Help me just this once, um, whoever's up there. Moon God, Goddess or whatever."
"I just want to be like Odile. Please, even if I have to give up Odette's role to someone else... although I really wouldn't want that either, but anyway! I just want a chance to prove to the world that I can do it. That I can be just as beautiful and alluring as Odile."
"No, that I CAN embody the Black Swan completely."
(End of Flashback)
'Don't tell me! That wish actually worked?! It's impossible ... I mean, Odile wasn't even a princess in the original story!'
In the fairy tale, Odile was the infamous daughter of an evil sorcerer named Rothbart. He was the main villain of Swan Lake, and was the one who placed the curse on the virtuous princess, Odette, by turning her into a swan.
Despite her meager role, Odile's antagonistic contribution had led to the tragic misunderstanding between the story's starcrossed lovers. In the ballet, her immersive yet difficult dance scenes were arguably the parts that the audience would look forward to the most.
It was THE role that every aspiring ballerina have always dreamed of performing onstage, along with Odette's, since playing one of them would automatically mean playing the other due to their physical similarities in the plot. And that, of course, included yours truly.
But never could she imagine that she would literally wake up as the Black Swan herself!
'It just isn't possible ... But who else would share the same name?'
Even after scouring through her memories, Adele couldn't for the life of her remember any other fictional character or princess that's named so similarly.
What's even more interesting to note was that Odile was never a real princess, nor was she known to be remotely related to anyone of royal blood, as far as Adele was concerned.
She disguised herself as Princess Odette, yes, but that was all just a ruse to trick the prince into confessing his love to her. So unless her royal lineage was hidden in Swan Lake's original plotline, it doesn't seem like Adele possessed the body before or during the main story.
'So does that mean that, seeing how she's well and alive right now, Odile had actually survived after the ending?'
In most variations of Swan Lake, the fate of the villainous daughter has never been disclosed. While the lovebirds and Rothbart have been shown to either die or survive depending on the version of the ballet, Odile never reveals herself again after the ballroom scene.
It would be easy to conclude that should Rothbart die in a particular version's ending, that his daughter would be punished or executed by default as well.
But while Adele's not aware of Rothbart's current status in this world, Odile herself was alive right now.
Well, somewhat "alive" anyway.
Not only that, but she somehow managed to become the Crown Princess of this so-called "Tchaikovia".
'But how? And why? What benefits would she gain by tying herself into this loveless marriage?' Adele pondered over her knowledge of Odile's characteristics. 'If she really wanted power, there would've been plenty of other ways to get what she wanted without marrying as a transaction. She was the daughter of a powerful sorcerer, after all.'
'And since Odile married into royalty, does this mean that the man in front of me is someone related to Prince Siegfried? Or could he be a scorned prince from an enemy country? An alliance would seem likely considering her circumstances ... '
Distracted by her inner contemplation, the wine-haired woman failed to notice the growing perplexity on the slightly offended man's face. His dark brows furrowed deeper as she continued to ignore his presence.
In the years since they've been married, the prince could never remember a single moment where his wife would present herself in such a foolishly clueless manner.
Even when she would feign innocence, he could always recognize the subtle tells found in her arrogant eyes that would make him aware of her duplicity. A skill that he unfortunately had to learn after being fooled by her one too many times.
But now ... it seemed that Odile had improved on the art of deception. She truly seemed as if she was a helpless little mouse!
'What kind of schemes is she planning this time?' he thought to himself. 'If this has anything to do with "her" ... '
The prince shook his head before he could conjure the beautiful images of the past. And the pure and innocent smile of 'that' woman before his mistake had ruined them both.
"Enough of this, Odile." He interrupted loudly, impatience coloring his deep tone. "I believe it is time for you to confess. What exactly are you up to? Why go this far to gain my attention?"
Adele worried her lower lip, clutching a hand to her arm for comfort. It doesn't seem like she could escape his assertive inquiries anytime soon. Even if she continued to spout endless excuses, it would seem like none of them would ever satisfy his interrogation.
Then, does she have no other choice but to 'fess up? She needed to decide quickly.
"... If you're asking for the truth, Your Highness, then I will be honest."
Making her decision, Adele took a deep breath, forcing her mind and heart to calm down. Then, praying that he wouldn't notice her trembling, tightfisted hands, the woman faced the man head on; her topaz eyes stared unyieldingly at his silver ones.
'Alright. Here it goes.'
"The truth is ... I don't remember anything."
"..."
'.. Darn it.'
Judging by his unchanging expression, Adele could tell that the man still didn't believe her. But she knew that if she wanted any real chance to convince him of her innocence, the only thing she could really do was to tell him the truth. Or at least, the closest thing to the truth.
"It may be hard to believe," She continued, "but what I'm saying is true. Everything on that night was such a blur, I didn't realize at all what was happening until I felt myself crashing into the water."
The intimidating man sighed, palming his face in frustration.
"I already warned you, Odile, that I will not be lied to again."
"But it really is the truth!" Adele bursted out, stomping her foot on the marble floor. "I don't know how or why things happened this way. All I know is that I fell into the water, and suddenly woke up in this sorry state!"
Of course, she didn't need to give him the details as to why she ended up in Odile's body. But this was the only way she could safely reveal her true feelings in the matter. Something that she sorely needed to do ever since she woke up in this strange world.
"I know that you have every reason to distrust me, and I admit that I don't have anything to prove my innocence either. Yes, I might have done those terrible things to Roslyn, and perhaps I might've felt the urge to jump into the lake without anyone there to stop me."
"But I'm telling you, I honestly didn't know what was going through my head at the time! I don't know why I ended up in that lake, or even how I hurt my hand! Please, you have to believe me .. "
Her eyes began to well up as she tried to reimagine the suffering she felt while she was drowning in the sea. Of how she grieved at her helplessness as she struggled to survive, and the pain of knowing that she would never be able to see her loved ones again.
"Your Highness!" Roslyn cried out.
Adele had almost forgotten about the timid maid beside her. The latter had stopped crying since Adele began her confession, and instead was now making some pitiful yet well-intended attempt to comfort the distressed princess.
'Good! This was her chance!' Adele secretly hid a quick smirk behind her fingers, 'For once, something's finally going my way! Let's put it up a notch, shall we?'
Dropping to her knees, Adele rigidly clutched her arms in a tight embrace, heaving in ragged gasps as she tried to hold on to the feeling of utter desperation. Surprisingly, it wasn't actually as difficult as she thought it would be.
"Your Highness, are you hurt?!"
Adele slowly peeked at the fussing maid beside her. She pretended to put on a brave smile when she rested a hand on Roslyn's small shoulder. This time, the girl did not flinch from her touch.
"I-I'm alright. Thank you for your concern, Roslyn, despite my unfair treatment towards you. At that time, I must've taken out all of my frustration on you. I ... I know now that wasn't right. So I would like to take this moment to apologize for my actions."
"No, I .... HUH?!"
Roslyn's eyes widened in shock. She could not believe her ears when she heard the princess' sincere apology! Even the prince and his knights seemed to find the scene jarring.
Adele knew that "Odile" needed to apologize more properly to this young girl some other time. But right now, she needed to focus on gaining more sympathy.
Besides, it seemed like her desperate actions have finally started to make a tiny crack on the prince's statue-like exterior.
"... Spare us the pitiful act." he hissed in disdain. "You must be wholly aware of how ridiculous your excuses sound."
But Adele wasn't having it. As she glanced discreetly at the knights' uncomfortable faces, she predicted that all she needed was a little more push. Even if the prince still won't believe her sincerity, the others' reactions might pressure him into stopping this investigation.
"I cannot, Your Highness. For I am telling the truth. I swear it as the Crown Princess and future Queen of Tchaikovia!" Pushing away Roslyn's hold on her shoulders, the tearful Adele crouched low until her forehead touched the ground.
Instantly, she could hear Roslyn desperately begging for her to stand up, while the barely concealed murmurs of the knights rumbled louder behind the prince. As she continued to pretend to sob her heart out, Adele refrained herself from celebrating just yet.
'Thank you Mom and Dad for recommending those remedial acting classes to me! And now, for the finishing touch!'
Similar to what Roslyn did not too long ago, Adele collided her forehead on the shiny hard floor.
BANG!
A shocked silence permeated the room.
Speechless, the man recoiled slightly as his cold eyes drastically shook in alarm, but Adele continued on with her exaggerated performance.
"I beg of you, Your Highness! As the benevolent Crown Prince of Tchaikovia, and as my beloved husband, please believe this unworthy wife of yours for the last time!"