Chapter 1

"Please take care of me."

Finally, the snow began to melt, and the harsh cold of winter started to ease.

This day and this place marked the end of the two-year war, which our Galvan Kingdom won, and a grand victory celebration was held in the castle to honor the soldiers who fought in the hellish battlefield.

For the first time in a long while, everyone was bright-faced, thanking the soldiers who fought for them. The soldiers, despite their injuries, were moved to receive medals from the king's own hands.

On the dais, the young general with red hair and eyes, who had led a desperate charge just before defeat and turned the tide of the battle, received a cup from the king and was praised by the prince and the royal family.

"Emeline, daughter of the Count of Bart, I hereby break our engagement!"

Without an escort, I, Emeline, stood quietly in the shadows of a pillar, guarded by soldiers, watching the scene. I was stunned when my fiancé, the second prince with golden hair and blue eyes, suddenly raised his voice.

"There was nothing good about being engaged to you. What kind of 'fortune' is this! I don't need such an uncertain 'blessing'! You, with your plain appearance, claim to be the goddess of fortune? Look in the mirror! I will marry the daughter of the Marquis of Marberry and find happiness on my own!"

…Fortune? Luck? Bad luck?

A sharp pain shot through the left side of my head. I tried to hold back the urge to sit down and looked around. My father, the Count of Bart, whom I had finally found, was trembling all over, and my mother was pale and about to faint. When I looked up at the throne, I met the eyes of the king, whose regal presence I had seen many times, with his golden beard.

This scene… the headache grew worse.

The king's voice, which I hadn't heard in a long time, echoed.

"Emeline, daughter of the Count of Bart, you are dismissed. You will be contacted later. And Prince Conrad, your behavior tonight has tarnished the purpose of this celebration. Do not leave your room until you are permitted."

"But, Your Majesty, if I hadn't done this, you wouldn't have listened to me at all!" the prince shouted! The loud voice reverberated in my head. Behind the prince, I saw a beautiful woman with long, wavy, light blue hair and incredibly long eyelashes. For a moment, our eyes met. She lifted the corners of her mouth in an innocent smile.

"Unbelievable…"

I tried to hold back the wave of memories and the nausea from the headache, and despite the fact that no one seemed to care about me anymore, I bowed to the king and quickly left the castle.

◇◇◇

When I returned home alone and entered my room, I rushed to the toilet and vomited violently, then collapsed from exhaustion.

When I woke up, I was lying in bed, changed into a blue nightgown. The room was dark. How long had it been since then?

And… did I, Chiharu, die? …Surely, that must be the case.

I remembered that I was Chiharu. It was strange how I had forgotten until now.

As Chiharu, I had studied hard, gone to university, become a teacher, and approached education with passion, but the students didn't respond as I hoped, which made me anxious. However, when we won the sports festival and the students carried me on their shoulders… I grew through experience and, in my fourth year as a teacher, accepted a proposal from a kind but not flashy colleague…

One of my students came to school with a bruise on her cheek, and when I suspected abuse and called her home, her father came and stabbed me with a knife…

In the moment before I closed my eyes, I saw his crying face.

"Mr. Yuzi… I'm sorry."

I whispered in Japanese. I never thought it would end like this.

I closed my eyes… took a deep breath to calm myself. It was frustrating, but it was over.

More importantly, there was something I needed to think about.

Is this world where I now live the world of "The True Blessing is You"? Or a very similar world.

‘During class, when I confiscated a manga from the otaku girl Yoshoka, she said, "Teacher, read it too! It's really interesting!" and I secretly read it in the biology prep room, which led me to buy the second volume…’

In this world, there is a "blessing." On the tenth day of a child's birth, they go to the temple, and a small piece of paper is dipped in a water mirror. When the child's possession (usually a lock of hair) is placed in the water, words float up. These words are the child's one and only "blessing."

Blessings that are celebrated include "health" and "no illness," and there are many blessings that promise excellence in a particular skill, such as "foreign languages," "business," and "swordsmanship."

My "blessing" was "luck." According to records, "luck" was the first appearance of such a blessing, and the priests were greatly alarmed. The high priest was informed, and the news quickly reached the royal palace. "Luck" was concluded to mean good fortune, and I was quickly taken in by the royal family. At one month old, I became the fiancée of the second prince, who was a year older. I was not engaged to the crown prince because he was already engaged to a royal from a neighboring country. My family, the House of Bart, had no choice but to accept.

From a young age, I was often invited to meet the prince and even the king, and I was made to shake hands with them many times.

The name of the comic's protagonist is Selvia. She is the hidden child of the previous marquis, discovered and taken in by her much older brother, the current marquis, at the age of fifteen. Her "blessing" is "cheerfulness." With her natural cheerfulness, she stirs up the world around her and warmly envelops it, even melting the heart of the twisted prince.

I recall that the prince wants to gain fame through the sword like his idol, the general, but his "blessing" is "livestock," which is why he is twisted. I picture the prince, Conrad, with a perpetually sour expression. The "blessings" of the royal family were, of course, kept secret, but "livestock" is a fine "blessing"! It could lead to a prosperous future for the country, so why is he so bitter?

By the way, in the comic, this "blessing" is a word that represents the temperament of the guardian spirit assigned to each person in this world. There was a scene where the heroine, Selvia, was surprised to see her own spirit. The sight of the cheerful spirit and the cheerful Selvia chatting… how would that look?

And the prince already had a fiancée from birth, and her "blessing" was "luck." The detestable countess, Emeline, who rose to power through luck alone. How will Selvia fight against the lucky Emeline?! …Continued in Volume 3… I remember Yoshoka saying the latest volume was 12.

"Ah… I was too busy to buy the next volume."

Assuming this world is the same as the comic, the story has already moved beyond the second volume I know. After all, Selvia and Emeline have already had their showdown. It might be the final volume.

But I met Selvia for the first time today. I didn't even know she existed. We didn't fight. There was no way we could fight. This world is not exactly the same as "The True Blessing is You."

I smiled wryly, remembering the character introduction: "Emeline, the countess who rose to power through luck alone."

Was being engaged to the prince my luck? It only brought me trouble.

As the prince's fiancée, the House of Bart was of a lower status. Because of this, my parents and I suffered many slights. My "blessing" of "luck" was kept strictly secret. If I truly brought good fortune, I could have been kidnapped and taken abroad. To the high nobles who didn't know the situation, my entry into the royal family was not acceptable.

From the time I could understand, I was isolated from the outside world, my freedom was restricted, and I could not make friends. My studies and princess education were my daily routine. Compared to those with "blessings" for learning, my grades were mediocre. Compared to those with "blessings" for beauty, my appearance was also mediocre. Because I was sheltered, I had no interesting topics to share, and the prince quickly lost interest in me, lamenting his own misfortune for having to marry me.

Despite this, I was still blindly in love with the prince. He was the only person of my generation I could meet. I was brainwashed to become his wife as soon as I developed a sense of self. That was the purpose of my life.

Now that the memories of Chiharu have returned, I am rapidly coming to terms with my situation.

What will become of me? Without knowing the future story, I can only let things unfold as they will.

In this world, there is sadly very little a woman can do on her own.

Now that my engagement to the prince has been broken, I am a terrible liability. Will I be forced to become a second wife somewhere? Or sent to a convent?

"Maybe I can teach children again at the convent in our territory."

I thought of my former students, the smiles I saw from the lectern. Did they graduate safely? When I was stabbed, it was after school, so not many students were around… Did they see the scene? I hope they don't have any traumatic memories of me.

"I was engaged twice, but I couldn't get married either time."

I realized tears were streaming down my cheeks.

Neither time was a burning love.

Still, I liked him.

I liked him…