I’m baack!
Just found this novel. It was quite short. But I find it so interesting, so I want to share it with you all.
Hope you enjoy it.
Reborn as the villainous prince. Wait, prince?
And to top it off, I’m destined to be the fallback husband for the villainess when she gets dumped by her fiance with a “You trashy woman deserve a lowlife like him!”
Seriously? This sucks. I might die from this.
It’s that otome game my sister (in my past life) used to be obsessed with.
I forgot the title, but the image depicted the guy as a stereotypical Western mobster. His face wasn’t clearly shown, but he was definitely a greasy old man.
Dark skin, a triple chin belly, fat, grub-like fingers, greasy-looking frizzy hair, disgustingly thick lips, and a bulbous nose.
God, you’re cruel. What did I ever do to deserve this?
My mother hailed from a small foreign kingdom——a cluster of islands in a warm climate. Although she was a consort, she was not the queen.
Despite that status, she was a voluptuous beauty, often dressed in revealing traditional attire befitting her homeland.
Her country thrived on exporting spices, pearls, and seafood. I guess that’s why they married her off.
However, my mother, the princess of a wealthy small kingdom, was also incredibly spoiled.
She was a great beauty when she first arrived, but unfortunately, she got a taste of the King’s favor and developed a taste for luxury and the misuse of power.
By the time I was old enough to understand things, my mother was a mere shadow of her former beauty. She was overwhelmingly… fleshy. Not just curvy, but full-on boneless ham. Naturally, the King’s favor had long since flown away.
Fearing the FAT genes lurking within me, I was determined not to gain excessive weight.
I actively engaged in swordsmanship, martial arts, self-defense, magic training, geography, history, economics, and the study of leadership. Every day was a struggle to burn calories while fighting the temptation of sweet treats constantly offered to me.
As a result of this lifestyle, I became a herbivore who preferred vegetables and fruits over sugary snacks. I liked meat, but only the lean kind.
My mother was the fourth wife, and the third consort. The first and second wives were originally princesses from a neighboring large country and the daughter of a prominent domestic nobleman, respectively. Naturally, the battle for the throne was most intense between these two factions. The third consort hadn’t been blessed with children and was therefore out of the running.
I did have the right to inherit the throne, but as the child of a consort who lacked a strong backing, my chances were slim.
Witnessing the constant power struggles between the consorts in the palace and gardens, I would often turn pale and scurry up trees like a cat, thinking, “Women are scary!”
Lutz, my attendant, would pout and say, “That’s not fair, Your Highness,” whenever he got dragged into these unpleasant situations.
But I didn’t want to stand out.
My tanned skin, jet-black hair, and striking golden eyes were uncommon in this country.
While considered royal features in my mother’s homeland, here they were seen as foreign.
I clearly exuded an exotic aura, which wouldn’t win me any favors.
The good-looking genes did their job, and as a child, I was a cute kid with big eyes.
However, people tend to reject anything different.
Naturally, I wasn’t well-received by the other consorts.
I could practically feel their “Look at that barbarian brat!” glares.
My older brothers were somewhat affectionate towards me.
Why do you ask?
Because I acted like an idiot!!
I would grab sweets and stuff them in my mouth——cookies, crackers, even cakes and puddings!
I wasn’t doing this out of genuine love for being crude; it was a self-defense mechanism.
You see, during my first tea party, the first queen had slipped me a drug.
I ended up vomiting and writhing in pain, feeling like I was going to cough up blood.
It was all because I’d been diligently studying various subjects, hoping to acquire skills instead of aiming for the throne.
If I excelled at swordsmanship or magic, I might get sent off as a soldier.
As a herbivore, being a soldier, knight, or anything combat-related was out of the question.
So, I decided to aim for a civil servant position, of course, not wanting to become the villainous prince either…
Apparently, being a bright and intelligent young boy had caught my father’s attention… which then attracted murderous intent from the other consorts, expressed in a very obvious manner.
I couldn’t help but think, “Now this is baaad.”
As mentioned before, my appearance wasn’t popular in this country.
Even if I were to marry into a noble family of prestigious houses, they would likely reject me.
But it was better than dying.
Thus, I reluctantly adopted the “idiot prince” persona.
Lutz, grinning, declared, “I’ll follow Your Highness wherever you go.”
Dude, you’d definitely have a sweeter deal following the first or second prince.
“It’s fine by me. I prefer working for someone easygoing like you, Your Highness.”
Paper Surgery 