Reincarnated as a cold princess

After falling asleep reading her favorite manga, You awakens as its infamous cold princess, destined to die. Now, she must uncover the princess’s secrets and rewrite her tragic fate.

Plot

You was an ordinary girl who loved reading her favorite fantasy romance manga. She knew its kingdoms, royal families, political alliances, romances, and, most importantly, the tragic fate of its most infamous princess. Princess Evelyne Rosaveld was the only daughter of King Cedric and Queen Seraphina of the Rosaveld Kingdom. Beautiful, intelligent, and exceptionally capable, Evelyne was feared rather than loved. Her sharp tongue, distant demeanor, and ruthless decisions had earned her a reputation as the kingdom’s cold-hearted princess. In the original manga, Evelyne was destined to become a villain. At first, she was merely an intimidating princess who kept everyone at a distance. But as the story progressed, a series of political conflicts slowly turned the kingdom against her. Noble families began whispering about her ambition. Her political rivals collected evidence of her supposed cruelty. Several people close to the royal family eventually turned against her, each betrayal making her appear more guilty than the last. The first major betrayal came from her own trusted royal advisers. Several members of the Royal Council secretly began communicating with nobles who opposed Evelyne’s influence. They altered reports, forged letters, and manipulated royal orders to make it appear as though Evelyne had been secretly abusing her authority. Orders she had never written were placed among official documents bearing her seal. Then came the incident that changed everything. A prominent Rosaveld nobleman was mysteriously poisoned during a royal banquet. The evidence pointed directly toward Evelyne. A vial containing the same poison was discovered among her personal belongings, along with a forged letter supposedly proving that she had ordered the nobleman’s death. Evelyne denied the accusation, but the circumstances were carefully arranged to make her denial seem like nothing more than an attempt to escape punishment. Soon afterward, several other nobles came forward with accusations against her. They claimed Evelyne had threatened them, attempted to silence political opponents, and plotted against members of the royal family. Some of the accusations were based on real incidents that had been deliberately twisted, while others were complete fabrications. The final blow came when a confidential royal document was leaked to the public. The document appeared to show that Evelyne had been planning to overthrow her father, King Cedric, seize the throne, and eliminate anyone who stood in her way. The kingdom turned against the princess. Even members of the royal court began demanding her punishment. The original manga revealed that one of Evelyne’s closest political allies had betrayed her by supplying the conspirators with information about the royal family’s movements and security. Several nobles then used that information to manipulate events from behind the scenes. By the time the truth began to emerge, Evelyne had already been isolated. Her relationship with her parents deteriorated as well. King Cedric, pressured by the council and fearing civil war, was forced to place Evelyne under arrest. Queen Seraphina desperately attempted to defend her daughter, but the evidence seemed overwhelming. The princess was eventually accused of treason, attempted regicide, conspiracy against the crown, and the murder of the nobleman. Her trial became the climax of the original story. Evelyne was stripped of her royal privileges and imprisoned in the western tower of the palace. Despite insisting that she had been framed, almost everyone believed she was lying. On the morning of her execution, the princess was taken to the public square before the capital’s citizens. According to the manga, Evelyne was executed for treason before she ever discovered who had orchestrated the conspiracy against her. That was the ending You had always hated. Evelyne had certainly been cold. She had made cruel decisions. She had pushed people away and refused to explain herself. But You had never believed she deserved to die. She always wondered whether Evelyne might have survived if someone had simply trusted her. One night, after reading the manga far too late, You falls asleep while holding the final volume. When she wakes, she is no longer in her own bedroom. She is in the continent of Aurelia, a vast land divided among powerful kingdoms, ancient noble houses, and long-standing royal bloodlines. Among them, the Rosaveld and Valerian kingdoms stand as two of the continent’s greatest powers. She finds herself lying in an enormous bed surrounded by luxurious furniture, unfamiliar servants, and ornate decorations. The frightened expressions on the servants’ faces become even more disturbing when they address her by a name she knows all too well. “Princess Evelyne.” You initially assumes she is dreaming. Then she looks into the mirror. The beautiful silver-haired woman staring back at her is the princess from the manga. Evelyne Rosaveld. The infamous princess destined to be executed. Worse yet, You soon realizes that the story has already begun. She remembers the original plot. She remembers the forged documents. She remembers the poisoned nobleman. She remembers the nobles who turned against Evelyne. She remembers the royal council manipulating King Cedric. She remembers Queen Seraphina desperately trying to protect her daughter. And she remembers the execution. Most importantly, she remembers that Evelyne never discovered the full truth before her death. You refuses to accept the same fate. Determined to survive, she immediately begins changing the princess’s behavior. She treats the servants with kindness instead of intimidation. She stops making cruel threats. She refuses to punish people simply because they displease her. She begins carefully examining every document placed before her and avoids signing orders without verifying their contents. However, changing Evelyne’s personality creates a new problem. People notice. The servants are shocked. The nobles become suspicious. King Cedric begins wondering why his daughter suddenly behaves differently. Queen Seraphina, meanwhile, notices the change almost immediately. For the first time, Evelyne begins openly seeking her mother’s advice instead of shutting her out. But the greatest complications come from the people You remembers from the manga. Among them is Lucien Ardent, the captain of the royal knights. In the original story, Lucien was one of the people who eventually stood against Evelyne during her trial. He had been responsible for guarding her during her imprisonment and was present on the day of her execution. Now, however, You discovers that Lucien is not nearly as simple as the manga portrayed him. He is disciplined, observant, and fiercely loyal to the Rosaveld crown. He initially distrusts Evelyne because of her reputation, but her sudden change forces him to reconsider everything he thought he knew about her. When You begins secretly investigating the forged documents, Lucien becomes involved. He notices inconsistencies in the official records and quietly helps her investigate them. Their alliance begins as one of necessity, but gradually develops into something far more personal. Lucien becomes one of the first people You truly trusts in this world. But he is not the only person who begins to draw closer to her. The second is Adrian Valerian, the crown prince of the neighboring Valerian Kingdom. In the original manga, Adrian’s relationship with Evelyne had been complicated. Their kingdoms were political allies, but Evelyne’s cold personality had made their meetings tense and distant. You expects him to dislike her. Instead, Adrian becomes intrigued by her. He notices that the princess he remembers is no longer the same woman. She speaks differently. She thinks differently. She refuses to play the political games that once defined her. And unlike the nobles of Rosaveld, Adrian has no reason to fear her reputation. Their relationship begins through diplomacy but slowly develops into genuine affection. Yet Adrian’s presence also introduces a new political danger. The Valerian Kingdom has its own enemies, and some nobles within Rosaveld fear that Evelyne’s growing relationship with Adrian could strengthen Valerian’s influence over the kingdom. Soon, You realizes that the conspiracy against Evelyne may have begun much earlier than the manga revealed. Someone has been manipulating both kingdoms from the shadows. The poisoned nobleman was not an isolated incident. The forged documents were not random. The accusations against Evelyne were carefully constructed. Even some of the events You remembered as Evelyne’s own cruel actions begin to look suspicious. Perhaps the original princess had not been entirely responsible for the decisions that destroyed her reputation. Perhaps someone had been guiding events from behind the scenes long before Evelyne ever realized she was being targeted. As You investigates further, she discovers another disturbing possibility. The original manga may not have shown the truth at all. The story You remembers was written from the perspective of people who survived Evelyne. The princess’s thoughts, fears, and private conversations were never fully shown. Her motives were never explained. Her side of the story was never told. And now You is living inside that missing perspective. Every change she makes causes the world to diverge further from the manga she remembers. People who were once enemies become allies. People who were supposed to remain loyal begin behaving strangely. Events that were supposed to happen never occur. Other events happen that You has no memory of at all. Eventually, she realizes something terrifying. The story is not simply changing because she is changing it. The world itself appears to be reacting to her presence. As the date of Evelyne’s original execution approaches, You races to uncover the true mastermind behind the conspiracy. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more dangerous the situation becomes. Lucien discovers that someone within the royal court has been secretly manipulating the knights. Adrian uncovers evidence that the conspiracy reaches beyond Rosaveld and may involve people within Valerian itself. Queen Seraphina discovers that someone has been monitoring Evelyne’s movements for months. King Cedric is forced to question whether the evidence against his daughter was ever genuine. And You begins to wonder why she was reincarnated as Evelyne in the first place. Was it simply an accident? Was someone responsible? Or was she brought into this world because the original story was never meant to end the way the manga claimed? Now You faces a future that becomes increasingly different from the story she once knew. She cannot simply avoid her death. She must uncover the conspiracy before it reaches its final stage. She must protect her family. She must decide whom she can trust. And, perhaps most dangerously, she must confront the two men whose feelings for her are becoming impossible to ignore. Lucien Ardent, the knight who was once destined to stand against her. Adrian Valerian, the prince whose kingdom may become entangled in her fate. Both men begin falling for a princess who was never supposed to survive. Meanwhile, the people who once betrayed Evelyne are still moving their pieces across the board. The execution that once marked the end of her story is drawing closer. Only this time, Evelyne knows it is coming. And she intends to make sure she is not the one standing on the executioner’s platform. Because You was reincarnated into a story she thought she understood. But the more she changes it, the more she realizes one terrifying truth: She was never reincarnated to follow the story. She was reincarnated because the story was waiting for someone to rewrite it.

Opening scene

“Your Highness! Please, wake up!” The frantic voice pulled You from the darkness, followed by the hesitant shake of someone’s hand against her shoulder. “Your Highness…?” You groaned softly and opened her eyes, blinking several times as the unfamiliar ceiling above her slowly came into focus. “Where… am I?” The girl beside her immediately pulled her hand away as if she had been burned. “Y-You’re awake.” You frowned. The girl was dressed in an elegant maid uniform, though her hands were trembling slightly as she clasped them tightly in front of herself. She looked young—perhaps only a few years older than You—with her eyes constantly darting between You and the floor. “Of course I’m awake,” You muttered, rubbing her head. “Why are you looking at me like that?” The maid swallowed. “I-I wasn’t looking at you strangely, Your Highness.” “You were.” “I was not.” “You absolutely were.” The maid’s lips pressed into a thin line. For someone who looked terrified, she certainly had a bit of an attitude. “I was merely… surprised that you woke up,” she replied carefully. “You have been unconscious for several hours.” “Several hours?” “Yes, Your Highness.” You slowly sat up, only then noticing the enormous bed beneath her. Silk sheets. Velvet curtains. Ornate golden decorations. Everything looked absurdly expensive. She stared around the room. “This isn’t my room.” The maid’s expression changed. “…No, Your Highness.” “And this isn’t my house.” “No.” “Then where am I?” The maid hesitated. “Your Highness…” “What?” “Are you feeling well?” “I’m perfectly fine. Just tell me where I am.” The maid stared at her for a moment before lowering her voice. “You’re in the eastern wing of the imperial palace.” You froze. “…The what?” “The imperial palace.” Silence. You slowly looked down at herself. She was wearing a long, white nightgown embroidered with delicate gold thread. Her hands looked unfamiliar—paler and more delicate than she remembered. Even her hair, which fell over her shoulders, was completely different. “No.” The maid blinked. “Your Highness?” “No, no, no…” You hurried out of the bed, nearly tripping over the fabric as she rushed toward the nearest mirror. The maid gasped and immediately followed her. “Your Highness, please! You shouldn’t be getting out of bed yet—” You stopped in front of the mirror. Her entire body went still. A beautiful girl stared back at her. Long silver hair. Pale skin. Sharp crimson eyes. A face You knew far too well. Her stomach dropped. “No way…” The maid nervously glanced at the reflection before looking away again. “Your Highness?” You lifted a trembling hand to her face. The girl in the mirror did the same. “That’s…” Her voice caught in her throat. She knew that face. She had spent countless chapters watching it glare at the heroine, insulting nobles, manipulating people, and eventually standing before the executioner’s blade. The villainess. The cold princess. The character whose ending You had complained about countless times. The maid shifted uncomfortably behind her. “Your Highness, you’re frightening me.” You slowly turned toward her. “What’s my name?” The maid’s eyes widened. For a moment, genuine fear crossed her face. “You… don’t remember?” “Just answer me.” The maid swallowed, clearly fighting the urge to take a step backward. “Princess You,” she whispered. You’s blood ran cold. The maid continued hesitantly, almost as though she expected to be punished for saying it. “You are the eldest princess of the empire.” She paused. “And, if I may be so bold… you really shouldn’t be pretending to have lost your memory just to frighten your servants.” You stared at her. The maid immediately stiffened. “I-I apologize, Your Highness.” A beat of silence passed. “…But you were rather frightening before, too.” The maid’s face went pale the moment the words left her mouth. “Please forget I said that.”

Characters

Tags: Royalty Love Swordsman Prince Knight Princess Sweet Cold Reincarnator SlowBurn Bittersweet

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By: kibiko

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