The painful shrieking of the lady echoed through the room. Her long, red, sweat-drenched hair dangled to the floor, tangled in thick strands. Her face was contorted in agony as the maid dabbed her forehead to remove the sweat. Her hands clutched the silk bedsheets, twisting them into a tight ball.
Amidst the chaos, the commanding voice of the royal nanny rang out:
"Your Highness, push a little harder—I can see his head! Yes… yes, just like that!"
Printzel couldn't understand why she was in such excruciating pain in her lower abdomen. She clearly remembered traveling back home by bus from an antique fair, where she had purchased several unique items for her thesis. Feeling tired, she had closed her eyes for just a short nap before continuing her research at home.
But when she opened her eyes, everything had changed. She was in an unfamiliar room, surrounded by women—many of them older—and before she could process anything, a sharp pain struck her abdomen, as though something inside her was desperately trying to escape.
From that moment until now, she had done nothing but obey the commands of the old woman urging her to push, following instructions in a dazed and disoriented state.
After several grueling hours, Printzel finally felt relief as a small form slid from her body, accompanied by the piercing cry of a newborn. Without a second thought, she closed her eyes and drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep.
Outside the study room, a royal guard stood at attention, fulfilling his duty, when he sensed approaching footsteps. A maid bowed her head respectfully and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and motioned for her to wait a moment.
Inside, the door opened to reveal a man seated behind a desk, draped in an elegant blue royal uniform. His face was serious as he read through memorandums. Without lifting his eyes, the guard delivered the news he had just received.
"Greetings, Your Highness. The maid just arrived with news—the Empress has given birth to a prince."
The pen in the man's hand paused midair. His calm forehead creased slightly as he absorbed the news. With a nod, he completed his signature and gestured silently toward a corner of the room. The guard understood and took a tray filled with gems, handing it to the maid as a reward.
Once she left, the room fell back into its usual rhythm. No cheers were raised, no celebrations echoed—because, to everyone there, the birth of a prince meant absolutely nothing.
It took two days for Printzel to regain consciousness after giving birth, the toll of excessive blood loss keeping her bedridden. In her semi-conscious state, she drifted in and out of a strange dream—one that felt far too vivid to ignore.
She had dreamed of a novel—Emperor's Poisoned Love. A twisted tale of toxic passion between the emotionally wounded male lead and a tragic female protagonist. But the most unsettling part wasn't the romance—it was the antagonist.
Elric.
Crooked, cunning, and cruel. He didn't care for the heroine, yet went out of his way to torment her—not out of love, but pure malice. And why? Because the male lead—his older stepbrother, the Crown Prince—was the object of her affection. Jungkook's hatred stemmed from deep-seated wounds, carved by betrayal and blood.
Their father, the Emperor, had murdered the Crown Prince's mother—his beloved concubine—driven by a paranoid obsession that she might leave him. Afterward, he married another woman purely for formality. That woman became the Empress and gave birth to the second prince—Elric.
The Empress had loved her son fiercely, shielding him from all the horrors of palace life. But even she wasn't spared. A maid, acting on the Emperor's silent command, poisoned her. From that day onward, Elric lived in a lonely shadow—motherless, unwanted, and twisted by neglect.
The Crown Prince, forced to bear the weight of the empire, grew into a cold, bitter man. His bitterness seeped into his love life, poisoning any chance of happiness.
By the time Printzel finally woke, the truth settled over her like an unwanted shroud.
She had transmigrated into that novel.
She was now Printzel Olivia Benchmark—the ill-fated Empress.
And the child she had just brought into this world?
The future villain of the story.
Elric Benchmark.