The Tragic Male Lead Chose the Wrong Partner – Chapter 9

Author: amourtentia

Many held deep resentment toward the Bariesa royal family because of the war.

Naturally, Cynthia was also an object of contempt.

Behind her back, people referred to her as nothing more than ‘Maceira’s war trophy’, a war orphan who clawed his way to the top.

“I’ll turn around and cover my eyes. Draw something simple, and I’ll try to guess what it is.”

Cynthia put down her champagne glass and walked up to the congressman, offering him a pen and paper.

The man let out a hearty laugh as he took them.

“Ha! Isn’t this just a child’s play?”

“You’re the one who asked me to show off a royal’s special ability, remember?”

Cynthia smiled faintly and spoke with deliberate clarity.

“I don’t like reading people’s minds outright. There are privacy issues, you see. I’ve gotten in trouble before for revealing secrets people were hiding; things like affairs, or even crimes.”

The congressman’s face hardened slightly.

Cynthia loosened and let a hint of a smirk play on her lips as she kept a close eye on his reaction.

No politician got that far without getting their hands a little dirty. Especially considering that he came this far, most likely that he had opportunistic tendencies.

She began to unravel her story without giving her opponent a chance to speak.

“I don’t remember much of my childhood. It might be trauma from watching my relatives die during the royal family’s downfall. I don’t remember when I was young. Whatever the cause, I developed a keen sense of intuition. I can roughly tell what people are thinking when I observe them by their expressions, speech, and actions.”

A soft wave of sympathetic murmurs swept through the onlookers. Several people deliberately averted their eyes.

Cynthia turned around and placed both hands over her eyes.

“But now, I don’t even need to observe. It’s more like… I just know. Isn’t that amazing?”

She spoke like she was born a natural storyteller. Her calm voice had the room completely absorbed in her every word.

“Alright, go ahead. Draw something.”

All eyes shifted from Cynthia to the congressman.

The congressman, now acutely aware of the attention on him, set down his champagne glass and began to draw.

“Finished drawing?”

Cynthia’s voice came the instant his pen left the page, startling the man.

Still facing away, she said casually, “A snowman. Right? I thought it was a standing caterpillar, but then you added the carrot nose.”

The crowd stirred, a ripple of astonishment passing through them.

The sketch, a snowman, was lifted for everyone to see.

“T-That’s right.”

Cold sweat instantly broke out on the congressman’s forehead. Goosebumps appeared on his neck.

“H-How did you do that? That wasn’t a trick, was it? Are you seriously telling me you can read minds…?”

Cynthia smiled as his voice trailed off in confusion. She was holding a small, round hand mirror in her palm.

‘All the stories I’ve told are lies made up for the sake of a little illusion.’

She hadn’t needed magic, just a common sleight-of-hand trick she’d seen on a magic show in her past life.

Pretending to cover her eyes, she’d simply used the mirror to peek at his drawing. She couldn’t help but think of all the frauds the Bariesa royal family had run over the years.

A mix of cultish glorification and brainwashing passed off as ‘divine favor.’

That was the so-called ‘special ability of the royal family’.

The congressman’s gaze wandered around aimlessly as he wiped sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. He was consciously avoiding Cynthia’s eyes.

“I have to admit… that felt like a superpower.”

He raised his champagne glass and forced a wink, trying to laugh it off.

“It’s really not that amazing. Everyone has a skill they’re particularly good at, right? This is just mine. And one more thing—I’m pretty lucky.”

Cynthia grinned.

“Oh, the legend of the Bariesa royal family, the Frost Queen, was also called the ‘Goddess of Fortune’, wasn’t she?”

The congressman chuckled awkwardly and downed the champagne.

Cynthia’s eyes widened.

“Wait, that was my glass—”

Clang!

“Guh… Urgh!“

The congressman suddenly dropped the glass and clutched his throat, groaning in pain. His bloodshot eyes locked onto Cynthia with a murderous glare.

“You damned wench… How did you know to switch the glasses?”

“Huh? You picked that glass up, you crusty old man. Are you saying I was the one who was supposed to drink it?”

He used informal speech, so she didn’t bother being polite in return.

Did he poison her? When Cynthia looked bewildered, he mustered up the last of his strength and shouted.

“You filthy Bariesa royal, a disgrace to the world! Did you think we wouldn’t see through your plot to restore the monarchy?! Agh—”

He vomited blood and collapsed with a thud, screams echoing around them.

Meanwhile, a brown-haired man in the crowd narrowed his eyes, watching the scene unfold.

‘Assassination is absolutely not allowed! And he poisons the drink and gulps it himself?!’

He looked over at Cynthia, who stood there with wide eyes, playing the part of the innocent to perfection.

‘Damn it. What the hell is she? It’s like she knew all about our plans!’

He was part of the Liberty Council, a group determined to prevent the monarchy’s return. This time their target was none other than Cynthia.

They had planned to kidnap her and use her as a bargaining chip against the Queensguard family and Maceira.

Since the official residence was always under tight security, the engagement ceremony, which was attended by many outsiders, was their best chance.

Cynthia was unaware of it, but they tried every trick they could to kidnap Cynthia throughout the banquet.

They’d tried to spill a drink on her dress to lure her outside, but she turned suddenly and the drink landed on someone else.

They’d tried to trip her and escort her out under the pretense of helping, but she turned again, and the one trying to trip her fell flat instead.

Eventually, they changed tactics.

“This won’t work. We’ll have to fake a medical emergency and smuggle her out.”

One man crawled into the ceiling to drop a chandelier, only for Cynthia to avoid it by a few steps.

Now, the congressman’s poison stunt had failed spectacularly.

“Block the entrances and search everyone.”

At Maceira’s command, soldiers began to move in unison, surrounding the hall and locking all doors.

Soon, all the exits to the banquet hall were blocked.

At that moment, a young man burst out from the crowd, yelling, “The royal family must be eradicated from this world! We will fight to the end!”

He was a Liberty Council member who’d panicked at the turn of events and made a hasty move.

‘What is that idiot doing! He’s going to get captured, tortured, and killed. Has he never heard of coordination?

The brown-haired man cursed under his breath and ducked into the crowd. Their opponent was Brigadier General Vicente, if they got caught, it wouldn’t end with just one generation being wiped out.

Bang!

Suddenly, the young man fired the pistol he had secretly hidden at Cynthia.

Screams erupted all around.

Cynthia instinctively flinched and ducked, squeezing her eyes shut. At that moment, someone wrapped their arms tightly around her.

Ting!

“Aaaargh!”

A sharp sound rang out, the bullet had ricocheted off something, along with a man’s scream echoed from somewhere else.

The brown-haired man clutched his side and groaned. By some absurd twist of fate, the bullet had missed Cynthia and hit him instead.

Trembling, Cynthia cautiously opened her eyes and found herself face-to-face with Maceira.

“Why…?”

‘Didn’t you hate me? Sure, it’d be inconvenient if I died, but would he really throw himself in front of a bullet?’

Still holding her with one arm, Maceira calmly aimed his gun somewhere across the room.