Chapter 1: I Accidentally…..

Vice and Folly (Alcohol Color Combination):

A proverb that refers to the vices that ruin people—drinking, lust, and gambling.

Throughout history, countless lives have been destroyed by these three. Likely enough to populate an entire country with ease.

Even now, the numbers continue to rise in real time.

These vices are things one must carefully avoid to lead a harmonious life. I, too, have always been vigilant against them.

Until yesterday.

It was the early dawn, still dark and quiet, before the sun had risen.

I sat on the bed, covering my face with both hands.

My bare upper body was fully exposed outside the blanket.

My head was spinning.

I felt slightly nauseous.

But I didn’t have the luxury to care about such things.

I peeked.

Through the gaps between my fingers, I cautiously checked beside me.

“Sigh…”

After checking for the fifth time, I arrived at one conclusion.

This wasn’t a dream.

It was a cursed reality.

I closed the gaps between my fingers and tilted my head back as far as it would go.

‘Aaaaaaahhhhhh!!!’

I screamed internally until my head throbbed.

The reason I didn’t scream out loud was simple.

“Zzz…”

A woman was sleeping soundly next to me.

Her skin was smooth and pale, her long blue hair flowed gracefully, and her toned yet sensual body lay undisturbed.

She remained fast asleep, utterly unbothered by my internal panic.

She was completely naked.

‘I’m insane!!!’

Drinking, lust, and gambling—those were the three vices people were warned to avoid.

Last night, I indulged in all three.

I drank heavily to celebrate completing a mission.

Got swept up in the mood and accepted a drinking contest.

And then, let’s just say, the rest of the night was… intense enough to leave my thighs sore.

I had thoroughly ruined my life.

Some might say that drinking and sleeping with a beautiful woman wasn’t life-ruining, and perhaps even a good thing.

They might even praise me when they see her beauty.

But anyone who learns her identity would surely understand my situation.

Her name was Elaine.

She hailed from the frozen wastelands, the unyielding fortress, the land of true warriors.

The North.

She served under the ‘Queen of Steel and Ice,’ the Duke of the North—known as the ‘Strongest Human.’

She was the commander of the duke’s personal escort knights.

And I was just a guard.

A mere member of the first escort unit.

Yes, I had just slept with my superior.

The most absurd part of all this?

This whole disaster started because of a plan I had been pursuing.

Still leaning back, I replayed my past decisions like a slideshow.

It all began when I found myself transported into this world, the world of a novel called Brave Road.

A fantasy novel.

The story followed a protagonist who, after defeating the final boss, was betrayed by his comrades.

Barely surviving, he returned to take revenge on his former allies and the conspiratorial kingdom.

It wasn’t a masterpiece, nor was it an obscure failure.

It was a mid-tier novel, good enough for passing time.

My interest in Brave Road stemmed from its cathartic moments.

The villains faced justice in satisfying ways.

The protagonist’s emotional journey of revenge struck a chord with me.

And most of all, the characters.

Being a revenge story, the relationships between the protagonist and other characters were pivotal.

Both villains and allies were written with depth.

The villains were genuinely despicable, making it easy to root against them.

The allies were endearing, making them easy to support.

…Thinking back now, I realize I enjoyed it more than I initially admitted.

‘No wonder I immediately recognized where I was.’

At first, I was bewildered by the typical trope of being transported into the story I had read.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was in Brave Road.

Specifically, the city of Wintercannon, commonly referred to as the North.

On my second day here, I witnessed the march of the Northern army.

At the forefront, riding a white horse, was a dignified knight with white hair—a perfect match for the Duke of the North, Grace, as depicted in the illustrations.

The flag with the Ice Lion was also the symbol of the Grace family, the Northraine family.

Having realized the nature of this world, I accepted the reality of being possessed by the book and began to think of a brilliant and grand plan for survival.

Grace Northraine.

She was the strongest human on the side of the humans in Brave Road, but she also had another characteristic.

She was a sub-heroine.

Grace was the protagonist’s teacher and comrade, and even after she was betrayed and left emotionally scarred, she remained one of the few people she could trust wholeheartedly.

She was powerful, wealthy, had a prestigious family, a kind personality, was beautiful, and strong.

She was a perfect character with no flaws, so she was regarded as the true heroine by the readers.

Unfortunately, the protagonist, being a typical harem lead, lacked any romantic awareness and was consumed by revenge, declaring no romance.

As a result, by the end of the Northern episodes, Grace never ended up with the protagonist, and they both went their separate ways.

After all, the main heroine, who had been with the protagonist since the beginning, was someone else.

So, what was my plan?

Instead of the protagonist, I would be the one to get together with Grace!

Even during the crises in the story, the North didn’t fall, and Grace remained in her position as the Duke.

As long as I could win her over, I could live a prosperous and safe life in the North for the long term.

It might sound crazy at first, but my plan was specific and had potential.

As a reader of the novel, I knew exactly what kind of person Grace was.

This meant I knew what she liked and disliked, how to win her favor, and what to avoid.

Listening to the rumors and gauging the current timeline, I realized this was still the introduction phase of the story.

This meant that the protagonist had just been betrayed and was in the process of preparing for revenge, so it was far too early for him to come to the North.

Of course, by this time in the story’s past timeline, Grace had already crossed paths with the protagonist, and the flag had already been set.

But, since Grace thought the protagonist was dead until he returned to the North, her heart was wide open.

What’s more, the body I possessed was that of an extra citizen, not even a supporting character, but it was tough and strong enough for the task at hand.

What is a human?

We crossed into a new continent, built the superpower that is the United States, and performed miracles by reviving war-torn nations in just a few decades.

We’re the species that never gives up, surviving even on a deserted island, embodying the spirit of Robinson Crusoe.

With good timing, good resources, and a solid plan, I was set.

I enlisted in the Northern Army first to approach Grace.

I took advantage of the opportunity the protagonist had, quickly growing stronger and reaching the position of her personal guard.

But then…

‘Aaaahhh!!!’

As I recalled everything, I let out another internal scream.

Until yesterday, my plan had been flawless.

Grace, who loved a “from rags to riches” story, immediately took notice of me when I started standing out as a new recruit.

She, who liked people who worked hard, took a liking to me when I trained late into the night.

This was when I managed to grab her attention.

From there, I planned to continue working on gaining her favor while advancing in rank, gradually narrowing the distance between us.

But…

‘I attracted way more attention than I expected.’

Thanks to all my efforts, I managed to catch Grace’s eye.

However, naturally, I also attracted the attention of others.

One of those was Elaine, the greatest knight in the North, and the captain of the guard.

She had been mentioned occasionally in passing throughout the novel, but never with any significant screen time.

I had barely known her name, but it turned out she had been keeping an eye on my performance from the very beginning.

In fact, it was thanks to Elaine’s recommendation that I was even accepted into the guard.

As the saying goes, “If you want to catch a general, first shoot at the horse,” I knew that to approach Grace, I also needed to gain Elaine’s favor.

I made every effort to build a relationship with her as well.

Elaine, who appreciated my earnestness and diligence, soon took a liking to me, assigning me to her direct team, 1st Squad, where she took me around like a treasured doll.

Though this was all part of the plan, I genuinely got along with Elaine, and she became a friend in her own right.

‘Maybe I should have kept some distance…’

Where did I go wrong?

When Elaine said that she liked me?

When she smiled at me after I greeted her in the morning?

When we started joking around with each other during casual gatherings?

When she became comfortable enough to touch my shoulder?

Or… when we went to a second round together after the company dinner?

‘Hot! This is not the time. I need to think about how to handle this from now on.’

I momentarily lost focus due to the shocking turn of events.

Now is not the time to dwell on the past, but to consider the future that lies ahead.

‘First, let’s sort out the situation.’

Thankfully, we’re not in the guard barracks but in Elaine’s family estate.

The first squad, having completed their mission, is currently on a three-day vacation.

So, as the head of the guards, she also drank quite a bit.

Moreover, Elaine recently lost her housekeeper and now lives alone.

So there’s no need to worry about other people’s eyes.

‘I’ve already ended up at Elaine’s place, so there’s no turning back. The only option now is to manipulate the situation.’

Here’s my plan:

We came to her house drunk, but nothing happened.

I simply escorted my intoxicated superior home,

and I fell asleep here because I was too tired to go back.

The reason Elaine is naked is that she threw up, and I had to help her undress.

During that process, I made sure to avoid looking at her private areas.

Her body was covered in sweat, and the bed was soaked because the alcohol made her hot and sweaty.
Alright, this story is plausible.

Now, I just need to put on my clothes and pretend to be asleep while leaning against the wall in the corner of the room.

There are probably other details I should be concerned about, but time is short.

If Elaine wakes up and sees this situation, the whole story will be ruined.

I hope she has no memory of last night, and I quickly started gathering the clothes I had left over there.

“?!”

What?

Why can’t I get off the bed?

My legs are fine, and I’m not tied to the bed.

For some reason, I couldn’t move from the bed.

I soon realized the cause.

“Did you sleep well?”

“!!!”

I felt a chill, far more unsettling than when I first encountered the troll, upon hearing the locked voice near my ear.

“How strange. After being so close yesterday, you don’t want to part even for a moment. This is the first time I’ve felt this way.”

The reason I couldn’t get out of bed was simple.

I was being held by my arm.

And the only person who could be holding my arm in this room was one person.

“I see. So this is what it feels like to be in love. Heh, my chest feels ticklish, but I don’t dislike it.”

“……”

I swallowed hard and slowly turned my head.

There, Elaine, who had just woken up, was smiling faintly at me with sleepy eyes.

“Be glad. This feeling was born for you alone. Now, you must take responsibility. You made me a woman.”

“……”

“I love you, my dear.”

My grand plan of marrying Grace and living peacefully as the Duke’s husband with wealth and comfort…

Well, that seems to be over now.

Because it’s not the Northern Duke I’m with…

It’s the Northern Duke’s escort knight.

What will happen next?

I’m not entirely sure, but one thing I do know for certain:

I will never drink to the point of blacking out again.