Chapter 004
I—or rather, Luisa Mecenat—had kept several men who were called “lovers” but were essentially paramours, even during my engagement. Most were low-quality thugs, yet they shared one undeniable trait.
‘They were all devastatingly handsome.’
In the novel’s illustrations, Luisa was often depicted surrounded by these mistresses. They were beauties handpicked by her—the finest specimens in the Empire. Louisa would drape them in the costliest silks and leathers, amuse herself with them, and then discard them like worn-out gloves. Consequently, she rarely had a meaningful conversation with any of them, with one notable exception.
There was one man whose story with Louisa didn’t end in a catastrophe.
Rudy Garko.
He was the proprietor of “Rudy’s Night Bar,” a den of vice and gambling that Louisa frequented. In many ways, Rudy was her kindred spirit; while Louisa was unfaithful to her fiancé, Rudy was busy entertaining a rotating cast of the Empire’s most beautiful women.
Rudy was a collector with a sense of aesthetic as sharp as Louisa’s. He filled his bar with precious artifacts plundered from across the Empire, using beautiful men as bait to lure in the high-born women he wished to observe.
“You are the most exquisite thing I have ever laid eyes on.”
That was what Rudy told her. It was why he felt a twinge of genuine sorrow—not for her character, but for her face—even when she behaved like a monster during their breakup.
‘This face really is a rarity.’
Beautiful villains are common in dramas, but they are notoriously difficult to cast in real life.
‘Rudy certainly has an eye for talent.’
I quietly studied my reflection in the glass, then shifted my gaze to a man passing by.
“He’s pretty.”
His lower lip was a bit too thin, but those eyes… they were perfect for a loyal supporting role to the male lead. I meant it purely as a professional critique, but Rudy, arriving with a drink, misinterpreted my gaze.
“Do you want him?”
Do you want him? It was fascinating how such an objectifying phrase rolled so naturally off his tongue. He wasn’t sane either.
“I’m finished with that sort of thing.”
That face was not my Romeo.
“Then… is it me you want after all?”
Rudy, his blonde hair caught in the dim light, gave a radiant smile and pointed at himself. At the edge of the table, Alfredo’s face twisted in disgust at the man’s blatant charm.
“After all, there isn’t another man like me, is there?”
Well, he wasn’t entirely wrong. Rudy was easily the most handsome man in this den of iniquity. With his pale skin, sharp jawline, and piercing eyes, he projected a formidable image—until he smiled at a woman, instantly becoming the picture of likability.
‘Regardless, he’s just a playboy.’
He had the face of a chaebol family’s youngest son, the type that populates daily dramas. In the modern world, he’d be a star; he’d start in soaps, build his craft, and eventually transition to cinema. In fact, he had the perfect look for a modern interpretation of Romeo.
In the play, Romeo only goes to the Capulet ball because of his obsession with a woman named Rosaline. He is a man so consumed by “love” that he risks his life to infiltrate an enemy household, only to fall instantly for Rosaline’s cousin, Juliet. In some lights, Romeo is the ultimate player.
The problem was—
‘This is not the Romeo I am looking for.’
I looked at Rudy with a hint of regret. “Is this really what you look like?”
In the illustrations, he looked more boyish and immature, but the man before me was far more seasoned. After all, directing requires seeing a person in motion, not just staring at a concept sketch.
“What do you mean? Is my skin breaking out? I’ve been taking care of it, so it should be better, right? Hmm…”
Rudy whined in disappointment. As I listened to his pouting, I briefly recalled Arno’s cold voice. If I wanted a “cool-headed” man, Arno was the more accurate archetype. However, Arno lacked that necessary touch of immaturity; if I asked him to act, he’d probably just seize the theatre, fire me, and take over the production himself.
I shook my head, refocusing on my current reality.
“But Louisa,” Rudy said, resting his chin on his hand. “Something about you has changed.”
He reached out, pulled the quills from my hair, and frowned.
“You used to be so… stiff. Now, your tone is…”
“A little more?”
“Chilly? You were always ‘cool,’ but there was a resentment in you. Now, it feels like there’s an impenetrable wall behind your eyes.”
He was needlessly perceptive. A man obsessed with beauty is always sensitive to shifts in atmosphere. I quickly diverted the conversation.
“Tell me the truth. Is there a place with better ‘stock’ than this? There’s less to salvage here than I expected.”
Rudy chuckled. “An ‘object.’ Louisa hasn’t changed a bit, referring to men as things.”
“……”
“But as you know, the ‘water quality’ is managed much more strictly over there. It won’t be easy to get a man like that inside. I’d love to let your guests in for free, but my other patrons wouldn’t like the company…”
‘That side.’
He was referring to the most dangerous level of the Night Bar. The place where Rudy auctioned off the Empire’s darkest secrets and most “precious” items. Louisa used to live for those auctions. While Rudy’s taste wasn’t quite as refined as hers, he was effective; the items he procured were always beautiful and always dangerous.
‘She couldn’t give up her addiction to those auctions. She even sold the Mecenat heritage to fund it, cementing her reputation as a villainess.’
In the original novel, she falls in love with one of Rudy’s “collections” and meets her end because of it.
Because that auction item was the male protagonist of this story.
He is the First Prince of the Empire, currently a fugitive from the Imperial Palace, enduring unthinkable hardships. A twenty-year-old boy of peerless beauty. In the novel, Louisa sees him and immediately demands to “buy” him, but—
‘That boy? How did he end up here? I’ll buy him.’
‘He came up for auction a year ago. Customers asked for a price, so I bought him back myself. He is far too precious to sell. He is part of my private collection now.’
Rudy had refused her. At that time, Louisa was so destitute she couldn’t afford a single slave. Moreover, slave trading was strictly forbidden by Imperial law, but Rudy didn’t care for laws. He believed it took a beautiful man to attract a beautiful woman. That was his business model.
‘Crazy bastard.’
This madman’s actions lead directly to Louisa’s death. That “precious collection” of his will eventually become the next Emperor.
I tossed a bag of gold coins to the babbling Rudy.
“Alfredo will be wearing a mask. Most of your customers do anyway, right? For him…” I pointed at Alfredo, who looked like he had been sucking on a lemon the entire time. “Give him the rat mask. It suits him perfectly.”
A city rat—timid, skittish, and obsessed with rules. It was a perfect fit. Alfredo’s expression soured even further.
* * *
The city rat and the cat descended into the dark basement together. In a space lit by sparse candles and divided by heavy blackout curtains, a dangerous scent hung in the air. Alfredo grunted but stayed glued to my side, terrified of losing me.
“It’s Luisa Mecenat. That princess. The one from the auction.”
I heard the hushed whispers of people who recognized me despite the mask. Alfredo pressed closer. Was he actually worried about me?
“If you do anything untoward with another man right in front of me, I’m reporting it to the Count!”
…No, he was just being a watchdog.
I pulled my lips into a sharp smile beneath the mask. “There’s no need for that. Even with a mask, everyone knows who I am. If I so much as twitch, the entire Empire will be looking for a reason to tear me apart.”
“Tear you apart? I’d be more worried about you biting someone…”
Suddenly, the crowd parted as I was led directly to the front of the auction stage.
“Haven’t seen you in a while. I suppose you made a killing at your own auction?”
“Buying at an auction with money made from selling your own family… absolutely pathetic.”
“Well, how much could a ruined princess have left? A spoiled brat from a bankrupt house. Lost her parents young and lost her mind soon after.”
I tried to find a corner to avoid them but was ushered into the center seat. If I was going to be criticized regardless, I might as well sit where I could see the faces of my detractors. An actor’s face should always be viewed in clear light, without shadows.
While I settled onto the sofa with a director’s calculated calm, Alfredo was busy glaring at the hecklers.
“Regardless of the circumstances, speaking of someone’s family history like that…” he muttered.
“Quiet now, ladies and gentlemen! The auction you’ve all been waiting for is about to begin!”
A dwarf acting as the master of ceremonies shouted from the stage.
“Perfect timing, darling,” Rudy whispered, sliding onto the sofa next to me. He smiled and popped a cherry into my mouth. “Oh, those perfect lips…”
I looked into Rudy’s blue eyes shimmering beneath his mask. They were the eyes of a man who saw humans as “items.” I slapped his hand away.
“We have a very rare piece today. Rather than tell you about him, I’ll let him speak for himself. Item Number One!”
A large cage was rolled onto the stage, surrounded by candles acting as spotlights. The MC grinned and whipped the veil off the cage. The well-dressed nobles leaned forward with hungry cheers.
Inside stood a shackled slave. His body was covered in blood, but he raised his head with agonizing slowness. His golden eyes sparked with a fierce, burning light.
Those were the golden eyes I had been searching for.
This was the face I needed.
The male protagonist of this novel.
The future Emperor, and the man destined to have me executed in the street.
“Isn’t he exquisite? Do you want him?” Rudy whispered.
A wave of hungry groans rose from the crowd.
“What’s the starting bid?”
“One million Derc.”
“I’ll open at five hundred thousand!”
“Wait, wait. Let’s see if the ‘Princess’ has anything left in her pockets first.”
The crowd giggled, eyeing me. They were waiting for me to fail. A spoiled princess from a ruined house… surely her funds had dried up.
Rudy’s voice drifted over the mockery, deceptively friendly. “Aren’t you a bit short on cash these days, Louisa? I heard the family auction brought in some coin, but this might be a bit of a stretch for you, right?”
“……”
“Tell you what, I’ll lend it to you. A million Derc, just for you.”
“Fifty million Derc.”
“……!”
The entire room went dead silent.
‘Forty million Derc.’
In the original novel, that was the price Rudy had set to buy him back for his private collection. Forty million was the figure Rudy had bragged about.
So, I had come prepared with fifty million. It was the first sum of money I had secured by reorganizing the ledgers all night. It was what remained after clearing the minor debts—the exact blood-money earned from selling my grandfather’s sword.
“Is there a higher bid?” I asked.
I didn’t need to look. Every face in the room was frozen in shock. Fifty million Derc was not a sum young nobles threw around in a single night. It was certainly not an amount anyone expected from a “bankrupt” princess.
No one dared to raise a hand. Not even Rudy.
I pulled out the heavy bag of gold coins and threw it at Rudy’s face.
“Settle the bill immediately.”
“……?”
Rudy caught the bag that had clipped his cheek, looking at me with wide, stunned eyes. I pointed to the “item” I had just purchased.
“Put that in my carriage.”
This wasn’t an impulse buy; it was a strategic investment. The value of that boy was far more than fifty million Derc.
His value was the price of my life.
