The event was meant to unfold exactly as the novel dictated:
1. Lilithia, the all-knowing heroine, would stage an "accidental" encounter with the Second Male Lead at the National Library, specifically in the Empire's main city.
2. She would find him absorbed in his books and, noticing a romance novel he was reading, declare her love for it.
3. She'd then deliberately recall and recite a pivotal scene.
4. The Second Male Lead, recognizing the passage, would recite the lines along with her.
5. For him, this interaction would be a seismic shift.
6. As Agrona's mere 'sex toy,' he lived a life devoid of genuine affection, craving the romance he only found in books.
7. This shared moment would be the first time he felt truly seen.
In other words, he was a textbook masochist, a man who practically simped for any woman who treated him like dirt.
His name was Julian d'Arcy, the youngest son of Count Montclaire, whose house was renowned for its deep involvement in the military.
Raised in a household obsessed with rigid masculinity, Julian was perpetually deemed weak and feminine due to being primarily raised by his mother. And indeed, that feminine nature defined him.
He heavily romanticized his mother, viewing her as his savior from his father's brutal abuse.
In reality, she was not much better than his father.
Consequently, Julian grew into a man whose every action was driven by a desperate, insatiable craving for female validation.
It was little wonder that both the heroine and the villainess would see him as their next conquest.
"Well, here we are," Cressida said. She gazed up at the National Library, a magnificent structure that reached a dizzying number of stories.
Genevieve glanced at the building with disinterest. "A library, huh? I don't do well with books. I'm better with a sword."
"They say the pen is mightier than the sword," Cressida replied casually. "You should try it sometime."
"No thanks."
"Spoken like a true himbo."
"What's a himbo?" Genevieve's voice held genuine confusion.
Cressida internally breathed a sigh of relief. It was a blessing that the characters in this novel had no knowledge of slang or the goofy terminology used by the people of her previous life.
║+15 Positive EXP — Demonstrating Genuine Sincerity Throughout The Carriage Ride.║
║[SYSTEM ALERT]║
║Event #2 — "The Heroine's Lost Route" is now in motion.║
║The designated heroine has deviated from her intended script.║
║Trajectory: Escaping narrative confinement.║
║NOTICE: Temporal distortion detected.║
║The storyline will adapt dynamically based on your actions.║
The whole situation was shaping up to be an absolute comedy of errors.
Lilithia, the heroine, was here to stage her fated meet-up with the Second Male Lead.
Now, Cressida was staging her own meet-up to run into the heroine.
"What is this? Cartoon Network?"
She stepped inside the library, greeted by the heavy, comforting scent of aged paper, leather bindings, and a faint, sweet dust.
As expected, the main floor was crowded, but access was clearly segregated. The VIP section, reserved for the highest nobility, was tucked away on the second floor.
Cressida approached the main counter.
She presented her identification to the librarian, who immediately let out a shocked gasp.
Due to her elevated status, they were instantly ushered past the crowds and directed toward the exclusive VIP area on the second level.
Cressida frowned, her mind running through the plot steps.
"Hmm, what's my move going to be?"
Should I also pretend to be absorbed in a book? And then recite the very same line?
A sigh escaped her lips. Wow, I'm so original.
Her plotting was instantly shattered. Across the section, she spotted that familiar, deceptively innocent face.
It was Lilithia, already making a beeline for a brooding, dark-haired man standing alone beside a book shelf on the second row.
Oh, god! I have to move!