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Chapter 56: ’Can I Really Do This?’

Chapter 56: ’Can I Really Do This?’

"Knights, stand down!" Lancelot ordered, holding his arm out as he narrowed his eyes at the rogue leader. His voice was sharp, unwavering. "Let the princess go."

"Oh? And why should I?" The rogue leader asked, pressing his blade closer to Athena’s neck. She winced, a choked sob escaping her lips as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks.

"D-Do you know who we are? We... We are His Majesty’s harem! That girl is also part of the harem!" Surprisingly, Scarlett was the one who screamed at the rogue leader, her voice laced with desperation.

The rogue leader and his men burst into laughter, the cruel sound echoing through the battlefield.

"Ya think we didn’t know that already, eh? Ya think we’re idiots?!" One of the rogue men sneered, pointing his weapon at Scarlett. She instinctively took a step back, fear flashing in her eyes.

Lancelot kept his stance firm. "What do you want?"

The rogue leader smirked. "We want the princesses." His words sent another wave of terror through the harem, their sobs growing louder. "And I think you know why."

"Please don’t take us..." Camilla whimpered, clutching onto Mira.

"W-We... We won’t go down without a fight!" Mira screamed, glaring at the rogues, though her trembling hands betrayed her bravado.

The rogue leader scoffed. "You don’t have a choice, and the commander knows that. It’s either we take you, or one or two of you die. He’d rather take the chance of keeping you alive."

The princesses turned to Lancelot, eyes wide with hope and terror. "S-Sir Lancelot?" Alexandria’s voice was barely above a whisper.

By now, most of the knights had already been subdued. Lancelot was the only one left standing. Lucius and Delilah remained silent, their gazes unreadable, while the maids stood frozen, too afraid to intervene.

Lancelot’s grip on his sword tightened, his knuckles white. "I won’t let you take the princesses. Even if it kills me."

The rogue leader chuckled darkly. "You don’t have a choice but to choose, Commander. Keep in mind..." He pressed the blade further against Athena’s delicate throat, a thin line of crimson appearing where the steel met her skin. Her sobs turned into panicked gasps. "Is she really worth less than the rest of them? Would you let her die just so none of them are taken?"

"P-Please... Please... I don’t want to die... S-Sir Lancelot..." Athena whimpered. It was the most Florian had ever heard her speak, and it shattered something inside him.

’This... this situation is worse than in the novel... how...?’ Florian’s mind was racing. He knew Lancelot’s was too. The knight would fight, there was no doubt about that, but the constraints of ensuring none of the princesses were harmed made every move more difficult.

Now, Athena was a hostage.

Lancelot’s choices were grim—allow the princesses to be kidnapped, assuming the rogues intended to ransom them, or risk one of them being killed right here and now.

’There has to be a way to get them out of this situation.’ Florian thought.

Luckily, the rogues hadn’t taken notice of him yet, likely because Lucius and Cashew were subtly keeping him hidden. He wasn’t standing with the princesses, and that meant he still had a chance to act.

Time was slipping away, each second tightening the suffocating tension in the room. Florian’s breath came in shallow gasps, his heartbeat a chaotic rhythm against the chaos around him. Lancelot stood frozen, sword trembling in his grip, face contorted in torment as he struggled to make the impossible choice.

Florian’s gaze darted to Lucius, the head butler, whose usual commanding presence was conspicuously absent. The man stood rigid, his expression unreadable, as though paralyzed by the unfolding nightmare.

’Why isn’t he stepping in? What the hell is he waiting for?’ Florian’s frustration burned hot in his chest. ’The rogues have complete control, and he’s just... standing there.’

His attention snapped back to Lancelot, whose indecision hung heavily over the room. A sick twist gnawed at Florian’s gut.

’I know exactly what he’s thinking,’ he realized grimly. ’He’ll choose Athena. Sacrificing her would ensure the other princesses’ safety. Cold, brutal, but logical. But will that actually be the end? These rogues aren’t going to walk away satisfied with one death. Once she’s gone, what’s stopping them from grabbing another princess? Lancelot knows that too.’

Athena’s desperate cries pierced through his thoughts, sharp and raw with terror. "P-Please! Help me! I don’t want to die!" Her voice cracked, dissolving into frantic sobs. Her slender frame shook as the blade pressed dangerously against her skin, a glint of crimson already staining her neck.

Florian’s fists clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms. Each anguished scream clawed at his resolve, but the bitter truth gnawed louder—he was powerless.

Or was he?

His breath faltered, heart slamming against his ribs as a chilling realization crept through him. ’Wait... what am I not seeing here?’ A dark memory from the novel surfaced, twisting his stomach into knots. ’The rogues weren’t just after gold in the story. No, they became obsessed with Florian.’

A cold shudder swept over him. ’They found out about his... biology and appearance. That made him valuable. More valuable than the princesses.’ His stomach churned at the recollection.

Scenes from the novel flickered through his mind—the rogues keeping the princesses alive, untouched but imprisoned, while Florian’s fate had been a fate filled with humiliation and torment, a cage of degradation until ransom negotiations finally freed him.

Florian’s breathing grew ragged. The thought formed like poison in his mind. ’Am I seriously considering this? Offering myself to them?’ His gut twisted with revulsion. ’No. No, that’s insane. I can’t—’

But the cold logic wouldn’t relent. ’What other option do I have? Athena’s going to die if I don’t act. The rogues are toying with Lancelot—stalling for the fun of it.’

"Time’s running out, Commander!" the rogue leader barked, voice razor-sharp with malice. He pressed the blade deeper into Athena’s neck, a thin ribbon of blood glistening against her pale skin.

"Stop that!" Lancelot’s voice cracked, raw with desperation. His sword faltered, and his entire frame shook with indecision.

"P-Please... please help me!" Athena sobbed louder, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"S-Sir Lancelot!" Alexandria’s usually gentle voice broke into a desperate plea. "Please, please do something!"

Even Scarlett, always composed and proud, was trembling visibly. "I-I don’t want to be taken... please," she whispered, voice fragile.

Their cries collided in Florian’s mind, a storm of panic and fear that pressed down on his chest. He felt it suffocating him—gnawing at his sanity.

Memories surged forth: the original Florian’s fate, the suffocating humiliation, the hopeless captivity. He could almost hear those phantom screams of a man reduced to nothing but a shell, a possession to be bartered and displayed.

Florian’s breath hitched as the weight of that realization dragged him toward a bitter truth: he was the only key to ending this nightmare. But stepping forward meant surrendering himself to a fate he had once read about in horror—a fate now dangerously real.

Time seemed to splinter around him. Athena’s sobs, the gleam of the blade, the rogue’s mocking voice—all of it blurred together into a cacophony that threatened to unravel his resolve.

Florian’s fists trembled as fear coiled in his chest, cold and relentless. His throat tightened as the question loomed darkly in his mind:

’Can I... really do this?’

Florian’s mind raced, weighing the agonizing decision before him. The advantages were clear: offering himself would earn him the gratitude and trust of the princesses and might even improve his standing with Heinz. If negotiations played in his favor, there was a chance he’d be set free and allowed to return to his kingdom.

But the cost was far more chilling.

The image of the original Florian’s fate loomed in his mind—captivity, degradation, and torment. It was a nightmare he’d read about in agonizing detail, and the thought of living it himself made bile rise in his throat.

’I can’t go through that,’ he thought desperately. His body tensed as doubt clawed at him. ’I won’t survive it. I can’t.’

And yet...

Was he really that selfish?

His gaze shifted to the princesses, their faces pale and tear-streaked, eyes wide with terror. They were young—some barely older than his sister back in his world. Innocent, fragile, and caught in a nightmare they didn’t deserve.

A pang of guilt twisted in his chest, sharp and unforgiving.

He knew what he had to do.

Despite the fear gnawing at him, despite every instinct screaming at him to protect himself, he couldn’t let them die. Not when he had the power to prevent it.

’I have to do it,’ Florian thought, steeling himself. He clenched his fists, trying to summon the resolve that seemed just out of reach. A shuddering breath escaped his lips as he closed his eyes. ’I can’t hesitate. I have to act now before it’s too late—before Athena...’

He swallowed hard, forcing himself to stand tall. Just as he prepared to step forward and offer himself, a firm hand grabbed his arm, yanking him back.

Florian’s eyes snapped open in shock.

Lucius stood before him, his expression taut with disbelief and confusion. His grip on Florian’s arm was unyielding. "What... are you thinking, Your Highness?" Lucius demanded, his voice low and tense. His eyes bore into Florian, searching for answers.

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