It was, in fact, a smart decision on their part.
After all, the Lillian Rosetti they were facing was not a knight at all—she was Chae Soyeon, someone who didn’t know the first thing about swordsmanship.
And now, backed into a corner, the two men raised their voices.
"We are exercising our rightful claim over that wench! Even if you are a knight, we will not tolerate interference!"
"Step away from the girl at once!"
If they were going to give her an option, well—that was more than welcome.
Lillian had already decided to ditch the girl and walk away.
She raised both hands in surrender, nodding along to show she had no intention of fighting.
"Alright, alright. I get it. I'm leaving."
But, of course, Chae Soyeon’s curse of misfortune had to strike again.
And this time, quite literally.
Something grabbed her ankle.
"Sir Knight, please, I’m begging you! Help me!!"
The girl, now on her knees, reached out desperately, clutching onto Lillian’s leg.
Lillian, still watching the two men, didn’t see it coming.
She tripped—hard.
And unfortunately for her—
There was a man standing right in front of her.
"Ugh!!"
Without meaning to, Lillian slammed headfirst into Thug #1 with full force.
Her unexpectedly strong skull cracked against his face, sending him reeling.
There was a sickening crunch as his front teeth flew out, blood splattering from his mouth.
He collapsed with a strangled groan.
Thug #2, seeing his companion fall, roared in fury.
"How cowardly! You pretended to surrender and then attacked?!"
Lillian didn’t even bother explaining.
At least her body was well-trained, even if she didn’t remember any sword techniques.
If she had to compare, it felt like she had the physique of a woman who had been boxing for over ten years.
When Thug #2 swung his fist at her, Lillian instinctively ducked, avoiding the blow.
Then, without thinking, she slammed her elbow into his chin.
Thwack!
The heavy impact sent him crumbling to the ground.
Lillian stared down at him, eyes wide.
Wait.
Did she just—win?
All those childhood years watching pro-wrestling with her idiot brother—were they actually useful?!
Just as she was starting to feel a little impressed with herself—
"Sir Knight! Behind you—!!"
The girl’s panicked scream snapped her back to reality.
Lillian whipped around, but it was already too late.
Thug #1, his mouth still bloody from losing his teeth, swung his fist at her temple.
Crack.
A sharp white flash exploded in her vision.
The world spun.
The next thing she knew, she was on the ground.
She tried to push herself up, but her body wouldn’t move.
Suddenly, her limbs trembled uncontrollably, and her head swam.
Ah.
This was it.
The consequences of not eating for an entire day had finally hit.
Thug #1 stood over her, panting, his rage burning as he raised his foot—about to stomp her.
The girl, realizing Lillian was down, bolted.
She didn’t even hesitate.
She simply ran for her life.
Lillian watched her retreating figure, and for a moment, she thought—
"Damn. I’m jealous."
That was how you survived.
By being selfish.
Lillian had plenty of selfishness, but her luck was just too damn bad.
"You fffin’ BITCH!!"
The thug, missing both his front teeth, sounded ridiculous.
But his rage was real.
Of course he was mad.
This world didn’t have implants—he was going to live the rest of his life without front teeth.
His heavy boot swung toward Lillian’s ribs—
She braced for impact, shutting her eyes tight.
But, the pain never came.
Instead, a sudden agonized scream erupted—from the thug.
"Uargh!!"
Thud.
A solid impact sounded—followed by the thug’s massive body collapsing onto the ground.
Lillian’s eyes flew open.
She lifted her head, staring.
There was someone standing there.
But she couldn’t see their face.
"Too bright."
She squinted, instinctively raising a hand to shield her eyes.
It wasn’t a metaphor.
It was literally too bright.
A figure with pure silver hair, standing against the backlight, was looking down at her.
The overwhelming brilliance stung her eyes.
It was like a damn ophthalmologist had just flashed a silver light directly into her pupils.
"Are you—Sir Lillian of the Fourth Order?"
The voice was low and cool, carrying a smooth yet metallic sharpness—like liquid mercury.
They knew her name.
Lillian immediately clamped her mouth shut.
If she spoke carelessly, she might expose herself as an imposter.
Fortunately, the man didn’t seem too bothered by Lillian’s silence. He simply observed her face as she looked up at him, then spoke again.
"So, it really is you. The Fourth Order of Knights is still on leave until today. Were you out patrolling on your day off? It seems you got caught up in some trouble with commoners while doing a good deed. How unfortunate."
There was an unmistakable note of admiration in his voice.
And that was when Lillian realized—this man had completely misunderstood the situation.
Somehow, he had convinced himself that she was a workaholic knight who patrolled voluntarily, even during her vacation. Or worse—a righteous fool who just couldn’t ignore a poor girl in need.
Of course, neither of those things were true.
Lillian—no, Chae Soyeon—was just an ordinary selfish person who happened to have terrible luck.
But she couldn't exactly tell him that.
Just then, the man frowned slightly and knelt down on one knee, bringing himself to her level.
"You’re not answering… Is it because you hit your head? Let me take a look at your condition."
The man who believed she was a noble and self-sacrificing knight was being completely kind and gentle.
As he leaned in, the backlight behind him was blocked, allowing Lillian’s vision to finally clear. She squinted, adjusting to the sudden shift in brightness, and took a good look at his face.
Her green eyes widened in shock.
The man before her was devastatingly attractive.
A perfectly sculpted face, a sharp nose, a broad forehead, and—above all—piercing amethyst eyes, gleaming like precious gemstones.
But that wasn’t what stunned her.
No. She was shocked because she recognized this man immediately.
"Enrique Evans…?"
Silver-haired knights weren’t exactly common.
Enrique Evans was the Commander of the Royal Order, the man who oversaw all the knights in the kingdom.
And, as that flawless face suggested, he was a major sub-male lead in Princess Aleina.
He was the dutiful knight who would come to admire Aleina, protecting her in his own quiet way. At first, he convinced himself that his concern for her was merely pity—sympathy for the tragic foreign princess. But eventually, he would realize that his emotions ran far deeper than that.
Meanwhile, Enrique, unaware of her realization, studied her face intently before murmuring,
"Fortunately, it doesn’t seem like you suffered a head injury. Can you stand?"
As the information clicked in Lillian’s brain, her body moved faster than her thoughts.
She started to rise, pretending to follow his suggestion, and then, dramatically lost her balance.
She lurched forward, collapsing straight toward the ground.
At this height, if she fell headfirst onto the stone pavement, she could very well break her nose or knock out a tooth.
But that was fine.
Because before that could happen, Enrique would surely catch her.
"Lillian!"
As expected.
A pair of strong, steady arms wrapped around her, holding her upright.
Lillian felt the solid weight of Enrique’s embrace, his powerful grip securing her against him.
After all, Enrique Evans was known for his righteousness, his chivalry, his overwhelming sense of justice.
There was no way he would let a fellow knight suffer—especially one who had, in his eyes, sacrificed herself to save an innocent girl.
Half draped in his arms, Lillian let out a soft, fragile breath, her chest rising and falling weakly.
Then, slowly, she closed her eyes.
If she pretended to faint, Enrique might feel even more sympathy for her.
And if she lied about being injured, there was a good chance he would extend her leave.
Which meant, she wouldn’t have to go back to the knights’ barracks tomorrow.
Which meant, she wouldn’t get exposed as a fraud.
"Perfect."
"Lillian! Stay with me!"
Enrique shook her slightly, his deep voice filled with concern.
But Lillian ignored him and let her body go limp.
And in that moment, as she calculated her plan with eerie precision, she suddenly felt chills run down her spine.
She had just thrown herself into harm’s way without a second thought.
It had been a completely calculated move—something she had done without hesitation.
"What the hell am I even doing…?"
The question flickered through her mind.
But no answer came.
"Oh, whatever. I’ll think about it later."
Lillian let out a slow breath, allowing the fatigue to drag her under.
Between hunger and getting punched in the head, keeping her eyes open was already a struggle.
As Enrique frantically tried to wake her, she could hear his voice fading into the background.
"Just hold on, Lillian!"
There was a brief moment of weightlessness, and then she felt herself being lifted.
Enrique had picked her up.
"Yeah, yeah. Hold on, my ass."
Lillian smirked internally, fully satisfied with the turn of events.
She had definitely secured his sympathy.
With that reassurance, she allowed herself to sink into unconsciousness.
Her small, wicked soul curling up in victory as she drifted into the blissful darkness.