The princess smile, p.1
The Princess' Smile, page 1
Table of Contents
Copyright
Character Page
Chapter 1: The Royal Maid Sara and Princess Hermine
Chapter 2: Consort to the Prince of the Kingdom of Strange Powers
Chapter 3: A Softened Heart
Chapter 4: Suspicion and Confession
Chapter 5: The Princess’s Smile
Chapter 6: Sara’s Happiness
Other Series Pt. 1
Other Series Pt. 2
The Princess’ Smile: The Body-Double Bride Searches for Happiness with the Reclusive Prince
Yuuri Seo
Translation by Jenny Murphy
Illustration by m/g
Title Design by Elisabet Lopez Pons
Editing by Nicole Brugger-Dethmers
Proofreading by Charis Messier
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
The Princess’ Smile: The Body-Double Bride Searches for Happiness with the Reclusive Prince
©Yuuri Seo 2020
First published in Japan in 2020 by
Futabasha Publishers Ltd.
English translation rights arranged with
Futabasha Publishers Ltd.
English translation ©2022 Cross Infinite World
All rights reserved. In accordance with U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, email the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the email below.
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First Digital Edition: August 2022
ISBN-13: 979-8-88560-007-1
Chapter 1: The Royal Maid Sara and Princess Hermine
“I heard both your mother and father have passed away,” the golden angel said sadly.
Sara, only twelve years old, nodded and clutched at her chest, crumpling the fabric of the black dress she wore as mourning attire.
“You poor thing… That must have been so hard. Do you have anyone who will take care of you?”
“No, I don’t,” Sara replied. “I’m all alone now…”
“In that case,” said the angel, her face softening in a gentle smile, “you should stay with me. After all, we’re second cousins, right? I was told I had a female relative who looked just like me, and I’ve always wanted to meet her. Let’s live together from now on.”
Sara lifted her head. The cherubic angel was younger than Sara, and she smiled reassuringly as she took Sara’s hand.
“I’m sure Father will allow it. What do you say? Let’s be friends! I want us to be friends forever and ever.”
The angel’s words impaled Sara’s chest, piercing through the fresh grief of losing her parents. A faint light began to glimmer inside Sara’s heart, which had been stained as black as her dress.
And so, Sara was given a place to call home.
Princess Hermine of the Kingdom of Saleilles scooped Sara up at a time when she had not a single family member in the world to turn to.
Sara vowed to devote her life to the princess who saved it. She would do anything—absolutely anything—to keep a smile on the princess’s face.
It had been six years since Sara made that vow, and now, at eighteen years of age, she found herself being summoned by the king and given the order to marry a man from a foreign kingdom in place of Princess Hermine.
🐺🐺🐺
THE Kingdom of Saleilles was located in a mountain basin in the central-western part of the continent. Compared with other kingdoms, Saleilles was considered a little behind the times because of its commitment to preserving age-old traditions, but to the people of Saleilles, their long-enduring culture was their pride and joy.
Sara stood, wearing a simple light-blue dress, in audience with the king at the royal castle of Saleilles. She looked up, her eyes wide with shock. The king was gazing down at her from his throne, and Princess Hermine quietly wept at his side.
What… What did His Majesty just say?
Sara’s hands clenched into fists as she looked at the king’s stern expression.
“May I speak, Your Majesty?”
“I will allow it.”
“So…you’ve said that I will be taking Hermine’s place in marriage…but may I know a little more about this arrangement?”
The king’s order had been gut-wrenching, but Sara had never been one to immediately acquiesce with an “Of course! I understand!” without even asking for further details.
And the king, who had appointed Sara as his daughter’s maid six years ago, was very familiar with her personality at this point.
The king nodded and ordered his prime minister, standing nearby, to fetch Sara a document lying on a pedestal.
“As you know,” explained the prime minister, “we went to war against the Kingdom of Ferrier six months ago, during which our army was routed. We subsequently entered a cease-fire agreement. This is a collection of the terms from the peace conference with Ferrier.”
The prime minister handed Sara a pair of gloves. She put them on and picked up the document.
Her heart banged against her rib cage as she read it over. As a token of peace, the document stated, Princess Hermine of Saleilles is to be wedded to the king’s elder brother, Prince Richard of Ferrier.
“Prince Richard…”
The prime minister explained the situation in simple terms for Sara’s benefit—she didn’t know much at all about politics.
“Ferrier’s current king is a young man who is only sixteen years old. They have devised to wed Her Royal Highness the Princess to the king’s biological half brother to use the princess as a deterrent against us. Ferrier is a small island kingdom, making up less than half the geographical size of Saleilles in area alone,” the minister continued. “But you do know the reason why our landing operation failed there, don’t you?”
“I do,” Sara said after a slight pause. “I’ve heard that for centuries people in Ferrier have had a higher chance of being born with some sort of ability. The kingdom may be small, but the royal family has assembled these mutants and organized them into an army squadron, and so, when faced with this mutant squad six months ago, the Saleilles army fled.”
The war broke out because after the death of their last king, Ferrier defied the wishes of Saleilles and crowned the prince, then fifteen years old, as their new king.
Sara was incapable of judging which kingdom was at fault, but the fact of the matter was that Saleilles, displeased with Ferrier for pushing forward with its own plan despite its lowly status as a small island kingdom, landed their troops on Ferrier soil in an attempt to rattle them. After the ensuing conflict, however, Saleilles was forced to flee.
Many soldiers in the Ferrier army possessed strange powers, like the ability to shoot fire out of both hands or to incapacitate an enemy just by touching them.
But there was one among these mutants who was particularly strong—the one with the ability to control a black beast. Half of the casualties from the conflict were said to be the victims of this terrifying creature alone.
Talk of their pitiful defeat seemed to bring back painful memories for the prime minister, who grimaced slightly as he nodded.
“Because of that defeat, it was determined that Saleilles would recognize Prince Edouard’s ascension to the throne, as well as offer Her Highness the Princess to be the prince’s consort as a token of peace.”
“And so…I’ll take Princess Hermine’s place?” Sara asked, glancing up at the king and princess on the raised platform.
Hermine was covering her mouth with a handkerchief, shaking her head back and forth. Her beautiful blonde hair—very similar to Sara’s own yellowish hair—rustled with every shake of her head.
“I always wanted to do anything I could for the sake of this kingdom,” began Hermine, her voice as lovely as a delicate musical instrument. “But when I thought about marrying into the Ferrier family, with all those mutants over there, I felt so terrified and frightened…”
The two girls’ facial features were incredibly similar, but it would be difficult for Sara’s vocal cords to mimic Hermine’s sweet voice. She might be able to vaguely imitate it if she tried very hard, but she would almost certainly injure her throat in the process.
Sara could completely empathize with Hermine’s fears. The mutants’ abilities were terrifying powers.
Long ago, there were mutants all over the continent, too, but now, they were rarely born outside of Ferrier. Perhaps the island kingdom was particularly loved by the spirits. But for whatever reason, people born in Ferrier were very likely to possess some kind of special power.
There were even stories of one mutant in the past that could annihilate an entire platoon of a hundred soldiers in mere seconds.
O f course Hermine would be terrified of marrying into that kingdom—and one that had just driven out her own kingdom’s army merely half a year before, at that.
After all, Hermine was a sweet, sheltered girl with very weak mental fortitude. Sara had been living with her for six years now, but Hermine still always walked behind her. Hermine was a very delicate girl, too, spooking at the faintest sound of the wind.
His Majesty the King deeply cherishes Hermine. That’s why he ordered me to take her place. But…
“Your Majesty, may I ask a question?”
“I will allow it.”
“Princess Hermine saved me six years ago… It would truly be an honor to offer up myself for the sake of this kingdom. But…if I marry into the Ferrier family, won’t someone realize the truth?”
Throughout the years, Sara’s very essence had been forged to work for the sake of the kingdom—or more precisely, for Hermine. So although Sara felt some hesitation toward becoming her master’s body double, she knew refusing the order would be impossible.
Sara was more worried about someone from Ferrier discovering the truth. There seemed to be so many different kinds of abilities at their disposal, and it would take just one person with the ability to read minds for them to realize she wasn’t the real princess.
“Those worries are unnecessary,” the king simply replied. “As long as you act the part of her stand-in perfectly, no one will find out anything. There may be many different types of abilities, but no power exists that enables someone to see into another’s mind. And in any case, not a soul in Ferrier knows what Hermine’s voice sounds like. They may have a portrait of her, at best. So as long as you conduct yourself correctly, no one will ever realize something is amiss.”
At the king’s words, a single, small drop of emotion fell into the depths of Sara’s heart. Whether this emotion was understanding, resignation, or sorrow—she couldn’t tell.
Regardless, Sara couldn’t refuse the king.
And if this means I can repay the kindness His Majesty and Hermine have shown me…
“Sara?” the king called.
Sara nodded and returned the document to the prime minister before deeply bowing her head.
“I would be honored to accept this post. I…I exist for Saleilles.”
If Sara could endure this—if she could give it her all—then Hermine would get to keep smiling.
Even though she would be deceiving everyone in her new family, Sara could carry on for Hermine’s sake.
🐺🐺🐺
AFTER Sara took her leave, she was led by the chamberlain to the drawing room.
Right on cue, Hermine rushed in not long after, her eyes red.
“Sara! Oh, Sara!”
“Princess Hermine.”
Sara held Hermine tightly as she sobbed in her arms.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!” Hermine blubbered. “I… You’re…”
“Don’t be, Princess Hermine. It’s fine. As long as you’re spared from this hardship, that’s all that matters,” said Sara, gently stroking Hermine’s golden hair.
Hermine looked up at her. Her skin was pearly white, even without any face powder on, and her wet eyes were large and brown. She was a little shorter than Sara and had a thinner frame—except for her chest, which was just as developed as any other young woman.
Sara was the daughter of a baron and baroness, and six years ago, her parents’ business went under. Just as they were working hard to get the business back on its feet, they were both killed in a tragic carriage accident.
In the blink of an eye, Sara lost not only her parents, but also her home and servants because of her parents’ debts… And Hermine was the only one who offered her a hand.
Sara was the daughter of a baron, and Hermine was a princess, but they were second cousins, united genealogically by a shared great-grandfather.
Sara’s mother was an indirect descendant of a duke, but because she practically eloped with Sara’s father, none of Sara’s extended relations would welcome her as part of the family.
When Hermine learned of Sara’s destitute situation, she proposed to the king that Sara become her maid.
But Hermine might needn’t have said anything…, Sara reasoned. As soon as he saw me, His Majesty might himself have thought of making me a maid so that I could act as her body double someday.
Sara and Hermine were second cousins, so their facial features had always been somewhat similar, and, with some incredible genetic luck, they both had blonde hair and brown eyes. They had looked so alike growing up, in fact, that with the right makeup and outfits, they could be mistaken for sisters.
The king had given Sara the task of studying all sorts of subjects she would need in her new role, as well as ordered her to start “living exactly as Hermine does.” Everything was suddenly different. The length of Sara’s hair, the clothes she wore, her new personal effects… None of them were what Sara would have chosen for herself.
But Sara knew she really had no choice in the matter—she was a maid, and one rescued by the princess at that. She would have liked to have her hair cut a little shorter, and to wear purple and green dresses, not just pink and yellow ones. She wished she could play in the garden instead of meticulously embroidering, and laugh in a carefree and uninhibited manner like she used to.
But knowing this could never be the case, Sara smiled and put a hand on Hermine’s shoulder.
“You’ve always carried a heavy burden as a princess. And being forced into a political marriage as a reward for that? Of course it would be hard on you.”
“But…now you’ll have to take my name and be forced into a political marriage, and I’ll live a life under your name free from worry.”
Sara felt a brief, sharp pain in her chest at Hermine’s words, but she just shook her head.
“Yes, I guess so. But His Majesty made all these decisions with your best interests at heart. If anything, I feel sorry I have nothing more than my name to give you.”
Sara would marry a man in a foreign kingdom as Hermine. Naturally, after that marriage took place, Hermine would no longer be able to go by her real name and title, so she would instead take Sara’s name and live as a commoner.
For someone like Hermine, who was raised in such comfort, losing her royal status and having nothing but the name of a bankrupt baron’s daughter would surely be difficult to come to terms with.
“Hermine… Thank you for saving me six years ago. Being able to repay the kindness you and His Majesty have shown me…makes me truly happy.”
“Sara…”
“Take care of ‘Sara’ for me from now on.”
When Sara smiled, Hermine’s sweet face crumpled, and she threw herself against Sara’s chest.
Hermine was a delicate soul, ignorant of the world, and endlessly kind.
My happiness is making sure Hermine can live her life peacefully and uneventfully…so everything will be okay.
That was what Sara believed.
🐺🐺🐺
FROM the next day onward, Sara would be Hermine, and Hermine would be Sara. Everyone was informed that the maid Sara would be temporarily relieved from her position as the princess’s maid due to ill health. Hermine was feeling quite emotional about the whole situation, so she was secretly living in the royal family’s second home in the capital city until her nerves calmed, hoping to have recovered her health enough to see Sara off when she departed for Ferrier.
Sara, meanwhile, was receiving a princess’s education in preparation for the wedding in two months’ time. Fortunately, however, Sara had often been present at Hermine’s lessons in the past, at the order of the king.
Truth be told, Hermine was not very good at academics and had often asked Sara for help during the tutors’ lectures, which Sara attended with her. Sara was two years older than Hermine, had often walked around the capital when her parents were alive, and knew a lot about the ways of the world, so there were some things Sara was more capable at than Hermine.
There was nothing she could do about her voice, but otherwise Sara knew everything about Hermine—her habits, the way she laughed, the way she walked, and even her little quirks.
Much to Sara’s relief, one day her tutor told her, “When I see you from the back, it’s like I’m looking at the real Hermine.”
