/
[You’re out of your mind. Are you crazy?]
For someone who had been knocked out for four days, I quickly regained my senses.
It was a drug with no after-effects.
I stretched to eat the porridge that had arrived in my bedroom.
“Old lady.”
[You know what it is and still drink it? Huh?]
“I’m about to eat, so don’t bother me.”
I started the day with another nag from the old lady.
Since I took the drug, there has been a lot of pressure on me to stay in my bedroom and rest for a while.
As a result, I was stuck in my bedroom alone and had to deal with her nagging.
[Then don’t make me nag you. Are you even using your head?]
“Oh, come on!”
She makes it difficult for me to eat this porridge, really.
After all, she’s the one who made me struggle to survive in this place.
“Then let me out of here. Why are you nagging me?”
[Is that how you came to accept me, huh?]
Ignoring the old woman who repeated the same words like a parrot, I shoveled the bland porridge into my mouth.
I’m not sick enough to eat something like this.
Next time, no matter how urgent it is, I’ll eat and not get sick.
I don’t mind running a fever, but I don’t want to eat tasteless porridge.
[Didn’t your mom say anything?]
“

what?”
My grandmother brought up my mom out of the blue.
What could my mother say to me when she’s already dead?
“What the fuck

.”
The porridge was tasteless and this old lady was talking nonsense.
I was about to lie down again in annoyance.
I suddenly remembered.
Last night, my mom was in my dream.
She said, “There will come a day when you will understand your mom

.”
Yes, she definitely said that.
Normally, when she appears in my dreams, she doesn’t say anything, just slowly disappears among the black demons.
It was the first time she spoke to me.
[When you understand, that’s the time I will send you back].
“Really?”
It was the first time she had ever said she would let me go back.
It was the first time I’d ever heard her say that.
“Don’t you dare take that back. I’ll get you if you back out, I swear.”
[Tsk, tsk, have you ever seen a god lie?]
A god is a god after all.
I felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest.
I was afraid I’d be stuck here forever.
“When I get home, I’ll eat ramen.”
I’ll make some salty ramen, put on a silly video game on my phone, and eat.
Not in this cumbersome dress, but in a high-necked tee and baggy pants.
When I can’t be bothered to wash up, I should be lying in bed with my eyes closed.
I should be lying in a fluffy bed and doing nothing all day.
[Ah, look at you already thinking about it].
“
the more I think about it, the more I want it.”
And when I get back, I’m going to get rid of this old lady.
There’s no knowing when this old woman will send me back again in another novel if I do something wrong.
“I need to find a shaman

.”
I said quietly, then she clicked her tongue.
[That one

. Do you know that one?]
“Know what?”
[The guy who’s the prince or something.]
Her voice turned serious.
[He has a short-lived fate, doesn’t he?]
“

.”
[It’s quite difficult to reverse fate, so don’t do anything rash like you did last time.]
With that bombshell comment, she disappeared in a puff of smoke.
What?
The prince has a short-lived fate?
“Why are you saying that now!”
This damned old lady.
I was too distracted to see that.
A short-lived fate is not the same as a fate that is simply fraught with danger.
You have to pay a price to make a difference between life and death.
“Ha

. X* I’m done.”
[T/N: *This is an expletive.]
[PS: Hmm, I’m not really sure who the Prince they’re referring to here. It could be the Crown Prince, Omen, or Denver]
***
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine, thanks for your concern.”
“Good.”
It was a bland tone, considering it was the Grand Duke who ordered me to eat porridge every day.
It was horribly tasteless, of course, but I just fantasized that it wasn’t.
“What did you call me for?”
It had been a long time since he had called me to his office.
It wasn’t for a leisurely cup of tea.
Good, because I’m bored with my daily routine.
The Grand Duke put down the papers he was studying and walked toward me.
He hadn’t looked the same since I’d just woken up.
“The Empress Dowager’s handmaiden, Countess ArmĂ©die Pessia.”
The portrait before me showed a woman with auburn hair and an expressionless face.
“ArmĂ©die is often seen at ladies’ tea parties.”
“You mean she’s someone I should keep close to?”
“If you can get her on your side, all the better.”
A mouth set in a straight line, round eyes, long eyelashes.
I couldn’t tell exactly what kind of person she was from the portrait, but she looked loyal, faithful, and devoted.
“You can invite her to the manor yourself and organize a meeting.”
“That’s something only I can do, since His Majesty can’t be bothered with a group of ladies.”
“Yes. Use her to find a way to meet the Empress Dowager.”
“And once I’ve found a way to meet the Empress Dowager?”
“Make her recognize your existence and make her move.”
My task is to make my presence known and capture her.
I nodded at the Grand Duke’s words that he would take care of the rest.
It’s no wonder he’s attracted so many ladies with his reputation in social circles.
“There is one thing I must warn you about.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t do anything reckless like last time.”
And by last time, he means the time I drank liquor laced with drugs.
Maybe it’s still on his mind.
“Okay, thanks for your concern.”
“You may go.”
I walked out of the office without a word, though I questioned the sternness in his voice.
The Grand Duke’s feelings aren’t relevant now.
It’s how I get into that meeting that matters.
I looked at Countess Pessia in the portrait and smiled.
***
“Ha, see these?”
The ladies had declined my invitation for all sorts of reasons.
I laughed at the absurdity of their lies.
“They should just say they don’t want to come.”
I’m not feeling well, I have to attend to the estate, my child is sick, etc.
Crumpling the letter in my hand, the maid shuddered.
“Isn’t there
 anyone else who wants to come?”
“No, they all say they’re busy.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself, my lady. I’m sure everyone has a reason.”
Leah smiled, trying to comfort me.
I didn’t expect them to come anyway.
Flotty Bevenia, who they thought was beneath their feet, has extended an invitation as Grand Duchess.
What kind of lady would run to greet me?
“I’m fine. Don’t bother.”
“If you are tired, shall I bring you some warm water?”
“Yes, please. Thank you.”
Leah left the bedroom, her cheeks flushed.
I clenched my jaw and stared at the crumpled correspondence.
What am I going to do with these nasty things

.
“Hardin.”
Hardin, lurking like a shadow outside on the terrace, answered my call.
Without a rustle, he appeared.
“Yes, master.”
“How’s Izanne?”
“She is improving, thanks to you, Master. Thank you.”
“There’s no need to thank me. It’s the price of your loyalty.”
Hardin’s brown hair flowed downwards.
“You saved my life, and my sister’s, so it’s only natural.”
Not long ago, Hardin had returned from slitting the Marquis of Heli’s throat cleanly.
He visited the Marquis’s estate at intervals and kept me informed of his wife’s condition.
Every night, he told me, she was tormented by the ghosts of the servants they had driven to their deaths.
“I have something for you to do this time.”
“I will do it.”
One thing is certain.
He’s worthy of the Empress Dowager’s attention.
“Oh, I’m not asking you to cut anyone’s throat this time.”
The waning moon’s light crept into the window.
Hardin looked somewhat puzzled at my command.
“Is that all?”
“Are you sad?”
“Since they did not respond to my master’s invitation, I suppose it is acceptable.”
Sometimes I think he’s a bit too brash for his own good.
“The Marquis of Heli, it’s because he’s a bastard who does evil and has nothing.”
“I know you have your own reasons, Master. I will obey your orders.”
“Yes.”
Hardin slipped silently into the darkness where the moonlight could not reach. Then just as he was about to leave without a sound,
“By the way, Hardin.”
“Yes, Master.”
“There will be many times in the future when I will face the Empress Dowager. From then on, do not follow behind me.”
“But

.”
“Listen to me. You’re not the only assassin the Empress Dowager has, and I’m sure we’ll meet.”
“

I understand, I’ll keep that in mind.”
He gave a short nod and disappeared into the distance.
Now, I’ll just have to wait for Hardin’s news.
I can’t wait to hear it.
***
“I’m sure the Grand Duchess must have recovered by now.”
“I’m sure she is, since she sent an invitation.”
“She just wants to show off Grand Duke Noctis.”
“She doesn’t even know her place.”
The ladies, clad from head to toe in precious fabrics and ornaments, were engaged in poignant conversation.
Warmed by the afternoon sun, they smiled pleasantly.
“Has Lady ArmĂ©die received an invitation as well?”
The Empress Dowager’s most trusted handmaiden, the hostess of the prestigious County of Pessia, raised her teacup with grace.
“Yes. Apparently, the Grand Duchess wants to get in line with the Empress Dowager.”
Oh.
Oh, my god.
Sighs escaped the ladies’ lips.
The stupid Grand Duchess, who had no idea what socializing was, had sent a kind invitation.
Each and every one of Flotty’s invitations to a tea party at the Grand Duchess’s mansion was burned in the fireplace.
“Since the Grand Duchess doesn’t know much about socializing yet, we’ll have to be understanding.”
The sound of giggling fills the outdoor garden.
The gardens, which flanked a picturesque, large lake, were used by the ladies for private gatherings.
Tea time in a mansion is an excellent time to spread rumors.
“I heard they are still looking for the Duke of Bevenia’s people?”
“He must be quite incredible, because even with the Imperial Knights out in force, he’s difficult to catch.”
“But how did that ‘cursed child’ become the Grand Duchess?”
“Since it’s Grand Duke Noctis, it can’t be love. That’s ridiculous.”
At best, nobles were lucky if they liked their arranged marriage partners.
It’s a family business.
For nobles, if they didn’t like the person they were marrying, they would have to settle for a mistress.
Among such nobles, the marriage of Denver and Flotty was a shock.
“If you had so many questions about me, you should have come to the Grand Duke’s mansion.”
Silence fell over the garden, which had been filled with merry laughter.
By the side of a wall made from the branches of a tall tree, a woman holding a parasol appeared.
A woman wrapped in a pure white dress and adorned with jewelry rarely seen in the empire.
Her face is slowly revealed, hidden under the lace parasol that matches her dress.
“You should have answered my kindness.”
Grand Duchess Flotty Noctis,
She directly walked toward them.