“Gasp!”

I woke up clutching my throat. My whole body ached as if something had hit me.

Moreover, the room was filled with an acrid smell of smoke.

I frowned and turned my gaze to the diary.

“Damn.”

At that moment, I couldn’t help but curse out loud.

The cover of the diary and the high priest’s stole were burning very, very slowly.

I gritted my teeth and looked around.

Fortunately, there was the washing water I had brought in the day before. I poured it directly onto the diary.

‘Worst-!’

I stared in bewilderment at the water-soaked floor.

The cold temperature of the floor could be felt clearly under my bare feet.

I slumped down on the spot.

‘What is this, really.’

I couldn’t even bear to touch it. It looked strange to anyone who saw it.

The burned sacred object of Kamesis and my diary might be related to Morisias.

‘No, at this point, it’s 100 percent.’

My diary is related to Morisias.

Otherwise, there’s no reason for the cover to catch fire just from touching Kamesis’s sacred object.

I hurriedly covered the wet diary with a shawl hanging on the clothes rack.

I couldn’t muster the courage to approach and clean it up, in case someone might see it.

I just covered my mouth and nose and opened the window wide.

As fresh air filled the room, it seemed my head was starting to work again.

“Are you trying to challenge me now?”

I had to find out somehow.

The relationship between the diary and Morisias, and the reason why I’m trapped in Rose’s body.

And about Rose’s identity too.

***

“That’s all for today, you can go now.”

Calix said, handing me a piece of paper with an elegant signature on it.

“Pardon? But it’s still working hours, Your Highness.”

“You wanted this, didn’t you? The library access pass.”

I took the library access pass that Calix was holding out.

Calix looked at me, clicked his tongue once, and then frowned, pointing at my face.

“Go and find a way to exorcise that ghost or whatever. Your face looks terrible.”

I reflexively touched my face at Calix’s words.

I tried my best not to look tired, but did it show?

“I, I don’t mean you look ugly, just that you look tired, so go rest.”

“…Pardon?”

“Why do you always pretend not to understand? Didn’t you say so yourself that appropriate rest helps improve efficiency? So, no more words, just go and rest when I tell you to rest.”

My goodness. He’s actually been taking my words to heart!

I was a bit touched.

But every time Calix showed this humane side, my feelings became more complicated.

According to the original plot, it was inevitable for Calix to kill his brothers.

He suffers greatly because of it. And knowing all this, I couldn’t help but feel terribly sorry for Calix.

Can everything really be solved by bringing the female lead to his side?

Will Calix be able to avoid going insane? Just as I was lost in thought for a moment,

“Ah! Your Highness, I’m falling!”

Fortunately, Calix caught me as I was falling, firmly grasping my waist and pulling me. Whirling around, I naturally ended up looking up at him in his arms.

“That’s why I told you to go when I say go, isn’t it better?”

Held by him, I just blinked at Calix.

Then I hurriedly pulled away from him.

‘Why has he been like this lately?’

The tips of my ears were burning hot. I was fine even when he was shirtless in the cave, but why now, all of a sudden?

“Th-then I’ll see you tomorrow, Your Highness!”

This situation, I feel like I experienced the exact same thing yesterday.

Cooling my burning face with the back of my hand, I quickly left Calix’s room.

“At this rate, my nerves will be completely shot.”

After heaving a sigh mixed with lament, I headed to the library with the permit Calix had given me.

The security in the main palace was stricter than in the Crown Prince’s palace, so a permit vouching for one’s identity was absolutely necessary if you weren’t a resident of the main palace.

Fortunately, the Crown Prince’s palace and the main palace weren’t too far apart.

‘Come to think of it, this is my first time going to the main palace except for banquets.’

I felt a little nervous.

As someone who only needed to take care of Calix, I had no need to frequent anywhere other than the Crown Prince’s palace. Therefore, visiting the main palace alone without Calix was entirely a first for me.

Fortunately, the library was on the first floor, so it could be found quickly.

“Please state your identity and show your entry permit.”

“I am Rose Estanya, the personal maid of His Highness the Crown Prince.”

I handed Calix’s permit to the knight guarding the main palace.

I unknowingly broke out in a cold sweat due to the intimidating aura the knight exuded.

The main palace was larger than the Crown Prince’s palace, and it felt more vibrant than the massive palaces on Earth that had been turned into museums, giving it a unique atmosphere.

For a moment, I imagined Calix walking into the palace, stepping on the red carpet spread out on the marble floor.

‘Not really.’

I don’t even know what I want anymore.

I guess I was someone who easily grew attached to others.

Even if Calix becomes the owner of this imperial palace, I knew that his happiness and the throne couldn’t be equated, so I felt conflicted.

After all, Calix is trying to become emperor in order to survive.

Logically speaking, can a happy monarch even exist?

When one becomes emperor, the number of responsibilities increases to tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands.

Will there be any time left to exist purely as oneself amidst all that?

“Please enter, Lady Estanya.”

The knight opened the way, and I responded with a gentle smile and a slight bow.

Then I quickly headed towards the library.

‘Whether he becomes emperor or not is Calix’s choice anyway.’

I decided to shake off unnecessary thoughts and focus on the most pressing issue at hand: Morisias.

As I opened the door to the library, I marveled at the scent of wood that wafted out. Should I call it a unique old smell?

I’ve seen many larger libraries, but this place was special.

The quaint interior was incredibly beautiful.

‘It feels like a fantasy world in an unexpected place.’

All the books were bound in luxurious gold leaf and wrapped in sheepskin. The librarian at the entrance was wearing a fantastical monocle and elaborate clothes.

“What are you looking for, my lady?”

A middle-aged male librarian approached me first with a neat smile.

“Where can I find theological texts?”

“Please follow me this way.”

Standing in front of the theological texts the librarian led me to, I took a deep breath.

“This section is a restricted area, and you need His Majesty the Emperor’s permission to access it.”

I turned my head to where the librarian was pointing.

There was a bookshelf densely engraved with magic circles, and the entire shelf was tightly bound with golden chains.

“Then I’ll be on my way.”

“Ah, yes.”

I carefully examined the bookshelf.

<Kamesis Mythology> <A Study on the Differences Between Divine Power and Magic> <The Mechanical Relationship Between Fate Orbit Deviation and Kamesis>

Fate orbit deviation? Without realizing it, my hand reached out and opened the book.

The author of this book claims to be the current Grand Magician of the Magic Tower.

I frowned deeply at the unusual author introduction.

‘What? Why is the book introduction like this?’

I calmly turned the pages.

Chapter 1. Is the Goddess of Fate truly a subordinate of Kamesis?

Goddess of Fate?

I heard about it from Aaron. About the scripture of the Goddess of Fate.

Aaron said that fate is predetermined, but the book title clearly mentioned fate orbit deviation.

Does that mean it’s a study on how to change predetermined fate?

As you all know, the main deity of the Empire is Kamesis.

But why does a separate scripture about the Goddess of Fate exist?

After extensive study of ancient texts, I discovered that the Goddess of Fate is not a subordinate deity of Kamesis, but rather of Rebellion, specifically Morisias.

This is because Isis, the Goddess of Fate, is the child of Morisias and the Goddess of Rebellion.

My eyes widened at the word I had been looking for, and I immediately turned to the next page.

By restoring the long-burned texts of Rebellion, I attempted to deduce the cause of Morisias’s defeat in the war of the gods.

The power of fate is strong.

Knowing this, Kamesis, instead of killing Isis, the Goddess of Fate, bound her to the sky.

To use her power, that is.

Up to this point, it was just a predictable myth.

The problem was on the next page.

Fate is something that even the greatest gods cannot defy.

Then, is predetermined fate something that no one can change?

No, in my opinion, that’s not the case.

Just one person.

There was a human who defied prophecy.

He was the first emperor of Posnia.

My hand instinctively began to tremble as I turned to the next page.

For some reason, I had a strong feeling that this content was related to me.

Could everything written here be true?

According to the records, the early emperor was almost an idiot slave soldier.

But it is said that from a certain point, he suddenly became intelligent.

I closed the book. My heart was beating wildly.

It felt like I had seen something I shouldn’t have.

I didn’t want to think about it, but my brain was interpreting the situation on its own.

The content described in the book had similarities to my current situation.

‘They chose someone who was going to die anyway, someone who wasn’t in their right mind.’

The content described in the book had similarities to my current situation.

‘They chose someone who was going to die anyway, someone who wasn’t in their right mind.’

‘You weren’t in your right mind. Come on, a diary? Nonsense. What could a baron’s idiot write?’

The head maid had certainly called me out of my mind, an idiot.

‘Surely that emperor wasn’t possessed like me, right?’

I couldn’t help but grab the back of my neck at that realization.