Roa walked aimlessly, looking only ahead. Among people returning home in pairs, Roa was in a daze.

Though her mind was full of thoughts about going to the bookstore, she doubted whether she was actually heading in the right direction. Her feet hurt terribly from walking so much.

‘Where on earth is it……”

There was no life in her eyes. She had no time to avoid people coming toward her. Roa staggered along, bumping into people here and there.

“What the!”

“Hey, Miss! Watch where you’re going!”

People who had their shoulders bumped or feet stepped on by Roa turned around and glared at her, but soon slunk away from her.

They were afraid to question someone who walked with bloodshot eyes, muttering about a bookstore. She looked like she might commit a random murder.

Eventually, someone even reported that a crazy person had escaped from a hospital and was wandering the streets.

Unaware of how she was being perceived, Roa stared ahead with hazy eyes.

‘I want to give up everything.’

The thought of closing her eyes and finding herself at home when she opened them captivated Roa.

Confronted with a frightening situation, only childlike instincts remained.

The hidden child inside her suddenly emerged and threw a tantrum.

Roa wiped away the cold sweat flowing down her face. Her physical limitations made things even harder.

‘I want to go home.’

Finally, Roa tripped over her own feet on the empty street and fell, placing her hands on the ground and lowering her head.

Her scraped palms hurt, and sweat collected at the tip of her chin dropped to the ground.

‘Is this my punishment for surviving in a body that was supposed to die?’

Roa breathed rapidly. She was too exhausted to walk on her own. Tears welled up in her eyes.

‘It’s not like I asked to live!’

She felt like dying from the injustice. She resented the god who imposed such trials on her. It was a perfect day to die away from home.

“If you were going to do this, why did you save me?”

Roa bit her lip and muttered. The moments when she had been happy about being reincarnated as a rich man’s daughter had vanished from her mind.

Roa pounded the ground with her fist.

“If you saved me, take responsibility!”

As if it were her time to die, all sorts of faces flashed before her eyes. Even the face of the crown prince she so disliked floated before her.

She must truly be going crazy. Roa tapped her head repeatedly.

‘Please, anyone, appear before me.’

Roa’s desperate hope now created auditory hallucinations.

“Hey, are you okay?”

The sound of footsteps approaching dominated Roa’s senses. And the voice asking after her well-being was kind.

“Should I call the patrol for you?”

As if to prove it wasn’t an illusion, elegant shoes appeared within her downcast field of vision.

Roa barely raised her head with eyes full of hope.

“Patrol?”

As she lifted her head, hope shattered. Unlike his kind voice, his eyes were identical to those of the Syndicate members she had seen earlier.

Roa’s pupils captured the image of an unfamiliar man with a smile that split his face from ear to ear, licking his lips. Her instincts signaled danger.

“Hello, Miss.”

“Who are you?”

Roa reflexively stood up and stepped back. Though it was clearly a face she had never seen before, she felt she knew his identity without being told.

Her faithful instincts admirably worked quickly to protect their owner, continuously sounding danger signals.

“My, such a frightened face makes me sad. I get hurt too, you know.”

He was quite handsome. His white skin that didn’t seem to have experienced hardship and well-maintained blonde hair were impressive for someone who might be considered a bandit.

His green eyes, reminiscent of a forest, made Roa feel calm.

If not for this situation, one wouldn’t know he was involved in selling people and making threats.

Roa fumblingly pointed the dagger the knight had given her at him.

The man snorted at Roa’s warning to stay away. Roa’s hand trembled uncontrollably.

“Don’t come closer! I’ll kill you!”

“Haha, Miss. Haven’t you learned that threatening with a knife is wrong?”

The man didn’t even blink at Roa’s threat. Instead, he pointed out her behavior of aiming a weapon at him.

When Roa realized her words weren’t getting through to him, she shouted again. Her voice became sharper.

“Get away!!! You’ll regret it!”

Roa’s voice trembled uncontrollably. Though she wanted to be calm, fear of the situation prevented her from stabilizing her inner self.

“Whoa! Don’t be so startled. Hehehe. That makes me too excited.”

Because of this, Roa posed no threat to the man. As the man took one step forward teasingly, Roa fell back two steps.

“I said don’t come closer!”

“What will you do if I come closer? Punish me?”

The man mocked Roa. Listening to his mockery, Roa quickly scanned the man up and down.

‘I need to stab a vital point in one go. Otherwise, I’ll die.’

Roa tried to remember the vital points Eyle had taught her, but her mind was completely blank.

She couldn’t think, and her hands wouldn’t obey her. Fear attacked Roa as a fundamental problem.

When she made up her mind to kill someone, she became frightened.

‘But can I actually do it?’

The only vital points she could barely recall were the solar plexus and groin, just two places. Both were well-known vital points, so Roa worried whether she could attack properly.

With just one gesture, the man could easily gauge her intentions. Roa’s hand twitched nervously.

Her delicate hand, which had never threatened anyone before, reflected Roa’s heart. The man sneered.

“Looks like you’ve never killed anyone before. Can you kill with those hands?”

Roa glanced down at her hands. They had long since escaped their owner’s control.

Even to her own eyes, her hands, which seemed to struggle just to hold the knife, looked pitiful.

Unlike Roa, who found this situation painful, people murmured at the suddenly interesting event.

Some even peeked curiously, wondering if it was a performance. Among them, there was no one who would help Roa.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. Didn’t the circus end earlier?”

“Isn’t it dangerous? She looks scared.”

“But what if something goes wrong if we help? Someone else will help.”

The man focused on Roa, seemingly unconcerned about people watching.

He knew that fearful humans wouldn’t help anyway.

Above all, he had long known that there was a bounty on his head.

Even if one more crime was added, he was a dead man if caught by knights. He planned to make a big score and leave this country before that happened.

The man burst into laughter at the prey that would earn him a fortune. Roa’s existence made him so happy and joyful.

“Miss, let’s not waste energy and go nicely. I get money, and you get your life. You know?”

The man wiggled his finger. At his signal to come here, Roa widened her eyes.

No matter how stupid she might be, she knew following that man was dangerous.

Roa raised her middle finger at the man who was underestimating her.

“You’re the one who should go away without regrets. Don’t try anything.”

The man gave a hollow laugh at Roa’s words. He thought she didn’t realize the dangerous situation she was in.

“Miss, don’t you understand the current situation?”

“I know it’s dangerous to follow you. What do you mean I’ll get my life? Why would I trust you and take your hand?”

Roa spoke while chewing the inside of her cheek. She was terrified, but she didn’t want to let him know she was scared.

The man put his hands in his pockets at Roa’s pretense of bravery.

“You’re quite smart. But how do you plan to evade without knights?”

“You must not know, but why wouldn’t I have knights?”

“You don’t. You were running with a maid wearing your clothes, right? Over at that market.”

Roa’s body trembled involuntarily. She was shocked that he knew the details so well. Her pupils contracted, and cold sweat flowed.

“Did you want me to fall for such a shallow trick? I’m sorry about that.”

“……”

“Ah, don’t be too sad. There are some idiots who fell for it.”

These were things that could be noticed with just a slightly careful look.

The man found it amusing that his subordinates had fallen for that trick and were chasing the wrong person.

“Isn’t it stupid? Those fools who followed just because clothes were swapped.”

The man sighed at Roa’s refusal and roughly ran his hand through his hair. Anger rose against his subordinates who had fallen for such an easy deception.

“Seems like it’s time to discard them. I shouldn’t have used stupid ones from the beginning. These days, even criminals need to be smart.”

The man coldly criticized those who had worked for him until now. He muttered that stupid ones were useless.

Roa felt sorry for those who believed in and followed such a person as their leader. Did they know they would be abandoned…

Roa felt a nearly luxurious sympathy for her enemies.

“I feel sorry for the people who worked for you.”

“Worked for me? I graciously employed them. Without me, they might have already been dead. They should be grateful to me.”

Roa realized that he had always thought of the Slave Syndicate not as comrades but as tools.

She felt sorry for those who trusted only this man and worked for him.

“They’ll be grateful to me too. For making useless things function as people.”

By now, more people had gathered.

The people who formed a circle around Roa and the man, watching the confrontation, still seemed unwilling to help.

One could guess that perhaps half of them were unsure if this was a real situation, and half knew but were too afraid to offer help.

‘Where should I run?’

Roa resented the people who wouldn’t help but still looked for a way to survive. Now was the optimal opportunity while the man was distracted.

“Miss, what are you thinking?”

However, the man stopped his monologue when he noticed Roa assessing the situation and looking for an opportunity.

“Trying to escape?”

“What nonsense.”

Flustered, Roa stumbled over her words. Even to a stranger, Roa appeared startled at having her scheme discovered.

“Well, sorry then. But Miss, I’m running out of time.”

The man pointed to the watch on his wrist and spoke to Roa. Roa swallowed nervously and maintained her distance.

“The whole country is hell-bent on killing us.”

The man, who had occasionally witnessed his subordinates being dragged away by imperial knights, knew time was running short.

“I didn’t think they’d notice so quickly.”

The man trailed off. Roa swallowed nervously. She felt she knew what he wanted to say.

“I’ve learned that you, Miss, are a bigger fish than I thought?”

The man, happy just imagining it, tilted his head back and showed his madness. Right before his eyes was the solution to all his struggles at once.

The man was happier than anyone. Unexpected luck had made him the happiest person in this world.

It was all thanks to Roa standing before him.

“You’re perfect as my final target in this empire. When would I ever get to blackmail the grand ducal family? This opportunity will make me a big man.”

The man’s eyes were full of intense greed. Roa felt disgusted by his sticky desire.

She had the illusion that all sorts of dirty black liquid was binding her. Roa shuddered.

“If you come along nicely, I’ll end it with just one finger and let you go. You understand me? Despite appearances, I’m a person who repays favors.”

“Don’t talk nonsense! Why would I trust you!”

Roa shouted and threw the dagger she was holding at the man. She never hoped it would hit him.

A momentary distraction was enough. Without hesitation, Roa plunged into the human forest created by the crowd and hid herself.

“Kyaa! Hey, Miss!”

“What! Don’t push!”

“Move!! Get out of the way! Do you know who I am?!”

Roa used her noble status to intimidate people.

Though her clothes didn’t look noble, her unique aura was enough to momentarily make people mistake her identity.

People screamed as Roa rushed toward them. They thought she might be a noble.

Accordingly, the reactions of the spectators changed.

“She must be a noble.”

“Make way for her. Don’t take unnecessary losses.”

Injuring a noble or souring their mood could ruin a family.

People who lived day to day slowly widened the gap, making it easier for Roa to escape.

Relatively smaller than the man, Roa didn’t miss that small gap and actively used the situation.

Roa’s method worked. The man couldn’t easily push through the people to follow her. Too many people had gathered for the man to break free.

While the man was blocked by people and confused, Roa escaped from the place without hesitation.

Roa ran, avoiding the man’s line of sight.

“Roa Helena!!!”

The furious man knocked people over while calling Roa’s full name. Roa didn’t look back.

“Move! I don’t care if you get hurt!”

Though she was out of breath, she couldn’t stop running.

She knew well that if she stopped and was caught by the enraged man, she would die. That kept Roa running.

There was no one to protect her now. It was time to protect herself.

Before her family came looking for her, there was no need to gamble on hope.

‘Get a grip, Lee Seo-ha!’

Roa whipped herself by calling her past life’s name.

But the gap between the man who had lived a life of crime and Roa who had grown like a flower in a greenhouse narrowed.

“Aren’t your steps too slow?”

The man’s face was full of composure. Roa gritted her teeth.

She realized that he was deliberately maintaining the distance, intentionally draining all her energy so she couldn’t resist later.

“The price for playing games with me is quite high, Miss.”

She felt deflated. No matter how hard she tried, seeing no results sapped her strength. Roa unconsciously had negative thoughts.

‘Is there no hope?’

Everything went black before her eyes. Tears welled up.

It seemed the fate of an extra couldn’t be avoided. Come to think of it, she was a character who should have died years ago.

‘I guess this is as far as I go.’

Death made people helpless. The moment she submitted to her fate, Roa’s legs, which had been holding up, gave way.

Accumulated fatigue created great pain and exhaustion. As she lost consciousness, Roa’s vision momentarily came close to the ground.

Bang—.

With a loud noise, Roa frowned at the pain she felt in her legs as she fell.

“Damn it.”

Her skirt was torn from scraping the ground, and blood flowed from her knees. The verdict was that escape was now nearly impossible.

Roa acknowledged her reality and lowered her head. Even walking on her own was difficult now. She could hear the man’s footsteps getting closer.

“Miss, let’s go now. We need to go meet your family.”

Roa closed her eyes. She humbly accepted the pain that was coming. She thought it would be nice if it could be a painless death.

‘Goodbye, Roa Helena.’

As she was saying farewell to herself, her body suddenly floated in the air. And a gentle voice called her.

“Roa.”

The arms that embraced her were warmer than she had expected.

Instinctively, she felt that this person wasn’t someone who had been chasing her to kill her. Roa once again harbored hope.

With desperate feelings, she opened her closed eyes and met golden-tinged yellow eyes.

Those eyes that met hers were so gentle that Roa began to tear up.

Hope had always been with her. Roa was so glad to see the man before her.

“Hic……”

Roa rubbed her eyes with her hands at the familiar face of the man who had embraced her.

Even through her tear-blurred vision, the face of the one who had come to save her was clearly visible.

The face that had been cold and hateful now seemed infinitely gentle and warm. At his relaxed smile, Roa covered her unstoppable tears with her palms.

“Are you alright?”

Even with her vision blocked, the low voice she heard was one Roa knew well. It wasn’t a hallucination. Roa called him with a trembling voice.

“Your Highness?”

She had accepted the ending of returning home as a corpse. She thought no one would come to save her.

But it was clearly Yvaine who was supporting and carrying her body.

Roa slowly opened her mouth at the unbelievable reality. Out of joy and longing, no words could escape her lips.

“I’m sorry I came to save you so late.”

Yvaine carefully took Roa’s hand and lowered it. Then he examined her wounds with his eyes.

The face carefully revealed was a mess with her tears and wounds. Yvaine’s fingertips touched Roa’s eyes.

“Your whole body is a mess. I’ve become quite upset at whoever dared to hurt you. You’re prettiest when you smile.”

Yvaine frowned and expressed his dissatisfaction. Unlike before, he felt sorry for Roa who was covered in dirt and dust from rolling around.

Her knees were bleeding, and her palms were a mess. The fact that she was crying also made Yvaine uncomfortable.

“I was worried.”

“How did you know?”

“I heard news of you during a meeting. The grand ducal household’s knight brought the news, but it was already too late.”

He had rushed to the village because he was worried about Roa. He wanted to rescue her without causing any injury if possible, but it didn’t go as planned.

Seeing the result in front of him, Roa, Yvaine felt sick to his stomach.

“I’ll have you treated right away. I can bring priests or doctors, whatever it takes—I can do anything for you.”

Roa laughed softly even as she cried. She could imagine doctors being dragged along at his sincere words.

Seeing her small smile, Yvaine wet a handkerchief with water handed by a knight and carefully wiped Roa’s face.

“Bear with the pain a little.”

Yvaine spoke as he watched Roa wince when the handkerchief touched her wounds.

As he supported her effortlessly with one hand, Roa stared fixedly at Yvaine’s hand wiping her face.

The handkerchief dampened with water was cold. Only then did Roa realize this situation was real and she let her guard down. Roa raised her trembling hand.

“I can’t believe it.”

“What do you mean?”

“That Your Highness is in front of me. You’re not a ghost, are you?”

“Would you believe me if I said I was a ghost?”

“No. I wouldn’t want to believe that.”

Despite Yvaine’s joke, Roa caressed his face with her hand. She wanted to confirm if what she was feeling was real.

From his eyes to his lips, Roa slowly stroked Yvaine’s face. And she compared what she was touching with the memories she had.

Roa’s hand touching his face trembled with fear.

Yvaine firmly held her with one hand and placed his hand over Roa’s.

“Such a handsome ghost is rare. Don’t worry. I am neither a ghost nor imagination, but reality.”

Yvaine deliberately smiled mischievously so that Roa could find peace of mind. And he helped Roa caress his face.

Roa cried again at the face she knew so well. Even his usual arrogance seemed lovely today.

“It really is Your Highness’s face that I know.”

Roa’s voice filled with joy struck Yvaine’s ear. Somehow, that joy seemed sad, unlike the meaning the word carried.

“I must be quite handsome if it makes you cry.”

“Yes. Your Highness is handsome.”

“My, how unfortunate. One of my greatest charms is my face, yet you’ve only just realized it.”

“Unfortunately, I’ve only just realized it.”

“I’ll have to try harder then.”

Yvaine chuckled at Roa’s response. She agreed without hesitation to words that she wouldn’t say in her right mind.

Roa not grumbling at him was unfamiliar, but Yvaine embraced her. He prayed that his warmth would be transmitted to her.