“I wasn’t mistaken. But… if that is what Your Majesty wishes.”

Ricciardo shrugged as if there were nothing to be done and rose from his seat.

Ailie looked past his retreating back to Benate. His pale blue eyes were still narrowed, fixed on Ricciardo with unmistakable displeasure.

What was he thinking this time?

‘Maybe it’s just a passing whim.’

That was the only explanation that made sense. A whim.

Whether he was acting or not, Benate was simply being inconsistent, changing his mind from one moment to the next. Otherwise, none of this added up.

Ailie looked up at Benate as he took the seat beside her, displacing Ricciardo. The moment their gazes met, his pale blue eyes returned her look.

How long would this whim last?

The gaze that had once been as cold as ice no longer felt piercing.

“……”

Benate looked at her as though he wanted to say something, but then pressed his lips together and turned away.

‘If he was going to behave like this, why had he got into the carriage in the first place?’

This thought crossed her mind just as the carriage began to move.

Snow-covered scenery drifted past the window outside. In a few hours, they would reach the imperial capital.

The end of her leave.

She hadn’t enjoyed every moment, but she had been deeply happy. Her body and mind, once so worn down, had recovered considerably. She could now meet Benate’s gaze without flinching, and her cheeks, which had once been hollow, had filled out a little.

Ailie reached up to touch the ruby brooch her brothers had given her, smiling quietly to herself.

‘If I get the chance to see them again someday, I’ll prepare a gift of my own.’

Next time, she would surprise her brothers.

With this in mind, Ailie looked out of the back window. The road they had travelled on already felt impossibly distant.

Beyond the glass, an endless, silent expanse of snow stretched out before them. Despite carrying four people, it was unbelievably quiet inside the carriage.

“…How did you get here?”

After an endless silence, Ailie finally broke it by asking a question.

She was curious, but more than that, she felt that if no one spoke, they would remain silent until they reached the imperial palace. How could a maid or a knight casually strike up a conversation when the Emperor himself remained silent?

Benate, who had been quietly gazing out of the window, answered in a low voice.

“I was going to wait. No matter how late you returned.”

How long had he intended to wait?

If she had never returned to the palace at all—if she had run away for good—would he still have rushed out of the capital like this and searched for her somehow?

“I was on my way to Erdei to find out why you weren’t returning to the palace. Then I spotted this carriage and heard the story from the coachman.”

“I didn’t expect Your Majesty to come personally.”

“…I wasn’t going to.”

It sounded like an excuse.

Instead of answering, Ailie simply nodded and shifted her gaze to Breni, who was sitting opposite her.

She looked completely exhausted, her head leaning against the side of the carriage. Her unfocused eyes stared blankly at the floor. After being trapped in the tower for three days, she must be extremely weak. They needed to arrive soon so that she could finally rest properly.

As Ailie continued to watch her with concern, Benate suddenly spoke.

“You seem quite attached to your maid. Do you not care at all about the wound on your neck?”

“Ah… it’s all right, Your Majesty. It’s not a deep wound.”

To be honest, she had completely forgotten about it until Benate mentioned it. Only then did the injured spot begin to throb.

At the time, she had been too terrified to feel any pain, and the subsequent wave of relief had dulled her awareness entirely. It also helped that the wound wasn’t actually that deep.

Nevertheless, it felt strangely unfamiliar that Benate had noticed and was concerned about a wound that she herself hadn’t realized was there. Ailie raised a hand to cover her neck.

“When we return to the palace, I’ll summon a physician at once. The maid may see the doctor first if necessary, but you must receive proper treatment as well.”

“…Yes. I will.”

It was hardly a serious injury.

Ailie met those worry-filled blue eyes for a moment, then looked away first.

If he had been as cold as usual, it would have been easier.

Ailie could not forgive Benate, the man who had ruined her life before the regression. That was why she had sworn never to be deceived again. No matter what happened, she would not be taken in by his polished, unshakable act.

And yet, why did this act seem so genuine?

No matter how closely she examined it, it seemed real.

It couldn’t possibly be real.

‘Why does it not even feel like a whim?’

Why did it seem so heavy—like worry carried for a very long time?

***

They arrived at the Imperial Palace in the evening, just as the sun began to turn red on the horizon.

Benate stepped down from the carriage and summoned the Knight Commander and Ricciardo. After instructing them to wait in the bedchamber, he told them only that a physician would be called before going inside the palace with the two of them.

His pace was brisk.

Yet after a moment, he turned back and met her gaze.

‘If you’re going to be cold, then be cold to the end…’

Ailie watched the three figures recede, then turned her gaze back inside the carriage.

Breni, who had fallen asleep from exhaustion, slowly opened her eyes. Despite having rested briefly, she was still far from recovered. Deputy-Commander Liton accompanied her to the bedchamber, helping her along the way.

“Breni, how are you feeling? Can you walk?”

“I’m fine. I’m just a little tired.”

Breni let out a small laugh and pushed herself upright from where she’d been leaning. Her brown eyes, far livelier than when Ailie had first seen her in the tower, glimmered faintly.

“Your Majesty truly is my benefactor.”

She followed it up with such an embarrassingly earnest remark.

“Benefactor is too much… If His Majesty the Emperor hadn’t arrived, things could have turned out terribly.”

“But I heard that Your Majesty stayed behind in Erdei to interrogate the thieves just to find me. And that you were the one who persuaded Sir Liton as well.”

“…Where did you hear that?”

“From Prince Alvaro.”

…When had he even found the time to say all that?

Ailie waved her hand with an awkward smile. The gratitude and trust shining in Breni’s round eyes felt embarrassingly warm.

“From now on—even if it kills me, no matter what happens—I’ll stay by Your Majesty’s side. I swear it.”

Her pale, rose-colored eyes trembled faintly. Hearing words like that from Breni made her wonder if life itself was a dream.

Then, a deep sense of relief washed over her.

She had been right to save Breni. It had been reckless — unbearably so — and, if Benate hadn’t arrived, this hard-won second chance might have slipped through her fingers.

But how could she ever abandon a friend she had known for so long?

“Of course. How could I live without you?”

She said it with a playful smile, but tears immediately filled Breni’s brown eyes.

In her previous life, she hadn’t even managed to win the heart of a single innocent maid like this.

Ailie let out a quiet, bitter laugh and handed Breni a handkerchief.

‘I should probably return to my chambers soon…’

With that thought in mind, she glanced around the carriage and her eyes met Liton’s. He looked as though he had a great deal he wanted to say.

“Your Majesty.”

So that was it.

Ailie gave a small nod, silently urging him to continue.

“I wish to offer my apologies.”

“Apologies?”

“The duty His Majesty entrusted to me—to protect you—I nearly failed to fulfill. If His Majesty had not arrived, I might not have been able to carry it out.”

“…He entrusted you with that?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. His Majesty was deeply concerned for your safety. Even on the morning he departed the palace for the international conference, he continued to worry about you.”

Had she misheard?

Ailie’s expression slowly hardened.

Had Benate repeatedly told him to protect her? Had he been worried right up until the morning he left?

That cold, seemingly unfeeling Benate?

No matter how many times she replayed Liton’s words, they did not sound mistaken. At first, she had assumed that Liton had merely been assigned to keep an eye on her. Later, she had begun to suspect that there was more to it, but still…

To think he went so far as to say that!

The strange sensation she had felt since the tower surfaced returned.

Benate seemed to have become someone entirely different from the man she had known before her regression.

“So… I am ashamed.”

Hearing his subdued tone, Ailie shook her head gently.

He hadn’t deliberately put her in danger. In fact, he had helped her time and again. She didn’t want him to carry the weight of unnecessary guilt.

“It couldn’t be helped. You don’t need to apologize for this, Sir Liton.”

Breni nodded in agreement beside her.

No matter how much they reassured him, a man as principled as Liton would surely find it unbearable to have failed to carry out the Emperor’s command.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. For this matter, I swear that someday—”

“Someday?”

“Someday, I will reclaim my honor.”

So he hadn’t been dejected after all.

The dark brown eyes that had seemed lifeless a moment ago now sparkled with clarity. His voice was steady and reliable; should she ever ask him to escort her again, no danger would seem insurmountable.

“Then I suppose I’ll have to make sure you get that chance, whenever the time comes.”

“Yes. I will wait.”

At her easy acceptance, a faint smile touched Liton’s lips.

“And next time, I will stand—without fail—on Her Majesty the Empress’s side.”

He had even said that.

An unexpected gain.

She had always thought that Liton was loyal to the Emperor, so it was difficult to imagine him supporting her.

She would never have anticipated hearing such words from him.

Of course, Liton had probably assumed that the Empress and the Emperor were naturally on the same side, but still.

She was satisfied.

Ultimately, her actions in Erdei had earned her three allies besides her family.

Ailie smiled as she looked back and forth between the two pairs of eyes that seemed incapable of betrayal.

“Alright. Let’s get out of the carriage now. Sirion must have been waiting for quite a while.”

“Oh, you’re right. He should’ve arrived by now.”

“Exactly. He’ll probably be standing there, utterly flustered because his patient is late.”

The image came easily to mind: Sirion’s youthful face, uncertainly hovering in the doorway because the Empress had arrived late.

Ailie let out a small laugh and took Liton’s hand as she stepped down from the carriage.

This was the imperial palace from which she had once wanted to escape at all costs. However, returning with so many people now firmly on her side made it feel different.

‘It really is different… even this place that once felt like h*ll.’

The out-of-season snow had already disappeared, unable to withstand the arrival of spring.

Perhaps this was because the thick white blanket that had covered the palace throughout the winter had finally melted, revealing its long-hidden grandeur, which now seemed radiant once more.

Ailie paused for a moment to look up at the palace, then began walking inside at a relaxed pace.

She passed the guards, who greeted her with crisp salutes. She followed the familiar corridors and turned a corner.

—Thud!

“Ah!”

—Crash!

There was a violent impact, followed by the sound of countless objects scattering across the floor.

Liton reached out just in time to stop her from falling, but it seemed the other person hadn’t been so fortunate. There was another dull thud.

Once she was sure she was still standing, Ailie hurriedly looked around.

Books.

An absurd number of them were scattered across the corridor — so many that it looked as though someone had tried to carry an entire bookshelf at once and dropped it.

Frozen in shock, with her hands half-raised and her face drained completely of color, stood—

“…Si, Sirion? What is all this?”