How many times had she fallen wearing these dizzying high heels?

It was a petty harassment that had continued for a full seven years since she became Empress at sixteen.

Meanwhile, Aella had endured incredibly difficult times, transitioning from a naive young Empress to a foreign Empress, and further establishing herself as the gentle Empress.

She had dedicated herself to etiquette, paying attention to every detail from how she held a teacup to how she coughed. She had been wary of her husband’s every glance.

Looking back now, none of that mattered.

“Shall I wrap them?”

Tilda asked, pushing the shoes into the box.

“No. I want to do it myself.”

“Who are you giving them to?”

“Count Coumont’s daughter.”

“What? Your Majesty, why would you give shoes worn by imperial ladies to such a d*mn—I mean, such a low-class woman?”

“If my husband is giving himself away, can’t I gift a pair of used shoes?”

Aella carefully tied the ribbon she had been handed. Tilda let out a small sigh at the perfect knot that deserved an exclamation.

“…Shall I have a servant deliver them?”

“Keep them ready. It’s not time yet.”

This was a declaration. A firm resolve to shed her past life. And the beginning of a kind revenge.

When she tumbled from the position of Empress, Natalia would struggle wildly. Just as she herself had done in her previous life, wearing these shoes.

This would truly be a ‘gracious gift.’

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Tilda packed the box with a sullen expression.

Alone again, Aella thought of her husband’s mistress.

‘Natalia Dohimer.’

Natalia currently had an ambiguous status as a noble. This was because her family had fallen when her father, Count Coumont, died in disgrace two years ago.

Even an emperor couldn’t immediately elevate such a woman to the position of Empress.

So, in her previous life, Francis had made Natalia his official mistress.

Official mistress was an honor that could only be bestowed upon one woman among many mistresses.

Something like ‘the most outstanding mistress,’ one might say.

And it was a good excuse to give a title to a woman who had achieved nothing.

This was because it was customary to grant residence rights in the imperial palace to the official mistress.

Those residence rights were an honor permitted only to a few high nobles, so this was truly a textbook progression.

And before becoming the official mistress, it was customary for a noblewoman who would become her lady-in-waiting to introduce her to society.

‘It was Countess Joubert.’

Recalling that spiteful face, Aella took out a glossy cream-colored paper.

To fall from the highest place, one must stumble from the smallest beginning.

For Aella, who remembered the gossip from her previous life, such a beginning was easier than drinking cold soup.

She spread the letter paper neatly in the center of the desk, then held her quill in impeccable posture.

[The fan you lost will be in the stable boy’s bed.]

After the ink dried well, she folded the letter neatly, sealed it, wrote ‘To Count Joubert’ on the envelope, and spread a new paper.

“Leonhar…”

But this time, she couldn’t finish the name and put down the quill.

Recalling his desperate voice she had heard before dying, her mouth went dry and her cheeks flushed.

Feeling stifled, Aella unwrapped the cloth around her neck. Only after neatly folding that cloth did she pick up the pen again.

“You’re kind.”

This time, her husband’s voice circled her ears like a curse. Shaking her head to push away the auditory hallucination, Aella gritted her teeth.

He said he liked my kindness.

Then would he like my kind revenge too?

A meaningless question. His opinion no longer mattered. Only her will was important.

She would give her husband a very kind and slow death as a gift.

Adding strength to her hand holding the quill, Aella wrote the letter without hesitation.

˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗

“Send it to His Grace the Grand Duke of Triden?”

“Yes, I want to invite him to the banquet.”

“Will he be able to come?”

Tilda asked with wide eyes.

“He will definitely come.”

“Yes, of course he will. I meant, I heard he went to suppress the unrest in the south. You know? The ethnic group.”

The ethnic group Tugal. They were the reason Leonhardt, a royal of Siren, had come to the Empire.

‘Tugal’ was an immigrant group from the South Sea islands who had been building power on the continent for a hundred years.

They had even gone so far as to establish a kingdom on the Sedein Peninsula in southern Siren. Leonhardt was the one who had defeated them.

In the east of the continent, Siren had successfully pushed back the Tugal, but not the western kingdoms, including the Empire.

The Empire was currently suffering from kidnappings, murders, and other terrible crimes committed by them.

The emperor eventually asked for help from Leonhardt, the Siren commander. A military agreement was quickly reached, and Leonhardt came as the governor of Siren territory within the Empire.

Given the poor situation in the south, he would be there now.

“With only a few days left until the banquet, I’m not sure if he’ll arrive on time even if he comes running as soon as he receives the letter.”

“…Still, he will come somehow.”

Because I called him.

Swallowing her last words, Aella handed over the letter.

The Empress’s seal, stamped precisely in the center of the neatly folded envelope without the slightest deviation, was elegant.

Taking the letter, Tilda stroked the seal and let out a small exclamation of admiration.

“But Your Majesty.”

Tilda stared at Aella’s slender neck. Worry filled the maid’s black eyes as they traced the pink scar in the middle of her neck.

“Why did your neck get so badly scratched when you just rolled down the stairs?”

Aella’s long, white fingers gently traced the spot where a knife had once pierced her.

“I wonder too… But more importantly, Tilda. I need to call Benjamin.”

“The ducal family’s physician?”

“Yes.”

Tilda unfolded the thin linen that Aella had folded. Carefully approaching from behind, she wrapped it around her neck and asked.

“But Your Majesty, while he may be the continent’s best regarding childbirth, wouldn’t the imperial physician be better for treating neck wounds?”

As she said, Benjamin was a highly respected physician across the entire continent.

What elevated his reputation was his accurate prediction of the Duchess of Lorendal’s pregnancy in its early stages using a new pulse-taking method.

And the fact that he had safely assisted in no fewer than eleven births also inspired everyone’s admiration.

And skill wasn’t all. Benjamin was also the first person to hold newborn Aella, and the one who had watched her grow up healthy. He was the most trustworthy physician.

Approaching the mirror, Aella neatly adjusted the knot around her neck and answered.

“But they’re all the emperor’s people. I need someone on my side.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Tilda didn’t ask further. Having grown up together like sisters since childhood, she understood Aella more deeply than anyone.

“Besides, Tilda, this wound will disappear soon.”

“How do you know?”

“I had a similar wound when I was young. It vanished quickly.”

“When you were young? I’ve never seen such a large scar on Your Majesty.”

“You wouldn’t have. It happened before you became my companion. Perhaps when I was eight. I don’t remember the details clearly.”

All she remembered was seeing Count Nils then too.

Count Nils was Leonhardt’s maternal uncle. Currently, she heard he was wanted for stealing and fleeing with treasures from the Grand Ducal House of Triden.

Francis had made such a criminal his special advisor.

The faint knife mark on her neck, the horrific experience from her previous life, and Count Nils.

Aella could be certain of one thing.

‘Count Nils and Francis did something to me while I was unconscious.’

And it must have been the same when she was around eight. Had they stabbed her throat as in her past life?

Come to think of it, it was strange that blood had burst forth only long after she died.

‘Doesn’t blood usually gush out immediately after being stabbed?’

Tilda’s spirited voice roused Aella from her thoughts as she frowned her delicate eyebrows.

“Anyway, you should still show it to the imperial physician! Even small nail scratches take longer to heal if neglected.”

“You’re right.”

“Then, I’ll go send the letter.”

When Aella nodded in permission, Tilda quickly bent her knees in respect and hurried out of the room.

˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗

At dusk, Aella approached the window and opened it. Breathing deeply in the chilly midwinter air, she recalled the book she had read in her previous life.

Operation ‘Dear Aella,’ it was called.

That rebellion, led by Leonhardt, must have succeeded. Because in the final moment, Francis was clearly dragged away.

She felt confident that if she could find those who participated in the rebellion then, she could overthrow the emperor.

Suddenly, transparent darkness began to spread from the edge of the sprawling garden. Aella’s purple eyes, gazing into the darkness, began to shine vibrantly.

She recited the names she had read in the book one by one.

“Captain Owl, Drunken Peacock, Red-tailed Foal, Brave Canary, Lucky Bear, and the author of this excellent book, Nicholas Biscati…”

It seemed they had adopted a fairy tale format in case someone else read the book. Using animals to represent real people made it quite ambiguous.

‘I think I know who Captain Owl and Lucky Bear are, but I’m not sure about the rest.’

Six months from now, in summer, Aella would be deposed.

Francis would grant her the privilege to remain in the imperial palace afterward. But that was the beginning of her misfortune. Because it meant being under the influence of Natalia, who would become Empress.

“Then…”

I must hurry. I need to find them as soon as possible.

After taking one last deep breath, Aella turned around just as Tilda entered, panting.

“Your Majesty, would you believe…”

“Tell me.”

“Would you believe that woman has also been invited to the imperial banquet?”

“And?”

“How could you invite her to a family banquet? His Majesty the Emperor is really too much! After being so caring to you.”

Aella quietly looked at Tilda, whose ears had turned red with excitement. She was truly grateful.

She wrapped Tilda’s hand with a sincere touch. Then in a calm tone, she said.

“Then we must change the banquet menu.”

˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗