People can kill with words.

“This is the woman I’m going to marry, Your Highness.”

How many times had Isolet died from these words?

Silver hair, the mark of an Awakened. The woman standing with Theodore looked delicate and beautiful. Her somewhat frightened eyes suggested she had heard of Isolet’s infamous reputation.

Princess Isolet Lancaster, who had a one-sided love for the war hero Theodore Herington. This was the second time Theodore had introduced a woman to her.

Isolet briefly glanced at Theodore’s fiancée, who was shorter than herself. The woman flinched at her gaze.

Of course, she was right to be scared, considering the scene Isolet had caused when Theodore brought the first woman.

Isolet recalled that distant, bitter memory.

“You’re going to marry her?”

“Yes, Your Highness. Please don’t be angry.”

“Don’t be angry! When you bring a woman right in front of me!”

That day, Isolet had turned an entire imperial garden into ruins.

Of course, Theodore had to break off the engagement. Who would dare marry someone the princess opposed?

But he never gave up. Despite knowing the princess’s feelings for him, he brought another woman. Flaunting her, an Awakened woman. Even though he knew Isolet was a royal who couldn’t Awaken.

Perhaps that’s why she was even angrier. Among those with royal blood, very few failed to Awaken.

Unfortunately, Isolet showed no signs of power whatsoever. She knew all too well that everyone looked down on her because she hadn’t Awakened even by her coming-of-age ceremony.

And the man she loved most was the cruelest of all.

‘What was the first woman like?’

Isolet narrowed her eyes, recalling the past.

The distant memory bloomed like a dream before quickly fading away.

‘She was an Awakened woman too.’

She couldn’t remember anything else clearly, but that one fact remained vivid.

Every time Theodore brought an Awakened woman before her and announced them as his lover, as his bride-to-be, it felt like someone was squeezing her heart.

The feeling of being betrayed by the one you love most couldn’t be expressed in words.

Perhaps it hurt more that the woman he brought was an “Awakened” rather than the fact that he loved someone else. It felt like the man she thought was her lover was once again proving her “uselessness.”

After countless painful words that turned her inside out, she learned for the first time that even without speaking, he could hurt her this deeply.

‘But now it doesn’t hurt anymore.’

She decided not to be swept away by emotions anymore. The love she had harbored had withered miserably without bearing any fruit.

Unlike before, Isolet quietly smiled. Theodore’s eyes widened slightly in surprise at her smile.

“What’s your name?”

Isolet asked the woman in a calm voice.

The woman looked at Theodore nervously. When he nodded slightly, she finally spoke.

“Solia Florian, Your Highness.”

“Oh my, your name is similar to mine?”

‘A woman with a similar name. I remember now.’ Isolet barely held back her laughter at this petty cruelty.

Similar in name and appearance, with just one difference…

‘She’s an Awakened.’

It was as if he was mocking Isolet for failing to Awaken.

She looked at Theodore one last time and smiled brightly.

“Congratulations, Theo.”

“Pardon?”

He blinked, seemingly caught off guard.

“I said congratulations. You’ll be an enviable couple.”

A confused Theodore touched his collar, a habitual gesture when he was anxious or concerned about something.

What was he anxious about? She was gracefully stepping aside.

Isolet turned away without regret. Theodore’s stunned expression seemed somewhat unfamiliar, but her resolve remained unchanged.

Her determination from a few days ago—to no longer cling to him. She had already died once and came back to life. She didn’t want to repeat past failures.

Isolet had already drawn a different future.

‘This ends our connection, Theodore.’

She had made up her mind. To join the military.

She no longer wanted him.

So she sincerely wished for Theodore and Solia’s happiness.

* * *

Looking back, the things you truly want are never easily given.

In the end, Isolet had never once obtained what she desperately desired. Despite having the noble blue blood of royalty, heaven’s special power never manifested in her, even into adulthood.

Throughout her entire previous life, she had never wanted anything so desperately.

“Isn’t Princess Isolet the only one whose abilities didn’t manifest even after becoming an adult?”

“His Majesty must be very troubled.”

“Some even call her the disgrace of the royal family.”

“That’s not wrong.”

Amidst the countless words surrounding her, Isolet slowly died inside.

That’s when she realized that people could indeed die from words.

So she turned her attention elsewhere. She couldn’t keep clinging to a heaven that refused to grant her abilities.

“Did you see him? Theodore Herington, they say. The man who led the western region war to victory.”

“My goodness. I heard he’s a commoner.”

“What are you saying! He’s the youngest Awakened, they say.”

“No wonder.”

In the spring of her fifteenth year, love came to her.

At twenty-two, looking like a proper adult, he completely captivated Isolet’s gaze.

It was the first time she had wanted something—someone—other than Awakening. His silver hair, unique to Awakeners, and green eyes that seemed to capture the verdant forests of the Rudan Mountains appeared dazzlingly beautiful to her.

Perhaps it was because he possessed the power she lacked. Isolet quickly fell for him.

In truth, he was a man with nothing but the title of “war hero.” There were also many strange aspects to how he had earned that honor. A man whose status and position didn’t match hers at all. But what was it about him that she liked so much?

Isolet tapped her fingers rhythmically on the table as she pictured her past self. The regular sound seemed to bring stability to her mind. She quickly cleared away thoughts of the past.

She made strange expressions while looking at the mirror in front of her. It was an odd feeling. Just being alive.

‘I definitely died, so how did I come back?’

A youthful face stared back at her. Her young appearance felt awkward.

On her twenty-fifth birthday, she had definitely been on the scaffold.

Even then, she remained unawakened, and Theodore was her only joy in life. Until he tried to take his own life in front of her.

That incident caused her downfall.

Useless princess. Villainess of the century. Such epithets followed her. That’s why no one mourned her death.

“But how did I come back?”

She touched around her neck. It felt eerie, as if she could still feel the cold blade against her skin.

Quite some time had passed since she had traveled back in time, but Isolet still couldn’t believe it.

Now that she was back, she decided to live a new life. Of course, she wouldn’t repeat the foolish mistakes of the past. But…

‘Could it be because of the time reversal?’

Isolet sat quietly, looking at her hands. Something strange had happened to her right after her return.

‘It was definitely the power of Awakening.’

She was more sensitive to that energy than anyone else. After all, it was the power she had longed for most. So she could tell more quickly. That a change had occurred within her.

‘It shouldn’t be possible…’

Right after returning, she noticed something strange happening to her body. Sitting in front of the mirror, she still couldn’t believe her eyes.

‘My hair color still hasn’t changed…’

But it was clear. The power manifesting in her was the “Awakened ability.” And not just any ability—a rare and precious one that had never appeared in anyone before.

‘Is it because I died once?’

Isolet clenched her fist. She would need to conduct a few experiments, but she had decided to accept it now. This was definitely an Awakening. The very thing she had desperately wanted before.