Without speaking, they could feel everything, and the silent moments were more precious for engraving each other’s traces in their hearts.

When they could no longer delay getting up, they rose.

Charte gave her gift-like kisses on her forehead, eyes, nose, cheeks, and finally lips.

Neither she who was leaving the room, nor Charte who remained inside, said goodbye.

Returning to the empress’s palace, she made simple preparations and moved to the banquet hall.

Gardio and the assistant mage were preparing the magic circle, and Ivester and Whyman greeted her when they saw her.

“You’ve arrived, Your Majesty the Empress!”

They were the perfect people to see off someone departing and welcome someone returning.

“Yun-ah, isn’t His Majesty the Emperor coming?”

“I asked him not to come. I felt I wouldn’t be able to leave.”

Prime Minister Whyman silently patted her shoulder.

Gardio approached, wiping his sweat, knelt, and greeted her.

“All preparations are complete. We will proceed when the moon shines brightest.”

“Thank you for your hard work. I won’t forget this favor.”

The moon was gradually becoming fuller, proudly emitting its bright light.

“It’s time. Please prepare, Your Majesty the Empress.”

Following the assistant mage’s guidance, she stood in the diamond drawn in the center of the magic circle.

Gardio gave her a signal with his eyes and began to chant a spell.

Endless words she couldn’t understand at all kept coming, and Gardio was sweating with a strained expression.

And from some point, her consciousness gradually began to fade.

Finally, a bright light exploded, and everything turned to darkness.

When she opened her eyes, the white ceiling of a hospital came into view.

* * *

The door to the banquet hall in the empress’s palace burst open.

Charte, who had run until he was out of breath, ignoring the gazes around him, looked around.

The moment he confirmed the empty banquet hall, Charte’s expression changed to one of disbelief, his knees buckled, and he collapsed.

At the emperor’s grief-stricken face, which no one had ever seen before, the knights and maids around him, not knowing what was happening, felt their hearts ache and their mood turn strange, and tears flowed involuntarily.

Rad hurriedly closed the banquet hall door to leave Charte alone.

Left alone, Charte called her name softly with a sorrowful heart.

“Yun-ah…… Yun-ah…… Yun-ah…… my Yun-ah……”

‘If only I could turn back time, I would have stopped her somehow. Why did I make such a foolish choice? Why am I so stupid?’

Left alone, Charte felt he couldn’t live without Yun-ah.

He directed his anger at himself, furious at his own foolishness for weakly letting Yun-ah go.

The only thing Charte could do now was to direct his anger at himself for losing Yun-ah.

Charte tormented and abused himself.

He could neither accept nor endure the fact that Yun-ah was gone.

Even if he had lost the entire empire, he wouldn’t have felt like this.

The sense of loss from Yun-ah’s disappearance couldn’t be filled with anything.

Charte sat on the banquet hall floor with a dazed face until the darkness that had swallowed Yun-ah disappeared and bright light rose.

No one knew exactly why their emperor had such a devastated face in the empress’s palace banquet hall.

However, unable to just keep watching, Rad quietly approached him.

“Your Majesty the Emperor, let’s return now.”

But Charte, who had lost his senses, showed no reaction.

“I will escort you to Her Majesty the Empress’s room.”

At the word “empress,” Charte’s eyes moved for a moment, but soon his face became more pained and he collapsed.

Rad quietly signaled, and knights who received the order came in and lifted Charte.

Charte pushed away the knights supporting him and began to walk with drooping shoulders and dragging steps.

Entering the room, Catano and the Grand Chamberlain looked at Charte with worried faces.

“I want to be alone.”

Charte lay down on the bed as if collapsing, with a face that seemed to have lost its soul.

Hot streams flowed down from behind the arm he raised to cover his eyes.

The memory of their parting came to mind.

While many people were troubled by the emperor’s room, which had been blocked for days, Leila appeared.

* * *

Leila, who had woken from sleep, found a letter left by Yun-ah in the room.

Leila picked up the thick letter and sat in a comfortable chair to read through them.

There was a detailed explanation of the situation after Leila and Yun-ah had switched, what she had done during that time, and what she was trying to promote.

In particular, there was a request that Leila complete the work being promoted for commoners and the poor.

Yun-ah’s affection for the Oneroad Empire was clearly felt, which gave Leila a somewhat strange feeling.

‘She seems to like the empire more than me, who was born and raised here. I should grant this much of a request.’

Up to this point, she had been reading the letter without much thought, judging that there was no major problem, but her expression became awkward when she read the final postscript.

[I’m sorry for asking so much already, but let me make one last request.

If Charte is still suffering when you’re reading this letter, please hug him once for me.

And please tell him these words.

I’m sorry for only asking favors until the end.

As I’ve said before, I was so happy to meet someone I love in the empire thanks to you, Leila.

I pray that blessings will fill the rest of your life.

Leila, who gave me such a great gift, thank you once again.]

Leila sighed and got up to call Judith, instructing her to find out the atmosphere in the emperor’s palace.

“Actually, there’s already been a request from the emperor’s palace asking if you could visit once. They say he hasn’t eaten anything and hasn’t come out of his room for days.”

Leila had gone straight to the imperial library upon returning to the empire and stayed there for days without leaving.

She took short naps on the library chair and had her meals there as well.

The situation was incomprehensible to the empress’s palace as well, so Judith hadn’t been able to report until now.

After coming out of the library after several days, Leila instructed to bring a few books, then bathed, ate, and slept well before reading the letter.

“I should get ready and go to the emperor’s palace.”

When Leila appeared at the emperor’s palace, the faces of those standing anxiously in front of the door brightened.

“Your Majesty the Empress?!”

“Open the door.”

The door opened, and Leila entered.

The people who had been worrying about Charte from outside finally smiled.

Entering the room, Leila quietly observed Charte, who was lying on the bed in a daze.

‘Was it this serious?’

There was no trace of the vitality that a living person should have in the current Charte.

She felt pity seeing him like this, even though she had no affection for him—rather, she had hated him because of the marriage.

It was shocking to see the arrogant emperor so broken.

This was clearly different from that time with Yasrin.

It would be better if he got angry like then, but seeing him like this, as if he were about to die, hurt her heart just by looking at him.

She felt guilty enough to regret what she had done.

She only thought she was wronged, having to live an unwanted life, but it seemed too many victims had been created because of her, which made her feel uneasy.

Leila quietly exhaled and went to the window, pulling back all the curtains, allowing warm sunlight to shine into the room that had been consumed by darkness.

Charte frowned as if the light hurt his eyes and turned his gaze toward the window.

Only a silhouette was visible due to the backlight, but he could tell.

Charte got up with a surprised expression, approached, and called her name.

“Yun-ah? Yun-ah? Have you come back?”

As Charte came closer, he saw Leila’s cold eyes and stopped in his tracks, dropping his head in disappointment.

At that moment, Leila embraced Charte’s waist and whispered affectionately.

“You can’t go back to your old twisted ways just because I’m gone. You’ve grown into a better person thanks to you. So I’ll live well even after I leave. I think I’ve had a good influence on you too, helping you become a better person, right? I’m not mistaken, am I? Show me that our love has made you grow. Charte, I sincerely hope you live happily, loving many people.”

Charte stood still, unable to do anything.

After finishing her words, Leila pulled away and said,

“This is Yun-ah’s message.”

Tears fell from Charte’s eyes.

Seeing this, Leila’s eyes shone meaningfully as she spoke.

“Your Majesty the Emperor, I have something to tell you.”

* * *

When she opened her eyes, she was in a regular hospital room, and her body felt lighter, as if she had recovered significantly.

At that moment, her mom came in, caressed her face, and said,

“Are you awake? Is there anything you want to eat? You’re being discharged tomorrow, so I’ll go prepare some side dishes.”

“I’m being discharged tomorrow?”

At this thoughtless question, a momentary anxiety crossed her mom’s face.

“You still can’t remember?”

“Huh?”

“Are you not feeling well somewhere? They said your memory would soon return, that it was temporary. But if you can’t remember what happened after waking up, isn’t that a problem? I should bring the doctor.”

It was clear that Leila, who knew nothing about her life, had been diagnosed with memory loss.

“It’s not that. I just woke up and feel a bit dazed.”

Seeing her mom’s relieved face made her feel sorry.

Recalling how she had been distressed about not wanting to return to the empire while her mom had been worrying like this, she felt like a truly unfilial daughter.

“Mom, you’ve been through a lot because of me, haven’t you? I’m really sorry. I’ll be a good daughter from now on. And I’m really fine now, so please don’t worry about anything.”

Then she held her mom’s hand tightly, and her mom began to cry.

“Mom is just grateful that you woke up. Don’t try too hard to do better. It’s a miracle that my daughter overcame everything and returned to our family.”

Her mom and she hugged each other and cried for a long time.

Yun-seo, who had arrived after work, joined them in crying as she embraced her crying mom and sister.

Finally, her dad arrived and was seen discreetly wiping away tears as he watched the three women from a distance.

“Is there anything you want to eat? Mom will make anything for you.”

“Anything you make is fine, Mom. I want to eat everything you make.”

Seeing her parents willing to do anything for her made her want to act spoiled.

“Of course. I should do everything my daughter wants.”

Her parents left to prepare for her discharge, and Yun-seo stayed by her side.

“Now you really seem like my sister.”

“Huh? What does that mean?”

“Until yesterday, you were a bit scary. Always ordering people around and acting coldly. I thought you had changed personalities after losing your memory and aged ten years, but I’m glad. You’re back to being my original sister.”

Recalling Leila, who had lived as a duke’s daughter, she understood what Yun-seo meant.