“Leave.”

Isolated completely, she no longer sought him out nor spoke his name. Yet, sometimes, her gaze would stray toward the Rose Palace entrance.

She would accept her fate and press on. She would seize the throne. That was her sole remaining goal and duty. Gritting her teeth, she endured. She had to survive here, no matter what.

Still, perhaps she secretly hoped. That he might come for her, take her away from this place. If he entered through that door and reached out his hand, she would abandon everything—her duty, her future—and follow him.

But that hope was a futile fantasy she knew would never come true. Perhaps knowing it was unattainable allowed her to long for it so intensely. Even her wishes were dictated by her circumstances. She could neither laugh nor cry about it; she could only pray for time to pass swiftly.

Nine years have passed since she staked her life on a gamble with her father. One day, the throne was taken from her grasp.

“What?”

She had heard of Rigel’s rapid decline. The frailty of the tyrant’s body surprised and saddened her. How could someone so oppressive crumble so easily? The realization that she had been controlled by such a weak being left her hollow.

Yet, the moment she had waited for was near. Finally, her time to ascend the throne was coming. She anticipated it without remorse. No sorrow remained for the loss of her sole remaining family.

But it didn’t end there. The king, barely able to breathe, suddenly declared his nephew, Xeroth Enar, as his successor.

On that day, the successor became Xeroth von Bailey. And the news eventually reached the ears of Helia Bailey, no longer a mere girl.

Helia sought out the king without hesitation. Rigel, bedridden, welcomed his furious daughter with delight.

“What on earth…?”

“Did you ever trust me?”

Rigel sneered darkly. It wasn’t an expression one would expect from a dying man. It was cruel, vicious. Helia swallowed hard to stop herself from lunging at him.

“I… I could have done so much better.”

“And so?”

“…”

“Do you think I ever cared about the future of this kingdom?”

With a phlegm-filled laugh, Rigel retorted. Helia found herself at a loss for words.

Then what had all those years meant for her? What gave this dying man the right to deny the entirety of someone else’s life? To shatter the future of an entire nation? What right did he have?

“You monster.”

The words slipped from Helia’s lips before she realized it. Her voice echoed sharply in the empty royal chamber.

For a moment, King Rigel seemed surprised, but soon, he let out a savage laugh, his demonic eyes mocking her viciously. Helia’s voice rose in response.

“You’re a monster!”

“That’s right. And you’re the child of a monster.”

It sounded like a curse. Helia clenched her trembling hands into fists and declared with determination,

“I won’t become like you.”

“No, you already are a splendid monster. I’ve won against that old fool.”

“…What?”

“It’s a pity your grandfather couldn’t see how you’ve turned out, just like me.”

Rigel chuckled, coughing intermittently as though short of breath. That repulsive laughter clung to Helia’s ears like a vile echo. She shuddered, trying to shake it off.

“What… what are you saying?”

“Noble being, sanctuary—what utter nonsense. It would’ve been delightful to crush that old man’s delusions.”

“…”

“If he saw what you’ve become now, he’d realize it. Like anyone else, you’re nothing more than an easily broken human being.”

What was this man saying? Did he ruin her life to disprove her grandfather’s belief in her nobility? That he’d turned her into a monster for such a petty reason? That he’d cast her into the relentless darkness without mercy, all for that?

Helia trembled uncontrollably, struggling for breath as if something had seized her chest. Rigel looked at her with satisfaction, laughing gleefully as if relishing the scene.

“Look at your eyes. You want to kill me, don’t you?”

The words startled Helia as if reading her very soul. She stepped back in fear. Rigel seemed overjoyed, as though his long-held desire had finally been fulfilled. His eyes brimmed with perverse ecstasy.

Helia saw a dark, roiling wave in those eyes, one she had always despised. Yet, she wondered—did her own eyes bear the same darkness? Tragically, she couldn’t see the light in her own gaze. She had always believed it was not the same, that at least her eyes didn’t carry that shadow. But was Rigel right? Was she, too, cloaked in black? Had she lived all this time with nothing but the desire to witness his downfall—like a devil?

“You look like you want to strangle me. Go ahead, do it. Surpass me and become an even greater monster!”

Rigel’s eyes widened, darker and more vivid than ever. The shadows in them surged as if to engulf her. Helia turned away as if fleeing. She feared that if she didn’t, she truly would strangle him.

As she fled, Rigel’s mocking laughter chilled her back. Helia ran, but it followed her like the shadow of despair. She clutched her ears, but his laughter echoed inside her head this time. She shut her eyes, and for the first time, the darkness behind her eyelids felt comforting.

“Ha…”

She laughed at her foolishness—how she had never doubted her own light. At last, she could see herself for what she was. She had kept others at arm’s length, believing in her lofty mission, but what had she become? A tyrant, just like her father. The opulent, foolish Helia Bailey. That was all the world saw her as.

Even if she convinced herself it had been for the greater good, it had ultimately been nothing but destructive self-deception.

Ah, have I come this far? Have I reached a point of no return?

Tears welled up unbidden. She didn’t even know why she was crying. Was it for her life? The fate of this nation? The uncertain future? She couldn’t say.

But it didn’t matter. That wasn’t important.

She couldn’t keep walking the path that the monster had laid out. She had to change course somehow to break away even a little. Otherwise, everything she’d worked for would turn to dust, which was exactly what the monster wanted.

“I have to think.”

Helia thought desperately, endlessly. About what she had to do. What she could do. What she wanted to do.

No matter how hopeless the situation, she knew time would move forward. The future would come, and she had to prepare for it.

Her deliberation was brief. She had already ignored countless crossroads to reach this point. Now, she was cornered, left with no options. The only path left before her was a single cliff’s edge.

She no longer wandered aimlessly. She paused now and then, struggling to swallow the weight of it all. She was powerless before the fate that had turned its back on her. She didn’t even have the strength to cry out in defiance.

“Am I truly…?”

The future was a straight and narrow path, and moving forward was her only choice. Though she knew what to do, she felt cast adrift, navigating an ocean of despair alone.

And there, she concluded: she had been utterly abandoned.

And that was the best choice for the future.