Chapter 1: God’s Will (2)

The crown prince Victor ascended the throne as emperor, and I naturally assumed the position of empress.

It still feels surreal. Though I am now called the empress, I remain by Victor’s side, just as I always have, serving as his trophy.

The sky, heavy with dark clouds, seemed ready to pour rain at any moment. It seems that even the grand palace could not escape the dampness and faint smell of mold.

“Father, it looks like it will rain soon.”

My words, spoken to no one in particular, faded away into nothingness. Leaning against the bedroom window, I looked outside. My father had promised to visit once a month, yet there had been no sign of him this month.

I took out the butterfly brooch my father had given me when I was a young lady. I would touch it whenever I missed my family home, but it had already grown yellowed from age.

Closing my eyes, I tried to recall my days as a duke’s daughter. Though it was only a year ago, it felt like a distant past.

“…What’s that?”

My vacant gaze shifted to the window. Dark clouds seemed to be forming above the empress’s pond. Several servants gathered around the pond, looking up at the sky at the eerie sight.

“Your Majesty, your meal is ready.”

A maid entered with a tray. Thanks to Victor’s care, the food had become more luxurious than before. But now was not the time to be tearing at breadcrumbs.

“I need to go to the empress’s pond.”

“But it will start raining soon. If you go out, you might get wet.”

“I’ll only be there for a moment.”

The maids supported me as I made my way to the Empress’s pond. The pond was the place where the old emperor, now deceased, had longed for his departed empress and taken his final nap.

I saw a familiar figure standing by the pond. His red hair, like autumn leaves, was blown about by the strong late-fall wind.

“Victor!”

I called out his name, but there was no response. As I tried to approach him, a sudden downpour drenched us.

The maids held me as I struggled to keep my eyes open against the fierce rain and wind.

Then, in an instant, the dark clouds dispersed like a curtain being drawn, and a warm beam of sunlight shone down on the Empress’s pond. Everyone was entranced by the strange sight, looking up at the sky in wonder.

“Someone is descending from the sky!”

Did someone speak first? Amidst the fierce rain and wind, a white ankle appeared, descending on a beam of sunlight.

A young girl, whom I had never seen before, floated down on the beam, her jet-black hair waving in the wind. She wore a radiant blue necklace around her neck, and her face was filled with fear as she descended toward the pond below.

Someone reached out a hand toward the girl, none other than Victor. I wanted to ask him why he was there, but I couldn’t even get close.

As the girl from the sky safely landed in Victor’s arms, the storm suddenly stopped, as if by magic.

“She’s a saint, a saint of prophecy!”

“A saint! The real saint has descended from the sky!”

The girl’s jet-black hair hung long down her back, creating a picturesque scene against the gently rippling Empress’s pond and the two figures. Watching them from a distance, a heavy, constricting sensation filled my chest.

“If that girl is the true saint…”

Before I could even revel in my sorrow, the cold stares of the onlookers pierced me like arrows.
One month and ten days have passed since I calmly relinquished the title of saint.

Eventually, the central temple acknowledged the belated error in the prophecy, and the black-haired saint Sua took my place as empress. The misaligned gears began to turn smoothly again.

“Why are you staring at me with contempt?”

She was a person with a very sensitive and jealous disposition. She would cry endlessly like a newborn and cause chaos, while on quieter days she would waste time indulging in luxury.

“…I’m sorry if it seemed that way.”

If someone were to ask why I stayed in the palace even after giving up the title of saint, the reason would be because of Sua. I heard she pleaded with Victor not to send me back to the dukedom just yet because she was lonely staying in the palace alone and wanted me to stay until she became accustomed to life in the palace.

“If I’m around you, I’ll die of frustration. Haven’t you ever been told you’re exasperating?”

“…I’m sorry. I’ll try to improve.”

To keep me in the palace, having held the position of empress as the saint of the empire, I needed a suitable position. However, following the teachings of the scriptures, the empire upheld monogamy, making it difficult to create a position for me as a concubine.

My status reverted back to being the daughter of a duke, but within the palace, I was unofficially seen as the emperor’s concubine. Yet, despite this label, I couldn’t meet Victor even when I wanted to.

“…Your Highness, if it’s alright with you, may I meet with the emperor alongside you?”

Victor avoided meeting me by saying he was busy with work, but I knew he always made time to spend his evenings with Sua.

“You said you have no feelings for Victor! What would you do if we met together?”

“The empress has already adapted to life in the palace without any issues. If my duties here are complete, I would like to return to the dukedom.”

Three months have passed since I last saw my father. It seemed like he came to the palace upon hearing about the appearance of the true saint, but I couldn’t even see his face because Victor didn’t grant permission.

“You’re really selfish, you know that?”

Selfish? I looked at her with confusion.

“I became the saint in your place, and you couldn’t even stay by my side? Is that too much to ask? I told you; I have no friends or family here! You shouldn’t treat me like this!”

I became the saint in your place?  It was actually the opposite. I had worked so hard to keep this position for you…

And when I had to give up the position again due to the error in the prophecy, I didn’t say a word and quietly relinquished the title of saint.

To someone like me, you…!

Despite trying to hold back the sadness, tears welled up in my eyes. I wanted to argue, to demand an explanation. But all that came out of my dry lips were please.

“Please, please… just stop sending me away now.”

As tears streamed down, Sua,, with her emotionless face, suddenly stood up from her seat.

“Don’t act like you’re the only victim here. I’m the biggest victim. Got it?”

With a malicious grin, she shoved me hard on my left shoulder, causing me to lose my balance and fall to the ground.

In the commotion, the brooch my father had given me rolled across the ground. Frantically, I searched the grass for the brooch.

Before my trembling fingers could touch it, Sua’s firm boot mercilessly stomped down on the brooch without a second thought.

“No, please!”

With one swift motion, the brooch shattered into pieces. Even after she left, I gathered the broken fragments like a desperate animal and wailed for what seemed like an eternity.