Spring at twenty. The weather was beautiful.

And on days like this,

“My lady?”

It was perfect for causing trouble.

“Haah…”

Sezlin closed the door, gasping for breath. Avoiding the knights had been so difficult. In front of her, as she barely caught her breath, stood a tall man.

The man she had met for a matchmaking today.

Perhaps he had just showered… there was a faint scent of perfumed oil nearby. Sezlin unconsciously swallowed. When she raised her head, she saw cool eyes.

“Lady Brioden.”

Their eyes met.

“What brings you here?”

At those words, Sezlin gathered her scattered plans. Originally, she should have been quietly asleep in the guest room of the main palace. And tomorrow morning, she should have returned to the mansion without gaining anything.

But Sezlin had no intention of returning quietly.

‘I can’t go back like this.’

It was a miraculous regression.

To prevent the same tragedy from happening again, she had to make this marriage happen. The First Prince standing before her was the key. If this marriage succeeded, she could bring her enemy, the Second Prince, to ruin.

Taking a deep breath, Sezlin faced the man standing askew before her. Earlier, he had at least shown some courtesy. Now, there was a sharp atmosphere, as if looking at an intruder.

But after coming all this way, she couldn’t back down so easily.

“Please marry me.”

“…I don’t think I bathed in wine.”

The First Prince of the Azelan Empire, Ludwig, moved his lips. Lowering his gaze calmly, he looked at Sezlin.

“If you marry me, I’ll give you the position you want.”

“My lady.”

Ludwig took a step forward.

“Do you understand what you’re saying?”

“Yes.”

Of course she did. The problem was that she understood it too clearly.

“I don’t need the support of House Brioden.”

“No. I’m not talking about my family.”

Ludwig’s eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“The Second Prince.”

“…”

“I’ll kill him for you.”

That would make the First Prince the heir to the throne.

Therefore,

“Please marry me.”

“You’ve already said that.”

Ludwig frowned. His eyes said, ‘did you come all this way just to say such a thing?’

But despite this cold response, Sezlin raised the corners of her mouth.

She hadn’t entered this lion’s den without preparation.

“I’ll make you Emperor.”

“…Ha!”

With a scoff, Ludwig reached out his hand. Soft hair was buried in his callused hand.

“You say amusing things, princess.”

After laughing for a while, he suddenly moved. The already close distance narrowed until there was barely room for a sheet of paper between them. As the unique scent of perfumed oil wafted over, Sezlin held her breath. The inside of her thighs stiffened with tension. Without taking his eyes off her, Ludwig reached out.

As Sezlin stepped back from what seemed like a half-embrace, Ludwig grabbed the handle behind her.

“Why.”

As if she hadn’t expected this, the corners of his mouth curved playfully.

“If you were planning to propose in the middle of the night, coming directly into my room,”

Click.

“You should have been prepared for this much.”

The door locked.

***

Winter at twenty-seven.

Her sister died.

“…”

Sezlin lowered her gaze, moving her lips. On her usually empty hands were ordinary, rough funeral gloves.

For her, who had always been allowed only shabby clothes, even this design seemed luxurious.

And only when she had to appear before others. Only then could Sezlin wear clothes that made her feel human.

But it wasn’t a situation to be happy about wearing nice clothes.

“Sezlin Brioden.”

Today was the funeral of April Brioden, the second daughter of the Duke’s family and Sezlin’s half-sister.

Recalling the chrysanthemum she had touched earlier, Sezlin raised her head again. On a night with a dim moon, the Duke, standing with his back to the window, spoke to his daughter.

“You cruel thing.”

“…”

“You killed April.”

At those words, Sezlin quietly smiled. So that’s what he called her for.

Sezlin forcibly swallowed the sneer that was about to emerge.

Such a consistent reaction.

“If you hadn’t done those crazy things with the Second Prince, April wouldn’t have died.”

“…”

“No. Perhaps if you had accepted April as family from the beginning, this disaster might not have happened.”

His voice grew increasingly agitated. However, the daggers the Duke spat were nothing. She
had heard such words countless times. After all, Sezlin was an abandoned child. She had grown up in complete neglect, to the extent that no one knew she had worn only shabby clothes or been confined to her room.

“Because of you, my daughter…!”

“Yes, she died.”

She was tired of making excuses. No one would believe her anyway. At first, she had been angry, but now all that remained was detachment.

When Sezlin calmly stated this fact, the Duke looked surprised instead.

“What, what?”

“I killed her. April.”

‘Satisfied?’

As if she had said all she needed to say, Sezlin smiled thinly and tilted her head. After all, that was what the Duke, her father, wanted to hear. And Sezlin had experienced such situations many times.

She had known how the Duke felt about her for a very long time. So what he wanted to hear was limited.

‘Poor April.’

For the first time, Sezlin pitied her half-sister. Rising from commoner to nobility. Of course, it was a dream everyone had, but in April’s case, it was a bit different. Such a tragic ending was a first.

“You want to believe that I killed her. Father.”

The Duke wouldn’t believe her anyway.

“What’s the point of cherishing her so much? In the end, we all die and get sealed in a coffin the same way.”

“Sezlin!”

The Duke raised his voice as if he couldn’t bear to listen anymore. His eyes, which had been gentle only toward April, quickly sharpened like those of a wild beast.

“You’re angry at me because it’s April who died. No matter how she died, you have me to blame it on!”

Her calm voice gradually filled with rage. It felt like something was stuck in her throat.

Displeased by this foreign feeling, Sezlin vented her anger, following her father’s lead.

All her efforts to be loved had been in vain.

“I won’t stop you anymore, Father.”

Ah, now she could see everything clearly.

That April had lived a life as unhappy as her own. Today, for the first time in her life, Sezlin acknowledged this fact.

Something simple but incredibly difficult.

And like a lie, her heart became peaceful.

As if nothing had happened.

“It doesn’t matter anymore, so blame me all you want.”

That would be better than trying to console him not to be sad. Blinking her eyelids slowly, Sezlin silently looked at her father.

On the face that was usually praised for its dignity, only contempt remained.

Well, when had that face ever shown any light? Feeling strangely nostalgic, Sezlin chuckled and turned her back.

‘Well. This is probably the end of my stay here.’

She wouldn’t be in this mansion from tomorrow.

“You’ve heard what you wanted to hear, so I’ll take my leave now.”

The black dress hem was leisurely lifted. Perhaps this would be the last greeting. Bowing her head, Sezlin decided to release all her remaining emotions here.

Afterward, the Duke’s resentment continued to fly at her, but Sezlin left the room with an indifferent face.

However, her pale lips trembled like an aspen leaf.

“Let’s go.”

“…Yes, miss.”

The maid waiting for Sezlin bowed her head obediently. But her voice seemed to be
suppressing something. Anger. Yes, that was definitely anger.

It was contempt for the cruel master who had driven her kind and gentle mistress to her death.

And it continued all the way back to the room.

“I’m sick of this.”

Upon returning to her room, as soon as the door closed, Sezlin threw off the cumbersome gloves. After removing the brooch from her chest, Sezlin looked down at it.

It was a pearl brooch that April had given her before becoming the Prince’s consort. The day before entering the imperial palace, April had apologized until the end, saying she was sorry, but she never returned alive.

Sezlin raised her hand high, holding the brooch. But she couldn’t bring herself to throw the brooch to the ground.

Her trembling arm soon subsided.

“Hic.”

She hadn’t disliked her sister from the beginning. After losing her mother to illness, when her father suddenly brought in a new mother, Sezlin hadn’t been at odds with April. Rather, she had been among those who liked her.

But seeing her sister receive the love that was denied to her, seeing how everyone’s attitude changed like melting snow in front of her sister, drove Sezlin into an abyss.

—Lady April is so kind. I heard she donated all her personal wealth last time.

—That’s right. But her sister, Lady Sezlin, at the last salon…

People liked April, who was lovely and pretty. She was someone who received love and knew how to give it wholeheartedly. Because of this, the maids treated her like a person in front of the Duke, but behind his back, they subjected her to merciless violence and ab*se.

—Is it okay to hit her like this? If the Duke finds out…

—Who cares? She’s abandoned anyway. The Duke would probably be happy about it.

Starting with not bringing her food, the employees, including the maids, tormented Sezlin as if disciplining her. Secretly tearing her dresses was common, and they even pocketed the accessories she was supposed to wear when going out.

Since Sezlin was also a noble lady, she occasionally had tea party appointments, but the maids deliberately put her in difficult situations. And instead of her, they sent April to the tea parties.

—You shouldn’t get upset so freely when you’re angry, miss. That’s not ladylike.

—That’s right. You should be elegant and smile even to those beneath you, like Lady April.

Every time, April would tell her about the parties or give her dresses as gifts, saying she bought an extra one because she liked it.

Of course, the more April showed kindness to her, the more the maids endlessly compared the two. They disparaged Sezlin as a lady who even begged from her sister, a noble lady relegated to the back room.

Because of this, Sezlin gradually grew resentful of her younger sister.

So she distanced herself and pushed April away with harsh words.

Being together was more painful.

Then, some time later, when April announced her engagement to the Second Prince whom she had been secretly in love with, Sezlin finally exploded.

Not only did she oppose the marriage, but she also spread rumors that April had been having an affair with the Second Prince.

But the rumors grew uncontrollably, leading to speculation that the two had spent the night together.

She wanted to correct it somehow, but her sister had already married. Even though she wanted to visit her, the Duke opposed it. Moreover, Sezlin was even placed under house arrest due to the series of events.

After seven years, the place where she met her sister again was none other than the funeral.

“Ha, haha…!”

Laughing, Sezlin looked in the mirror. An emaciated woman stood there stupidly. Her once radiant platinum blonde hair and sea-blue eyes had lost their color.

“D*mn it.”

Ceasing her laughter, Sezlin immediately headed to the bed. Sitting on it, she put down the brooch as if throwing it. Then she took out a box hidden behind the pillow.

Slowly opening the lid, inside was a single letter. It was the letter April had secretly sent via messenger bird the day before she died.

However, the truth written inside instantly shattered Sezlin.

<I’m so glad you didn’t marry this person, sister.>

<Escape if you can,>

<He’s conducting terrible experiments. This isn’t ab*se… it’s t*rture.>

The Second Prince’s evil deeds.

All the t*rture she had endured.

Also, the reason why she had pushed for this marriage, knowing Sezlin would hate it.

<I hope you don’t get hurt, sister.>

“Ha!”

At first, she thought it was a lie.

She thought it was nonsense to deceive her, to provoke her. Despite the true intentions, Sezlin, with her narrowed vision, couldn’t see anything.

The result was today.

April’s death.

“Aaaargh! Argh!”

Clutching the letter as if to tear it, Sezlin also tore at her own hair. The pain of her scalp being
pulled didn’t register. Having lost her reason, Sezlin wailed without even shedding tears.

She realized the letter was true when she placed the chrysanthemum at the funeral. Beneath the peacefully sleeping face, Sezlin carefully lifted the burial clothes.

Injection marks and various bruises.

It was exactly as described in the letter. Moreover, the decisive factor was the Second Prince’s attitude. Despite his wife dying after seven years of marriage, the Second Prince was the first to leave the funeral.

Behind the plausible excuse that he couldn’t bear the sadness, Sezlin followed him.

No, she should have never gone.

—You failed. If it was painful enough for her to die on her own, you should have told me
beforehand. I just lost a valuable test subject.

At the Second Prince’s words, his closest aide bowed his head.

—I’m sorry, Your Highness. Next time, I will definitely…

—Ha, d*mn. If it had been Lady Sezlin, she would have lasted longer.

The Second Prince bit his lip and said.

—For now, find a sturdy replacement. We don’t have much time. I need to kill my brother soon.

To kill the First Prince who was aiming for the Crown Prince position, the Second Prince quickly ordered to find another replacement.

‘D*mn it.’

April’s words were true. Also, she knew the Second Prince’s true nature. That’s why she
endured the pain that should have been Sezlin’s.

For the foolish reason that she didn’t want her to get hurt.

“Hic.”

Guilt. Regret. Confusion. All sorts of emotions swirled.

But the end was clear.

Revenge against the Second Prince.

Sezlin collapsed onto the bed. Even breathing was difficult.

“Friedrich.”

Friedrich de Azelan.

The person who killed April for his own greed.

Biting her lip until it bled, Sezlin tightly closed her eyes. Perhaps due to the consecutive shocks, her consciousness gradually faded. A terrible drowsiness came over her.

In her fading consciousness, Sezlin gritted her teeth. Blinded by others’ gazes, she had failed to
see what was around her. Sezlin deeply regretted this fact.

If.

If really…

If given another chance,

“April.”

Calling her departed sister’s name in vain, Sezlin surrendered to deep sleep.

But shortly after.

“…”

Unable to bear the bright sunlight, Sezlin opened her eyes. Her blurred vision gradually brightened.

But something was strange.

For someone who had fallen asleep exhausted from crying, her mind was remarkably clear. Her body also felt unusually light.

Looking at the room brightened by sunlight, Sezlin gasped lightly.

‘This is strange.’

Sezlin immediately got up from the bed. Forcing strength into her legs, she hurriedly stood in front of the mirror.

A maid who had entered the room was startled at the sight of her.

“M-Miss?”

Despite the maid’s call, Sezlin blankly examined herself.

Platinum blonde hair and blue eyes like her mother’s.

A slightly younger woman than yesterday, just coming of age, stood there stupidly.

“What is this…”

No matter how she looked, the youthful appearance was evident.

Sezlin slowly reached out her hand. Her fingertips touched the cold mirror surface. At the same time, a sharp shout was heard.

“Sezlin!”

The Duke, standing at the door, was fuming.

“Don’t tell me you forgot about your matchmaking with the First Prince today…!”

‘Matchmaking?’

Sezlin frowned. Matchmaking with the First Prince?

That happened several years ago…

“!”

Her lips parted.

Like someone possessed, Sezlin hurriedly went to the desk. Ignoring the Duke’s shouts, she checked the calendar.

<Azelan Year 1482, May>

“Ha!”

She had returned.

Seven years before April’s death.

“Impossible.”

To the time when everything began.