Episode 3
Anastasia stared at the woman in the mirror—
The woman was moving her lips and speaking naturally, and it made Anastasia even more confused.
Just as she was panicking, someone knocked on the door.
She quickly looked around and noticed a small bell on the side table.
When she rang it, a maid came in.
“Young Lady, here is your water for washing.”
The maid walked over with a bowl and a towel and placed them by the bed.
After doing her job, she bowed slightly and started to leave.
But Anastasia grabbed the maid’s arm.
“D-Do you need something else…?”
The maid blinked in surprise at being suddenly stopped.
Anastasia almost spoke out loud, but stopped herself and grabbed a notebook from the other table.
Using the pen attached to it, she quickly wrote:
[What day is it today?]
She worried the handwriting might look wrong—but luckily, Briana’s body made it look natural.
However, the maid looked confused when she read the note.
Oh… does she not know how to read? Anastasia wondered.
Just then, the maid answered, “Today is the 15th day of the last winter month (February).”
Anastasia quickly wrote again:
[What year is it in the Empire’s calendar?]
The maid replied, “It’s the year 1038.”
Anastasia fell back onto the bed in shock.
Year 1038… that means today is the day after my execution.
What is going on?
While she was deep in thought, the maid asked worriedly, “Is something wrong, Young Lady?”
Anastasia shook her head and wrote:
[No, you can go now.]
The maid bowed politely and left the room.
Left alone, Anastasia began pacing around the room.
What in the world is happening?
Eventually, she stopped at a desk in the corner.
There, neatly placed, was a notebook she recognized.
“This is…”
It was a gift Anastasia had given Briana when she officially became her maid.
She had told her to write down anything she wanted.
Anastasia sat down and opened it.
On the first page, written in Briana’s neat handwriting, it said:
[I found out about my father’s betrayal. And that it might hurt her instead. What should I do?]
The date seemed to match the time Briana had asked to learn how to say “I’m sorry.”
As Anastasia flipped through the pages, she could feel Briana’s pain and confusion.
Her guilt, her self-hate—how she tried but couldn’t fix anything.
And then this line stood out:
[If I could take on the pain she is suffering… That person, unlike me, shines even in the darkest places.]
[I wish I were the one to die instead of her.]
After Anastasia was imprisoned, Briana had written this again and again.
Each word was written with so much care and sincerity.
Anastasia suddenly remembered Briana’s face on the day of the execution—
Her face was ruined from crying so much, yet she kept crying.
“I’m sorry.”
She had kept moving her lips to say that over and over again.
When Anastasia turned to the next page, she saw something else:
[I sold all my jewelry and used the money to retrieve her body.]
[I washed her for the last time. Even after cleaning the blood, the scars remained.]
[If there were that many wounds outside, how many more were there inside her heart?]
[I dressed her in the prettiest clothes and buried her near her family.]
[Thankfully, a loyal butler secretly took care of her burial so she could rest near them.]
The mention of the butler brought tears to Anastasia’s eyes.
“David…”
He had worked for her family since before she was born.
A loyal butler and a wise teacher to both her and her father.
Knowing he didn’t abandon them even at the end made her heart swell.
[I dug her grave with my own hands.]
[This was all I could do for her. I hope she can rest in peace now.]
As Anastasia read those words, she noticed her hands were bruised and scratched.
Finally, she read the last sentence in the notebook:
[My life no longer has any meaning.]
That was the final line.
From this, Anastasia guessed—Briana had taken her own life the night before.
“Oh, Briana…”
As she read every line, she could feel Briana’s honest and loving heart.
Now Anastasia understood—
Her body had died, but her soul had lived on, inside Briana’s body.
[I wish I were the one to die instead.]
That foolish but desperate wish… had somehow come true.
Anastasia hugged the notebook tightly and cried in silence.
“I won’t waste this chance your wish gave me.”
With that firm promise, she placed the notebook carefully in the bottom drawer of the desk.
Just as she closed the drawer—
BANG! The door burst open.
Anastasia flinched and frowned.
A middle-aged woman entered and looked around the room.
When she spotted Anastasia, she marched over.
“What is this mess?”
She stood tall in front of Anastasia, who had knelt.
Anastasia remembered—this was Rosa, Briana’s old nanny.
“It’s already morning. Why are you still being lazy?”
Her tone wasn’t something you’d use when speaking to a lady you serve.
Anastasia suddenly remembered how Briana used to shrink away from her nanny.
So I wasn’t wrong…
Even if she didn’t know everything, it was now clear—
Briana had suffered from Rosa’s abuse for a long time.
When Anastasia didn’t respond, Rosa crossed her arms.
“Don’t tell me you were crying over that foolish woman who was executed?”
Anastasia glared sharply at Rosa for her mocking words.
Rosa flinched slightly—surprised at the sudden reaction.
But only for a moment.
Rosa walked away and came back holding something.
“Your father said that if you start acting like a fool over that dead woman again, I should punish you.”
