Episode 2
A somber voice filtered into her ears, stained with regret.
“I promise. Soon, all of the Nak clan will follow in the footsteps of the deposed queen. The journey won’t be lonely.”
Seong-un, suddenly awake, focused his gaze. His pale face, meeting the glare, was as cold and beautiful as frost.
“Aren’t you satisfied with just my head? Why do you sacrifice the innocent as well?”
“Innocent?”
Heon, his eyebrows furrowed, straightened and turned away. The wind whipped around his collar, biting into her skin.
Well, what was the point of arguing now? He had no family left, and death was the end. To even consider the safety of those left behind… was too exhausting. He hadn’t even considered it in the first place.
“I really drank it badly.”
Seong-un stared blankly down at the glass in his hand, then drank the clear liquid without a second thought. Despite the sweetness that lingered in his mouth, he felt as if every part of his body was burning.
A painless death was also a blessing. Such a death was only granted to those who deserved it.
“The Nak family is not innocent.”
In his gradually blurring vision, the wide back receded. Soon, the entire world sank into the abyss.
Pear blossom petals, flying from nowhere, landed on her cheek. The white petals gradually turned crimson with blood.
It hurts… My throat feels like it’s going to burst.
“Long live His Majesty the Emperor! Long live His Highness the Crown Prince!”
Why was it so noisy around him? His ears were ringing, and his head felt like it was going to split open. Seong-un struggled to regain consciousness, then lifted his heavy eyelids.
As her frown settled into place, the once hazy world brightened. A grand, yet ancient pavilion, flowers embroidered everywhere, officials gathered in groups.
“Eoyeongjeon?”
Seong-un blinked in disbelief, noticing a signboard beneath the dancheong tiles engraved with dragon designs.
Eoyeongjeon was the grand hall of the Jinwol Kingdom. It was the center of the nation, the place where all matters of the court were decided. It was a place she always looked up to.
“How could this be…”
She had clearly consumed poisonous liquor at the execution ground, yet why did she open her eyes in front of Eoyeongjeon? What was this scene, reminiscent of a grand banquet?
“Are you all asleep? I told you to maintain your dignity wherever you go. Why don’t you obey?”
“Father?”
The moment she saw the stern face in the stiff official uniform, a lump formed in her throat. Large tears trickled down her flushed face.
Had the heavens forgiven her? Or perhaps bestowed a final mercy? It was too vivid to be a dream or a fantasy.
“Why are you doing this? Is something uncomfortable… No, I’ll call my doctor.”
His once stern face was stained with embarrassment, and he didn’t know what to do. Jinyeop’s eyes revealed concern as he watched his daughter wiping away tears.
Yes, that was the kind of person he was. He might seem blunt on the outside, but he was always there for me. How many years had I foolishly ignored him and ignored him? He felt regret and guilt for the years he had let slip away, but he couldn’t bring himself to express it.
Seongwoon nodded, his face a bit dazed.
“I’m fine… Are you, Father, okay?”
“What could possibly be wrong with me?”
“Woon, what’s wrong?”
Her head turned again. The sight of his affectionate, yet tender face almost made him want to hug him.
Although he was my adoptive brother, we’d grown up together since childhood, and we were like real siblings. Suppressing his surging emotions, he answered.
“No, it’s nothing. I just feel strange… But what’s going on? Why am I in the palace?”
“It’s the crown prince’s investiture party. His Majesty has invited the families of all the government officials to celebrate the crown prince’s investiture.”
Seong-un couldn’t believe his ears. It was strange enough to wake up in the front yard of the royal palace, but now it’s the crown prince’s investiture party. It had to have been years ago?
“Really, the crown prince’s investiture party?”
“Huh? You kept dozing off and forgot about it?”
“Did you stay up all night reading that old novel again? I told you it would hurt you.”
His father’s reprimand, as he clicked his tongue, was strangely pleasing to hear.
Was I dreaming
The experiences she had after entering the palace at the age of twenty were too vivid to be a dream, too vivid to be a hallucination.
She would not hesitate to use any means necessary to make her husband, who was far from the throne, the crown prince. Even when everyone called her crazy, she refused to stop her evil deeds.
She longed to become the master of the palace. She dreamed of ascending to the highest position, a life revered by all. A sky beyond the clouds. She aspired to become a sky unreachable.
But her life, filled with nothing but desire, was destroyed by another powerful figure. The actions she committed to achieve her goal ultimately became karmic retribution.
“Those events can’t all be lies. They’re too vivid.”
Before she opened her eyes here, and even now, her senses were just as vivid. Seong-woon finally gave up trying to discern which was the dream.
“Now that you’re all grown up, you should learn to take care of yourself.”
The sight of her affectionate father felt strange and distant, yet fresh and welcome.
In my past life, blinded by power, I turned my back on my family. I didn’t consider blood relatives particularly important, so I had no regrets when I abandoned them.
But as I faced death, I desperately missed my father’s love and my brother’s affection. I realized too late what was truly precious.
I’ll keep that in mind, Father
Seong-un had to fight back tears at the sound of his father’s voice.
He regretted the days he’d neglected his family and sacrificed innocents. He longed to shake off those days, living like an animal covered in searing iron.
“If I’m truly back to the past… I have a chance to make things right.”
I don’t know why Heaven had given me another life, but the thought that I must not miss this opportunity struck me.
“To prevent the destruction of the family, I must first distance myself from the royal family.”
Especially with that person.
Recalling the face he’d seen in his final moments made his body tremble. The contempt in the man’s eyes still chilled Seong-un.
“Nak Si-rang, you’re here. The Minister of Finance is urgently seeking your attention.”
An official suddenly barged in between the three. Jin-yeop straightened his clothes at the official’s call.
“The Minister?”
“It’s a matter concerning the Crown Prince’s finances.”
“Um, I understand. Let’s go.”
Jin-yeop, having confirmed that everything was in order, hurried. Seong-un couldn’t take his eyes off his father’s back as he walked away.
“I’ll briefly say hello to my friends. Stay here, in case you get lost.”
No matter how vast and complex the palace was, there was no way she’d get lost. It had been her home for seven years.
A sense of unfounded anxiety arose, wondering if she might never see her brother again, but she pushed him back, telling him to hurry. She knew it would seem strange if she held on, so she held on tightly.
“Now that the crown prince has been crowned, the princes can marry, right?”
“Come to think of it, most of Your Majesty’s are past the age of marriage.”
After seeing off her brother, she began to hear voices from around her.
During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, the Jinyue Kingdom was plunged into instability due to protracted factional strife. Corruption was rampant at the top, and civil unrest was constant below.
The current emperor, then crown prince, sought the support of allies to stabilize the nation. In return, he entered into political marriages with these allies, and fearing external pressure, he took the daughters of local lords as concubines.
“It was all because of the crown prince competition. Didn’t Your Majesty prohibit the princes from marrying until the crown prince was crowned?”
“Then the crown prince will be the first to marry, right?”
Fearing that the princes would grow up and the battle for the throne would intensify, the emperor held a crown prince competition. He prohibited marriages to block outside help, and the contest proved his ability.
As a result, the third prince was finally crowned crown prince. This crowning celebration was the occasion to commemorate him.
“Why did I return to this time of all times?”
The palace was a place I had looked up to as a child, a battlefield where years of fierce power struggles had been waged.
Seong-un, searching her memories to resolve her doubts, recalled the crowning celebration in her past life.
The palace she had seen for the first time was grander than she had expected, and the pleasures and extravagance of the imperial court had awakened her lust for power. Simple yearning transformed into ambition in an instant.
In the past, Seong-un had strived to enter the imperial family by any means necessary. She not only attended all the royal banquets but also participated in the selection of the crown princess.
She lacked any special talents and failed to catch the crown prince’s eye, but her connection with this prince secured her the crown princess title.
Then, one day, the crown prince suddenly died.
