~Chapter 02~
“Empress.”
The joy and excitement I had from thinking about Noah instantly crashed down to the ground.
‘It was going so well just now.’
I was about to glare at the Emperor in annoyance, but then I realized I shouldn’t act that way and quickly got myself together.
Since I hadn’t fully decided on my plan yet, I couldn’t behave in a way that stood out too much.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
I smiled and looked at the Emperor.
“The Empress Consort has just entered the palace and isn’t familiar with life here, so I hope you’ll help her a lot.”
“Of course. I’ll help her as much as I can.”
Of course I would help her—she was going to be the bridge between me and my goal from now on.
“Ahem. I’ll trust you, Empress.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. You can count on me.”
I gave the Emperor another bright smile as I replied.
“Then, you may leave now.”
“What?”
I stared at him in disbelief at his sudden dismissal, but he repeated himself.
“I have something to discuss privately with the Empress Consort, so you should return to your palace now.”
“Ah, I understand. Then I’ll take my leave.”
Seriously? He was already treating me coldly like this?
Even though I didn’t have feelings for him, his attitude toward me was still unpleasant. But I tried to calm myself down.
I stood up, gave him a small nod, and walked toward the door.
On the way out, I passed Empress Consort Aria, who had been standing in the same spot since I entered earlier. When our eyes met, she lifted one side of her lips in a mocking smirk, as if making fun of me.
Instead of feeling intimidated, I actually found it funny—she looked exactly like the typical villainess described in novels.
I smiled and shrugged my shoulders to show her that I wasn’t bothered at all, then left and returned to my palace.
I ate a quick meal and spent the next few hours deep in thought.
‘I have to save Noah no matter what.’
But how?
After thinking about Noah, I realized that saving him was more important to me than saving myself.
Thankfully, in the original story, it was very clear why we both died.
If I avoided the actions that caused it, we could live.
Avoiding my own death would be relatively easy.
But preventing Noah’s death? That was a much harder problem. Actually, no—no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find a good solution.
In the original story, my death was caused by a false accusation.
The Empress Consort, Aria, played dirty tricks to remove me from my position as Empress.
It happened near the palace pond.
One day, while walking together by the pond, Aria fell in and nearly drowned.
I was accused of pushing her in to kill her and her unborn child.
Because of that accusation, I was deposed as Empress and executed.
‘Honestly, she’s not just a villain-maker—she’s the perfect mother for a villain.’
She could kill someone without even blinking if it meant achieving her goal. It suited her perfectly.
Aria’s goal was simple: she wanted my position as Empress.
Which meant, if I willingly stepped down from the throne, she’d have no reason to kill me.
And I was more than willing to give up this position.
In fact, I was planning to throw away the Empress’s crown no matter what.
But Noah… “Ha…”
Thinking about Noah made my chest ache and feel tight, even though he wasn’t in danger yet. I couldn’t help but sigh.
In the original story, the reason Noah died was ridiculous—it was all because of the Emperor’s jealousy.
‘Who does he think he is, killing Noah?!’
Just picturing that face I saw earlier made my anger boil again.
Here’s what happened:
After giving birth, the Empress Consort brought Noah to the palace so he could be her son’s swordsmanship teacher—the future villain in the story. While Noah stayed in the palace, the Emperor grew sensitive and suspicious about how close the Empress Consort was to him.
Eventually, the Emperor accused Noah of a crime and had him executed.
From the beginning, Noah had no choice in the matter.
Long ago, the Empress Consort Aria’s family—the Harrington family—had bound the Everdane family in a master-servant relationship. Because of this, my beloved Noah Everdane, despite being the best swordsman on the continent, couldn’t use his skills freely.
Anyone born with the Everdane name had a mark over their left chest, signifying that they were property of the Harrington family.
There was also a curse: no member of the Everdane family could harm or rebel against someone from the Harrington family. If they tried, unbearable pain would strike their heart where the mark was.
The only way to be freed from it… was death.
‘Ugh, I’m getting emotional again.’
In the original story, when Noah—my favorite character—was about to die because of the Emperor’s jealousy, he smiled in relief, as if finally free.
For him to smile at death… life must have been unbearable.
I cried hard back then—not just because Noah died, but because I thought about how hard and miserable his life had been.
And to think he was killed over petty jealousy?
Whenever I think of Noah, I want to tear that Emperor apart.
But I couldn’t lose control. If I ruined my plans, it would all be over.
This time would be different. I was going to save Noah.
‘So there’s no giving up, no matter how hard it is.’
To give up on Noah Everdane would be like asking me to die twice, no—three times.
I had to save him, and I had to see him happy.
It almost felt like my entire reason for being in this body was to save Noah, like it was some divine mission.
That’s how motivated I was.
‘Then I have to find a way.’
So, I stayed in the Empress’s palace, barely moving, and spent all my time thinking about a plan.
* * *
A few days later, a celebration banquet was held for Empress Consort Aria.
And by chance, I ran into Noah Everdane there.
“The sun of the Brienne Empire, His Majesty Emperor Lloyd Brienne! The moon of the Brienne Empire, Her Majesty Empress Veronica Brienne! And Her Highness, Empress Consort Aria!”
The banquet began in the evening, as the sky grew dark.
As we entered the hall, many nobles bowed deeply to us.
Currently, the imperial family consisted only of the Emperor, me, and the newly arrived Empress Consort Aria.
When the previous Emperor died, all the other consorts left the palace as tradition required, and a few years later, the previous Empress passed away as well.
The previous Emperor and the current one had no brothers.
To continue the royal bloodline, they needed many children, but for some mysterious reason, the Brienne royal family had very few.
‘I think I know why.’
I glanced sideways at the Emperor walking stiffly beside me.
The previous Emperor had many consorts, but his only child was this man next to me. And I, the Empress, still hadn’t conceived. That made it pretty clear the problem was on the man’s side.
Of course, no one in the palace would dare even hint at that.
Because of this, whenever a royal woman became pregnant, it was considered a huge event.
In the original story, Empress Consort Aria used this fact to her advantage when trying to take my place.
