Chapter 1
How did it come to this?
“Why… you…”
Why?
“Why did you…!”
Weren’t we in love?
“Edwin!”
The blonde woman clutched her bleeding neck, her voice slicing the air in a sharp scream.
But all she received in return were eyes filled with fear.
“Ah…! Ah…!”
The man groaned, backing away from the bleeding woman, and soon, only his retreating figure remained as he disappeared into the distance.
The woman stared blankly at the man fleeing from her.
‘Is this a dream?’
She hoped it was all just a nightmare. Her body swayed unsteadily.
She wished it was nothing but a bad dream.
But as if to deny her sweet delusion, the pain from the wound on her neck was all too real.
“Haha…!”
With a hollow laugh, the woman slowly collapsed to her knees.
Warm blood kept flowing down from her neck.
It had to be her own blood.
Was this how she would die?
Tears of regret fell from her eyes. She should never have trusted in the fleeting thing called love.
No. She wanted to live.
She had been willing to throw away even her noble status for him.
Ah, how foolish she had been.
Her consciousness grew faint. A desperate will to survive rose from deep within.
But cruelly, the scythe of death gleamed with a sharp light, ready to claim her life.
Her breath grew short. The chill of the tower made her warm breath rise in a pale mist.
In her fading awareness, she remembered the first time she met the man who betrayed her.
It was in that orchard full of the scent of apple blossoms, on a day when he looked warmer than even the spring sun.
***
“Praise the Sun God!”
“Praise!”
Everyone offered reverence to her golden hair, as if it were molten sunlight.
Her brilliant eyes sparkled like fragments of the sun itself.
She raised a golden chalice filled with holy water above her head. Eyes full of awe turned to her, as if gazing upon a goddess.
Standing atop a glass altar on a lake blooming with hydrangeas, she looked every bit the embodiment of the sun.
Selenia del Amor Apollonia.
In the Apollonia Empire, devoted to the Sun God, she was the woman with the most noble blood.
Born to the Empress Sarubia—once a duchess and the flower of high society—and the Emperor, she was acknowledged for her birthright and named crown princess at birth.
Most supported the emperor’s decision, though some ministers worried the appointment was too early.
After all, there was already Princess Evangeline, the emperor’s eldest daughter—albeit an illegitimate one.
But those concerns faded once Selenia began to speak.
Cool-headed determination, wise intellect, and stunning beauty—Selenia lacked nothing.
Perhaps due to her powerful royal bloodline, her physical abilities far exceeded those of ordinary humans.
“Well done, Your Highness!”
“The effort was all yours.”
Today was the day they offered holy water to the Sun God to pray for a bountiful harvest.
It was a sacred duty that only the most noble member of the royal family, apart from the emperor, could perform.
Selenia fluttered her eyelashes gracefully and smiled at the ministers watching her.
She pinched her ceremonial robe with two fingers and handed it to a maid following behind her.
The maid, captivated, quickly snapped out of her daze and said in a hurry:
“Now that the ceremony is over, you must begin your purification bath, Your Highness.”
“Yes, let’s return.”
Selenia answered serenely and mounted her beloved horse.
Though the officials always offered a carriage, she insisted on riding.
She wanted to feel her beloved empire with her entire being.
“Hyah!”
With a strong kick, she rode off. The imperial palace wasn’t far from the lake, so she arrived quickly.
“Welcome back, Crown Princess!”
The knights guarding the palace greeted her heartily.
Selenia raised her hand slightly in response.
Their eyes were filled with admiration.
And for good reason—though she excelled in everything, what Selenia was best at was swordsmanship.
Her swordplay was not only sharp and precise, but beautiful in its restraint.
Thanks to her skill, she led the defense against frequent invasions by other races targeting the empire.
Mermaids, demons, beastkin—all had tried to invade.
But the greatest threat was the vampires—creatures who hunted humans and drank their blood.
“Your Highness, you’re back. The ceremony went well, I assume?”
“Yes. What’s the latest on the vampires?”
“Since their last failed attack, they haven’t dared to hunt humans again. It’s all thanks to you, Your Highness.”
Mikhail, the captain of her royal guard, smiled faintly, recalling the recent battle.
Selenia, atop a white horse, had cut through vampires with a holy sword. She had looked truly divine.
Without her, the Apollonia Empire might’ve already fallen to the vampires.
“It’s thanks to your hard work. What could I do alone? Now, if you’ll excuse me—I must bathe.”
“Yes, Your Highness. And don’t worry—the coronation preparations are going smoothly.”
“I trust you.”
Selenia patted Mikhail on the shoulder and passed by.
A few days ago, her father, the emperor, had passed away. Since then, Selenia had been busy with both the funeral and the harvest ritual.
According to custom, the emperor’s funeral would last two months.
Which meant she would become emperor two months from now.
Once Mikhail was out of sight, Selenia let out a quiet sigh and entered her room.
She unclasped the necklace around her neck and began undressing.
Her white ceremonial uniform slid silently to the floor.
With a strangely solemn gesture, she opened the door to the bath.
Despite being a ritual bath for the crown princess about to be crowned emperor, not a single maid was present.
As if used to it, Selenia quietly stepped inside.
“…Still no signs of healing.”
In the large mirror that reflected her entire body, her back was clearly visible.
Three hideous claw-like scars marred her back, oozing green poison.
If she entered the water like this, the poison would surely contaminate the entire bath.
She looked away quickly, not wanting to see it.
Whenever she stared too long, the horrific memories returned.
The day she got those scars—when she was only five.
Then, a voice came from outside the bath.
“Your Highness, are you ready?”
“…Yes. Come in.”
The person who entered was not a maid, but a priestess.
“Excuse me, then.”
The priestess placed her long, white hands over Selenia’s scars.
Even the slightest touch sent burning pain through her.
“Ugh…”
Selenia bit her lip and endured.
Golden light soon flowed from the priestess’s hands, seeping into the scars.
The unbearable pain gradually subsided.
It wasn’t gone, but it was now tolerable.
“Whew… Thank you, Evangeline.”
Selenia exhaled deeply and gave a faint smile.
“I’ll come again tomorrow, Your Highness.”
“…Yes.”
Evangeline smiled softly and left.
Only then did Selenia immerse herself fully in the bath.
Her smiling face slowly hardened.
In truth, she couldn’t live a single day without the priestess’s divine protection.
She was living on borrowed time.
Since childhood, she had met every renowned doctor in the empire, but none could cure her.
In fact, most looked at the poisoned scars with disgust.
As if she were cursed.
Despite being ordered to keep silent, they gossiped—calling her cursed, a devil’s child.
Her once-pristine body, seen as a divine masterpiece, now seemed ruined in their eyes.
Of course, her father, who adored her, hadn’t let them get away with it.
“I wonder when I’ll be able to bathe in peace.”
Her sigh melted into the warm bathwater.
If only for a moment, she wished to forget about being a crown princess or future emperor.
But even that was a luxury. The pain reminded her.
Wrapping her honey-colored hair in a soft towel, she stepped out of the bath.
“Well, look who it is.”
A woman who looked like her—but with a gentler impression—was sipping tea, waiting for her.
“Evangeline.”
“You looked amazing today. That noble blood really does shine, huh?”
Evangeline smiled as she spun her teacup.
“Again with that. You’re the true eldest princess of this family.”
“Right, right. The older sister of the soon-to-be emperor.”
With a chuckle, she handed Selenia a cup of tea that sparkled violet—just like Evangeline’s eyes.
Though she had golden hair like Selenia, her eyes resembled her mother’s—a commoner turned royal consort.
Unlike Selenia, who was born crown princess, Evangeline was never granted that title.
But Selenia genuinely liked her. She was gentle yet quietly strong.
Despite being a consort’s daughter, she was still half royal.
Selenia didn’t want to shun her or marry her off and exile her from the capital.
Her advisors disagreed, of course.
“Not long now. Your coronation.”
“Yeah. I’m more nervous than I thought.”
“You? Nervous?”
With a small laugh, Evangeline fastened a necklace around Selenia’s neck—a radiant diamond gifted by their mother, the empress.
“Here. You should wear this. It was one of Her Majesty’s last gifts.”
“Thank you, Evan.”
“You should find a lover to put jewels on you instead of me, though.”
Selenia laughed at the silly remark and sipped her tea.
“A lover, huh.”
“What if you suddenly get imprinted?”
“That’s just superstition, Evan.”
There was a superstition in the empire: if two fated people imprinted on each other, they’d fall into a storm of love.
Selenia didn’t believe in it.
How could such instant connection exist?
She smiled at Evangeline.
Evangeline, pouting at her response, turned her head, then asked:
“…How’s your scar? Is it improving?”
Her voice was dripping with concern.
Selenia shrugged.
“The same.”
“…No progress, then.”
At her calm answer, Evangeline’s shoulders slumped.
Tears welled up in her amethyst eyes.
“It’s okay, Evan. I’m getting treated every day.”
“But…”
Tears threatened to spill from her big eyes.
Selenia laughed softly and pulled her into a comforting hug.
“Someday, a doctor will come who can heal it…”
“Your Highness!”
Before she could finish, a maid burst through the door—one of her trusted aides who knew about the scar.
Still, it was a blatant breach of etiquette.
Evangeline shot up with a frown.
“How dare you barge into the Crown Princess’s room—”
“I-I’m sorry! It’s urgent!”
“What is it?”
The maid caught her breath, then shouted in a panicked voice:
“It’s terrible!”
“What is with the ruckus?”
“V-Vampires…!”
She trembled as she forced out the words.
“Last night, vampires abducted more people…!”
At her words, Selenia and Evangeline locked eyes.
With grim determination, Selenia stood and threw on her jacket. She strapped her moon-pale sword to her waist.
Then, to the trembling maid, she growled with the intensity of a beast:
“I will hunt them myself.”
