Chapter 3
From dawn until late at night, Estelle remained alone in her bedroom, organizing her thoughts.
Then she began writing everything she could remember from her past life and the information from the novel into a thick diary.
Astera, the Star God who was said to have once bestowed all knowledge upon the world.
As a descendant of the House of Astria, believed to be the god’s lineage, Estelle possessed an exceptional memory, which proved to be a great help.
Using that information, she set her future goals and began making plans.
First and foremost, protecting Aeir from the Black Sea Plague was the most important matter.
“They said the cure for the Black Sea Plague was created the year after I died.”
In the novel, there were people who had survived thanks to that cure.
She had envied them so much.
Every moment, she had prayed to return to the past.
What could she have done to save Aeir?
What could she have done to raise him more happily?
She had thought about it hundreds of times.
Back then, those thoughts had been nothing but empty torture.
But now that a second chance had miraculously been given to her, it did not take long to reach the best possible solution.
I have to leave. Before Kaian finds out about the child.
Even if she managed to protect Aeir from the Black Sea Plague, the imperial palace was still a dangerous place for him.
If Kaian treasures Diana’s child as much as the novel says and tries to make him the Crown Prince… Aeir’s safety cannot be guaranteed.
After all, Kaian himself had eliminated the First Prince to claim the throne, and Estelle had been the greatest contributor in helping him do so.
Knowing the future so clearly, she could never allow Aeir to grow up in a palace where the throne might threaten his life.
First, I should secure funds by finding the mana stone mine that will be discovered in the southern mountains.
In her previous life, Estelle had only deduced the existence of that mine through information from a secret guild, and that had happened the following year.
Then I can operate a trading company with that money and raise funds to invest in developing the cure for the Black Sea Plague.
She was confident she could accumulate enough wealth to raise her child comfortably on her own.
In her second life, she had majored in international trade and had even become the CEO of a successful startup at a young age.
Besides, during her free time she had enjoyed watching parenting programs on YouTube.
I need to settle in Aren, find Sordan, and accelerate the development of the cure by at least one year.
Unfortunately, the novel had not described the exact formula for the medicine.
Still, there had been a brief mention of some ingredients and the person who had developed it.
“Sordan, a young doctor from Aren, had been skilled in herbal medicine since childhood and devoted himself to caring for his grandmother Greta, whose mind was no longer sound…”
Although the Black Sea Plague had not even appeared yet, Estelle planned to use every piece of information she knew and begin research as soon as possible.
It would be best if Aeir never becomes infected at all… but I must prepare for the worst.
This might be my last chance.
Estelle had also already thought of a way to leave the imperial palace.
With a child in her womb, disappearing while evading the Imperial Knights was nearly impossible.
The most certain way to end their pursuit was to fake her death.
It won’t be easy… but next month happens to be the 500th anniversary of the Empire’s founding.
It was the very day when the accident that had caused Estelle to disappear for an entire month had occurred in her previous life.
At that time, a sudden monster attack had caused her to fall into a treacherous valley.
Fortunately, she had landed in water and survived, but she had remained unconscious for quite some time.
If not for the herbalist couple who had rescued and cared for her, she might not have survived at all.
She had spent an entire month hovering on the brink of death.
Later she heard that the imperial palace had already begun to believe she was dead.
In fact, funeral preparations had been completed under the leadership of the Empress’s palace and the House of Astria.
If I use that situation properly, I can escape perfectly.
It would be even better if I could deceive the Grand Duke as well, just in case.
Estelle knew the Grand Duke better than anyone.
Once, that knowledge had been the trace of a child who simply wanted her father’s love.
But not anymore.
Now it was merely information to construct the perfect trap.
“Margaret!”
Estelle hid the diary and called for the maid waiting outside the door.
“Send word to the ducal house. Tell them I wish to see my father…”
“Your Highness the Empress Consort, yes.”
The word father felt unbearably unfamiliar on her tongue.
“Haa…”
That night, Estelle could not fall asleep even after dawn had nearly passed.
Her mind had made a perfect decision.
But the storm of emotions within her heart had not disappeared.
Eventually, she left her room and wandered through the rear garden to calm her restless thoughts.
Because it was late at night, no one was passing through.
And since it was still midwinter in January, the garden was quieter and more desolate than in any other season.
After walking for a long time, she arrived at Florence Palace.
The place was now unused.
Long ago, it had been the palace of the former Empress Consort, Serena.
In the garden of Florence bloomed countless white winter roses called “Prose.”
They were flowers that bloomed even through the frozen air of winter.
In the entire imperial garden, this was the only place where flowers could be seen during winter.
In truth, those roses had been planted long ago by young Kaian and Estelle themselves, after they struggled to obtain them for Serena, who had loved flowers.
Back then, we were both so innocent.
Even while transplanting these thorny bushes in the freezing winter with our tiny, numb hands…
All we could think about was how surprised the former Empress would be.
Among all the places filled with peaceful memories of her carefree childhood, this place lingered in her mind the most.
They had been the happiest days of Estelle’s life.
How dare she return here now?
A traitor who had repaid the palace’s kindness by leading its mistress to her death.
After becoming Empress Consort and entering the palace herself, Estelle had never dared to step into this place again.
But now that she had decided to leave…
She wanted to see it one last time.
Just once.
At that moment, as Estelle stepped deeper into the garden, she noticed a familiar figure.
Kaian?
Even in the darkness without a single lantern, she recognized him instantly.
Golden hair that gleamed brilliantly under the cold moonlight.
Sharp features that the darkness could not conceal.
He looked as though an omnipotent god had sculpted him with painstaking care—precise and mesmerizing.
No statue in this garden—no, in the entire empire—could rival his beauty.
Tonight, Kaian’s eyes held an unusually sorrowful light.
Even that sight stirred Estelle’s heart and shook the resolve she had struggled to build.
Estelle hurriedly turned away.
She did not want to face him while her heart and mind were so unsettled.
Nor did she wish for him to see her trespassing in this place.
But she could not deceive the sharp senses of a Swordmaster.
“Estelle—.”
Kaian’s voice stopped her in her tracks.
And he called her not “Lady Astria” nor “Empress Consort,”
but simply her name.
It was the first time since the Shawenen Lake incident.
Perhaps because they were standing in a place that reminded her of the days she had longed for…
Her heart pounded wildly.
All because he had called her name.
The cold winter dawn suddenly seemed to carry the scent of spring from those distant days.
“…Astria.”
But the five syllables that followed dragged her back to reality.
The weight of that name, overflowing with Kaian’s hatred, pressed down on her entire body.
Kaian was that kind of existence.
With nothing more than the sound of her name, he could give her both hope and despair.
As if he were the master of her emotions.
Perhaps leaving the imperial palace was not only a decision for Aeir.
Perhaps it was also for herself.
Because if she stayed by his side…
She had no confidence that she could stop loving him.
“How dare you set foot in this palace?”
“What shamelessness allows you to come here?”
Kaian’s eyes, filled with hostility, bore into her.
Once, he had been her salvation.
Now he seemed desperate to become her hell.
“Did you come to mock this palace that has lost its mistress?”
“No, Your Majesty. My mind was unsettled, so I was merely walking—”
“A place you should never reach even by accident. How convenient.”
“….”
“Is it the Empress Consort’s hobby to stir up people’s hearts?”
It felt unfair.
She had never intended such a thing.
And she had never expected to encounter Kaian here at this late hour.
If she had known, she would never have come here and risked such misunderstanding.
“That could never be so. Your Majesty’s peace—and the peace of the Empire—is what I desire most.”
She felt as though she might go mad from the injustice.
Yet the voice that left her lips was dry and calm.
Perhaps it had begun around the time when Serena was executed.
The Grand Duke had been regularly injecting her with drugs that suppressed emotional expression.
She had not always been like this.
But as a side effect, her expressions and emotions had become difficult to show.
“Ha! Peace?”
Kaian strode toward her with a twisted expression.
At the same time, the sensual scent of musk swept toward her, dizzyingly brushing past her senses.
It reminded her of the perfume she had once given him as a gift.
“My peace, you say, Empress Consort.”
Now they stood so close their breaths nearly intertwined.
Estelle forced herself to hold onto her fading composure and answered calmly.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“That is unfortunate.”
“Because you are someone who could never bring me peace.”
His crimson eyes burned fiercely, as though they might swallow Estelle whole.
