Chapter 4
“Do you know, Empress Consort?”
“Know… what?”
“That even a single breath from you is enough to shatter all the peace within me.”
Estelle felt as though she were sinking beneath water.
Her breath caught in her throat.
“Would Your Majesty be at peace… if I were simply gone?”
Facing emotions she could never grow accustomed to, Estelle—exhausted to her limit—spoke back in quiet defiance for the first and last time.
Perhaps because Estelle, who had always suppressed her feelings, was showing a side of herself he had never seen before, Kaian remained silent, his expression stiffening.
“That is good, then.”
“What?”
“I shall step aside for the sake of Your Majesty’s peace.”
“What do you—”
Before Kaian could finish his words, Estelle turned away.
It was the first time she had ever shown Kaian her back.
And on that cruel winter dawn, she gained one more reason to leave.
Exactly three months passed after that day.
On a sorrowful spring day when cherry blossoms drifted through the air, a memorial service for Estelle was held at the House of Astria.
《The Star of the Empire, Empress Consort Estelle, Has Entered Eternal Rest.》
The entire empire was abuzz with news of her death.
Newspapers were filled with articles about it.
《Cause of death: drowning.》
The incident had begun when the imperial carriage, returning from a visit to the temple for the Empire’s Founding Festival, was suddenly attacked by monsters.
The carriage plunged into the Oblia Valley along with the monsters.
Inside the carriage were Empress Christine and Empress Consort Estelle, both of whom managed to cling desperately to the edge of the cliff.
The Emperor saved Empress Christine first.
But he could not save Estelle.
While rescuing the Empress, Estelle lost her grip and fell into the gorge below.
The cliff itself was not extremely high.
However, fierce currents roared through the river beneath it.
Because of that, not even a single strand of the Empress Consort’s hair could be found, and the search faced great difficulty.
Elite knights thoroughly combed the valley, yet Estelle was nowhere to be found.
Even after the navy was deployed with underwater breathing magic devices, there was no news.
Three weeks after the disappearance, Estelle’s shoe was discovered downstream.
《After a month and a half of searching, the Astria Ducal Knights finally discovered the body, bringing the search to an end.》
Because so much time had passed, the body was so badly damaged that it was difficult to even recognize its form.
However, the dress wrapped around the body perfectly matched the one Estelle had been wearing when she disappeared.
And around its neck hung the necklace she had cherished most during her lifetime.
At that point, no one could deny the Empress Consort’s death.
At the southernmost edge of the continent lay a small harbor town called Aren.
On top of a beautiful sea cliff stood a modest two-story coffee house.
《The Star of the Empire, Empress Consort Estelle, Has Entered Eternal Rest.》
A woman sat on the terrace overlooking the ocean, carefully reading the front-page article of the newspaper.
She had common black hair and dark eyes.
Yet even in simple clothing, the elegant aura unique to her could not be hidden.
“The House of Astria did not reveal the Empress Consort’s final appearance to the public, even during the funeral, due to the excessive damage to the body.”
“To prepare even a fake corpse… Truly worthy work of His Grace the Duke.”
The woman murmured coldly.
She was Estelle, using a disguise mana stone to ensure her perfect escape.
Her silver hair that once shimmered like flowing starlight…
Her sapphire-blue eyes…
Both were now concealed beneath black.
“Duke Astria. My life of obedience to you ends here.”
She no longer called him father.
A man who could place a fake corpse at his own daughter’s funeral for the sake of the family’s safety did not deserve that title.
“I expected you would somehow conclude the matter as an accidental death.”
Five years earlier, Estelle had secretly attempted to rescue Serena, the former Empress Consort, on the night before her execution.
But she had been discovered by Duke Astria.
For the crime of betraying her family and trying to help the Duke’s political enemy escape, he placed multiple forbidden curses upon Estelle.
The curses were so strong and vicious that they clearly revealed the Duke’s deep wariness toward Serena and her son, Kaian, in the battle over the imperial succession.
One of them was known as the “Curse of Silence.”
It was a curse that would take her life if she ever spoke or wrote the truth about the Shawenen Lake Incident—the truth that it had been fabricated by the House of Astria.
As if that were not enough, the Duke placed another curse upon her.
The moment his own life ended, Estelle would fall into an eternal sleep from which she could never awaken.
Because of that, she could not simply eliminate him.
Using forbidden curses was itself a grave crime that would lead to excommunication by the Central Temple if discovered.
Furthermore, knowledge of such curses—and the ability to cast them—was believed to have vanished long ago as ancient magic.
No matter how hard Estelle tried to break the curse, she could not find even a single clue.
“I merely pretended to resist the curse, yet the Duke must have found that incredibly unsettling.”
A man who valued his family’s honor and authority as much as his own life would never leave such a troublesome risk unattended.
Estelle understood that well—and used it to her advantage.
On the day of the falling accident, Estelle used an underwater breathing magic tool and a temperature-maintaining stone she had hidden in her clothing.
Thanks to that, she drifted downstream where the current weakened, remaining conscious the entire time.
Then she tore part of her dress and left behind traces suggesting she had tried to write the truth about the Shawenen Lake Incident, before throwing it away in a suitable place.
It was meant to appear as though her heart had stopped due to the curse’s backlash and that her body had drifted down the valley.
Her plan was to make the Duke—who feared the truth might surface—disguise her death as an accident.
“How predictable His Grace the Duke is in such heartless matters.”
The writing she left behind was intentionally vague.
However, after weeks of setting a trap by threatening to reveal the truth, the Duke—already uneasy—took the bait without hesitation.
The underground guild Estelle had once created to protect Kaian also played a large role.
It helped her plan the escape, obtain the necessary tools, and conceal her identity.
The guild members were organized in separate cells, each receiving different instructions.
Except for a very small number, none of them knew her true identity.
Because of that, there was no risk of her identity or destination being exposed.
At the same time, the carefully prepared bases allowed her to move according to plan—acquiring the mine and eventually reaching Aren while perfectly disguised as a common woman.
“My little one… I’m sorry you had to go through such hardship.”
Estelle gently stroked her stomach.
Her pregnancy was not yet visible through her clothing.
But ever since her monthly cycle had stopped, the same early pregnancy symptoms she had experienced in her previous life had begun appearing one by one.
There was no doubt the child had come.
“Thank you for enduring.”
She had not liked the idea of being caught in the same falling accident as her previous life during early pregnancy.
But it had been the only way to escape perfectly from Kaian.
Fortunately, the child had endured bravely this time as well.
Just as in her previous life.
Kaian… you haven’t changed at all either.
In her past life, while clinging to the cliff, she had desperately hoped Kaian would reach out his hand to her.
But this time was different.
Waiting alone for someone who will never love me… once was enough.
The life she had regained was far too precious to spend clinging to someone who would never come.
“My little one, Mother will protect you no matter what.”
Estelle whispered softly to her child.
Aeir—the only hope that had allowed her to endure the despair of life in the imperial palace.
Protecting this child alone was enough reason for her to live.
“This time, I’ll show you a world far greater than the imperial palace. Beyond the vast ocean filled with glittering waves… we’ll even visit the distant continent of Ricaf across the sea.”
It was the life Estelle had once dreamed of as a child—when she had aspired to become the head of the ducal house despite being a woman.
In her previous life, she had stayed beside Kaian because she loved him more than that long-held dream.
But this time would be different.
Now she finally had the freedom to take out the dream she had once forgotten.
“Mrs. Marian?”
While Estelle was speaking gently to her child, a young boy called out to her.
Libeta Marian.
It was the new name Estelle had chosen in order to live quietly.
Since she was disguised as a commoner, she was no longer addressed with the noble title “Lady.”
Instead, people now called her “Mrs. Marian.”
“Yes? It seems you have something for me.”
Estelle asked kindly.
The boy handed her a sealed envelope.
“Thank you.”
Estelle handed him a silver coin.
“Um… the errand fee is only one rikel…”
The boy said, his eyes widening in shock.
A single silver coin was enough to buy an entire month’s worth of food for a common family.
In contrast, one rikel could barely buy a single piece of hard bread.
It was only natural for the boy to be surprised.
“You are honest. Consider it the price of that trust.”
“Thank you very much, ma’am! I’ll do my best again next time! Please leave it to me!”
“Of course. See you again.”
The boy bowed politely and left the coffee house with light steps.
Estelle watched him with warm eyes.
Generous payment was one way to secure a reliable messenger.
But after giving birth to Aeir in her previous life, every child in the world had begun to feel precious to her.
“My little one… grow strong as well.”
Estelle stroked her stomach with a tender hand before opening the envelope with a resolute gaze.
