"Send them away."The two were immediately kicked out of the house after Alicia's words fell.Alicia, of course, knew this was not the end. Her father would try to reclaim the estate by using all of his resources, but he would eventually realize that all means of resistance would be futile."Let's get you treated, Latty. Was it painful? ”Alicia looked at James after giving Latty a warm hug."I'd like to speak with you after Latty's treatment, James.""Certainly, My Lady."Alicia dragged Latty into her room with her small hand. It appeared to be a child dragging a large, cuddly bear."Why did you do that, Latty?"Alicia inquired, tapping Latty's cheeks with a cold towel."What exactly do you mean?"”"How come you allowed yourself to be hurt? Like a fool...""You're a young lady, Miss. You're petite. If the Count really hit you, you'd die, and he'd go to... I'd rather take the risk and be sick for a few days."Alicia looked at Latty with affection and anguish. Latty was pure and kind-
************(Flashback)Anna Corty suffered humiliation as a young, naive princess. She was imprisoned in the castle for failing to recognize the signs of impending rebellion. She vowed she would never make the same mistakes again.Anna temporarily arrested the nobles who supported the late king's sons after learning of their malicious ploys and plot.Anna was correct.The nobles resisted vehemently, but their efforts were futile because they were quickly imprisoned due to damning evidence that no one could deny. If their plans came to fruition, it would be considered retaliation.So, before they could act, Anna severed all of their limbs.The late king's sons hid from Anna's gaze from then on.Since then, Anna has worked on a number of burdens and tasks in order to establish a strong, centralized government, including fixing the tax system, disbanding the nobility-affiliated knights, and weakening the aristocratic empire.The reigning Queen gained a notorious reputation as the most f
(The flashback continued)"...Are you crying?"Alicia's tears flowed uncontrollably like a river dam. The boy hid and flinched, unsure what to do and at a loss because he hadn't seen a woman cry since birth."Do not cry!" People will believe that I made you cry. Hey, don't cry... okay?"The boy grinded his teeth after failing to calm the troubled Alicia."All right, I got it! I'm going to save the bird!"The boy dashed to the big tree and climbed its trunk in one swift motion. The mother cat was about to pounce on the bird, its mouth wide open. The boy jumped over the thick branch without hesitation, judging that he was running out of time.Chirp, chirp, chirp!Swoosh!“Ahhhh!”Boom!At that moment, various sounds mingled with harmonious sounds that filled the entire garden.Alicia came running up, stunned, to see the boy fall to the ground."Do you feel okay?"The boy made an uneasy face and groaned softly. The small, little bird was in his hand, and the mother cat, terrified, fled.
(The flashback continued)"Will my wish come true?"The young boy inquired."Of course," she said. Dimi did it. He held the feather and wished long and hard, and Myastra appeared."“Dimi? "Who is he?""My cousin." Dimi is extremely knowledgeable."“Hmm…”The boy pondered something and returned his gaze to the yellow feather. Alicia's expression darkened."Do you dislike it?""No, I like it, but I was thinking you should write that wish.""However, you saved the bird.""Yes, but we did it as a team." The idea of saving the bird would never have occurred to me if it hadn't been for you. Accept it. Consider it my gift to you."Alicia's face lit up at his reasoning. She, too, desired the legendary feather."Wait, didn't you say Myastra?" Is Dimitri your Coulson cousin?"“Yes.”"Are you also a Coulson?""I'm an Ehrlich. I was born and raised in this town.""What is your name?"A womanly voice from afar rang out, Alicia's lips opened, about to answer the question repeated three times.“Ali
Ehrlich and the mansion were Alicia's birthplace and home for the rest of her life. Though she paid Coulson several visits, they were all brief and fleeting.Latty was taken aback; she couldn't believe Alicia, who'd never lived anywhere else, could leave her hometown without a trace of regret."I just want to get out of here as soon as possible. There are a lot of bad memories here."She bit her lower lip and shut her eyes.************(Flashback)************A few years had passed since the first visit to the royal palace. Alicia was dragged back into the royal palace as a queen candidate. The Queen was completely behind her.There are also several chances for her to meet Ivan, the boy king she once knew. He was, however, unusually cold to her. Alicia consoled herself by explaining that he had changed because he had matured into an adult. That sweet, little boy was only hiding behind a mask.Alicia didn't realize he would never welcome her until she entered the palace. Their relat
Flashback continued…Alicia knew he despised the wedding, and she hoped he'd be the one to break their marriage first.If he declares they will not consummate their marriage before the true sexual intercourse between the two takes place, there will be a commotion, but... she will be able to avoid a marriage she and Ivan did not want.Of course, she'd be stigmatized as the woman who divorced on the day of her wedding. She'd never marry again, and who'd marry a bride who had been abandoned by the King on the first night?Perhaps she will never be accepted back into society.But that was sufficient.It was a better option than living with a man who was unloving. She didn't want a man who reminded her of her father. Alicia would rather hear whispers behind her back than live her life knowing her husband had no feelings for her.“Yes…”Alicia managed to respond to Ivan by closing her eyes tightly.No one wanted a Queen around from the moment she was found guilty of disloyalty to the King.
Flashback continued…The burdens of bearing the King a child weighed heavily on Alicia, who became exhausted.Then he stopped coming one day. Alicia's grief rose rather than her joy at the realization that she had been abandoned by him.Alicia sat on the garden one day, persuaded by the maids, and gazed out at the blooming flowers and deep-green trees; birds and butterflies happily played with the plants.From behind her, she heard a playful song.She prefers chubby rabbits, but rabbit meat is the best thing in the world.Yum, yum, so tasty!Alicia jumped out of her seat and spun around.Dimitri was her cousin. He performed the song for her.She remembered him tease her as a child when she went to Coulson. Alicia's capable cousins caught a small, white rabbit while exploring the forest with her cousins, unaware that they were on a rabbit hunt.The novelty and cuteness of the rabbit awed little Alicia. It was the first time she'd seen it. When she followed her cousins to the water's ed
(Flashback continued)"If you don't mind, I'd like to spend some time alone with my wife." Please excuse me."Alicia looked at Ivan, surprised, at his sudden remark. She'd only just met her cousin for the first time in ages, and she didn't want her and Dimitri to split up so quickly. She hadn't spoken to any of her Coulson relatives since her mother died.It wasn't until she was an adult that she discovered her father deliberately interrupting their conversations in the middle, fearful that Alicia would escape his grasp and the power of her foreign family.She couldn't, however, afford to turn down Ivan.Alicia bowed her head in surrender.Dimitri noticed her agitation right away, but there was nothing he could do to stop Ehrlich's king. He didn't have the authority to oppose him, at least not right now."Alice is a lovely young lady. Please look after her. She's priceless."Ivan laughed."I appreciate your advice, but my wife is no longer a child. It's past time you stopped referri
Epilogue (1) – DimitriTranslator – YueYears later.“…and Elheim truly loved his human woman. But he was a God, pure and divine, so he could not remain too much longer on earth. If he stayed in the human world for too long, he’d lose all his divine powers…”The man who was reading the book out loud paused for a while and looked at a particular direction in his audience. There, there was a little girl with the same hair color as him. He saw her yawning while little eyes narrowed with displeasure, as though wondering why he’d stopped. The man resumed reading the book.“In the end, Eiheim had no choice but to leave the woman he loved and to go back on earth. However, he wept for the love he had to leave behind on the human world and those tears turned into rain. At the same time, a baby was growing inside his woman’s womb, a baby created from their union. This baby was born strong and healthy, and she had an incredible power. She had the power to turn himself into a bird. In the human w
Translator – YueT/N: This is the end, so extra-long chapter for today?Ivan irrupted into the room, sword in hand and a murderous look in his eye… to see Alicia licking her fingers. In front of her there was a huge plate filled with food. There was an abundance of seafood. Next to her was a worker who looked at Ivan with widened eyes.“Ivan?”Alicia quickly took her finger out of her mouth and looked at him. She asked again, nervous.“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”The inn worker looked alternated glances between Ivan and the sword in his hand, his legs shaking.“Oh… it’s just… it looked like your wife was pregnant, so I was only asking if there was anything she disliked so I could bring something else…”Since Alicia had taken her robe and coat off, she was wearing a light dress that showed her bulging belly clearly. It seemed that the inn boy had noticed it and was only asking whether she liked the food.Ivan felt ridiculous for getting angry over something like this.No, more
Translator – Yue“Salerno Inn”Alicia read the old sign that was hanging atop a building. It was an inn, so it definitely offered food and shelter to travelers.“It would take us around two hours to reach your mother’s mansion. It might be faster if we rode my horse together, but you can’t while pregnant… if you don’t want to spend the night in a place like this, then I’ll find another way…”Ivan murmured while trying to assess Alicia’s reaction. He knew that the inn was old and gloomy. He’d spent some nights here before himself but he knew that it was different for Alicia, who’d only lived in mansions and palaces. She might even find this place repulsive.He did not want the news of them here to spread too much, which was why he’d chosen this place as he could keep their identities hidden. But… perhaps he should have thought of Alicia more. Maybe it would be best to go to someone else’s house and reveal their identity so they could spend the night somewhere more comfortable.As he ke
Translator – YueAfter listening to Mrs. Cessly’s words, Ivan immediately hopped on a horse and sprang to port. This time there was no Basil by his side, it was just him. While he galloped top speed, the events from these past six years came to his mind.When he arrived, the ship had already sailed. He was too late, again.He felt an empty space in his heart. He got down his exhausted horse and slowly walked to the edge of the beach. He had a desperate expression on his face.He stood there looking at the horizon when he felt something hot. There were hot tears trailing down his face. All the tears he’d held back all this time suddenly broke free.Despair and desolation surged from inside him. He sobbed and cried.Six years ago, when he’d missed her just like this, he’d managed to hold back his tears since there was still hope of seeing her again in the future. Instead of desolation, he turned his back to this very sea with the hopes of seeing her again soon.However, this time it was
Translator – YueThe Port of Salerno remained unchanged. Tall, imposing walls surrounded the beach. There were numerous houses with scarlet-colored rooftops everywhere. A seemingly endless turquois-colored. Everything was as calm and beautiful as before.There was only one ship resting on the shores. A white, modern, elegant ship.When the Queen’s carriage arrived to port, the usually hectic port city suddenly turned tranquil. The carriage’s door opened and the Queen descended from her vehicle surrounded by her guards. She was wearing a thick coat, hat and gloves all made of silver fox fur, as though she was planning on going somewhere far colder than Ehrlich. A little while later, the ship’s captain approached her.He took out his cap and bowed to the Queen of Ehrlich.“Greetings to the most honorable woman in Ehrlich, Your Majesty the Queen. May Elheim’s light always shine upon you.”A smile came up to Alicia’s lips.“Greetings, captain. I’ll be under your care.”The captain pointed
Translator – YueT/N: The chapter we’ve been waiting for?Mrs. Cessly wailed and started savagely criticizing Ivan.“This is all Your Majesty’s fault. It’s because you allowed the Queen leave for Coulson. Why did you do that?”“All I did was give her a choice.”“A choice?”“I told her to choose. To stay here, or to leave with the baby.”“Why on earth did you tell her that?!”“There’s a reason behind my marriage to Alicia. I lied to her and forced her to come here.”“Ah, I remember the Queen told me something like that. That Your Majesty did not wish to marry her, but Princess Helen. Is it related to that?”Ivan nodded.“Yes. I had no choice. If I had proposed to Alicia, she would have run away from as fast as she could.”Mrs. Cessly looked at Ivan intently with a complex look in her eyes. Seeing that Mrs. Cessly’s head was spinning top speed to find out what could possibly make Alicia want to run away from Ivan, he added in a slow voice.“She definitely didn’t owe me money nor anythin
“Alright. Go ahead, do it. Call me if you need any help as well.”“I will.”When their conversation came to an end, Ivan slowly rose from his seat. Alicia got up as well. Just when he was about to turn around, Alicia spoke.“I wish for you to stop feeling guilty of all that’s happened to me.”Ivan’s eyes focused intently on Alicia. For some reason, she found it hard to look him back in the eye, so she averted her gaze.“I don’t dislike you anymore, Ivan. I’m grateful to you for letting me live my life again and leave this place with my baby.”“Grateful…uh.”While he bitterly mumbled to himself, Alicia nodded her head.“After all, you did put in a lot of effort in saving my life. I’ll make sure I do everything in my power to live a happy life from now on. I’m not completely alone anymore, after all.”Alicia placed a hand on her belly.“Once this baby is born, I’ll only let him see and listen to the most wonderful things. I know I can’t stop the darkness of this world to reach him, but
Translator – YueAlicia’s jaw slowly opened.“When you say, ‘a chance to end this marriage’…”“You never wanted to marry me in the first place. You were forced into it because the Crown Prince threatened to kill your cousin if you didn’t.”“But why are you giving me this? This marriage will automatically end in a year, anyways.”Their contractual marriage had a time period clearly stipulated. Alicia couldn’t understand why he was giving her a choice right now.“If you want to end this marriage, then you don’t need to wait for the time to be up to do so. I’ll make sure you leave this country safely first thing tomorrow if you so wish it.”“Then… what will happen to the baby I’m carrying…?”Alicia’s voice faded. Her eyes darted to the contract clauses. There, she herself agreed on leaving all rights concerning the child to Ivan if she were to get pregnant. With the opportunity he was giving her, she’d be able to flee and hide somewhere far, far away, and he’d never be able to claim his
Translator – YuePatricia’s execution took place the following morning.In spite of being very early, many people gathered around the execution place. People gathered there to insult her for killing her own father, her benefactor and even trying to assassinate her own sister and Queen. She was seen as a true villain, an evil rarely seen before.Patricia listeTed to their insults and taunts until her very last moment.Even though Alicia had said that she’d no longer show any consideration towards Patricia, she did make sure that the most skilled executioner was selected to carry out her punishment. She’d heard of previous rare cases in which the neck was not cleanly cut off in one single strike, forcing the executioner to hack at the neck, which caused lots of pain and anguish before dying.After Patricia’s death, Alicia passed her days in a state of continuous astonishment. She rarely went outside and spent most of her time in her room. However, she did make sure of eating and resting