There was no sign or indication that she was conceiving and she hadn’t been informed by a doctor. But… but she knew right away that she had once more bore a new life within her body.Drip…A teardrop fell, landing on the back of her hand. At this moment, she felt both the happiest joy in life, mixed with abysmal despair.How odd is fate?She felt the same feeling now… like that certain moment in the past.Translator – YueMany days after she knew there was life within her womb, Basil went to visit Alicia. Basil’s daily scheduled revolved around Ivan and his needs, but today he came only to drink tea.“Does Ivan not give you time to eat?” Alicia asked curiously after watching Basil eat snack after snack.“It’s not that. I usually don’t have time to eat anything. That guy simply doesn’t like seeing people seated, not even for a moment. I could barely escape from him today” Basil replied, a crumb stuck on his lips.Alicia smiled calmly and pushed the plate of cookies towards Basil.“I’m
No, that was impossible. If that were true, he’d have done anything to avoid this marriage. Ivan had no feelings for her, so there was no way he’d accept her again after she’d left overseas.However, she needed an answer to her questions. There was no other way besides asking Ivan and, she also had something important to tell him.Alicia sighed and caressed her belly.As the days passed by, it was more evident that she was pregnant. There was still some time left in their contract, so she wanted to know what to do about her current situation.The best option for her would be to go back to Coulson while pregnant, but she’d already surrendered that right in the contract. Anyways, even if she hadn’t, Ivan wouldn’t easily give up his son, as he was so obsessed with the idea of having an heir back then. It would be the same this time.And, what would happen if she were to give birth to a princess? The Queen Mother came to power after many bloody sacrifices and tears. Her baby, the princess
Translator – YueAlicia made gestures to indicate that he should not come near her, but Ivan simply ignored her and kept walking in her direction.“I found it among your belongings”.“My belongings? I never brought this into the palace. I threw it into the sea six years ago, when I was onboard the ship that took me to Coulson. I definitely remember seeing it floating on the ocean, so stop telling lies!”“It was pressed inside a book you cherished”.“…”Alicia suddenly stopped breathing. She starting backing away, as though she’d seen a ghost.“That’s why it took me so long to find it. It must have taken me three years after that day”. Ivan’s voice suddenly lowered. “The day you died”Alicia bit her lips till they bled. “It’s… impossible…”“A long time ago, you said that if one held on tightly to that feather and asked for a wish from the bottom of the heart, Ataraxia would appear again and grant that person his wish”.“No!”Alicia sobbed while blocking her ears with both hands. shakin
Translator – YueAlicia suddenly felt weak. She extended her hand and gripped the wall, looking for support. She never expected Ivan to be the first to find out, especially since not even Mrs. Cessly had noticed.“I didn’t want to hide it from you… I was planning on telling you today”.Ivan’s face abruptly changed in that instant. A radiant smile filled with happiness appeared on his face. He reached out his hands towards Alicia.“Alicia! You really are…”Alicia brusquely slapped his hands away from her, staring at him coldly. As he was violently turned down, Ivan was left paralyzed, unable to step any closer.“It seems like that’s the one thing you haven’t changed at all. Your obsession to have an heir. You are repugnantly the same, even now. But don’t think that I’ll let you play with me again, as you did in my past life, even though you’d cheated on me with my sister”. Alicia tightened her jaw as she spoke. “I know. To you, having an heir is more important than anything else in the
“I… it looks like I’ve made a terrible mistake”.Basil immediately took off, sprinting.***When he arrived at the main palace, Basil saw Alicia leaving the building towards a carriage, ready to depart.“My queen!”Basil barely made it in time. He was panting unevenly.Alicia didn’t even greet him properly. Her blue eyes were staring at him coldly.“Your Majesty… you can’t leave like this”. Basil pleaded.“Basil, stand aside”.“Please, at least consider changing your mind, I beg you”.“If you don’t stand aside right this instance, I’ll have your head cut off”.Mrs. Cessly, who’d had just arrived, was startled at Alicia’s words, even though she knew she didn’t really mean them.Basil looked at Alicia, perplexed.Basil had a farmer’s background, so many people in the Palace kept their distance from him. The queen, however, had always shown him respect, heading to his words. This was the first time she behaved like that with him.“You think I won’t dare? Who do you think you are?”Basil
Translator – Yue“Yes”. Basil nodded. “After the viscount’s wife passed away, his lover Patricia became his new wife. Afterwards, she became Count Clovis’ lover”.“Did you find additional information about the deaths of Count Kenboe and Viscount Olbach’s first wife?”“Of course! You may always count on me, Your Majesty!”Basil gave Ivan a single sheet of paper.“I interviewed a servant who used to work on Count Kenboe’s home. According to the witness, the day before the Count died he had a horrible argument with his daughter. The next day, the Count was found lying on the floor with a bottle of poison in his hand”.“And they regarded his death by poison as suicide?”Basil nodded. “Because Count Kenboe had huge debts to his name at the time, House Kenboe wanted his death to be resolved quickly. What’s more, his only family member, the queen, was abroad”.“And what about the death of the Viscount’s wife?”“After finding out that her husband had a lover, she died shortly after by committ
Translator – YueIvan sighed.“Keep an eye on that servant. If he gives Count Clovis valuable information, gather evidence immediately. If I show him plenty of proof that he’s been spying on me for years and threaten him a little…” Ivan smiled bitterly “…then he’ll probably be willing to give up his right to succession. I’m sure Count Clovis is also aware of that woman’s past sins. We can use his testimony to arrest his lover immediately”.“Yes, Your Majesty! I’ll obediently carry out your orders right away!”While Basil was about to leave the room with a determined fighting spirit, Ivan suddenly opened his mouth.“Basil, you remember, right? What you have to do in case something happens to me. You remember, don’t you?”Basil’s expression stiffeTed. Soon after his marriage, Ivan told Basil something and, due to his authoritarian attitude, Basil had to choice but to promise something against his will.“Why are you saying that again? You are young and healthy. Why would something happen
Translator – YueIgnoring the echo of the voice behind him, Ivan bit his lips and walked away, his fist tightly clenched.There was no need to worry about his mother. The plan to kicked her out of power was advancing smoothly, anyways. Perhaps she felt confident now, but soon, she’d lose all she’d protected up to now.However…“I’ll invite my sister to the next ball”.When Ivan reunited with his wife after not speaKing to each other for a while, those were the words she’d said.“Perhaps… could you also dance with her that day? It’s hard to find an appropriate dance partner and…”. She lowered her gaze and folded her hands.When those words left her tender lips, Ivan felt a deep sense of disenchantment. His beating heart kept doing summersaults sporadically.“Have you spoken about this with your family?”Alicia nodded in a low voice and said “yes… my father… straight up asked me… about my sister…”His own wife was speaKing in the same tune as his mother, and he couldn’t help but think t
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