Even enduring those difficult times, she didn’t know why she desired to live so desperately, not even knowing the cause.

But now, she finally realizes that all those reasons were because of that man alone.
She had forgotten the past, but that didn’t make the sensations accumulated within her disappear. Vague as it might be, she knew.

The fact that someone who would love her was somewhere out there.

The unfulfilled love waiting for her.

“Rakrahan.”

And because that man was him, Vercheria felt a deeper sense of calm than anyone else.

“Rakrahan Adkins.”

Chanting his name like a spell, Vercheria turned her head back to face him.

As Rakrahan had said, from now on, all her actions had to move in the direction of recovering what she had lost.

Preparing revenge step by step, ensuring that no one could take away what belonged to her from now on.

“Hoo.”

Vercheria paused for a moment, looking around at the people.

Faces frozen in confusion, not knowing how to deal with the unexpectedly appeared goddess of weather.

Compared to the people in the North who had directly suffered due to her absence, those living in the capital seemed to have less resentment towards Vercheria, who had caused neither war nor drought.

But depending on how the people here perceived Vercheria, the attitudes of the capital citizens could either remain favorable or turn hostile.

At this moment, Vercheria clearly outlined what she needed to do in her mind.

She raised the golden staff high for everyone to see.

“Look there! Vercheria’s staff!”

With someone’s shout, a golden radiance burst forth from the staff, soaring into the sky.

Kurung.

After the majestic sound that seemed like thunder from the previously clear sky, another flash of light burst forth, this time inverted, striking the ground.

“Kyak!”

“Eeek! Take cover!”

At that moment, everyone screamed in surprise, crouching down or fleeing.

As a brilliant golden aura began to envelop the surroundings.

As if waiting, a protective energy surged toward everyone.

The movements of the people who had been bustling moments ago instantly froze.

A warm, gentle yet intensely powerful force.

It was a different dimension of feeling compared to the protective energy that had briefly appeared and disappeared a while ago.

Even the Emperor’s attendants, who had been wearing impressions and observing Vercheria until a while ago, closed their mouths for this moment.

War and separation, poverty, and alienation.

It was a warm energy that seemed to comfort all those emotions.

Now that Vercheria has returned to our side, now everything will be okay—an assurance like having dependable parents.

“The Goddess of Weather is bestowing protection!”

“Vercheria has returned!”

People, for a moment, forgot that Gerard was present, shedding tears in the midst of excitement.

“Vercheria-nim!”

“Vercheria-nim has come to save us.”
People rushed forward, attempting to touch Vercheria’s feet and reaching out comforting hands to touch her mysterious hair.

Though there was a moment of hesitation visible among the Wyat, including Rakrahan and the knights, Vercheria raised her head towards them, as if to assure them not to worry.

Maintaining a dignified posture, sitting gracefully on her horse, she slowly passed through the crowd.

Vercheria left the common people to enjoy her return.

As she moved like that, Vercheria suddenly felt unfamiliar gazes and turned her head.

‘Empress Lawrence.’

It was the first time she faced that face.

‘Is this woman the one who imprisoned me in the tower?’

Without even reading Vercheria’s mind, Empress Lawrence continued to gaze at her without looking away.

‘Are you really my mother?’

Innocent to the point of looking vacant, Vercheria’s complicated feelings were reflected in Lawrence’s brown eyes.

‘It’s hard to believe.’

When Vercheria escaped from the tower, she had things she wanted to ask once she regained her lost power.

Why did you hate me so much, what did you gain from it?

And so, did that make you happy?

But now, there was no point in hearing the answers.

In the end, everything was just a tedious obsession carried over from the past.

She might have been manipulated when she was a child, but now that she knew the truth, she couldn’t let it continue.

“Whoa, whoa.”

As Vercheria pulled the reins she was holding, the horse that had been smoothly moving through the crowd suddenly stopped in the middle.

Vercheria, who had patted the horse’s hindquarters, quickly leaped off and through the people following her.

Then she walked straight toward the empress.

Empress Lawrence looked at Vercheria approaching her with a grin and a smile.

As the distance closed and the face of the ‘mother’ she had longed to see so much came into full view, unexplainable emotions spread into Vercheria’s chest.

Did this woman know what it meant to live trapped in that narrow tower?

Did she know and act deliberately?

“Empress Lawrence.”

“Vercheria.”

The two called each other and silently faced each other.

“I didn’t expect to meet this early. Nice to meet you.”

At Vercheria’s words, the empress smiled brightly.

“I’m very pleased to meet you too.”

Vercheria’s forehead wrinkled ever so slightly.

‘What is this?’

A strange feeling that couldn’t be pointed out arose from Empress Lawrence.

Different from the past, where she smiled while wearing a mask, there was no change in feeling from the past mother.

Everything felt unnatural.

‘Why do I feel this way?’

Vercheria, who was quietly smiling, slowly shifted her gaze from the empress, and then noticed Kelita standing a step away.
Kelita, who always smiled brightly, was looking at Vercheria with tightly pressed lips.

“Ah.”

Vercheria’s golden eyes narrowed within the narrow expression.