Aini suddenly opened the door and noticed that someone was sitting behind the piano. The outside and the room were dark, so she couldn’t see the face, but she could see someone’s black silhouette.

“… Who is it?”

The sound of the song stopped and the face was not visible. Aini barely opened her mouth and asked. Because she was too tense, her voice was choked like someone who had just woken up.

“I asked who it is.”

Aini hoped that there would be no returning answer. However, she hoped it would be Haeum’s voice, and she hoped it was not Haeum. She herself couldn’t even know what she wanted.

“Aini. It’s me.”

But the returned voice was Haeum’s voice. Aini’s legs went weak and she leaned against the wall. She bit her lip hard.

“Aini.”

The missed voice called her again. In the old voice. Aini shook her head quickly.

“You’re supposed to be dead.”

No matter how missed his voice was, he was definitely dead. It wasn’t just one or two people who saw it. But how can a dead person…?

“I missed you, so I ‘came a little earlier’.”

“Do you have any proof that you are you?”

“When you were ten years old, I tried to take you to the temple, but I stopped it. On my thirteenth birthday, you gave me a sword made of glass, but you got in trouble with your father.”

That was a story known only by a very small number of people. As her eyes heated up, tears poured out and Aini’s lips trembled.

“You’re supposed to be dead.”

She was afraid. Very afraid, but her steps went towards where Haeum was. However, when Haeum struck the piano keys, Aini was startled and stopped in her place.

Then a pained voice was heard from the darkness.

“Don’t come close. I don’t want to scare you.”

“I’m already scared.”

“I can’t see you up close yet. I came too early.”

“What are you talking about…?”

Because her vision was blurred by tears, Aini asked the question and quickly wiped her face with both hands.

But when she raised her head. The black shadow had already disappeared, and there was a light on in the room. No one was sitting in front of the piano.

“Haeum?”

Aini called his name, but Haeum was not visible. Her legs were so weak that she leaned against the wall. But even that body soon slid down to the floor.

“Haeum……”

Aini squatted down leaning against the wall, hugged her legs, and burst into tears. He was still alive after all. He was alive and came back.

But how? How can a dead person…?

‘The name that Carlein used to call. Is that woman with red hair the one named Domis?’

The next morning. As she kept thinking of the redhaired woman in her fantasy and Carlein, who had not yet awakened from sleep, the crying duo felt like sharp stones embedded in her heart, they seemed to sink inside and hide where they could not be found. It kept coming up and was annoying.

‘No wonder. He charged so skillfully. He had a very passionate love for a thousand years.’

Thinking of Carlein, who was crying that he would die with that woman, Latil splashed the water in the washbasin, making ‘uh, uh’ sound for no reason.

But even while working, she kept thinking of it, so Latil eventually pushed all her official schedules ahead, postponed her personal tasks for tomorrow, and went to Ranamun in the early evening.

She planned to forget about the consort who passionately loved another woman, drink with Ranamun, and listen to his inner thoughts.

“Going around and giving drinks to each of the consorts, the palace people keep whispering.”

Whether it was fortunate or not, as soon as Ranamun saw Latil, he coldly rebuked her, and Latil could forget about Carlein while making excuses.

“You have to take care of everyone when you take care of one person.”

“You are a born playboy.”

“Then should I go back? Isn’t a playboy taking care of five better than a playboy taking care of six?”

As Latil kept speaking without losing, Ranamun coldly brushed Latil off and closed the door as he walked ahead.

“So you’re saying it’s better to be a flirt who takes care of six? Seems like you like bad women?”

Seeing that, Latil teased Ranamun, who then became colder. So cold, you might feel chills when near him.

“Let’s drink. Don’t get angry.”

Latil firmly grabbed his arm, pulled him to sit on a chair, and poured his drink right in front of his nose. She thought that he would not drink if she didn’t do it this way.

“……”

However, Ranamun was quite suspicious, and he didn’t drink when Latil openly offered him alcohol.

“Why do you make all the concubines drink?”

He even went as far as to ask this question while holding his glass.

‘I guess making five of them drink in a row is a bit strange.’

If Ranamun is suspicious to this degree, how suspicious would Tasir, the next in line, be? Latil secretly clicked her tongue but laughed it off and explained.

“It’s easy to get along if you drink. You can also talk more openly. I’m still busy with my early reign, so I can’t come often. That’s why I want to get along like this.”