As Serena lifted her heavy eyelids, Anna’s greeting was accompanied by young maids drawing back the curtains.

“Good morning, Your Highness the Crown Princess.”

Now Serena understood why noble ladies rose late in the morning and had simple meals in bed. They were not lazy, but had too much to think about until late at night.

“What is today’s schedule?”

“Lady Sherwood is scheduled to arrive in time for tea at 3 o’clock.”

Sipping orange juice while listening to Anna’s gentle voice, Serena gradually regained her senses.

“His Highness the Crown Prince will likely attend the council meeting today and only return for dinner.”

The Crown Prince returning and greeting the Crown Princess meant he was establishing his position as the next Emperor.

“And he was thoughtful enough to send flowers early in the morning.”

Anna seemed genuinely pleased with Lucas’s considerate gestures towards Serena.

“Flowers? But it’s winter now.”

“The imperial palace has greenhouses, so although rare, flowers can occasionally be seen even in winter.”

Indeed, what would be impossible in this vast imperial palace?

“But more precious than flowers is the heart of the sender. His Highness the Crown Prince rises at dawn every day to start his day, so it’s a very affectionate gift, isn’t it?”

“He rises at dawn every day even in the imperial palace?”

What surprised Serena was not the flowers, but his schedule.

“Yes. The same goes for His Majesty the Emperor. It’s quite different from life in the inner palace.”

Given the scale of the imperial palace, a day would quickly pass by just going about daily life.

A carriage was needed wherever one went, and there were many procedures for meals and baths, taking more time than before. As a result, the fatigue from etiquette itself was considerable.

“Right… His Highness the Crown Prince was born here.”

While Serena still had a strong impression of Lucas barging into the Astel estate, the more days she spent in the imperial palace, the more remarkable he seemed.

“Yes. Above all, I heard he still gets up even earlier to not miss sparring with Sir Cedric in the early morning.”

The Crown Prince must have even more laws and procedures to follow than the Crown Princess, yet he still devoted time to his own training despite becoming so robust. Somehow, Serena felt defeated.

“I’m exhausted from doing unproductive things for days, how embarrassing.”

“The circumstances are different. Your Highness the Crown Princess has just entered the palace, so how can you be the same as His Highness the Crown Prince who has grown up here all his life?”

Anna’s words were not wrong, but the strange sense of defeat remained. And Serena had to clearly acknowledge that she had underestimated Lucas.

“At first, I thought His Highness the Crown Prince was just a carefree person who wandered around, but I was wrong.”

Recently, Serena naturally brought up the Crown Prince even when no one asked. Anna thought it was a very good sight to see.

“I even thought I was the most diligent in the world, how pathetic.”

While taking pride in managing the Astel estate and living more diligently than anyone else, giving up the privileges of her noble status, Serena was not the only such person. If anything, it could be said that Lucas had lived an even more remarkable life.

“Your Highness, it is not right to have a competitive spirit over such things.”

“Why? It’s the truth.”

“Men are born with different physical strength than women. Moreover, His Highness the Crown Prince is so robust that no woman, or even another man, can compare.”

It was not that women were inherently weak. Serena’s existence was proof of that. However, if there was an exceptionally strong man among men, it was true that one could not keep up physically.

“So there are limits to physical strength.”

It was not because women were feeble and lacking, but because each had different innate strengths. Even from the perspective of the modern world in her past life, sports strictly managed records separately for men and women, so this was a scientific reason.

“How does Her Majesty the Empress spend her day?”

Serena sought a more realistic role model. Adeline had spent more than half her life in the imperial palace, and given the perfect state of the palace, she would undoubtedly be a good example.

“Not much different from Your Highness the Crown Princess. However, she consistently manages the inner palace and takes care of the imperial family.”

That was also a realm Serena could not catch up to right away. Adeline must have cared for this imperial family like a home for many years.

“But from what I hear from the young maids, she has been a bit tired since Princess Luana was born.”

“Of course, naturally.”

Even though Serena was only 24 years old, in this world, she received concerned gazes about having a late childbirth.

But Adeline gave birth to the princess when Lucas was already 17 years old. Considering the era, it was a truly life-threatening and reckless childbirth.

“By the way, Anna, yesterday the princess’s…”

Serena tried to continue, but stopped upon seeing the young maids in the room. Anna nodded her head calmly, proving that Serena’s choice was correct.

“It would be nice to have a gift for the princess.”

Serena slightly changed the subject.

It was not that she distrusted the young maids, but they could not be considered completely her own people. Above all, if what Serena ultimately wanted to know was a secret, it was not good for many people to know.

“Since both Their Majesties dote on her so much, a gift that can convey your heart later would be better than material things.”

“Yeah.”

The 3-year-old girl who had the dignified Emperor of this empire wrapped around her little finger probably had no regrets now. Serena unconsciously smiled, recalling the image of the princess toddling out dragging a doll.

“Princess Luana is really lovely.”

Especially if one could stretch her white, chubby cheeks with a finger, it seemed there would be no more wishes. Of course, that was impossible now.

“The children of Astel must also have a warm winter.”

With her surroundings completely changed overnight, it would be overwhelming to worry only about herself, but Serena always thought of the people of Astel. It was also proof that she was a true acting duchess, not just in name.

“Astel is a particularly prosperous place. You don’t have to worry, as the estate you left behind will flourish and lack nothing.”

Serena nodded.

Astel was originally a fertile and prosperous place even before Serena stayed there as acting duchess.

However, thanks to her cultivation and development, they were able to create specialties and people no longer suffered or died from lack of money.

“The good news is that you can taste Astel even in the imperial palace.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I looked into it and found that Astel berries can be bought in the imperial palace as well. So I placed an order early this morning.”

“Anna… thank you.”

It was not only Serena whose environment had changed. Anna, not being an upper maid, must have had even more to do.

And it was definitely not a coincidence that she found Astel berries here. She must have asked around many places to find them for Serena, who missed that place.

“No, I’ve been missing the taste of Astel too.”

Just having such a reliable person made Serena’s life worth living.

“Alright, let’s start the day with energy.”

While it was a bit casual for a crown princess, Anna happily nodded at the sight of Serena’s lively appearance, which she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Serena felt the afternoon sunlight and gazed at the vase full of roses on the table. Despite the season, all the blooming flowers were very beautiful.

“Your Highness the Crown Princess, Lady Sherwood requests an audience.”

Peter’s steadfast voice was heard beyond the drawing room door. Anna, who was already standing nearby, asked Serena’s intention with a glance, then quickly walked over, opened the door, and helped Lara enter.

“Your Highness, Lady Sherwood has entered.”

Perhaps because her situation had completely changed from before, the clever Lara also bowed slightly to Anna. As she had become the head maid of the Crown Princess, she should no longer be treated as a mere maid.

“Greetings to Your Highness the Crown Princess. I am truly happy and delighted to see you after a long time.”

Lara paid her respects to Serena with flushed cheeks. Serena elegantly nodded and gestured with her hand to the seat opposite. Then Anna and the young maids came and served luxurious refreshments.

“Come on in. You weren’t cold, were you?”

“No. Actually, I was so excited since yesterday that I couldn’t sleep.”

As the maids withdrew, Lara chattered as if she had been waiting.

“The banquet hall on the wedding day was also really fantastic, but the Crown Princess’s quarters are… truly beautiful. No, everything in this imperial palace is by far the best I’ve seen since I was born.”

Lara’s navy blue eyes sparkled, unable to hide her joy. Her heart, which had always been waiting for the Crown Princess’s invitation since the wedding, was not in vain.

Moreover, she was the first guest invited from outside since Serena became the Crown Princess, so that alone made her shoulders rise.

“It is truly an honor to receive an invitation from Your Highness the Crown Princess.”

“No. We have a connection from before entering the palace, so of course I should invite you.”

“I am humbled. I am really happy to hear you say that.”

Even while paying her respects, Lara’s eyes never rested and examined Serena.

Hailey’s dresses were always excellent, but the roses in full bloom even in midwinter and the diamond ring on Serena’s left hand were enviable no matter how many times she looked.

“Roses bloom even in this winter in the imperial palace.”

Lara was gazing at everything in the Crown Princess’s quarters as if enchanted. Normally, thanks to her strict education, she would have restrained herself to some extent, but having entered the world she had longed for so much, her inner thoughts were now clearly visible.

“There is no one in the world as happy as Your Highness the Crown Princess.”

At that moment, Serena recalled a sentence from the original story as she remembered it.

There, it said that the new duchess had ambitions to make her only daughter the empress, but seeing Lara’s undisguised desire now, that ambition was not only held by the duchess.