It was the first time I had faced him this closely since becoming Vivian, and my breath caught.

His gaunt face and lifeless eyes pierced my heart.

Before, I was too focused on diverting Diarob’s attention to properly look at my father…

But now, facing him like this, tears suddenly poured out.

Trying to hide them, I tensed my whole body, causing the magic to dissipate and the books to tumble down.

Startled, Father first checked if I was alright.

I lowered my head, pretending to pick up books to compose my tears, when I heard Father’s voice.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

Hearing Father’s worried voice suddenly brought back old memories.

This had happened long ago too.

Such minor mistakes often occurred when testing magic.

The warmth of Father embracing me then was still vivid in my mind.

At that time, Father had only cared about me, even though he got hurt shielding me with his whole body.

The only thing I could do for Father now was to quickly disappear from here.

‘I’m sorry, Father.’

Deeply suppressing those feelings, I barely wiped my tears and raised my head.

“I-I’m fine.”

I tried to speak calmly, but my voice came out trembling.

Hurriedly gathering the ancient books and rushing out, the snow piled up outside came into view.

The snow that used to feel so cozy now felt unusually cold today.

‘Father must feel even colder than me.’

Thinking of Father breathing desolately, my heart crumbled.

I was the one who left, but the pain became the burden of those left behind.

Facing that scene, my heart sank heavily.

Walking on the accumulating snow. With each step, heavy marks were engraved on the pure white snow.

*

Even after returning to my room, I couldn’t escape those thoughts for a long time.

‘Seeing me use magic, what must Father have thought?’

Vivian was not known publicly as a mage.

If Diarob knew Vivian could use magic, he would have exaggerated and told all the nobles, not someone who would ever conceal it.

Father would know that better than anyone else.

‘How could I make such a mistake.’

I was angry at myself for making such a blunder.

The one fortunate thing was that it was minor magic that even Father would recognize.

‘Anyway, since that level of magic is useless, Father will probably just overlook it.’

Of course, I didn’t think Father would suspect or try to find out if I was Rachel based on this one incident.

But it’s true that I always need to be careful.

‘Because the contract with the contractor is involved.’

In any case, thinking that Father would have complicated thoughts because of this incident made me feel even more guilty.

‘He must already hate seeing my face…’

Pushing aside the complex thoughts, I opened the ancient book and the ancient languages flowed smoothly.

I was worried I might have forgotten after not using them for so long… but fortunately, I could read and interpret all the languages fluently.

The ancient book contained many interesting facts about artifacts, but most were things I already knew.

Then, a strange page caught my eye.

This page, which seemed particularly marked by the passage of time, had most of its letters mysteriously disappeared.

‘Did Duke Diarob tamper with it again?’

The thought that this page might be related to the magical tool that reveals life and death made my hair stand on end.

But the only word I could make out now was this:

[Red Dragon……]

It was a somewhat disappointing result.

If it’s a page related to dragons, there’s no way it would contain anything about magical tools, right?

It was certainly strange, but there was no need to delve into it now.

What I’m looking for is a magical tool that can determine a person’s life or death, not secrets about dragons.

After putting that page in the collection, I started turning the pages again.

How much time passed like that?

Just as I was getting tired of the documents spanning over hundreds of pages, a noticeable phrase caught my eye.

[Magic Mirror

– An artifact made by grinding dragon’s breath, this 1000-year-old object… (omitted)

If you put in an old possession of a person, you can check whether they are alive or dead.]

‘So something like this really existed.’

Reading to the end, the owner of the Magic Mirror was revealed.

[It is currently stored in the Kingdom of Leonharti and designated as a national treasure.]

According to this ancient book, if my belongings fell into his hands, my identity might be revealed.

Of course, I couldn’t directly get my hands on a national treasure.

But usually, such treasures could be used if you paid a huge sum.

Since it would enrich the national coffers, it wouldn’t be a loss from the country’s perspective.

In other words, if Diarob paid an enormous price, he could request Leonharti to put my relic in the Magic Mirror.

Contrary to my concerns, it didn’t say the Magic Mirror could fully know its identity, but it would reveal whether I was alive or dead…!

‘If he puts in a relic, he’ll know I’m alive. I can’t fall apart here like this.’

Countless thoughts filled my mind.

‘Should I say I’m sick and not go to the hunting festival?’

It seemed like a simple solution, but it was nonsense.

If I defied his orders, it would only raise unnecessary suspicion.

Moreover, someone like Diarob could create such opportunities again anytime in the future.

It’s not something I can avoid forever.

Above all, I had my own reasons for needing to go there.

‘Enhancement stone.’

There’s no better opportunity than this to find it and recover my magic power.

Although the risk variables are high, it’s the only way for now.

*

The day of the Wolfdor Hunting Festival was more brilliant than usual.

As it was a massive event of the empire, the gathered major nobles exchanged greetings disguised as displays of power.

Then, the Crown Princess entered, standing tall in their midst.

The noble wolf fur cloak and hat that only the imperial family could wear, along with the massive Clavi ornament, were enough to exude an imposing presence on their own.

The snow-white riding outfit within accentuated her snow-white face, blatantly revealing her beautiful figure.

Vivian’s current appearance was so noble and elegant that no one could ignore her.

Everyone inwardly sighed, wondering how the Crown Prince could not have fallen for such a sight.

As if mocking their thoughts, Casius strode ahead without even looking at Vivian’s face.

Tikan hurriedly followed behind, glancing at Vivian’s expression.

As Tikan nodded at Vivian, who was standing blankly in front of the carriage, a knight escorted her.

It was something Casius should have done originally, but it was clearly a result of deliberate disregard.

As the door closed with a click, silence filled the carriage interior for quite a while.

That silence was broken as the carriage approached the entrance of Rosemary Territory.

“What’s your intention this time?”

“Pardon?”

Vivian, who had been staring intently at Siron following behind, slowly turned her head.

Casius’s indifferent face came into view above her eyes.

There wasn’t a single expression on his face, but Vivian felt her breath quickening.

All this pressure, the glares that made her feel guilty for just breathing, was a bit overwhelming.

Unaware of such feelings, Casius pressed her once again.

“What’s your intention in choosing Rosemary Territory as the hunting ground?”

Casius’s face, looking down at Vivian, was as fierce as a beast in the hunting grounds.

*

‘The decision to make Rosemary Territory the hunting ground should have already been reported.’

To bring this up only now.

‘Until now, was my face so detestable that he didn’t even want to come question me?’

Well, he could still feel that way for now. Putting away such emotions was no longer a task for me.

Anyway, I had anticipated that Casius would ask such a question from before.

I too found it strange when Diarob said he had chosen Rosemary Territory as the hunting ground.

Of course, as much as I anticipated it, I had prepared an answer.

“I thought Your Highness had decided. Was that not the case?”

Until now, I hadn’t even shown my face in state affairs. It wouldn’t be strange if I didn’t know.

However, the sarcastic voice pierced my ears sharply as usual.

“Are you taking me for a fool now?”

Well, of course. I didn’t expect him to simply say, “Oh, I see” from the beginning.

“How could you say such a thing? How could I, who doesn’t even participate in state affairs, know such detailed matters?”

It was a statement mixed with some resentment about how he never gave me any indication to attend state affairs.

Casius seemed to understand that, his expression turning unpleasant before changing to one of ridicule.

“Do you think I wouldn’t know that the Duke entered the Crown Princess’s chambers a few days ago?”

There seemed to be no such thing as a secret in this imperial palace.

Diarob knows the Emperor’s words before a day passes, and Casius knows all of Diarob’s movements.

Are they all having secret three-way meetings behind my back?

Swallowing a sigh inwardly, I made a lame excuse.

“That was just to inquire about my well-being.”

Casius didn’t even try to hide his sneer as he spoke.

“How considerate of him.”

Stinging words filled with poison, a contemptuous gaze as if looking at a disgusting larva.

At this rate, forget seduction, I might not even get to see Casius’s face.

‘If a mistress enters the picture in this situation, it would be over.’

As the faint hope I had held extinguished, things became even clearer.

In this case, there was no choice but to make a bold move.

“The relationship between Duke Diarob and me is not the father-daughter relationship you think it is, Your Highness.”

It was certainly a hasty statement.

According to the original plan, I was going to turn Casius towards me a bit more before concluding with this statement…

But there was also the matter of handing over the Benedict trade route before, so I could expect some change in Casius, couldn’t I?

The die has already been cast.

“To the Duke, I am merely a tool.”

Casius’s eyes wavered slightly at the words “Duke” instead of “Father.”

‘Is he believing my words?’

Just as I thought this was my chance and was about to press on, the carriage came to a stop.

Casius flung the door open with a bang and went outside.

His cloak fluttered behind him as he leapt out.

It seemed his pride was hurt by the fact that he showed even a moment of wavering at my words.

However, there was something to be read in that fleeting moment.

‘He definitely… wavered a bit.’

The blue eyes that trembled ever so slightly clearly contained a tremor.

It’s a shame he left like this, but… if even a tiny crack appeared in Casius’s heart, then today’s goal has been achieved.

‘I still have time left, after all.’

As I got up, I could see Tikan fidgeting.

Just as Tikan was about to reach out his hand to me after gauging the situation, Casius’s sharp voice was heard.

“What are you dawdling about there?”

Tikan, who had ended up in an awkward posture, sheepishly bowed his head and ran towards Casius.

Even so, I could see him signaling to another knight with his eyes.

‘Well, this works out better for me.’

The plan Diarob had mentioned earlier flashed quickly through my mind.

To carry it out, it would be much more advantageous for a duller knight to escort me rather than Tikan.

After finishing my preparations and turning my gaze, Diarob’s eyes pierced through me as if urging me on.