Hot breath invaded, parting tender skin.

As if vowing not to let go, Nikolai wrapped my waist with strong force.

The heat that started from the lips spread throughout the body.

My waist arched backward.

The breath I had been barely holding escaped.

“Huh.”

Was that the signal?

Nikolai pulled me with all his might.

He seemed to believe that doing so could change my mind.

The edge of reason crumbled little by little.

The empty space was filled with passion flowers.

Light burst from inside my tightly closed eyelids.

It was sweet and bitter.

Ecstatic and painful.

Enveloped in opposite sensations, I trembled.

I wanted to crumble.

But I was Elizabeth.

A villainess who forges her own destiny, unbound by fate.

Love and such were not everything in the world.

Just because a woman loves a man doesn’t absolve her of everything.

Still, I wondered.

What would become of us when this kiss ended?

Was there no kiss that lasted forever?

Our lips parted.

The questions were cut off.

Silence filled the space.

It was time to part.

“Please let me go now, Your Majesty.”

Nikolai’s beautiful face crumbled.

His eyes burned red.

My heart sank with a thud.

I felt I could never forgive myself if he shed tears.

Was it fortunate or unfortunate?

Nikolai, wearing a mask of expressionlessness, spoke as if spitting out words.

“I will never let you go.”

“I still have to go. No, I will go.”

Without permission, I turned my back.

I moved my steps, leaving him behind.

“Elizabeth!”

With one step, my chest collapsed.

With another step, my heart was crushed.

That’s how I moved away from Nikolai.

It was at that moment that Nikolai’s order fell.

“Guards! Arrest Elizabeth Emster for defying the imperial command!”

[This is the timeline separator]

Spring never came to the Ice Tower.

A place where cold winds blow year-round, and frost turns to ice.

The lightest punishment a prisoner of the Ice Tower could dream of was exile, or death.

“I’m innocent! Elizabeth, that wench framed me!”

An eerie voice, like scraping metal with a pitchfork, shook the Ice Tower.

“Please call my father! He can save me if he offers the first emperor’s treasure! Father surely doesn’t know yet!”

White breath spread every time Rose breathed.

It was bone-chillingly cold, yet they didn’t even provide a brazier, let alone a cotton blanket.

In the Ice Tower, where even tears might freeze, there was only Rose and silence.

She thought today would be the same.

“Judging by your voice, you seem to be doing better than I expected.”

Rose doubted her ears at the clear voice.

A woman with her face hidden by an ivory hood walked up the stairs.

It was neither an auditory hallucination nor a visual one.

How long had it been since she’d seen someone other than a guard?

Rose crawled closer to the iron bars.

“Y-You…!”

“Shh. Be quiet. My presence here is a secret.”

The woman pressed her index finger to her lips.

Rose nodded obediently like a well-behaved child.

The woman set down a bowl of steaming soup on the stone floor.

Rose’s eyes rolled back, having had to make do with meals of rock-hard bread.

“Did you bring this for me?”

“Of course.”

“Ah. Thank you so much! I knew you wouldn’t abandon me.”

“Is that so?”

“I’ve wanted to get close to you for a while. Among the empresses of the four great noble families, you’re the most…!”

“I said it was a secret. Your voice is too loud.”

The hooded woman spoke coldly.

She even pulled the soup bowl back.

Clutching her churning stomach, Rose pleaded.

“I’m sorry. I’ll do whatever you say!”

“To think that Rose, once the wealthiest and most arrogant empress, would be reduced to this over a bowl of soup. Though I never thought of you as a friend, it’s painful to watch.”

“It’s all because of Elizabeth. That villainess…!”

“That’s right. She’s the one who killed your brother too.”

“W-Who died?”

“You didn’t know yet? That Sir Simon died during a duel.”

Though she pretended to be sympathetic, there was a hint of sardonic mockery in the woman’s voice.

Rose had no time to care about her mockery.

She couldn’t believe her words either.

“His Majesty has abandoned our family!”

“Marquis Brenden is in an uproar, saying we must kill the villainess and the tyrant. Having lost both his daughter who was empress and his heir, what else can he do?”

“I truly loved His Majesty… He was all I had!”

“It can’t be helped. You provoked Elizabeth.”

“Elizabeth. That wench…!”

Tears streamed down Rose’s bloodshot eyes.

Blood seeped from her nails as she scratched the stone floor.

The woman, who had been staring blankly at the scene, asked.

“What would you do if you could have revenge?”

“What can I do, locked up in the Ice Tower?”

“Think carefully. What you could do if you got out of here.”

“…!”

“I’m the only one who can come to the Ice Tower without His Majesty’s permission. And the only one who can release you from here.”

Rose looked up at her, whose face was hidden.

How could she defy the imperial order?

Even the visits of the head of the noble council and the high priest were rejected.

Where were the guards?

‘Was she always like this? Was everything until now just an act? Why is she offering to help me?’

A dark aura that she had never seen in the imperial harem surrounded the woman.

Rubbing the goosebumps on her arms, Rose hunched her shoulders.

“Did you come to use me? To deal with Elizabeth using someone else’s hands?”

“You caught on quickly. Do you dislike it?”

“So this was your true face!”

“You have no choice, Rose.”

The woman covered her mouth with her hand and chuckled.

“You deceived everyone, and now you’re aiming for the position of empress?”

“Hartmann’s heart should belong to someone wise like me.”

“If someone like you becomes empress, the empire will be ruined! You’ll be an even worse villainess than Elizabeth!”

The woman, who had been listening silently, tipped over the soup bowl with her toe.

“No!”

Rose reached out belatedly.

But she couldn’t stop the soup from seeping between the cold stone floors.

“You should watch your words, shouldn’t you? To your benefactor offering you a chance for revenge.”

“You…!”

“If you kill Elizabeth, I’ll arrange for you to escape abroad.”

“R-Really?”

“Revenge and saving your life. Isn’t it the best condition for you?”

“You could hire an assassin, so why did you come to see me, locked up in the Ice Tower, in person?”

Rose didn’t let go of her suspicion.

“Because only desperation creates miracles.”

“What nonsense is that?”

“Someone like you will never understand. Heh heh.”

With a secretive smile, the woman tilted her head.

“I should go now. Decide whether you’ll freeze to death here or kill the woman who ruined your family.”

“How can I trust you? After you’ve thoroughly deceived everyone until now!”

The woman pointed at the iron bars.

The lock that had been tightly secured was now open.

A secretive voice crept into Rose’s ear.

“Elizabeth is under strict protection. Only those closest to her can kill her.”

“?”

“Use your maid, Nisa. The one who abandoned you and became Elizabeth’s dog.”

[This is the timeline separator]

Three full days had passed since I was confined to the Canary Room.

I stared blankly out the window, resting my chin on my hand.

Today, the holly fence looked particularly dense and lush.

The familiar scenery seemed desolate and pitiful.

I wondered if Laila felt the same way.

“Lady Elizabeth. Are you there?”

A small voice came from beyond the fence.

I quickly looked around.

“Nisa? How did you come here when visits are forbidden?”

“His Highness the Crown Prince told me about a small opening. It’s a bit narrow for me to use though.”

“Is His Highness well?”

“He’s very healthy. He’s blaming himself, saying you’re suffering because of him. He made quite a fuss, saying he would rescue you.”

“Tell him not to do that. Say everything will be fine.”

“He’ll be quiet for a while. His Majesty has forbidden him from entering.”

So it came to that after all.

I swallowed a bitter smile as I replied.

“He must have recovered if he’s causing such an uproar.”

“Lady Elizabeth. The situation is quite serious.”

“Tell me in detail.”

“I’m not sure if I should say this…”

“I’m expecting it, so don’t hide anything.”

Nisa sighed as if she had no choice.

“Everyone’s delighted that His Majesty has confined you. There are complaints that the punishment is too light though.”

“What crime are they trying to pin on me?”

“…The charge of attempting to assassinate His Highness the Crown Prince.”

Why wouldn’t it be?

It was an obvious outcome, but it felt suffocating, as if a stone had been placed on my chest.

“The nobles from prestigious families must be jumping for joy.”

“They’re also trying to blame you for the poisoning incident.”

“That I poisoned His Highness and then played the hero? Thanks to which I secured the position of education officer?”

“That’s right.”

No one knew about the divine water of Morasynthia.

They didn’t know about the ability to see through all illnesses.

Or that this power had been given to me.

Nikolai doubted me too.

The nobles trying to find fault with me wouldn’t miss that unnaturalness.

“If found guilty, it would be hanging at the very least.”

“His Majesty won’t abandon you. He’s just angry for a while because of this incident with His Highness.”

“Hmm?”

“Please endure for a little while until you’re forgiven. He’ll soon realize that you’re innocent.”

You misunderstood too, Nisa?

That I’m being punished?

‘She doesn’t know that Nikolai confined me to keep me. I might be able to use this situation.’

A solution to this problem came to mind.

I had to keep it secret for now.

It was safer that way.

“Don’t expect too much, Nisa. I’ve been abandoned by His Majesty.”

I squeezed out a melancholy voice.

Nisa asked in surprise.

“What do you mean?”

“His Majesty must be tired too. The burden of ruling the country must have been great.”

“But His Majesty loves you, doesn’t he?”

Is that how it looks to others?

That Nikolai loves me without a shred of doubt?

‘Nikolai doesn’t love. He just can’t tolerate me defying him. He just prevented what he considers his from running away.’

It hurt like a part of my heart had collapsed.

The inside of my eyelids felt hot, and the bridge of my nose stung.

But this was no time to shed tears.

“Nisa. Will you grant me one last request? It’s something only you can do.”