Not far, Elizabeth was talking to her father.

I gazed at them blankly.

“I must have a father too. I wonder if mother knows who he is.”

Mother never showed equal affection to all her children, especially not to someone like me.

But once, right after I learned about my transmigration and was ill with fever, mother visited me.

That touch, a wet cloth on my hot forehead, still lingers in my memory, a kindness Yun Sena from my past life never experienced.
Even if it was merely pity towards a young relative with no one else to rely on, I was content.

After recovering, I went to the Imperial Palace to thank my mother, but I couldn’t meet her.

The yellow flower I picked to give to her ended up on the dusty ground.

‘I would have hated me too. An annoyance with no benefit to the royal power, troubled by a fever…’

Lost in these lonely thoughts, the footman’s booming voice announced,

“The Empress has arrived!”

At the sound of Mother’s arrival, the murmuring crowd hushed.

Mother walked to her throne without sparing a glance at anyone, her steps proud and regal.

One by one, people bowed to her. When it was my turn, I greeted her,

“Third Princess Louibelle of the Ajester Empire greets the most radiant Sun of the Empire, the Empress.”

As always, standing before Mother, I felt overpowered, my hands trembling.

But when I looked up at her face, I froze.

Empress of the Ajester Empire

Affection: 999

“…”

Damn, this bastard!

Utterly lacking even the slightest sense of ethics!

While affection doesn’t necessarily imply romantic feelings, knowing Mother’s affection had been exploited for gain enraged me.

Filled with anger, I abandoned all nervousness and spoke clearly,

“Your Majesty! I request to annul my engagement with Hezhen Einsen.”

“Annulment?”

Mother, who had been looking down on me disinterestedly, finally showed interest.

“Royal engagements cannot be easily broken.”

Not just Mother’s attention was on me now. After mentioning the annulment, all eyes turned towards me.

In the hushed atmosphere, I carefully began,

“I am aware, Your Majesty. Thus, it was with much agony and turmoil that I decided to speak…”

I paused, fluttering my eyelashes.

“The truth is…”

I hesitated, then blurted out,

“Hezhen Einsen is impotent, Your Majesty!”

“…!”

Even Mother’s usually unflappable expression faltered.

“So, you’re saying… Lord Hezhen is incapable of reproduction?”

“Regrettably, yes, Your Majesty.”

Under Ajester imperial law, anyone incapable of reproduction couldn’t marry into the royal family. Concealing this fact to engage was a serious crime.

Of course, Hezhen wasn’t impotent yet, but he soon would be.

Because I was going to make it happen.

I hid my sinister smile behind feigned tears.

The ballroom buzzed even more than when Hezhen’s dentures had fallen.

“My heart for Hezhen remains unchanged, but an impotent man cannot join the royal family.”

If Hezhen were here, he would have turned red and protested.

But having left earlier, he couldn’t defend himself.

In Ajester, impotence was a valid reason for annulment.

And if annulled, our status as lovers would be automatically revoked.

“…We will send a royal order to Lord Hezhen for confirmation.”

Mother’s response filled me with secret joy.

“If he truly lacks reproductive capability, your request for annulment will be granted.”

Affection for Hezhen was plummeting everywhere, even reaching negative values in some cases.

Even Mother, whose affection for Hezhen was once 999, was no exception…
Empress of the Ajester Empire

Affection: -999

‘She must be thinking that he insulted the royal family with his inability to reproduce. Mother is quite strict in such matters.’

Having an affection of -999 from the Empress, Hezhen’s future in the empire will certainly be interesting to watch.

It served him right.

‘Of course, if my claim is proven false, the backlash will be against me.’

I inwardly resolved to ensure Hezhen’s impotent ending, no matter what.

Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.

The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…

Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.

Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.

The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”

When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…

The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced