It hadn’t even been four full hours since she asked for the newspaper, and they brought thirteen years’ worth.

Somehow, the thought that things had gone as Alejandro wanted irritated her. Glaring at the thick stack of newspapers, Nerea let out a shallow breath.

The reason she couldn’t easily reach out was because the newspapers were from thirteen years ago. Thirteen years ago, when she first received the order to go to war.

Nerea shook her head and reached out as if it was nothing. And when she picked up the newspaper, she couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

The headline that caught her eye read as follows:

-Shield of Castarty, Count Nerea Esteban expresses intent to participate in war. Set to depart under His Majesty’s commission. Will the tide of the prolonged war turn?

-Count Esteban. Departs for the battlefield in striking black armor. The beginning of a most honorable journey.

-Acting Count Esteban. Tries to smile while hiding a heavy heart. As a father, unable to stop his daughter’s steps.

Lies.

As a cold laugh rose to her lips, a memory as bad as a nightmare came to mind.

“Return dead. For Brianna’s sake, who has lived suppressed because of you.”

She knew from the day after receiving the order to deploy, when her ordinary armor changed to gleaming black. Helen’s words, as she hugged Nerea goodbye for the last time, confirmed her suspicions.

That’s what it meant to be a black knight. A strong wish to stand out alone among countless gray and silver armors, to surely die.

Meanwhile, in the Empress’s Palace of Castarty.

The Duchess of Terebans, the Empress’s chief lady-in-waiting, left the reception room with an expressionless face. A beautiful woman standing alone in the corridor where all the servants had been dismissed looked at her with a sorrowful expression.

“Duchess of Terebans. How is Her Majesty the Empress now…?”

“Crown Princess. Her Majesty the Empress is not feeling well due to her concerns, so she cannot receive visitors today either.”

At the lady-in-waiting’s words, spoken without inflection, the Crown Princess’s blue eyes welled up. As she lowered her head weakly, her beautiful golden hair rippled like a golden wave.

It was a beautiful figure that melted the hearts of many men in social circles, but the Duchess was not swayed by it. Instead, she bowed her head as if paying full respect and entered the reception room.

Left alone, the Crown Princess, Brianna Esteban Castarty, quietly raised her head. As if there had never been tears, dry and cold eyes looked at the reception room door.

It was on a night a week after the Empress had refused the Crown Princess’s greetings and stripped her of her authority.

The firmly closed door opened towards Brianna a week later, two days after the Crown Prince had left for the border.

“Duchess of Terebans. How is Her Majesty the Empress’s health today?”

“…Please enter, Your Highness.”

The response of the Empress’s chief lady-in-waiting was different from usual. The ladies-in-waiting of the Crown Princess’s palace behind her let out startled breaths, but Brianna smiled faintly.

It was a later summons than expected.

She thought she would be granted an audience at least when her father advised sending the Crown Prince to the border. Today was two days after the Crown Prince had left for the border.

But in the end, the firmly closed door opened.

“Your Majesty. The Crown Princess has entered.”

Brianna, who was about to pay her respects upon entering, hesitated for a moment. The Empress’s ladies-in-waiting were filing past Brianna, leaving the reception room.

The Empress dismissing everyone was because she was royalty to the bone, not at all for Brianna’s sake.

Brianna took a deep breath and paid her respects.

“I greet Your Majesty the Empress, the exalted moon, mother of all people.”

Knowing when to lower oneself was proof of Brianna’s cleverness.

Waiting in tears in front of the Empress’s reception room might have helped open the Empress’s closed door, but it would have made the Empress more uncomfortable.

So she was prepared for this much. After all, the Empress’s nature of openly looking down on Brianna while mentioning her family since the engagement was decided wouldn’t have gone anywhere.

Brianna waited with her lips curled up for the Empress to accept her greeting.

“…Yes.”

The Empress’s permission came after a very long time had passed. Cold sweat ran down her back, but Brianna pretended nothing was wrong and sat on the opposite sofa as the Empress invited.

“I heard that while I was unwell, the Crown Princess came to my palace every day worrying about me. How touching.”

Unlike her gentle smile, the Empress’s blue eyes were cold. Contrary to her words about being unwell, there wasn’t a single shadow on the Empress’s beauty. Even her perfectly styled blonde hair was overflowing with luster.

But Brianna lowered her head as if apologetic.

“Since my father is involved in that worry, I am even more ashamed. Although the Crown Prince, being such a kind person, immediately said it was alright, how could I hold my head up?”

“How could that be the Count’s mistake? It must surely be that Grand Duke’s scheme.”

The Empress spoke lightly.

As everyone expected, the Empress also seemed to think that both the person who switched the painting and the disappeared painter Russoire were all the Grand Duke’s doing.

So she must have been pleased with her father’s advice to take credit away from the Grand Duke. But why did she open the door only now? It was when Brianna was harboring a small doubt.

“Well. Now that you’ve seen me today, you’ll be able to sleep comfortably tonight.”

Ah. This was it.

The Empress’s eyes narrowed as if testing. Brianna spoke plainly.

“It is only right to be comfortable under Your Majesty’s grace, but.”

“…”

“Regrettably, thinking of the Crown Prince sleeping on a hard bed at the border…”

Brianna let her words trail off. The Empress smiled kindly like a spring breeze.

“My, how pure-hearted you are.”

It seemed she was pleased with her answer. Just as Brianna was starting to relax a little, the Empress suddenly clicked her tongue.

“But with such a great concern for the Crown Prince, I wonder why we still don’t hear a baby’s babbling in this imperial palace.”

“…I apologize, Your Majesty.”

The Empress looked at the Crown Princess with dissatisfied eyes. Contrary to her shrinking voice, there wasn’t even a shadow on Brianna’s face.

As if it was only natural that there was not a single news of an imperial grandchild despite being married for five years.

It was a little over an hour later when Brianna returned to the Crown Princess’s palace.

“Your Highness. You’ve returned? How was Her Majesty?”

In the reception room of the Crown Princess’s palace.

Helen jumped up from brewing hot medicinal tea and greeted her daughter.

Oh, mother. You should leave such things to the maids.

But this was a futile thing to say to Helen, who loved her daughter more than anyone. Brianna smiled gently as if to reassure her mother, who was full of curiosity.

“She said she’s feeling much better after resting. She also told me I’d done well and to focus on helping the Crown Prince again.”

In other words, it meant to take control of public opinion in social circles through tea parties and such again. Helen let out an excessively relieved sigh. The maids behind her were the same.

“That’s a relief, Your Highness. You wouldn’t believe how Lady Lanchester was strutting about while Your Highness was busy attending to the Empress.”

Lady Emendel, the Marchioness.

“That’s right, Your Highness. She looked just like a lark showing off its feathers.”

Lady Rodin, the Countess.

The other noble ladies standing behind were the same. As the high-nosed noble ladies each added a word, Brianna gently curled her lips.

“Well then, I’ll go bring some invitation cards, Your Highness.”

After all the excited maids had left, Brianna spoke as if grumbling.

“Father should have killed her on the battlefield. Then we wouldn’t have had to deal with such annoying things.”

“Oh my. But back then, Your Highness also said not to kill her.”

Helen said with a playful smile.

“I hoped she would die early. But thanks to our wise Highness’s choice, we received an enormous compensation and got to see her fall into the mud, so it wasn’t bad.”

At the secret smile shared only between those who share a secret, Brianna reflected on the past.

Ten years ago was entirely Nerea’s world.

Wherever you went, dolls of the red-haired knight in black armor were circulating, and newspapers were racing to cover Nerea’s news.

Count Esteban rings the bell of victory, Count Esteban wields the upper hand. Count Esteban, Count Esteban.

The black knight of Esteban, the shield of the empire. Nerea Esteban.

Amidst people clamoring as if there was only one person with the surname Esteban, Brianna had smiled faintly.

After all, it was Brianna who persuaded her parents, who had said how could that child handle a sword, how had she survived until now, let’s kill her immediately, not to kill her.

“You must wait, Father. It’s not yet time for her to die.”

Though puzzled, her father, who believed in his daughter’s choice, soon learned of the victory compensation brought by Nerea’s war reports and smiled from ear to ear.

“As expected of my clever daughter, Brianna.”

When Nerea finally killed King Gauwe, the compensation exceeded the five most fertile granary regions in Castarty, eight gem mines, and piles of jewels and silks that seemed endless.

Of course, receiving two count titles and eight viscount titles was also included. All of that would go to Gabe’s share.

But the reason Brianna opposed killing Nerea wasn’t for something like compensation.