Alicia sat on the sofa holding the gift that Killian had sent, recognizing what was inside from the smell seeping through the cracks of the box.

It wasn’t an expensive item, nor was it a rare and precious thing difficult to obtain.

What was inside was something quite ordinary, if one had to describe it.

“Why?”

The issue was that this ordinary thing was a gift from Killian.

Since it wasn’t in his hands when he got out of the carriage, it must have been in the luggage compartment.

Alicia finally understood the guard’s reaction when inspecting the carriage and let out a hollow laugh.

If she had been standing there herself, she would have reacted and acted just like that guard.

“Apple pie… why?”

Doubting if she had smelled it wrong, Alicia opened the box to check the apple pie and let out another hollow laugh.

An apple pie with just one slice missing.

That empty space must be where the slice of apple pie that Alicia had eaten deliciously at Killian’s mansion had been.

“Wasn’t it prepared for Cheryl?”

What could this possibly mean?

“I don’t know.”

The Masu calling her name, Killian suddenly becoming kind, this apple pie he had prepared for her.

It was all full of things Alicia didn’t understand.

Feeling dizzy, Alicia closed the lid of the box and leaned back into the sofa, closing her eyes.

“Your Highness? Are you alright?”

Marisa’s voice was heard returning after applying the ointment, but Alicia didn’t have the strength left to open her eyes and sit up straight.

“Should I call for the doctor again?”

“No. I just want to rest a bit.”

“The box you’re holding…”

“This… I’ll take care of it. Could you draw some water in the bathtub? I’d like to soak in hot water.”

“I’ll prepare it.”

The sound of the bathroom door opening and closing and water filling the tub was faintly heard.

Still leaning on the sofa, Alicia slowly opened her eyes, looked up at the ceiling, and traced the edges of the box with her fingertips.

It must be her imagination that the sweet scent of apple pie seemed even stronger.

“Let’s not think about anything for a moment.”

Muttering so, Alicia closed her eyes again.

Alicia sat in the same position with her eyes closed for a long time, until Mina returned to inform her that Amy was safe and Marisa reported that the bathtub was fully filled.

Due to Alicia’s strong insistence, Marisa’s punishment was decided as a 3-month pay cut.

Since Alicia had decided to give Marisa extra pocket money equivalent to the amount cut from her salary during those 3 months, it was practically the same as having no punishment at all.

“Don’t you think Marisa’s punishment ended too quickly, as well as Your Highness’s?”

The punishment Alicia received for turning the imperial palace upside down was one week of self-reflection.

Ignoring Mina, who was muttering in a sulky tone and puffing her cheeks, Alicia turned her gaze away. She noticed Amy nodding in agreement with Mina’s words, which was unusual.

“His Majesty is too soft on Her Highness Alicia.”

“I think His Highness the Crown Prince is even more so. It was because of his opposition that His Majesty decided on one week instead of the one month he was going to set.”

Marisa, who like Alicia pretended not to hear Mina and Amy’s conversation, approached and set down the teacup.

Although she had earned Amy’s dislike from that day’s conversation, Marisa had also gained her trust and was now serving Alicia from an even closer position than before.

“I feel like I’m going to lose my place to Marisa soon, sob sob.”

“I think so too.”

“Mrs. Campbell! At times like this, you should comfort me!”

“I’ve suffered too much from our Highness to be swayed by crocodile tears.”

“That’s right. Crocodile tears are my specialty.”

“Your Highness!”

Alicia burst into laughter as she watched Mina shout indignantly.

Despite various incidents, Alicia had regained enough stability to laugh and chat with her people.

However, there remained one small unresolved issue…

“But Your Highness, what are you going to do with that box? You told us to leave it alone, but the food inside will spoil soon.”

Mina, who had returned to her usual self as if she had never shouted, spoke while looking at the box placed on the bedside table.

She shuddered, feeling very ominous about the increasingly strong sweet smell seeping out, with a premonition that she might soon have to clean up rotten food.

“…Leave it alone a little longer. I’ll decide soon.”

The apple pie she had definitely enjoyed eating at Killian’s mansion… why couldn’t she bring herself to touch it now?

Of course, if she said she was going to eat it right now, Amy would have a fit and stop her, but she couldn’t throw it away either.

‘It’s the first time I’ve received something from Killian.’

She had given up, but the lingering attachment remained thick.

Although she had told people she had given up her feelings for Killian, Alicia knew she would never be able to let go completely, and couldn’t even abandon that lingering attachment.

Time continued to pass while Amy, knowing Alicia’s feelings, couldn’t say anything about that box and its contents.

Now, there were no options left for the apple pie other than throwing it away before it rotted or after it rotted.

“The days are getting warmer, Your Highness. If we leave it like that, it’ll be a real problem.”

Spring was a season when various forms of life are born.

At this rate, some life form might be born inside that pie as well.

And it would most likely be something that moves by wriggling with a legless, slimy body.

Imagining the horrific end of the apple pie, Mina shuddered and turned her gaze from Alicia, who was staring at the box with a hazy look, to look out the window.

The time remaining until the end of her mistress’s self-reflection was now just one day.

Recalling the Emperor’s words that he had something to discuss with Alicia when her self-reflection ended, Mina prayed that it would not be something that would negatively affect her mistress.

Time passed, and Alicia’s period of self-reflection came to an end.

After having breakfast with her family for the first time in a while, Alicia followed the Emperor, who said he had something to tell her, to his study.

What could it be about?

‘Is he going to tell me about the Masu without my brother present?’

Given that the mutants were calling Alicia’s name, it was something she would eventually find out no matter how much it was hidden.

Although Alicia was already gathering information about the mutants through the information guild, if the Emperor officially informed her about it, she would be able to gather information more actively than now.

Sitting on the sofa in the center of the Emperor’s study, Alicia briefly enjoyed the aroma of tea that his chief attendant had placed on a small table, thinking about what her father might have to say to her while waiting for him to open his mouth.

“Alicia, yesterday we received an official letter from the Tower of Sages.”

“From the Tower of Sages?”

“They say they want to welcome a visitor.”

The Tower of Sages played the role of providing various advice on problems the Emperor couldn’t solve and checking the effectiveness of various policies put forward by Eregron’s ministers.

Although the exact location of the tower was unknown, the Tower of Sages, said to be somewhere in the rugged Prisca mountain range to the east of Eregron, was a place that even royalty couldn’t visit carelessly.

So the Tower of Sages sent a letter saying they wanted to welcome a visitor, of all things?

This too was something that hadn’t happened before the regression.

Could this letter also be a result of Alicia’s regression?

Alicia’s face darkened as she recalled the appearance of mutants, which was also something that hadn’t happened before the regression.

“It shouldn’t be anything bad, so don’t worry too much.”

“Yes, Father. But why are you telling me this instead of my brother?”

It was Crown Prince Adrian who was learning about the Emperor’s work by his side as the next heir to the throne.

If it was related to the Tower of Sages, shouldn’t this be something Adrian should hear, not Alicia?

Seeming to notice her curiosity, the Emperor approached and sat next to Alicia, gently taking her hands and patting them as he spoke.

“They say they want to welcome a member of the royal family as a visitor.”

“What?”

“They sent a letter saying they want one of the royal family to visit the tower.”

Realizing why he was talking to her instead of Adrian, Alicia’s eyes widened.

“Are they calling for me?”

“The sages in the tower must know that Adrian and I can’t leave the capital carelessly, so it’s likely they want to see you.”

“Why?”

“They didn’t state the reason in the letter. However, there was a note at the end saying it was absolutely necessary for the empire.”

A sage from the tower wanting to welcome Alicia, a member of the royal family, as a visitor for the sake of Eregron.

Alicia instinctively realized that this might be an opportunity to find answers about the relationship between her regression and the mutants.

‘If I could only understand how my return and the mutants are connected…’

If that could happen, Alicia would be able to find the answer to what choices she should make for the sake of the empire and her beloved family.

“Adrian’s position is that he absolutely cannot send you to such a dangerous place, but…”

“You want me to go, don’t you, Father?”

“I also want you to stay in the safe imperial palace, but the sages in the tower must have a clear reason for wanting to meet you, so if you want to leave, I don’t want to stop you.”

“I’ll go.”

“Alicia, wouldn’t it be better to think about it more seriously before answering?”

“No, as you said, Father, the sages in the tower must have a reason for wanting to see me. If it’s something absolutely necessary for Eregron, I want to go even if you and my brother try to stop me.”

“Alicia…”

“You said you wanted my happiness, didn’t you, Father?”

“Yes. Although Eregron is important, my daughter’s happiness is also important.”

“My happiness is proving that I can be of help to Eregron.”

The Emperor’s eyes widened in surprise at Alicia’s words.

“Please send me, Father. I’ll go and do something absolutely necessary for Eregron and come back.”