‘…It might really be so.’

‘Pardon?’

The Empress sharply closed her fan and sighed. Then she revealed her secret to her son.

‘You know there was an Empress before me, right?’

‘Yes. I heard she was in poor health and died while recuperating…’

‘She was pregnant at that time. She died in secret after giving birth.’

The Crown Prince was shocked.

‘How could that be…’

‘They said the child died too at that time…’

The Empress gritted her teeth. The Crown Prince’s face turned pale as he realized his mother was not unrelated to the former Empress’s death. The Empress, barely able to contain her anger, managed to calm herself.

‘Anyway, with such rumors spreading, it’s natural that your position will become unstable. Fortunately for us, the situation in the North has improved at this time.’

‘Fortunate?’

The Crown Prince recalled the Empress smashing everything in her private chamber out of anger upon hearing the news of improved weather in the North, and made a sour expression. The Empress glared at him.

‘It’s time to set aside personal grudges.’

The Empress was looking to the future. The North had potential for growth but development had been slow due to the harsh weather. Now that constraint was lifted, it was ready to gallop forward like a horse freed from its reins.

Already, those with keen business sense were clamoring behind the scenes to establish connections in the North. Moreover, the young Grand Duke had begun gathering talent… The region that would wield power in the empire in the future would surely be the Grand Duke’s domain.

‘We shouldn’t have handed over the North to that thing.’

She wanted to tear apart and kill Lady Esmaine, who not only gave it away but also added the justification of a dukedom, making it impossible to take back. The Empress had completely forgotten how she had praised it as excellent at the time.

She muttered, trying to shake off her regret.

‘Even a lowly thing can be useful if utilized properly.’

‘Are you saying the Grand Duke has a use?’

‘Yes. As it happens, there will be an coronation soon. You should go to the North with gifts from the imperial family. And make sure to show people how close you two are. However, don’t forget that you must be in the superior position. It would be good if it appeared that the Grand Duke follows your orders.’

The Empress lowered her voice and whispered.

‘He’s just a child starved for affection. First beat him down, then soothe him gently. He’ll be moved and listen to everything you say.’

The Empress smiled triumphantly and thought. Of course it would be so. After the Second Prince lost his mother, that’s how she had raised him.

‘First love is usually terrifying, you know.’

Noah’s gaze was fixed on Amy from beginning to end. An ominous feeling made the Crown Prince’s heart sink.

‘First love, could it be…?’

He clenched his teeth and fist, then relaxed his shoulders. Amy, who had known him for a long time, noticed he had given in and laughed inwardly. Now the Crown Prince wouldn’t openly interfere with the Grand Duke’s affairs.

“Then, Your Highness, enjoy your meal.”

She greeted him sweetly before turning away. She felt a complex gaze from Noah sitting next to the Crown Prince, but there was nothing to gain by acknowledging it now, so she withdrew as she was.

Coming out of the hall into the cool breeze, Amy tried to soothe her bitter feelings.

‘Why act like you still have affection left?’

She hadn’t forgotten how the Crown Prince had ignored her in the prison of her past life. But seeing him still seem to care for her made her feel uneasy.

“Head Maid.”

Amy turned at the voice calling her. Lady Weaver was standing behind a pillar. Amy approached her and spoke kindly.

“You saved us from a crisis by bringing out the wine. Thank you.”

“It was nothing.”

Lady Weaver’s expression remained blank, but she was embarrassed. So Amy smiled and asked.

“How did you happen to have it?”

“Ah, that wine has a high alcohol content, so it’s sometimes used as a painkiller. When the weather is cold, my son’s leg pain worsens, so I kept it as a standby medicine. But…”

She looked up at the sky and murmured.

“It’s not much different from the Central region. It’s really amazing.”

“It’s thanks to His Grace the Grand Duke. Anyway, I’ll assign you a maid to guide you around this place. You should familiarize yourself well, as you’ll need to start work soon.”

At Amy’s words, she bit her lip and took a step forward.

“Um…”

“Yes?”

“Is it… really alright for me to work here?”

Her clasped hands trembled slightly, as if she had asked with great courage. Amy tilted her head.

“Didn’t you agree and come here for that reason?”

When they left the baron’s estate where the mother and son lived, Amy had left a detailed explanatory letter with the mercenary in charge of the escort. Lady Weaver must have seen it and come to the Grand Duke’s domain.

Lady Weaver quickly shook her head.

“No. I mean, is it alright to employ me without knowing about me?”

Hearing her words, Amy felt the need to explain in more detail. So she straightened her expression and said.

“The reason I picked you as the head maid of the Grand Duchy is because you know how to stand up to your master.”

“…Pardon?”

Lady Weaver was puzzled, not understanding what Amy meant.

“I heard you left after telling the baroness you couldn’t engage in fraudulent activities?”

“Ah…”

Her face turned pale, thinking that rumor had already spread. But Amy just smiled with satisfaction.

“I brought you here hoping you’d do the same here.”

“…”

“So, I hope that quality of yours doesn’t change.”

Lady Weaver could finally breathe a sigh of relief. The conditions were so good that she had been pinching herself the whole way here, wondering if it was a dream.

At the same time, she had been worried, wondering if the Grand Duke’s side didn’t know the reason for her lack of a recommendation from her previous workplace, and if Vernon’s words welcoming her with open arms were false.

But to pick out the very reason she thought was most disadvantageous and say that’s why they were hiring her.

Her heart instantly lightened.

“I will serve with all my loyalty.”

As she bowed sincerely, Amy responded casually.

“You should say those words to the Grand Duke, not me.”

Then she waved her hand lightly.

“You may go now. You must be very tired and need to rest.”

“Yes…”

Lady Weaver skillfully hid her moved expression and withdrew. As Amy watched her retreating figure, she turned around.

But suddenly someone appeared and blocked her way. It was Sally.

Amy frowned, then smoothed her expression.

“Why are you here? Have you eaten?”

Ignoring Amy’s words, Sally mumbled something else.

“Me too…”

“Hm?”

“I want to be here too, by your side.”

Amy had to look away from Sally’s eyes, which were looking up at her with fervent hope.

“…That’s not possible.”

In an instant, Sally’s eyes rolled back. She pointed towards where Lady Weaver had already disappeared and got angry.

“Why? Why can that, that person do it and I can’t? Why?”

“Sally.”

A sigh escaped from Amy’s lips involuntarily. Because of her single-minded personality, Sally had no friends even when she was in the Crown Prince’s palace.

However, she wasn’t originally a bad person, and thanks to her sincere affection for Amy, Amy, who had been treating her coolly, somehow ended up becoming close friends with her. But whenever she saw this persistent behavior, her chest would tighten.

“Don’t, don’t be like that and think, think about it again, okay? If I help, you might get along well with His, His Highness the Crown Prince again.”

“Sally.”

Even though Amy frowned, Sally continued talking without caring.

“I can do well. Before, I made a mistake and let Her, Her Majesty the Empress know that His Highness li, likes you… But it’s different now. I really can do well.”

“Sally. That has nothing to do with it. I don’t like His Highness.”

When Amy spoke firmly, Sally, seemingly shocked, opened her large eyes wide and soon spoke while shedding tears.

“…Why?”

“What?”

“Why don’t you li, like him? His, His Highness still likes you. Then you could think about it again too, couldn’t you? Right?”

It was absurd. Amy had a headache, wondering if she had to persuade her when she simply didn’t like him. Sally had always enjoyed pairing Amy with the Crown Prince. She used to find comfort in her difficult life by vicariously experiencing happiness through it.

‘But it wasn’t this severe before…’

Perhaps she had become more obsessed due to the emptiness of Amy disappearing before her eyes. Knowing it was more due to affection for herself rather than for the Crown Prince, Amy found it hard to get angry at her.

Amy swallowed a sigh and said.

“Sally, I can’t take responsibility for you.”

“…”

Sally’s face turned pale in an instant. Until now, Amy had only gently soothed her, never cutting her off like this. Ah, she did lose her temper when she was dragged to the Empress and beaten due to Sally’s slip of the tongue.

“Our paths have diverged, so we must go our separate ways now.”

At Amy’s decisive words, Sally frowned and whimpered.

“You… are you okay without me…?”

Familiar tears streamed down her face. Amy was sick of this situation but also felt sorry for her.

“Of course I am. And you’ll be fine without me too.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“…”

Amy closed her mouth and stared at her friend. In her past life, Amy had been imprisoned for years, suffering from hunger and barely maintaining her life. At that time, such friendship was merely a luxury.