Amy thought deeply. If the future emperor was chasing after her, saying he liked her, it would be a lie to say she wasn’t tempted by the guaranteed future of wealth and glory. But her cold reason put the brakes on this vain dream.

‘I’d sooner be a corpse than become the Crown Princess.’

The Empress was the type of person who would strangle Amy with her own hands rather than see her become the companion of her precious son. And she would do it as quickly and cruelly as possible.

But would the Crown Prince rebel against the Empress for her sake?

‘That’s absolutely impossible.’

Amy shook her head.

The Crown Prince had always been an inadequate son in the Empress’s eyes. Their conversations were one-sided scoldings, criticisms, and apologies. The Crown Prince revered his mother, but at the same time, feared her more than anything in the world. In such a mother-son relationship, the son inevitably becomes powerless against his mother. The Crown Prince was no exception.

Amy took pride in breaking free from parental oppression and carving out her own life.

She had long since decided to settle in a warm southern country with the money she’d saved from her maid work, living comfortably while raising cats. Therefore, a miserable death was not part of her plan.

The conclusion was simple.

‘For a peaceful retirement, I need to cut off this silly affection first.’

The Crown Prince had likely mistaken their childhood companionship for romantic love. It wasn’t unreasonable for him to be confused, as they had been comrades in overcoming the harsh mountain of parenthood.

Amy fell into deep thought.

The next day, she went to the Empress and revealed her plan. At first, the Empress doubted her intentions, but as it was a favorable plan, she gave her full support. Amy immediately set to work. She chose a young lady from a family that would please the Empress and arranged a so-called ‘chance encounter’.

‘Oh my, it’s Lady Esmaine from the Duke’s family. Your Highness, please greet her.’

As the Crown Prince stood there awkwardly, Lady Esmaine approached and gracefully offered her greeting.

‘I am honored to meet the small sun of the Empire. I am Catharina of Esmaine.’

‘Ahem, pleased to meet you.’

Amy smiled secretly as she noticed the Crown Prince’s eyes constantly drawn to the young lady despite his composed response. With such interest in the opposite sex, fortunately, it seemed she wouldn’t have to become the Crown Prince’s concubine.

After introducing several young ladies this way, Amy casually probed the Crown Prince’s true feelings.

‘Which lady did you like the most?’

‘Huh? What do you mean?’

‘You’ve met four in total. I thought Lady Esmaine was the best in terms of family background, appearance, and knowledge. What do you think, Your Highness?’

‘…Amy, I told you I like you.’

The Crown Prince, now quite mature, noticed Amy’s attempt to match him with another woman and his face hardened. Amy sighed. It seemed more time was needed.

‘Then I’ll give you an answer when you’re eighteen.’

Around that age, people in the royal family typically decided on marriage. By then, the Crown Prince would surely understand that his marriage would be determined through complex political calculations.

Fortunately, the Crown Prince wasn’t the type to force things. Though he had a weak disposition that was easily swayed by women, he didn’t coerce Amy. In this way, Amy bought another three years from the Crown Prince.

Her strategy was successful, and during that time, the Crown Prince met many women and gradually forgot about Amy. And when the eagerly awaited eighteenth year arrived! Just before the Crown Princess’s enthronement, Amy was kidnapped by Lady Esmaine and locked in a cold prison.

***

“Amy?”

Lost in memories of the past, she came to her senses at the sound of someone calling her name. The Second Prince, having finished his meal, was staring at her intently.

“Ah, Your Highness. Have you finished eating?”

“Yes, Amy should eat too.”

The Second Prince always made sure Amy ate as well. With such a kind heart, why did rumors spread in the palace that he had a bad temper and drove out all the servants? As their eyes met, the prince’s gaze was so gentle and clear that Amy felt a twinge in her heart.

“I’m fine.”

She cleared away the empty dishes and tidied up the kitchen. The Second Prince followed her around like a puppy wanting something. Amy raised an eyebrow.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

She asked bluntly, putting down the dishcloth. The Second Prince’s fair face turned bright red.

“…Yes.”

“Then say it.”

“Well, you see…”

The Second Prince stalled for time, rolling his eyes and biting his lips. Amy silently tapped her fingers on the table. She was busy, if he had something to say, why was he taking so long? She was grumbling internally when.

“I want to give you this.”

The Second Prince carefully took something out of his pocket and placed it in Amy’s hand. Then he hastily stepped back and wiped his hands on his trousers. It seemed he did this not because he disliked touching Amy, but because he was embarrassed.

Amy furrowed her brow and instinctively opened her hand. Her eyes widened.

“This is…”

The Second Prince lowered his eyes with a tense expression.

“Mother gave it to me long ago… She said to give it to the person most precious to me.”

His tone was solemn, as if he were proposing marriage. Well, in a way, it was similar. He was giving her his most treasured possession.

He glanced up, gazing intensely at Amy, who was staring at the jewel in a daze. Usually, she would have quickly noticed that the Second Prince’s behavior was unusual, but coincidentally, Amy was preoccupied with something else.

“…”

Amy’s eyes wavered. Resting gently in her palm was a small jewel. It was the very same one that the Second Prince had shyly given her just before she was kidnapped by Lady Esmaine in her previous life.

Amy stared blankly at the jewel she had cherished until her dying moments in her past life.

‘You’re giving this to me again…’

The Second Prince continued speaking.

“You know my mother was a princess from the Southern Kingdom, right? She said it was rare even there, and told me to cherish it carefully. She said it might even work magic.”

Amy blinked and repeated his words.

“Work magic…”

The Second Prince nodded contentedly, then quickly added,

“Not that I believe in that sort of thing…”

He seemed worried that Amy might think him childish. But there was no need for concern. Amy’s mind was as tangled as a ball of yarn a cat had played with.

‘So, this is what brought me back after all.’

Having an inkling, she swallowed hard and carefully raised the jewel to eye level.

‘Was it this lustrous before…?’

She tilted her head. She was sure that before her regression, it had been as unremarkable as a raw stone, with no particular shine or color… But now, wasn’t it incredibly sparkly?

‘The color changes depending on the angle. It’s purple, then blue, and I can even see red?’

How could this be? Amy turned to the Second Prince and asked.

“What kind of jewel is this?”

“Oh, that’s not a jewel.”

The Second Prince’s face lit up at Amy’s question, and he answered with a hint of shyness.

“It’s a magical artifact.”

“A magical artifact?”

Amy’s eyes grew wide. She looked back and forth between the jewel and the Second Prince with a bewildered expression.

“Isn’t this an ancient relic from the previous century?”

Magical artifacts were divine tools that had been forgotten by people since the great-grandparents’ generation of the Crown Prince and Second Prince.

In that world, there were records in history of fantastic tools that could regulate temperature and humidity, emit light in pitch darkness, make water spring forth in arid places, and breathe fire in frozen areas.

Magical artifacts were particularly abundant in the Southern Kingdom, said to be imbued with the remains of gods. The strange thing was that they couldn’t be made by human hands. They had appeared in the world at some point, and humans had only used them according to their purposes. This had only been possible until a century ago, that is, 100 years in the past.

Now, magical artifacts were like wind-up dolls whose springs had run out – they no longer worked.

‘But the late Empress said it could work magic.’

As a princess of the Southern Kingdom, it wouldn’t be strange if she had possessed a national treasure secretly passed down through the royal family. So this must be what caused her regression. But the color of the magical artifact had changed, which probably meant…

“If this is a magical artifact, does that mean it can no longer be used?”

It must have used up all its power in causing her regression. At Amy’s words, the Second Prince’s eyes, which had been sparkling, immediately darkened.

‘What was that tingling sensation like being struck by lightning when I first held the jewel?’

He reflexively fiddled with the black earring on his earlobe, his expression serious.

“…Probably so.”

He seemed dejected, thinking Amy considered the magical artifact insignificant. But that wasn’t Amy’s intention at all.

Amy gazed at the Second Prince with a strange expression.

“But you’ve cherished it all this time, haven’t you? And you’re giving me something so precious?”

“…Huh?”

“Something the late Empress told you to give to someone dear to you?”

“Oh, yes.”

The Second Prince’s face brightened again. He blinked, then blushed slightly and murmured,

“You’re the only one precious to me, Amy.”