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Chapter 1
The cold night wind felt like it was cutting into her skin, making her body tremble.
She didn’t know what to call this intense feeling she was experiencing for the first time.
It was too bitter to be called anger, too furious to be called sadness, and far too heavy to be called regret.
It had happened right after her beloved parents were executed before her eyes.
Her mother’s desperate scream—begging until the very end to spare her daughter—echoed in her ears like a haunting ringing sound.
Her father’s eyes, which had already given up on everything, were still vividly burned into her memory.
And then—
Their heads, falling to the ground with a dull thud.
“Just what… is this…?”
Her mind refused to process such a horrific reality.
“Execute the sinner, Elina Estria.”
With those sweet words spoken by Prince Verdin Pernia, the beautiful trash of the Egonia Empire—the man Elina had longed for all her life—her consciousness faded away.
* * *
“Miss!”
At the familiar and dearly missed voice, Elina’s long eyelashes trembled.
…Masha?
The moment she recognized the owner of the voice, her eyes shot open.
Brown hair like a squirrel’s fur and bright, lively brown eyes.
It was unmistakably Masha.
“Ma…sha?”
If she was seeing Masha after death… then perhaps she had come to heaven.
She hadn’t been particularly faithful, but maybe God was more merciful than she thought.
Masha—the poor girl who had been killed while trying to defend Elina when Prince Verdin falsely accused the Estria family.
To Elina, who had relied on her like a sister, Masha’s death had been devastating.
But the tragedy didn’t end there.
Instead of proving their innocence, false testimonies from bribed servants and fabricated evidence led to the complete destruction of the powerful Estria family.
Suddenly, Elina remembered the conversation she had with Verdin before her execution.
“I didn’t intend to go this far… don’t resent me too much, Elina.”
“Y-Your Highness… I never poisoned the food. You know that. Why would I ever poison someone I love…?”
“I know. There’s no way you did. Because I was the one who did it.”
“What… do you mean?”
“I found out Kaian Ovilion loves you. How could I let you live? Killing you is the only way to watch that bastard fall into despair.”
After saying that, Verdin smiled brightly—so dazzling it hurt to look at.
It was the same beautiful face Elina had admired all her life.
But reflected in his golden eyes, her own image looked miserable and pathetic.
Like a shy boy experiencing his first love, he gently patted her shoulder, pretending to comfort her.
A cold, mocking smile crept onto her lips at his disgusting hypocrisy.
The man she had longed for all her life—
was someone who could take lives and still smile so beautifully.
“Miss, you really need to get up now!”
Masha’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts.
Just remembering that moment made her stomach churn.
She had been blinded by his beautiful appearance and failed to see the ugliness inside him.
Still… if she had come to heaven, perhaps her sincere regret had reached God.
“It’s been a while, Masha. You must have been lonely waiting for me, right?”
Holding back her tears, Elina hugged Masha tightly.
She didn’t want to ruin their reunion by crying.
“M-Miss? What do you mean ‘a while’? Did you have a strange dream or something?”
Masha, sounding confused, gently pushed her away.
“Miss, we don’t have time for this. Today is the day you meet His Highness, the Crown Prince. You said you’d sleep early so you wouldn’t be late!”
At Masha’s words, spoken like she was comforting a younger sibling, Elina froze.
“…What?”
“Please stop this and get up. We don’t have much time to get you ready.”
Elina stared blankly at Masha, who stood with her hands on her hips, urging her.
“I’m… meeting Verdin today?”
There was no way that bastard had come to heaven.
And no way he had died so soon.
That meant—
this wasn’t heaven.
“Why are you acting like this today…? Did you really have a nightmare?”
If only that were true.
If the memory of her parents’ severed heads and the cold blade that cut her throat weren’t so vivid—
she could have dismissed it as just a nightmare.
Looking at Masha’s younger face, Elina asked quietly,
“Masha… how old am I this year?”
“Twenty. Miss… maybe you should rest today?”
Masha checked her forehead with concern.
But Elina clearly remembered—
she had been twenty-two when she died.
She fell in love with Verdin at seven, followed him around for years, got engaged at twenty, and was executed in the winter at twenty-two.
So if this wasn’t a dream—
then she had returned to the past.
It sounded impossible, but there was no other explanation.
She pinched the back of her hand hard.
A sharp pain spread through her.
This isn’t a dream.
She didn’t know how or why this had happened.
But one thing was clear—
she had been given a chance to fix everything.
She already knew, painfully well, how costly her foolish choices had been.
If she hadn’t been blinded by love,
the Estria family would never have fallen so easily.
Wait… twenty?
Elina quickly walked toward the wide-open window.
“Miss!”
Beyond the window, under warm sunlight, the Estria family’s pride—the cherry blossoms—were in full bloom.
Pink petals floated in with the spring breeze.
For a moment, Elina stood there, stunned by the beautiful sight she thought she would never see again.
She gently picked up a fallen petal.
If I’m twenty… then I’m not engaged to Verdin yet.
But if her memory was correct, talks of engagement would begin soon.
“Miss, this isn’t good. I’ll call a doctor—please lie down.”
Masha said, pulling her away from the window.
She knew better than anyone how important meeting Verdin was to Elina at this time.
“I’m fine, Masha. Just keep the preparation simple.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
Looking into Masha’s worried brown eyes made Elina feel emotional.
“I said I’m fine.”
At her firm tone, Masha stepped back and began preparing her skillfully.
This meeting—
was something she couldn’t avoid.
Not if she wanted to protect Masha, her parents, and herself.
The enemy of her family—
was the empire’s only heir.
She wanted to tear his beautiful face apart and feed it to the crows.
But that wasn’t possible.
So instead—
she needed to stay as far away from him as possible.
First, she had to stop the engagement with that monster who felt no guilt killing people.
Luckily, Verdin wasn’t very interested in the engagement anyway.
Canceling it wouldn’t be difficult.
After finishing her thoughts, she crushed the petal in her hand.
“Is this okay?”
Her reflection in the mirror wasn’t as glamorous as usual, but her beauty still shone through.
Her long pink hair flowed down to her waist, and her cherry blossom-like eyes were enchanting.
Even the brightest jewels would lose their shine beside her.
Her gaze shifted to the pearl earrings hanging softly by her ears.
Then—
she remembered Verdin’s words.
“I found out Kaian Ovilion loves you. How could I let you live?”
Her eyes turned cold.
Kaian Ovilion.
A distant relative of the royal family, and the heir of the Ovilion dukedom.
The man always compared to Verdin.
In her past life, she had been too obsessed with Verdin to even notice him.
But not anymore.
He was as beautiful as Verdin—
perhaps even more.
If Verdin was like the sun,
then Kaian was like the moon.
She knew Verdin hated him.
But she never imagined that hatred would lead to destroying an entire family.
“Killing you is the only way to watch him fall into despair.”
Verdin had been so jealous that he destroyed a dukedom that would have eventually come into his hands anyway.
He was indifferent to what he already had—
but obsessively fixated on what he didn’t.
The best revenge… is to escape his grasp and be with Kaian.
A bright smile, like blooming cherry blossoms, spread across Elina’s face.
She would marry the man Verdin hated most—
and watch him burn in anger with her own eyes.
That was the best way to protect herself and her family—
and get her revenge.
And besides—
Kaian loved her.
So in this life,
all she had to do…
was accept his feelings.
