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Lucretia secretly bit the inside of her cheek. She knew very well that Eleanor’s words carried regret about the Empress’s seat she had failed to claim.

If it had been Eleanor, would things have been different? If Eleanor had become Empress instead of her, would the Emperor have visited the marital bedchamber even once?

As she looked at Eleanor’s neatly groomed, shining golden hair, Lucretia found herself thinking such thoughts without realizing it.

“Do whatever it takes to get close to the Emperor. If you just sit still and wait because he doesn’t approach you, do you think someone will place him in your bed for you?”

The Marquis clicked his tongue, saying that for someone who had grown up with nothing, she was terribly lacking in tact.

Soon, the Marquis and Eleanor stood up. Clara and the other maids hurried after them as if they were the true owners of the room.

“Travel safely, Marquis. Lady Eleanor.”

“Remember this.”

The Marquis glared at Lucretia as he spoke.

“If you cannot capture the Emperor’s heart immediately, then at least bother him like a gnat. You must hover around him so that he will at least glance at you once.”

He grumbled irritably. It annoyed him that he still had to teach her such basic things.

He had spent an enormous amount of effort and money to push Lucretia into the Empress’s palace.

When he first brought up the engagement between the late Emperor and the Zephir Marquis family, the current Emperor, Kirion, did not even listen.

After ascending the throne, Kirion wielded absolute power. The only force that could restrain him, at least somewhat, was the temple.

‘Just what I stuffed into the High Priest’s mouth—that pig—exceeded our family’s yearly budget.’

The High Priest, who had agreed to cooperate, strongly urged Kirion to honor the late Emperor’s promise, speaking of the sacredness of royal vows.

Even an Emperor could not easily ignore the High Priest’s powerful claims in a nation where religion held great influence.

It had been difficult to secure the position of guardian to the Empress. Marquis Zephir was confident that he would recover twice, even four times, what he had invested.

“Make as strong an impression as possible. Depending on your efforts, you may receive a reward—or a punishment—at this month’s family meeting.”

The family meeting.

At those words, Lucretia’s heart sank.

Once a month, every member of the Zephir Marquis family gathered together. Lucretia, though an illegitimate child of the Marquis, was no exception.

It was a time to evaluate what each person had accomplished for the family over the past month.

Her half-sister Eleanor and her brother Pierre usually received rewards. But Lucretia did not.

“Why have you learned so little healing magic even now? Pathetic!”

“It can’t be helped, Father. Half of lowly blood runs in her veins.”

“Well, she was born from that wicked woman’s womb. It must be difficult for her to handle something as sacred as healing magic.”

The family meeting was the time Lucretia feared most.

Even though she was now married and technically part of another household, it seemed she still had to attend.

It was despairing—but Lucretia did not even consider rebellion.

It was not simply because he was her biological father. Marquis Zephir quite literally held her life in his hands.

After dismissing the maids and bathing alone, Lucretia stared tiredly at her reflection in the mirror. Instead of the gentle brown eyes she usually showed, vivid purple eyes looked back at her.

Whenever she faced those eyes, she became keenly aware of her position. If it became known that fairy blood ran through her veins, she would not only be expelled from the Empress’s palace—she would not be allowed to remain in the Empire at all.

And her father was the only person who knew this truth.

Remembering the moment a few days ago when Kirion had grasped her chin, Lucretia shuddered faintly.

‘He was too close.’

And the Emperor’s gaze had been too intense—almost as if he could see through the false eyes and uncover the truth in an instant.

‘If he discovers it…’

The Emperor would never spare the daughter of a monster who had deceived him.

Lucretia clenched her fists. Her head throbbed, perhaps from the fearful thoughts.

“May I come in, Your Majesty?”

Clara’s voice came from outside the door.

But before Lucretia could answer, Clara entered without waiting for permission and smiled lightly.

“Are you going to sleep? I’ll light the incense.”

“…Yes.”

Clara skillfully searched the lowest drawer of the bedside table and took out a paper pouch filled with crushed herbs.

As the herbal incense burned, a drowsy scent quickly spread through the bedroom.

Feeling her headache ease, Lucretia slipped into bed.

“If the amount seems insufficient, please tell me anytime, my lady.”

Clara whispered from behind her.

“If the prescription is lacking and you have another beast-like fit like last time… oh dear. That would cause quite a scandal.”

Clara shuddered as if the mere thought frightened her.

Because she carried fairy blood, Lucretia also suffered from mana addiction. If she did not regularly rely on the power of a special herb—Elnash leaves—to calm her mana, she would suffer severe headaches.

Once, as a form of punishment, she had been forbidden from using the leaves. By the third day, she had collapsed from splitting pain.

“By the way, we’ll soon run out of Elnash leaves. Ask the Marquis to replenish them quickly. And don’t do anything again that would put you out of his favor and get them banned like last time.”

Clara’s warning echoed in her ears.

Lucretia closed her tired eyes.

Despite the Marquis’s warning, Lucretia made no progress over the next few days.

The Imperial Household Department still had not contacted her to receive the transfer of duties.

Her relationship with the Emperor remained unchanged.

She tried her best to at least meet him once. She went to the banquet hall at mealtimes, lingered near the training grounds he often visited, and even stopped his aide in the corridor to ask about his whereabouts.

But none of it worked.

Though they lived in the same palace, she could not make contact with him at all.

She even began to wonder whether her existence occupied any place in the Emperor’s mind.

One morning, after days filled with anxiety and helplessness, Clara drew back the curtains cheerfully.

“Good morning, Your Majesty. The weather feels as if we’re about to receive the news you’ve been waiting for.”

As she spoke, Clara discreetly dropped something beside Lucretia.

It was a note. Lucretia immediately realized it was a message from Marquis Zephir.

After sending all the maids away, she opened it with trembling hands.

[I have reached an agreement with the Imperial Household Department. You will receive word to come and take over your duties this afternoon. You’ve rested long enough—now it’s time you earned your keep.

I will be brief. You must take command of the preparations for the upcoming hunting festival. The hunting festival is traditionally managed by the Household Department under the Empress’s authority, so it will not be difficult. At the very least, you must not be excluded from the preparations. Absolutely not.]

The color drained from Lucretia’s face.

‘Is he planning to meddle with the hunting festival?’

The hunting festival was the most important event in the Sigfrid Empire.

If one could access its internal information in advance, great benefits could be gained.

The Marquis had always said he had spent an astronomical sum to place her in the Empress’s seat—and that he would recover far more than that through her.

It seemed he was now beginning that “recovery.”

Using her.

Her chest felt heavy, as if weighed down by a stone.

Imperial affairs were never to leave the palace. What the Marquis had just ordered in writing was clearly an act of treason.

She had known this was why he placed her in the Empress’s position—yet her heart still felt troubled.

This was only the beginning.

‘Yes, I expected this. From now on, Father will try to use my position to gain every advantage he can.’

Even knowing that, she saw no way to resist.

If she rebelled, the supply of Elnash leaves would be cut off first. Imagining herself having a disgraceful fit in the middle of the palace made her feel faint.

It was like being trapped in a pit she could never escape, foolishly staring up at the sky.

The note was not finished.

[It seems you have still failed to capture the Emperor’s heart. Useless.

Prepare for a conjugal night soon. Even the Emperor cannot ignore a husband’s duty forever.]

What did that mean?

Lucretia stared at the last sentence for a long time.

It sounded as if there were some way to force the Emperor to seek her out.

When the sun tilted low in the sky, the head maid, Jaina, knocked carefully.

“Someone from the Household Department has arrived, Your Majesty.”

“Ah, I will come out at once.”

Guided by her attendants, Lucretia entered the Household Department office for the first time.

“Welcome, Your Majesty.”

A tall young man greeted her.

“My name is Jereon Johannes. It is an honor to behold Your Majesty. May this day be filled with the blessing of the earth.”

On the way there, Jaina had quietly told her that Count Johannes, young and refined in appearance, was the true power managing the Household Department’s finances.

In the Count’s eyes, Lucretia sensed clear emotions—beyond mere caution, there was unmistakable hostility.

“Rumor has it that Lady Evelyn, Count Johannes’s younger sister, was once a strong candidate for Empress. He may be wary of you, Your Majesty. How presumptuous!”

Clara’s gossip suddenly came back to her mind