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Chapter 3
I think I just learned another truth I never wanted to know.
I had only looked over naturally because the man’s hair color was somewhat similar to mine.
And honestly, wasn’t this an even bigger secret than my sister being a regressor, my future self dying young, or Minabel being able to see something called a Status Window?
This was a secret that could shake the future of the entire empire.
“Bell, do you know what red eyes usually mean?”
“Ah, even if I came from another world, I know that much. According to the divine oracle, only someone with red eyes has the right to inherit the throne. Right now, only the First Prince has red eyes.”
“That’s what people believe, at least.”
Though throughout history, there had been many people who painted their own eyes red to steal the throne and many others who started rebellions because they resented not being born with red eyes.
There was even a saying that the deeper the red in the emperor’s eyes, the more blood he had spilled before taking the throne.
“But why suddenly ask that? Don’t say things in such a meaningful way. Every time you talk like this, it feels like you’ve discovered something terrifying again.”
Instead of answering carelessly, I stayed silent.
Apparently that only made Minabel even more frightened, but if I actually said it aloud, I’d probably die.
Crown Prince Vincent had brown hair and red eyes.
Anyone looking at him would think he seemed proper and warm-hearted, but his eyes alone looked hollow, as though he had already lost everything.
Yet people completely failed to notice that emptiness and instead praised his legitimacy and cold judgment.
They said his gaze showed the qualities of an emperor capable of controlling the masses.
Anyway, the important thing was this:
Prince Vincent definitely had brown hair.
But the man I had just seen clearly had silver-white hair.
“Tie, what are you staring at so intensely?”
“……I suddenly have something I want to ask my sister.”
“Huh?”
“If I become certain, I’ll tell you too.”
Minabel nodded solemnly as though I were plotting something enormous.
***
“You’re asking whether changing hair color with magic is harder or changing eye color?”
“Yeah.”
“Why? Is someone after your hair and eyes? Who did this?”
My sister had been happily welcoming me, but her expression instantly hardened.
She was probably already murdering some imaginary criminal in her head for daring to covet her little sister’s eyes or hair.
Before an innocent person could be quietly executed, I hurriedly waved my hands.
“No, not me. I just think someone else might be doing it.”
“Someone is hiding their identity and approaching you? Are they trying to hurt you?”
I grabbed my sister’s wrist before she could storm off and overturn the empire with a sword in hand.
“Tie.”
“With how much you protect me, what could possibly happen? Don’t worry. The person I’m asking about has absolutely nothing to do with me. No, I’m asking because I want them to stay unrelated to me. Please just answer the question.”
Only after I desperately explained myself did my sister finally calm down and think seriously about it.
“Eyes.”
“So changing hair color isn’t that difficult?”
“Changing it permanently is different, but temporarily changing hair color is basic magic. Eye color is dangerous, though. If something goes wrong, you could go blind. And the effect doesn’t last very long either.”
Which meant…
I had happened to meet his eyes at the exact moment the magic wore off.
“……”
Right. This really was my problem.
This world seemed determined to reveal everyone’s secrets to me, so there was no way ordinary human effort could stop it.
Maybe my expression darkened visibly because my sister hurried closer.
“Why do you look like that? There really is a problem, isn’t there? If you don’t know the name, just describe them. I’ll handle everything myself.”
“No, Unni.”
If this kind of thing counted as a “problem,” then your enemy would become the world itself. Though maybe you already fought it once before.
“Right now, there’s only one imperial family member with silver hair in the empire, right?”
My sister frowned slightly, like she didn’t understand why I was suddenly asking.
“The Third Prince, Lucian Aedvain, has silver hair. He inherited the Empress’s hair color.”
“And his eyes are blue, right?”
“That’s right.”
I hadn’t seen his face clearly because he was far away, but given the circumstances, it was obvious.
The person I saw was the Third Prince.
And he was hiding his eye color.
Keeping this secret until the grave wouldn’t be difficult.
But there was one thing all the people whose secrets I discovered had in common.
Somehow, I always became entangled with them in the end.
So what would it be this time?
If an imperial prince were hiding his eye color, didn’t that mean the empire itself was on the verge of collapse?
“Tie?”
My sister called my name seriously, noticing how pale I had become.
“Why are you suddenly asking these questions? Before you wither away from worry, it’s better if I just eliminate the cause.”
No. If we “eliminate the cause” right now, that becomes treason.
…Then again, if we succeeded, would it become a revolution instead?
No, no. Let’s stop thinking about this.
“No, it’s just that I thought I saw him while I was out with Minabel earlier! There’s no reason for someone like him to suddenly come near the duchy, right? Besides, maybe I just saw wrong!”
I waved both hands frantically while trying to explain myself, and only then did my sister finally relax.
“Ah, I see.”
Thankfully, my sister tended to trust my words pretty easily.
After that, completely exhausted, I lay beside her on the bed and chatted aimlessly until we fell asleep.
Well, technically, my sister fell asleep first.
I stayed awake, watching her sleeping face.
Maybe because I had uncovered such a huge truth, it was hard to fall asleep despite how tired I felt.
The more I thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
If the third prince were wandering around the duchy for no reason, people could simply assume the reckless prince was out searching for taverns or women.
But shouldn’t the real question be why nobody noticed anything suspicious in the first place?
Then again, my entire life had always worked like this.
Everything passed by vaguely under the excuse of “coincidence.”
Besides, since my sister was the heir of the duchy, I expected her to immediately report my suspicions to Father.
But instead, she focused entirely on comforting me, as if she had expected this all along.
And before falling asleep, she mumbled something that kept bothering me.
“Don’t worry, Tie. No matter what happens, our family will be safe. Preparations to leave are almost complete.”
The words “preparations are almost complete” echoed in my mind again and again.
Didn’t that sound like she planned to secretly take only our family and escape whatever disaster was coming?
I needed to know what was going to happen.
But how?
My thoughts started racing wildly.
“First, forget your plan for a second and help me instead.”
At times like this, there was an easy solution.
Ask a smart person for help.
Though before that, I needed to prepare a little first.
***
The next day, I called Minabel over and had tea with her as usual.
Minabel Cherita.
The very first person I could ask for help was
“Tie, did you not sleep? You look tired.”
“A little? Is it that obvious?”
“Mmm… lack of sleep. Too many worries. The Third Prince’s secret… huh? Tie! Don’t tell me you actually saw the third prince’s eye color? Lucian Aedvain’s red eyes?”
That “magic blackboard” really was ridiculously useful.
This was exactly why I had called Minabel before asking my sister for help.
“So you really did know and stayed quiet all this time?”
“Ah— Aah—!”
Because she was the only person who could confirm whether the things I noticed were actually true.
And also—
“I want to apologize… for hiding the truth from you all this time. Even so… can I still remain your friend?”
Because she genuinely loved and worried about me just as much as my sister did.
“No matter what you tell me, our friendship won’t break, Minabel.”
“Then I’ll tell you. Actually… this empire is destined to fall, and your sister is making plans to escape in order to save you.”
I had suspected it a little, but was it really true?
“I approached you because I wanted to survive by relying on your sister. I know that’s selfish, but please don’t hate me.”
But thanks to that, I finally learned what my sister was preparing for, so how could I hate her?
“Anyone would want to live. I understand.”
Maybe because I smiled sincerely, Minabel seemed to relax and started spilling out even more information that she knew.
That this world was actually the setting of a book.
And that in the original story, my sister had never regressed.
“But your current sister turned back time! Maybe because of that, she has the title ‘A Regressor Who Refuses to Regret.’ And your maid Elian has the title ‘The Imperial Family’s Secret.’”
