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Chapter : 2
The Empress never expected any reward for the love she had given with honesty and her whole heart. Still, she had never imagined being treated like this.
In the original story, once Rotherin learned the truth, she was consumed by betrayal and hatred toward the Emperor.
She sent her subordinates to harass Bloé. Rumors spread through the alleys: the once-dignified Empress had gone mad and was trying to kill the Emperor’s mistress. The more this happened, the more the Emperor protected Bloé.
“Empress! Give it up now. The more you do this, the more you’ll only hurt yourself.”
“No. Your Majesty—how could you do this to me?”
“I explained enough!”
“What explanation? That you used me? I knew from the beginning that you didn’t love me. Still, I believed you would at least protect my position. How could you reduce me to such misery!”
Rotherin grew more and more worn down, gradually turning into a villainess.
One day, she learned that there was an illegitimate child between Tail and Bloé. That was when she completely lost her reason.
An illegitimate child the same age as her own beloved daughter, Princess Frisia, who resembled her!
“Father, when can I go to the imperial palace?”
“You’ll go soon, so don’t be impatient.”
“Then will you buy me pretty dresses too?”
“Dresses, jewels—everything in the imperial palace will be yours, Vivian.”
When Rotherin went to see the child for herself, she happened to overhear the conversation between Vivian and the Emperor, and she was devastated. The warmth in the Emperor’s eyes as he looked at the illegitimate child—
It was unfamiliar. He had never once looked at Frisia, his own daughter, with such tenderness. He had always kept his distance from Frisia, even avoiding her gaze.
No matter how little he liked her, Rotherin had always wondered why he treated even his daughter that way. And only then did she realize the truth.
Because he loved a poor woman with nothing, he had given all his love only to that woman’s daughter. While he had been so cold to her Frisia—never once holding her hand properly, never offering a warm smile, never even meeting her eyes—how could he give all the affection meant for a child to that woman’s daughter alone?
‘I can’t let Frisia live a life like mine. I have to protect my daughter.’
Grinding her teeth in fury, she vowed to kill both the Emperor and Bloé.
In the novel, Rotherin immediately planned to poison them both. But the assassination failed, and she was killed, disappearing from the original story.
What’s more, the enraged Emperor slaughtered everyone connected to her on charges of treason. Rotherin’s family, even her cousins’ families—he pinned every possible crime on them and wiped them all out.
When Juhye opened her eyes in this world, it was at the moment when Frisia was suffering from a severe fever, on the brink of death. In the original story, there was a time when Frisia was ill for more than ten days just before her eighteenth birthday. That was when Juhye became Frisia.
Thrown suddenly into a novel, Juhye was flustered, but fortunately, Frisia had almost no presence in this world. The Empress Rotherin’s only beloved daughter. A quiet, gentle princess. In the original story, she was described in just a single line.
Thanks to that, as long as she stayed still, no one would notice anything strange. And she couldn’t afford to be noticed. If the villainess Rotherin were to find out that she wasn’t her real daughter…
The aftermath was terrifying. She wanted to hide it at all costs. What should she do now? How could she return to reality?
‘Did I come here to help the Emperor and Bloé’s love?’
But Frisia wasn’t the protagonist, nor did she often encounter them. The only person she met was her mother, Rotherin. And Rotherin was the villainess who tormented the male and female leads in the original story.
‘Why did I have to become this woman’s daughter? What am I even supposed to do here?’
As time passed, fear grew. She was afraid Rotherin might realize she was a fake. The loving gaze that looked at her from head to toe frightened her. The more affection Rotherin showed, the more Frisia didn’t know how to respond.
Rotherin, seemingly unaware that Frisia had changed, continued to love her daughter. That only made Frisia more cautious and afraid. Then, one day, the Empress suddenly began to distance herself from Frisia.
‘Has she discovered the truth? …No, it doesn’t matter. I just want time to pass quickly like this.’
She desperately hoped that everything would end exactly as in the original story.
‘If the story ends without my identity being exposed, maybe I can return to reality.’
She vaguely hoped and believed that. At the same time, just in case, she prepared a backup plan. If the Empress’s poisoning plan failed, Frisia would be expelled from the palace and that would be the end.
‘But if, even after everything ends, I’m still here…’
It was unlikely, but terrifying. Being expelled from the palace would mean death was only a matter of time. She had no way of surviving on her own in this world. Everyone connected to the Empress was destined to die, so there would be nowhere to go and no one to help her. That was why she created an ally—someone who didn’t exist in the original story. A knight who would protect her and exist solely for her: Ron.
Ron was an orphan.
“You brat, where did you steal that money?!”
He had been delivering goods to the palace when she found him being beaten after being falsely accused. His clothes were covered in dust, but his bright platinum-blond hair stood out at a glance. So did his defiant eyes.
“Stop.”
“…P-Princess?!”
Everyone present was startled by Frisia’s sudden appearance.
“What’s all this commotion?”
“Well… this boy stole money while delivering goods.”
“Did he?”
Frisia approached Ron. He had a different air from the people inside the palace. Up close, his sparkling eyes appealed to her even more.
“He’s not the culprit.”
“Pardon?”
Frisia extended her arm and pointed at the kitchen cook.
“You. You’re the culprit.”
“W-What are you saying, Princess? I—!”
“You already took the money. Search him. He lied from the beginning.”
Luckily, she had noticed how unusually bulky the left side of the cook’s belly was. He had already taken the money and falsely accused Ron’s employer of not paying.
Frisia held out her hand to Ron.
“Do you want to come with me?”
Frisia brought Ron to her palace. Ron was smarter than expected and had excellent physical ability. Above all, he showed no discomfort even when she revealed her true personality.
Frisia asked the Empress to have Ron trained in the basic education given to nobles, as well as swordsmanship and etiquette. Over the course of more than a year, Ron learned everything quickly. As she grew close to him, she even obtained unused land and a mansion from the Empress, saying it was a gift for him.
It was a small villa that had once been built solely for Empress Rotherin before her marriage. Now abandoned, it was a mansion located in the eastern part of the empire.
She deliberately registered it under Ron’s name. After Rotherin’s death, the Emperor would confiscate all of her family’s assets. Frisia, too, would lose everything. That was why she used Ron’s name.
With land and a mansion like that, she thought she could survive even if she were expelled. And even if she returned to reality, it would still be a gift for Ron—beneficial either way. And today, the ending of the story she had been waiting for finally reached its last page.
“After that, they drove out even Rotherin’s cherished daughter and lived happily ever after.”
The novel’s ending. That final line.
Frisia was expelled.
The problem was that she was still inside the novel. She had acted as a quiet, composed princess for two whole years, believing she would return to her original world…
The moment her stepmother told her to leave, she instinctively knew. She would not be returning to reality.
‘I’m done with this. I won’t do it anymore. Good thing I prepared just in case. If I can’t go back—if I have to live here anyway—then I’ll live freely as my true self. Without ever getting entangled with those people again.’
Frisia clenched her fists tightly.
Standing before the mirror, Frisia spun around as if dancing while packing her belongings. She couldn’t take much, so her bag filled up quickly.
Ziiip. As soon as the zipper closed, footsteps approached.
“I’m here.”
It was Ron, finished with his preparations. Frisia turned her head and froze with her mouth open. In Ron’s hand was a necklace. That excessively glittering thing was no ordinary necklace.
“Are you out of your mind?”
“Of course not.”
Ron replied shamelessly, shrugging his shoulders. Frisia dropped her bags and shouted at him.
“If you get caught with that, you’ll die!”
Ron was standing there wearing a necklace encrusted with countless large and small jewels. A few months earlier, before everything happened, it was the necklace Frisia had inherited from her mother. A dazzlingly beautiful necklace that anyone would covet. So large and heavy that she had never worn it even once. Now it had become a keepsake.
“So what? It’s just one necklace.”
“If you get caught, you’ll really die!”
Frisia brought her hand to her neck and made a slicing motion. Ron casually shook his head as he put the necklace into the bag.
“We won’t get caught. There’s no one in the castle right now.”
“What?”
“Everyone’s busy partying at the Emperor’s palace.”
“Ah…”
So that was where the music she’d been hearing came from. Throwing a party after driving out his daughter… what a heartless father.
Creak. The door opened.
The corridor was covered with blood-red carpet. There really was no one there. The maids and knights who had been around until that morning were all gone within a few hours.
The two began walking through the vast, empty corridors of the castle.
“Ron, once we leave the palace, should we be friends?”
“I refuse.”
“What?! Why?!”
She hadn’t expected such an immediate rejection. Frisia stared at Ron in disbelief.
“I’ll never be just friends with Your Highness.”
“……”
What a cold guy. Frisia pouted.
“By the way, what was that round thing you asked the blacksmith for? It was too heavy to use as a shield.”
“It’s not a shield. Where did you put it?”
“In the carriage.”
“You packed the meat the cook gave us properly, right?”
“Yes.”
“Good! I’ll cook something delicious for you tomorrow. You can look forward to it.”
“Pfft.”
Frisia paused at the sound of laughter.
“…Did you just laugh at me?”
“You’re saying you’re going to cook now?”
“Yes. Why? Am I not allowed to cook?”
“Pfft.”
Ron snorted again.
What is this irritation? Seriously?
Frisia stared at him with her eyes wide open and her mouth agape.
“You’ll regret laughing at me. I won’t give you any, even though it’ll be incredibly delicious.”
“Yes, yes. I’m really looking forward to how delicious the cooking will be—something you’ve never once done in your life.”
Wow… so this is what a soulless response sounds like.
Frisia vowed to knock that smug look right off Ron’s face.
Chatting about trivial things, they went down the stairs. Walked through another corridor. Down more stairs. Unlike the Emperor’s palace right next door, filled with noise and people, this castle was hollow, echoing only with their footsteps. They reached the end of a long corridor where no one came to see them off. Just as they were about to open the final door and leave—
Someone appeared.
“Princess Frisia, is that not you?”
Frisia’s face filled with confusion as she looked up at the person before her.
An unexpected encounter. Meeting someone here—especially this person…
Tall, with a sharply defined face framed by a white beard, and thick, gleaming gold rings on his fingers—it was Duke del Rokin Swicherard.
“Duke del. Have you been well?”
“Thanks to you.”
She greeted him quickly, reacting on instinct. A brief silence followed.
The duke calmly looked Frisia up and down, taking in her hat, gloves, and luggage.
It’s oppressive. That gaze is heavy. Even breathing feels difficult. I know he usually attends social gatherings at the palace… so why isn’t he at the party now, and why is he blocking my way?
“The Emperor has expelled the Princess.”
As Frisia hesitated to answer, Ron’s voice rang out.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Exactly what it sounds like.”
“Then does that mean the Princess is leaving the palace now?”
“Yes.”
After speaking with Ron, Duke Swicherard looked back at Frisia. His gaze fell on the bag she was holding.
“Give it to me.”
The duke took her bag and walked ahead, heading outside. In the garden, a carriage was waiting.
“Is the knight leaving with the Princess?”
“Yes.”
“Did the Emperor permit it?”
“The Emperor has nothing to do with it. I belong to the Princess.”
“I see. Then where will the Princess go now?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“…Is that so.”
The duke asked no further questions. He naturally handed her luggage to the coachman. After helping Frisia into the carriage, he gave her a faint, unreadable smile.
“Until we meet again.”
Frisia bowed her head slightly in reply, without saying a word.
I’m sorry, but we’ll never meet again.
The curtain on the carriage door closed, and Ron, mounted on horseback behind them, shouted to the coachman.
“Depart!”
The carriage carrying Frisia left the imperial palace. The smile disappeared from Duke Swicherard’s face as he watched it go.
“Follow them.”
At his low command, two mounted subordinates immediately chased after the carriage.
