Chapter 81 – Twist

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 81 – Twist

Isabel lifted her heavy eyelids.

As she barely managed to open her eyes, a strange scene unfolded in her blurred vision.

Everything around her was a pitch-black space, densely filled with countless stars.

Feeling like she was still dreaming, Isabel opened her palm.

Then she slowly recalled her past memories.

At the same time, a slow realization crept up to the top of her head.

‘Could it be, am I dead?’

After Kyle died, unable to overcome her guilt, she had thrown herself off the balcony.

Losing consciousness, she woke up having lost her memories.

Then she met Kyle, and somehow ended up meeting Luna Winfred.

Meeting her... I...

‘I was definitely... stabbed by a sword...’

So, is this the afterlife?

Isabel absentmindedly pondered that thought.

Otherwise, such a space couldn’t possibly be real...

[ Error Occurred ]

At that moment, with a loud sound effect, something translucent appeared in the air.

Isabel glanced up at it and frowned.

A strange sense of incongruity crept up her neck.

The reason was simple.

‘This is definitely...’

Before returning to the past.

That is, after Kyle was poisoned by her own hand.

Isabel had seen the same kind of translucent text floating in the air.

— You may lose what is most precious to you

— Would you like to start over from the beginning?

Yes, that was the content.

Although the text was different, that wasn’t important.

As expected, this situation is...

It perfectly matches the experience she had back then.

“...!”

Her heartbeat echoed through her whole body.

Could it be that, like before, she has a chance to return to the past once again?

The thought trailed off.

She just stared at the text floating in front of her, tilting her head mechanically like a broken machine.

That was when it happened.

[ Commencing settlement. ]

A beam of light began to bloom in the darkness.

At first, the light was faint, but it grew stronger, pushing back the darkness.

It rippled like a stone thrown into a quiet lake.

Then, something began to form gradually.

It wasn’t just light.

Accumulated memories of the past.

They started flashing before her eyes like a lantern slideshow.

The distant past, her first clumsy meeting with Kyle.

Although it was a marriage of convenience, it was her one and only wedding.

And the tragic end she caused with her own hands.

Standing at the beginning of her life, Isabel retraced all her memories one by one.

Many days were intense, dramatic, and dreadful.

Among them, there were certainly happy memories.

But why?

Looking back, behind every moment of happiness, there was always corresponding misfortune.

If only she hadn’t met Kyle.

No, if she had treated Kyle without prejudice.

If she hadn’t been swayed by rumors.

If only...

I...

“.....”

Seeing her past self, anger boiled inside her.

She detested her arrogant and selfish self to death.

There had been many chances.

If she had acknowledged and accepted everything from the beginning, at least things wouldn’t have turned out this way.

They wouldn’t have become arch enemies.

Ah, what good is realization now?

It’s already far too late.

“Ha.”

Isabel let out a self-mocking laugh.

It was strange.

From the moment she opened her eyes here, all the desires and thoughts that had gripped her so long vanished at once.

She had wandered many winding paths for such a long time.

And now, she felt like she was finally on the right path.

Yes, let’s end it.

This time, let’s not choose to go back to the past.

This is the end.

There’s no more story to tell.

The Empress asked, and the woman sneered.

In a cold voice, she replied.

“Is there any need for you to know?”

“Well, if you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine. I won’t press you.”

Isabel clenched her fists.

Again, it was that woman.

The reason the nanny poisoned her food.

The reason ridiculous rumors about her spread in the social circles.

All the things she once misunderstood as Kyle’s doing, they all originated from this woman.

And then, the scene changed again.

“What? Leave the Empire immediately?”

“Yes, kidnap a hostage and disappear into the kingdom. The Royal Family has already begun tracking your traces.”

Ludvik fell into contemplation at the robed woman’s advice.

Then, the woman smirked and suggested something.

“Do you know Isabel Yustia?”

“What? Of course, I know her. Why?”

“She’s suitable. Her status is appropriate, you know her, and it would be easy to kidnap a noble lady, wouldn’t it?”

Again.

It was that woman.

The reason Ludvik decided to kidnap her was also because of this woman.

“...”

An indescribable rage boiled within her.

Blue eyes, filled with fury, sparked with intensity.

The scene changed relentlessly.

And in every memory, one woman consistently appeared.

“Luna Winfred, are you saying to remove that child from the candidate list for the head of the family?”

“Yes, you’d better follow my instructions if you want to keep receiving information from me.”

The reason Luna Winfred was removed from the candidate list.

“Rosary... Truly, its form is divine craftsmanship.”

“Yes, you know the rule, don’t you?”

“Of course, I’m well aware that only the Princess can wear it.”

The person who first delivered the Holy Relic to the Royal Family.

“Here, this is the hypnotic incense you’ve been looking for, Pope.”

“Tsk, for such a small amount, the price is...”

“Do you think it’s easy to make? Didn’t you say the Saintess was looking for it? If you don’t want to get scolded, you’d better take it to her quickly.”

The hypnotic incense used to kidnap Kyle.

The person who first handed it to the Pope.

“Kyle Winfred’s biological mother? What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what it sounds like. Kyle Winfred, he has a different biological mother.”

“That’s interesting. Do you know who this biological mother is?”

“Of course.”

The reason the Empress first met Kyle’s biological mother.

All of it.

Every single thing.

It was all orchestrated by one woman.

“What in the world...”

Isabel was struck dumb by the confusion.

And then, the scene changed once more.

A city in conditions far from those of the Empire.

“This place...”

Asven.

This was definitely Asven.

“G-get away...!”

A boy, covered in wounds, backed away on the ground.

A woman was chasing the boy.

“What on earth... What did I do wrong...!”

The boy screamed desperately in fear.

But the woman approached without hesitation.

In her right hand was a sharply forged dagger.

“I need to kill you to get out of here.”

“What nonsense is that...”

“Ha, tiresome. Just die quietly. This world is fake anyway.”

The woman stepped towards the boy named Derek.

And then.

“Ugh...!”

Thud.

The woman unhesitatingly plunged the dagger into the boy’s heart.

“Sorry.”

The woman muttered in a weak voice.

“But it can’t be helped.”

Then she began to mutter something incomprehensible.

“Because you’re the protagonist of the original story.”

And she added a final word.

“So, it can’t be helped.”

With that, the memory ended.

[ Viewing has ended. ]

The memories were severed.

[Translator – Peptobismol]