CH 1

“So, Princess Lillian will be the successor of Duke Marsetta?”

“Given the current situation, it probably will be like that.”

“I see.”

“But Princess Lillian’s mother’s family, Marquis Luxen, was all purged for treason. Is that really possible?”

“It’s been a while since they got up again, so why are you talking about it all over?”

It was the conversation between the knights in charge of Helsen Prison.

“I… I don’t understand. Was the little duchess really trying to poison Princess Lillian? There’s no reason for her to do that, right?”

“That’s right. Maybe she is afraid that her position as the successor might be taken away by her.”

“But, Your Grace already said he would throw out the little duchess.”

What Charelize had done was terrible enough to the point of it being talked about among the knights.

She was jealous of her half-sister, Lillian, who had lived in hiding for a long time.

She didn’t hesitate against the heavenly being by trying to kill Lillian with the poisoned tea and committed all kinds of evil deeds.

Delphir, the second son of Marquis Radiasa, who was on the scene, quickly brought Lillian, who had passed out, to the doctor and saved her.

Although Lillian came to her senses, her condition was not good, perhaps because she had just woken up after wandering through the dead for a few days.

As a result, Harbert IV made a decision that defied everyone’s expectations.

He sided with Lillian, not his nephew, Charelize.

Since the origin of the poisoned Lipecha was from the Luang Kingdom, not the Elitoer Empire, it was impossible to quietly cover the news.

Eventually, Charelize was imprisoned in Helsen prison.

“Sir Ethan.”

Among the knights who mocked and laughed at Charelize, there was also a knight that belonged to Duke Marsetta.

Charelize called the knight’s name and remembered that she had been acquainted with him.

“What… is it?”

The knights who answered her call looked somewhat quivering.

He narrowed his brow and looked at her with a sense of respect.

“Please bring me to my father.”

“Your Grace is very busy taking care of Princess Lillian.”

“I have something to tell him… please…”

The appearance of the knight, who seemed to be contemplating for a moment, gave Charelize a feeble hope.

“Your Grace said that since the little duchess had been bringing down the family dignity, your relationship with him is no longer a father-daughter relationship.”

“…”

“No way… are you thinking that His Grace will help you?”

But the answer that came back was a clear disregard and full of disgust.

Charelize’s hand, holding the iron bar, fell to the floor without a hitch.

‘Is there not even a single person on my side?’

She leaned against the cold wall and let out a bitter laugh.

She was being framed by Lillian. Nevertheless, no one is on her side.

She didn’t even have someone to express her feelings to.

Charelize was born as the daughter of Duke Marsetta and Princess Yekaterina, the second daughter of the previous emperor.

She is the only heir of Duke Marsetta and has the perfect lineage to become the head of the family of all time.

She has dark blonde hair, a symbol of the imperial family, allowing her to receive the name of Empress Roxana, the former empress, as her second surname.

Charelize was treated as one of the few semi-imperial peoples who got the right to inherit the throne. 

Duke Marsetta couldn’t forget his former fiancée, the daughter of Marquis Luxen. That’s why he hated his wife and Charelize.

Because of the chronic illness, Princess Yekaterina spent most of her time only in her bed.

Her parents didn’t do the duty that parents should have done.

Nevertheless, Charelize became the little duchess after a lot of hard work. She was also doing her job perfectly.

That was certainly the case until the illegitimate child, brought by Duke Marsetta, was brought into her family.

Princess Yekaterina passed away from her chronic illness, and the ground where her body was buried was not even dry yet.

Duke Marsetta brought Lillian the next day.

Blood tests to preserve her lineage were not even necessary.

Lillian resembled Duke Marsetta very much.

The silver hair like Duke Marsetta, which couldn’t be found in Charelize, and blue eyes proving that she is from the family of Duke Marsetta became solid evidence.

To make matters worse, the one known as Lillian’s biological mother was the daughter of Marquis Luxen, the former fiancée of Duke Marsetta.

Duke Marsetta worked tirelessly to bring in Lillian, who suffered from a genetic disease handed down from the Marquis Luxen family.

After his efforts, Lillian received her first surname, ‘Crose’, the name of the predecessor Duchess Marsetta.

With that, Lillian officially became the princess of Duke Marsetta.

It would be a lie to say that Charelize wasn’t jealous of Lillian.

But she wanted to be loved too. She didn’t want to be hated anymore.

She thought that if she accepted that child and treated her kindly, her father would recognize and look upon her.

She thoroughly concealed her feelings and lived to repress everything.

If Lillian was ridiculed by people because of her identity as an illegitimate child, Charelize came forward to protect her.

Considering Lillian’s body was weak, Charelize once recommended Lillian recuperate in her villa in the name of the little duchess.

And her actions make people think Charelize was trying to drive her away to the colder northern part.

She heard that Lillian secretly obtained a medicine to cure her genetic disease. Who knew it was a trap to grasp her position.

Still, Charelize didn’t expect her to drink the poisoned tea by herself, but she knew from the start that Lillian hated her.

Even though they had different mothers, they still had the same father.

At that time, she thought Lillian looked at her like that because Lillian was still immature.

Delphir, holding Lillian, who had passed out, vomiting blood, said he was really disappointed with her.

He was once a man whom she loved enough to give her life.

Excluding the day they met for the first time, they had spent time together for four years.

But he didn’t believe her until the end.

He even left her with words that hurt her.

Charelize didn’t dare to share the news of her pregnancy, which she knew a few weeks before her imprisonment.

At that moment, she saw a shadow of a small person walking toward her.

“Greetings to Princess Lillian.”

It is Lillian. The knights immediately bowed their heads.

“You always work hard, Sir Ethan, Sir Luan, and Sir Yuin.”

“Princess remembers all of our names…”

“It is an honor to the family, Princess.”

“Why did you come here for?”

When asked about the purpose of her visit, tears immediately formed in Lillian’s eyes.

“I was worried about my sister, who would be in a cold place, so I couldn’t sleep for a few days…”

“Oh my…”

“So… Can I talk with only the two of us?”

Lillian handed the bag of gold coins to the perplexed knights.

“If something happens, please scream right away.”

The knights, who had been contemplating for a long time, left their seats.

“Yes, thank you. It only takes a while.”

Only at this moment, the corner of her lips was raised.

“Sister.”

“…”

“I remember the day I met sister for the first time. Looking at you now, hasn’t our situation changed surprisingly?”

The day Lillian met Duke Marsetta, who picked her up from Baron Buzz. She was deliberately wearing the shabbiest dress she had ever owned.

Her appearance was enough to arouse the sympathy of Duke Marsetta.

And Charelize, whom she met on the stairs for the first time, looked so noble and elegant.

Charelize has had many things since she was born.

Lillian felt the unfairness. The interest of Duke Marsetta, the status and honor of the little duchess, and even her beloved fiancée. Everything Charelize had should be her. 

“You’re crazy, Lillian.”

At Charelize’s calm tone, Lillian put a venomous expression on her face.

“You’re the one who is crazy in the eyes of the world. The villainess who was jealous of her half-sister, who was weak, and tried to kill her… isn’t that right, sister?”

“Even if I didn’t welcome you on the first day we met, I sincerely cared for you with all my heart. There is nothing wrong with your existence.”

Charelize smiled bitterly. It was regrettable that their relationship had to be this catastrophic.

“…Did you hear the news? That Delphir and I are getting engaged.”

Something must be wrong for Delphir, her lover, and Lillian, her sister, to be engaged.

“We’re going to hold a ceremony in the warm spring… What do you think of that, sister?”

But it was true. Realizing that, the anger Charelize had been holding back exploded.

Once the bowl was broken, the cracks continued to flow.

She screamed with all her might, backed by evil.

“The position of the little duchess, your fiancé, it’s all mine now.”

Charelize didn’t want to believe it. She had been living like this to keep her place.

“Then… what will happen to me?”

“Tomorrow at noon, when the sun is at its brightest. Sister will be sentenced to death. Did you hear that it was Delphir who revealed your sins?”

“…”

“Our father also actively supports it. Really… you’re so pitiful, sister.”

Feeling the presence of someone from afar, Lillian raised her bent body.

“It looks like knights are coming. I’m sorry, but I’ll leave.”

“Why…”

“Sister, do you still want to live? I don’t want you to be so pathetic for the last time. If I were you, I would choose to suicide.”

Lillian left. It was late dawn when only a few knights remained on patrol.

Through the tiny windows, Charelize saw the pure white moonlight reflected.

The day she learned that she had Delphir’s child in her belly passed through her head. Although her pregnancy was still in its early days, it seemed as if she could hear the sound of her child.

She repeatedly rubbed her slightly swollen belly.

“Poor little baby. Baby, it’s your father who killed you and me.”

Charelize whispered in a voice that could only be heard by the little life in her belly.

“Baby, as your mother… I think I will have to do something wrong to you.”

She continued with difficulty.

“Even if you are lucky enough to survive, it is very difficult to live being hated by your father. You will understand that I don’t want you to feel as what I already had been through that, right?”

As she soothed, she begged for forgiveness. Her tears flowed down her cheeks slowly.

Charelize was quietly listening to the sounds ringing in her ears.

She pulled out a dagger that had been hidden deeply. They didn’t search her body, so it wasn’t taken away.

As she looked at the pink jewels embedded in its handle, memories of the past suddenly came to mind.

Day and night, she always faced threats of assassination.

Delphir gave her this pink jeweled dagger, which was also her mother’s keepsake, as a gift.

“Where else can you find such a funny play?”

When she thought about it, her life was such a lonely and miserable life.

“I never once thought of you as my daughter.”

Her father gave her the cold shoulder until the last minute.

“Get the Princess out of this room!”

Her mother, whose body was weak, had long since passed away.

“All the time I’ve spent with you is terrible.”

She was betrayed by Delphir, whom she loved.

Even though she was just thinking about it, the emotions she felt at that time once again ached in her heart.

A corner of her heart was stuffy. It was so stuffy that it didn’t come loose.

As if to prove that she was still alive, her heart was beating fast.

Without hesitation, she stabbed a dagger near her heart.

Immediately her heart tightened. She felt that pain that couldn’t be expressed in words.

But she was relieved thought. Charelize put a bitter smile on her lips.

“Ba…by. By any chance, if I could go back before I met you and have another chance…”

Her stomach hurt. She wrapped herself unconsciously and said,

“I will be waiting for you as a mother who can give you… all love. We can hold hands together and walk together… Let’s live the life that mother dreamed of.”

She could see the last moment of her miserable memories of her life so far.

Her eyelids were heavy. Just as she was about to close her eyes, a bright light flashed, and a man appeared.

The man had light blue hair. The man said nothing to her. With Charelize in his arms, he just hugged her firmly.

He didn’t feel dirty from the blood that flowed out from her, and his determination to not let her go was mesmerizing.

He hugged her tightly to the point that Charelize could felt how he felt sorry for her.

Seeing the man’s figure made her heart ache, longed for, and feel at ease.

Her vision was blurred, and she couldn’t recognize his figure. Charelize placed her hand on the man’s cheek and stroked it.

The man clasped her hand. Strangely, Charelize didn’t want to let it go. In fact, she didn’t even have the strength to do that.

Feeling cold and warm, the time of her death had come.

“All. I want to quit this life. In the first place… it would have been better… if I hadn’t been born…”

Her breath gasped irregularly.

As time passed, the pain in her heart, which ached as time went by, made her madly tormented.

“I’m so late… I’m sorry.”

“…”

When she complained of pain, the man answered with a weeping voice.

“Rest in peace. In your next life, you don’t need to worry. Only listen to good words and make good relationships.”

“…”

“Goodbye, Lize.”

As if those words were the end of her life, after a while, darkness greeted her eyes.

Charelize Elze Roxana von Marsetta met her death like that.