“Haha. Understood.”
Adilot furrowed his brow, recalling Mia’s furious expression.
Her teary eyes. The worry that had filled them…
“Have you two met before, by any chance?”
Joachim asked, as if reading Adilot’s thoughts.
“No.”
“Yet she treats Your Majesty with such familiarity. What do you think, Lady Theta?”
Embra, standing nearby, gave an awkward smile.
“Well, she hasn’t said or done anything problematic! Honestly, she just seems… really fond of His Majesty!”
Embra answered while recalling Mia’s behavior. Though she didn’t elaborate, Adilot had also sensed it.
It had been like that since the beginning.
The way she shamelessly glanced at him. The audacious charm that didn’t suit her.
And yet, that strange warmth she showed him.
Whenever he looked into her clear pink eyes—so devoid of hidden intentions—something deep inside him stirred. But to him, that sensation was unfamiliar and unsettling.
“…She’s really weird.”
Muttering to himself, he turned away.
—
The Next Day
“I’m sorry, miss!”
The following day, Embra sought out Mia with medicine in hand.
“It was for His Majesty’s sake, but I still deceived you… I wanted to apologize properly!”
She genuinely looked remorseful. The way she subtly placed a Niumini cherry blossom candy on Mia’s hand was proof enough.
‘Sigh.’
Mia’s pouting expression softened.
“Liar. No talking.”
“Huh?”
Embra immediately pursed her lips, making Mia burst into laughter.
“It’s fine. It’s only natural that I’d be suspicious.”
“…You’re not angry?”
“Ehe. Maybe a little?”
Mia tilted her head and smiled again. She wasn’t mad at Adilot—more at Empress Dowager Chrysor, who had forced him into such a position.
Now that she thought about it, she *had* been under suspicion of treason and being Chrysor’s spy.
Of course Adilot had to verify her true intentions.
Mia understood him. Because she had read *Serenity in the Rose Garden.*
After being sent to the northern front by Chrysor, Adilot had been betrayed multiple times. It only stopped after Joachim joined him.
*‘Suspicion and strategy are Joachim’s role.’*
Honestly, even if *she* were in Joachim’s place, she would’ve tested herself too. As a rational person, Mia didn’t get angry over justifiable reasons.
“Adil has no choice but to be suspicious of everyone around him! It’s not like he *wants* to be that way.”
At Mia’s response, Embra’s expression turned odd.
“…You’re a good person, miss.”
“Right? Why can’t Adil see that!?”
Her bold declaration finally made Embra crack up. After a pause, Embra spoke more calmly.
“No matter what anyone says, I really don’t think you’d be involved in a rebellion. Or be Chrysor’s spy.”
“Make sure to tell Adil that later!”
“Call me ‘unnie,’ and I’ll think about it.”
“Unnie, promise?”
“Wha— Pfft, haha!”
Embra burst out laughing at Mia’s immediate response.
*‘A noble, yet not the least bit arrogant.’*
She really was a clever girl—the kind who could make anyone lower their guard without realizing it.
*‘Well, of course. That’s why even His Majesty, who’s usually so strict, keeps her by his side!’*
Though Mia said it was natural for Adilot to suspect her, Embra could tell he was already half-swayed by her.
Just recalling his usual cold demeanor around others was proof enough. Even Chancellor Joachim must’ve sensed it—hence why he’d ordered Embra to apply the poison.
If someone who could so easily disarm his defenses turned out to be an enemy, it would be disastrous.
*‘Luckily, that doesn’t seem to be the case.’*
Finishing her thoughts, Embra grinned.
“Just call me Embra! Hearing ‘unnie’ once is enough.”
“Really? I don’t mind either way!”
“I’m scared I might end up hearing it from the future Empress one day!”
“Huh?”
Mia tilted her head, and Embra thought she hadn’t understood—but she was wrong.
“Embra, if you get to hear ‘unnie’ from the Empress, you *should*! That’s the perfect chance to brag! How valuable would that be?”
Embra laughed loudly again. She had taken an instant liking to Mia.
Afterward, she examined Mia’s burns. Fortunately, they would heal in a few days. Since Mia had taken the antidote quickly, the poison hadn’t been fully absorbed.
As the treatment continued, Mia cautiously spoke up.
“Embra… What’s Adil’s public reputation like?”
“His Majesty’s reputation?”
“Yeah. After what happened to the Celestial Count’s family, it must’ve gotten worse, right?”
Embra’s brows furrowed in distress.
“Well… yes. The suppression of the Celestial Count’s family led to a lot of negative propaganda. Even though you and the servants survived.”
“I figured…”
Mia sighed, recalling the past.
*‘Back then, I was so focused on rebuilding my family that I didn’t think beyond what I could immediately do.’*
As a result, the Celestial Count’s family amassed immense wealth—but that wealth couldn’t change the original story’s course. Ironically, the thing that *did* alter the predetermined future was just Mia’s words and actions.
*‘In other words, from the moment I survived, things started changing.’*
So Mia made a decision.
If things were going to change anyway, she might as well change them *properly*.
“What about the rest?”
“Hmm… His Majesty’s reputation has always been at rock bottom.”
Embra spoke worriedly.
“You know how it is. To the common people, only the worst things stand out—like how he wiped out an entire family overnight, or how the lands his army passed through were left in ruins.”
Embra gave a wry smile, while Mia, who knew the truth, felt a pang of frustration.
*‘None of it was Adil’s fault.’*
The family had been wiped out because they were all spies. And armies *always* left ruins in their wake—it wasn’t unique to Adilot’s forces.
If anything, Adilot strictly enforced military discipline to avoid harming civilians.
*‘Just look at how tightly controlled the palace knights are now!’*
But all of that was only known to those in the know. Seeing Mia’s sullen expression, Embra quickly added:
“Anyway! His Majesty doesn’t care at all about such things. I’d lose my mind if it were me… He’s truly remarkable.”
Though she meant it as comfort, it didn’t help much.
*‘No. It’s not that he doesn’t care—he’s given up.’*
Mia slumped further. Adilot *had* tried to control the rumors early on. But the malicious propaganda against him never stopped.
He couldn’t prevent it. Though things had improved since then, back in those days, Adilot truly had nothing but military power.
In the end, he abandoned his public image entirely and switched to ruling through fear.
*‘And behind it all are Empress Dowager Chrysor and her family, the Kraus Dukes.’*
Chrysor had her reasons for going so far.
“Does Chrysor still believe Adil killed Crown Prince Claudio?”
Embra stiffened at Mia’s sudden question. She unwrapped a cherry blossom candy and popped it into Mia’s mouth.
“My, my. You say such scary things.”
“We’re in Adir’s private chambers, so…”
Mia’s words were muffled by the candy. Embra smirked.
“Realistically, she must know His Majesty didn’t kill him directly. Chrysor is wicked, not stupid.”
“Tha’ maksh sensh…”
“But she probably doesn’t care. No matter who was there that day, Chrysor would’ve wanted them dead anyway.”
Mia sighed, chewing the candy.
Before Adilot ascended the throne, the incident between Crown Prince Claudio and Prince Adilot had been a massive scandal among the people.
The biggest question was: “Did the prince really kill the crown prince?”
‘Of course not.’
But it was an understandable misunderstanding.
Shortly after Emperor Ludwig’s death, Claudio had begun preparations to become emperor. Then one day, he invited Adilot on a hunt. Unable to refuse under pressure, Adilot agreed. Claudio took only his coachman and Adilot into the forest.
There, he killed the coachman and tried to kill Adilot.
*‘No witnesses would be better, right?’*
*‘Why are you doing this?! I never even wanted the throne…!’*
*‘Do I need a reason to crush the weak?’*
What Claudio hadn’t known was that Adilot had secretly trained. He had learned swordsmanship from Empress Lea, and even after her death, he continued honing his skills.
A struggle broke out between them.
Then, by terrible luck, Claudio slipped on rainwater and died from a cerebral hemorrhage.
‘Serves him right for being evil.’
Mia frowned as she revisited the novel’s events. There was something troubling her.
‘Serenity in the Rose Garden had a happy ending… But will that still happen now?’
There was such a thing as the butterfly effect—where the smallest change could lead to a storm on the other side of the world.
Since she had survived, altering the original flow, things would change.
‘I can’t just sit back and assume the happy ending will happen on its own.’
She had loved the novel enough to reread it countless times. If the protagonists didn’t get their happy ending because of her, she’d regret it deeply.
“Guess I’ll just… do what I can.”
Mia muttered, crunching the candy. Her oddly calm expression left Embra momentarily speechless.
This girl was usually so bright, but at times like these, her eyes became unreadable.
