A stormy day passed and the next morning arrived.

The servants of the Silver Rose Palace had to be mindful of the princess’s mood in a different sense from yesterday. Because the princess, who had shocked them by pouring out her emotions to the extreme, had now become excessively lethargic.

Although the intense memory of death had temporarily awakened her emotions, as a little time passed, the violent agitations from that time slowly subsided into her inner self.

Her body was that of a 16-year-old girl, but her mind was that of a queen who had been confined alone in a tower for a long time.

Leonard’s mental and physical abuse over the years… Those painful memories were still constantly eating away at her mind even now that she had returned to the past. She had reverted back to the Amelia from that time, completely exhausted and dry as a desert.

“Amelia…”

Mirabel looked at the princess, who was lying limply on the bed, with pitiful eyes.

“Don’t be too heartbroken. There must be a way to fix it.”

“Huh?”

Amelia asked back in puzzlement, then realized that Mirabel was looking for the cause of this gloom in the wrong place.

“It was your mother’s precious keepsake, how on earth was it managed… I will give the maid in charge a thorough scolding!”

The necklace. It was about the necklace that was found broken in the morning.

A small white necklace that she had cherished in a jewelry box as a keepsake from her mother since childhood. It was something she never took off even for a moment when she was in the tower.

“Mirabel. Could you bring that to me?”

“What? But won’t you feel even more heartbroken if you see it…?”

“It’s fine. Please.”

Mirabel obediently followed her order. Soon, the broken necklace was wrapped in a clean handkerchief and handed to Amelia.

She unfolded the handkerchief and rolled the shattered pendant around.

It’s strange that this broke.

The white gem in the pendant was a nameless junk stone, but the maids who managed the jewelry always marveled at how it seemed harder than a diamond for some reason.

As proof, didn’t it remain intact around her neck until the very end even during her hardships in Rohan?

But for it to suddenly break in half inside the jewelry box…

‘But this is the very proof that I have returned to the past.’

Amelia’s eyes sank coldly.

‘I will never make the same mistake again.’

She gripped the pendant wrapped in the handkerchief and vowed again and again.

‘I will never be fooled by Leonard, that damn bastard, ever again. Never!’

But what next?

If she doesn’t get involved with Leonard and doesn’t go to Rohan, then what next?

Is it really enough just to not be used by him?

Then should she just hide in the Silver Rose Palace and live quietly so as not to be a burden to Morres and her father?

‘I don’t know…’

Amelia hugged the handkerchief to her chest and burrowed into the bed.

Her mind was already too tired to ponder about life and the direction of her existence.

The next morning arrived. Mirabel was on the verge of exploding.

“Princess, you must eat something today. Okay? The imperial physician says there’s nothing seriously wrong with you, so how long are you going to skip meals?”

Amelia sat up in bed with a disheveled face.

“Sorry, I got it. Could you bring me some simple soup?”

“Oh my! First, you need to get up and wash your face! Here, let me brush your hair. Why is our well-mannered princess like this these days!”

As her hair was shaken this way and that by the emotional brushing, Amelia absentmindedly thought…

Ah, Mirabel. It’s because all the problems have been solved now.

Morres is still alive, and His Majesty Father is still healthy. I won’t be a burden to them anymore. There’s no problem at all, right?

Mirabel’s sighing could be heard above her head.

“Really, what is going on? That rascal prince gets out of his sickbed and immediately immerses himself in training to recover his strength, and now our pretty princess wants to follow suit and be lazy?”

A light briefly returned to Amelia’s eyes.

“Morres…”

The princess muttered blankly.

“Maybe I should go to the Pearl Palace…”

Mirabel, who would usually grimace at the mere mention of Morres’ name, strangely smiled brightly today and shook the bell.

“That’s a good idea! Now, let’s have a simple meal and get you prettily dressed up, shall we?”

Soon, the maids gathered with perfumes, bath supplies, and all kinds of dresses and accessories.

***

An untimely spring breeze blew through the training grounds of the Pearl Palace.

The goddess of spring had descended, adorned with a fluttering light yellow dress and small white flower decorations in her hair.

Seongjin, who had just finished two sets of training routines and was catching his breath, widened his eyes.

“Wow… Sister. What brings you here?”

Although the female knight accompanying her as an escort was also quite beautiful, Princess Amelia was a girl of truly unrivaled beauty. An atmosphere where extreme radiance and innocence coexisted…

“Well, I was passing by and thought of you. I heard you’ve been living at the training grounds these days?”

Amelia smiled shyly and continued with a slightly apologetic tone.

“I wonder if I’m bothering you for no reason. Everyone is training so hard…”

Following her gaze, indeed. The resident knights of the Pearl Palace were training hard in a corner of the training grounds with their shirts off. These punks?

“Well, it was break time anyway. You don’t have to worry about them, they’ll do well on their own.”

Seongjin waved his hand dismissively.

Amelia watched Seongjin with a bit of admiration as he stretched here and there even while catching his breath. He had lost a lot of weight in just the few days since he came to the training grounds.

His belly still jiggled whenever he moved, but compared to before when he waddled and rolled around, it was a remarkable improvement.

“You’ve really changed. You lost a lot of weight.”

Seongjin smiled wryly.

“Hehehe. There’s no diet as effective as marching with a full pack.”

The weight I need to lose easily exceeds the weight of a full military pack, sister.

Of course, Amelia tilted her head, not understanding what he meant.

Sir Masain, who seemed like he would drop everything and rush over, unexpectedly took some time to hand over his duties. It looked like from now on, he would dump all his work on his deputy and focus solely on Seongjin’s lessons.

Thanks to that, Seongjin was still alone at the training grounds doing physical training. Well, that would be until today.

To save some energy for the lessons and because the sight unfolding before his eyes wasn’t very good for his mental health, should he call it a day for the morning training?

“I was about to have lunch, would you like to join me if you haven’t eaten yet?”

It was unimaginable given their previous relationship. The escort knight was startled and looked at Amelia, but she smiled happily and nodded.

“Sure, let’s do that. Morres.”

And the siblings left the training grounds, ignoring the desperate gazes of the resident knights.

***

“Hmm… So it’s about the purpose of life, right?”

Seongjin had just finished a quick shower and was sitting across from Amelia at a simple table set up.

Unexpectedly, the two got along well in conversation, and Amelia was inwardly surprised. Because she found the meal time with him more enjoyable than she had thought.

Until this morning, she had no appetite at all, but before she knew it, she was emptying her plate and chatting away. Perhaps the unprecedentedly intense greeting they exchanged two days ago had served to break down the walls between them.

“So after escaping from the guy who made you suffer, you feel empty and don’t know what the purpose of living is?”

“In summary, yes.”

Somehow, Amelia was even consulting him about her recent concerns. Of course, since she couldn’t reveal that she had returned from the future, it was a somewhat vague story.

Seongjin tilted his head.

He felt that this kind of conversation wasn’t very unfamiliar. Ah, didn’t he ramble to the emperor a while ago about wanting to know why he lived?

But who could possibly make the life of someone as high-ranking as a princess so miserable? To the point of losing the purpose of life? Who the hell is it?

The Demon King muttered in a calm tone.

[It’s you. Your story.]

‘Nah… No way, right?’

Seongjin frowned and pondered for a moment before opening his mouth.

“Hmm, sister. This is purely my opinion, so just take it as a reference.”

Amelia nodded eagerly.

“Okay.”

“So escaping from that bastard was entirely thanks to someone else, right? Meaning you didn’t even have a chance to do anything.”

“Yes.”

“And that bastard is still living well and healthy?”

“Yes.”

“Then what is there to worry about? Until you find another purpose in life, focus on tormenting that bastard. Pay back the damage with interest, and get psychological compensation on top of that.”

“Hmm…”

Amelia’s face grew gloomy.

“I think I should do that too. There was a time when my resentment was so great that I only thought of revenge.”

For the first few years after learning of Leonard’s true intentions, Amelia had also gritted her teeth and vowed revenge on him. She swore to get back at him with everything she had, using all her strength.

However, during the long years of confinement and suffering, her desire for revenge slowly eroded as she was unable to do anything.

Leonard.

He was the king who held all the power in Rohan.

In contrast, Amelia was just a powerless prisoner.

Moreover, could the responsibility for Amelia’s downfall and death be attributed solely to him?

The ambitions, power struggles, and conspiracies of many people… She was just tossed about and trampled helplessly in the midst of it all.

The foolish queen, who had only been imprisoned for many years, had not even fully grasped who she should take revenge on.

It was so pitiful, and in the end, it made her shrink into herself.

But Seongjin clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“Wow, sister, you’re so naive. Why are you thinking so complicated? Sister. Revenge, you see, starts with picking one bastard and beating the crap out of him.”

“…?”

“Listen, sister. First, pick the one who annoys you the most! And focus only on how to screw that bastard over. Nothing else matters. Chase that bastard to the ends of the earth.”

Suddenly, Seongjin felt a piece of burnt trash trembling in his head. Why is this guy shaking again?

He wasn’t perceptive enough to realize that it didn’t feel like someone else’s story.

“Then the associates will pop up one after another, right? Then beat them up too. If that guy is the highest authority? By the time you beat him up, the others will already be dead, right? Oh? The revenge is over?”

Huh? That does make sense, but…

Somehow it sounds like a very simple matter.

Amelia tilted her head.

“Imagine that bastard begging you with a bloody nose. I guarantee you won’t have time to be depressed. Purpose of life? Sister, what in this world could make your heart as full as the pleasure of revenge?”

“…”

The Demon King sighed.

[No, you devil!]

“True revenge, you see, sister… It’s not just a process you have to endure to see the results. Think of the perfect trap you design to feed the other person shit. How beautiful is that? And how precious and rewarding is each and every step you take to carry it out?”

“…”

“Then if you find something else you want to do? You can do that then. Worried about retaliation from the other side? What’s there to worry about? Our father, the strongest backing in the country, is behind you.”

“I-I see.”

Amelia felt the complicated thoughts in her head clearing up at once.

“Yes, you’re right. I definitely want revenge.”

There’s no way she could be satisfied just by avoiding getting involved with him. Why had she been trying to ignore that fact?

It was because she thought her power wouldn’t reach him. Because she thought it was a goal she couldn’t achieve. Because she tried to comfort herself by thinking it wasn’t right to waste her life on such a thing.

So she became lethargic. Only an empty shell remained.

“I thought revenge that didn’t reach the end was just futile. But I see now that true revenge enriches life not only with the result but also with the process itself.”

The most radiant smile bloomed on Amelia’s face.

Let’s not turn away from our true desires anymore.

Yes. I want to see the downfall of Leonard.

Nothing else remained but that aspiration. Perhaps she had returned to the past for that very reason.

If she was afraid of failing, she would love even the process of that failure.

If her already exhausted mind couldn’t sing of any other life, from now on, revenge would ignite her motivation, bring her joy, and make her life shine.

Bit by bit, the light revived in Amelia’s eyes. It was a vivid aspiration that couldn’t be seen before.

Seongjin was startled for a moment and avoided her gaze.

Uh, excuse me, sister…

That target… it’s not me, right?