Chapter 10: If It’s Fate, We’ll Meet Again 

Liam now made no effort to hide the fact that he was watching her, chin propped on his hand as he observed her openly. Eden focused intently on sorting documents, pretending not to notice the red eyes slowly scanning over her own eyes, nose, and lips.

“Hmph.”

A strange glint flashed in Liam’s eyes as he watched Eden quietly work. With a soft, disbelieving laugh, he shook his head slightly. Watching him, Eden let out a dry chuckle of her own.

In her past life, Liam had personally taught Eden politics and economics, saying she needed to be able to read the game. To him, Eden had existed only as a tool, his most exquisite blade, honed for vengeance.

Liam had constantly whispered her tasks into her ear, and every time she obeyed, he smiled sweetly. As if he were truly in love.

—“If I didn’t have you, how would I have kept breathing?”

Even as he pushed her into another man’s arms, there wasn’t a single crease on his face. When Eden had begged him to kill her instead, his cold, furious gaze had looked down at her without a shred of pity.

—“Yes, go ahead. Ask me to kill you myself. Is that your wish?”

Yet sometimes, the words he tossed to her like alms had felt like clouds to Eden, parched and withered as she was. Foolishly, she hoped: Maybe rain will come after all.

—“Maybe you’ll be the one to kill me. If that’s what you want, go ahead.”

Eden had thought. And she had desperately wished. That after her revenge, after Liam had emptied all his wrath, his heart might slowly begin to heal.

Then maybe, just maybe, he would look back at her. Maybe he would love her, even just a little. Maybe, at the very least, he’d allow her to love him by his side.

—“But Edenastie. I can’t.”

Eden shook her head lightly to banish the useless thoughts. Her heart settled a little when she looked at the neatly sorted documents in front of her.

“I’ve categorized them by region. I’ve placed the documents concerning the western and northern territories at the top. They were the most directly impacted by the war and are still underdeveloped. Since people’s livelihoods are still strained, I believe we’ll need to adjust tax rates again this year.”

‘Impressive,’ Liam said with a languid smile. “So, what would you do?”

“The west relied heavily on tourism, so many lost their means of livelihood. I think rather than offering subsidies, launching a large-scale government project would be more beneficial.”

“And the north?”

Liam’s expression grew more serious. Eden hesitated briefly before answering.

“The north is geographically isolated, and the terrain is so rough that trade with other regions is difficult. While that makes it a military stronghold, the surrounding small nations have fallen during the war, and Rodenberg has exhausted much of its military might. There’s a high chance they’ll try to maintain a peaceful stance. So… I think it would be wise to redirect the heavy military taxes into stabilizing public life. Maybe invest in road construction that would allow carriages to travel more easily. At least for the next five years.”

Liam’s face hardened. Eden’s suggestion directly contradicted his beliefs.

Though he hadn’t been completely consumed by ruin as in their previous life, his hatred for Rodenberg still ran deep. To him, her proposal to cut military spending was enough to stir his ire.

“Cut military spending…”

Liam tapped the table lightly with his fingers. A heavy silence settled over the room. It wasn’t taut enough to snap, but far from relaxed.

“Very well. I’ll consider it. Since it’s your suggestion.”

“…What?”

Eden had expected at least a cold retort, if not outright scolding. She couldn’t hide her surprise at his unexpectedly agreeable answer. In fact, Liam’s face was faintly flushed with excitement.

“More importantly, when did you learn all this administration work?”

“I just read a few books.”

“Hah, the current officials should be ashamed. They take salaries and still fall behind someone who’s only read a few books. Tsk.”

Liam clicked his tongue as he glanced toward the aide standing awkwardly by the door. The already gaunt man turned ashen, looking as if he might drop dead at any moment. With a small jerk of Liam’s chin, the aide fled, opening the door and disappearing down the corridor.

The moment the door shut, Liam approached Eden and kissed her as if he had been holding back for ages, urgent, impatient. The sudden flurry of kisses turned Eden’s face scarlet.

Since the night they spent together, Liam had wanted her at all hours. As his hands quickly worked to undo the ribbon on her dress, Eden gently pushed against his chest. When she did, Liam pulled back reluctantly, disappointment written all over his face.

He licked his bottom lip in frustration. The open hunger in his eyes made Eden’s cheeks flush even deeper. Grumbling, Liam squeezed his large frame back into a small chair, clearly sulking.

“How long do you plan to stay in my room?”

Eden’s voice brimmed with exasperation, but Liam only smirked playfully.

“What’s the problem with being in my own palace?”

“The problem is that I need time to myself. And that there’s no way to kick out the owner of the imperial palace.”

“There is a way, Eden. Marry me. Then this palace, no, the entire Cherott, will be yours. Including me. How about it? Don’t you want it?”

One sentence left Eden stunned. Her eyes widened in disbelief at the sudden proposal.

In their past life, marriage for Liam had been nothing more than a political maneuver. He used the noble factions vying for the Empress’s seat like pieces on a board. Only after Rodenberg fell and the continent lay at his feet did Liam offer Eden the position of Empress as a reward for her loyalty.

It was a seat she had to prove herself worthy of, fighting bitterly to earn. Even after her revenge, Eden had believed she’d never truly become Empress.

So why now?

Eden stared at Liam for a moment before slowly shaking her head.

“That position isn’t mine.”

She smiled faintly. Liam gathered the documents without saying a word. There was no sign of displeasure on his face. He even nodded, as if he had expected it.

“You’re right. There’s not much to like about being Empress. Unless you’re power-hungry. It’s amusing, though, watching them throw their daughters at me while calling me a butcher or a demon.”

Liam muttered cynically, then slowly walked over and kissed Eden’s forehead. When she looked up at him in surprise, he tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear with a touch so gentle it unsettled her.

“But the offer still stands. I’m not bringing another woman into this palace. So take your time, Eden. I’ll give you all the ‘alone time’ you want.”

Eden nodded slightly, still dazed. Liam’s lips curled into a playful smile. She felt oddly disoriented. Every time she glimpsed a version of Liam unfamiliar to her, her emotions tangled more deeply.

“I’ll come back later.”

After gently patting her head, Liam turned and left the room in quick strides. As soon as the door shut behind him, Eden exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

He truly was a cruel man. She wanted to hate him, hate him to the core, but Liam made even that difficult. The arrows of her heart, with no place to land, turned inward.

“…I’m such a fool.”

If only I were a little more ruthless, Eden thought bitterly. If only I could pretend our past life had never existed, just sweep it all away like an illusion.

“I want to leave.”

She was growing impatient. Even though she knew the moment for revenge was still far off, she found herself thinking several times a day that she wanted to leave Liam’s side.

All I’m doing is returning what I received. So why do I feel so guilty? Maybe it’s better if I just leave now. It won’t hurt him as much as I’d hoped, but it’ll still sting a little.

Eden’s mind swirled with conflicting thoughts.

‘If I go, where to?’

She asked herself.

‘Anywhere. Anywhere Liam isn’t.’

The answer was clear.

‘Going back to Rodenberg might not be so bad. It’s close, but still the farthest place from Liam.’

A bitter smile touched her lips. To think she would willingly return to that place, life was strange.

The light slowly faded from her eyes. Days when she was wounded, days when she wounded to avoid being wounded, memories surged, vivid and distant all at once, and dragged her under like a tide.

As darkness swallowed the view beyond the window and filled the room, Eden remained motionless, frozen like stone. Her reflection in the glass looked pale and hollow, devoid of all color.

‘Julius… you…’

One by one, memories of Rodenberg long buried began to resurface. Eden’s eyes welled up as she recalled the golden gaze that had looked upon her with such warmth until the very end.

Julius. Thinking of him always brought pain. Guilt, longing, pity, gratitude, dozens of emotions, tangled like a web, swirled through her.

—“Your Majesty, you’re a fool.”

—“Yes, I am.”

—“I can’t be the person you want me to be.”

He would be happy. He was a good man. As long as she didn’t enter his life again, his peaceful world would remain intact. Unlike her, he would meet someone who truly suited him, love her, and be loved in return. And he would live happily ever after.

Julius’s gentle voice fluttered through her mind like a butterfly. The warmth, the humidity of that day, the emotions she’d felt all came rushing back.

Rodenberg, the enemy nation that had taken her only blood kin, her father. That alone was enough reason to hate Julius, its Emperor. But hating him for long had proven impossible.

—“Eden, you need only be yourself. That’s all I ever wanted.”

Julius was a good man. She had tried to deny it, to refuse to accept it, but in the end, he was kind and warm. It wasn’t a truth Eden was glad to acknowledge, especially when she had to use his heart and ultimately destroy him completely.

How could she hate someone who asked for nothing more than for her to simply exist?

Lost in memories of Julius, Eden stared blankly out the window, her heart aching like wet cotton.

‘Are you doing well?’

* * *

“I had the same dream again today. Isn’t that strange, Ian?”

Perched casually on the windowsill of his office, Julius wore a slightly flustered expression. His bright blond hair, the mark of Rodenberg royalty, gleamed in the light.

“If I had to count how many times…”

“If I hear it once more, my ears might bleed. It’s just a meaningless dream, Your Highness.”

“Nine. That makes nine times I’ve had the same dream.”

Julius brushed off his aide Ian’s grumbling and continued speaking.

He’d recently begun dreaming the same dream over and over. It was hazy, like scattered letters on old paper, yet strangely vivid upon waking.

“There’s always the same woman. We laugh, drink tea, walk through gardens together. In the dream, I’m happier than I’ve ever been, but when I wake up… my chest aches.”

Ian, packing bags and rummaging through paperwork, asked dryly, “Is she pretty?”

“I don’t know. I never see her face.”

Julius gave a half-shrug and began helping with the packing. It hadn’t even been three months since his last inspection tour of the east, but now he was being sent to the south. The official reason was to closely monitor the southern military zone bordering Cherott in case of emergency.

But the truth was a little different.

Three years had passed since the war ended. Much had changed. No one said it out loud, but everyone knew: the Emperor had been in decline since the war. And not just physically.

Though they had won, the scars of war were devastating, and the Emperor could not escape responsibility. Gradually, more and more people began to rally around Crown Prince Julius.

He had been entrusted with all postwar recovery efforts. Within a year, his results were undeniable, and he increasingly took over imperial duties. The knights who had fought alongside him and Ian’s loyal support made it possible.

“I might be away for a while. Father’s been in an unusually sour mood lately.”

That was when the Emperor’s jealousy had begun.

His wariness of Julius became more obvious by the day. He kept sending Julius out to the provinces, using inspections as an excuse. Julius knew this better than anyone, but he quietly obeyed the Emperor’s will each time.

“You really have no ambition, Your Highness. Doesn’t it bother you? I’ve never met anyone so free of greed…”

“Ian, enough. I’m fine. The south will be warm, the mountain air clean. Let’s think of it as a vacation.”

Julius smiled gently, brushing off the matter.

“If this is a vacation, I’m tired of it already. I was made for city life! No wonder I’m still single at this age. You’ll have to take responsibility.”

Julius laughed and patted Ian’s shoulder.

“If it’s fate, you’ll meet them no matter what. Who knows? Maybe you’ll find your soulmate in the south.”

“In that mountain-ridden Florite valley? No, thank you.”

“Why not? I have a good feeling about it.”

Julius stretched and looked out the window. In often-cloudy Rodenberg, it was one of the rare clear and sunny days. The cloudless blue sky, the pristine white palace, the well-kept lawns, it all looked like a painting.

“Just look at this weather. A perfect start. I have a feeling it’s going to be a good trip.”

……

T/N: I do wish Eden would end up with Julius even if Liam was the one in the cover