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The first thing she saw was the ceiling of her bedroom, which she faced every morning.
'Strange, why does my body feel so refreshed?'
Her body felt lighter than usual, as if she could fly. Then, one fact suddenly came to mind.
'Wait... wasn't I about to die?'
Only then did the memories from before she lost consciousness flood back.
'Surely a man came into the room, and suddenly the ceiling collapsed...'
The candlelight was extinguished, and she couldn't see an inch ahead, but suddenly a bright light flashed before her eyes.
Shortly after, she was overwhelmed by a heat so intense that she felt it would be better to die.
'I thought I would never open my eyes again.'
Strangely enough, her body didn't hurt. On the contrary, she felt this healthy for the first time since she was a child.
"...What happened?"
The moment Peony tried to get up, a shrill voice was heard from somewhere.
"Oh my god, Peony!"
There was a sound of something crashing down, and the owner of the voice rushed to her in an instant.
Disheveled hair and a bloodless face.
Peony was speechless at the sight of her, whose usually neat appearance had disappeared.
"Ayla..."
"Yes, Peony."
Her eyes, looking up at her on her knees, were filled with tears.
"Did you just wake up? Do you feel okay? Don't move too much, just in case."
"I'm fine. But what's going on?"
Peony narrowed her eyes and looked around.
"I was supposed to be performing the ritual in the prayer room... Why am I in the Imperial Palace?"
At those words, Ayla wiped away her tears and said in a nasal voice.
"How much do you remember? Do you know what happened at the end?"
"...I remember a very hot flame covering me. So I thought I was definitely dead."
Only then did Peony look down to check her body condition.
"Strangely, it doesn't hurt at all. No wounds... Am I dreaming?"
"...No, Piyo healed you."
Ayla continued, sobbing.
"You were really on the verge of death, just like you said. I tried to save you somehow, but my Mana was depleted... Just when I was feeling hopeless, Piyo used healing Magic."
"Piyo...? So that's why I'm all better?"
"Yeah, Dragon's power is definitely amazing. Isn't it?"
Ayla continued with a self-deprecating smile.
"I'm so glad you're not in pain, thanks to him. Otherwise, I..."
Ayla grabbed Peony's body and buried her head on the blanket.
"I might have gone crazy. I was so scared that you would die like that... That I would lose you because of a momentary mistake."
"...Ayla."
Peony carefully reached out and gently stroked Ayla's hair.
"It's okay. I was the one who said I would go in there to finish the ritual. You were just trying to help me."
"Sob..."
"As a result, nothing happened. It's okay as long as I'm fine. So don't worry too much about it."
Then, Ayla, who had been lying on the bed, clenched the blanket tightly in her hand.
Soon, she lifted her tear-stained face. A resentful emotion flashed across her yellow eyes.
"...Nothing happened? You almost died. I can forgive you, but I can never forgive myself."
Ayla took a short breath and opened her mouth.
"The uninvited guest who barged in that day, it's clear that it was an assassin sent by the Empress. That guy must have killed Lona too."
"Are you sure? Is the investigation already over?"
"No. The investigation is still ongoing. But he admitted in front of me that he was on the same side as Lona."
Ayla twisted her lips sadly.
"Although Lona was betrayed by him and died on the spot."
"Lona is dead?"
Peony blankly repeated what Ayla had said.
"Really?"
"Yeah. And Prince Darian told me something a while ago. He said he had seen Lona, who was on vacation, leaving the Empress's chambers."
"...I see. Somehow, I expected her to cause some kind of accident soon, but..."
Even though she was the one who had been poisoning me for a long time, the fact that someone I had followed since I was a child was dead weighed heavily on my heart.
Peony's brow furrowed slightly.
Ayla looked up at her earnestly and continued.
"So, Peony. Maybe we can use this incident to bring down the Empress."
"Bring down the Empress?"
"Yeah, even if I can't repay you as much as you've suffered, I can at least inflict a big blow. His Majesty the Emperor is very angry right now."
"...If that's the case, I'd be happy. But is it possible?"
Peony continued, feeling dazed.
"The Empress is a very thorough person, so it won't be easy to get solid evidence. Do you have any good ideas?"
At her question, Ayla nodded resolutely.
"Yeah, we have Prince Darian. I'm going to ask him to testify about the relationship between Lona and the Empress. Then it will be proven that the Empress sent the assassin."
"What? Are you serious?"
Peony stared blankly at Ayla.
"No matter how kind Arthur is, I don't think he would help me by betraying his own mother?"
"Of course, you can think that way."
Ayla gave a meaningful smile.
"But what if I know a significant secret about Darian?"
Silence flowed in the room for a moment. Peony slowly blinked and asked.
"...A significant secret? What is it?"
Ayla paused for a moment at her innocent appearance.
During the days that Peony was lying unconscious, Ayla racked her brains.
No matter what, she wouldn't let this incident pass.
She was prepared to betray Prince Darian's goodwill and bring him down along with the Empress.
But somehow, she felt that Peony wouldn't want such a ruthless method.
So Ayla changed direction. To make Darian confess on his own.
He had already revealed the matter about Lona, so she decided it was right to give him one last chance.
Originally, she was going to tell Peony everything as soon as she woke up, but...
'Peony will definitely be shocked if she finds out.'
Even though they had different mothers, the person she had believed to be her brother was actually a complete stranger.
The First Prince, who had been trusted by the entire Imperial Family, was actually not even of Imperial blood.
Peony was the one who still tried to protect him even after being betrayed like that.
If she found out about this, she would definitely collapse even more.
Ayla didn't want to inflict such pain on Peony again, who had just returned from the brink of death.
So she decided to hold back for now.
"Well, the details are a secret."
Ayla forced a light smile and changed the subject.
"Anyway, I'm going to offer Darian a deal. On the condition that I keep that secret for the rest of my life... I'm telling him to spend the rest of his life in self-reflection with the Empress."
"...Whatever it is, it must be a pretty big secret."
Peony's face quickly became serious. She pondered for a moment, then nodded as if she agreed.
"Yeah, if possible, it would be better to do that. After all, if we don't nip it in the bud, these conflicts will continue in the future."
"You thought well, Peony."
Ayla grabbed her hand tightly with a happy face.
"You don't have to worry about anything, I'll take care of it. You just rest well in the meantime."
"Yeah. Thank you so much for caring and being by my side, Ayla. If it weren't for you, I..."
Peony trailed off and continued with an affectionate face.
"I would have had to endure even this moment alone. I'm so glad that the first face I saw when I opened my eyes was yours."
"Peony..."
Ayla's eyes turned red at her sincere words. Soon, she hugged Peony gently.
"I'll leave the medicine here. Take it and sleep a little more. I'll go get something to eat in the meantime."
"Yeah, I understand."
Ayla quietly left the room, leaving Peony, who was nodding, behind.
Then, she slowly leaned her back against the closed door.
"Hoo."
She felt new emotions at the thought of finally taking revenge on the people who had been tormenting her for so long.
Ayla was very curious about how Darian would react when she asked for his cooperation.
How would Darian, who was famous for being a good person, react?
Would he still act like a virtuous person? Or would he finally reveal his true nature?
She had a feeling that either way, she wouldn't feel comfortable.
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