I looked at my reflection on the river, and for a moment, it felt like someone I couldn't recognize – a woman with a broken soul, broken beyond despair. It's been at least a month since I left the palace, and yet the change of environment and lifestyle still isn't sinking into me. In normal circumstances, I would complain of the slightest discomfort, but there's no room for anything like that now. It's a good thing that I'm finally maturing even at this age. Because for the past 47 years, I lived almost like a spoiled brat. Each day reminds me of how people can change when reality strikes hard, and pain changes even the purpose of someone's life. The only thing I can hope for is to fix the lives of the people I once ruined, and by then I can die happy without guilt.

I walked back into the house and noticed someone outside the door, calling for Eviona.

“Excuse me, you are?” I asked, and the man with red hair and blue eyes faced me, reminding me of the features of Elliot and Eviona. Could they be related?

His suit looked casual, but it’s obvious that its fabric is expensive and uncommon. Of course, the sharpness of my eyes when it comes to fashion will never leave me. This man sure is a noble or royalty, judging by his looks.

“I’m here to talk to Eviona. I’ve been here for a couple of minutes now but nobody’s answering the door. How about you? Who are you? Can you be the housekeeper or something like that?” he asked bluntly, and being assumed as a housekeeper pierced through my chest. I’m a queen, but hearing that opinion makes me wonder if I already look that cheap. If it’s not only too much to ask, maybe I can request Elliot to buy me clothes that will look more decent.

“My name is Corianne, and even if I'm treated as a guest, I'm already living with them for a while now. To answer your question, no, I'm not a housekeeper," I forced myself to smile, but I know that there was bitterness in it since my pride got stomped on. "I'm technically Eviona’s aunt. She’s not here because …”

Before answering, I remember the last thing Eviona told me before leaving early in the morning. “If anyone comes here, tell him I went to the market with my father. Of course, that’s a lie, because I’ll be meeting the leaders of the Phirean kingdom. I already instructed Marius not to open the door unless it’s you so he’ll be fine.” Now, this is the guest she's talking about.

“… Eviona and her father went out but didn’t mention where. I only went by the river to do some fishing to prepare dinner later,” I gulped upon saying my words. I hope he’ll buy it.

The man lifted his head and made face, and started to complain like a child. “Ugh, Eviona. That cheeky bastard! She’s probably thinking that it’s only her time that matters! That woman’s probably laughing at me right now.”

“Would you like some tea at least before leaving? Your frustration sounds like you’re from a far place, making you disappointed not accomplishing your goal of meeting her.”

“It takes a 12 hour journey by land because I need to cross Beruvia first before this mountain. I can only use my teleportation powers once I reach the borders of Beruvia and Marrossi. Our powers have their limits, we can't manage to just go wherever we want. Anyway, complaining about that cheeky bastard makes my head hurt. I'm Hervouet by the way, in case she didn't mention it yet. I'm the second prince of Marrossi. You said that you’re Eviona’s aunt … which didn't sound like it applies the same to me. We need to talk."

Instead of responding to my words, he allowed me to step into the house first before trailing after me. Unexpectedly, rather than choosing to wait in a more comfortable area such as the living room or balcony, he followed me into the kitchen. As I prepared tea, his watchful presence by the table, though respectful, stirred a sense of self-consciousness in me. It was an odd sensation to be observed by a stranger in such an intimate setting.

“Let’s cut the chase then. How come you became Eviona’s aunt?" I poured his cup some tea and my cup as I sat down across from him.

“There’s a long story behind it but … the current empress, Heloise, was, according to them, is my sister. We were twins, and I was the one originally engaged to Elliot. Heloise took advantage of me and knowing that red diamond Izavenes turn into a human when their ring gets removed, she did that to me for her to have the throne instead of me. That’s why I looked different. That event also caused me to have my memories burned, and the Eurhyian prince at that time was the one who took care of me. That’s what they said but even if they told me that, the idea feels unrecognizable to me. I still can’t remember anything about my past. I lived as the queen of Eurhyia, but Eviona took me away from the palace. My son, now a king, despised me and tormented me. Heloise isn't your mother, because according to Elliot, you're the son of his mistress. So, there's that I guess." I sighed briefly after reciting the bizarre tale.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Despite repeating it, I struggled to accept it as my own life story. It felt as though I was sharing someone else's narrative. No matter how unsettling my past might be, it no longer defines me.

“I get it now. I’m sorry for calling you a housekeeper. I wasn’t expecting Queen Corianne to be here. I’m not familiar with the royalties of Eurhyia except for Thyra, and now you,” He said while putting down his empty cup of tea on the saucer.

That’s rather surprising. I thought this prince is an immature complainer, but he has manners at least.

“Speaking of Thyra, I slightly overheard your conversation with Eviona the last time you were here. You have the same voice so I thought it was you. You mentioned that you’re convincing Eviona to include Thyra in the group?” I may not like her, but I want to let go of the hatred towards her for the sake of having relief in my heart.

Hervouet glanced away with an air of indifference. “She wiped out almost our entire army in the recent war. Of course, I was stunned and petrified. You’re probably aware that Eviona and I will make the empress and the crown prince fall, and we're gathering allies. She'll be an asset to our group. Since you're Thyra’s stepmother, then … can you tell me what she’s like?”

“We had a bad relationship, so I can’t give a lot when it comes to the positives but … she’s a clever woman, valiant, resilient, and a natural fighter. She won’t let herself get defeated easily and have the strong determination to achieve whatever she wants. The negative is … she has a sharp tongue. Cunning, and dangerous in different ways. If you're with her, expect that she'll always be one step ahead of you, but she won't make that obvious. She won't need a team to win – she's highly independent because she’s the ‘team’ herself. My guess is if she’ll side with you, she’ll only aim for what she wants and leave you after,” I can’t be wrong about all those. I watched her grow up, and those characteristics are too obvious to be ignored.

Now that I think about it, is it best to tell Hervouet all these things? I told myself that I want to fix things with Evrart and Thyra when the right time comes but spilling this information to Hervouet feels … wrong. But I can’t take the words back, can’t I?

If Thyra is on Hervouet’s side, maybe it's good for him to know her? Screw that. There's no point stressing about what's done. Even if Thyra becomes Hervouet’s enemy, she’ll live. She’s too smart and talented to be defeated easily.

Hervouet looks at his reflection on his newly-poured tea, and his lost facial expression makes me wonder what his opinions now are, after knowing all those.

“Eviona’s right, isn’t she? That Thyra can betray me,” he said softly, weighing the possibilities.

“People won’t always be the same. It’s possible that if you’ll give her a reason to betray you, she will. She’s very cautious of people who are threatening her. You would win her if you’ll show her what she’ll get by siding with you. You know why I’m saying this?” Hervouet looked at me, wanting to know further.

"Because she cheated death countless times. I had her assassinated many times and tried to poison her in different ways. Yet, she always managed to stay alive without depending on anyone. That’s why I despised her wholeheartedly. However, things became different when my son despised me. Being here made me realize how cruel I’ve been, and frankly, I can’t blame Thyra for being like that. She became the person she is now because she had to protect herself from my schemes. A normal princess would be frail, and well-mannered, and her life's basic purpose is to produce heirs. She's not like that. My guess is, love is a luxury she can’t afford,”

“And why’s that?” It’s amusing to see how Hervouet is interested to know Thyra deeper. I want to believe that he's not seeing her as a potential lover because they might end up killing each other while sleeping.

“The Thyra I know don’t trust anyone. If not that, she rarely does. She rejected several proposals not because her suitors weren't influential enough, but because she kept on finding reasons why they should be called off. Her reasons are valid, but the bottom line is she doesn’t want to. But then again, people can change. I don’t know if the Thyra I know is the same as the one you met.”

“You know what, Queen Corianne? The things you said made sense. The characteristics you mentioned are some of the things that I didn’t notice sooner. Because of you, I realized that I've been fooling her all this time and threatening her. She's probably aware of that now, right?" Hervouet’s voice was almost stuttering, and he gritted his teeth after connecting the information one thing to another. He mentioned that he’s been threatening her. On the contrary, Thyra probably sees that Hervouet’s life is in her hands.

Hervouet, you are barking up the wrong tree. He underestimated her too much perhaps because she’s a woman expected to be weak and sensitive.

I nodded at his question. “Don’t expect her to use lightning to wipe out an army like she used to. An Izavene’s life force is consumed whenever they use their powers, correct? I saw how her body suffered during the war, and I believe she can't do the same thing in the uprising that you're planning. It will literally kill her, and she won't follow that kind of order, so trust me on that."

Thyra, expect this as my way of saving you. You can’t die just yet. We need to build up Eurhyia and return it to its former glory … and I believe we can still do that as a family, regardless of our differences.

“I’ll follow your words. I can’t talk to her directly now though, since she traveled with the grand duke of Eskal and stayed there instead of Marrossi. The grand duke said that they’ll work together to prepare necessary things for the war. Which I think is a better decision, because she might get caught if she’ll be in Marrossi for long. I trust the grand duke anyway so she’ll be fine.”

Far too trusting. No wonder why Eviona isn’t taking him seriously. I can conclude one thing judging the Izavenes I met – none of them is normal.