Everything felt as if it was going too fast. Though Minji had been there for quite a while, she had nothing figured out. Jiu's memories started pouring in little by little and while it could have been useful to Minji in the near future, it was making her rather confused.

Even worse, she had allowed herself to be swept away by her surroundings. At one point, she had forgotten that she did not belong here. It was not her life she was living, and Minji was terrified at the realization of robbing someone of their life. The impending wedding was like a slap in the face from reality. She was about to marry a man she barely knew and to Minji, it was tragic.

She grew up believing in the connection between marriage and true love, regardless of its validity. She dreamed of a wedding with someone she was in love with, as much as that person was in love with her. Minji wonders if it's possible, now that she's living a life full of uncertainties, putting her trust fully in the memories of someone she was posing as which soon no longer serve a purpose due to her actions, words, and decisions that differ completely from Jiu's.

Her heart aches more with the thought of her old life, her real life. Oh, how she misses home. Though the people she met here were nice, they weren't the same ones she had grown to love and cherish as Kim Minji. They don't know her; they knew Jiu Winston, whose life Minji is living, not Kim Minji. This made her feel out of place, and she wanted to go home, back to where she belonged.

How? She had no idea.

She desperately tried to find anything, anything at all that could guide her closer to her life, but to no avail; she was met with a vast desert, sparse of anything.

***

Minji took a deep breath and straightened her back as carriages arrived one after another. It had been Lucy's idea for her to arrange a tea party, and she thought that this would be a great chance to ask around and learn more about anything at all. Things weren't exactly going as planned. She remembered only writing about six invitation letters to important families she was familiar with, so why were there so many ladies arriving? It didn't help that the faces she was seeing were all unfamiliar; not even Jiu's memories could recognize them.

From a distance, she could see a slightly shorter lady approaching her. Judging from her dress, which was clearly made with high-quality fabrics, and her demeanour, Minji assumed she was a lady from a higher-ranking noble family, perhaps on par with the Winston. The lady's eyes scanned her, and without any self-introduction, she greeted Minji.

"It has been a while, hasn't it, Lady Jiu?" She said with a smug tone, and Minji's eyebrow almost twitched. "Or should I refer to you as the Crown Princess?" Judging by how comfortable the other lady was in speaking with such malice towards Jiu, Minji assumed that the two were at least acquainted. Considering the type of person Jiu was, she could have not given anyone but herself the attention. In Jiu's memories, the only people who mattered were the ones who would benefit her in one way or another. Minji had always been nice, but she was far from dense when it came to hostility. The lady clearly disliked her, or Jiu, as it were.

"Congratulations on your engagement," the lady said, her eyes narrowed as she judged Minji with a rather condescending smirk, but Minji was not fazed by it. After all, it was directed at Jiu and said woman was not exactly a person with pure intentions.

Most indulge themselves in idle chatter as they occupy the seats prepared. That was, until Minji decided to garner everyone's attention as she welcomed them once again in a cheery manner. It strikes as a little strange to some who had met Jiu before, and even stranger to those who were familiar with Jiu's way of carrying herself. Minji did not exude an intimidating aura that Jiu was known to possess and to the eyes of opportunists, she seemed weaker and vulnerable to criticism. Something felt different and a few of the ladies were quick to jump onto the peculiarity and trample over the seemingly weak Minji. To them, it was a chance to prove the power that they supposedly have towards Jiu.

"I heard that you were assaulted and poisoned by one of your maids," one started, their eyes piercing as they looked at Minji. "Though the duke said not to worry, looking at you right now I'm a bit concerned." The eyes of the other guests widened and they stared in disbelief. Hushed whispers travelled all around.

"Oh, I'm..." Minji stuttered. The lady who spoke had an almost victorious smile when she heard snickers coming from the others. Minji felt her eyes stinging as she realized that no one in the room had sympathy for her. It wasn't the horrible treatment from the group of people that hurt her, but the fact that it reminded her of something that had been weighing on her mind: the fact that she did not belong there. She was an outsider posing as Jiu Winston.

She was about to run and cry, but soon silence descended upon everyone except the lady who was still celebrating the fact that she had overpowered Jiu Winston. Others had already offered their courtesy, and before the lady realized that the princess was right behind her, "What were you so occupied with that you no longer know your manners? Is this how you treat the royal family?" Della glared at the woman, wiping away the smirk she had, and the tables turned. Now the snickering was directed at the lady who flailed to give an excuse. Della paid the others no mind as if wanting to let the shame sink on the defeated lady.

The princess walked past her and approached Minji with a friendlier smile. However, the attention was soon diverted when someone came striding in towards them wearing a rather fancy uniform rather than a gown like the others. Minji was a little distracted by how perfectly the uniform fit her body and, looking around, most seemed to agree, as their eyes were glued to her as well. Minji had never thought of herself as a superficial person, but Rachel seemed to have proven otherwise.

The younger princess didn't bother to look around before bumping into the lady from earlier. It almost seemed intentional as she gave her a disdainful look before continuing to stride towards Minji and Della. With the presence of two royal family members, the tea party went well, but that was the only thing that went well as Minji had completely thrown away her plans on getting information from the other ladies.

***

The palace was filled with people preparing for the grand wedding but this could be her only chance. There were a lot of eyes watching, sure, and she would be caught even with the slightest mistake but on the bright side, more people means more distraction. Things would be too hectic for anyone to notice her lurking around. So there she was, in the palace garden. Dami, who had a cloak on, trod as lightly as she could, moving from one bush to a nearby tree to cover her, as if a lurking shadow weren't odd enough. Luckily, everyone had retreated into the palace as the night got colder, so no eyes were on her at that moment.

She guided herself into the maids' quarters through the thankfully open window as she searched for her victim, just according to the plan she had orchestrated in her mind for weeks. With another streak of luck, Dami found herself a lone maid who was in the middle of changing. Though it felt inappropriate to watch a person change without them knowing it, she couldn't care less. Silently, she approached the maid and knocked her out before she could make a sound to alert the other maids and the guards.

Dami laid the half-dressed maid in a bed she assumed was the maid's and tucked her in, making it look as if she was sleeping before taking the maid's uniform and putting it over her simple clothing under the cloak. She threw the cloak into the burning fireplace and cast a spell on herself. In just a moment, she now looked exactly like the knocked out maid. Even though she was using a spell, Dami still had to be quick. Disguising as another person took a lot of mana so she didn't have any time to spare standing around in the room.

She stepped out of the quarters and headed for the prince's chamber.

She had memorized the palace's layout to the core, so finding her way to her target was no problem. All she had to do was wish that the prince's chamber was not vacant.

She bumped into a rather burly man whose attire displayed his noble background, unlike his hair, which was unkempt and the strong undeniable smell of alcohol.

And Dami was quick-witted.

Seemingly, as the man came from the direction of the prince's chamber, he proved to be the perfect scapegoat, regardless of its credibility. So, as the man was trying to regain his composure, she slipped a thin bottle with poison residue into his pocket, hoping that he would not realize what she had done at that moment. It did not matter to her if he were to find out later, after the deed had been carried out. Dami quickly lowered her head and muttered an apology.

The man narrowed his eyes and they part ways.

***

'There it is,' Dami thought, and she knocked on the prince's door. It did seem a little odd that there were no maids or butlers in sight, but after a few seconds of consideration, Dami decided that it didn't matter. Not when she was just one step away from reaching her goal. Now or never.

She heard a firm "Come on in," and she did. She lifted her head up and made eye contact with Stefan as she stepped closer. Before the prince could reprimand the unusual behaviour of his maid, Dami lunged at him and a dagger went through his left shoulder.

Stefan was shocked at the sight of the dagger plunged into him, but he laughed. "It seems you have missed my heart," Those words had no effect on the assassin, who only jumped away, getting as far away from him as she could. Dami chanted a few words loudly enough for the prince to hear them. He was confused, but somehow the last thing on his mind was to take the dagger out. Taking it out might have made him bleed to death slowly, but leaving it be would only work to Dami's favour.

By the time he realized the dagger was enchanted, he had already made a huge mistake.

The moment Dami closed her mouth, blood started flowing out of Stefan's body and he couldn't move nor utter a single word. He was bleeding to death, but now not even a single drop of blood remained in his body. His dried-out body dropped onto the cold marble floor. He let out a guttural groan before he went limp.

Dami could almost feel herself passing out and was fully exhausted, so the disguise she had on completely fell off. Only her heavy breaths echoed in the huge chamber of the now-deceased crown prince. The world outside remained serene, and she chuckled.

Having a good sense of hearing, Rachel's ears picked up on the commotion coming from Stefan's room, which was just a floor below the balcony she was lounging on. Usually, she paid no mind to whatever late night activity the prince indulged himself in, but this time she changed her mind when she remembered that Jiu was somewhere in the palace. Maybe they were together in his room? she thought. Rachel was anxious at the thought of Jiu struggling against Stefan, as it sounded more like a fight than anything else. Then she heard it: Stefan's laughter, and the sound of it made her heart sink. It was enough for her to rush downstairs, but by the time she had reached his chamber, everything went silent.

She pushed the door open and was met with a pool of blood, Stefan's now lifeless body, and the person behind it all. The woman in a maid uniform attempted to flee, but Rachel made no effort to hold her down; instead, she took in all the woman's physical features. She heard the woman mutter something; perhaps it was a spell. Rachel knew it was pointless, so she told the woman to just go. She then turned around with a sigh and left the room leaving no trace of a witness.

***

What was that? How was she unaffected by the spells?

Seeing the blond hair and striking eyes, Dami had no doubt that it was one of the princesses who had caught her, but the reaction given confused Dami. She was far too composed for someone who had just witnessed a murder. Could it have been Princess Rachel, the one raised to fight in war?

She had so many questions and she desperately wanted to flee straight to Sua's cabin, but she stopped in her tracks. Nothing is more terrifying than a calm person in a tragedy. Rachel might have sent someone to tail her.

They might not have been that different after all. Both were raised to be killers and were cunning in nature.

***

"Why are you here at this time?" Della turned to face the uninvited visitor in her chamber. The only person with such audacity was Rachel, and God knows why she was there at such an ungodly hour of the night.

"He's dead," She wanted to praise the other for cutting straight to the chase, but she shook her head at her sister's habit of oversimplifying things to the point where context was non-existent.

"What?"

"Stefan," A frown of disbelief appeared on Della's face, but she stayed silent, urging Rachel to explain. "An assassin just killed him with a curse."

A death of a royal by curse was unheard of; it was impossible. The reason why her ancestors were able to gain the throne in the first place was due to the fact that they were invulnerable to spells and curses. It ran in their blood, and if one were to die from spells and curses, it would prove they were not a part of the royal family. She had always suspected something about the Queen and her son, and the revelation made the edges of Della's lips turn up.

"Pretend we have no idea what happened," Della started walking closer towards Rachel and placed both her hands on the other's shoulders. "You can't act, so don't even try to look sad or devastated; just keep that stoic face you have and keep your mouth shut."

***

The following days were utter chaos. It was announced to the public that their crown prince had been murdered in his chamber, but what caused an even bigger uproar was that the prince had died from a curse. While the members close to the royal family were angered by the fact that their queen was an adulterer, the other nobles and the townsfolk were clueless about the royal blood. Instead of shunning the queen for her actions, they were trying to find the crown prince's killer.

Nevertheless, Jiu Winston was their prime suspect. To the townsfolk who had only heard rumours regarding Jiu, she was the epitome of a witch in their eyes. Many believed she was behind the rising attacks from witches, and Jiu was also known for her supposed magical abilities. It was only rumour, as no one had seen or been able to prove it, but someone had to be blamed.

The sight in front of the Winston's duchy was frightening. There had been countless attempts to break in and attack Jiu, but those who dared to try were all beheaded by the knights stationed around, as per Duke Winston's orders.

Minji thought that it was inhumane to do so, but deep inside she wished someone could bypass the knights and kill her. Perhaps then she would be able to wake up as Kim Minji once again.

Despite the chaos outside, it remained calm on the inside. Everyone working for the duke went about their day as if nothing was unfolding. The maids still served her as they always did and none of her routine had been changed. Even Lucy seemed unaffected by everything.

Minji had tried to mention the scene outside multiple times, but Lucy shrugged it off, telling her to not pay it any mind and that things would subside soon if they stayed quiet.

But things changed the following week when the royal knight barged into the Winston's duchy and arrested Jiu Winston for treason. It was declared by their current regent, who had taken over the king's duties as he had collapsed and had not awoken for days.