When the girl was young her mother passed away. Her only remaining family member was her father, who never stayed at home. For as long as she could remember, the girl was on her own.

'I want to see my father.' the girl decided one day.

The girl, who yearned for the love of her only family member, secretly went to meet him. However she received a cold response.

"Why did you come here?"

"I-I...."

With a thundering voice, the man scolded the girl, on the verge of tears.

"Do not come here again." He ordered.

The girl didn't expect him to welcome her, for she was used to his cold indifference, bit this sharp memory left a deep scar.

'my father doesn't love me' she thought.

With a wounded heart the girl grew older ans made her debut in the high society.

'He didn't come today either'

Her grand dubutante ball was held in the absence of her father. She eventually left the banquet hall, feeling miserable.

'did he not come because he's ashamed of me?'

As she cried to herself, a man appeared infront of her.

"Why are you crying, my lady?"

His words were warm, ans his gaza attentive. for the man, it might have been a kindness that he could have given to anyone. But for the girl who had been starved of intimacy, for so many years, it felt like he was her savior.

After that day she started to follo him like a shadow. Begging for his love untill she succeeded in becoming his lover.

"I'll give you anything you want. All I want you to do is love me."

But reality strayed from her wishes.

"I don't want your love anymore. Truthfully i have fallen in love with the Princess."

He said goodbye to the girl, whoose only dream was to marry him. After their three-year relationship, the breakup left her devastated.

"Even you.... abandoned me. I will never forgive you."

After some time passed, the princess who had stolen her lover consumed a poison at a banquet and fell into coma. This posed a problem, because many people had witnessed the person who gave the poisoned cup to the princess.

"You! Did you try to hurt her?"

The girl who had now blossomed into a woman, shook her head frantically. Although she hated the princess for stealing the man she loved, she never wanted to hurt her. She had simply handed the cup to the princess because she had asjed for a drink to quench her thirst.

"No! It wasn't me!"

But no one believed her. The circumstances, surrounding this incident, as well as her usual conduct, marked her as criminal.

When this became certain, the emperor ordered in anger "take that wicked girl to the underground prison! Now!"

No one moved to receive his orders. Perhaps this was because standing behind that woman was an even more fearful figure than yhe emperor himself.

'Father'

Although he had always been indifferent towards her, they were still family. The woman cried while latching onto his arm. Despite his age he looked like a young man.

"Father, I really didn't!"

He brushed her off ans her eyes widened in astonishment.

The duke of Floyen stared at the emperor as he spoke "i will personally arrest her"

The emperor who, was wary of the transcendent man in front of him sighed "how can I trust you? I know you're just going to cause trouble!"

The duke of Floyen opened his mouth to appease his anger "you will have no choice but to trust me, if I lock her up in the Room Of Shadows."

The Room Of Shadows was a prison cell that confined the most unforgivable sinners. Neither magic nor weapons thorough it, making it notorious for being a place you could never escape once you got in.

Only immediate members of the royal family could freely open and close its doors, and in this situation imprisoning her there meant the duke was giving up on his daughter.

'how could you do this to me?'

Filled with despair, the woman was led to underground by ber father. A fishy smell prevaded the cold, musty air. Entering a prison cell for the first time in her life was more than terrifying. But the most terrifying part was the Room Of Shadows which was shrouded in darkness.

The woman decided to try her luck before entering the cell.

"Father, I really..."

"Go in."

Although she had called out him in distress, an icy voice met her. The woman fekt an indescribable amount of pain as her tears trickled down her cheeks and splattered on the ground.

'I've really been abandoned.'

At that moment, her father reached into his coat to secretly hand her something, before pushing her into the cell.

"Endure."

When the door closed keeping out his ice voice, a bright light formed a circle and a geometric pattern appeared. It was a powerful enchantment to used to block the entrance.

'why did you give me this? Do you want me to kill myself?'

As the cold air inside the cell settled so did the reality of his abandonment.

The woman clutched the dagger given by her father and cried silently.

* * *

“Are you mad that I’m late?”

I pondered over his question.

‘Hm, have I ever been mad at you? I don’t think I have.’

Mikhail, he was the man that I loved, as well as the male lead of this novel.

But even as I stared at his face, my heart remained so calm to the point it was eerie. I felt a sense of despondency.

‘I loved him so much, but that love dissipated so quickly.’

My past self believed him to be my savior and longed for love. I gave meaning to even the smallest, insignificant words he would say and would get nervous if the expression on his face was ever the slightest bit negative, afraid that he would leave me.

However, my thoughts and personality completely changed when I recovered the memories of my past life where I took care of my own tuition, studies, employment, and living expenses.

‘My future is something that I can change myself, I don’t need a savior.’

After coming to this realization I spoke,

“I’m not mad.”

Because I no longer want to waste my time pouring my feelings into you.

As I strengthened my resolve, Mikhail stared at me with a slightly irritated expression.

“Juvellian.”

Although it was a relationship I forced upon him, it had been 2 years since I started dating Mikhail.

“Surely our relationship wouldn’t go awry over something like this?”

The implied meaning was there: Don’t be any more annoying.

It was not a request but a polite warning.

Like usual, I gave an innocent smile.

“I wouldn’t get mad over something like that. I was just playing a prank on you.”

I was trying to lighten the mood but seeing the serious look on his face, it seemed I offended him by saying it was a prank.

“A prank? That’s quite unlike you.”

He gave a deep sigh before staring at me with tired eyes.

“So what business did you call me here for?”

Seeing his blatant distaste for being here, I let out another sigh.

‘Well, it’s understandable that he’d be mad since this isn’t the first or second time I’ve interrupted his training’

Taking all my past wrongdoings into account, I decided to stand down for now.

“Mikhail, today I-“

“I made time for you today because you said it would only take a moment, but it’s difficult for me if you keep dragging it on like this.”

Mikhail cutting off my words before I could even finish caused me to burst out into laughter. However, he didn’t seem to care.

“If it’s not important, I’ll be taking my leave.”

Sure enough, he was trying to leave like usual. He probably didn’t want to be with me any more than he had to. Although he was being rude, nothing good would come out of being on bad terms with the male lead of this novel.

“It’ll only take a moment.”

“I’m afraid I have to go now. I have an important training session.”

The moment I met his cold-hearted eyes, I felt a surge of anger.

‘Ha, what a petty man! There’s a limit to how arrogant you can be! You can’t even spare me 5 minutes?’

Mindful of his busy schedule, I had asked him 3 days in advance for our meeting today.

Yet I still spent 3 hours waiting for him here in the lounge of the Imperial Knights’ training ground. He viewed his time very preciously but completely disregarded mine.

‘Well, there’s no further reason for me to put up with this anymore.’

I lowered my voice to set the mood.

“Please sit down. This won’t take very long.”

“I clearly told you I cannot.”

Even now he still saw himself as above me as he spoke in a threateningly low voice.

I felt the need to break his delusion.

“My father is aware we’re meeting today, wouldn’t he think it’s weird if you went back this early?”

Mikhail’s face hardened after I mentioned his superior, my father, whom he feared but respected.

“I will give you exactly 5 minutes.”

It seemed even a mighty knight like Mikhail was afraid of the empire’s only Sword Master. To think he could sit so obediently like that.

‘Should I have mentioned my father earlier?’

Recalling all the moments where I used to worry about how to please him caused me to break out a smile once more.

‘It was all for naught, and to think there was even an easy method like this…”

A rigid voice interrupted my thoughts, “What’s so funny?”

Although Mikhail’s expression was full of displeasure, I didn’t care. I no longer needed to leave a favorable impression.

“2 years…We spent quite a lot of time together.”

I started with a sentimental opening, but perhaps he thought I was going to talk about love again, as he interrupted in that low voice of his,

“You called me just to say something like that?”

As he spoke those kinds of words and did not even bother to continue listening…I guess he really hated being with me.

”Can’t you hold in that temper of yours for just a little? I’m about to give you a present.’

Frankly, I was heartbroken, but due to my numerous part-time job experiences, I was able to put on a superficial* smile.

“You won’t be busy anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

I furrowed my brows as he openly spoke informally to me now.*

‘No matter the excuse, you’re really too much’

I wish I could say something like, “starting today, you’re fired because I’m going to tell my father.” I wanted to show him the bitter taste of power through blackmail. Unfortunately, my father wouldn’t dismiss one of his treasured men. Moreover, if Mikhail were to hold a grudge, I would be the only one to suffer. He had the female lead of this novel to back him up, after all.

‘I need to make as few enemies as possible since my goal is to live long.’

I slowly opened my mouth, reminding myself of my decision.

“I’m saying I’m letting go of you now.”

Hearing my words, his eyes widened before slowly returning to their normal size, while his mouth slanted in disbelief.

“Nonsense, do you expect me to believe those words?”

I couldn’t help but sigh at his sarcastic attitude.

‘Well, it’d be a waste of time to talk any further.’

Having nothing more to say, I stood up from my chair.

“You don’t have to believe me if you don’t want to, but know that I’ve clearly said I’m breaking up with you.”

As I turned around, a frigid voice could be heard.

“Alright, I’ll trust you this one time. However, do not appear before me from now on.”

The corners of my lips twitched upward at the unexpected remark.

‘Did I succeed at safely breaking up with him?’

Whatever the reason, he accepted the breakup.

Rather than feeling regret, I felt relieved. Now I could go on with my goal of living a happy and enjoyable life.

Although my father was indifferent towards me, he also didn’t say anything when I indulged in luxuries. Since it was like this, I might as well take advantage of my father’s money and enjoy this life. Imagining my happier future, my mood got better and I turned to face Mikhail with a bright smile.

“I’m sorry for everything up until now. Please be happy.”

After genuinely wishing him well, I turned around.

Usually, I had always worn uncomfortable, but pretty shoes around Mikhail. However, the shoes I wore today had lower heels and were plain in comparison.

‘Is it because of these comfortable shoes?’

I was able to leave my seat at ease without leaving behind any regrets.

* * *

‘You’re sorry for everything?’

Mikhail glared at the back of the woman who was walking away from him.

‘Bullshit, this is obviously just another scheme to get my attention’

Mikhail was confident that Juvellian would soon turn around and come back to him. Contrary to his expectations, however, she never turned around and instead continued to walk farther and farther away from him.

Once Juvellian completely left the lounge, Mikhail tightly clenched his fists.

‘Are you really leaving?’

Juvellian Eloy Floyen.

Despite being a breathtaking beauty, she was a pitiful woman with a troubled heart.

For the past two years, under the pretense of love, he had suffered from her actions.

She would always try to follow him wherever he went. If anyone tried to have a conversation with him, she would be hostile towards them. Just a tiny bit of attention from him would bring her great happiness.

That’s right, she was like a dog. A stupid dog that would wag their tail even if they were pushed away; a dog that would come back and act cute even if you hated them.

It had always been so bothersome, but the main reason Mikhail put up with her was because of her father, the Duke of Floyen, his idol.

He also realized that the number of annoying women dwindled when he was with her.

‘What could’ve caused her to have a sudden change of heart?’

Brooding over Juvellian’s sudden change, Mikhail unknowingly clenched his fists. She had completely left his line of sight now. He thought he’d feel relieved but instead, he felt strange.

‘Yeah, well, I guess I don’t have to see that troublesome woman anymore.’

Following that thought, Mikhail tried to get rid of the strange and horrible he felt but —

“Damn it.”

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t forget that image.

The image of her face that was smiling so brightly, as if she was relieved.

* * *

‘Ah, feels like a hundred years’ worth of indigestion finally went away. I should hurry to my room and rest.’

When I returned home after breaking up with Mikhail, I encountered someone at the entrance. It was a handsome man, who passed on the same silver hair and blue eyes, but not his remarkable appearance to me.

Maybe it was because it seemed like he was aging ever so slowly, but I thought we could pass off as siblings.

‘At this rate, I’ll end up looking older than him one day.’

“Father, you’ve returned?”

As soon as I greeted him with a bright voice that was the opposite of my inner feelings, he looked at me with indifferent eyes.

My only remaining family member, my father, it had been years since I last greeted him affectionately like this.

Ever since I was rejected by him when I was young, I had spoken to him only when necessary.

But now there was a reason for me to pretend to be friendly and make small talk.

‘Because now, I want to be happy.’

After gaining the memories of my past life, I realized an important fact – no matter how much I begged for love, my father could abandon me whenever he wanted. As I was lacking in many ways, I was nothing more than an embarrassment he had to hide.

Since I wouldn’t receive his love anyway, I had decided to live appropriately and find happiness elsewhere.

‘That’s right, the happiness of money!’

Of course, I still had a conscience so I wouldn’t be too greedy. A territory in the countryside, a few assets, and out of my father’s many lower titles, the title of Viscount should be enough, right?

‘Well, to be honest, that alone would be enough for me to live in luxury for the rest of my life.’

I no longer had any intentions of begging my father for his love. Instead, I would aim for happiness with his money, and in order to do that, I would need to maintain a proper relationship with him. If our relationship would become as bad as it was in the original novel, I might not even get a single cent.

In any case, I put on my best perfunctory smile.

“You must be tired from supervising the training session.”

As expected, my father gave no response.

‘Sigh, is it difficult to spare me even just one word?’

Honestly, as a human being, my feelings were hurt, but it was bearable. After all, it wasn’t the first or second time I’ve been ignored.

“Please go up and rest. I’ll be going to bed as well.”

It was after I bid him goodnight and started heading towards my room on the second floor that I heard him speak,

“There was no training today.”

I doubted my own ears when I picked up the low voice I hadn’t heard in a while.

‘Huh? Did my father just answer me back?’

Putting the shock aside, I clenched my teeth when I processed his words.

‘Mikhail, that bastard! He said he was busy because of a training session but that was all a lie?!’

Any lingering affections I had for him quickly disappeared. He really was unbelievable to the end. I had a sudden urge to curse him out but quickly waved away the thought.

‘Calm down, Juvellian. It’s all in the past now.’

My chance at a second life and numerous part-time experiences were the main driving forces behind my ability to remain calm. As I was recalling the times where I had to control my facial expressions when dealing with rude customers, my father interrupted my thoughts

“You’ve returned home early today.”

‘Ah, it seems that I have. ‘

Come to think of it, I was always out stalking Mikhail so I usually came home late at night. Today, however, I returned earlier than usual because I came straight after breaking up with him.

‘Should I just tell him the truth?’

As was the case in the original novel, it seemed like my father put a lot of trust in Mikhail as his subordinate. He often called for Mikhail and seemed to pay him a lot of attention. He was probably nominating him to be his successor since his only daughter was so useless.

I couldn’t help but let out a little laugh. In the past, I was always too nervous to talk to him, afraid that he would hate me if I said something wrong.

Now I realized, while searching through the memories of my past life, that there was no use in trying to be loved by this man. Facing my father with the blue eyes I inherited from him, I spoke concisely,

“We are no longer together.”

Though it wasn’t explicitly said, it was clear my father knew who I was referring to, seeing as how his face became distorted.

“Why?”

A short but sharp question.

But I understood. You wouldn’t have had to worry about a successor if you made a competent man like Mikhail your son-in-law. And since that is no longer possible, I would be upset too if I were in his shoes.

But no matter what, my love life is something I will decide on myself.

“I do not wish to spend the rest of my life with someone who doesn’t love me.”

My father’s face scrunched so quickly as soon as I finished talking that it was scary.

You ended things with such a competent person simply because of that useless pride?

Was the reprimand that my father’s fierce gaze seemed to imply.

Although my heart sank, it no longer hurt. I was no longer a child who got hurt by words they didn’t want to hear.

“Father, I wish to marry someone who can love me. I want to be happy.”

To tell the truth, I was actually thinking of remaining single for the rest of my life, but it may be better to put up a facade like this for now.

Like in the original novel, if I leave my father’s sight, who knows when he’ll hand me the dagger. I only realized it now that indifference was better than being cruelly abandoned.

‘I’ll stay out of your way and live quietly, so please leave me alone like always’

If it was before, this sad thought would’ve made me cry. But now, even if it felt like I was missing something inside, I didn’t care. I stared at the back of my father, who had turned away without saying another word.

‘Does he not want to talk any further with his pathetic daughter?’

It wasn’t the first or second time he had ignored me so it didn’t do much damage to my self-esteem. I breathed a sigh of relief as I stared at his retreating figure.

‘Ah, I want to hurry up and rest on my bed’

Perhaps because too many things happened today, I quickly wanted to go and rest.

* *

Marilyn, Juvellian’s personal maid, swallowed in nervousness.

‘The reins that kept a control on the Lady are gone…..’

It may be because Juvellian had been in a good mood these past few days and acting unusually friendlier, but the maid had been breathing more easily these days whenever she saw her. But to think she broke up with Sir Mikhail….

It was very shocking news.

‘This is a really big problem.’

Lady Juvellian. She was someone who was so beautiful that it was worthwhile being able to dress her, but she was a difficult master to serve due to her violent mood swings.

If she was in a bad mood, she’d scream and sometimes even engage in verbal abuse. The maids who watched the lady break expensive teacups and rip high-quality dresses suffered from extreme anxiety. They must’ve thought that they, too, could be in the position of those teacups and dresses if they weren’t careful.

Marilyn also took great caution in making sure not to offend Juvellian as much as possible.

“Milady, I will change your clothes for you now.”

Blue eyes–that shone like brilliant, blue jewels–turned to look at Marilyn with indifference, causing the maid to swallow in nervousness.

‘Did I say something wrong?‘

A soft smile emerged on Juvellian’s face.

It wasn’t the first or second time the maid had seen Juvellian’s face, but the maid’s gaze remained fixed, as if she had been possessed.

‘She is really pretty when she smiles.’

And like that, Marilyn continued to stare blankly at Juvellian.

“Marilyn. You said you were going to change my clothes, why are you staying so still?”

The smile on Juvellian’s face quickly disappeared. Coming to her senses and realizing what she had done, Marilyn quickly turned pale.

‘What do I do? I just did something I shouldn’t have done.’

Breaking out into a cold sweat, Marilyn was unable to raise her head.

Then, a clear voice spoke over her.

“Marilyn, instead of clothes, please prepare the bath.”

It was a tone that made Marilyn’s ears twitch in suspicion. The voice held neither anger nor annoyance, causing Marilyn to stare at her master with eyes full of doubt. When their eyes met, a bright smile overtook Juvellian’s face, like a flower in full bloom.

“Ahh, and please add a scent that’s good for relaxation. I’m quite tired and I’d like to sleep well tonight.”

“Then, I will prepare a lavender scent.”

This time, Marilyn responded appropriately without delay, though with a bit of stuttering.

‘Why is she like this all of a sudden? I’m not used to this….’

If one were to ask Marilyn what she thought of her usual master, of course, it would not be a good review. Although Juvellian did not physically abuse her servants, the mental abuse had to be taken into account.

“Then I shall be waiting for you to finish the preparations, thank you for the hard work.”

After speaking in the graceful tone of hers, Juvellian walked past Marilyn into the bedroom. Instead of biting remarks, she left while leaving words of encouragement. As she stared blankly at the closed door, the strength in Marilyn’s legs gave out, causing her to stumble.

“Marilyn! Are you all right?”

The assistant maid, Sella, had called out in surprise but Marilyn raised her hand.

“I’m alright. I’ll prepare the bath so if you could prepare the clothes…”

Marilyn held a hand over her heart.

‘I thought she was going to get angry…our lady is acting strange today’

The Juvellian that Marilyn was used to, would throw things, screaming and freezing the mood whenever she was having a bad day. The Juvellian today, however, had been constantly acting in a way Marilyn could not comprehend.

‘That’s right, it’s as if she became a completely different person.’

The moment that thought occurred, goosebumps arose across her entire body. Marilyn tried to regain control of her mind.

‘Let’s not think of useless things, I just need to carry out my job well.’

Contrary to her resolution, Marilyn recalled the smiling face of the lady she had just seen.

‘Perhaps it’s because she had no energy, but she looked quite pitiful’

Having brief thoughts like that, Marilyn left out a sigh before bringing her hands to the sides to slap her face.

‘What am I thinking about right now? I need to get it together.’

Marilyn made a pledge to herself. She vowed to never let her guard down in front of Juvellian.

* * *

Taking a bath was such an enjoyable thing. When soaking in a warm, fragrant bath, all sorts of thoughts will simply fly away.

However, because I just finished my plan after 3 days, I was quite tired.

‘Ah, should I skip the bath and just sleep?’

I corrected that thought soon after it came up.

‘No, they’re probably in the middle of preparing the bath so I should at least take one before going to bed.’

Although it was quite pathetic that I only realized it now, I have been quite mean to the maids. I wish I hadn’t been so evil from the start, but it was too late for that. Even if I say I’ll be nice now, it wouldn’t be sincere.

With that, I came to a decision.

‘At the very least, I won’t do horrible things from now on.’

Fixing my thoughts, I kept yawning as I was waiting for the bath to be ready.

‘Ah, I’m about to pass out. What should I do?’

Just as I was thinking about whether to wait for another 5 minutes and cancel if it still wasn’t ready, there was a knock on my door.

“Milady, the bath is ready for you.”

“Alright.”

I got up from my chair to head towards the bath but I kept having to yawn from being so fatigued. Unable to hold it in, I let out a deep yawn that resulted in tears escaping the corner of my eyes.

‘I’m so tired. I don’t think I can take a bath at this rate.’

I was in the middle of raising my hand to wipe away the tears when Marilyn chose that exact moment to enter my room.

“Milady!”

But why was she looking at me with that shocked expression? It was unlike her normal calm and composed self.

‘Don’t tell me she saw that?’

She must have witnessed me yawning, opening my mouth as wide as a hippo.

‘Ah, so embarrassing!’

Trying to somehow cover up my embarrassment, I smiled as gracefully as I could.

“I showed a bad image just now, didn’t I?”

Like a professional, Marilyn didn’t directly say a word about the yawning.

“Are you all right?”

She asked with a cautious tone.

‘Well, since she asked like this I might as well confess.’

I must have looked tired in her eyes as well, seeing as how she’s asking me if I’ll be okay to take a bath.

Yawning once again, while shedding tiny tears, I confessed,

“Marilyn, I’m too tired so I will take a bath tomorrow. Could you change me into my sleeping clothes?”

Marilyn nodded silently at my words and moved to help me change. But why did her expression look grim?

‘It’s probably because I’ve always been harsh on her’*(1)

Didn’t they say that one’s heart can only be known by oneself? *(2)

Perhaps it was due to my part-time experiences, but I felt quite sorry for Marilyn, who had been suffering under my bad temper.

“You see, it’s because I’m really tired.”

Hearing what sounded like an excuse come out of my mouth, Marilyn widened her eyes before quickly bowing her head.

“I understand. Please rest.”

Even if I pretended nothing was wrong, her feelings would’ve still been hurt so I thanked her for her hard work.

“Thank you, Marilyn.”

She seemed to falter in her steps for a moment, but I brushed it off, thinking it was just an illusion from being so tired. I collapsed onto my bed as soon as she left.

‘Ah, are things really over with Mikhail?’

My body was shaking. I was in such a good mood that I couldn’t stop smiling. To think I could feel so relieved!

I’m sorry towards Marilyn, whom I probably hurt with my fickleness, but….

I was able to have a successful and safe breakup, I will definitely be able to sleep well tonight.