THCF 01

Chapter 01

That day, when she was twenty.

Lea spent the whole day in the stable, delighted by the birth of twin foals. She happily wondered what names she should give them, and eventually fell asleep.

Then, deep in the night, she opened her eyes when her nurse urgently shook her awake.

“Princess, you have to get up.”

With a pale, frightened face, the nurse hurriedly dressed Lea.

After running as if they were escaping, they arrived at the entrance of a secret underground passage. There, Lea met her older brother, Aren, the King of Zephyros.

“Only the king knows about this passage. It should buy us some time.”

Tears quickly filled Lea’s eyes.

“Brother, Brother, aren’t you coming with me?”

As soon as she finished speaking in a trembling voice, Lea burst into tears.

Aren looked at his pitiful little sister and said,

“I…… I’ll follow later. Lea. Let’s make sure we meet again safely.”

That day, as soon as Lea and her attendants left the secret passage, they climbed the Red Mountain in the west.

Only their hurried footsteps echoed through the darkness. No one spoke.

The silence was heavier than screams.

The mountain was dry and made only of rocks, so few people came there. The cave they found was suitable for hiding.

The knight who had gone down to find out what had happened to the royal castle returned. The moment his eyes met Lea’s, his face twisted miserably and he lowered his head.

“……No.”

Lea shook her head.

She staggered toward him and grabbed his clothes.

“Tell me it’s not true! Tell me Brother is all right!”

“Princess.”

His voice trembled.

“His Majesty…… has passed away.”

Sixteen years later.

Nortia, a vassal state of the Terra Empire.

Nella, its ruling queen, clicked her tongue as she looked at a woman sitting helplessly on the bed.

Her faded golden hair had been cut short like a man’s, and the ends had grown out unevenly.

She had heard that even when people tried to tidy it for her, she would not let them touch it.

“Do you know how much the bounty on your head is?”

“…….”

“For the Red Wraith that the Empire is so desperate to capture and kill to end up looking like this. I picked up a corpse.”

Nella grabbed the woman’s chin and lifted her face.

Her face had been extremely thin, with her cheekbones clearly visible, but it seemed she had gained a little weight, making her look somewhat better.

But her green eyes were still dead.

“They say you never say a word. Can you not speak, or do you simply not want to?”

When Nella let go, Lea’s head dropped helplessly again.

There was only one thought dominating Lea’s mind right now.

‘Why am I still alive?’

The sixteen years that had passed flashed quickly through her mind.

From a powerless princess who had lost her kingdom to the leader of the rebels fighting against the Empire.

Once again, she had lost everything.

Consumed by despair and self-hatred, Lea’s consciousness wandered aimlessly.

Nella sat down on a chair beside the bed and watched Lea silently for a while before suddenly asking,

“If you could go back to the past, would you?”

Lea slowly raised her head.

Her eyes, now filled with light, stared somewhere far away.

The source of the light that brought her back to life was not the energy of life, but hatred and despair.

A strange light passed through Nella’s eyes. The corner of her lips lifted slightly.

She knew.

The strongest motivation that makes a human being continue living was anger.

“If I could go back to the past, I would even sell my soul.”

A voice that had not been used for a long time came out, rough and hoarse.

“What would you be able to do if you went back?”

“I only need to stop one person. Just one person. Because everything collapsed that day at the hands of one person.”

“Who is that person?”

“Neria. My half-sister.”

“You remember when that day was.”

“How could I ever forget?”

Lea spoke dryly with fierce eyes.

Nella could see the spark buried deep inside that dryness, right before it was about to explode.

“If you truly went back to the past, are you confident that you could change it?”

“Yes. Absolutely.”

“Even if you lost something precious to you in exchange?”

‘Something precious?’

Lea almost laughed.

There was no way anything like that was still left.

“A spirit.”

Lea was startled and opened her eyes wide.

“How…….”

Her eyes suddenly came into clear focus.

She looked closely at the face of the person standing before her with a mocking smile.

A middle-aged noblewoman with black and white hair mixed together smiled coldly and elegantly.

“Now you finally look useful.”

Lea could not take her eyes off Nella as their gazes met.

She felt as if she had been thrown before an overwhelming beast—fierce, beautiful, and so powerful that resistance was meaningless.

“Let’s make a plan.”

Lea stared blankly at Nella, who was saying things she could not understand.

“I don’t need your soul.”

“Princess. Good morning!”

With a lively voice, the curtains were pulled open and the morning sunlight poured inside.

A woman with dark brown hair, light brown eyes, and a face full of cute freckles smiled brightly.

Was the reason her eyes were dazzled because of the sunlight?

Or was it because she could see that bright smile again?

“Princess. I have some wonderful news that will surprise you. What do you think it is?”

“……Nasim gave birth to her foal last night.”

“How did you know? Nasim gave birth to her foal, and……”

“Twins, right? Two foals.”

“What? You already heard about it somewhere!”

Lea jumped out of bed and hugged Penny.

“Princess?”

“Because I’m happy.”

“Oh, Princess. Are you really that happy? I told you not to worry. Nasim is healthy, so she would safely give birth.”

Still holding Penny tightly, Lea closed her eyes as they grew hot.

The window suddenly opened wide, and a strong wind swept over the two of them.

Their clothes fluttered, and their hair scattered in every direction.

“Oh my! What a strong wind.”

Penny let out a short scream in surprise before laughing brightly.

Lea gently clenched her fist as if she were trying to hold the wind.

The wind slipped into her hand and then flowed away.

‘It’s you, isn’t it? You came back with me too, didn’t you?’

As if answering her, the wind brushed against her cheek.

On that day when she was twenty, when she learned of her older brother’s death, Lea awakened the power of a spirit as she felt a despair that seemed to choke her.

⌜It is a very unlikely possibility.⌟

Nella had said.

⌜You are going against the order of the world and returning to the past. The chance of success is extremely low. The chance that you will awaken the power of a spirit again is even lower.⌟

‘It succeeded, Your Majesty. And a miracle happened.’

She had returned to the past together with her spirit.

She had not awakened it anew.

Something beyond prediction had happened.

There was no other way to describe it except as a miracle.

Lea tightly closed her eyes and then opened them again.

Her gaze flashed intensely.

‘Neria.’

Tonight, she would stop you no matter what.

The desert kingdom of Zephyros, located at the southern end of the continent.

In the kingdom’s holy sanctuary was a great sacred artifact called the ‘Eye of Zephyros.’

The ‘Eye of Zephyros’ was a mysterious artifact that created sandstorms and swept away enemies whenever they crossed the border.

Thanks to this perfect defensive artifact, the kingdom had built a thousand-year history.

Even in this age, when an Empire had appeared on the continent and every land had bowed its head under the Empire’s influence, the Kingdom of Zephyros maintained its proud independence.

Under the protection of the sacred artifact, the kingdom was peaceful and safe.

‘Is it really?’

Lea stood on the high tower of the royal castle and looked down at the kingdom spread out below with a cold gaze.

‘This isn’t peace. We’re slowly sinking.’

Born as a princess of the kingdom, she had spent a happy childhood without a single worry.

She loved the kingdom and thought this place was paradise.

She believed that Zephyros, protected by its mysterious sacred artifact, was truly blessed by God.

But.

At some point, the kingdom’s sacred artifact became poison that slowly ate away at the kingdom.

It was even more unfortunate that no one noticed the truth.

Lea only realized it after losing her kingdom.

Relying on the power of the sacred artifact, the kingdom had become lazy and old-fashioned.

Someday, it would have eventually collapsed from even a trivial sandstorm.

‘But that does not mean what you did can be forgiven, Neria.’

Although the ‘Eye of Zephyros’ was the greatest treasure of the kingdom, its security was not particularly strict.

Anyone except members of the royal bloodline would have their minds crushed and become unable to move if they approached it.

There was a legend that only someone of Zephyros blood could destroy the Eye of Zephyros.

Lea had never taken that legend seriously.

How could someone of the royal bloodline possibly destroy the sacred artifact?

The sacred artifact was the foundation of Zephyros.

And yet Lea’s half-sister, Neria, the princess of the kingdom, had actually committed such a terrible act.

Tonight was that very day.

“Lea.”

Lea quickly turned her head.

A handsome young man with the same golden hair and green eyes as Lea looked puzzled and said,

“Why did you suddenly call me to a place like this……?”

Aren was startled when Lea suddenly threw herself into his arms.

But he became even more surprised when he saw his little sister’s shoulders trembling.

“Lea, what’s wrong? What happened?”

This was not how Lea had planned things.

But the moment she saw Aren’s face, she could not hold back her tears.

She was happy because she could see her living older brother again and touch him again.

At the same time, she was afraid that all of this might be a dream.

Aren patiently waited while patting her back until Lea stopped crying.

Just as she remembered, her older brother was truly kind.

“Your Majesty.”

Aren’s eyebrows slowly rose.

“Your Majesty?”

“Please listen to what I am about to say. This concerns the fate of me, Your Majesty, and the kingdom.”

Aren stared at Lea for a moment before nodding.

The little sister he knew could be a little spoiled, but she was not a child who would say nonsense.

“I received a divine revelation.”

Lea did not want to explain every single thing she had experienced.

It would take too long, and it would sound ridiculous.

Someone might argue that mentioning a divine revelation was even more ridiculous, but this was the Kingdom of Zephyros, a country that truly received the protection of God.

“Tonight, something terrible will happen. Many people will die, and the kingdom will be in danger of collapsing.”

“What?”

“I cannot tell you what will happen right now.”

If she said the sacred artifact might be destroyed, Aren would strengthen its security.

That could not happen.

Everything had to happen as planned.

“I can stop it. I have to stop it. So please, don’t ask anything and trust me just for today. Even if I know nothing else, I would never lie when the fate of our kingdom is at stake.”

Aren silently looked at Lea before lightly tapping the tip of her nose with his finger.

“Your nose is all red. If you had a nightmare, go back to sleep for another hour.”

“Your Majesty!”

“Your king doesn’t have time to listen to nonsense, but I suppose someone else might.”

Seeing the playful smile on Aren’s lips, Lea blinked.

“……Brother.”

Aren grinned and asked,

“What can I do to help?”

“Tonight…… please don’t go to sleep. Keep the knights on standby.”

Her throat tightened on its own, and her voice became tearful.

“Again?”

“That’s all I need.”

Lea hugged Aren tightly again.

“Thank you, Brother. I’ll tell you everything tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Feeling Aren’s gentle hand patting her shoulder, Lea’s anxiety and uneasiness slowly settled.

‘How did I manage to live after losing my brother in my previous life?’

This time, she would never lose him.