When Veronia opened her eyes, the sky outside the window was tinged red with the sunset. The ceiling and furniture that caught her eye were all unfamiliar.

‘Where… is this?’

As she turned her head, she saw Luisa and Hugo sitting next to the bed.

“You’re awake!”

“Ah… Grandmother. What… happened to me?”

“You suddenly collapsed as you were leaving the entrance. So we moved you to our room for now and called for a physician.”

“A physician… you say?”

“Nia, don’t be surprised, but listen. The physician examined you and said you’re pregnant.”

It was such an unexpected word that for a moment she thought she had heard wrong.

So Veronia asked again.

“What? What did you say?”

“Pregnant! Nia, you’re pregnant.”

Veronia was dumbfounded. The words didn’t connect properly in her mind.

‘Pregnant? When did I… Could it be… Ah?’

Only after pondering deeply for a while did she recall that night she had spent with Killian.

‘Ah… that time…!’

Her mind went blank with shock, and her mouth fell open involuntarily.

“How… can this be! It’s impossible…”

Veronia muttered like someone who had lost their senses. This was something that couldn’t happen.

‘A child is growing in my belly? And it’s Killian’s child? Oh my…!’

How could this happen? A baby between me and Killian? Veronia shook her head repeatedly.

Luisa gently took Veronia’s hand. Her wrinkled hand was warm.

“A new life has come to Nia, who was trying to start anew in our home. I don’t know how you feel about it, but still… I think it’s a good sign!”

“…”

“We, Hugo and I, will be by your side, so don’t worry too much.”

The tears that had formed in Luisa’s eyes were now flowing down, unable to defy gravity.

“I won’t ever be curious about or ask where and how you lived in the past. Not about the child’s father either. But while raising this child, I’d like us to live like a real family.”

“…”

Luisa’s sincere feelings were palpable.

“If it’s our granddaughter’s child, then for us… it would be a great-grandchild.”

“That’s right. A great-grandchild! It’s a joyous occasion, indeed!”

Luisa chuckled at Hugo’s words.

But Veronia couldn’t bring herself to laugh. Her mind was a tangled mess.

‘What should I do…! A child! And it’s Killian’s child!’

[This is the timeline separator]

Late at night.

Veronia, who had returned to her second-floor bedroom, couldn’t easily fall asleep due to her troubled mind.

She lowered her hand and stroked her flat stomach. There was still no feeling.

“To think a baby is growing in here…”

It was a strange sensation.

She had thought she was completely alone in the world, but she was no longer alone. Without her knowing, a child had been with her.

Suddenly, a warm, fuzzy feeling enveloped Veronia’s entire body. Heat rushed to her eyes, making them moist.

“Thank you, little one. Really… thank you.”

She had fled, abandoning the name and family given by the new world.

It was a decision made to avoid death, but it was still scary and frightening. The fear of being alone, with no one by her side, would often creep up on her.

“But now I’m not alone. It’s all thanks to you, my little one.”

It was frustrating and unfair to have to live in hiding with a different name and face for the rest of her life, but she thought she had to endure it if she wanted to live.

“It’s all fake, but… for you, my little one, I’m a real mother.”

A real mother! It was a role she had never imagined.

She had never once imagined herself becoming a mother.

She thought meeting someone, falling in love, getting married, and starting a family were things that would only be possible in the distant future.

But that wasn’t the case.

She already had a family. She had a baby.

She had become a mother.

“Let’s do well together.”

Speaking out loud like this made her troubled heart disappear and gave her something akin to courage.

She felt strength. It was natural since she now had someone to protect.

“Could that dream possibly have been a prophetic dream?”

She recalled the dream she had yesterday. The ball of light that had gently landed in her hand. The warm and cozy sensation was vivid.

And even the soft voice echoing in her ears.

‘You are a life that didn’t exist in this world. It will be hard. This gift seems to be exactly what you need. It’s my small favor. I hope you use it well, child.’

It certainly seemed to be a prophetic dream.

A comfortable smile spread across her entire face.

“Little one, you’re a gift from heaven for me who was left alone!”

And naturally, one face came to mind. It was the face of the child’s father, Killian.

‘Thank you, Killian.’

With her hand on her belly, thinking of him made her feel somehow connected.

Though they were far apart in body and mind, somehow it felt as if they were all united as one.

‘I’m a villainess… a villainess thought to be dead, yet carrying the male lead’s child…’

It was a fate that could never be connected with Killian. It couldn’t be helped since that was how the original story was set.

‘But as soon as I deviated from the original, we’re connected like this through a new life. What is this…’

The disharmony of life.

They say you can’t predict even an inch of your future, but to think it could be this sudden and contradictory.

Still, Veronia felt moved, thinking that for once, life and this world seemed to be on her side.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!”

As she whispered towards some god that might be up there somewhere, a hot feeling welled up inside her.

Tears flowed down, slowly soaking her pillowcase.

It was sudden tears, but even that felt warm, evoking a touching feeling.

[This is the timeline separator]

Veronia unfolded the newspaper.

The front page was filled with articles about the princess’s death and funeral.

The cause of death was only stated as a fire accident, with no detailed explanation of the circumstances anywhere. Well, it made sense.

News that the princess had secretly fled in the night and was found burned in a remote cabin would surely shock the people.

The royal family must have concealed the stark truth.

It felt quite strange to see news of her own death in the newspaper.

Still, as she was struggling to read it all the way through, she heard a voice calling her from downstairs.

“Nia! Are you ready? Let’s go now!”

“Yes!”

After folding the newspaper, Veronia immediately put on a wide-brimmed hat and left the room.

Veronia followed Luisa to the market.

Wherever they went, people noticed and were curious about the new face.

The red-haired curly butcher, his eyes twinkling, asked Luisa.

Perhaps because she was tall and bulky for a woman, her voice was also loud and booming.

“Who’s the young lady next to you?”

“She’s our granddaughter.”

“Hello. I’m Nia.”

The owner looked Veronia up and down. As expected, the first place her gaze went was the scar on her face.

“Ah, now that I think about it, I heard about this before. Look at me! I forgot about it already!”

“She arrived a few days ago.”

“Your granddaughter is pretty. The tattoo is pretty too.”

“Thank you.”

The owner immediately changed the subject and asked Luisa again.

“Then you haven’t been to Her Highness the Princess’s memorial service yet, right?”

“No, not yet. Have you been?”

“Of course. I closed the shop yesterday and went.”

The whole neighborhood was abuzz with talk of the princess’s funeral. This place was no exception.

“The line was so long, I had to wait 5 hours in the scorching sun before I could finally pay my respects.”

“5 hours? Oh my, that must have been hard.”

“What’s that compared to doing it for Her Highness the Princess? Oh dear, tears again…”

The owner quickly wiped away the tears forming in her eyes and sniffled. As if the sadness was contagious, Luisa soon began to sniffle too.

“Such a young and beautiful person. I wonder how such a tragedy could have befallen her…”

“I know. It’s just too heartbreaking.”

Veronia silently listened to people mourning her death.

She felt grateful and sorry.

“So when are you planning to go to the memorial service?”

“We should go as a family once her travel fatigue has eased a bit. We still have time.”

Veronia was startled by Luisa’s answer.

She hadn’t thought she’d end up going to her own memorial service.

Every citizen of the empire wanted to attend the princess’s memorial service. This was true for both nobles and commoners.

It was realistically difficult for people living in distant regions to attend, but it was quite possible for those living in or near the capital.

So it seemed that most people in this neighborhood were planning to attend the princess’s memorial service.

‘If everyone else is going and I’m the only one who says I won’t go, they’ll surely think it’s strange.’

While Veronia was feeling perplexed, the owner continued chattering while cutting meat.

“I don’t quite understand collecting special taxes in the name of condolence money, but it’s a good thing if it’s used for relief in the southern regions. To think that our Princess is doing good even after passing away… Oh dear, tears again…”

Unable to stop the flowing tears, the owner stopped talking and wiped them with a towel.

‘Thank you. And… I’m sorry.’

Veronia silently conveyed her gratitude to the woman mourning her death.

[This is the timeline separator]

Onyx came in the evening.

The neighborhood people knew him as an occasional visiting herb broker, she was told.

Onyx actually bought the herbs collected by Luisa and Hugo at a fair price.

Watching him faithfully fulfill his role, she couldn’t help but think he was going through a lot of trouble in many ways.

After briefly greeting Luisa and Hugo, he headed straight to the second-floor bedroom.

“How’s life? Seems livable?”

“It’s fine so far. Luisa and Hugo both seem like good people. This is all thanks to you, Onyx. Thank you so much.”

Onyx was no less than a lifesaver to Veronia.

No matter that his job was essentially an information broker, and that she had paid an enormous sum for his services, it didn’t diminish her gratitude.

“Oh, this is nothing.”

Onyx chuckled, shrugging his shoulders.

Veronia laughed along at his attitude, which was consistently far from humble.

He would later awaken as a villain and torment the male and female leads, but not yet. So for now, it seemed okay to just be grateful.

Grinning widely, he suddenly wiped the smile off his face and asked in a lowered voice.

“But is it really okay for you, who has only ever been waited on in the imperial palace, to live in a place like this?”