The sky was clear.
Under the watchful gaze of the beautifully shining stars, Patricia van Frentier, the duchess’s daughter and the future Crown Prince’s bride, briskly walked down the Royal Palace corridor, pulling along the arm of the Crown Prince who was to be her husband.
Having been raised to be a lady since childhood, she had never imagined herself walking through the palace at such a pace.
And to think she was holding the Crown Prince’s hand.
Surely, the man right behind her must be looking at her with a bewildered expression.
But she no longer cared.
She couldn’t care less.
It was a feeling of liberation.
When was the last time she had felt so refreshingly free?
She couldn’t suppress the excitement swelling in her heart.
She quickened her steps, eager to reach the Party Hall within the palace.
Inside, the country’s dignitaries had gathered to celebrate the Emperor’s birthday.
“Please open the door.”
“Y-yes, understood.”
Her flushed cheeks and quickened breath, her shoulders heaving—this was a Patricia no one had ever seen before.
Even the knights guarding the door looked confused.
But none of that mattered anymore.
The door that marked the beginning of a new world was now opening.
“Your Majesty the Emperor, Your Grace the Duke, I have something to say.”
She could feel countless eyes upon her.
Amidst the murmuring crowd inside the hall, her voice rang out loud enough to be heard.
She was surprised she could speak so boldly.
“…What is it, Patricia?”
This was her once-in-a-lifetime gamble.
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that everything about her life was about to change.
She had wished for things to remain the same, but now that she had decided to change, her heart felt so light.
Excitement heated her body.
Slowly, she straightened her back.
She remembered the exact moment it all began.
From that encounter on that day, everything changed.
It had been the worst, most terrible experience—but now, looking back, she knew it was for the best.
Because her heart was trembling with joy.
She would be thankful for that feeling.
The decisive blow came from the words of her fiancé, Alex.
That sound that rang inside her—like a taut string snapping with a faint ‘pop’—was surely a divine revelation.
Grateful for everything that had happened until now.
Blessings upon everything that was to come.
Patricia took a deep, steady breath.
“I, Patricia van Frentier, hereby renounce my position as the Crown Prince’s fiancée. I will—not—become the Crown Princess.”