The balls held in Adolevit could last as short as a single day or as long as ten days.
Of course, since the reign of Queen Hong Se-Ryu, no ball had ever lasted the full ten days.
She had once remarked, "Use that time to focus on the prosperity of the land," and shortened the duration of balls significantly.
This rule didn't seem to exempt her either. Even the ball held to celebrate the queen's birthday was over in just three days.
Three days. Only three days.
Yet, in those three days, Hong Bi-Yeon felt as though every ounce of energy had been drained from her body.
"Hooh…"
She let out a deep sigh, perhaps the heaviest one she'd ever breathed in her life. But this wasn't just a sigh.
She was so, so utterly exhausted. It was a deep breath born purely from overwhelming fatigue.
Returning to her chamber, Hong Bi-Yeon sat down in front of the dressing table and cupped her face in her hands.
'...I'm exhausted.'
As royalty, this was essentially her first time properly attending a ball and socializing with the nobles.
In her childhood, a few nobles had shown interest and approached her. But ever since she gained a position in the line of succession, the nobles had kept their distance.
It was clear that Princess Hong Si-Hwa would be the next ruler. With her destined for the throne, there wasn't even the slightest chance for Hong Bi-Yeon.
Approaching Hong Bi-Yeon, who was now considered her rival, wouldn't benefit anyone.
That was how it had always been.
The unfair race had started from the moment she gained her position in the line of succession as a child.
Hong Si-Hwa was already far ahead, sprinting toward the finish line, while Hong Bi-Yeon had barely begun her race.
Even after ten years, the gap hadn't narrowed. Hong Si-Hwa was accelerating toward the finish line, while Hong Bi-Yeon remained stagnant, unable to move forward.
'Heh.'
A faint smile crossed her face.
Hong Si-Hwa, who had taken the lead.
Ah! She was the hare.
She had rushed far ahead but had grown lazy, succumbing to complacency.
She was held back.
Her ankle was caught by the massive barrier named Baek Yu-Seol, and she fell in place.
Hong Bi-Yeon did not miss that opportunity.
Unlike Princess Hong Si-Hwa, who was like a hare, Hong Bi-Yeon was a tortoise. But while the hare stumbled and fell, the tortoise crawled as quickly as possible, significantly narrowing the gap between them.
That was her achievement for today.
'I'm tired... but now's not the time to rest.'
Today, Hong Bi-Yeon took dozens, perhaps hundreds, of steps forward. She had closed a considerable distance between herself and the previously untouchable Princess Hong Si-Hwa.
But it was still not enough.
Walking wouldn't do.
She needed to run.
And now, the preparations were complete.
'The Adolevit Elder Council.'
The very place that had once seemed unreachable, no matter how hard she tried, was now right in front of her.
She steadied her racing heart. From now on—
If she became the queen—
It would become her daily life.
Sitting confidently in one of the council's seats, accepting their opinions and presenting her own, would become routine.
So she told herself not to expect too much.
Not to let her heart race.
Not to feel excited.
Those were things only children did.
Yet, despite her thoughts, her heart was pounding so loudly it seemed as if the sound could echo outside the palace walls.
She felt like running there immediately.
That thought made her rise abruptly from her seat.
"Princess."
"...?"
A knock echoed from outside her chamber.
It wasn't the voice of the maids who usually tended to her. It was the voice of a noble servant she often encountered while conducting palace affairs.
"I'll go."
A princess's chamber was not a place that nobles could dare to casually spy upon.
When Hong Bi-Yeon personally opened the door to her chamber, dozens of servants stood waiting with their heads bowed, carrying hundreds of documents.
For a moment, she was at a loss for words. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then shut it again.
Her brilliant mind quickly went into overdrive.
All the events she had orchestrated at the ball… building connections, initiating projects, managing trades, magical studies, academic conferences, tea parties, festivals, debates, meetings...
All those countless tasks and events were now surging toward her at once like a tidal wave.
"Princess, the administrative staff wishes to see you..."
"Regarding national defense..."
"And the issue of maritime trade..."
As she stood there, incident after incident poured forth one after another.
Hong Bi-Yeon hastily raised her hand to stop them.
"Enough."
"Excuse me?"
"I'll deal with it later."
She closed her eyes tightly and said, "Bring everything to my office."
"...Understood."
As the servants scurried away to her office with the piles of documents, Hong Bi-Yeon pressed her throbbing temples with her fingers.
There wasn't enough time in a single day to process all those documents.
But tomorrow's Hong Bi-Yeon might manage it.
'...What am I even doing?'
This was the sort of reckless behavior Baek Yu-Seol might pull.
If it were him, he'd probably look at the mountain of papers and casually say, "I'll leave it to tomorrow's me!" and confidently go off to have fun.
Perhaps, without realizing it, she had begun to resemble his personality.
Though, of course, she would firmly deny it.
'No, that's not it. I'm not going out to play.'
As she watched the dozens of servants carrying the documents busily, she spoke to the maids who remained.
"I have somewhere to go for a while."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The maid naturally prepared to follow the princess, as if she were her shadow.
It was only natural for a maid to accompany the princess wherever she went, but that wasn't what Hong Bi-Yeon intended.
"You are not to follow me."
The maids raised their heads in surprise.
They were not seasoned maids. Though they had spent decades in the palace, they had only been assigned to serve directly under Princess Hong Bi-Yeon a few months ago.
To be a personal maid to a princess with a claim to the throne meant being her shadow, never leaving her side no matter what happened.
"...With my humble mind, I find it difficult to comprehend Your Highness's intentions."
The head maid, a young woman likely in her early twenties, spoke hesitantly.
Noticing the slight tremor in her voice, Hong Bi-Yeon could tell she was afraid.
It made sense. The queen herself must have issued the order for the maids to remain by the princess's side at all times. Could they defy such a command just because the princess instructed them otherwise?
That was what frightened her.
"You don't need to worry. I don't like my people being scolded either."
The head maid slowly lifted her head. The princess standing before them already understood the source of their fear.
"So..."
After glancing around, Hong Bi-Yeon casually pointed toward her chamber.
"This is an order. From now on, guard my chamber. There's something very precious inside."
Of course, there wasn't anything particularly precious in there.
The maids, having managed her chambers for months during her time at Stella Academy, knew this. But an order was an order.
"Yes, Your Highness."
It was their duty to obey the princess.
After sending the maids to guard her chamber, Hong Bi-Yeon moved independently, circling around the palace unnoticed.
Choosing paths where she wouldn't stand out, she spent quite some time walking.
The palace was excessively large, with small warp gate portals installed throughout for quick travel. However, she avoided using them to ensure there was no trace of her movements.
Cold sweat trickled down her forehead.
She was already exhausted, and forcing herself to move around in heels made her feel as though she might collapse at any moment.
At last, she arrived at her destination… a mysterious place located in the most secluded corner of the palace.
Following a secret passage accessible only through a warp hole gate, she walked a little further until she came upon a small room.
Contrary to her expectations of a dark and gloomy atmosphere, the interior was designed in a classic Gothic style which exuded elegance.
Inside, two figures were seated: a middle-aged man and an elderly woman.
The man was Margrave Drak, and the elderly woman…
"You've come, child of flame."
"…I greet the brightest flame," Hong Bi-Yeon said as she immediately bowed her head.
The elderly woman's identity was none other than Hong Li-On, a mage affiliated with the Elder Council of Flame.
Hong Bi-Yeon hadn't expected a member of the Flame Elders to be here, and the realization left her momentarily flustered.
Margrave Drak seemed equally caught off guard and his face revealed clear surprise. It appeared he, too, had not anticipated Hong Li-On's presence.
"Why has the Elder come…?"
"Am I not even allowed to meet a child I've taken an interest in ahead of time? Adolevit truly grows bleak these days."
"That's not what I meant…"
Even Margrave Drak, a man of considerable authority, was reduced to stammering in front of Hong Li-On. She smiled with the relaxed air of an elder and pointed to a chair.
"Sit down, child."
"Yes."
Stay calm.
Hong Li-On was one of the senior-most members of the Flame Elders. The fact that she had personally come to see Hong Bi-Yeon was significant.
That meant Hong Bi-Yeon needed to demonstrate a demeanor befitting someone destined for the throne.
"Do you know why I sought you out?"
"…To support me?"
"Haha, yes. That's the main reason. The Elder Council is often divided in its opinions, each member eager to place the child they've chosen on the throne."
"I see…"
Of course, not all the elders were like that. Some reportedly didn't care at all about what happened in the mortal world.
"I feel the same way. I've grown tired of Hong Se-Ryu. If Hong Si-Hwa, who's the spitting image of her, takes the throne, even worse things will happen than we see now."
Hong Bi-Yeon didn't respond to that. She was cautious, unsure of what to say, so she kept her mouth shut.
"So, are you not curious about how I plan to support you?"
"I am curious, but I thought it would be impolite to ask."
"Haha, there is no need to worry about politeness. Besides, the way I support you will involve something only you can do."
"…May I ask what that means?"
"It's exactly as I said. I will give you a task that only you can accomplish, and through that, I will lend you my support."
'Something only I can do…'
As Hong Bi-Yeon's eyes began to glow a faint red, Hong Li-On stopped dragging things out and spoke plainly.
"Child, I hear you are quite close to a descendant of the Morph family."
Thump! Her heart nearly stopped.
Most of Adolevit despised the Morph family.
If this were a reprimand for her association with them or a command to sever all ties, Hong Bi-Yeon had no intention of complying.
Thankfully, that wasn't the case.
"It's fortuitous that you're close to that child. I intend to reveal the truth about what Princess Hong Si-Hwa did ten years ago."
At that shocking statement, Hong Bi-Yeon's eyes widened.
"Yes, that boy Baek Yu-Seol caused quite a stir at the ball, didn't he? There was plenty of flame but no oil to stoke it… until he came along and skillfully poured the oil himself. Thanks to him, everything will be much easier."
Hong Bi-Yeon gulped hard and nodded. The old woman's crimson eyes gleamed as she spoke her next words.
"You will kill your sister with your own hands."