The imperial garden used to be full of beauty and splendor, but there was an eerie silence across its paved courtyards and gently babbling fountain that night, for it had turned into a graveyard of the unburied.

Countless corpses lay among the buttercups and forget-me-nots; their clothes torn and burnt, weapons strewn just out of reach.

As I stood motionless on one of the Imperial Palace's watchtowers, my eyes rested on the harrowing sight before me, not unblinking but slowed.

There was no such thing as a beautiful body when death has claimed its soul; no such thing as a romantic corpse.

Death was death.

The flesh would rot, bones would follow, and hair would mat into the soil.

It never discriminated.

I tilted my head skyward. The sun had already started to set, and the flames that engulfed the imperial castle front gates added color to the sunset as if God himself had splattered rainbow embers upon the evening sky. It burnt like hell, blazing red and bold.

I took a deep breath as I slowly lowered the bow in my hand.

I always kept my appearance elegant; it was how I was raised-but these past few days, I had no time to sleep let alone arrange my hair. Now it was a black, tangled mess, whipping in the wind that howled around me.

My already pale skin became even paler due to lack of sleep, and instead of the beautiful dresses I was accustomed to wearing, I was dressed in combat attire from head to toe.

My hands, which used to be white and unblemished, were now bloodied and callused after I used the bow non-stop for a few days, but I couldn't even feel the pain. It was as if I had turned numb.

As I took a step closer to the railing, a sudden pain seared through my heart, and I flung my hand against my chest with a gasp.

It's finally over...

I closed my eyes as the memories of these past few days filled my head.

It all started in the afternoon when my husband, Emperor Arsenio Arcturus, left to accompany his mistress to Duke Aragon's residence.

I had heard in passing a few days prior that Lady Phoebe had begged the emperor to go with her until he finally relented.

I had barely paid attention and just continued to drown myself in paperwork as usual. It wasn't long before I, who worked tirelessly to take care of the empire, suddenly collapsed.

As soon as I opened my eyes, the royal physician told me that I had miscarried due to stress and exhaustion.

I, who hadn't even known that I was pregnant, was in great shock.

But I didn't even have time to process all that, let alone mourn, for more bad news came. It was as if misfortune kept coming one after another and the whole world had turned its back on me.

Landon, the usually calm and polite royal advisor, had suddenly come rushing into the empress' bedroom and told me that the emperor had been captured by Duke Aragon. To make matters worse, the duke's army was now marching for the Imperial Palace.

Lady Phoebe must have betrayed the emperor, and it seemed like my hunch turned out right after all.

I had warned my husband before to not trust Lady Phoebe too much because I had a suspicious feeling about her. But it seemed like his love for her was much greater than I thought.

And now that everything had already come to this, I was the only one left behind to clean up the mess.

I couldn't stay still and just let the duke take over the Imperial Palace, so I had instructed all the guards and palace workers to close down the gate, block the entrance and prepare themselves to defend the castle.

Since the emperor wasn't around, I, who currently held the highest position in the palace, had no choice but to lead the battle myself.

The worst thing was the fact that most of the Imperial Knights under the emperor's direct command weren't even present to protect the palace. They had been sent just a few days prior to resolve a sudden conflict with the barbarians occupying the southern border of the empire.

Duke Aragon took advantage of their absence to start his rebellion, and now they were marching through the palace gates.

Even though I was from a military family, my education had been focused on my empress duties; so of course I was not an expert in combat or battle strategy. I only learned to shoot a bow and throw a dagger as a hobby and for basic self-defense when I was younger, and I had a passable skill at best.

Still, the only thing I could do at this moment was take out a weapon and fight alongside the imperial guards. At the very least, it would boost their morale.

But we had already spent the last few days in a meaningless struggle. In the end, I still couldn't defeat the duke's enormous army and his expertise in strategy. It was only a matter of time now before he reached the Central Palace.

"Your Majesty, please run away!" cried Elizabeth, one of my most loyal ladies-in-waiting. "Our last defense just collapsed. If you don't go now, it'll be too late."

"Yes, Your Majesty," added Mary, another lady-in-waiting, almost begging. "Please go through the secret passage now. We'll hold the rebels as long as possible to buy you some time, so please go now."

Hearing their cries, I just shook my head and smiled.

A moment of silence passed before I turned and faced all the remaining soldiers and palace workers.

I took the time to study their faces and made eye contact with them one by one. Then I opened my mouth, "Thank you for staying with me during this battle. It's a great honor to fight alongside all of you. I'll never forget your great service," I spoke. "But now, I release you all from your service. Those who want to go can go, and those who want to stay can stay. I'll never put it against anyone."

I waited for a few seconds as I scanned the crowd, but surprisingly nobody moved.

"Our empress is still here, so how can we leave by ourselves?" Landon remarked.

"We will not leave," Nathan, the captain of the imperial guard, added. "We'll live and die with our empress."

"Yes!" The rest of the people agreed in unison.

"Where else will we be, if it's not by Her Majesty's side?" Eli said.

Ah, have I been a great empress? Did I do well all this time to receive such loyalty from them? I just—

My heart clenched painfully as I looked at them. I was so touched that I almost burst into tears. But I couldn't afford to cry. Not now. So I raised my head and steeled my voice, "Can you help me dress?"

"Of course, Your Majesty," Eli and Mary answered in unison.

I went to my dressing room and my ladies-in-waiting assisted me out of my messy clothes, wiped the dirt off my body, and helped me put on a new dress that matched the color of my eyes.

It was a flattering dark emerald dress embroidered with gold thread and adorned with various gemstones; a stark contrast to the battle gear I had worn for days.

As I looked at my reflection in the mirror, a painting hanging on the wall behind me caught my eye. It was the emperor and I, wearing official attire and standing side by side.

A nostalgic memory came rushing by.

Arsenio...

I still remember clearly the day I first saw him.

I thought fairies had weaved flame into silk to create his dazzling scarlet hair. And those ruby-like eyes. It was the day I found a new color to call my favorite. Arsenio Arcturus, who shone so bright when he stood tall with pride.

I remembered how I tried to look away, but I couldn't. He had the kind of presence that made people want to keep their eyes glued to him, even if it would blind them.

I hope you're safe.

I put my hands together and started praying for my husband's safety. I hadn't heard any news about him since he was held captive and that was already three, or was it four days ago? I've since lost track of time.

Does he think about me too?

I smiled bitterly at my useless desire.

From the beginning, our relationship was a political marriage, so I expected something like this to happen at some point.

Still, it wasn't entirely his fault. I was the one who foolishly fell in love and got hurt by myself.

The one who loves more hurts more.

He probably would never know, and I would never tell him either because of my pride.

Yes, it was sad. I guess unreciprocated love was like loving a rose. You could care for it, admire it, appreciate it—but it would never, ever love you back. There was no exaggeration in the comparison because if there was more chance of reciprocity than in the love of an inanimate object, it should not be called one-sided.

So what day is today? Isn't it the day I should give up on this unfortunate one-sided love I kept for years?

Oh, how pathetic.

I chuckled darkly at my own thoughts as Mary brushed my long, black hair and finished off by putting the crown on top of my head.

***

My ladies-in-waiting pushed open the door to the throne room.

I took a deep breath and walked in with my chin held high; my steps slow and deliberate as I headed toward the smaller throne next to the emperor's.

It was a throne made of gold and decorated with diamond and ruby, my favorite gemstone. A throne for the empress of Graniel.

"Your Majesty..." Elizabeth seemed like she wanted to say more, but after seeing my solemn face, she put her head down and didn't continue.

She's worried about me.

I smiled and patted her hand reassuringly.

"It's okay, Eli."

She wanted me to escape, but I couldn't do that.

No, I didn't want to do that.

It was selfish of me, but I couldn't let that greedy bastard take Arsen's place without a fight. This was the least I could do to protect my husband's dignity and honor.

I am the empress of Graniel, I thought to myself as I lowered myself on my throne; keeping my posture straight and poise, eyes unwavering.

It's my responsibility to watch the end of this empire. Even if it's to be destroyed, I will not run away. I will stay here and look at every bit of it until my last moment, like a true empress.

***
Author's Note :

Hello everyone and welcome to my new fantasy romance novel. This is not my first fantasy romance book, but this is the first time I have written an angst story. Well, I've been wanting to step out of my comfort zone and try my hands at writing this kind of story for a while now, especially after my long hiatus from Wattpad, so here I am...

Before we start, let me make it clear that this story is going to be heavy, but of course, it won't be heavy all the time so don't worry too much.

Though my original cover might attract manhwa fans, I think this story would appeal more to those experienced readers in this genre who are sick of the repetitive tropes and characters and would appreciate something with more substance. The reason I'm saying this is so you won't have any expectation from the start that this story would be filled with perfect character, the MC who's so awesome that she blinds everyone; those wish-fulfilments, self-inserts, happily-ever-after type of stories, etc, etc. So, if that's what you're looking for, you're in the wrong place, my friend. Because my aim with this story is all about being realistic, raw, and relatable.

Last but not least, thank you for reading. Vote and comment would be very much appreciated.

P.S. This is the newly edited version of the chapter.