I couldn't remember how many days had passed since Duke Aragon invaded the Imperial Palace and threw me into the underground prison.

The cell was a hollow cube of concrete with no windows and only one way in. The only source of light was a few magic stones that were scattered on the wall to help guards navigate the way. You would have no idea how much time had passed, or even if it was night or day. It was disorienting by design. Given enough time, a person could even forget their name.

Cough, cough!

I fell on the floor, my body shattering with every dry heave. The pain was intense; my muscles ached, all the bruises and cuts would barely heal before they tore them back open again—

I pushed the memories away, and the images of that disgusting face forcing itself closer. Not even a groan came out as I lay retching on the ground, but I wanted to spit out a scream from every part of my wounded and broken body.

I held on to my broken arm and exhaled heavily. If I didn't slow my breathing, the nausea was strong enough to block my airways and burst me into tears. My mouth was all worn out; I couldn't tell if I was tasting blood or if the iron-like smell was just prevalent everywhere.

I didn't even have the strength to lift a finger. Even then, I still haven't lost consciousness, and I had to live through every sting and spasm in my body.

The man who stood in front of me, on the other hand, was calm as if watching a bug on his floor. No—rather, he was dissatisfied because I still managed to give him a death glare even at this point.

"Are you still not going to change your mind?" the man asked me.

Duke Constantine Aragon. The late emperor's half-brother. Although technically he was Arsenio's uncle, he was only eight years older at thirty-one.

With beautiful silver hair and eyes the color of ruby, he was a man who looked like an angel in a painting hanging in a noble castle. Even in dim light, his majestic hair still shone as if the moonlight had slipped into every strand of it. And not only that, he also had broad shoulders, and a sharp nose and jawline.

Yet, behind his angel-like appearance, hid his rotten self.

I stared at his bright red eyes with hatred, wishing I could rip my nails through them. I really hated the fact he had the same eyes as Arsen's.

But unlike Arsenio's eyes that radiated warmth, his eyes disgusted me and made my skin crawl. It reminded me of the eyes of a serpent.

Duke Constantine Aragon was second in the line of succession to the throne and he had a pretty good standing, especially among young aristocrats.

I admitted that he was very good at hiding his fangs, but for some reason, I've always had a bad feeling about him. That was why I was not that surprised that he secretly coveted his nephew's place.

After I was captured, he offered me to be his mistress and even had the audacity to make it sound like he was being generous.

Of course, he didn't make the offer out of goodwill. He just wanted to use my position as the only legitimate daughter of Duke Berenice, the famous shield of the empire who protected the northern border from monsters for generations. And that was nothing compared to the power he would gain by having me on his side.

I didn't even have to think twice before I rejected his offer. Just the thought of being on the same side as that kind of man made me feel so dirty.

"I would rather die than become your mistress." I forced myself to utter the words, not wanting to show him that I was in terrible pain.

He raised his brow at my response.

"Too bad... I really like you." He smirked, his shadow casting over me and I had to fight the urge to cower. "I'm really jealous of my nephew."

"You bastard..." I gritted my teeth.

The visions of that first night he violated me and passed me around for his men filled me with renewed disgust and humiliation, and my body shuddered in response.

"See, I like this feisty personality," he said in an excited voice as if enjoying this exchange.

I really wanted to spit at him, but I didn't even have any energy for it.

"The proud empress of the Graniel Empire..." He trailed his words as if he was thinking of something very deeply, his eyes focusing on me. "Just the image of a woman who looks firm even when she's about to fall makes me want to own you even more. My foolish nephew was too blind to see it and instead went crazy over a docile woman like Phoebe."

"If Lady Phoebe heard that, she would be very sad," I scoffed despite the pain. "But then again, what do I expect from a heartless man like you?"

"Well, it's true, isn't it? If Phoebe's beauty is a doll that you want to see, then yours is a desire to conquer."

"You're truly disgusting."

"Is what I said wrong?" He reached out and caressed my right cheek with his long fingers. Though he dropped it a second later, I was so repulsed by him that just a slight touch sent chills down my spine.

This lunatic...

I took a deep breath, hoping to reduce the pain that I felt all over my body, but it was no use.

"I feel bad for Lady Phoebe," I said in a hoarse voice. "After all, she's only a foolish woman whom you used to fulfill your greedy desire."

Saying that didn't mean that I forgave her. It still made me angry whenever I thought about Lady Phoebe, who betrayed Arsenio when he sincerely loved her. But after learning the truth about how the duke groomed her to be the perfect doll for Arsen from his own mouth, I couldn't deny that she was also a victim of this bastard's scheme.

I should have noticed sooner... How stupid of me.

To be honest, I already got the feeling that something wasn't right ever since Lady Phoebe's first appearance. The fact that Duke Constantine suddenly introduced someone who formed every puzzle piece that fit the image of Arsen's ideal woman was too strange of a coincidence. It was like she was raised exactly to make Arsen fall in love at first sight.

But in hindsight, it was obvious his purpose was to use her as a honey-trap.

Duke Constantine had taken advantage of Lady Phoebe's feelings for him to manipulate her into doing everything he asked.

"You're really fun." He grinned wickedly. "You love Arsenio, don't you?"

I turned my face away and bit my lip until it bled to suppress the bitter feeling that suddenly crept inside me. I didn't want to fall for this guy's provocation.

"My poor empress. You suffered so much for a man who doesn't even love you."

"It was a political marriage to begin with, so my feelings have nothing to do with it. At least Arsenio knows how to treat people with respect. Unlike you."

"You're still defending him. What amazing loyalty." He smirked. "It makes me want to have you even more."

He took a step closer and grabbed my lower jaw. I tried to back away, but my weakened body betrayed me. I was so disgusted; I felt like a snake was crawling all over my body.

"Say, my dear, if you swear your loyalty to me, you don't have to be miserable anymore. You know what will happen to you if you don't obey me as the new emperor, right?" He said it in a soft voice, but I knew it was a threat.

If I didn't already know his true nature, I might have been tempted. After all, he had fooled many with his appearance alone. Just like monkshood—beautiful yet deadly. The most dangerous combination.

"Don't make me laugh. The title doesn't belong to you," I answered. "As long as I live, I'll protect Arsenio's throne from the likes of you."

Duke Constantine suddenly burst into laughter. For a second I thought he had finally gone mad, but for some reason, it made me nervous.

"I'm sorry for laughing," he said as he wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes. "It's just funny that you're trying so hard to protect the place of a dead man."

"What?" My eyes widened in an instant. "What do you mean?"

I thought my heart stopped beating for a second. The pain all over my body was forgotten as I plodded up and grabbed Constantine's sleeve.

"What do you mean by a dead man?" I screamed at him. "Don't lie to me!"

The force in my voice was so intense that Constantine raised his brow in amusement.

Instead of answering me, he gestured to one of his prison guards, and the man came bringing a sack in both hands. Blood dripped and soaked through its bottom, and I immediately got an ominous feeling.

As he got closer, the smell of rotting flesh assaulted my nose. The stench made me gag, my stomach churning with nausea, but I endured it.

Then he opened the sack and pulled something out. Something round with flaming red hair. My breath caught when I recognized what it was.

A head.

Arsen's head.

"Ack..." Something caught in my throat. It was hard to breathe as I stared at the hand holding Arsen's head.

I faltered. My chest throbbed deeper and deeper with every beat, and I clutched it with a stifled cry.

I couldn't hold myself properly, not only because of all the pain in my body, but also due to the darkness clouding my eyes.

As an empress, I always wore an attitude that exuded high self-esteem; constantly keeping a cold facade. Everyone knew I did not easily show weakness.

However, my heart couldn't care less anymore.

"If I knew this was how I could get a reaction from you, I would have done it sooner." Constantine clicked his tongue in annoyance. "You never cry nor beg for mercy, even when you were raped and tortured. But you turned into this as soon as you saw your husband's head."

My lips were dry, and my voice cracked when I asked, "...How is this possible?"

"Well, the emperor fought till the very end. He killed more than a hundred soldiers by himself. After all, he's a sword master." Constantine shrugged lightly as if he was telling an amusing story, not minding my horrified expression even a little bit. "But he put down his sword as soon as I threatened him with Phoebe's life. Apparently he was more concerned about her safety than his own well-being."

My breath was becoming increasingly ragged as I tried to focus on his words, but he kept pushing.

"You should've seen his expression when he was begging me for Phoebe's safety despite being tortured. It was very entertaining." He chuckled in delight. "So I cut off all his limbs, alive."

Why?

Why, Arsen?

How could you throw away your life for one woman? You're a goddamn emperor. Do you intend to put the nation in danger?

Phoebe, Phoebe, Phoebe... I'm so sick of it!

What about me?

Don't I deserve to be protected?

You should protect me, too!

"We hung his head at the castle entrance for a few days. I only took it down because I wanted to show it to you," he elaborated, but it only added to my misery.

"No. It can't be." I shouted; I couldn't control all my emotions any longer. Even as I watched the proof in front of my eyes, I still tried to deny the reality.

Arsen was the emperor of this country, so it didn't matter how crazy Duke Constantine was. He couldn't have killed Arsen without a fair trial.

My heart was pounding so fast that my ears began to hurt. I bit my lip to the point of bleeding.

"This is a lie," I constantly muttered. "No. It can't be!"

I constantly muttered those words while shaking my head.

"Oh, my dear Calypso," he said softly. "To be honest, I didn't expect you to put on such a fight. It's amazing. You're truly the daughter of Duke Berenice after all. It's too bad he couldn't save his son-in-law, but... he's in the middle of his own crisis with that monster wave in the North, so you mustn't blame him. They say it's the biggest wave yet."

I couldn't hear what he said anymore. My mind had gone blank the moment I saw Arsen's head.

"Ahh, my bad," he continued. "You must be in shock right now. I'll give you more time."

Constantine gestured for the man to come forward, and he threw Arsen's head in front of me as if it was nothing but trash.

"I'm not usually this generous, but since I like you, I'll let you think about my offer one last time. I'll come again later to hear your answer," he said before turning his back on me.

The guard made sure to lock my cell before following his master.

Only after I could no longer hear their footsteps did I slowly drag my body toward Arsen's head.

The smell of rotten flesh attacked my nose again. It had probably been under the hot sun for ages, but I didn't care.

"No."

I trembled and clasped my hands.

Please. Please. Please.

"No, no, no!"

The lights flickered across his face, and there was no mistaking that mole under his chin. It could only belong to Arsen.

"Empress, I'll be away for a while. When I'm away, I'll entrust the Imperial Palace to you. I know I can count on you."

Without a voice, I shouted with my whole body.

I felt keenly what it meant to break down in despair. My vision went dark and my breath stopped.

"Empress—no, Calypso..."

"No! No!"

"Please don't forget to take care of yourself while I'm away. I will come back soon."

His soft voice as he made his promise was ringing in my ear like a lie.

Why? Why?!

A huge wave of grief swept over me. I grasped my chest and knelt in front of Arsen's head. For the first time since I was thrown into this prison, tears spilled down from my eyes, and I gripped the hem of my messy skirt as I trembled.

I knew that crying wouldn't solve anything, but I also knew that there were times when crying could help. But never, never in my life had anything been resolved with tears.

Even when I clung to my mother and cried for her not to lock me in the dark punishment room whenever I made a mistake, or when I faced my indifferent father who never cared about my well-being. Even when my nanny, Emma, died of an illness. Or when I begged Arsen not to follow Lady Phoebe to the duke's castle.

Some people in the world were chosen to stimulate the compassion of others with tears, but I was not one of them. When I shed tears, it was only my pride that was being eroded.

I was not only the Empress of Graniel, but also the only daughter of the powerful Duke Berenice. I would never bow my head to anyone. It would be terrible for someone of my position to cry and show weakness.

So no matter what anyone did to me, I always desperately held back my tears. But now as I embraced Arsen's head with trembling hands, I lost all my reason. My whole world shattered and the tears I'd kept buried came flowing freely like a river.

"Aa, aaaa!"

My chest felt as if it was being pounded by someone from all sides. Every word that came out of my mouth was incomprehensible.

"That damn woman! Because of her... because of her, Arsen—"

Blaming Phoebe was useless, but I still needed something to release my anger and frustration. If I couldn't even do that, I would lose my mind.

If it wasn't for her... if it wasn't for her—

I didn't know how long I cried in that position. It was funny how hard I tried to hold back my tears all this time, but now it broke like a dam. I kept crying until I couldn't cry anymore.

All this time, I thought that there was still hope, so I had endured everything with all my might. I thought as long as I held on, Arsen would soon come to take back his place.

But Arsen was dead. Everything was pointless. What was I even trying so hard to protect anymore?

All that was left for me was despair. I sat leaning on the prison wall and staring blankly into nothingness.

I never knew I could feel so much sorrow. I felt so numb; like there was a big hole right where my heart should be. Empty; like nothing mattered. I was nothing, and my life was nothing.

All I wanted was to just close my eyes and sleep for a very very long time and possibly never wake up again.

***

Author's Note:

Hi, I'm finally back with the newly rewritten chapter. Just to let you guys know, my update schedule is on every Friday, at least until the Wattys period is over, so please bear with me and stay tuned.

Oh anyway, for those of you who have already read the original version, please tell me what you think about this new version. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Last but not least, whether you're my old reader or a new one, thank you for reading my story. Votes and comments would be very much appreciated.

The theme song for this chapter is: Human by Christina Perri