Synopsis and Starting Chapter Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82
Chapter 83
Chapter 84
Chapter 85
Chapter 86
Chapter 87
Chapter 88
Chapter 89
Chapter 90 - Light And Shadow>
Chapter 91
Chapter 92
Chapter 93
Chapter 94
Chapter 95
Chapter 96
Chapter 97
Chapter 98
Chapter 99
Chapter 100
Chapter 101
Chapter 102
Chapter 103
Chapter 104
Chapter 105
Chapter 106
Chapter 107
Chapter 108
Chapter 109
Chapter 110
Chapter 111
Chapter 112 - The Morning Comes>
Chapter 113
Chapter 114
Chapter 115
Chapter 116
Chapter 117
Chapter 118 - After The Storm
Chapter 119
Chapter 120
Chapter 121
Chapter 122
Chapter 123
Chapter 124
Chapter 125
Chapter 126
Chapter 127
Chapter 128
Chapter 129
Chapter 130
Chapter 131
Chapter 132 -
Chapter 133
Chapter 134 - Epilogue 1.3
Chapter 135 - Epilogue 2.1: Traces Of Life
Chapter 136
Chapter 137 - Epilogue 2.3
Chapter 138
Chapter 139
Chapter 140
Chapter 141 - Epilogue 4.1: Ever After>
Chapter 142 - Epilogue 4.2
Chapter 143 - Epilogue 4.3
Chapter 144 - Epilogue 5.1>
Chapter 145 - Epilogue 5.2
Chapter 146 - The Most Romantic Weekend>
Chapter 147 - Short Stories 1.2
Chapter 148 -
Chapter 149 -
Chapter 150 -
Chapter 151 -
Chapter 152 -
Chapter 153 -
Chapter 154 - Short Stories 3.1: Unexpected Things Happen>
Chapter 155 - Short Stories 3.2>
Chapter 156 -
Chapter 157 -
Chapter 158 -
Chapter 159 -
Chapter 160 -
Chapter 161 - Short Stories 5.1: The Man Behind The Mask>
Chapter 162
Chapter 163
Chapter 164 -
Chapter 165 -
Chapter 166
Chapter 167 - Short Stories 6.2
Chapter 168 - Short Stories 6.3
Chapter 169
Chapter 170
Chapter 171
Chapter 172
Chapter 173
Chapter 174
Chapter 175
Chapter 176
Chapter 177
Chapter 178
Chapter 179
Chapter 180
Chapter 181
Chapter 182
Chapter 183
Chapter 184
Chapter 185
Chapter 186
Chapter 187
Chapter 188
Chapter 189 (End)
Categories Genre: All, Completed, Fantasy Status: Completed ______
Total Chapters in book: 189
Estimated words: 290059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1450(@200wpm)___ 1160(@250wpm)___ 967(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 290059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1450(@200wpm)___ 1160(@250wpm)___ 967(@300wpm)
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LIST OF LAST 10 CHAPTERS:
Page No. 189 Page No. 188 Page No. 187 Page No. 186 Page No. 185 Page No. 184 Page No. 183 Page No. 182 Page No. 181 Page No. 180 Page No. 179 Chapter 110
Chapter 110:
I was dragged to a bedroom in the dowager empress’ wing.
She said I was to be executed at sunrise tomorrow.
I looked outside the window. It was just about to get dark, so there was still a little bit of time.
Knowing her, I expected the dowager empress to execute me in public. My death would make a great example for all the noblemen to show what would happen if they went against her.
She would say something like…
“Those who don’t follow me will face the same fate as the emperor’s wife!”
I didn’t plan on waiting for my death like a good prisoner. I wasn’t a docile little girl. I never was.
I would survive this!
I didn’t want to die!
Then there was Lucretius.
I refused to believe he was dead. I couldn’t help being worried, but I had to be strong.
However, just because I believed he was still alive didn’t mean I would wait for him to rescue me. I wasn’t some fragile princess trapped in a tower waiting for her prince.
My belief that Lucretius was still alive was based on logic. It appeared that this rebellion was cooked up rather hastily. This meant the dowager empress probably didn’t have enough time to gather up significant military force. The emperor was very well protected with layers of guards, so my guess was the attack on Lucretius was more of a distraction than an actual attempt to kill him.
She successfully accomplished her goal. She would take over the Senate and capture me. She also got the royal seal.
A majority of the royal guards seemed like they were still loyal to Lucretius, which meant the few men the dowager empress had were not enough to cover the entire castle.
The only reason why the loyal royal guards couldn’t do anything against her at this point was that the dowager empress had me, the chancellor, and the Senate members as hostages. On top of that, the chief of royal guards was also murdered and, therefore, the guards had no one to lead them.
I was well watched by the dowager empress’ maids and servants. They were big women, and they clearly wouldn’t sleep tonight.
I tried to think of a way to escape. Should I insist on going to the washroom by myself? Should I pretend to get sick?
Either way, I didn’t think they would listen to me.
If I didn’t escape before sunrise, I would be dragged out and executed.
Think, Bina, think!
Just then, I saw the fireplace. I estimated its distance from where I was sitting. I also noted the ring with a large pearl on my finger.
I grabbed my stomach and collapsed onto the floor. I was tied to the chair, so the chair fell with me as well. I flailed around to get closer to the fireplace.
“Oh! Arrrh! My, my stomach!”
The maids and the servants came to me quickly.
“Stomach?”
“Maybe she is lying.”
They were right, and I knew they would suspect it. However, I had to try.
I moaned as if in pain. “Oh, my… my baby…!”
As I continued to lay on the floor, the women seemed confused.
“W, what do we do? Is she really pregnant?”
“We should ask the principle maid in waiting…!”
“But she is a prisoner anyway! She will be executed tomorrow, so what’s the point?!”
“But we should still inform her…!”
I hadn’t realized I was such a talented actress. I continued to whimper.
“Aaaaa! D, doctor…! Please get me a doctor…”
Suddenly, I quieted and pretended to faint. The servants checked me and hesitantly untied me. They seemed to want to help me get more comfortable.
The reason why the dowager empress didn’t kill me right away was that she knew she could use me. We still didn’t know Lucretius’ whereabouts and if he did come back alive, I would make an excellent hostage.
Thus the fact that she decided my execution to take place tomorrow morning must have meant she would know the result of the battle by then. If things didn’t go according to her plan, she would probably delay my execution. This meant if I, a possible useful hostage, died tonight, it would be a huge problem for her.
The maids and the servants responsible for me looked disordered, which was what I wanted.
It worked. I was very close to the fireplace. Everyone else was also near it. This was perfect.
I quickly took out the black pearl from the ring and threw it into the fire. I then covered my nose and mouth.
Boom!
It wasn’t a loud sound, but the small explosion created an incredible amount of smoke, which caused brief sleepiness.
“Huh?”
“What is happening?”
“Ahhh!”
“This…!”
The woman seemed confused but quickly lost consciousness after breathing in the smoke. They collapsed onto the floor. I quickly moved away while still holding my breath. As the room was filled with the sleep smoke, I calmly took out a round pill form another ring on my right finger and swallowed it. It tasted bitter but it was necessary as it was the antidote for the smoke.
These two rings were from Lowson. If I survived this situation, I would have to thank him.
I went back to the servants and took off one woman’s clothes. I wore it myself and hid my hair with the servant’s headband. Thankfully, the winter outfit covered me very well. As long as I kept my face down, I wasn’t recognizable.
After taking a deep breath, I opened the door and left the room.
***
The guards standing in front of the door looked at me questioningly. I made sure to close the door quickly so they couldn’t see the smoke coming from the inner area. All of them seemed oblivious except for one.
“What was that noise?”
“…”
I could feel the cold sweat. They must have heard the noise when I fell onto the floor. I came up with something quick and said in a low voice.
“Her highness made a scene, so we had to grab her down.”
“And how is everything now?”
“We tied her down tighter so it should be fine.”
The guards seemed to accept my answer. They didn’t open the door to confirm my story. Perhaps it was because this was the dowager empress’ personal bedroom. Without her permission, a man other than her husband or family members couldn’t enter.
The same guard suddenly asked me, “Where do you think you are going?”
I thought quickly and answered, “While we were grabbing her highness, a few of the maids got hurt, so I was sent to get some medicine.”
“Alright.”
The guards nodded and waved me on.
“Go then.”
“Yes, sir.”
I lowered my head like a good servant and walked away quickly. Where should I go? I didn’t know where the dowager empress’ royal guards were located. I tried to make an educated guess.
Just then, a familiar voice asked me from behind, “Where do you think you are going?”
Unpleasant grating voice. I felt my heart falling to the floor.
The dowager empress. It was her.
Why was she here? She should have been busy planning her plot and taking care of the castle, shouldn’t’ she?
When I hesitated, the footsteps approached me fast. I tried to run, but it was too late. She was very quick.
She pulled my headband off. My black hair flew out uncontrollably. I bit my lips and raised my head.
The dowager empress looked at me in satisfaction.
She looked impressed. “Not bad.”
She raised her voice and ordered, “Get her!”
Rough hands grabbed me.
“[Dammit!]”
Total Chapters in book: 189
Estimated words: 290059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1450(@200wpm)___ 1160(@250wpm)___ 967(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 290059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1450(@200wpm)___ 1160(@250wpm)___ 967(@300wpm)
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