As the winter bird’s cry chirped, Grace opened her eyes to a familiar face softening at her gaze.

How long had this man been watching her? He immediately kissed her forehead and asked in a deep voice.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Uung…”

Grace pretended to be sleepy and rubbed her eyes to blur her vision.

Winston, offered a morning greeting without a hint of sarcasm. Winston, sharing his bed. Winston, lending his arm as a pillow through the night. Winston, waking her with a kiss…

Even though she made it that way, Leon Winston, the affectionate lover, still felt alien to her. So, she didn’t linger in bed but got up quickly, and the day proceeded as usual.

The two had breakfast, sitting by the window after a brief wash.

“Eat this too.”

Perhaps thinking the previous night had been strenuous, he told her to eat more than usual.

Grace ate mechanically while lost in thought. Once breakfast was over, the man would head off to work. He recently went to work at the headquarters.

After his departure, she would be left in the silent annex with only the mute maid for company. She was permitted to walk in the annex’s backyard once, either in the morning or the afternoon, under the maid’s watchful eye.

Then, she’d be confined to her bedroom until the man’s return.

An utterly dull routine, hardly an improvement from being locked in the torture chamber.

“If you want, you can visit the properties in Winsford yourself.”

After breakfast, the man placed the penthouse catalog in front of Grace and vanished into the dressing room.

Only when she was left alone did Grace’s smile fade.

I never wanted this. I don’t want this man.

Her gaze, which was drifting over the luxurious penthouse photos, began to waver. Then, as her eyes landed on the extravagant ring on her left ring finger, she clenched her eyes shut.

Don’t forget. Your goal is to overthrow the corrupt monarchy, ensuring everyone enjoys a more equal and fair world. You’re not alive to become an accomplice of the royal pigs.

She squinted her eyes and looked down at her body. She had endured so much without bending her will.

Don’t be swayed by something like this. Grace, you’re not a snob.

Think of Jimmy.

As the weight of the ring from another man pressed on her ring finger, Grace thought of her fiancé. She didn’t believe Winston’s claim that Jimmy had ordered her suicide. No, even if it were true, she was sure Jimmy had his own unavoidable circumstances.

‘Maybe he tried to save me but couldn’t…’

That must have been it, things she didn’t know because she was trapped in the annex’s basement. After all, Jimmy was the leader of the revolutionary army. Leaders sometimes have to make painfully tough decisions. It must have been a decision he made with a heavy heart.

So, when she returned alive, he would be happy.

Grace and Jimmy shared a camaraderie that transcended romantic love. So, even if she carried another man’s child, it was a consequence of trying to protect her comrades, he wouldn’t abandon her.

She clenched her eyes shut.

‘For the cause of making everyone’s lives equal and prosperous…’

The same phrase repeated in her head like a prayer.

The man who was fastening his cuffs caught sight of Grace in the mirror and raised an eyebrow. He gave a silent question to her, but she didn’t respond and stepped inside.

Opening the wardrobe, she picked a black tie from the tie rack. The man reached out his hand for it, but she didn’t hand it over. Instead, she stepped up on her toes and wrapped it around his neck, causing him to steady her as she wobbled.

“Do you know how to tie it?”

“No.”

At the same time, there was a burst of laughter. He layered his hand over Grace’s on the tie and suggested.

“Let me teach you.”

On the day of his engagement, he had simply instructed her to tie a bowtie, chiding her for not knowing how. But today, he was a different person. He patiently guided her through the steps.

“Now loop it around once… No, not that way, this way.”

He laughed even when she made mistakes. He was seemingly enjoying the moment of wasting precious time for work on her fumbling attempts.

Even when…

“Ah, I think I tied it wrong… Let’s do it again. Ah, no, maybe you should just redo it.”

“It’s fine. I like it this way.”

He was content with a crooked knot. The man, who always insisted on the perfect symmetry of the knot, the length of the short and long ends precisely aligned, was now content with such a silly appearance.

“Men become fools when they fall in love.”

Yes, mother, you were right.

Grace followed the man, clad in a black coat over his officer’s jacket, and absentmindedly headed out.

As they reached the bedroom door, he turned around.

She lifted his cap slightly and tilted his head as if asking for a kiss. The moment she made an unexpected move, his lazily closed eyes snapped open. She tugged at the tie, overlapping her lips with his first, making the crooked tie even more skewed.

“You seem in a particularly good mood today.”

As their lips parted, the man narrowed his eyes and tilted his head slightly.

“Of course, aren’t you happy?”

Grace tucked the protruding necktie into his jacket and tilted her hand to ensure the ring was prominently displayed.

“When will you show me the penthouse?”

“If you’re not too tired, how about this evening?”

She suppressed the urge to smile at his unexpectedly bold proposal.

“Not tired at all. How about dinner while we’re out? Or would that be too much with people around?”

“Whatever you want.”

The man pressed his lips to her forehead as he smiled warmly and asked,

“How about that cruise from last time?”

“Sounds good. This time, I’ll make sure your four hours feel like eight hours, so brace yourself.”

The man burst into laughter.

It was a genuinely happy smile on his face. He admonished her to wear warm clothes when going out for a walk, then finally headed to the corridor.

“Leon.”

At her impulsive call, he stopped at the staircase and turned back to her.

“Are you happy?”

Instead of replying, he just smiled, and Grace returned the same smile. However, as soon as the man disappeared down the stairs, her smile vanished.

This happiness will become the seed of your misfortune.

An unexpected opportunity had arisen.

He was taking her out. Imagining various escape scenarios, Grace’s thoughts were interrupted as the maid returned from the dressing room with an armful of clothes.

“Ah, is it time for a walk already?”

On this particularly cold day, the maid dressed her in a sweater, thick socks, and then a brown coat. Despite her growing belly and layers of clothing, the man’s coat was still too large. Moreover, the maid wrapped a thick scarf around her neck. Indoors, sweat began to form.

As Grace removed the ring to put on her gloves, the maid stubbornly put it back on her finger. Despite the man’s insistence to always wear it, why should she keep it on even for a brief walk?

The maid was relentless.

The gloves were too thick for the ring to fit on her ring finger, so it was placed on her pinky instead, and the maid led her by the hand.

As they descended the staircase, Grace hesitated.

With every step, something heavy rattled in the coat pocket. She reached into the pocket and felt it. A few banknotes, some coins, and then…

‘…A gun?’

The hard, cold sensation in her hand, the weight and shape, no doubt it was a gun.

There was no need to wait until the evening.

As she quickly assessed the situation, Grace stopped the maid heading towards the back door as soon as they reached the ground floor.

“No, we’ll go through the main entrance today.”

The maid was about to shake her head and say no, but at the sight of the black gun, she readily complied with her instructions.

Grace, with the maid as her hostage, approached the iron gate of the annex. As the two guards outside heard her footsteps and turned around, she deliberately revealed the gun and demanded,

“Open it.”

The bewilderment on the men’s faces was almost funny.

“Now.”

However, these men were not fools and were well-trained not to open the gate hastily.

Ah, of course.

The life these guards were sworn to protect was not that of the maid but Grace’s. She needed to make it inevitable for them to open the gate.

“If you don’t open it, I’ll shoot.”

Grace released the maid and turned the gun on herself. It was then that the guards, pale as ghosts, hurriedly opened the gate.

How funny.

Holding the gun to her own chin, nobody tried to stop her as she exited.

Truly funny.

While crossing the mansion’s garden, Grace suppressed the urge to laugh loudly enough for the entire mansion to hear. It didn’t take long to escape the detestable mansion through the back gate.

And so, she fled.

Her receding figure, vanishing beyond the wall, was observed through a pair of binoculars by a pair of icy blue eyes.

__