Day after day, a chaotic mess greets the Duke of House Roqueves. Piled of documents that the palace sent were still there. It has been like this since then, when the emperor can't directly mess with him, he will torture the Duke with this heavy building workload that the palace couldn't or don't want to handle.
His office had been drenched with pillars of papers in each side. Though that said, he was alone in this, he doubted it could kill him. Not only did they send countless paper work, this paper works are issues that can't be ignored. He always knew that the palace is filled of incompetent people, but this is too much.
He growled as he grabbed the papers from his table, scanning each problem one by one. Then he turned towards another, and towards another afterwards. The process continued until lunch, that even the butler was worried about his master's health.
The paperwork has always been sent to the house, but never been this countless before. Indeed they sent documents prior to any issues they don't want to handle, but they never sent countless of them at once. It is hard to say it but the emperor might be getting impatient.
After all, he suddenly pulled back his support on his majesty's project. Because of this sudden action, the emperor lost countless of his budget for this project. That is the reason the Duke has been overwhelmed with such weight of paperwork's.
"Your grace, please rest for a while, you haven't eaten in the morning," the butler utters as he bow his head down. 
The Duke whose seating in front silently looked at him. "The emperor's pressing me to finish this within a day, there's no need for a fuse, prepare a meal here instead."
The butler nodded. "Then, I shall be back, your grace."
Upon the disappearance of the butler in front of him. The Duke continues his duty when suddenly his eyes flash through a framed painting beside him. The framed painting was covered with red curtains that is why he couldn't see what was inside.
Though he couldn't see, he was aware of what was in the wall, covered in the curtain. He once covered it afraid of seeing his child faint upon remembrance of what happened before. However, he didn't need to hide her anymore.
He quietly stood up and he then pulled the red curtains out of the way. Then he put the curtain down, as he looked at the beautiful painting that appears on his eyes. 
Indeed, a beautiful painting that he couldn't help but to look at. It is an image that he couldn't even forget, he tightly grip his hand as he slowly touched the painting.
"It's been a long years already, my love," he spoke as he looked down.
That's right, the painting was an image of the dead duchess, the beloved lady of the house. Eris and Catholy's mother. A preserve painting of a beautiful duchess, holding a banquet of flowers and her husband beside her.
She was a beautiful woman, with such lavish magenta light pink hair, which reminds him of how Catholy took after her mother. She was a person who's smart, and lovable. Her hair completes no other in this empire, a long and glimmering light pink like any Sakura tree. However, her eyes glows differently—not like golden eyes—her eye was shimmering like a ruby, yet reddish like blood.
Amongst the unmatched woman of her age, she was peculiar and unique. That is why people called her the "Golden Leaf of the Albania Empire". Because of that, she became a candidate for the empress seat before. 
Even the emperor had taken a liking to her. That's when, Frine fell in love with the Duke of the south. She withdrew from her candidacy and left her family registry to marry the Duke. 
When the emperor found out about Frine's choice to marry the Duke. He becomes devastated and so, he's hatred against Roqueves has begun5556.
The duchess had been supporting the Duke since then, that is why he can handle the emperir“”erors pressure well. Yet when she is gone, it is as if he become numb to his feelings of pain and strength. 
Things could become different if Frine hadn't died. She was too stubborn to listen at her husband request, and didn't looked back. There was nothing he can do, but he wished everything was just different and she was alive to call his name.
Her dead was inevitable, and regrets are just a product of pain. 
『━━✣━━』
I was going to report early in the morning during our family breakfast but he didn't attend. The one who attended was a butler, stating that father is busy to come. Then I thought I should wait, so I let it passed by till lunch and he didn't come again.
I asked Eris what was going on, and he would say it was fine. He said, father gets busier when the palace sent all the paperworks in our resident. I suspect that the emperor is getting annoyed with father during one of the conference two months ago.
He must have interfered with the emperors plan again. The emperor is currently exploiting land from the far lands up north. It said that the land there was occupied by indigenous people, but the emperor was determined to claim them by waging conquest. 
That's because the said land had recently refused the delegations to cooperate with unification. They did not want to be part of this land called empire. The indigenous people saw this as an act of dishonesty and kicked out the delegations back to the empire.
When the emperor heard the report. He was outraged and he tried to convince the whole nobility in the conference. He was unlucky because father was there, and he interfered with his plans. 
Before I regressed, this issue was not subdued much. As well as it didn't cause more trouble than it is. The tribes that kicked out the delegations, asked the protection of a kingdom from the south which is not conquered by the church. 
It didn't take long for the emperor to give up. The church, however, they are opponents beyond my capability to handle. If much possible, I don't want them to notice the happenings in the empire. Those devotees to an old traditions are not just someone I want to mess with.
They are thick as wall, and even if I convince them. They will still hide their fangs and never revealed their intentions. The emperor is not the only opponent that will be challenging in the future, I am betting that the church will also commence to get in my way.
I shook my head as I walked passed the painting hallways. I wanted to meet father directly, that is why I am currently walking towards his office. When I catch up to the butler who was walking in front of me.
"Sir Venedict!" I said in a hurry as I walked beside him. The butler hearing his name looked at me.
"My lady, what are you doing here?" Asked Venedict as he slowly walked to keep up with my speed. 
"I was going to my father's office, I was worried because he didn't came to breakfast and lunch," I answered him and he quietly looked at me.
Now that I see him up front, I just barely notice the tray he was holding in his hand. It was a tray with light meal placed on it. The meal was barely touched, and I think it's a new one.
"I see my lady," he stopped as he looked at the thing I was looking and then he smiled. "The Duke was too busy and couldn't eat anything, so I came to give him a meal. If you want, my lady can give this to your father, since you are also going there."
Did he notice that I wanted to asked about the meal? If I remembered, Sir Venedict is a loyal butler of father before I regressed. Even when he's master is already dead, he remains and protected the duchy from the cruel emperor.
When I was locked in the palace, I once sent him letter, that must be the time the emperor had cornered me and asked me to die. I sent letter to the duchy and instructed them my final wish for the duchy. So even if the last descendant of the family is dead, they can operate without a master.
And asked them to flee when things gone wrong. 
Even then he simply smiled, and protected me since birth. I trust him fully, because he's loyalty shows me that the duchy can still operate without a master. 
I nodded at his suggestion and I slowly took over the tray. "Thank you," I said as I smiled and walked forward. The butler only give me a bow before I continued walking. 
When I reached through a door that was likely open, and I slowly took a peak. I soon sensed my father was standing, and he was looking at some kind of a painting. It was not clear to me, so I thought nothing and then I came inside as I put the tray down on the table. 
It must be because I was too noisy that my father slowly turned around. When I looked at him, I saw the painting he was observing and my eyes widened. 
"Holy?" 
I couldn't look back at my father as I was merely looking at the painting. It struck me with a cold pound inside my heart, as I slowly looked directly at her beautiful eyes. It brightens me with memories of the past, bringing ease into my heart.
The person in that painting, I only saw her in my memories because she's already dead. "It's mother," I mumbled. Her hair resembles mine, thought my eyes doesn't look like hers. I still remember her face, neither her resemblance to my hair. 
I have heard from my former nanny that other than one painting. Every resemblance of the duchess, my mother, all of her memories from her pictures and paintings had been removed from the entire residence. It was apparently an order from my father. 
That was probably a long time ago. 
"Holy!"
My silence might have frightened my father, that is why I was surprised when he was suddenly in front of me. I looked at him and I stiffly smiled. 
"Sorry," I said and I breathed out. "Don't worry, I am fine."
"I'm glad, I thought you'll faint again, I was worried," he said and I nodded.
The duchess, my mother's death is quite shocking news to all of us. It's not so easy to move on, because the person who gave me life was nowhere to be seen. Even before I regressed, though because of my experience in the residence, I still remembered my mother with sad anticipation. 
Now, I am not as traumatized as I did before. 
"I've grown a lot stronger father," I simply smiled as I looked at him. He looked at me, deeply worried that soon was confined. 
"Yes, indeed, you look more like your mother now, and I seem overly sensitive these days," he slowly went back to his seat as he sat on the chair. Thought father is already at the age of being old, he's still as young as he did when I was barely four.
If I remember correctly, he married my mother when he was twenty-one years old. My mother at that moment was younger than him by five years, because she just recently had her coming-of-age at the age of sixteen, that means she was seventeen when she married him.
I quietly turned away from the painting as I slowly took the initiative to seat on the empty sofa where I was looking at my father. He tilted his head as he continue looking up the papers on his table. 
"I am not one to judge a person, father, I am not a person who misjudges someone but his majesty's actions as of late are getting more excessive than before," I said as I was looking at him straight in the eye. 
He shifted and nodded. "Truly," then he said as he slowly put the documents down. "I speak not for his majesty, but he's a lot wary than before. He's been on a case where he wants to declare war over trivial things. I worry about the future of this empire."
"That... Is the reason I came directly to meet you today, father."
I have not told him about the success of my negotiation with her majesty. I swear my life upon the empire's ancestral being that I will cure the crown prince. It will be a trouble if the empire fall without a proper successor, the only way my plan to eliminate both the emperor and the Second Prince is by raising a loyal successor instead.
That is why I chose his highness the first prince. The original crown prince.