1 Waking up

It had been exactly one week the since the poising of the beloved Princess Athena.In those few days, a soul which had once died was brought back.

"Esther? Esther wake up."

Bright rays of sunlight shone brightly, her eyes which had been closed tightly fluttered open upon hearing the voice.

'Brother?'

"Esther,your finally awake You've been unconscious for an entire week."

Athena wanted to speak but her throat was scorched due to not be able to drink water for so long.As her blurry vision became clear she realized it was Prince Aspen The II.The man who sent her to her death, her elder brother.

"Leave the room, I wish to to speak with the Princess alone".

Doing a small curtsy the Princess lady-in-waiting's and the doctor left the room following her brother's command.

'This man.....is he even qualified to be called my brother anymore?'

It ha been exactly three days since she had realized her situation, although she had been unresponsive for a week she was able to hear everything around her.

In her first life she lived as the most beautiful princess who had everything she wanted in life, except the love of the Duke her first love, out of jealously her brother Aspen encouraged her to kill the women who the duke truly loved.In the end she was unable to do so, then her brother turned his back on her once he became emperor and married her off to a delusional man who tormented her every day.After trying to escape she gets caught again and eventually dies in his hands.

In her second life, she was born in the Republic Of Korea.In the beginning she didn't remember her first life and grew up as a normal modern girl.But after reading the novel 'Emerald Eyes' in that book Athena was portrayed as a foolish and selfish character.It was also how she regained her memories.

In truth almost all the characters were like that .All except the heroine Clara, were socially powerful but insane.

Aspen was mad with power and would do everything for it; Benjamin was a sociopath; and Donald- was he even human?

Among them Lukariah, the male lead seemed to be the most normal but he also had problems.

The original heroine, Clara, was a living stabilizer that filled the characters' deficiencies.

Athena was driven by her jealousy and tried to kill Clara.

But even though she was the villainess, Athena alone wasn't evil enough to actually kill her.

Rather, she was used like a puppet by her tyrannic younger brother. Aspen wanted to get control of Clara, so he controlled Athena to poison her.

It seemed to be successful.

But Grey, the powerful magician , gave Olivia his power and revived her.

That was the story of the novel 'Emerald Eyes'.

Afterwards, the story predictably punished the wicked characters.

However, she wasn't impressed by the narratives of the main characters.

Rather, she was drawn to the life of the villainess, Athena. The reason she was so concerned about her story, though, turned out to be because it was her previous life.

'To think that I was the villainess of the novel.'

For some reason, she had returned to 1st life. More than that, it was also when she was only 19 years old, before she came of age.

'I probably died, right?'

She only knew the person who stabbed her by his face.

She remembered that Kye, her boyfriend who had only used her for money cheated on her.After breaking up she sued him demanding her money he stole from her back.Angered he invited her to talk things out only to pull out a knife and stab her.

'That's already just a life gone by.'

She may have lost many things, but it had been a wretched life.

The woman had been competent. She was more than competent enough to be usable, and more than enough to pose a threat to others.

Her Agent Karim had coaxed her to follow his commands and controlled her. It was just like her 1st life.

'How did I return as Princess Athena?'

She had been abandoned by Aspen and married—sold—to Viscount Donald. Then, in the end, she was gruesomely murdered by her insane husband.

Suddenly, she realized why she was in this condition.

'This is when I drank the poison.'

Not too long ago, she was at a banquet when she drank some alcohol and began spitting up blood. The Grand Hall had echoed with screams and cries.

'Of all things…'

Why did she have to return to this time, when her body was still sick?

"Do you need some water?"

The Aspen who was stationed in the room approached her.

He wiped her face with a wet towel and arranged her hair, as if it was only natural to do so.

It was bizarre. She had nearly died, but the state of her beauty was still more important.

However, she only closed her eyes, having no power to stop the him, Athena lost herself in her thoughts.

Aspen was a terrible tyrant, a poor ruler, and as his younger sister, Athena matched him in her viciousness.

They were not born good in the first place.

He was cruel, impatient, and merciless. Athena's ruin was not knowing that he would be the same to her, too.

Aspen, her older brother.

'You never thought of me as family.'

Athena had been thoroughly abandoned.

"Please bring me a mirror." Aspen,who had been silently wiping her hands inwardly sneered, even now she only carried to be beautiful.

Nerveless he handed her a large mirror and placed it in front of her.

With her emerald eyes, she looked at herself in the mirror and brushed the cheek of her reflection.

'How terribly beautiful.'

The novel had repeatedly described Athena's beauty to the point of exhaustion.Even the title was about her eyes.

Looking at herself, though, she thought that this sort of beauty was almost a talent.

'But in the end, this beautiful form will only be used as the emperor's doll.'

This was the extent of Athena's current value.

Motionless, she glanced at her charcoal-colored hair in the mirror.

'Will things be all right if I don't live as a villainess in the future?'

No. She was still a princess of the Empire.As long as her children were viable successors to the throne, she would be subject to constant check for the rest of her life.

'Right now, I don't have any power.'

All she had was this terribly beautiful face.

She knew that its value was no better than a rare white tiger.

'Beauty is not true power.'

That was the reality that Aspen had taught her.

She had personally experienced how her power was merely a mirage, and it could be stripped from her any time he wished.

'I'm glad that I at least came back to a point before it was too late.'