Chapter 2

'NoI didn't want to get out of boredom in this way.'

I blankly looked down at my bodymy corpse, to be exact. My ivory dress was smeared with blood. An arrow stuck in the middle of my chest.

According to the Achaia servants, Kwanach and I were separated after the wedding. Kwanach led the procession at the fore, and I, the bride, was alone in the carriage. Then it wasn't long before when suddenly, there was a sound of something sharp tearing the air. I didn't have time to avoid it. I felt a sharp pain in my chest. The next thing I knew, I found myself in this situation after I woke up.

'Am I dead?'

How could I be so unlucky? A bride who was assassinated on her wedding day? What will happen to the peace of my country that was gained through the marriage alliance?

Prior to my death, I was worried about it. A chilling sense of anxiety flowed through my intangible soul.

A few days have passed since I died.

'Strange.'

I still haven't gotten out of the place where l was assassinated.

'If I'm a ghost, shouldn't I be able to go everywhere even through walls?'

I was chained to a beautiful birch tree near where I died. Fortunately, my power to communicate with plants remained. Even when I died, my ability did not disappear. Plants were the only ones I could talk to now that I was dead.

'Have you heard anything nearby?'

I climbed up the birch tree around me and talked in my mind. Plants talk to each other. Root to root. Even if the trees were far apart, they shared their memories. Sometimes seeds from far away flew in to tell stories of foreign countries. Even if I was confined to the place where I died, I was able to grasp the situation around me. The birch responded with concern.

War. The war was caused by my death. Shortly after I was assassinated, Kwanach recovered my body and returned to the empire. And immediately, he declared war on our kingdom. His message was this.

[The Empress was assassinated within the border of Achaia.]

We were husband and wife for half a day, and Kwanach called me Empress.

[I believed in the effectiveness of the alliance and led only a minimum of escorts, but Achaia deceived my trust. I know there were quite a few people in the kingdom opposed to this alliance. Was this the act of a person who has a grudge because he thinks it is a humiliating alliance? It looks like a despicable northerner vented his resentment against the innocent Empress.]

Kwanach insisted that the force that assassinated me would be in the kingdom of Achaia, my homeland. It wasn't clear yet who was the real culprit who killed me. The assassins disappeared quickly using the rugged terrain of the north.

[The alliance is broken. The price of this betrayal will be paid with blood.]

Kwanach had initially threatened to invade my country immediately if I did not become his bride. Therefore, it's natural that my death led to war. My brother Diaquit denied the accusations to the end, and he held Kwanach responsible for my death. The assassin who targeted Kwanach killed me alone.

The cause of the attack seemed insignificant. No one seemed to have any intention of exposing my death. Not even a proper funeral was held. No one mourned my death. My death was only used as a fuse for war.

Thus, the marriage alliance was broken in vain, and the imperial army advanced to the North.

However, the North was not silent. My brother Diaquit, who had lost his sister so tragically, made active use of good stories to elicit sympathy and empathy.

The North formed an alliance army and began to confront the undefeated imperial army. That's what I've heard from trees so far. The birch tree spoke of the latest situation with a concerned voice.

Kwanach?