The shrine was quiet except for the soft crackling of incense.

Night had fully settled over the palace. Outside, the distant sounds of servants preparing for the upcoming wedding rituals drifted faintly through the cold wind.

But inside the shrine—

The world felt separated.

Still.

Sacred.

Heavy.

—

Princess Zhi sat lazily beside the Empress on the prayer cushions, absentmindedly stacking small carved wooden fortune blocks into a tower.

The Empress watched her for a moment before speaking softly,

"If the monks see you treating sacred items like toys, they’ll faint."

Princess Zhi sighed dramatically.

"Then they should stop leaving interesting things around me."

The Empress laughed quietly.

"You’re hopeless."

Princess Zhi grinned.

"At least you still laugh now."

That sentence made the Empress pause slightly.

Because not long ago—

She truly had forgotten how.

The shrine fell quiet again.

The candle flames danced softly between them.

Princess Zhi suddenly knocked over the wooden blocks with one finger and muttered,

"...Do you remember when we were punished?"

The Empress slowly looked at her.

Of course she remembered.

Princess Zhi had been confined to her courtyard.

And she herself—

Locked inside this shrine for days.

Cold stone floors.

Long prayers.

Loneliness.

Princess Zhi continued quietly,

"That time feels strange now when I think about it."

The Empress frowned slightly.

"What do you mean?"

Princess Zhi lowered her voice instinctively even though no one was nearby.

"At that time..."

"...Lady Chen also almost died."

The Empress nodded slowly.

She knew.

Back then, word spread through the palace that Lady Chen suddenly fell terribly ill. The healers could not find the cause.

For days, everyone believed she would die.

Princess Zhi leaned closer slightly.

"And after that..."

"...she changed."

The Empress’s gaze sharpened faintly.

"Changed?"

Princess Zhi nodded slowly.

"You know Lady Chen and Shin Gu were very close."

The Empress quietly nodded again.

Not close.

Obsessively close.

Shin Gu was always beside Lady Chen.

Advising her.

Protecting her.

Calming her.

Even during palace gatherings, Lady Chen looked for Shin Gu first before anyone else.

Princess Zhi spoke thoughtfully,

"Before, Lady Chen trusted Shin Gu completely."

"She treated her like her closest friend."

The Empress remembered it clearly.

There were times Lady Chen would laugh more with Shin Gu than with anyone else in the palace.

Almost dependent.

Princess Zhi slowly frowned.

"But recently..."

"She keeps forgetting things."

The Empress blinked slightly.

"Forgetting?"

Princess Zhi nodded.

"She told me once she sometimes can’t remember entire conversations."

"Or things she did during the day."

The Empress’s expression slowly darkened.

Princess Zhi continued quietly,

"At first she thought she was tired."

"But later..."

Princess Zhi rubbed her arms softly.

"She started saying Shin Gu makes her uncomfortable."

The shrine suddenly felt colder.

The Empress stayed silent.

Princess Zhi looked around instinctively before whispering,

"She said she feels threatened near her now."

The Empress’s fingers slowly tightened over her sleeve.

Threatened.

That word again.

Princess Zhi swallowed softly.

"And the strangest thing..."

"She doesn’t understand why."

The Empress lowered her eyes.

Something inside her chest felt heavy now.

Because it sounded wrong.

Dangerously wrong.

Princess Zhi continued,

"Lady Chen once said she feels like there are gaps in her memory whenever Shin Gu is around."

The Empress’s eyes narrowed immediately.

Memory gaps.

The air inside the shrine suddenly felt suffocating.

Princess Zhi looked nervous now even while speaking.

"She said sometimes she wakes up feeling exhausted but doesn’t remember what happened the night before."

The Empress’s thoughts immediately drifted toward herself.

Toward the lake.

Toward the strange force dragging her body.

Toward that terrifying feeling of losing control.

Then—

Toward Princess Zhi’s miscarriage.

The Empress slowly spoke,

"...Shin Gu is suspicious."

Princess Zhi looked relieved hearing someone finally say it aloud.

"You think so too?"

The Empress nodded slowly.

"When you lost your child..."

"I already suspected her."

Princess Zhi’s eyes darkened slightly.

"That day..."

"...Shin Gu was nearby too."

The Empress nodded.

"Yes."

"But there was no proof."

Princess Zhi sighed bitterly.

"That’s the problem."

Everything connected to Shin Gu felt hidden behind shadows.

Nothing direct.

Nothing obvious.

But her presence existed around every strange incident.

Princess Zhi lowered her voice again.

"And now Lady Chen herself is afraid of her."

The Empress thought deeply for a moment.

Then quietly said,

"Maybe Lady Chen finally noticed something was wrong."

Princess Zhi nodded slowly.

"She used to trust Shin Gu blindly."

"But now whenever Shin Gu comes close..."

Princess Zhi paused slightly.

"...Lady Chen becomes nervous."

The Empress frowned.

"That serious?"

Princess Zhi nodded immediately.

"She tries to hide it."

"But I noticed."

The shrine grew quieter.

Princess Zhi suddenly whispered,

"...I think Shin Gu knows too."

The Empress looked at her carefully.

"She watches Lady Chen strangely now."

"Like she’s checking whether Lady Chen remembers something."

A chill ran through the Empress.

Because that sounded terrifying.

Princess Zhi wrapped her arms around herself slightly.

"I don’t know what Shin Gu is hiding..."

"But she scares me now."

The Empress spoke calmly despite the cold unease in her chest.

"She scares me too."

Princess Zhi looked toward the shrine entrance nervously.

"...But I can’t say this openly."

The Empress understood immediately.

Princess Zhi gave a helpless laugh.

"If I accuse Shin Gu without proof..."

"People will think I’m targeting Lady Chen because of palace politics."

The Empress nodded slowly.

"And if Lady Chen defends Shin Gu..."

"It becomes worse."

Princess Zhi sighed.

"Yes."

The candle flames flickered suddenly from a passing wind.

Both women instinctively turned.

The shrine entrance remained empty.

But the atmosphere still felt heavy.

Watching.

Princess Zhi whispered softly,

"...Do you think Lady Chen is in danger?"

The Empress remained silent for a long moment.

Then finally answered quietly,

"...Yes."

Princess Zhi swallowed.

The Empress slowly lifted her gaze toward the dark corners of the shrine.

"If Shin Gu truly controls or manipulates people..."

"Then Lady Chen may be trapped beside someone dangerous without fully realizing it."

Princess Zhi shivered slightly.

"That’s horrifying."

The Empress nodded faintly.

"Yes."

Because now—

The palace no longer felt like a place filled only with jealousy and politics.

Something darker existed here.

Something hidden beneath silk curtains and smiling faces.

And somewhere inside this palace—

Shin Gu was quietly standing at the center of it all.

Night had fully descended over the palace.

The moon hung high above the dark rooftops, its pale silver light falling softly across the quiet courtyards.

Most of the palace had already gone to sleep.

Lantern flames burned low.

Even the guards spoke more quietly than usual.

But inside one secluded courtyard—

Someone remained awake.

—

Shin Gu sat alone beside the open window.

A single candle flickered near her hand.

Its dim light cast strange shadows along the walls.

The room was silent.

Too silent.

—

Her fingers moved slowly over a black wooden bead bracelet.

One bead.

Then another.

Her eyes lowered.

Unmoving.

Cold.

—

Then suddenly—

She stopped.

—

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

Soft.

Almost affectionate.

—

"...Prince Liang..."

—

The name escaped her mouth like a whisper.

Gentle.

Possessive.

Dangerous.

—

She leaned slightly against the window frame, her gaze drifting toward the distant palace buildings.

Toward his residence.

—

At this very moment—

Prince Liang slept peacefully.

Unaware.

—

Unaware that someone was thinking about him with such obsession.

Such intensity.

—

Shin Gu closed her eyes slowly.

Her voice dropped softer.

"...You promised."

—

A faint breeze entered the room.

The candle flame flickered violently for a second.

—

"...You said you would stay with me forever."

—

Her fingers tightened slightly around the beads.

—

"But now..."

"...there are too many people around you."

—

Her expression darkened.

—

The Empress.

Princess Zhi.

The palace.

The royal family.

—

All of them—

Obstacles.

Noise.

Things standing between her and him.

—

Her eyes slowly opened again.

And within them—

Something twisted moved quietly.

—

"I protected you."

—

Her whisper echoed softly in the room.

—

"When everyone abandoned you..."

"...I stayed."

—

The memories surfaced slowly inside her mind.

A younger Prince Liang.

Cold nights.

Hidden wounds.

Loneliness.

—

And beside him—

Always her.

—

At least—

That was how she remembered it.

—

Her lips curved faintly.

"...So you belong beside me."

—

The candlelight flickered again.

Long shadows stretched across the floor unnaturally.

—

Then—

Her expression changed.

Something darker entered her eyes.

—

"No one..."

—

Her voice lowered further.

Almost a hiss.

—

"...will come between us."

—

Outside—

The wind suddenly grew colder.

The branches outside the courtyard rustled violently despite the still night.

—

Shin Gu stood slowly.

Her long sleeves falling around her like shadows.

—

She walked toward the center of the room.

And there—

On the floor—

Ancient symbols had been drawn faintly in dark ink.

Hidden beneath the carpet earlier.

Now exposed.

—

Her gaze lowered toward them.

Calm.

Focused.

—

"...Not again."

—

The memory of failure still burned inside her.

The Empress surviving.

Returning from death itself.

—

Impossible.

Humiliating.

—

Her fingers curled slowly.

—

"But this time..."

—

A faint black mist began gathering near the symbols.

Thin.

Almost invisible.

—

"...I will not fail."

—

The room temperature dropped sharply.

The candle flame trembled violently.

—

Shin Gu stepped into the center of the markings.

Closed her eyes.

And whispered softly—

—

"For him..."

—

The black mist thickened.

Coiling slowly around her feet like living smoke.

—

"I can do anything."

—

Far away—

Inside another courtyard—

Prince Liang stirred slightly in his sleep.

His brows furrowing faintly.

As though hearing something distant.

Something calling him.

—

But only for a moment.

—

Then silence returned.

—

Back in Shin Gu’s chamber—

Her eyes opened again.

Dark.

Unreadable.

Obsessive.

—

And beneath the pale moonlight—

Her smile slowly returned.

—

Cold.

Patient.

Certain.

—

Because in her mind—

Prince Liang already belonged to her.

—

And anyone who stood in the way—

Would disappear.