After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

Emerging from the damp, cold underground prison, she expected to see the sun, but all she saw on the horizon was the boundless, shimmering light.

The space was dark, and standing next to Elena was a strange black-haired girl. But for some reason, Elena sensed Oswald's presence emanating from her.

Her rare black hair makes it hard not to suspect that she is an illegitimate daughter of the Charles family.

Eleanor didn't urge her on. Even as she walked and stopped, constantly looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar streets, Eleanor simply stood quietly beside her, her expression neither joyful nor sorrowful.

Arriving at an open space, Yani looked up at the sky and murmured, "Eighteen years ago, my earliest memory, there was a heavy snowfall in Ice City. An old beggar came to my door and said he was cold and hungry and hoped we could give him some food."

"I gave him two loaves of bread, but after he finished them, he wouldn't leave and insisted that we give him a drink."

"That was the first time I saw my father angry. He had the beggars driven away, then picked me up and said, 'Don't give alms to these poor people. They will only take advantage of your kindness.'"

Annie gave a bitter smile as she finished reminiscing. Now her family also had to beg for Oswald's mercy, and Oswald also thought they were pushing their luck.

"A classic aristocratic remark."

Elena responded calmly, probably not wanting to offer any comment. An old beggar, before freezing to death, wanted a drink to warm himself up; whether he ultimately received that drink or not, it was a complete tragedy.

When she arrived at her doorstep, Annie stopped and held her breath.

She saw her family members looking anxious through the window. She had seen them a few times before in prison. Her timid parents had aged considerably.

"Five days. Cherish your time. I hope you can keep your promise after five days."

After turning around, Elena sighed quietly. In fact, the Duke had only given her three days, but she had secretly given him two more.

If Annie hadn't had the Wishing Star, she would at most have been banished from the Northern Territory by the Duke, but the young and outstanding Annie could still have started a wonderful story.

But fate is unpredictable, and no one knows what wish Annie made, but the result is obvious.

Elena might even have to thank Annie, after all, who can guarantee that their other half isn't from another distant world?

A charming yet eccentric duke is someone she'd be lucky enough to meet in her entire life, even though winning him over was a bit of a rollercoaster ride...

On the way back, Elena glanced at Chuguang, who was crunching on candy. She was quite certain that in the moment when time flowed backward, the great being who helped her was not this foodie who was curious about everything.

The Duke said that Chuguang was a consciousness created by the Goddess of Nature. That statement was probably not a lie to fool her, because Chuguang would occasionally eat some roadside weeds and leaves.

According to Chuguang herself, she was reading information about the world.

"Can five days really satisfy anything?" Chu Guang noticed Eline's gaze and looked at her curiously. Eline quickly turned her head away; she still couldn't get used to this face that resembled the Duke's.

After a long silence, Elena slowly spoke: "Five days and five years are actually just a moment."

Upon hearing this, Chu Guang seemed to understand something, as if for humans, life is just a repetition of one day after another.

Time flew by, and perhaps not wanting to experience the sadness of parting, Annie, who had spent a sleepless night, changed into her newly bought white dress and quietly left her room.

The air was still, and she seemed to hear faint sobs, suppressed, like the muffled sobs of the night.

"Take care of yourselves, Father and Mother."

After pausing for only a few seconds at her parents' door, Annie quickened her pace and pushed the door open. It wasn't until she reached the street that the oil lamp in the room suddenly lit up.

Annie wiped away her tears, not daring to look back. Since she couldn't escape the curse, she had to end the story she had started herself.

With heavy steps, a tall figure stood in the middle of the crossroads. In this life, she rarely met Oswald, but she would never forget that face.

"Shall we chat for a bit?"

The closer she got, the more she could feel the difference between the two Oswalds. The oppressive feeling she felt was not a superficial show of strength; standing before her was a true monarch who could stand firm even in a blizzard.

Annie nodded first, then teased, "I thought you preferred to operate from behind the scenes."

"Good suggestion. If I had a hero like myself, I would do the same."

Oswald, with his hands behind his back, made an inviting gesture.

The two walked together, a few meters apart. Annie tried to say something several times, but found that she and Oswald seemed to only have hostile memories.

Then Annie spotted Elene standing quietly under the city gate not far away, and she didn't even want to open her mouth anymore.

"Don't worry about it. My wife is a very possessive person, but I always feel like she's plotting something behind my back."

Annie raised an eyebrow. "Are you doubting her?"

"No, I'm worried about my future retirement." Oswald smiled at Eleanor, who blinked in response, then walked ahead of the two to lead the way.

Girls' thoughts are hard to fathom. Oswald knew that Elene was worried about the timing of the wedding and also about her still sluggish pregnancy.

Oswald really wanted to tell her that having children is bad for her health, and if she really wanted to, she should just have one... But Elena's plans were always far-reaching.

Once the conversation started, Annie half-jokingly said, "Weren't you worried about that marriage certificate before? Actually, I'm a better business partner, aren't I? As long as you're willing to lie to me, I definitely won't notice."

Turning his head, Oswald suddenly smiled with relief, "If I hadn't been bound by these constraints in my previous life, I might have considered this plan."

Oswald pondered the "what if" scenario proposed by Annie. If he had just transmigrated in his previous life and the system hadn't required the original plot, he might have actually become a minotaur warrior.

Ouch! That was close, I almost became the second Holy Lance.

"You really are a very interesting person." Annie chuckled. She didn't believe Oswald's nonsense; women understand women best.

Frankly speaking, Elene's beauty is already rare in the world, but she can't win Oswald just by relying on her stats; she also has to put in effort and sweat behind the scenes.

"Before you become the embodiment of the curse, if there's anything you need me to do, just say the word."

Once outside the city, squads of soldiers carrying torches stood on both sides of the cement road. As the sacrificial site drew closer, Oswald stopped and gestured for Annie to make her request.

Annie lowered her head; it was the first time she had ever felt kindness from Oswald.

She heard about Nicole's ordeal and realized that she could not escape the fate of becoming the embodiment of the curse. She also wanted to know what her wish was.

Therefore, she would not resent Oswald, because she knew that the man in front of her had not only offered them that drink, but also wanted to help them get through the winter.

"If I am no longer myself, Duke Oswald, please tell Nicole that she is not alone."