With a cold pair of amber eyes that looked dead and devoid of emotion, Empress Arabella silently watched as the once, ever so glorious, and formerly undefeated Valeria Empire, finally fell to ruin, for the first time since its founding.
Surely, her name would go down in history as the villainous empress who caused the downfall of her own husband, the mighty Emperor Ferdinand.
Yes, HIM.
That wretched Emperor.
Of course, along with the Valeria Empire that sheltered her for years.
Sheltered? Did it?
Wasn't it only pain and grief it had caused her?
Ah, there was a bit of joy and warmth in the beginning, when she was nothing but a young, pampered lady who knew nothing about the world.
But when Arabella grew wiser, she realized, even those brief moments were untrue.
This empire was nothing but a prison to her.
It shackled her to this cold, unwelcoming place and took away everything precious to her.
Her youth, her love, her home, her freedom, and most especially, the light of her life, her son, Fermin.
They took away everything from her. Everything.
All this place truly gave her was misery.
It was a living hell where a lot of people even laughed that her son had been killed.
That was how cruel they were.
But then again, after a while, she no longer felt pain, no matter what they said or did.
For Arabella, she had been dead for a while, so it didn't really matter anymore.
Nothing mattered since her son's death.
Ah, wait… There is…
Revenge.
The destruction of her once beloved husband and the source of his power.
***
The morbid stench of burning flesh and timber reached her as she drew closer to the open window.
Black smoke rose everywhere and made dark clouds loom over the once bright and prosperous empire.
From the highest floor of the Magic Tower, Arabella gazed at the sea of flames engulfing Riva, once the beautiful and thriving capital of Valeria.
It was once her home.
She had spent years pouring her love, time, and effort into this place.
But what did she get?
Betrayal.
And from her husband nonetheless.
Thus, he deserved this.
This was the fruit of her years of hard work.
All her painstaking efforts finally paid off.
It had been ten years since she plotted to ruin her husband and what he loved the most, what he had always busied himself with, what he chose over her and their son.
Power.
The power and prestige of the mighty Valerian Empire.
And now, Arabella had finally succeeded.
Her husband lost his throne, and Riva was in flames.
Valeria had fallen…
Was she happy as she listened to the screams of their people dying?
Wait… Were they ever her people?
All they did was torment her.
They were never her people, even when she tried her best to be their Empress.
They never truly accepted her despite her efforts.
They never saw her improvement and achievements.
Instead, they only saw her faults and mistakes.
When she performed well, they scoffed and said it was to be expected, that it was the least she could do as the spouse of the Emperor.
They made it seem like she should have done even better, and sooner than she did, even when her stable and happy life was suddenly stolen from her so that she could be here.
Even her good performance seemed like a mistake, since everyone simply said she should have done it so much earlier than she did.
No one talked about her improvement and good deeds because they didn't see them as such.
Yet if she made even the smallest mistake, it always became a huge issue gossiped about with everyone, and they never moved on from it. They talked about it so much more than any of her achievements.
Even after the years went by, to them, she was merely a foreign Empress whom they always judged and criticized.
They never accepted her.
She never truly belonged here, thus they were never her people in the first place.
Still…
Was she happy, as the capital and the places she used to wander around were all engulfed in flames and would soon turn to ashes?
She wasn't.
But what she felt about it didn't matter. After all, she could no longer be happy or feel anything of that sort.
Her heart died long ago.
It was numb and empty.
It was buried with her only child.
Fermin, her adorable kid, was her light in this dark and cruel place.
He was her only joy.
Her happiness.
Her everything.
Yet, her very own husband took his life.
It was such… a tragic and merciless fate…
Arabella considered herself dead ever since then.
She thought of herself as having been buried along with her child.
What remained was an empty shell with nothing but her hatred, fury, and sorrow.
It was no longer her - only the strong longing to seek vengeance for her innocent and charming son.
It was what kept her body alive when she was already dead inside.
After all, as Fermin's mother and the only person here who truly cared about him, she had to exact her revenge and ruin the father who mercilessly poisoned and gave him such a cruel and heartbreaking death.
Arabella's last prayer was when she begged all the gods she knew that Fermin would never learn his death was orchestrated by his own father.
***
Arabella's eyes had no emotion in them despite the carnage down below.
No happiness or sadness.
Only relief.
Everything was finally over…
She could finally follow her beloved child…
Ferdinand died in her arms, and Arabella followed soon after.
.
.
.
Yet, all of a sudden, as if fate was playing with her, Arabella woke up 22 years back to what should have been the past.
And she was back right after her marriage to Ferdinand.
Arabella thought she must have been pitied by the gods and was given another chance to torment her husband. But couldn't they have been a little kinder to her and have had her returned before she was engaged to the Emperor?
Now, she had to live all over again as the wife of her most hated person.
"Thank you for being my wife," she recalled Ferdinand's last words and the smile on his lips before he died.
Her chest hurt.
Was it truly him she hated the most?
Or was it her weak, powerless, and fragile self that still cried for him when he died?
Ah, that must be it…
Had she been unknowingly treasuring lingering feelings for him, hidden deep within?
Then, how would she live now that she could see him alive and well once again?
At this time, he was still at his peak. Strong, handsome, and still had a shred of interest in her, even if just to make her pregnant.
Would she survive being his wife again without rekindling old feelings that should have long died?
Arabella had to wonder if she was cursed instead.
But no, she must not be shaken.
She must be strong and not fall for him all over again in this life.
She already knew what kind of pain such feelings ended up giving her.
But suddenly… Arabella discovered she could read minds…
What does this ability and this life entail for her?
It was time to discover it herself.
Since Arabella woke up reborn as her younger self, with a newly gained ability that enlightened her of the truth, will she still be able to continue all the plots she prepared to drag her husband down once again?
Or will love find its way even amidst all the hatred and fury she holds for him and cleanse her tainted soul?