"You should go back first." Alistair suggested when we got out of the room. "I do not mind, but it'd be bad for you to be seen alone with me at this hour."

I stared at him as if he grew another head.

"W-Well, I reflected on my previous actions and realised that I caused you much discomfort by doing whatever I wanted." He cleared his throat, embarrassed. "Forgive me for being thoughtless."

He must be referring to those times when he kept giving me special treatment in front of the servants. We were already the subject of gossip when Alistair chose me as his personal maid, but his excessive attention towards me made it worse.

I covered my mouth sentimentally, like a proud mother. "You've become a true man, Your Grace!"

"For some reason, your words are pissing me off."

"Thank you for your consideration." I laughingly curtsied to him. "This servant shall leave first."

I didn't wait for his response and turned my back from him immediately. The distance between us grew as I walked away, but when I was at the end of the hallway, the grand duke called me again.

"Isabelle!" His manly voice resounded throughout the empty palace. "Remember this distance well."

I gave him a questioning look. Huh?

"From there to here," He pointed to my direction, then to his spot. "That's how far you need to walk to reach the end of the aisle where I'd be waiting."

I laughed at his words. Gosh, he's so cheesy...

"Start practicing your steps, hm?" He gave me a lazy smile. "No one wants their bride to trip."

"Sure, I'll practice my steps, but to the opposite direction." I flashed an impish grin. "I shall be your runaway bride, Grand Duke Averill."

Alistair clicked his tongue. "How heartless."

For the last time, I bowed to the grand duke before departing from the Sky Palace. The chilly night didn't stop me from feeling warm and fuzzy.

Despite being a mere extra in the world of this novel, the second male lead never fails to make me feel that he sees me, that I exist, that there's more to me than my role to advance the plot.

Alistair always looked straight into my eyes.

And it made me feel brave to move forward.

So I mustered all my courage and went to the Sun Palace, specifically in the garden. The banquet had already ended, but I needed to check if something had changed. Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep.

There, I saw a throng of servants and knights in the garden, which had me apprehensive. I made it past the midnight. I was fairly certain that the heroine will be protected by the male lead, too.

Nobody was supposed to die tonight.

So, whose corpse am I seeing before my eyes?

"It's her! She's the one who went missing during the banquet!" A maid shouted then pointed me.

Before I could even process her words, one of the imperial knights lunged at me from behind then twisted my arm and pinned me on the ground.

"Summon an imperial mage!" The blue-haired man with tanned skin commanded. "There are still traces of black magic here, and this woman may have some tricks left up on her sleeve!"

The man, who seemed to be the captain of the knights, pressed on me more with his weight. The way he was riveting me on my spot was so painful. His elbow was thrashing against my upper back, so I couldn't breathe properly.

Still, it didn't compare to the pain in my chest.

I couldn't take my eyes off the dead body lying in a pool of blood. There was a huge hole in her chest, enough to fit a person's head and pass it through the other side. She had her eyes and lips widened into a horrified expression before her death.

But two particular things tore my heart asunder.

"Tell them to hurry!" The captain demanded.

First, that she had notable freckles.

The knights panicked. "They'll be here soon, Sir!"

Second, that she had bright red hair.

My eyes watered with tears. "Leila."

When I hid myself in the Sky Palace, I never intended to make anyone take my place.

What I wanted was to change the contents of the novel, not to sacrifice someone else. But seeing my friend lying lifeless on the ground on behalf of me, a cruel realisation splashed on me like cold water.

The plot of the novel cannot be changed.

A death was necessary to end this night. It means that the culprit was supposed to murder me not because of who I am. I just happened to be there.

Now, in my attempt to save myself, someone else who bumped into the murderer died in my place.

It didn't matter who would fulfill the role.

That's what it meant to be an extra.

"Leila, my dear friend..." I bit my lower lip so hard to the point that it bled. My own blood tasted as bitter as my tears. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..."

I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself down. My body hurts from the knight restraining me, and I absolutely can't think straight right now.

However, this isn't enough to break me down.

"Captain," I clenched my jaw. "What offense did I ever commit to deserve this rough treatment?"

The blue-haired knight glared at me. "You went missing the entire banquet, and somebody saw you taking a knife with you." he explained.

"So? Surely you don't think that such a small knife could bust a chest open like that?" I hinted with sarcasm. "Come on, that doesn't make sense."

"Unless there's someone who can prove your alibi, you're under suspicion for being an accomplice."

What a load of bullshit.

My lips parted in shock when I saw the heroine, Ingrid, among the crowd. Her pink hair protruded above all the bystanders. She seemed worried about the incident, but she didn't interfere at all.

Why aren't you saying anything? Didn't you see the man holding a dandelion wine? That's what I recalled from the novel. Why aren't you telling them? Why are you standing there like an idiot?

Out of nowhere, another passage from the novel flashed on my mind without any warning.

I blinked consecutive times. What the...

This time, Alistair never looked like an edgy boy in the banquet. He never went to the garden, too. Instead, he ventured into the Sky Palace to search for me, which means that Ingrid didn't follow him.

Therefore, the heroine never went to the garden, and she didn't catch the culprit red-handed!

"Ah, you must be shitting with me." I muttered to myself. At this rate, they might just put the blame on me since no one witnessed the murderer!

In the corner of my eye, I noticed a familiar figure emerging from the crowd. It was Grand Duke Averill, whose face was painted with confusion.

When Alistair saw me being restrained on the ground, his face instantly darkened in rage.

"What the hell?" He cursed under his breath.

Come to think of it, he can prove my innocence since we were together the whole night. But in order to do so, we would have to explain why we went to the Sky Palace with just the two of us.

The grand duke fooling around with a maid.

It's the perfect scandal to tarnish his honour.

"As if I'd let that happen." I mumbled.

Alistair was just about to step forward when I screamed through gritted teeth, causing him to stiffen with a conflicted look on his face.

"Don't do it!" I shouted, my eyes lowered on the ground. "If you do it, I'm going to resent you!"

His fists clenched as he stared at me.

"I'm alright." I assured him. "Please don't."

The captain of the knights looked puzzled by my sudden outburst. "Just be quiet and don't resist."

Like hell I'm talking to you. Shut up.

"Giovanni," A sonorous voice spoke among the crowd. "You're hurting the lady. Let go of her."

The captain subconsciously moved away from me then bowed respectfully. "Your Highness!"

Everyone lowered their heads upon the arrival of the crown prince, who halted right in front of me.

"Sena has already briefed me about the current situation, so I know the gist of it." Crown Prince Dion stooped down and helped me. "I apologise. It seems that my subordinate used unnecessary force on you in this moment of urgency."

I didn't even bother to reassure him because I was damn upset. That blue-haired arse attacked me out of nowhere and assumed things on his own.

"Your Highness, I was simply being cautious." The captain, whom they called as Giovanni, argued.

"If she could truly manifest black magic, the maid would have used it to escape from your grasp."

His Highness shook his head in disapproval.

"To make matters worse, you attacked a woman from behind." Prince Dion shot an icy stare towards the captain. "How shameful, Giovanni."

The captain of the knights didn't reason anymore. I kinda felt bad for him, but he deserved it. Heh.

"As for you," The crown prince shifted his gaze to me. "Since you were treated unjustly, I shall give you the chance to clear your name and explain."

I kept my gaze on my hands laid on the ground.

"Where did you disappear to during the banquet?"

Beads of sweat rolled down on the side of my face. How should I answer him? I can't let them know that the grand duke and I were together all night.

While I was trying to come up with a plausible excuse, somebody beat me into answering.

"She was with me, Your Highness."

All of us turned to the direction of the voice.

A familiar figure stepped forward. Her lavender dress embedded with jewels shone even more in the darkness of the night. As usual, her bluish white hair was so calming to look at, while her eyes were brimming with so much confidence.

"Lady Camellia?" Prince Dion addressed her.

"I greet the little sun of the empire." She bowed elegantly to His Highness. "As you may know, my constitution is weak. The banquet was too taxing for me, so I decided to rest in the guest room."

The villainess glanced over me then smiled.

"This maid happened to be passing by when I was calling for a servant, so she responded to my call."

"And the knife?" Prince Dion inquired further.

"I ordered her to fetch one for me and asked her to loosen some strings of my dress, since they were too tight." she imparted calmly.

She was lying to the crown prince without even batting an eyelash. To be honest, Lady Camellia was the person I least expected to help me.

Why would the villainess want to help me? Was it to repay me when I saved her from a thug? Perhaps I judged her too hastily.

"Does that clear your suspicion?" The lady queried with a small smile. "I ask you not to implicate the poor maid any further. I can vouch for her alibi."

The cold was starting to get unbearable, so it felt like everybody was itching to wrap this case up.

Prince Dion sighed. "Very well."

After that, the crown prince led the investigation team in the scene of the crime. I didn't want to leave just like that, so I made an unreasonable request to the crown prince, to which he acceded.

"Under normal circumstances, no one should be allowed near the body in the scene of the crime." The male lead eyed me. "But since you suffered in the hands of my subordinate, I shall let you do so."

With that, I approached the body of my friend.

"Leila," I called her sentimentally. "Seriously."

Her frozen body almost burned my skin when I touched her. Only then did it completely sink in, that my friend was already gone, that she died in my place when it was supposed to have been me.

I placed her palm on my cheek. "I'm sorry."

Tears escaped from my eyes.

"I'm so sorry." I kept saying in between sobs.

This wasn't how it's supposed to be. Had I known that someone else will have to die on my behalf, I would have just accepted my death quietly.

"Whoever did this to you, I promise I'll find him." I gently squeezed her hand. "Once I do, I will kill him with my bare hands. Help me find him, Leila."

The time that I spent with you was short, but you were always there to wake me up in the morning.

Always giggling at the smallest things and always chasing after me like a toddler who wants to play.

I pray that you find yourself in a much better place, because you're too good for this world, Leila.

Rest in peace, my dear friend.

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