As the horses neigh, a carriage arrives at Veronica's, prompting Veronica to step outside. Veronica smiles at their familiar faces but senses something out of the picture. There is an unknown figure, and Veronica is looking for a certain blonde.
"We need your additional help," Lord Apollo said before Veronica could register anything.
"What exactly is it, my lord?" she furrows her brows.
"Duchess Natalie has been fatally shot. Therefore, we require the magicians brought by Winter," Lord Apollo responds more.
Veronica is staring at them, trying to make sense of what she is hearing. As the realisation dawns on her, she immediately understands and facilitates Natalie to be carried inside. She then goes to Winter's and tells him about the magician. Soon after, the magicians arrive to check on the blonde in the room.
They were all waiting outside. Lord Apollo is concerned about the Duchess as the other three figures pace around him. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, the magicians appear and are finally able to restore her magical power. Regarding her wound, they must wait for her to awaken from her sleep and then for it to heal as usual.
Medea is thinking about something and will ask Hera to heal Natalie later once everything is clear. So she summons Hector and instructs him to go to Nicoli's manor to request Hera to recover the Duchess. Hector does not hesitate to carry out her order, but he whines about it internally.
Marquess Alwyn is never fond of Hera initially because he always doubts her at the start of Medea and Hera's friendship. He was protective of the Duchess and believed that everyone, except her nanny and him, would easily betray Medea when necessary. Moreover, Hera is not an exception to that. Hector and Medea's nanny would die for the Duchess without a doubt.
Although hypothetically, he is partially correct, Hera accepts Ares' proposal to become his Crown Princess at that time. But, in Hera's defence, she was being tricked by him. Being confined in the basement and saved by Ares is a part of the manipulation cycle, and she scratches her way to find a hole keeping herself from being swallowed. That is why Medea no longer holds grudges against her and has made peace with it. She understands the source of her pain and will no longer be resentful of Hera.
As Hector leaves for his mission, Medea returns inside to look for Lord Apollo. But he's not there. So the Duchess proceeds to Natalie's room, only to discover Isis sitting in the chair, holding the blonde's hand. Meanwhile, Apollo is dozing off in another chair, most likely due to exhaustion and that earlier pacing.
Duchess Valimos' gaze was fixed on Isis' hand, clutching Natalie's. They appear to be close after their 'date' at the time. She has also seen the waterfall area, which is lovely. Unfortunately, the Crown Princess is so engrossed in her thoughts that she doesn't notice Medea standing behind her, watching all of them.
"Princess Isis, please take a break," a hand on Isis' shoulder, shaking the Crown Princess lightly.
Isis was jolted out of it, almost falling out of her chair.
"Duchess Medea. You frightened me!" she presses her chest.
"It's alright. I'll have to wait for Her Grace to wake up. It's entirely my fault that she has ended up this way," Isis returns her gaze to the blonde.
Duchess Medea realises that Princess Isis is a kind-hearted woman who is always concerned about her people. So it's no surprise she gives up herself for the sake of her Empire. The raven-haired beauty will make an excellent leader. But something about the Crown Princess bothers her, and she has no idea why.
"May I speak with you, Princess Isis?" Medea inquires, causing the raven-haired beauty to return at the amethyst eyes.
It sounds serious, but now that the situation has calmed down, she agrees with the Duchess about the conversation. They both leave the room and go to a more private location.
Marquess Hector finally arrived in the Empire's capital after a half-day ride. It's exhausting, and he's never slept more than a day. Not to mention that the silver-haired man must meet with Hera about what happened to Duchess Natalie. So as he rides into the capital on his horse, he immediately disguises himself to avoid being noticed.
The horse neighs, indicating that the Marquess has stopped while dismounting from it. Nicoli's manor is now within sight. He observes the guards, effortlessly passing them because he has previously sneaked on there. He climbs the tree without hesitation, quickly jumping through Hera's balcony.
Fortunately, Hera is alone in her room, working on her divinity.
"Hera," the Marquess said, causing the emerald eyes to widen, shrieking in fear and attracting her servants.
Steps can be heard approaching the room, and the door immediately opens. A few people enter, attempting to catch their breath.
"My dear Lady! Are you all right?" James approaches Hera, who is still sitting in her chair.
Before responding to the servants, the blonde looks around, taking a glimpse of Hector finding his way to hide while gathering herself.
"Oh, I'm alright. I'm just surprised by the butterflies that suddenly fly onto my face. Since flowers are blooming right now," Hera explains to her servants, brushing off her clothes.
"You scare us to death with your screams," said the other servant.
"We'll leave now. Simply ring the bell for anything," the other servants followed James in bowing.
James comes to a break as they leave, looking into Hera's slightly open wardrobe. He walks over there, unaware of the purple eyes staring back at him. Hera's stomach clenches, and gulps, terrified that James will find out. Everything seems to be moving slowly.
Before Hera could respond, James simply closed the wardrobe and said, "Please close Lady Hera's wardrobe completely after you open it."
Hera and Hector almost forget how to breathe at the time, but their relief is short-lived once the servants leave the room. Then the Marquess looks through the wardrobe while Hera waits for him to emerge.
"You frighten me to death! Couldn't you give a sign before entering?" Hera maintains her grip on her chest while glaring at Hector.
"Could you not be more aware of your surroundings? If an assassin came after you again, they would have easily killed you," Hector retorts, refusing to admit his mistake.
Hera sighs in frustration at his obstinacy, but she knows he is right in some way. However, meeting him is still a pain in her head.
"What brings you here? Have you tracked down Princess Isis and Duchess Natalie?" the Countess immediately asks, slipping off from the earlier situation.
"Lady Medea has requested your assistance," Hector says, ignoring the questions.
"What exactly is it?" she leans closer, interested and happy hearing the name alone,
"Lady Medea is asking for you to come and heal Duchess Natalie's wound from being shot," the blonde gasps at the news, putting her hand to cover her mouth.
Hera immediately bombards the Marquess with many questions, but Hector explains there is no time for that. Instead, he will tell her once she switches her body with Duchess Medea.
"Princess Isis is saved, but the Duchess got shot while trying to save her," Hector explains before sneaking out again, leaving Hera dumbfounded.
A hand grabs the Marquess's arm as he prepares to jump from the balcony to the tree again.
"My Lord, you seem too tired. Let me heal your energy," she said as she let her divinity power do the work at the Marquess.
That gesture surprises Hector, but Hera has always been kind to people. She is more sensitive to people but also naive. Fortunately, she is no longer as innocent as she once was. She gradually evolves after realising that Prince Ares is about to murder her at the banquet night. However, the situation never changes her kindness, whereas she is still kind but strong.
"That's it. Do you feel any better now?" Hera gives Hector an innocent look, her emerald eyes sparkling.
Hector removes his hand from Hera's and scratches his head. "Thank you. I have to go now."
Then he leaps from the balcony and lands safely on the tree branches. Hera stands there, watching his actions until the figure fades from view. The blonde woman returns to her room, writing whatever she can about the capital's rumours in Medea's absence to inform her once they switch bodies.
As a safety precaution, she then locks the door to prevent anyone from entering her room again. Then she stays close to her bed as if she would fall if she switched bodies with Medea. As the atmosphere quietens, the blonde closes her emerald eyes. The body slumps onto the bed, and the emerald eyes reopen.
"Hera switch bodies with me," Medea said as soon as she regained consciousness, opening her slightly dark emerald eyes.
On Veronica's, Hera is in Medea's body and feels perplexed by it. But she decided to play it off by trying to enter the house alone. The house is small, but it exudes a welcoming atmosphere. It has minimalist effects and the ideal amount of furniture. It is appropriate for her style. Yet, there isn't a single photo frame in that house. Is the owner living alone?
She runs into another figure as she walks around the house. Hera turns around to see the red eyes staring right into her soul. It's Princess Isis.
"I've been looking for you, my Lady!" a hint of relief in Isis' voice.
"Is something happening?" Hera prays that she's not too late to heal Duchess Smith now.
"No, it's simply because you've been absent for so long, just like the Marquess. So naturally, I'm worried about you," Princess Isis admitted.
"Oh, I thought Duchess Natalie was awake?"
"No, she's still like that," Princess Isis says, her face sad, and forms a frown.
"It is entirely my fault. She would never have been like that if I hadn't come here," Isis stated again, feeling dejected over what had occurred.
Hera stands there, her bright amethyst eyes welling up with sympathy. She understands how Isis feels. It reminds her of the banquet night when Medea is on the verge of death due to an assassination attempt. When Hector and she arrived at the scene, the poison from the dagger had spread throughout her body. She also remembered Hector nearly killing himself when he realised there was no way to save the Duchess who occupied Hera's body.
It was supposed to be her grave that day, but since they changed their soul, Medea faced that challenge. She shouldn't make a wish to die on the prayer day. Regardless, she is thankful to give a second chance for redemption. As she is still in character to be Duchess Medea, she has to act like her. So, she refrains from making contact with Isis.
Instead, she said, "It is never Your Highness's fault for visiting. You never asked for it to be this way. You have pure intentions to find your future bride. But, occasionally, things occur, and I am certain that Duchess Natalie would agree."
As for the pure intention, the Crown Princess smiles bitterly. She has come to marry one of the Duchesses for the sake of her nation. In a way, she is exploiting them. How could it be so pure in intent? One of the Duchesses even sacrifices herself to save her, while the other in front of her tries to protect her. She doesn't even deserve their act.
"I don't deserve either of you to be my bride-to-be. Perhaps this is why my life's love abandons me. I'm such a coward," Isis swallows the brittle, bitter pills that she used to ignore.
"Did she have a lover?" Hera pondered.
"Your Highness, you are everything but a coward. You wouldn't come here to find your bride-to-be for the sake of your nation if you were a coward," the red eyes widened in surprise.
"How did you do--"
"How could I possibly know? Your Highness, I have my way. Should we proceed to the Duchess's side now?" Hera gestures to the Crown Princess.
As they both walk toward the room, Isis smiles at the Duchess. The Duchess of Light sweats profusely as they open the door, but she still doesn't wake up. The raven-haired beauty panicked a little, but Hera needed to treat her right away.
Fortunately, Isis stated, "I'm going to get Veronica. Your Grace will remain here with Duchess Natalie."
Isis leaves the room, leaving Hera alone with the Duchess. A light flickering from her hand slowly fills the room without wasting time. Not long after that, the ruby eyes flash open, her vision still blurry from all angles. She let out a gasp from the pain, holding her head up.
Duchess Smith looks up as her vision gradually returns. The blonde slowly rises from her bed.
"Duchess Medea?" Natalie's ruby eyes scrutinise the woman, feeling slightly taken aback when Medea is the first person she meets after waking up.
"Are you feeling better now?" Hera inquires, her brow furrowed in concern.
"A bit. Where has everyone gone?" Duchess Smith looks around to find a glimpse of familiar faces.
"I'm not certain, but Princess Isis had to call Veronica because your condition appears to have worsened," the Duchess of Light simply nods and returns to her bed.
Isis, Veronica, and Winter return with the physician before the Duchesses could continuing their conversation. The physician politely asks them to wait outside while they examine Natalie. After a while, the physician becomes perplexed by Isis' information as he checks the blonde, which is physically exhausted rather than shot.
"Please don't tell anyone about her wound," Hera prays to the Guardian Deity.
"The lady is in perfect health. But, simply put, she is exhausted. So allow her to rest and refrain from demanding labour for a few days," he said as he walked away.
They all nod at the doctor, thanking him, letting Winter escort him to the front door as a humble gesture. Meanwhile, the others return to the room, and the blonde falls asleep again in her sweat. Even with Hera's divinity power, she must be exhausted from her wound. Reaching the same conclusion, they then agree to leave her alone so the blonde can sleep peacefully.
The women are about to relieve themselves when a wave of heat suddenly hits the blonde inside the room, who has no idea why her body is reacting in this manner.
"What is happening to my body?"