Chapter 02
I stared at the Emperor’s lips, tense and waiting. He frowned slightly and said,
“Will the sun set before you finish drawing the cards?”
“I’ll begin right away.”
I gave an awkward smile and pretended to quicken my hands. At the same time, I secured the card I had slipped into my sleeve.
What I was about to tell the Emperor about his so-called future was not good news. The more negative the cards, the better it would be for me.
So while the knight was distracted cleaning up the corpse, I had secretly hidden one card inside my clothes.
I knew you weren’t supposed to recklessly predict disasters or death with tarot cards—but what did that matter? My life came first.
I kept the extra card hidden and turned over three cards.
And the moment I saw the first one, I thought, I’m doomed.
What kind of card is that?
It showed a man with his back turned, as if leaving with a bundle slung over his shoulder. I had no idea what it meant.
I flipped the remaining cards.
They were the Devil and the Moon.
The longer I looked at them, the blanker my mind became, sweat trickling down my back.
No. This won’t work.
Miyeon. You won that storytelling award in high school. You can do this.
I shook my head hard to clear away the negative thoughts and put on a confident expression.
Pointing to the first card, I began,
“This man is leaving with his belongings. It can signify a new beginning—but it can also mean something is departing.”
The Emperor simply listened in silence. I cleared my throat and continued.
“The Devil card may seem ominous at first glance, but it can also represent powerful energy and great fortune.”
I had no idea if that was true. The Devil is the Devil—what energy and fortune? I just didn’t want to interpret everything too negatively and raise suspicion.
“And lastly, the Moon represents a dark and anxious state before the sun rises.”
I stared at the cards and began laying the groundwork for my grand hook.
“Seeing how bright the moon is, it seems Your Majesty suffers from insomnia. It has been a long time since you’ve had proper sleep—long enough to gaze far into the distance. And severe nightmares, as well.”
I clicked my tongue sympathetically as I pointed at the cards.
The Emperor’s expression did not change.
But having read the original novel, I already knew—he suffered from insomnia due to recurring nightmares.
I gathered the remaining cards and shuffled them again, closing my eyes as if receiving divine inspiration. At one moment, I stopped abruptly and snapped my eyes open.
Confidently, I flipped over a single card from the deck.
The one I had secretly set aside earlier.
The Death card.
“Tonight, Your Majesty, will be a night overshadowed by death.”
As I glared and issued the warning, the man who had earlier cut down the knight drew his sword and barked,
“How dare you speak so carelessly before His Majesty!”
“I have only spoken the truth!”
I shouted back just as fiercely. While we locked eyes in a heated standoff, the corner of the Emperor’s lips curled upward slightly.
That smile made me even more anxious.
Suppressing my unease, I hurriedly gathered the spread cards.
Then the devilish Emperor spoke.
“Continue.”
“Pardon?”
I reflexively questioned him, then clamped a hand over my mouth. As expected, one of his brows rose.
“Shouldn’t you predict when and where I will be attacked? Surely you weren’t planning to end this so… incompetently.”
“…Of course not. I was merely tidying up to use another tool for divination. Ha ha…”
I finished collecting the cards, hiding my panic. That was definitely a testing look.
Desperately, I searched inside my clothes.
Please, anything—please!
My fingers brushed against something round.
When I pulled it out, it was a crystal ball.
Sweat poured down my back.
How am I supposed to use this?
I’d only ever seen them as decorative props in occult movies. I set it on the floor like in the films and waved my hands mysteriously in the air.
It seemed to emit a faint, mystical glow—or maybe that was just my imagination.
Whatever. I’ll wing it.
Confidence was key in moments like this.
With a solemn expression, I muttered nonsense and stared intently into the crystal ball. Then I gasped sharply, as if possessed.
“Gasp!”
My body went limp.
The Emperor frowned and gestured to another knight. The knight approached and reached out to check my breathing.
At that exact moment, I shot upright and grabbed his arm tightly.
“Before the dawn breaks tomorrow! You who cannot sleep shall meet death!”
“Aaagh!”
The startled knight stumbled backward. Amid the chaos, I could feel the Emperor watching with keen interest.
“Then what must I do to survive?”
How should I know? I wanted to snap.
But I couldn’t.
What do I do? If only I had something to protect his neck… but there’s no way I—
As I touched my neck, something chain-like brushed my fingers.
Apparently, I was wearing a strange chain necklace.
This is it.
I tore the necklace from my neck and threw it toward the Emperor.
“If you wish to live, wear it!”
Despite my audacity, the Emperor remained composed. He ordered an attendant to pick it up instead.
I watched anxiously, praying to whatever nameless god existed in this world that he wouldn’t see through my act and kill me.
Was it blasphemous for a fake fortune teller pretending to be divine to pray to a god? Perhaps. But god, Buddha, whoever—if they saved me, I was ready to devote myself.
After a brief silence, the Emperor gave his command.
“Detain her until tonight.”
The knights grabbed my arms and dragged me away. As I left the blood-soaked hall, I shed tears of joy internally.
At least for now—I had survived.
Inside the Emperor’s audience chamber, the corpses and pools of blood had been cleaned away, though the metallic scent lingered in the air.
Beside Perion, who sat on his throne with a bored expression, stood his aide, Linen Bordi.
As soon as Linen approached, Perion tossed him the necklace he had received from the strange fortune teller earlier. Linen caught it deftly.
“Throw it away.”
Examining the necklace, Linen felt an ominous aura—clearly the fortune teller’s. Perion ordered it disposed of without hesitation.
“Do you not believe what the fortune teller said?”
“Linen. You know very well why I am doing this madness, do you not?”
Perion glared as if to say, Don’t speak nonsense.
Linen knew, of course. There was another reason Perion summoned fortune tellers under the pretense of seeking talent.
In truth, he despised divination. Under the excuse of finding a competent fortune teller, he executed those he loathed.
Perion’s murderous aura pricked against the skin. Anyone else would have bowed to the floor under that gaze—but not Linen.
Linen quietly studied the chain necklace, then calmly placed it around Perion’s neck.
Perion’s eyes turned icy.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“That fortune teller seemed quite capable.”
“Linen.”
Perion’s voice was a silent warning.
But Linen knelt on one knee before him, unfazed.
“Your Majesty, perhaps it would not hurt to humor her. She did know of Your Majesty’s insomnia.”
“Is that so? Then perhaps someone in the palace has a loose tongue.”
Despite Linen’s calm reasoning, Perion’s anger did not subside. He ignored him completely.
Linen was genuinely worried. But having stayed by his side for so long, he knew—
Perion could not be persuaded in this state.
With a sharp crack, Perion crushed the necklace hanging around his neck.
Then, striding out of the audience chamber, he ordered,
“Bring her before me by tomorrow.”
The doors slammed shut.
Linen quietly rose and gathered the broken pieces of the chain.
“Nothing must happen…”
His instincts had never been wrong before—that was why he was even more uneasy.
After staring at the shattered necklace for a long moment, he hurried off somewhere.
