Part 1 Epilogue: The Tale of a Greedy Princess Who Always Placed Herself First

For three hundred years, the continent was blessed with peace and prosperity. This glorious era began with the emergence of a great many heroes who would leave their mark on history. There was Sion Sol Sunkland, who'd earned the name "The Libra King" for his virtuous reign, and his trusted retainer Keithwood. Offering guiding sermons of salvation to the populace was the Holy Lady, Rafina Orca Belluga, who dedicated her life to maintaining peace between nations. The Mianet — a mutual assistance network that spanned the entirety of the continent — was the brainchild of Forkroad & Co.'s head honcho, Chloe Forkroad. Whenever demonic cultists or large bandit brigades sought to sow chaos, Dion Alaia would arrive on the scene, his sword offering a swift and deadly rebuke to their ways.

And that wasn't all. There was also the hypercompetent Ludwig, who injected new vitality into Tearmoon through structural reform, along with the botanical innovator, Cyril Rudolvon, who developed a new strain of wheat before going on to discover a number of useful plant species. Still, Cyril's achievements wouldn't have been possible had he not studied under his sister, Tiona Rudolvon, whose early teachings equipped him with the knowledge to propel him into academia, and the list went on and on...

Amidst this dazzling pantheon of stars, however, was a moon who shone brighter than them all — the Empress of the mighty Tearmoon Empire, Mia Luna Tearmoon. Known widely as the Great Sage of the Empire and both adored and revered by all these great heroes, her documented accomplishments were nevertheless surprisingly few. Conspicuous was her absence in the credits of history. Rarely, if ever, did she take the stage herself. And yet, a well-known and frequently circulated morsel among historians was that, time and again, during the crucial moments when these peerless figures left their mark in the annals of legend, Empress Mia would, without fail, be at their side.

Despite the cloak of mystery surrounding her, she was incredibly popular with the people of Tearmoon, appearing in numerous tales and myths that were told and retold. The most beloved of these was doubtlessly the story of "Rescuing the Prince," which recounted the time when her beloved prince had incurred the wrath of his kingly father. Hearing of her sweetheart's plight, Mia had raced to his rescue personally and, in an exhilarating display of her passionate side, snatched him from his homeland and brought him back to Tearmoon with her.

Afterwards, she'd wed the prince and formally welcomed him into the empire as her husband. At the time, this marriage drew the displeasure of much of the Tearmoon nobility. Why, they asked, had she taken an ousted prince as consort? The arrangement, they argued, accomplished nothing for the empire. Her response was swift and merciless. She and her subjects fought the dissidents tooth and nail in the arena of words until their victory was complete and absolute. Through their triumph, they let it be known that, while Princess Mia would not use her power in tyranny, when it came to those she loved, her fiery passion knew no bounds; she would employ every ounce of her influence and intellect to blaze her own path.

Her romances were great in degree but not number, and the love that blossomed in her youth would bloom faithfully her whole life. The adoration she enjoyed was doubtlessly due in part to this unwavering devotion of hers, which was repaid after she became empress; her husband faithfully supported her reign as she ruled over Tearmoon. As the empire was restored to its former glory, the pair would be gifted with eight children, greatly bolstering the longevity of the imperial lineage...

Mia looked up from the pages of the old history book she held.

"Eight children... sounds like a few too many..."

She was in the Saint-Noel library, and she was supposed to be meeting Chloe. While waiting, however, a history book on the shelves had caught her eye. Curious, she took it down and flipped it open, only to discover a biographical account of the Empress of Tearmoon, Mia Luna Tearmoon. Normally, this would be reason for bewilderment, but Mia — seasoned veteran of temporally incongruous books — barely batted an eye. It wasn't her first encounter with such a thing.

"Oh, I guess this is just like that diary..."

Figuring it'd do for some casual reading, she idly thumbed through its contents, which eventually led to her previous comment.

"Seriously? Eight? I... I really got down to business, didn't I? Wow... Eight kids with Abel..."

"Hm? Hey, Mia, what are you doing here?"

"Gyaaaah!"

Her heart leapt into her throat. With nervous, jerky movements, she turned around to find Abel, who looked equally startled by her outburst.

"A-A-Abel? What are you doing here?"

"I was just looking something up. What's that you've got there? Reading something interesting?"

"Uhhh, this is... Wait."

It suddenly occurred to her that she might not want to show the book to Abel. However, when she glanced down at it, something was different. The passage she'd just read was nowhere to be found.

"How odd... It was just here a minute ago..." she muttered.

As she brought the book a little closer for examination, something began giving off a golden glow. Her eyes darted toward the source of the light to find words lifting themselves off the page. They floated upward before unraveling themselves like golden strings and melting away into the air.

"...What was that?"

"Mia?"

She quickly shook her head and blinked a few times before turning to Abel.

"Sorry. Don't mind me. It's nothing."

The account in the history book had disappeared. To Mia, it seemed like a sign that a nearly-finalized future had once again changed course for the unknown. It'd seemed like a very blissful future too, but just like that, it was gone.

It didn't upset her though. Instead, she shrugged.

"Oh well. I wasn't quite satisfied with that one anyway..."

After all, a future in which Abel couldn't return home and would never again see his family could hardly be said to be a perfectly happy future, and when it came to happiness, that just wasn't good enough. Greedily pursuing pleasure was her style; Mia had and always would subscribe to the philosophy of Mia First.

"No more compromises. I worked too hard to get that damn guillotine out of my life. I want a future that satisfies me, and I will settle for nothing less."

The future remained uncertain, and no one yet knew where Mia's life would take her. One thing, however, would never change — her greed. She'd never met a compromise she liked; when it came to happiness, she wanted every last piece — for herself and all those she held dear...

This is the story of a slightly selfish princess who is given a second chance at life. She has sown the seeds of hope. What kind of future they grow into... is still anyone's guess.

Part 1 Fin

The sun had long since set, and darkness ruled the sky. Moonlight streamed through the window of an empty library, falling across the surface of a hefty wooden table. Resting atop it was a book, its last reader having forgotten to return it to its shelf. The culprit behind this hideous violation of bibliothecal norms was a rather familiar figure, since the neglected item was the history book that Mia had been reading earlier that day.

All of a sudden, the book flipped open. There was no wind, but its pages turned steadily. It began to give off a faint golden glow. Lucent lines appeared, twisting into words. They settled on the page, forming new and ominous passages recounting a dreadful history and the dark future to which it led... only for the text to start crumbling again before anyone could lay eyes on it. One by one, the glowing words unraveled and faded until only one line was left. It was the name of a young girl in whose veins flowed the blood of the Great Sage — the last princess of the Tearmoon Empire, Miabel Luna Tearmoon.

Like the last glimmer of hope at the bottom of that mythical box, it glowed and glowed, as though fighting to survive. Then, it — like all its brethren — unraveled and faded into the empty night.

Time continued its steady march, and our tale entered a new chapter.

To be continued in Volume 3