We were destined to fail.

07 | I love you.

설.

box..?

왕.

Didn't you say this was your first time entering the palace? Explain how you remember anything about it.

설.

I have dreams that feel so real I can't tell if they're real or not. It's a little blurry, but it feels familiar... I didn't know this box existed.

I thought it was a terrible thing for Ji-an to return to Seol after seven years, as she felt like the daughter I lost seven years ago, but when I saw Seol looking for this box and saying that it looked familiar, I sensed something was strange.

왕.

Open that box. If anything looks familiar or reminds you of anything, please tell me.

설.

But isn't this what the princess asked?

왕.

Yes, it's true that the princess asked. But isn't it strange that the child can't think of anything, yet you feel a sense of familiarity? So, open it quickly.

Seol carefully brushed off the dirt from the surface, sat down on the floor, and carefully opened the box. Inside, she saw something similar to a book, but slightly thicker.

설.

It looks like a book... I think the princess wrote something in it.

왕.

Where, read what it says.

설.

That... there are a lot of erased parts in the middle and dirt got in and it's so stained that it's impossible to read.

I couldn't tell anything about it, other than the fact that someone had written something. Only three or four pages were legible, and even those were slightly smudged and smudged.

설.

I think I can read the last few pages.

Reading the last chapter, I realized it was the princess's diary. It was about how she wanted to reminisce about her first diary, written in every single day, with her father and mother, when she grew up, rather than just leaving it lying around, forgotten, and thrown away.

Although my first diary was clumsy, it revealed my kind and pure personality. Even just one page from that clumsy diary was enough to be passed on to others.

설.

ah..

When I found the box, when I opened the diary, I felt nothing. But when I read the last entry, I began to feel dizzy. And then, as something passed by so quickly that I couldn't grasp it, the memory of that day was cut off.

지안.

I don't like how things always revolve around you, but since your memories won't come back, I guess I have no choice but to trust myself.

Even though she said that, I couldn't help but think of her back as she turned away, deeply disappointed, and felt uneasy. How could I possibly get here and be caught now? I tore my fingernails pointlessly, replaying the princess's past actions.

But all I remember is that you took me to the cherry blossom tree, and you always told me the same thing about how much you loved that tree.

지안.

.. cherry blossom tree. If you go there, you might think of something else.

It was evening, and Taehyung, the bodyguard, had his own agenda. Now was the perfect time for him to reflect. As he approached the cherry blossom tree, a silhouette came into view. It wasn't midnight, but it was darker than expected, and he couldn't see the face. But the familiar figure was unmistakably Taehyung.

김태형.

You're here, Seol-ah.

I was startled by Taehyung's call, backpedaling, and then turned around when he asked if I was home. The problem, though, was that he called Seol, not me. It was a bit odd that Seol didn't come even though Taehyung had called her.

김태형.

Can I go that way?

지안.

No, please speak there.

I kept my words short, afraid of being caught. I wondered what he had to say that had led him to call Seol-i in the dark.

김태형.

I called you because I thought you might be having a major misunderstanding. Can you guess what it is?

지안.

I don't know..

김태형.

I'm in love with you.

It really was true what I said. Perhaps Seol-i's refusal to come was a rejection. If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have heard these miserable words.

Seol-i collapsed while reading her diary and couldn't come. Joo-hyun is pretending to be Seol and answering the questions... You get the idea, right?