The Abandoned Empress

Aristia la Monique was born under a prophecy that marked her as the future empress, the perfect companion to the crown prince. Raised from childhood to be noble, obedient, and worthy of her destiny, she devoted her entire life to fulfilling a role she never chose. Yet all of that collapses the moment the true child of the prophecy appears—a kind-hearted girl named Jieun, who effortlessly claims the love and recognition that Aristia had trained for years to earn. Cast aside by the emperor, her father, and even her fiancé, Aristia is branded a criminal for her devotion and sentenced to death for a love that was never returned. But instead of meeting her end, Aristia wakes up in the body of her ten-year-old self, her memories of betrayal still raw and unhealed. Determined to rewrite the course of her life, she rejects the path laid out for her and vows to sever herself from the prophecy that stole everything. Yet as she struggles to forge a new fate, she must navigate a treacherous court filled with the same players who once destroyed her—and confront the painful truth that escaping destiny may be impossible when those around her refuse to let go of the past. In this second life, Aristia must decide whether to flee from love entirely, or risk everything to claim a future on her own terms.