After John refused the marriage proposal, silence filled the room.
King Magnus studied him carefully.
Before either of them could continue, a knock came from the door.
“Enter.”
The door slowly opened.
A young woman stepped inside.
The moment John saw her, his eyes slightly widened.
Princess Elizabeth.
In his previous life, she had been one of the few people who helped him when everything fell apart.
When nobles abandoned him.
When allies disappeared.
When his kingdom stood on the edge of destruction.
She had tried to help.
But the woman standing before him now looked completely different from the Elizabeth he remembered.
There was no scar across her face.
No coldness in her eyes.
No exhaustion.
No pain.
Instead—
She looked kind.
Gentle.
Merciful.
Alive.
For a brief moment, John simply stared.
King Magnus noticed.
A proud smile appeared on his face.
“Prince John.”
The king gestured toward her.
“This is Princess Elizabeth.”
His expression softened.
“My only child.”
Then he added quietly,
“And my whole life.”
Elizabeth walked forward gracefully and bowed.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Prince John.”
John returned the greeting.
“The pleasure is mine, Princess.”
After a few moments of conversation, John turned toward the king.
“Your Majesty.”
Magnus looked at him.
“May I speak with the princess privately?”
The king raised an eyebrow before nodding.
“Very well.”
A few minutes later, John and Elizabeth found themselves walking through a quiet palace garden.
Snow covered the ground while moonlight illuminated the pathways.
For a while, neither spoke.
Then John broke the silence.
“Do you know why your father called you here tonight?”
Elizabeth looked confused.
“No.”
John wasn’t surprised.
King Magnus clearly hadn’t told her.
So John answered directly.
“Your father wants us to marry.”
Elizabeth stopped walking.
Her eyes widened.
“What?”
John nodded.
For several seconds, she simply stood there trying to process what she had heard.
Then she looked away.
Because in his previous life, Elizabeth had dreamed of something else.
Something far different from marriage.
“You want to become a knight.”
Elizabeth immediately looked back at him.
Surprised.
“How did you know?”
John smiled faintly.
“Just a guess.”
In reality—
He already knew.
In his previous life, Elizabeth had spent years training to become a knight.
And after finally achieving her dream…
She had died the very next day.
A memory John would never forget.
Looking at her now, he silently swore that this future would not happen again.
“You don’t need to worry.”
Elizabeth blinked.
“What?”
“I’ll handle everything with your father.”
The princess stared at him.
Slowly, understanding appeared in her eyes.
Relief followed.
Then she bowed deeply.
“Thank you, Prince John.”
Her voice was sincere.
“I truly appreciate this.”
John simply nodded.
“You should follow your own path.”
A bright smile appeared on her face.
Perhaps the brightest smile John had seen all night.
After a few more words, Elizabeth excused herself and returned to the palace.
John watched her leave before making his way back to King Magnus.
The king immediately looked toward him.
“How did it go?”
John sat down calmly.
“Princess Elizabeth does not wish to marry me.”
Magnus frowned.
John continued.
“And I respect her decision.”
The king remained silent.
He loved his daughter more than anything.
And forcing her into a marriage she didn’t want was something he could never do.
After several moments, Magnus sighed.
“I see.”
John then spoke again.
“Your Majesty.”
The king looked at him.
“One day, you will find a suitable man for your daughter.”
Magnus slowly nodded.
“Perhaps.”
The conversation soon shifted toward politics.
The following day, Sir Carol and John finalized the agreements between Aerith and Wilhelm.
Freshwater access.
Trade cooperation.
Military assistance.
Everything proceeded smoothly.
Meanwhile, Nick continued teaching the young lady he had met at the training grounds.
Neither of them realized who the other truly was.
Days passed quickly.
The royal carriage waited outside the palace gates.
Snow continued falling across the capital.
King Magnus personally came to see them off.
After saying their farewells, John, Nick, and Sir Carol prepared to depart.
Near the palace entrance, the young lady stood quietly watching.
Nick smiled.
“Goodbye.”
She smiled back.
“Goodbye, Knight Nick.”
Nick pointed toward her training sword.
“You better become a knight.”
A determined look appeared in her eyes.
“I will.”
John, who was already inside the carriage, suddenly looked between them.
Then he looked at Nick.
“How do you know the princess?”
Nick blinked.
“The princess?”
John pointed toward the young lady standing beside King Magnus.
Nick slowly turned.
His eyes widened.
“Wait…”
For the first time, Nick realized who she actually was.
Princess Elizabeth.
The daughter of King Magnus.
The young woman he had been training for the last few days.
Elizabeth couldn’t help but smile at his reaction.
“Did you really not know?”
Nick stood speechless.
Looking back, everything suddenly made sense.
The royal guard.
Her swordsmanship lessons.
The way palace servants treated her.
He simply never connected the pieces.
Elizabeth gave him a respectful bow.
“Thank you for everything, Knight Nick.”
Nick scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“I… didn’t do much.”
A small laugh escaped Elizabeth.
“You saved my life once.”
Her eyes softened.
“And you helped me again.”
For a brief moment, neither spoke.
Then King Magnus called out.
“Elizabeth.”
The princess nodded.
Before stepping back, she looked toward Nick one last time.
“I’ll become a knight.”
Nick smiled.
“I’ll be disappointed if you don’t.”
The carriage finally began moving.
As Wilhelm Palace slowly disappeared into the distance, Nick remained staring through the window.
Still trying to process everything.
Meanwhile, outside the palace gates, Elizabeth watched the carriage disappear beyond the snowy road.
A faint smile remained on her face.
And for the first time in a very long while—
She felt one step closer to her dream.
This fits your story better because Elizabeth always knew Nick’s identity, while Nick is the one who discovers at the end that the “young lady” was Princess Elizabeth all along.