Chapter 3
Drip. Drip.
I heard the sound of water falling.
No…
Was it the sound of blood?
I remembered sitting in the bathtub with my wrist deeply cut, staring blankly at the drops of blood falling one by one.
I remembered closing my eyes as my consciousness slowly faded.
So this is how I die…
I could feel the strength leaving my body.
Then…
At some point…
A bright light filled my vision.
It felt as though someone was standing beside me.
A low voice echoed in my ears.
“It’s all because the Duke failed to protect her. I said I wanted her. I never said I had already taken her.”
“Can you really blame me? Wasn’t it Your Highness who threatened the Marquess of the Border and cornered her?”
“That was only because the Marquess was too loyal.”
“You really do know how to avoid responsibility. Why don’t you just say it’s Rose’s fault too?”
It was Atheord…
And the Crown Prince.
Atheord looked exhausted, his face rough and worn as he confronted the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince hid his irritation behind a fake, easygoing smile.
I was certain my eyes had been closed.
Yet somehow…
It felt as though I was actually watching them.
…Was he fighting for me?
Even in my fading consciousness, a faint warmth spread through my heart.
But after our relationship had fallen apart…
Atheord had become so distant.
Then…
Was this only a dream?
The blurry scene rippled…
Then changed.
“You went this far just to sell your own daughter… Are you satisfied now?”
“…I only did what I had to do.”
“What you had to do? You mean sending your own daughter to her death?”
“…That was her own choice, Duke.”
“So you’re making excuses until the very end, Count. I pity Rose for believing someone like you was her father.”
Now it was Atheord…
Standing before my father.
His face was much thinner than before.
His eyes burned with hatred as he scolded my father, who stood with his head lowered.
…Had I really died?
Was this happening after my death?
Was I still dreaming?
The scene changed once again.
This time…
A group of nobles whose faces I recognized but whose names I didn’t know gathered at what looked like a banquet or tea party, whispering among themselves.
“I heard the Duke argued with His Highness the Crown Prince again.”
“You can hardly call it an argument. His Highness has been taking out his anger on the Duke’s family.”
“The Duke’s family isn’t backing down either. Every time the Crown Prince attacks them, they fight back. I even heard Harriet and Linus had to step in recently.”
“This is terrible. The Duchess died without leaving an heir… and now the Duke is like this…”
“I’m worried the side branches of the family will take advantage of the situation. It’s such an old and respected house…”
Atheord…
Had fought with the Crown Prince?
Without thinking, I reached toward the scene.
Perhaps…
I wanted to hold onto it.
With every new vision…
It felt more and more like I was standing beside him, watching everything happen.
Was that only my imagination?
As my hand moved unconsciously…
The scene disappeared.
Then…
I saw Atheord again.
The large room was filled with empty liquor bottles.
There was no proper meal.
No one beside him.
He sat slumped in a chair…
Holding a single bottle in his hand.
“…Rose… did you really hate me that much? Me… the man who could never protect you… who only kept running away…”
His quiet voice echoed in my ears.
It was so soft…
As though it could disappear at any moment.
A voice that sounded ready to break into tears.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… It was my fault… I should have protected you better… I should have…”
His weak voice trembled.
Unable to bear hearing it…
I covered my mouth with both hands.
“I couldn’t believe in your love… Maybe it was because something I thought could never happen happened so easily… No… those are only excuses. I should have trusted you… I should have…”
No…
That’s not true…
I’m the one who’s sorry for leaving you alone…
There were so many things I wanted to say.
But all that came out…
Were broken sobs.
His painful voice…
And my tears…
Mixed together as the blurry vision slowly faded away.
“I love you, Rose… I’ll see you again… very soon…”
Crash!
The sound of glass shattering rang clearly.
No…
Was that the sound of him drawing his sword?
I saw him pick up a strange-looking bottle…
And pour its contents into his mouth.
What…?
What are you doing?
What are you drinking?
“See you again”…?
What are you trying to do?
No…
Don’t…
Please don’t, my love…
Atheord!
No!
“No!”
“Gasp!”
I shot upright, taking a desperate breath.
I had gotten up so violently that I nearly fell off the bed.
…The bed?
I was lying…
On a bed?
Warmth surrounded me.
The soft blanket wrapped around my body.
…I hadn’t died?
Instinctively, I grabbed my wrist.
I had clearly…
Cut it before I died.
I was certain I had.
But…
There wasn’t a single wound.
This wasn’t the body that had withered away from endless loneliness.
My skin was healthy again.
There wasn’t a scar anywhere.
No pain.
Only…
A faint ache when I gently pressed on my wrist.
I kept touching my wrist…
My hand…
My arm…
Carefully checking my body.
Why does only this place hurt?
Is it because… this was where I gave up my life?
The memory of that day remained as vivid as if it had just happened.
Yet my body was completely unharmed.
Not even the smallest scar remained.
What…
Was happening?
Looking at my body, restored as though nothing had ever happened…
Goosebumps ran down my spine.
I slowly moved again.
The blanket slipped from my body.
Everything felt unreal.
A light canopy surrounded the bed, shielding it from the bright morning sunlight.
Beyond the gently swaying fabric…
The room looked strangely familiar.
This is…
Blinking in confusion, I looked around.
The canopy.
The blanket.
The bed.
The room was decorated with bright colors I would never have used in the North.
It had a cute, elegant atmosphere.
It was…
My aunt’s guest room.
The room where I had stayed before marrying Atheord.
Neither Atheord nor I liked canopy beds.
But…
The only time I had ever stayed here was before our marriage.
After getting married, I had rarely even visited my aunt.
So why…
Was I here?
Is this another dream?
Is this showing me something after my death too?
“My Lady! Are you awake?”
Knock. Knock.
Jenna’s voice came from outside the door.
The sudden knocking startled me so badly that I almost jumped.
…This doesn’t feel blurry.
Her voice came through the door…
But unlike the dreams before…
It sounded much clearer.
Could dreams become more realistic?
And…
My Lady?
No…
She had said—
“Miss.”
Even Cleor, Mason family’s assistant who regularly reported on the North’s affairs to me because Father never managed them himself, sometimes called me “Miss.”
He always joked that after calling me that my whole life, the habit was hard to break.
But Jenna had been different.
She insisted on calling me “My Lady.”
She said that once I was married, my title naturally had to change.
So why…
Was Jenna calling me “Miss”?
“Miss! Are you still asleep?”
“Ah… come in! You can come in, Jenna.”
Questions could wait.
Right now…
I needed answers.
So I decided to learn what was happening from Jenna.
The moment I answered…
She opened the door and hurried inside.
“Oh dear, oh dear.”
She rushed over immediately and pulled back my blanket.
“You always wake up early. Why did you sleep in today?”
“Hmm… I wonder.”
“Well, I understand you came home late yesterday and you’re tired. But our guest will be arriving soon.”
“A guest? This early?”
With practiced hands, Jenna helped me out of bed and neatly made it.
After smoothing the blankets, she smiled brightly.
“Yes! Yesterday you said a wonderful gentleman would be visiting today!”
“…A wonderful gentleman?”
A wonderful gentleman?
Jenna was calling me “Miss.”
I had woken up in my aunt’s house…
At a time before my marriage.
And the man I had called wonderful…
“…Atheord?”
“Oh my! Even his name sounds handsome!”
Jenna clapped happily.
“As soon as you came home yesterday, you told everyone he would visit today. Count Mason, the Marquis, and the Madam have all been nervous since morning. I even heard a messenger came earlier.”
She laughed cheerfully.
“Our Miss is already in love. I knew someone as popular as you would find a gentleman soon.”
Of course…
She had no idea how confused I was.
Taking a slow breath…
I looked at her.
“Jenna… what day is it today?”
“Today? It’s April 24.”
“What year of the Imperial Calendar?”
“383. Why are you asking, Miss?”
“383…”
Imperial Year 383…
That was…
Before my marriage.
It was April.
The month of the debutante ball.
If my memory was correct…
The Emperor had summoned us from the North so I could make my debut.
And during that time…
I hadn’t met Atheord yet.
It was…
Before all of our tragedy began.
Then…
Who was this “wonderful gentleman” coming to see me today?
Had I met anyone besides Atheord while we were staying in the capital?
After thinking for a moment…
I let out a quiet sigh.
The important thing was that someone was coming to see me.
Whether this was a dream or reality…
There was nothing I could do except accept what was happening and find out the truth.
Imperial Year 383.
April.
Yes…
Whether this was a dream or reality…
I would discover the answer soon enough.
“Yesterday was your debutante, remember? You even said this year’s debut was unusually early.
You were looking forward to it so much…
Did you already forget after only one day?”
The moment Jenna finished speaking…
Something flashed through my mind.
I had been so focused on the month…
That I forgot the exact date she had told me.
The only year when the debutante ball was moved earlier than usual…
Was Imperial Year 383.
Because…
The Crown Prince had insisted on it.
How could I forget that?
Imperial Year 383.
April 24.
That day…
Was the day after I first met Atheord at the debutante.
It was the day before every tragedy in our lives began.
