IRER 68

Chapter 68

Caleb Miller

Brody stepped out of her quarters and went to the room next door.

Inside, River and the woman who had attacked him were fast asleep, breathing evenly.

“The leaf should’ve worked well, right?”

After checking on the two briefly, Brody headed downstairs.

Startled, she froze at the sight of someone moving in the kitchen. Aidan was already there, tidying up. She hadn’t even noticed when he’d come down.

The broken plates, knives, and other dangerous items had all been cleared away.

“Sigh…”

Brody let out a deep sigh when she spotted a single red droplet staining the counter near the bowls.

“Just when did he notice even this tiny trace?”

She quickly wiped away the spot with a linen cloth.

Cleaning blood splatters was harder than one might think. As she scrubbed, the hangover she had forgotten about came back in full force, pounding inside her skull.

“If licking a wound makes it heal, then… would licking your own head cure a headache? No, that’s impossible anatomically. Like a barber not being able to cut his own hair. Then what if you spit into your palm and rub it…?”

Maybe it was because being in the same space as Aidan after their argument felt awkward, but Brody found herself chasing such random thoughts, trying to distract her mind.

She thought it would’ve been better to just ask him about “the woman who attacked River.” Who she was, and why Brody was protecting her.

But Aidan remained silent the entire time he cleaned. Brody also kept her mouth shut, not wanting to be the first to speak.

When the cleaning was done, Aidan opened the window he had previously closed and left quietly.

Only then did Brody finally let out a long breath of relief.

He had things on his mind just as much as she did, it seemed.

Brody went back upstairs, but instead of her own room, she entered another.

There lay River, pale on the bed—yet the woman beside him looked even paler.

Brody walked past River and approached the black-haired woman whose face was clouded with deep shadows.

And then she remembered.

The scene earlier, in the kitchen.

River had been bleeding profusely, the woman had been slashing wildly with a knife—chaos everywhere. Yet amidst the madness, Brody had clearly heard the woman’s screams.

Her words had stuck in Brody’s ears like a desperate shriek.

— “My daughter, give me back my precious daughter! You cruel bastards! You’re not even worthy of hellfire! My daughter—oh, my daughter Nike. That poor child who hasn’t even come of age yet…”

“Nike?!”

Yes, she had said Nike. “My daughter Nike.”

As the familiar name rang in her ears, Brody realized who this woman was.

“That name, this situation—it’s clear!”

This deranged woman was none other than a supporting character from the original novel—Caleb Miller.

❖ ❖ ❖

Caleb Miller.

She was originally from the North. After marrying a knight, she lived happily with their one daughter.

But her husband died young in an unexpected accident, and to support her daughter she entered the workforce.

At the time, the North and the Empire weren’t openly hostile yet. Recognized for her talents, Caleb was recruited as a maid into a ducal household in the capital.

She had sharp insight, a sense of style, and even set trends that would later become popular.

Thus, despite being an outsider, Caleb surpassed all other maids and rose to the position of head maid.

Although it meant dealing with the demanding ducal family, she could display her skills freely in such a wealthy household, and her daughter could grow up well cared for.

But as the conflict between North and Empire deepened, her peaceful life shattered like glass.

Once her Northern origins were discovered by Jax McCarthy’s mother—the duchess—Caleb was cast out overnight, all for the sake of appearances.

With no choice, she fled with her daughter, traveling day and night to return North.

After narrowly surviving countless hardships, she finally reached Fort Ferdan. But there, she and her party were captured by Imperial forces.

By terrible luck, a soldier who had once worked in the ducal house recognized her and blurted out her identity.

In the chaos, she lost her daughter.

The cruelty she endured after that drove her near madness.

When the Northern Grand Duke was assassinated, the war abruptly ended.

The Empire withdrew, leaving Caleb behind in the reclaimed Northern lands.

But having lost everything, her mind broke completely.

In the original story, it was the princess who nearly fell victim to her madness.

After the war, while inspecting the North, the princess’s party encountered Caleb.

Harboring deep resentment toward the Empire, Caleb tried to kill her. The original Brody, blinded by jealousy, even used the madwoman to her advantage.

But the wise princess escaped unscathed, and not only that, she later had Caleb treated—restoring her sanity.

The princess even reunited her with her daughter, showing her kindness.

In gratitude, Caleb pledged her complete loyalty to the princess.

“Nike—that’s definitely the name of Caleb’s daughter. And this situation matches perfectly.”

Brody nodded, recalling the novel.

Even though the North had effectively won this war, the broad strokes of the story hadn’t changed.

Caleb’s tragedy had still unfolded just the same.

The only real difference was that the one inspecting the territory now wasn’t the imperial princess, but the Northern Grand Duke, since the North still ruled here.

Brody found the irony bitter.

In the original story, the one who healed Caleb’s madness was none other than—the plant sorcerer Brody herself.

Of course, it was under the princess’s orders, and after Brody had failed to kill Caleb, she had reluctantly obeyed.

“In other words, I can heal her.”

Brody gazed down at Caleb, now fast asleep thanks to the dreamleaf.

Her madness was more frightening than the novel had conveyed, her emaciation even more heartbreaking.

Brody couldn’t help but feel sympathy.

“If I ignore this… she’ll never meet her daughter again. And she’ll never regain her sanity.”

How could she look away in such a situation?

After some hesitation, Brody made up her mind—she would treat Caleb.

“But why did she attack River? Was it just her unstable mind, unable to distinguish between North and Empire? And why is she here at all? This village wasn’t in the original novel.”

Attacking someone of River’s rank—a chief of staff, essentially—was no small crime.

For now, Aidan was covering it up for her sake. But once River woke, everything would be exposed.

“Really, I should be grateful. For him to give me this chance in such circumstances…”

Brody toyed with a vial of medicine in her pocket, deep in thought.

“It means His Highness trusts me this much.”

He trusts me, he likes me, he still has feelings for me… and yet, he keeps pushing me away.

One moment he worries for her, the next he pushes her aside. He draws close, then retreats. His heart was clearly in turmoil.

“For someone usually so resolute… he can’t seem to decide when it comes to me.”

Brody sighed heavily. The whole contract marriage weighed on her conscience, and yet her feelings were tangled and unclear, leaving her unsettled.

“Something feels off. But what is it?”

Her musings were cut short by a sudden knock at the door.

“Ma’am, it’s me. May I come in?”

The familiar voice puzzled her. Why was he here?

“Uh, yes. Come in.”

There was no reason to refuse, so she gave permission.

The door opened, and a short-haired young man peeked in with a bright smile—it was Teddy.

“What brings you here?”

Brody greeted him at the door.

Teddy glanced past her into the room, scratched his head, and said:

“Well, the Grand Duke just told me to… come and listen to whatever you said.”

“….”

So Aidan must have sent him, uneasy about leaving Brody alone with River and the would-be assassin.

“And how exactly am I supposed to explain this? Ugh, my head.”

She pressed her temple, hesitating.

“No choice. I’ll just have to use ‘that method.’”

Making up her mind, she let Teddy inside.

“Then… could you help me with some caretaking?”

“Caretaking? Who’s—huh?! Chief of Staff?! I was wondering where he’d gone, and this—what on earth…!”

At his startled cry, Brody quickly raised a finger to her lips.

“This is top secret. That’s why His Highness sent you here quietly. Don’t ask, just help me. The Grand Duke will explain later.”

“Ah, yes ma’am! No questions, no doubts—I’ll obey!”

Relieved by his straightforward answer, Brody smiled faintly.

In this way, she pushed the burden of explaining onto Aidan and avoided the immediate problem.

“But, ma’am…”

“Yes?”

So much for “no questions.” As expected of Teddy—he couldn’t contain his curiosity. Though her head throbbed, Brody kept her composure.

“You didn’t get hurt, did you? His Highness looked worried, so I thought maybe something happened to you…”

“….”

Hurt? Yes. But your Highness already licked it better.

While she muttered that silently in her heart, Teddy continued:

“Well, honestly I figured it was a hangover.”

Thump.

The words hit Brody like a hammer.

A… hangover? Why would he think that?!

“Wait—don’t tell me I made a drunken fool of myself in front of the entire village yesterday?!”

Her expression froze. Teddy, oblivious, went on.

“Mrs. Connie was worried, saying you drank a lot last night but didn’t bother with a hangover cure.”

Brody wiped imaginary sweat from her brow.

“Oh… just something Connie said. Whew.”

But relief was short-lived.

“And, well… several people also… witnessed a touching scene in the potato field.”

Crash.

It felt as though Brody’s heart had fallen right through the floor.

Teddy’s cheeks flushed red with embarrassment as he added:

“Apparently, the Grand Duke and Duchess are very close… That kind of thing.”

Brody felt like if she looked down at her feet, she’d literally see her heart rolling away.

Barely keeping her face calm, she answered:

“I was too drunk… How embarrassing.”

“No, no! What I mean is—it was beautiful! I sincerely pray the two of you stay together forever.”

Brody forced a faint smile.

But in her mind, she was already kicking her blanket a million times in shame.

“People… saw us like that? Aaagh! I want to die.”

That evening, when Aidan returned to the room, he was shocked.

Brody was sprawled face-down on the bed, her face buried in the covers.

The blanket was a mess, as though she’d been thrashing.

Worried something had happened, he hesitated—should he say something? Especially since they hadn’t spoken since their quarrel earlier.

Luckily, Brody spoke first, muffled into her pillow.

He had thought she’d ignore him completely, so a bit of relief washed over him.

“Your Highness… did you know?”

—Until she raised her head and shot the question like a blade.

“…Know what, exactly?”

“What do you think? Yesterday…”

Aidan frowned. Yesterday?

A lot had happened yesterday. Which incident did she mean?

The kiss in the potato field? Threatening River to treat her better? Her vomiting all over his clothes? Or maybe…?

As he sifted through each memory of last night, Brody suddenly sat up and stared at him.

Her face was on the verge of tears.

“…Don’t tell me—you remember?”

Aidan, caught off guard, asked in alarm.