TMM 32

On her day off, Alicia ended up visiting Fran together with Samuel.

The weather was great that day, and Alicia rode in Samuel’s carriage to the Hubert family’s townhouse, where Fran was now staying. Samuel was guided to the salon, while Alicia was led to Fran’s private room.

Samuel protested at once, but Fran brushed him aside with a sharp remark.
“Do you intend to intrude on a conversation between women? Is that how a gentleman behaves?”

With that, she left him no room to argue.

Inside the room, tea had already been prepared. Fran hurriedly dismissed the maids. Sunlight filtered gently through lace curtains, and a calm, pleasant breeze drifted in.

The tea table was set with cookies, tarts, and sandwiches, all of them tempting. Yet Alicia was too tense to touch anything.

“Is it all right to leave Lord Samuel alone?” Alicia asked.

Fran poured steaming tea into Alicia’s cup.

“It’s fine. I don’t want Samuel to hear this. More importantly, thank you for coming today.”

“Lady Fran… why did you ask Lord Samuel to contact me?”

“At the wedding, I was quite carried away, wasn’t I? I thought perhaps I frightened you. You were pale when you looked at me, and I heard you collapsed afterward. So I asked him to reach out, just in case.”

If she knew that, why summon her at all?
Alicia felt restless, unable to settle, and spoke before any small talk could begin.

“Then… Lady Fran, what did you wish to tell me?”

“There’s something I didn’t tell you before. I didn’t tell you everything I saw at the clock tower. But one thing is certain—the future did change. In truth, I was meant to be stabbed at the wedding, not Patrick.”

“What? Lady Fran, didn’t you take measures to prevent her from entering? Surely you weren’t planning to be stabbed yourself?”

Fran gave a faint, bitter smile.

“Knowing the future gave me a sense of ease. I knew that even if I were stabbed, I would survive and later give birth to a son. Because I knew that, I wanted to see Patrick cry, to see him break down in grief.”

“…What?”

Fran laughed softly.

“When I looked into the mirror that night, broken images flowed into my mind. Until just before the ceremony, I was watching Charlotte closely. I think I could have stopped her if I truly wished to. But perhaps it was a moment of weakness. I wanted to see Patrick just as the mirror showed—kneeling, confessing, swearing his eternal love to me.”

Heat shone in Fran’s eyes, her lips softening into a rapt smile. Faced with that look, Alicia swallowed hard.

“…That’s…”

“You are kind, Alicia. In the end, Patrick risked his life to protect me. He confessed everything and swore eternal love. And now, there is a child growing inside me.”

“……”

“You looked into the mirror too, so you understand. The future shown there comes only in fragments. I don’t know which of my actions changed it. But the future can be changed. I wanted you to hear that directly. You looked so hopeless before… And, to be honest, I didn’t want to leave this experience behind in writing.”

Fran’s expression returned to calm. There was no malice on her face, yet a chill crept down Alicia’s spine.

“Alicia, do you find me frightening? Or do you despise me?”

“I am frightened. But I don’t despise you.”

“You look unwell. You don’t need to force yourself to drink the tea. But tell me one last thing. Have you ever loved someone so fiercely it drove you mad?”

Fran was strong-willed and spoke with startling directness, far from the image of a gentle noble lady.

Alicia almost answered, then stopped herself.

If she continued this conversation, Fran might sense the future Alicia had seen—or Alicia might reveal everything herself.

Somewhere in her heart, Alicia was wary of Fran. Even if she spoke, Fran would remain a bystander. She would not help.

That was reason enough not to take the risk.

“Lady Fran, you are mistaken.”

“…What?”

Fran blinked in surprise.

“I never looked into the mirror. What I saw was only a nightmare.”

Alicia said it firmly.

“Then that nightmare changed you. If so, your future must be changing as well. I pray for your good fortune, Alicia.”

Fran spoke of a “nightmare,” yet her tone suggested she was convinced Alicia had seen the future in the mirror.

That was the truth. Still, Alicia had no intention of discussing it with her.

In the end, the only thing that bound them was the magic mirror. They had never truly been alike.

(The me in the mirror prayed with my dying breath, ‘In my next life, may I be united with you.’)

“How unpleasant.”

Alicia murmured the words under her breath.