I asked my husband to support my family and to allow Carlene to remain at the estate.
He coldly replied that I did not need to seek his permission over something so trivial before walking away.
He was as indifferent and distant as ever.
Even so, I felt an immense sense of relief. At the very least, the matter concerning my family had been settled.
Afterward, I left Carlene at the Brandenburg estate and returned to my family home.
I believed I would finally be able to rest peacefully until the baby was born.
I was wrong.
The incident occurred just as my pregnancy was beginning to show.
Once again, a maid from the House of Brandenburg came to see me.
She informed me that, during my absence, Carlene had begun behaving as though she were the mistress of the household.
I had specifically told her to keep a low profile.
Yet this happened almost immediately.
That very evening, I returned to admonish her.
Instead, I witnessed something so shocking that my mind went blank.
Carlene…
And my husband…
They had spent the night together.
The revelation struck me like a heavy blow to the head.
I could not believe that my husband, of all people, would ever open his heart to Carlene.
The shock robbed me of sleep.
I greeted the morning without having closed my eyes even once.
It was then that Carlene came to see me.
I wondered what she wanted.
According to her, everyone now treated her as the lady of the house.
She told me to surrender my position as Lord Oliver’s wife.
That was impossible.
At least, that was what I believed.
But Carlene claimed that my husband himself had said he had no objection.
Then she uttered words that shattered what little composure I had left.
“I think I’m carrying his child.”
She explained that a magical physician had already detected signs of pregnancy.
“So… give me your place as his wife.”
“Carlene… you are already the wife of the Margrave of Limburg.”
“I don’t care! That man spends all his time hunting monsters and leaves his wife alone. He’s hardly a husband at all!”
No one hunted monsters simply because they enjoyed it.
The borderlands undoubtedly suffered terribly because of those creatures.
Surely he fought them because he had no choice.
But no matter what I said, Carlene refused to listen.
“If you understand him so well, then you can become the Margrave of Limburg’s wife!”
With that, Carlene told me to wait.
When she returned, she was carrying the Magitris Workshop.
“This thing was completely useless! I couldn’t use it even once. It’s nothing but worthless junk! You can have it, Aurelia!”
The next instant…
She hurled the Magitris Workshop straight at me.
“Ah…!”
It struck me squarely in the forehead.
Bang!
The heavy artifact crashed onto the floor.
At the same moment the impact echoed through the room, my vision lurched violently.
The droplets falling from my face were not tears.
They were blood.
A crushing headache and overwhelming nausea overtook me.
I could no longer remain standing.
As I collapsed to my knees, Carlene burst into laughter while picking up my Jewelry Workshop.
“I knew it. I like this one much better.”
“Carlene… that’s…!”
You can’t use it.
Not without knowledge of magic.
The words never left my lips.
My breathing became ragged.
Unable to remain conscious, I collapsed onto the floor.
“Goodbye, Aurelia!”
Leaving those words behind, Carlene walked away.
I stretched out my hand, desperately trying to call for help.
But at times like these…
There was no one nearby.
My fingertips brushed against the Magitris Workshop.
The divine Artifact capable of transforming any substance in existence into magic stones.
Crimson letters suddenly appeared before my eyes.
Without giving them any thought…
I read them aloud.
The Magitris Workshop erupted with dazzling light.
A warm radiance enveloped my entire body.
The pain vanished.
The suffocating agony disappeared.
As my consciousness slowly faded, I felt strangely at peace.
When I closed my eyes…
I drifted into sleep, as though I had been welcomed into paradise.
◇◇◇
“It’s so unfair that Aurelia gets everything!”
Carlene’s familiar voice jolted me awake.
Standing before me was Carlene.
She looked slightly younger than I remembered.
For some reason, I was no longer at the Brandenburg estate.
I was back at the Marquisate of Altenburg.
“I’m the one who’s worthy of marrying Lord Oliver of the House of Brandenburg!”
I had heard those exact words before.
They belonged to a time three years earlier.
Before Father had entrusted me with the Jewelry Workshop as part of my dowry.
“Aurelia, let’s go see Father together and ask him to do something about this.”
Carlene grabbed my arm and pulled me forward.
That was when I noticed the calendar hanging in the room.
The date…
It was three years in the past.
What was happening?
“Carlene… wait.”
“Why? Don’t tell me you’ve got pre-wedding jitters?”
…
Something was definitely wrong.
I shook Carlene’s hand free and began to run.
The mansion…
The servants…
The steward…
Everything was exactly as it had been three years ago.
And Father…
“Aurelia? What is it?”
The father lying in bed looked far healthier than the one I remembered.
There was no mistake.
Time…
Had rewound three years.
