Palms trembling, Estelle’s heartbeat fluttered. A warm yet vivid sensation coursed through her body. John involuntarily swallowed.
“It’s not a difficult task.”
His fingers touching Estelle’s neck had no strength. They didn’t move at all. In that moment, John wondered if there was a problem with his own hand.
“I can’t kill her.”
Rather, he was afraid of accidentally hurting this fragile woman. He tightened his grip, more tense. His heart pounded loudly. He couldn’t even tell whether it was the woman’s heartbeat under his hand or his own. John stared at Estelle, who was asleep with eyes so red they looked almost frightening. It was a silly feeling. But this silly emotion and impulse dominated him. John was caught between an instinct to deny this fact and an urge to accept it. Like an unbreakable loop, no conclusion was reached.
“Ha.”
John let out an absurd laugh.
“It was nothing.”
Initially, for John, Estelle was simply a target for revenge against Libertan. But if it was just that, he thought he should be able to kill her immediately.
“I thought it was a trivial emotion.”
He was confident that even if some feeling arose, he could easily eliminate it. That fact hadn’t changed even now.
…However.
Even though Estelle had become a variable in this revenge, John couldn’t coldly abandon her. In the end, she became more than just a target. He had no choice but to accept that fact.
“My wife.”
Despite everything, she was sound asleep, completely unaware of any danger.
Stupidly, she had no idea who was beside her or what might happen while she slept.
“Estelle Libertan.”
John slowly called her name. Since the target of his revenge was no longer important, he didn’t bother to say her name aloud, even though he knew it. After all, Estelle also called him ‘Duke,’ so it wouldn’t seem strange. John gently took a handful of Estelle’s pink platinum hair and carefully kissed her. The fleeting moment he had with her immediately came to mind.
“I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to worry you over a minor illness.”
“It’s just, I didn’t want to waste unnecessary emotion.”
“If I want, can you heal me, Duke?”
Estelle continued to make John angry. Her calm attitude, her gentle and unguarded demeanor, made John furious. Even though it benefited him, he couldn’t stand the surge of anger within.
“What if she knew I tried to kill her?”
Perhaps, she might say something similar. Thinking that, warmth spread through his head again.
“…Duke?”
Estelle slowly opened her eyes. Fortunately, there was not even a mark on her slender neck. John felt relieved at that, but he also recalled the absurd fact that if her body were grasped just a little too tightly, it would leave a mark.
“Is something wrong, Duke?”
“Nothing special.”
John smiled kindly as he watched Estelle stretch.
“I was so happy to see my wife this morning.”
“Don’t, don’t tease me.”
“Was I being too sincere?”
As John shrugged his shoulders, Estelle’s cheeks oddly flushed. The man then placed his hand on her beautiful cheeks.
…It was just that we woke up together.
“That’s all.”
“My wife, I didn’t mean it that way.”
Tears welled up in Betty’s eyes. She looked as if she wanted to say something, but then she quickly closed her mouth and smiled sadly.
“It’s a relief though. Even if you two don’t get along well, it seems like you’re not entirely bad.”
What is she thinking?
‘Honestly, is she worried about something that happened in the original story…?’
In the original story, I greeted John in my own bedroom. However, no intimacy was ever consummated between us, and John never even stayed by my side while I was dozing. Feeling unloved by my family and neglected even by my husband, I grew to love John more and cling to him—just as he had planned.
‘Of course, there are differences.’
In the original, I never used the couple’s bedroom. To begin with, John valued the main house’s bedroom too highly. It was a building rebuilt after a complete fire, and even if the traces of family had nearly disappeared, he had painstakingly restored it to its former state. There was no way he’d want to bring someone like Libertan’s daughter into such a place.
‘Did I end up here because I suddenly collapsed?’
It might have been difficult to be taken back to the annex due to the Anton incident. Betty, noticing my thoughts, confirmed with an excited voice:
“So, my lady, John must have stayed with you and then left, right?”
“I can’t be sure if he left and came back in the middle…”
If John was so meticulous as to be like a mastermind, then he could very well have done that. Betty shook her head.
“Oh, come on. That’s impossible. John must have felt something for you, no doubt about it.”
No matter how I thought about it, Betty seemed to see the world too positively. I was no different, but Betty was even more optimistic. Still, I decided not to burst her cheerful imagination.
‘She’s so fond of him—what’s the big deal?’
After finishing the breakfast Betty prepared, I decided to look around the mansion before starting my official duties as the mistress. Betty gave detailed guidance about the main building and then brought me a letter from the nearby study.
“Here is an invitation to the Grand Masquerade at the Palace, hosted by the Duke of Blanchet. It’s addressed to you, my lady.”
“To me?”
If it had come from the Duke of Blanchet’s family, I wouldn’t be surprised. But an invitation in my name was quite unexpected.
‘I suppose now I’m quite famous.’
The Libertan adopted daughter, twice disowned, married into the Blanchet family. Specifically, she had entered their house to pay off the debts of the Libertan family. Meanwhile, the Duke of Libertan was imprisoned for treason, and no one knows what happened to the adopted daughter.
Even I would have been curious.
What an absurd situation. Some nobles were probably speculating whether I was dead or alive. I folded the invitation back into its envelope and returned it to Betty.
“Please put this in my room.”
“Yes. Would you like to explore the main mansion further?”
Unlike the annex, the main building was so vast that I doubted I could see it all in one day. I shook my head.
“I think I’ll go see the garden now.”
“Oh, the garden in the main mansion is truly beautiful. Shall I guide you?”
“No, it’s okay. I just want to walk around the garden alone and relax.”
Following a rough direction, I headed toward the main mansion’s garden. Usually, the garden was a greenhouse full of blooming flowers, like the one I saw at Libertan. But the garden of the Black Forest was a dense forest, perhaps due to the maze-like layout.
‘I think I kept hearing sounds from around here.’
As I approached the forest, the voices grew clearer. -There’s strange dark magic in the estate… -Maybe something big is about to happen again. -That kid is entering the forest again. But I can’t see him? The voices I heard in the study, the deep male voice that warned me before Anton came.
-Now, I wonder if they can hear us.
-Last time, I think I heard our voices when I was ill…
It seemed to be coming from those trees. Gently placing my hand on a tree, I pondered.
‘What should I say to it?’
Suddenly, a faint light shimmered around the tree I touched, and the voices I had been hearing grew louder.
-Can you hear our voices?
I nodded and asked the tree.
“Yes, I can. But… are the ones talking to me really just trees?”
-Oh, my. Finally. I thought I wouldn’t see it anymore, but now I can communicate.
-When that person is around, I was too scared to even speak!
From the context, it seemed they were talking about John. The trees were indignant and angry among themselves, then some of them scolded each other.
-Everyone, calm down. What is this, the trees who have lived long enough?
-That’s right. Don’t you feel ashamed in front of a child? Wasting nutrients that the roots have absorbed.
Then they reconciled again. The trees that had been causing a fuss started speaking solemnly.
-We are the trees living in Blanchet Garden.
-We have been waiting to talk to you for a long time. Probably every tree you brushed past was waiting for you.
Even after hearing this, the atmosphere didn’t seem entirely solemn. Still, I listened carefully. Because this was a story not even in the original.
“…Me? Why me?”
-Because you are the last fairy.
The last fairy.
‘Me, a fairy?’
One tree lowered its branches, as if stroking my head.
-This must be quite surprising, hearing this all of a sudden.
“Well, yes. So… you’re saying I’m the last fairy?”
-Yes. Have you ever seen things others couldn’t, or experienced anything unusual?
I thought carefully, but I had no memory of seeing ghosts or anything like that.
“No, I haven’t.”
-That can’t be. Then, here in this mansion too? There might be times when you see the same thing differently from others. Fairies see truths unrelated to the present.
I had no idea what to expect. So I decided to shift to a more productive topic.
“But why didn’t this happen before?”
-Because something kept blocking you from talking to us.
-Especially you…
A solemn atmosphere spread among the trees.
-You are cursed, and as a result, you are continually losing your fairy powers.
A curse.
-Fairies are the most valuable sacrifices, so they are often used as offerings.
-I wonder which terrible humans cast such a dreadful curse…
A sudden image from the dark magic book I had seen flashed in my mind.
‘It said there must be a sacrifice and a curse.’
My heartbeat suddenly grew unnaturally loud. I asked in a trembling voice.
“Do you know what curse is upon me?”
-Unfortunately, even we don’t know that much. There are so many curses intertwined that it’s complicated.
The story begins again at the starting point.
‘Who cast the curse?’
In the original, the most prominent dark mage was John. And he bore a grudge against Libertan, even attempting revenge on me.
“But is it really John?”
I couldn’t jump to conclusions before confirming.
“Is there a way to identify who cast the curse?”
-A curse always needs an intermediary. If it’s you, the cursed person, you should be able to recognize that intermediary.
“If I break the intermediary, can I lift the curse?”
-Probably, yes.
Then I had only one thing to do immediately.
‘John’s study.’
If he had hidden something deep inside the mansion, I wouldn’t be able to find it. But if it was John’s study, I could go in right now.
‘It’s also the place he spends most of his time.’
Last time I went to bring him a snack, there were too many people, so I couldn’t look around properly.
“Then, I’ll go find it now. But if I don’t come to see him like this, can we still talk?”
At that moment, a single leaf from a nearby tree fluttered down. As soon as it touched me, a light green glow seeped into my body.
-Don’t worry. From now on, just think of us as being easy to talk to, and you’ll be able to communicate freely.
~·~·*· . ·*· . ·*· . ·*·~·~
I immediately headed to John’s study. Luckily, there was no one to disturb me in the meantime. However, as soon as I hesitated in front of the door, I felt doubtful.
‘What if John is inside?’
Then I shook my head quickly.
‘I should just say I came to discuss that wish or deal from before.’
Still, my body trembled as I hesitantly reached for the door. But the study was empty.
“Good.”
Entering the study, I immediately checked John’s desk. It looked like he had hurriedly left somewhere, as there were documents piled on it. Among them, one caught my eye.
‘A bear-shaped cookie?’
It was the same kind of cookie John had given me last time.
‘Could he have left it intending to give it to me?’
It was a crazy thought, but as I looked at a document with the name Libertan written on it, suddenly— the door swung open.
“This time, Lord Blainet is going to investigate…”
Honestly, I had somewhat expected this situation. I had even prepared some excuses in advance before coming.
“But still…”
I grabbed my head with both hands.
“Why am I hiding here?”
As soon as I sensed someone approaching, instinctively, I ducked behind the desk, feeling guilty as if I were a thief.
“Someone might misunderstand if I leave now!”
I was sure John and the captain of the knights were near the door. Then, a person slowly approached the desk.
~·~·*· . ·**##^^##**· . ·*·~·~
Hey there, It’s Green Rose 😉
Since I human I might have make some mistakes while translating so please if you find them let me know here in the comments or in the Discord group so I can correct them and be careful in the future so they do not repeat.
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
~~~Next Chapter~~~
Next chapter will be released Tomorrow.
See you then!!
