Chapter 89

A month had passed since the assassination attempt on Iris. During that time, Nine’s memory hadn’t returned at all, and his cold treatment of me remained unchanged. While he followed my suggestions regarding Iris’s revenge, he no longer shared any information with me. At the same time, the protection around Iris intensified, making it difficult for me to even meet her, despite having been assisting with her education. As the relationship between Nine and me grew frigid, the atmosphere in the castle became increasingly tense, like walking on thin ice.

‘Still, it’s a relief that he hasn’t stripped me of my authority as Duchess.’

It seemed he still felt contempt for me, just as he did when we first married, but also felt obligated to take responsibility. He had likely already confirmed my competence. It would be highly inefficient to strip me of my authority as Duchess now, especially since I was already handling significant duties.

However, contrary to my thoughts, even if I had been stripped of my authority, the surrounding environment might not have been as difficult as it was in the beginning.

“Lady Chacha! The weather has gotten colder, and your clothes are too light. Here, this is a mink-knitted cloak; please wear it!”

“Oh my goodness. Why are you so thin! I’ll talk to the chef to make you something nourishing for dinner tonight! You like carrot potage, don’t you?”

Even when I simply walked down the corridor, the servants would ask about my well-being and try to offer me something. I had assumed the attitude of the servants who hadn’t seen much of us since the capital would remain the same, but that wasn’t the case. It seemed the story of how we had lived in the capital had spread widely among the servants. Because of this, even in the peculiar situation of Nine’s amnesia, I was still treated as the Duchess. Despite Nine’s coldness toward me, the servants’ goodwill remained. It was a great relief that I wasn’t being tormented or ignored as I was when I first arrived in the North.

I smiled at the overly attentive servants and said, “Thank you for the care, but the cloak is fine. I’m just going to the office, not outside, so I’ll get warm soon.”

“Oh, but still.”

“Chacha!”

As I was politely declining the servants’ kindness in the corridor, Adel suddenly ran up and hugged me tightly.

“Chacha, good morning! Did you sleep well?”

It wasn’t just the servants who worried about and cared for me. Perhaps due to the shock of that day, Adel, who already visited me daily, had been coming even more frequently recently to check on me. According to Van, Adel had been having many nightmares since that incident. Perhaps that’s why his morning greeting, whenever we met, was always, “Did you sleep well?”

I dismissed the servants and stroked Adel’s head. “Of course. Did Adel sleep well? Didn’t you have any scary dreams?”

“Ahem! Who do you think I am!”

Adel spoke proudly, yet still nestled into my arms like a child seeking affection. I hugged Adel back tightly.

‘Adel will have a very hard time when I leave…’

I was worried about Adele, who had regained his trust in adults through me.

“Oh, it’s my sister!”

But this wouldn’t be my role anymore. Adele spotted Roana outside the window and waved excitedly to her. Roana, who was training in the practice field, noticed Adele and began waving back. I exchanged only a glance with her and thought,

‘Now that Roana has also come to her senses, she’ll be fine.’

Roana, who had started wielding her sword again, seemed to have learned a lot and was taking even better care of Adele and Kate. So it would be fine. Even without me, the people of the Eclipse Duchy would be able to rely on each other now.

***

“That mostly wraps up the organization…”

Back in the office, I muttered to myself, looking at the neatly organized handover documents. These were materials organized so that the next Duchess, or an acting representative in the absence of the Duchess, could handle the estate management and administrative tasks without difficulty. It had taken an entire month just to prepare these documents. It was unavoidable, as I had made many changes to the existing procedures since I started assisting with the Duchess’s duties.

With the handover materials finalized, the people I had met on the way to the office came to mind again. I chewed on their warm words and expressions of concern, lightly biting my lower lip. I felt a twinge of guilt for refusing their kindness and not being able to respond properly.

‘But I did well.’

I felt that if I fully accepted their hearts and consideration, my resolve would weaken.

Unlike me, those who were unaware of the original story seemed to believe that Nine’s memory would return.

‘They must be taking extra care of me because they think Nine will regret treating me coldly when his memory returns.’

The servants, Nine’s family, and even his close associates. Those who were still unaware of the fake pregnancy even sent Tully to check on my health and made sure to serve me dishes that were supposedly good for expectant mothers at every meal. My heart felt softened by the unmistakable consideration and warmth.

However, I looked down at the stacked documents and solidified my decision.

Click.

I opened the desk drawer in the office that had a lock and pulled out the document envelope placed within it. These were the divorce papers I had quietly obtained with the help of Wilhelm and Helena, without any rumors leaking out. Since the documents only went through the merchant guild, Ortrancia, and then into my hands, no one, not even Nine himself, would know about this fact.

“Annie.”

“Yes.”

Annie, who had been quietly watching me, answered. Although I had only called her name, Annie seemed to guess what I meant and began collecting the documents.

“Let’s hurry.”

Since I was ready, I didn’t want to delay the day of my departure any longer.

***

As the day to leave Nine and this place, which had just begun to feel like my home, approached, my heart was restless. Considering my condition, sleeping would have been best, but sleep wouldn’t come, so I wandered around inside and outside the castle late at night. I wanted to imprint the sight of this place into my memory one last time, so I aimlessly wandered wherever my feet took me.

But the final destination of my footsteps was ultimately the greenhouse.

As I walked toward the greenhouse, I calmly took in the well-tended garden and the training field. Many memories had accumulated in the garden and the training field in a short period.

‘Isn’t that the flower the gardener newly planted for me? It already has buds.’

‘That’s the wooden dummy Adel used when he first learned swordsmanship.’

‘Ah, that’s what I used when I trained for the duel with Roana.’

I slowed my pace and looked around everywhere, wanting to absorb every blade of grass in the Duchy. Even as I walked, reminiscing about warm memories, the cold wind was unusually intense on the path to the greenhouse, making me feel chilled to the bone. Yet, my restless mind and thoughts seemed to clear up from the cold air. I shivered once and pulled my coat tighter around me.

At the greenhouse, a soft light was spilling out through the glass windows.

‘Is it Kate?’

I quietly approached and peered inside the glass window. And the moment I looked past the green leaves, my whole body froze rigid.

Two shadows were flickering in the soft light.

“…”

The soundproofing was good, so the conversation inside wasn’t clearly audible. My heart sank, and my hands trembled, but my mind, which refused to think, eventually made me slightly open the greenhouse door.

I had expected it when I saw the shadow, but the early visitor was not Kate, contrary to my hope.

“…I love you. It’s only you.”

“…”

The flickering shadow whispered. Kneeling on one knee, with his right hand placed on his left chest, Nine was confessing his love passionately.

Tears instantly welled up. My heart felt ripped apart by the fact that I had finally witnessed the moment I desperately didn’t want to face, just when I had decided to leave. I blinked my eyes to clear my blurring vision and looked past his back.

‘Iris.’

Hearing Nine’s confession, she was sitting there, smiling brightly. As if she had known, as if she had been waiting for this very moment, she looked confident.

“…Hic.”

I felt a surge of nausea, turned around, and ran away frantically. I just wanted to escape this place immediately.