WGMFTR | Chapter 20

Episode 20

“Lydia.”

At the low, heavy voice that called her name, Lydia also became tense.

“Yes? Is there a problem?”

She wondered if something serious had happened, but Ilian asked an entirely unexpected question.

“This work—how much of your power does it consume?”

“…It does consume a lot. As I told you before, it’s a type of powerful magic I’m seeing for the first time.”

Lydia, unable to grasp the intent of the question, simply stated the truth.

“The drain on your energy must be intense.”

“If I overdo it, it can be a bit tough.”

That was true, but it was still within a manageable level. More accurately, she was confident she could manage it.

“Is that why the doctor said your vitality had dropped?”

Only then did Lydia understand where this conversation was headed.

She hadn’t thought there was anything wrong, but now she realized it might be possible.

After all, she had never used such a large amount of power continuously like this before.

“Oh. Now that I think about it, maybe. Especially at first, I pushed too hard without really knowing. I thought the curse would be lifted right away if I just poured enough power into it.”

“Right. That first day, too. As soon as you touched me, you staggered, and I had to catch you.”

He spoke in a murmuring tone, more as if he were recalling the memory to himself than asking her.

“I didn’t expect the curse to be that powerful. Honestly, since my power is what fights the curse, it would be strange if there were no energy drain at all.”

So now, she wanted him to let go of her hand so she could check his condition, but Ilian still seemed displeased.

Lydia didn’t understand why he was suddenly acting like this. Wasn’t the whole point of their agreement to lift the curse?

Even if the contract was set for one year, wouldn’t it be better if it ended sooner so they could both go their separate ways?

“Still, I can’t just not lift the curse. This is power I’ve used all my life and am familiar with. I know it well. It’s okay.”

Resolving his condition, where he constantly endured the curse in a state of pain, should be the most urgent matter.

“To you, this is something that has to be finished quickly, isn’t it?”

She couldn’t understand why he was asking something so obvious. Wasn’t he the one who most wanted to resolve and end this quickly?

“You don’t intend to keep me in the marchioness’s seat for years, right?”

Perhaps it was because she had seen the troublesome Princess Yulina with her own eyes today, but her words came out a bit sharp.

No matter how she looked at it, there was no reason someone as great as the marquis should live alone forever.

If not her, the only one suitable for marriage would be that princess.

If that were the case, wasn’t she a huge obstacle in the process of the marquis and the princess getting married?

Maybe the dramatic rejection of Princess Yulina’s proposal wasn’t just because of the curse, but because he couldn’t marry until it was resolved.

“With you, maybe it’ll be fine.”

His words didn’t sound like a joke, and a bitter smile appeared on Lydia’s lips.

“No, thank you. I’m already overwhelmed, and we’re not even married yet. I’m obviously not suited to being the marchioness.”

“You never know until you try. People’s aptitudes are unpredictable.”

His right thumb, which was still holding her hand, lightly traced over the back of it as if stroking. The ticklish sensation made her shrink back.

Lydia urged Ilian, who clearly had no intention of letting go.

“Marquis. The curse.”

Finally, Ilian let go of Lydia’s hand and spoke in a tone that still sounded reluctant.

“…Do it only within safe limits.”

“Of course.”

Once she let go of his hand, the curse could no longer resist. Once she let go, any attempt by the curse to drain her power would become meaningless.

So Lydia confidently placed her hand gently on his shoulder.

The effect was immediate in a different sense. As if realizing it had been caught, the branches that had started to spread across his chest recoiled, and before Lydia could even channel her power properly, something completely unexpected happened.

—Get out!

Lydia realized the voice rang only inside her head, but she was so shocked that she covered her ears and stepped back.

The voice echoed so loudly, it was painfully deafening.

“What’s wrong?”

It wasn’t easy to calm her racing heart. It wasn’t that the warning had caused physical harm, but rather the situation itself was shocking.

“Just a moment. I was startled, that’s all.”

As Lydia crouched down, burying her face in both hands, the bed tilted toward her and she felt a warm body behind her.

Ilian slowly stroked her back as if trying to soothe her. Every time his hand passed by, a gentle warmth spread, helping her regain her composure.

“I guess you really overdid it.”

“No. I hardly used any power.”

“But you already used power earlier. You don’t look well.”

The way Ilian seemed to care more about her health than his own actually helped ease her tension.

Lydia lifted her head again to look at Ilian.

Her mind was in chaos, and with no end in sight to the tangled thoughts, her words came out unorganized.

“It told me to get out.”

“Get out?”

“The curse… it spoke to me.”

Saying it out loud made it sound completely absurd. But it was true, so what could she do?

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know. What could it mean?”

“Lydia.”

Maybe he thought she was joking, calling her like that. But Lydia truly had no idea. She murmured nervously.

“I should’ve gone to the royal archive earlier.”

She was now firmly resolved to properly investigate the origin of the curse. That it moved with a will of its own—what a bizarre situation.

‘More than that, maybe it’s better to say the resentment of the caster is embedded in it…’

Either way, this curse clearly didn’t want to be easily dissolved by her power. Biting her lip, Lydia considered the possibilities and spoke clearly.

“This might become an obstacle to lifting the curse. It’s reacting to my power and trying to do something.”

“At this point, it might be better to visit the royal archive after the wedding. Since Yulina caused that scene, if you announce you’re going to the palace, she’ll come running.”

Yulina. Did he realize how familiar he sounded when he said her name? It created a strange sense of distance.

No matter who he got close to, even if he changed his mind right after their contract marriage ended and married Princess Yulina—it was none of her business.

While Lydia was lost in unrelated thoughts, Illian was putting his shirt back on. In a fluster, she grabbed the hem of his shirt to stop him.

“I haven’t even used my power properly yet.”

“I already held your hand for a while earlier. That’s enough for today. The curse receded anyway.”

His words were so resolute, one might think he was the one with the power to lift the curse.

It was frustrating that he was even putting his glove back on to cover his blackened left hand, preventing her from even trying.

“Are you really okay now? You had a fever earlier.”

“The fatigue that had been pressing down on me since yesterday started to disappear the moment I entered this room and you took my hand. Now, I’m back to my usual, bearable state.”

Then the curse had likely tried to spread its influence and just failed completely and retreated. But that was only a guess—it couldn’t be confirmed.

“Still, I want to take another look.”

“Didn’t the doctor say you should rest until the wedding? There are only a few days left. Wait until you’ve fully recovered, then resume lifting the curse.”

And with that, he even laid Lydia down on the bed. Shocked, she grabbed his shirt again to sit up.

“Marquis, if you decide everything on your own like this…!”

But maybe she had grabbed him too forcefully, because Ilian lost his balance and ended up leaning over her, their faces close.

Seeing those blue eyes up close like this made her feel like she might stop breathing.

His handsome face under that golden hair didn’t help.

“The way you grab people is really… unique.”

“You were just going to leave!”

“You don’t seem to know how to regulate your power properly, so I’ll decide for you.”

His hand brushed her hair from her face with an oddly tender touch.

As if handling something precious, he carefully tucked it behind her ear, and all she could do was stare.