Chapter 3
It was in the blink of an eye. With a cautious turn of my head, my gaze landed on a familiar piece of furniture.
“Could it be… my console?”
It looked unmistakably like the console that had been in my room. I jumped up and ran towards it in a frenzy. Reflected in the mirror was Rachel Burke in her pajamas.
But she looked very unfamiliar. She was radiant and shimmering like a flower bud kissed by the morning dew. Her white and pale face had turquoise eyes that sparkled like turquoise gem, and her features were gracefully sculpted from her smooth forehead to her prominent nose.
Below, her lips were as red as pomegranate, slightly parted, and her chubby cheeks had adorably indented dimples.
Just like Rachel Burke, who had lived for twenty years surrounded only by her parents’ love.
“… Twenty years old?”
Then I noticed the changed hairstyle. Her long pink hair reached down to her waist, curling like waves, and the cute bangs covering her forehead made her look like a doll.
“If I’ve returned to being twenty, does that mean I can see the kids again?”
Filled with unknown anticipation and momentarily overwhelmed, I soon realized that to see the kids again, I would need to marry Stefan Edmond again.
The thought of having to endure another five years in the hellish Edmond Duke’s mansion brought tears to my eyes.
At that moment, the face of the baby angel who had looked at me with affection came to mind.
“It was definitely my child. This time, I won’t lose them.”
Clenching my fist tightly, I shut my eyes firmly. A single tear fell. It was a deliberate act to shake off the lingering weakness within me.
Then, the purple eyes of Rachel Burke in the mirror shone resolutely.
“… Purple?”
The blue eyes had changed to purple. Was this a side effect of the regression?
Just as I was about to examine the purple eyes more closely in the mirror, the door burst open with a loud rush of footsteps, and someone dashed into my arms.
“Sister!”
The boy with the tearful voice was Remington, my younger brother, whom I had raised in place of our busy parents.
Since I hadn’t seen him once after marrying into the Edmond Duke’s family, this was a reunion after five years. I embraced Remington tightly with joy.
“My brother! I’ve missed you so much.”
The touching reunion between siblings did not last long. Soon, a young man who looked exactly like the boy ran into my room.
“Just as I thought, you’re here, phew…”
Remington’s older twin brother, Leopold, who was born two minutes before me, had arrived.
Seeing him with brown hair and black eyes, which he had inherited from our father, made me realize that I had indeed returned to the Burke Manor five years ago.
“Leopold is still alive…”
My brother, who had passed away a year before me, was right in front of me. My heart raced with the emotional encounter.
However, Leopold’s black eyes held no affection but rather a look of desolation or despair.
“Don’t be too shocked, Rachel. The Burke merchant ship passing through the Bayton Strait sank.”
“What?”
Startled, I flinched, causing Remington, who had buried his face in my lap, to tremble. I covered my younger brother’s ears with my hands and quietly asked again.
“Leopold, the ship had our parents on board, didn’t it?”
“…”
Leopold could only nod in response.
I finally realized when I had regressed to. The day the Burke merchant ship sank, the day our parents died, and the day I first met Rita Edmond, who would shake up my life.
***
Bayton Harbor, where merchant ships from various countries come and go without a pause, is always noisy and busy. Today, with many passenger ships, it seemed especially loud.
“Bell, what’s going on?”
“This morning, there was news that a merchant ship passing through the Bayton Strait sank.”
“A merchant ship?”
“Isn’t it because of the reefs in the Bayton Strait?”
The Bayton Strait, situated between massive cliffs, was both a scenic spot and a treacherous waterway. Therefore, only an experienced navigator could handle the voyage smoothly.
Stefan, who was on the deck, frowned and looked up at the sky.
It was a day with unusually bright sunlight. With such sunlight, even an inexperienced navigator should easily spot the hidden reefs.
“This kind of weather?”
“…Indeed.”
Bell, who was standing beside him, tilted his head in confusion.
“Find out more about the sunken merchant ship.”
“Yes, sir.”
When the Edmond merchant ship dropped anchor, Bayton Harbor became a hubbub of activity. The story of the sunken merchant ship was overshadowed by rumors about the Edmond Duke.
A comment made by someone who saw the Edmond ship arriving caused the conversation to flow.
“There seem to be unusually many Edmond ship cargos.”
“This friend’s sources are quite off. Haven’t you heard that the Edmond Duke has bought several mines?”
“Bought mines?”
“Yes, indeed! The bigger issue is that among them is a mine that produces iron ore.”
“Iron ore instead of gemstones?”
“The Edmond Duke’s greed is insatiable. How are other families supposed to survive…”
Another merchant, patting the shoulders of the sighing merchant, offered naive words of comfort.
“No matter how much the Edmond Duke wants iron ore, without smelting technology, what can he do with it?”
“Rumor has it that he’s already recruited skilled smelters.”
“According to the rumor, the Edmond Duke is building a smelting factory on the Huawol continent.”
“What? A smelting factory? But why build it on the Huawol continent?”
“That’s because the Edmond Duke has bought land on the Huawol continent.”
As various tips kept coming in, a merchant who had been listening blankly muttered to himself and took a step back.
“Bought land on the Huawol continent too? This is a disaster.”
Seeing the merchant’s face turn pale and his hasty departure, Bell, who had been quietly passing by, failed to stifle a laugh.
“Puhahaha…”
In contrast, Stefan’s face showed no change at all. Even Bell, who had been his aide for seven years, couldn’t discern what his master was thinking.
As the merchants had been discussing, Duke Stefan Edmond’s achievements were indeed remarkable. The smelting project that the Emperor of the Merwin Empire had planned as a national project had fallen to the Edmond Duke, a noteworthy event that would have led to self-congratulation.
Yet Stefan’s chiseled face revealed not the slightest sign of excitement. He didn’t even show a hint of pride about his accomplishments.
Moreover, it was his first return to his homeland in a year. Even the most indifferent person would likely show some degree of longing for family or the Duke’s residence.
“Bell, let’s go to the Bayton Guild.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
As expected, Stefan merely mentioned going to the Bayton Guild and then boarded the carriage.
Though it was called the Bayton Guild, all the shops and establishments inside were owned by the Edmond family, making the area essentially Edmond Guild territory.
As the carriage started moving, the golden Edmond family crest glistened in the sunlight, naturally attracting the attention of passersby.
“Is that carriage? It looks like the Duke of Edmond has returned.”
“After a whole year?”
“There will be a lot of ladies in the Bayton streets now.”
This remark was realized within just five minutes. As the Duke’s carriage stopped in front of a shop, women gathered like clouds.
“It’s the Duke of Edmond!”
“Oh my, oh my…”
“It’s been ages since I last saw such a sight.”
Stefan, dressed in a white suit, stepped out of the carriage looking immaculate, unlike someone who had just disembarked from a ship.
Stefan’s sharply sculpted nose and jawline were dazzlingly beautiful, but they looked too cold and sharp for anyone to touch. His pale face was adorned with eyes that sparkled like the highest-quality ruby known as ‘Bloodstone’.
As women gazed at Stefan’s silver hair swaying like a dreamcatcher hung by the window, they whispered the word “dream demon.” It was a nickname filled with the desire to be tormented by him, even in dreams, rather than the dreamcatcher meant to ward off nightmares.
Ignoring the women’s intense stares, Stefan walked into the shop with indifference.
Scanning the noisy shop quickly, Stefan found his target and said,
“Finn! Come in here.”
The sudden call of his name startled Finn, but the young ladies, having heard Stefan’s voice, were in a frenzy.
“Eek! It’s Duke Edmond!”
“How can his voice be so charming?”
Finn gently pushed aside the burdensome noble young ladies blocking his way and handed them over to another staff member. He then quickly followed Stefan.
Once inside the office and closing the door behind him, Finn greeted Stefan, whom he hadn’t seen for a year, with a swollen voice.
“It’s been a while, Your Grace. But this is an accessory store frequented by the most noble ladies.”
“So?”
“Even just a slight smile from you would boost sales significantly.”
“You know that even if one accessory store goes under, it won’t affect me at all.”
Seeing Stefan’s displeasure, Finn noticed the heavy leather pouch Stefan placed on the desk. Instinctively, Finn lunged for it like a hunting dog catching its prey.
“Goodness… Is this the rare Rodolite Garnet?”
Finn gazed at the mesmerizing violet-colored gemstone as if en
tranced. Noticing this, Stefan lowered his voice.
“Save the gem inspection for later. Report what the Duchess of Edmond is up to.”
At these words, Finn’s eyes finally shifted away from the gemstone.
