“Episode 3”
It was evident even in the scenes from her dream recollection that he was too honest with her. He claimed to love her no matter what insult she endured. It could be seen as genuine affection or as obsession.
Thanks to that, Yuliana had to get up the next day, feeling like she hadn’t slept at all. “Is there anything bothering you?”
Yuliana, with a pale complexion, lifted her head as she struggled to sip her soup.
Her husband, who could have taken it easy after returning yesterday, had been up since dawn, writing reports for the knights and training with them. He had an ironclad stamina.
Trying to maintain her usual tone, Yuliana touched her sallow cheek and replied, “Seems like I’m a bit sleep-deprived.”
No need to come up in dreams! Damn protagonist… Lost in thought, she stopped eating the soup halfway through. She had no appetite.
Observing Yuliana’s behavior, Evan furrowed his brow. “Seems like it doesn’t suit your taste. I had told them to take good care of you when I’m not around.”
“Oh. It’s just today. I usually eat well. After all, you’re the one who suffered on the battlefield. What’s the matter?”
“Even on the battlefield, I was busy monitoring your health.”
“Gulp!”
Yuliana hastily swallowed water, her pounding heart reverberating in her chest.
‘So that’s it…’
The butler, who seemed to meticulously record every bite and sip, had indeed sent a letter in the midst of chaos.
Yuliana Von, despite being a pyromancer, had a delicate constitution. Growing up as the illegitimate daughter of the Von Viscount, she had always been frail. There was a time when she couldn’t even lift a teacup, but she had improved somewhat as she grew older.
However, if she neglected her health even a little, she would fall ill immediately. Despite knowing this, her husband had cared for her health even in the midst of war. He truly was an amazing husband, fussing over her health even amidst all the chaos.
“You didn’t need to worry. I’ve been living and eating well.”
“Yeah. I had a feeling you would say that. But you know, I always worry about you.”
“You’re too kind.”
“No need for that, right?”
Yuliana awkwardly smiled.
She didn’t need to ask him to keep being like this, as it would soon lead to him demanding a divorce, so there was no need for that. And she knew too much to act coldly like before. Evan chuckled as he looked at Yuliana, who was smiling as if avoiding answering, as if he understood what she was up to. Surprised by his knowing smile, Yuliana exclaimed, “Why, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know what you’re scheming.”
“You’ve been saying strange things since yesterday. Haha!”
Yuliana laughed exaggeratedly like an actress. Then, confidently holding up the spoon she had put down due to lack of appetite, she casually started eating.
“It seems like the chef put in some effort. It’s really delicious!”
“I’ve been wondering why you’re acting, have you thought about that?”
“…Huh?”
Yuliana awkwardly took a bite of her soup out of sync and froze. It was because she saw the letter in his hand.
Normally—
If she were the Yuliana Von before realizing her reincarnation, she would have exploded, asking why he dared to hold someone else’s letter. But the current Yuliana could only tremble like a helpless bird, unable to move her body.
She cursed silently.
‘Why does he have that in his hand?’
“Why… why is my letter, which should be in my mailbox, in Evan’s hand? I-I’m really curious to the point of fainting!”
“There are more than a few audacious people who dare to put letters in my mailbox in the name of proving their bravery for love, aren’t there?”
“Those rude people! I really don’t know who they are. Believe me.”
Yuliana rebelled slightly.
Perhaps not tired of her rebellion, Evan, with his inscrutable tone, spoke emotionlessly.
“‘My beloved Yuliana Von, to my destiny—.'”
“Gulp.”
Yuliana’s throat tightened. Yuliana, who seemed to be trying to finish her meal with an awkward expression, put down the spoon without even caring about the cream soup dripping. Whether it was noticeable or not, in contrast to her past, when she used to play around with men left and right to humiliate Evan, she honestly couldn’t remember the name of the foolish guy who sent the letter.
Yuliana rolled her eyes and thought, ‘There’s no other option!’ Then, awkwardly, she pretended to have a headache and stood up, placing her hand on her forehead as if to buy some time.
“Oh, Evan. I have a headache. Seems like my body isn’t feeling well again, just like you said. I should rest for a bit!”
“‘Yuliana, I wanted to tell you that I planted the rose garden we promised last time.'”
“Ugh!”
It was that moment.
Yuliana’s eyes flickered, and without hesitation, she leaped to snatch the letter from Evan’s hand.
But perhaps anticipating it, Evan swiftly lifted the letter higher than her reach. With his eyes shining blue, unreadable, he looked down at her.
“Is your body already feeling better?”
“…Evan.”
Yuliana glanced at the letter in his hand, trembling slightly, and uttered his name with a hint of hesitation.
He waited a moment before responding.
“Yes.”
“I did meet many men with the intention of insulting you. But I also want to let you know that my feelings have changed.”
Yuliana knew her future would be bleak if she continued like this.
What made it even more agonizing was that while she knew she died under the misconception of plotting Evan’s murder, she had no idea who exactly conspired against her.
In reality, in the novel, she was summed up in just one short line.
“[Yuliana Von, embroiled in a plot to murder her husband, met her demise. By his cudgel.]””‘I knew it would come to this!'” Yuliana gasped for breath, trying to regain her composure as she slumped back into her chair.
While the Yuliana Von described in the novel did enjoy flirting and having fun with many men, she wasn’t the type to conspire murder. She wasn’t completely reckless. She wasn’t foolish enough to conspire with insignificant fools to assassinate her husband, who was revered as a hero without any evidence!
Sure, she might have whined about wanting to break up with her husband at passing conversations, but it was the foolish followers who listened and made trouble.
“But who did she blabber to? It’s beyond me. I kept saying such things to everyone I met….”
Yuliana massaged her throbbing temples. Evan, who was watching her, chuckled faintly.
“Do I have to read this garbage of a letter more?”
“Give it here.”
“Why? So you can keep this letter carefully in your gift room?”
Yuliana met Evan’s gaze defiantly.
Normally, her husband would have readily handed over the letter, but this time, he was subtly showing emotions. Jealousy, anger, and misery.
The anger, incongruous on his handsome face, made his eyes appear darker.
Evan knelt in front of Yuliana, his posture bent as if he were bowing, and locked eyes with her.
Simultaneously, a shadow enveloped her. Without hesitation, Evan reached out his hand to Yuliana, gripping tightly the back of the chair where she sat. Blue veins protruded on his exposed arm, wrapped around the shirt sleeve.
There was a ferocity in his face, pale and cold like an expressionless doll, yet with an undercurrent of cruelty.
With gritted teeth, he spoke.
“Do you know what I was thinking on the battlefield?”
“I don’t know.”
How could I possibly know, my lord? Yuliana looked awkwardly at Evan with fiery eyes. Strangely, his eyes, filled with anger, seemed calm enough to appear serene at first glance.
“What garbage have you collected this time to anger me? Knowing how much I love you, how can you laugh it off as fun to trample on that? Just thinking about it…”
“Did you want to kill me?”
“I didn’t even entertain such a dreadful thought. So rest assured.”
Evan chuckled coldly.
It was a tone of disbelief, as if asking how she could entertain such a thought. Yuliana bit down on her lower lip.
‘Yet you’ll still kill me. When the day comes that the suspicion of me wanting to kill you becomes apparent… When you won’t even believe it was a mistaken accusation.’
Yuliana instinctively turned her head away in a clear gesture of rejecting his outstretched hand.
Observing her reaction, Evan let out a long sigh. Then, accepting her refusal, he gently placed the letter in Yuliana’s hand.
With each close encounter, the refreshing scent of rose-scented soap mixed with his own cologne wafted from him. The distance was so close that even the fine hairs behind Yuliana’s ears, exposed by the way she pushed her hair back, could be seen standing.
Evan tightened his grip on the chair back where Yuliana leaned, though he held her as if to embrace her, in reality not touching her at all, as he calmly spoke.
“Alright. That’s enough. I can’t steal your enjoyment, after all.”
He lowered his head and briefly brushed his lips against her smooth cheek, like a bird pecking, before pulling away.
As Yuliana’s hand tightened around the letter in confusion, he spoke kindly.
“You don’t have to think like that anymore. We’ll stop this game now.”
“What whimsy prompted that?”
Seeing Evan’s smile, which Yuliana, lost in her own thoughts, interpreted as him mocking her, she trembled as she spoke in a shaky voice. “I’ll admit, the game I was playing to embarrass you has become boring.”
Yuliana awkwardly chuckled, then tore the letter in front of Evan without even properly looking at it.
Pieces of paper fluttered in front of their noses. She smirked and cleared her throat cautiously.
“Are you free for dinner tonight?”
“I should make time, since you seem to miss me.”
“I didn’t say that.”
Yuliana abruptly stood up from her seat, pushing aside her barely touched breakfast, and hastily bid farewell before leaving the breakfast table.
Watching her leave, Evan snapped his fingers. The busy servants clearing the dishes stepped back, and the butler entered the room.
Evan toyed with the half-empty glass of water, lost in thought.
The elderly butler, who had served the estate for a long time and witnessed three generations, did not rush him for the duke’s orders. It was a time when saying more would not be appropriate.
“Reyatt.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Have you noticed any strange behavior from Yuliana’s dogs?”
“What do you mean…”
“Besides the fools who stuff love notes into my mailbox to prove their bravery, are there any dogs worth mentioning?”
“I haven’t noticed anything unusual.”
Evan brought the glass of water to his dry lower lip and took a sip.
He had spent a year roaming the battlefield.
Leading his knights, he had crossed mountains and rivers to behead the leader of the Ya’haari tribe.
Yet, despite being swept up in the chaos of war, his mind had never dulled. But when it came to Yuliana, it was always different. His heart would be clouded with messy jealousy, and his mind would become dull. Sometimes, he felt no different from the foolish lovers who teased around like Yuliana’s dogs.
Evan made a face.
Water splashed. Jealousy surged within Evan like a dirty tide.
“Reyatt. Wouldn’t it be better to kill the dogs that tease excessively?”
“As you wish, Your Grace.”
The butler, Reyatt, replied calmly.
Suppressing the mouths of those who had boasted that even the brave Duke couldn’t remove his flirtatious wife’s government posts by simply being wary of her antics was one of the most comfortable things he could do as a butler.
“While it feels like taking away Yuliana’s pleasure is regrettable, it can’t be helped.”
“Isn’t the Duke’s feelings important?”
For the first time, Reyatt dared to ask, revealing a hint of indignation in his eyes, a natural emotion that surfaced due to his loyalty to the family.
“Reyatt, you speak foolishly.”
Knowing that, Evan reproached Reyatt before speaking leisurely.
“Don’t you know that sometimes the one who loves more loses?”
—
The once peaceful Duke’s mansion was filled with the sounds of things breaking, being rearranged, and swept away throughout the morning and afternoon.
The servants were exhausted from working tirelessly without a break. Yet, this cleaning was an exceptional task. Finally, it was because the Duke’s wife had decided to tidy up the gifts picked up while coming and going.
The small gift room was quickly emptied, and even the last remaining remnants of gifts were thrown into the trash.
Yuliana looked at the now tidy gift room with a refreshing feeling. Although the servants did most of the work, she hadn’t avoided helping with the cleaning. While she only tidied up the scraps of paper, it was still a significant achievement for her, who had lived without lifting a finger. “The, the Duchess. You didn’t have to do this…”
The servants were unsure of what to do and shuffled their feet nervously. They didn’t know why the Duchess suddenly ordered the gift room to be cleaned up, but they were terrified by her willingness to pitch in and help.
Duchess Yuliana O’Ben was a very demanding mistress. When she was angry, she often took it out on the servants for no reason.
Ignoring the servants’ trembling, Yuliana said, “Quickly, leave. I have work to do.”
“Ah! Yes, yes!”
With a rush, the servants fled out of the room as if they were running for their lives. Watching them flee, Yuliana walked over and retrieved a stack of papers hidden in a crevice in the wall.
“Crackle!”
The papers, roughly stuffed into the dusty crevice, were a mess with Yuliana’s messy handwriting all over them.
Yuliana could barely remember the countless men she had met under the name of “lover,” so she roughly bundled them together in her mind.
Blaming her past self for not remembering the men who had given her gifts, Yuliana looked at the papers ominously.
“Alright. With this, maybe I’ll remember which jerk I was talking about.”
She chuckled wickedly.
—
“Oh, shoot…”
Yuliana was about to yell out loud but bit her lip and closed her mouth. Then, she tried to copy the papers she held in her hand, but she became frustrated.
“I-I can’t understand anything written like this!”
Most of the papers she arrogantly spread out contained only self-praise.
“I thought I wrote something down at least…”Indeed, the past Yuliana only recorded her encounters with others out of self-satisfaction, noting who gave her what and whether it was worthwhile, rather than keeping a record of something special given by a special person.
The present Yuliana, who had awakened memories of her past life, despised her past self so much that she wanted to punch her in the face.
“You’re truly useless… Yuliana O’Ban…”
She was the one who would insult anyone she met, saying she wanted to break up with her husband or wishing he would just shut up.
“Yeah, I should’ve lived more virtuously. Why did I bother the protagonist and end up being misunderstood and killed later? It’s because I relied too much on being an extra.”
Was it because her body was weak that she ended up doing physical labor she had never done before? Yuliana sniffled as she buried her face in the table.
Yet the regret remained.
She was too exhausted.
It had only been two days since she remembered her past life and started working in her own way, but her small world was collapsing under the onslaught.
In the end, Yuliana couldn’t resist the overwhelming exhaustion and closed her eyes.
—
“Gasp!”
Yuliana woke up from her nap, the twilight nearly fading outside the window. She had used the messy papers as a pillow, it seemed.
“Dinner time!”
She remembered asking her husband to delay dinner, only to end up sleeping through it.
Yuliana scolded herself sternly, quickly got up, and hurried down the stairs as if she were crazy.
The servants blinked in confusion, murmuring to each other, “The Duchess seems strange today…”
Not in her right mind, Yuliana opened the door without even bothering to tidy herself up. “Ha, ha…”
“You’re late.”
The food was cooling down rapidly, and her husband, sitting at the head of the table as usual, had an inscrutable expression on his face.
It was unclear whether he was upset because Yuliana was late or whether he was genuinely surprised that she had shown up.
“S-sorry. I, uh, dozed off for a moment.”
“I thought you wouldn’t come.”
Muttering, Evan seemed a bit dazed.
