93. A guest of the marquisate and the future master of the marquisate.

Klaus’s entire body stiffened under Roselia’s icy gaze. She met his tense figure with indifference and continued speaking in a cold, detached tone.

“No matter how many times you ask, my answer won’t change. So, leave.”

As Roselia turned away mercilessly, Klaus mustered all his strength to force out a desperate voice.

“Roselia!”

Her steps halted for the briefest moment at his call, but without turning back, she climbed into the carriage.

“Please, just listen to me for a moment…!”

Klaus, who tried to approach the carriage, was overcome by the pain from his overexertion and clutched his shoulder, falling to one knee.

“Ugh….”

Johannes, silently observing Klaus, climbed into the carriage where Roselia sat.

Inside, Roselia stared straight ahead, refusing to even glance at the window where Klaus might be visible. Johannes, worried, looked at her carefully and asked in a low voice.

“Are you alright?”

“Let’s go.”

Her voice was resolute as she closed her eyes firmly. At her command, Johannes signaled for the carriage to depart.

Soon, accompanied by knights, the carriage passed by Klaus. Left behind, he remained frozen in place, still kneeling on the ground.

Roselia, however, maintained her calm and composed demeanor, her gaze fixed steadily forward.

That was their final moment together in Rugbeljet.

* * *

After over two weeks of traveling by carriage, Roselia finally arrived in Raphelios.

Though they had rested at inns along the way, Roselia, unaccustomed to such long journeys, was utterly exhausted by the time they reached their destination. As soon as they entered the marquisate’s mansion, her body gave out, and she collapsed into a guest room bed, unable to move.

“I’m sorry for being such a burden right after arriving,” Roselia said weakly, her voice barely audible as she lay in bed.

Johannes frowned and shook his head at her apology. “Please don’t think that way. This is your home, after all.”

Roselia, assuming he was referring to Raphelios, gave a faint smile. Watching her closely, Johannes hesitated for a moment before cautiously speaking.

“Now that you’re in Raphelios, do you plan to search for your family?”

At his question, Roselia fell into thought, her expression contemplative. “Honestly, the first thing on my mind was leaving Rugbeljet. I hadn’t thought that far ahead…”

She paused, organizing her thoughts, and then smiled. “Once I feel better, I think I’ll have to. Would it be too much to ask for your help, my lord?”

Johannes hesitated briefly before returning her smile with a kind one of his own. “Of course. It won’t be too difficult.”

‘I just need to be prepared for what’s ahead…’ he thought, his expression briefly clouding over.

“For now, focus on recovering,” he said warmly.

“Thank you, as always, my lord,” Roselia replied, offering him a faint but grateful smile.

“There’s no need for thanks,” Johannes reassured her with a soft smile. He then quietly left the room, leaving Roselia to stare blankly at the ornate ceiling above her.

The intricate and elegant designs, so different from the duke’s mansion, drew her attention. As she gazed at them, a single tear slipped down her cheek. Yet, Roselia didn’t bother to wipe it away. She simply closed her eyes as if no tear had ever fallen.

Starting tomorrow, she would begin a new life without him.

Not as a servant of the duke’s household. Not as the indebted daughter of the crumbling House of Hesingk. But as the true Roselia.

Ignoring the hollow ache in her chest, Roselia slowly drifted into a quiet sleep.

* * *

In the dark bedroom, Klaus lay on the bed, drenched in sweat and groaning in pain.

The door creaked open, and Claucet entered, carrying a basin of lukewarm water and a towel. She approached the bedside chair and sat down.

Klaus had forbidden anyone from entering, but that order didn’t apply to Claucet.

“So, even the cold-hearted Duke Valtazar can succumb to a fever,” she remarked.

Hearing the familiar voice, Klaus turned his unfocused gaze toward her. Despite the physician’s treatment, the heat radiating from his wounds left him delirious.

Claucet let out a sigh as she looked down at him. “Honestly, who told you to ride a horse at full speed with your shoulder in that condition?”

She grumbled as she soaked the towel in the basin and began to wipe his body. The touch of the towel against his overly sensitive skin made Klaus wince, his face contorted in pain.

“Do you think your body is made of iron? You’re only human, Klaus.”

At her scolding, Klaus brought an arm to his fevered forehead. Though his body burned, his mind remained painfully clear, driving him to the brink of madness.

In his feverish haze, thoughts of Roselia consumed him, playing out like a relentless illusion. In that illusion, Klaus despaired, raged, begged, and suffered endlessly.

A bitter smirk spread across his lips.

“Yes, I suppose I’m just an ordinary human after all.”

Claucet, startled by the unfamiliar look on his face, asked in a concerned tone.

“Klaus?”

For a moment, she thought he was crying, but his hollow indigo eyes held something far more profound than sorrow, making him look even more pitiful than if he had shed tears.

Claucet sighed again, then began wiping his exposed shoulder with the damp towel.

“You think Roselia left because of you, don’t you?”

Removing the towel, Claucet looked down at him and continued in a low voice.

“Well, you’re right. It is your fault.”

Klaus’s gaze shifted dully toward her, her bluntness catching him off guard.

As someone who had cherished Roselia deeply—albeit differently than Klaus—Claucet was likely just as heartbroken over her departure.

The sharp glare Claucet directed at him felt strangely comforting. Klaus had wanted someone to rebuke him, and her candid chastisement brought an odd sense of relief.

A faint, weary smile tugged at Klaus’s lips.

“Thank you for reminding me.”

Claucet, taken aback by his unexpectedly lighthearted response, narrowed her eyes and finally unleashed the words she had been holding back.

“Your first mistake was assuming Roselia would always stay at the duke’s estate.”

Crossing her arms, Claucet looked down at him smugly.

“I never understood why she stayed here after paying off her debt. Why would anyone stay in this suffocating household, especially around someone as inconsiderate as you? If it were me, I would have run off the moment I was free of debt.”

She turned her head sharply, muttering to herself, “If not for this cursed family bond, I would’ve left long ago too.”

Her words, which bordered on harshness, made Klaus frown deeply as he called out her name. “Claucet.”

“So don’t even think of blaming Roselia. Everything was your doing.”

Hearing her call him “brother” after so long brought a bitter smile to Klaus’s face. He fell silent, lost in thought, before muttering in a self-deprecating tone.

“Yes, I was wrong.”

He had arrogantly assumed she would stay by his side forever.

All he had done was bind her to him with the chains of debt.

Even after she had repaid it, she had remained, not because of those chains, but by her own choice.

He was so naive to think that the bird, which had been released from its cage, would stay with him just because it had perched on his shoulder for a moment…

She, who had no shackles or a cage, was frightened by him and flew away.

It would be wishful thinking to hope that the bird would return.

Klaus murmured bitterly.

“The bird that has flown away won’t come back….”

Then I’ll find you instead, Roselia.

If I can see your smiling face again, I’m willing to risk everything.

So, please, just once more, perch upon my hand.

No, just once more, look at me.

* * *

For three days, Roselia was bedridden, unable to move.

It was thanks to the efforts of the marquisate’s personal physician, who was considered one of the best in Raphelios, that she finally regained her strength.

She could only feel immense gratitude toward Johannes, who had generously cared for her, despite her being no more than a distant relative.

Sitting in the parlor at Johannes’s request, Roselia glanced at him, reflecting on these thoughts. His expression seemed unusually serious that day.

Could her stay at the marquisate have caused trouble?

She suddenly realized that if her identity as a blood relative became known, it could create problems for Johannes as well.

The thought left Roselia feeling uneasy, as she recognized how self-centered her assumptions had been.

Believing that Johannes, ever kind, might be reluctant to bring up the issue, she decided to speak first.

“Now that I think about it, I’ve been too focused on myself. The longer I stay here, the more burdensome it will be for you, my lord. If you could recommend a good inn, I can move there for the time being…”

Johannes, who had been listening wide-eyed, quickly shook his head, startled.

“No, Roselia. That’s not it.”

As Johannes firmly denied her concerns, Roselia looked at him curiously.

“Then what is it…?”

After what seemed like a moment of collected thought, Johannes, his expression now composed, began speaking.

“Roselia, you said you wanted to find your family.”

“Yes, well…”

Her hesitant response was met with a warm smile from Johannes.

“I’ve found them. Your family.”

For a moment, Roselia froze, her face blank with disbelief, before her expression shifted to surprise and slight excitement.

“Really? That was faster than I expected! I suppose being relatives made it easier for you to find them. Where are they staying? Let me go meet them myself.”

Johannes hesitated briefly before giving her a gentle smile and calmly answering.

“They are in Euphelia.”

Euphelia… the name rang a bell—it was a region within the Marquisate of Euciliod.

“Oh? That’s closer than I thought.”

At her words, Johannes’s gaze turned more serious as he met her eyes.

“They’re here, Roselia.”

“…Pardon?”

“The place where your family resides is this very mansion of the Marquess of Euciliod.”

Johannes’s words left Roselia stunned, her mind momentarily going blank.

“What… what do you mean?”

“You are my long-lost younger sister, the second daughter of the Marquisate of Euciliod. And the only one who can succeed me as the heir to the title of marquis.”

 

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