No More Regrets, Just K*ll Me

 

The song that had been going on like that soon ended after all the lyrics had been pronounced.

Ariadeline, who seemed to have only just realized that the accompaniment had stopped, looked up with wide, startled eyes like a rabbit.

“Uh, when did you stop?”

“When you were singing well on your own?”

“Uh, um….”

Ariadeline slightly covered her face with the sheet music.

“Was my voice… terrible?”

“No.”

Dorothea looked at her warmly.

“You were excellent.”

At those words, Ariadeline hesitated before breaking into a smile.

“Thank you.”

Dorothea smiled kindly and tapped the side of the piano bench, signaling her to sit down again.

Ariadeline sat down again quietly.

“Now, how do we sing when we sing?”

“Well, we make sounds with our throat…”

As Ariadeline continued to respond, she suddenly remembered her vocal teacher and stopped speaking. Then she opened her mouth again.

“We treat the throat as a passage for sound and push the sound up from the lower abdomen? And the sound changes depending on where it resonates….”

“Oh my, you know everything!”

Dorothea clasped her hands and smiled brightly. Now, the balloon above her head is coming out. It’s coming out.

“Think of it this way: gather the divine power that’s scattered in your lower abdomen. Then, imagine expelling that gathered energy into your sound.”

“I see…”

“Then, when you go ‘Ah—’ and hit the high note, think of wearing a big hat on your head and gather the sound above it. Do you understand?”

“Of course, of course….”

Here, it was a hat instead of a balloon. Ariadeline chuckled and nodded.

“First, let’s slowly close our eyes and focus. Keep your mouth closed and let out a ‘ssuu’ sound through your teeth.”

She knows this. It’s something they do at the beginning of vocal practice.

“Repeat this kind of breathing until you feel the divine power and it gathers in your lower abdomen.”

“Yes….”

Ariadeline had to practice late into the night with her new vocal teacher, repeating and practicing over and over.

Fortunately, since Ariadeline had a solid foundation, it didn’t take long for her to gather the divine power.

Dorothea, joyfully as if it were her own achievement, praised Ariadeline as a genius.

“Now, the divine power that has enveloped the entire capital has been gathered.”

“Yes….”

“How does it feel?”

“Well, it feels a bit bloated inside…”

“It will be like that until you get used to it.”

“I see.”

Ariadeline weakly stood up, feeling a bit wobbly. Dorothea helped her up. Since Ariadeline was too drained, she gladly accepted the assistance.

“I’ll prepare a few sheets of music for you, so practice at the mansion.”

“Got it.”

“Then soon you’ll be able to use your divine power naturally, whenever you want.”

“Thank you so much, Your Highness.”

“Not at all.”

Dorothea smiled brightly.

“I was already worried since the saint’s seat has been vacant. Now I can feel a bit relieved.”

Excuse me? What did you say?

Ariadeline stared at her with wide eyes for a moment.

“So, um, would you like to join me for some volunteer work next week?”

“Volunteer work?”

Ariadeline thought, Wow, this is happening. Meanwhile, Dorothea added something.

“Oh, and although it probably won’t happen…”

She raised a finger.

“When emotions run high, divine power can act out of control, so make sure to keep yourself in check.”

“Ah, yes. I understand.”

“Then, can I take it that we’ll be going out for volunteer work together next week?”

Ariadeline couldn’t bring herself to refuse those sparkling eyes.

Soon after, she was laughing heartily as she was helped into the carriage with a few sheets of music.

Ariadeline looked at the music sheets held in the carriage with curious eyes. And then hummed slowly.

Throughout the journey from the palace to Duke Denaves’s residence, a soft melody filled the carriage.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

Carlothian glanced at the clock.

It was eleven at night.

Although it was quite late, there was no news of Ariadeline’s arrival.

His fingers, which had been tapping on the chair, grew a bit rougher, and eventually he stood up. He was about to head back to his room.

Since they would be staying in the same room anyway, they would naturally run into each other.

As Carlothian thought this, a sudden realization struck him.

Now that the madness has passed, isn’t there no need to sleep in the same bed?

Carlothian fell silent for a moment. After all, they had been using separate rooms since the beginning in Anrize. However, there was one thing that bothered him.

Contrary to his expectation that he could sleep comfortably, he felt a strange sense of emptiness and experienced vague insomnia.

‘Unconsciously, I thought we would definitely be sleeping together tonight.’

Then he felt a bit relieved.

Why? Why was he acting like someone who couldn’t sleep without Ariadeline? Carlothian couldn’t hide his complicated feelings as he returned to his room.

He soon lay lazily on the bed, staring at the empty space beside him. Without realizing it, he reached out to pat the vacant spot. Only the cold touch of the sheets filled his grasp.

He closed his eyes for the moment. Since he was back at the mansion, he thought it would be fine after sleeping and waking up.

About an hour must have passed. Finally, Ariadeline arrived at the mansion. The servants welcomed her.

“Where is Carlothian?”

“He went to bed first.”

“I see.”

Ariadeline instinctively started to climb the stairs to find his room, but then paused. Now that she was no longer suffering from madness, she thought it might be best not to disturb his sleep.

“Hmm….”

After some hesitation, Ariadeline ultimately decided to go back down the stairs. The servants exchanged puzzled glances.

“I’ll go to the room I used before.”

“Excuse me? Why?”

One of the maids asked. Ariadeline didn’t provide a clear explanation and returned to the room she had used before.

With the maid’s help, she changed out of her dress and crawled into bed.

The sheets were cold. It might have been because there was no large figure beside her. Ariadeline clutched the sheets tightly. After all, she had slept alone in Anrize.

Returning to the mansion felt like coming home. Perhaps that was why she wanted to see the man lying next to her even more.

To clear her mind, Ariadeline slowly closed her eyes. After some time, she drifted into a light sleep.

Creeeak—

Someone opened the door and walked in. Ariadeline, half asleep, briefly opened her eyes. Turning her head, she saw a large shadow looking down at her.

“Uh—”

As Ariadeline gasped in surprise, the shadow quickly lifted her onto its shoulder.

“Carlothian!”

It was Carlotian, with a face that was clearly exhausted from lack of sleep. He began to carry Ariadeline back to his room, still resting her on his shoulder. Ariadeline, bewildered, started to pat his back.

“Why are you waking someone who’s sleeping so soundly?!”

“Be quiet.”

“No, what on earth are you doing all of a sudden?!”

“Let’s get some sleep.”

“Then just sleep!”

“That’s what I’m trying to do.”

What is he even saying? Ariadeline found herself dangling from him until they reached Carlothian’s bedroom.

Despite having picked her up without permission, Carlothian gently laid her down on the bed.

“What is this really?”

“I can’t sleep.”

“No, you were fine when we were sleeping separately in Anrize, right?”

“I wasn’t fine.”

Ariadeline was taken aback by his unexpected response. She recalled how his eyes always looked so tired whenever she saw him.

Wait, was it really because he couldn’t sleep? Not because he was busy with work?

Lying on the bed, Ariadeline crawled under the covers. Seeing that she showed no signs of leaving, Carlothian climbed into the bed as well.

He lifted the sheets, slipped his body underneath, and gently pulled Ariadeline, who had turned her back to him, into his arms.

“What—what is this?”

“I won’t do anything, so just sleep.”

“But, how can I sleep like this……”

Ariadeline curled up into a ball, feeling her heart pounding uncontrollably.

Once again, she thought, This man is hopeless when it comes to marriage.

How can he bring his ex-wife into his bed and expect to sleep together?

Is he really so sure that nothing will happen?

‘How am I supposed to sleep like this?’

Of course, that was just a fleeting illusion.

Within fifteen minutes, she was soon fast asleep, her breathing soft and steady. Carlothian, who had his eyes closed, opened them in disbelief.

“She’s sleeping well.”

Carlothian gazed at the top of her head for a moment. Curling up tightly in his arms, she seemed infinitely small compared to him.

It felt strange to think that this woman had been sleeping alone in the large bed of the Duchess’s room.

He gently brushed her hair aside. She was completely unaware of his touch, sleeping soundly.

“I never imagined she would be so naive about the world.”

He wondered how she had walked around with such a haughty demeanor all this time. Soon, he gave in to everything and lay back on the bed, pulling her even closer.

Thanks to the warmth in his arms, he felt like he would be able to sleep soundly tonight.