Chapter 11
Two weeks had passed since then.
During that time, Charlotte had shut herself in her room and began earnestly collecting all sorts of information about this world.
From trivial gossip among commoners to the empire’s history books and even academic papers, nothing was off-limits.
At first, the maids dismissed it as one of her usual whims, but as her strange behavior continued for over ten days, they finally acknowledged that something had changed about Charlotte.
Meanwhile, Charlotte paid no attention to their whispers. She sat amidst the pile of books, staring blankly.
Her gaze eventually landed on one book — a history book.
The book contained stories about Noctem, but not a single mention of him using magic.
Instead, it described him as one of the continent’s finest Sword Masters, who had abdicated his position as crown prince at the age of sixteen to rid the empire’s northern regions of monsters.
Charlotte’s eyes trembled briefly. Trying to avoid confronting this reality, she turned her gaze elsewhere, but that only proved to be a mistake.
She picked up a newspaper that caught her eye.
It was a noble-focused publication from about a month ago, prominently displaying an image of Charlotte pouring wine over a young noblewoman.
Moreover:
“It’s exactly like the scene from my dream.”
She was so stunned that not even a hollow laugh escaped her lips. And as she dug deeper, she found even worse.
There were photos of her throwing money at imperial citizens, slapping and humiliating a noble youth, and other such acts.
These, too, were all the misdeeds of “Charlotte Daphsine,” which she had seen in her dreams.
Detailed accounts of her other wrongdoings were clearly listed in newspapers, making it easy for Charlotte to accept her identity in this world.
Yes, she was now a real villainess. One who had traveled back six years into the past in another world.
“Why has such a trial been given to me…?”
How wonderful it would have been if this had been an ordinary regression.
But here, there was no Noctem, the magician she knew. Naturally, none of his achievements or life events existed either.
That truth weighed on her heavily for a time. Moreover, she hadn’t even been able to uncover the secret behind the upper-tier mystery he mentioned in his final letter, leaving her with lingering regrets.
Still, Charlotte tried to shake off these thoughts. After all, what was done was done.
If this had been a simple regression, it would have brought its own set of problems.
“If it had, I might have had to experience that tragedy all over again.”
Charlotte couldn’t bear the thought of Noctem dying because of her again.
In that sense, perhaps this regression was a punishment given to her.
She couldn’t solve the mystery her husband left behind, and now she was the only one who remembered him.
On top of that, she had become a notorious villainess whose decapitation would delight the masses.
“Maybe this is for the best.”
Charlotte chuckled bitterly. With that thought, her heart felt a bit lighter.
For a while, she basked in the sunlight streaming through the window.
Yet old habits died hard. Even the faintest movement of the window would make her glance outside instinctively, even though she knew no one was beneath her window anymore.
Perhaps it was the nature of the day that made her prone to such pointless thoughts.
Just as Charlotte forced herself to turn away from the window, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Charlotte said, hastily tidying the books scattered around her.
A maid, Anna, entered hesitantly, holding a black dress.
“L-Lady Charlotte, here is the dress you requested.”
Her face was filled with confusion, unable to comprehend why she had been summoned.
“As expected, even Anna isn’t on my side here.”
The bitter taste in Charlotte’s mouth lingered. Forcing a smile, she gazed at Anna.
After arriving in this world, the changes in Noctem and Anna had been the hardest for her.
Anna had been Charlotte’s closest confidante and loyal maid for over twenty years.
But not here. With Charlotte’s reputation for abusing everyone, Anna was terrified of her.
“…Alright,” Charlotte muttered, not bothering to add a word of thanks. Doing so might have startled Anna so much that she would faint.
Unaware of Charlotte’s inner thoughts, Anna was deeply fearful of the capricious noblewoman who had recently taken to singling her out for errands.
Thankfully, Charlotte hadn’t struck her yet, but who knew if this was just another whim?
Charlotte, knowing Anna’s feelings, pretended to be oblivious and opened her arms.
“I’ll wear it now. Hurry up.”
“O-Of course, my lady,” Anna stammered, her voice trembling. She glanced nervously at Charlotte, aware of how much her mistress despised slowness.
But that didn’t apply to the current Charlotte. She waited patiently as Anna helped her into the dress. Eventually, Anna’s tension eased, and a flicker of curiosity crossed her face.
After all, black dresses were typically reserved for funerals or mourning.
Charlotte noticed but chose to remain silent. She couldn’t tell the truth, even if she wanted to.
“How can I speak about my husband’s anniversary in this world where he doesn’t exist?”
No, here, given her status as a reckless noblewoman, perhaps everyone would believe her if she suddenly mentioned her husband. However, the crucial fact was that Noctem, as she knew him, did not exist here, so naturally, his grave didn’t either.
“If I’m not locked away in a sanatorium for being treated as a madwoman, I’ll consider myself lucky.”
That could be seen as a generous outcome. In fact, she might even be treated as a witch and end up burned at the stake.
With a deep sigh, she finished tidying up.
Even though there was no grave for him, surely, today she had to visit that empty plot, didn’t she?
And then…
“If I don’t remember you, who else will?”
The one with long hair, who used magic, who was always kind, who smiled at me every day…
Before heading to where Noctem’s grave might have been, Charlotte first visited the capital’s finest flower garden.
As she entered the garden and lowered her robe’s hem, the owner, seeing her, immediately knelt and prostrated himself.
“Lady Charlotte, what brings you to such a humble place…?”
“Get up. I just came to buy flowers.”
“Y-Yes, of course, I will prepare them right away!”
His hands, resting on the earth, trembled with fear. Charlotte sighed softly at the treatment she hadn’t experienced in three years.
Instead of forcing the owner to rise, she simply spoke the words she needed to.
“I’m looking for white camellias. It doesn’t need to be a lot, just a small bouquet, please.”
“White camellias, yes, yes. I will fetch them immediately!”
The owner, hunched and still trembling, hurried away to find the flowers.
With no guards accompanying her, Charlotte was surrounded only by the sounds of buzzing bees and birds singing.
“This one has bloomed first again,” she murmured as she admired the flowers.
As she continued to enjoy the sight of the blooming flowers, the owner, who had nervously approached earlier, now looked more at ease and spoke.
“Lady Charlotte, the camellias are in another district. It will take at least an hour to bring them.”
“It’s fine. I’ll take a leisurely stroll around the capital. Don’t hurry.”
“Thank you, my lady.”
Charlotte smiled at the owner as he turned to go, reassured by her calm words. The owner had been a familiar face from her past life.
‘Sir! Didn’t I guarantee that the pink roses would bloom faster this time?’
In her past world, Noctem had planted flowers all over the manor, and Charlotte had often visited the garden to help care for them.
Her heart grew heavier. In this world, there were no memories of the six years she had known Noctem. Passing a pink rose blooming by her side, she left the garden.
The streets didn’t seem much different from six years ago.
“Today’s apples are golden apples! They taste amazing! Three for five coins!”
“Fresh fish from this morning! Hurry before they run out!”
“Pretty jewelry for sale! Some items are from the Eastern Continent!”
Shouts from vendors trying to sell their goods mixed together, making it hard to hear anything clearly.
Charlotte walked leisurely, watching the people in the street. She stopped by a dessert shop where Noctem had often bought treats for her, and bought a madeleine.
The pastry chef nearly caused a scene when he recognized her, but luckily, Charlotte was able to leave without further trouble.
She had only been in the shop for a short time, but the sun was already beginning to set. She figured the white camellias would be ready by the time she returned to the garden.
Charlotte quickened her pace. Was it because of the fluttering excitement in her chest, or was it due to the unfamiliar surroundings?
She didn’t notice that the handkerchief she had tucked into her sleeve had fallen and was blowing around in the wind.
Moreover, a man had been watching her closely and was now following her.
The man trailing behind Charlotte, Noctem Afros, frowned as he saw her standing unguarded, holding a money pouch in the street.
‘She’s doing this again, alone.’
It was a skill in itself that Charlotte’s presence stood out to him so much, considering he rarely cared for people. How was it possible for him to notice her twice while riding in a carriage at such speed?
Even though she covered her face and hair with a robe, the unique aura she exuded was unmistakable.
He didn’t know when or how he became so attuned to her presence, but it was a fact that he had.
‘Ignoring her is the best option.’
Right. Ignoring her was the best option. No, it wasn’t even ignoring her—there was no need for that. She wasn’t someone who had that kind of influence over me.”
Noctem naturally passed by her.
“…Ha, this is maddening.”
His resolve was shattered in less than a minute. Part of it was due to how irritating Charlotte’s presence was, and the other part was seeing that there were people secretly following her.
They were probably slave traders.
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he remembered the events in front of the gambling house.
‘She’ll soon be surrounded by those unclean people, helplessly.’
The image of those human hands reaching out to her made him feel extremely uncomfortable. There was no specific reason for his discomfort.
If he were to find one, it would be the fact that such behavior was happening so blatantly in a place that could be considered his empire.
Noctem quickly got out of the carriage. He was glad he had brought his robe with him.
He threw the long robe over himself and reached out his hand to the group following Charlotte.
“Ugh…”
He swiftly dragged them into a dark alley where the light didn’t reach and subdued them in an instant. Threatening them was nothing for him.
Once he had restrained them to a degree that they wouldn’t be able to retaliate, he left the alley and continued walking.
Finding her wasn’t difficult at all. There was no need to search. She was right in front of him, stacking up madeleines at a dessert shop and paying for them.
