RVMPT Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Clatter. 

The carriage shook as if it had hit a groove in the ground.

“Say it again,” he said.

I had married him as part of a deal, just for show, in order to heal him. So, even if I carried the responsibilities of a Duchess, I never thought the authority of the Duchess was truly mine.

But this man…

He’s telling me not to ask for his permission, because, as the Duchess, I have the right to act without needing to ask.

Harold was still watching me with the same posture, his lips lightly pressed against the ring on my finger. Just then, the carriage shook again, and I gathered my courage to speak.

“…Are you really sure about this?”

I could feel his fingers tighten slightly around mine. Harold raised an eyebrow, not even bothering to hide his displeasure with my question.

“You’re my wife, Diana. The only mistress of Baisen.”

“…”

His deep navy eyes, framed by his long lashes, seemed to whisper to me: It’s okay to wield your authority as the Duchess.

“Harold.”

“Yes, Diana?”

“I want to hire that boy into the Baisen household. I don’t know about his brother, but the boy we met earlier was remarkably strong for his age. He could be trained as an apprentice knight or a servant.”

Originally, I had been planning to ask Harold to sponsor the children.

I had recently made another investment, so I didn’t have much money available. My idea was to deduct the amount needed for the children from the 5,000 gold coins I was about to receive from him.

However, with Harold urging me to use my power as the Duchess, I started to think bigger. I wanted to create an opportunity for those boys to earn a living on their own, rather than just giving them money.

My heart pounded loudly in my chest. I felt dizzy with the thought: Is it really okay for me to do this? Did I just overstep?

Harold straightened his posture.

“It’s true. That boy is exceptionally strong for his age. He has a good build, and if trained well, he could become a capable knight.”

“…!”

“My wife has quite the keen eye, it seems.”

“What do you mean, quite the keen eye?”

“It’s a compliment.”

Doesn’t feel like one. I pouted slightly as the tension left my body.

I wasn’t so sure about that. Feeling relieved, I pouted slightly.

I couldn’t believe I had been allowed to do this. It felt strange, almost surreal.
‘It feels like I’m really Harold’s wife.’
No, what am I even thinking? Have I lost my mind?!

As I shook my head vigorously, my eyes met Harold’s, and I froze like ice.

“……”
Oh, right. I’m not alone right now.

My face felt hot. If this were a comic book, there’d probably be a big “POP!” sound effect over my head. Harold’s lips curved into a soft, amused smile.

“…Don’t laugh at me.”

“I wasn’t laughing.”

Harold shrugged his shoulders as if he had been falsely accused.

“I just like seeing you being aware of me.”

…Was he teasing me?

 I leaned my heated face against the window, trying to cool off. My face was so hot that I wanted to slap myself, but I didn’t want to draw any more attention. Instead, I laced my fingers together and rubbed them nervously. Each time, the gemstone in my wedding ring lightly grazed against my hand.

It felt warm, almost as if Harold’s breath was still on it.

Think about something else, I told myself. Anything else.

I turned my gaze out the window, forcing myself to think of other things.

I wonder if that boy managed to find his brother safely.

Three years. No, to be precise, within three years of when I was reincarnated, a new emperor would take the throne. Once that happened, there would no longer be children abandoned on the streets like this.

Three years might not seem like a long time for some, but for a boy like him, it was an eternity. The streets were harsher and more dangerous than most people could imagine.

A gust of wind shook the leaves outside, some trembling so violently that they fell. As I watched the fluttering leaves, I felt a warm hand cover mine.

I looked down at the large hand holding mine, then up at Harold.

“What are you thinking about, Diana, while I’m sitting right in front of you?”

“I was just thinking about something silly.”

Harold tapped his finger lightly against mine as if urging me to speak.

“It is really silly… So don’t laugh, okay?”

“I won’t laugh.”

After hearing his response, I finally spoke.

“Remember the play I saw earlier? Do you remember what it was about?”

“Vaguely. I know it was based on a fairy tale. So?”

“In the story, the king holds a hunting competition every three years and grants the winner’s wish. That’s what I was thinking about.”

“…”

“I thought… wouldn’t it be nice if the Emperor could be in a position like that king, where he’s compelled to listen to the wishes of his people and pay attention to their lives?”

Hearing my thoughts spoken aloud, I realized how absurd they sounded. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.

“That’s a strange thought. But…”

Harold trailed off, his lips pressing together.

But what? Why isn’t he finishing his sentence?

Could it be that even Harold thought my idea was too ridiculous to comment on? My face heated up again, and I buried it against the window, mortified.

---

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the party hall, Kaiden was conversing with a viscount.

“So… what do you think of this business?”

“…”

“Kaiden?”

“I’d prefer to discuss this at a better time. I’ll send a letter soon.”

Kaiden quickly hid his other thoughts and smiled sociably.

He exchanged a few words with the viscount and went out onto the terrace.

“…Ha.”

Letting the cool night air wash over him, he leaned against the railing and sighed deeply.

Diana mistook you for the one who saved her that day, Harold’s words from earlier echoed in his ears as he stood there.

Since learning that Diana had gone to the festival with Harold, Kaiden hadn’t been able to focus.

He had always found it strange how suddenly Diana had started to admire him. But Harold’s explanation made sense now.

So she doesn’t really love you, Harold’s voice repeated in his head.

For the first time, Kaiden finally considered the possibility that Diana’s feelings for him might have faded.

If that’s true, it’s for the best, he thought.

With her feelings gone, he wouldn’t have to deal with any messy complications. Life would be simpler.

At least, that’s what he told himself. But ever since that moment, his life felt off. His chest felt tight, and he found himself consumed by thoughts of Diana.

The more he tried to push her from his mind, the more tangled his emotions became.

Am I really this affected by her?

Kaiden clenched his jaw, the tension audible.

This makes it seem like I actually… like her.

His heart began to race. He took a deep breath, running his hands through his hair and laughing roughly.

“Ha, ha. That can’t be. That’s impossible. Me? Liking that girl?”

Diana wasn’t someone he should have wanted by his side. Sure, she had improved—she no longer acted rashly like before and carried herself more gracefully as a duchess. But that was it.

Ella was still better than Diana in every way.

I made the right choice.

He convinced himself that it was just lack of sleep, and there had to be another reason why his life felt off, not some ridiculous reason like liking Daiana.

Then, Harold’s disdainful gaze flashed through his mind like a lightning bolt.

“That’s it! That must be why I’m so annoyed!”

Kaiden’s crimson eyes glimmered with a peculiar intensity, like a flame flickering in a storm.

‘Diana might have loved me because of a misunderstanding, But even if she learned the truth, there’s no way she doesn’t love me.’
No matter the reason, Diana had loved him for a long time.
‘I know Diana better than anyone. She’ll never be able to give up on me, not even until the day she dies.’

But what had Harold said to him back then?
To stop hanging around his wife. And Diana had said she no longer loved him.
He had said it while looking down at him as if he were pathetic.

‘He doesn’t know anything, but he dares to act like that.’

That condescending expression must be why he was still angry.

 ‘I wasn’t anxious because I thought Diana might not love me anymore.’

Kaiden finally let out a refreshing laugh, as if a layer of dust that had been weighing on his heart for years had been wiped clean.
For the first time, Kaiden smiled with relief.

He didn’t even notice the uneven rhythm of his own heart.

---

“Diana.”
I straightened up and wiped my lips.
I must’ve dozed off.

“Yawn—Have we arrived?”
As my foggy mind gradually cleared, I turned to look at Harold sitting beside me.

“Yes, we’ve arrived.”

He had been sitting across from me earlier, but at some point, while I slept, he must have moved to my side to let me rest on his shoulder.

I took Harold’s hand as he helped me down from the carriage. Only then did I notice the beautiful wooden house nestled within the forest.

“…Where are we?”
I had assumed we’d arrived at the duke’s estate.

I looked up at Harold, expecting him to know the answer.

“This is my private property. I’ll tell you why I brought you here later. For now, just follow me.”

Harold wouldn’t have brought me somewhere strange, and there must have been a reason.
I trusted Harold, so I followed him without hesitation.

The grass along the path was neatly trimmed. I became even more curious about what awaited at the end, and when I glanced at Harold, I caught the faint smell of water carried by the breeze.

‘Wow!’

Soon, an enormous lake spread out before me, vast like the ocean, filling my entire field of vision.
The horizon blurred into the sky, making it look as though stars were scattered across both heaven and earth.

A gentle breeze brushed against my cheeks, and the ripples on the surface of the water made the night sky shimmer.

I couldn’t keep my mouth shut as my heart stirred with excitement.

 When I saw a shooting star streak across the sky, I gasped, “Wow!”

I had to make a wish!
I closed my eyes and wished for several big and small things before opening them again.

“Sit here.”
Harold gestured to a bench nearby. I sat down next to him.

“Diana, earlier you asked why I brought you here, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”

Harold lifted his finger and pointed to the sky.
I followed his gesture and looked up.

“This is my answer.”

At that moment, a loud boom echoed as colorful fireworks filled the night sky, bursting into dazzling blooms.