Chapter 57
I felt relieved as I saw that Sylvia’s condition had improved. Having the alleviating medicine with me, due to the Darnnella’s disease I was suffering from as well, turned out to be helpful.
Dave, who had been anxiously watching her, seemed to have finally eased his worry as he began to cry loudly.
To give him some space, I gently pulled Richard’s hand, signaling that we should step outside for a moment. I thought it would be better for both Dave and Sylvia if we gave them some privacy.
Richard seemed to understand my intent and followed me out right away. The physician and others did the same.
“By the way, madam,” the physician called out to me as I was leaving the examination room, returning the medicine I had given him earlier, looking at me with a curious expression.
I glanced at him, wondering why he looked puzzled, and he tilted his head slightly before speaking.
“How is it that you have Darnnella’s disease alleviating medicine? Making this kind of medicine usually takes at least a day…”
It wasn’t surprising that he was confused. Darnnella’s disease wasn’t common, and it was unlikely that the physician would have thought I had it. After all, he wasn’t my primary doctor when I was under Tristan’s care.
“I also have Darnnella’s disease,” I said with a gentle smile. The physician looked at me with a shocked expression.
“…I’m sorry to hear that, madam.”
It made sense that he was shocked. The medicine for the disease could only be made from the blooming Rosier flowers, which were extremely difficult to obtain, so his reaction wasn’t odd.
The Rosier flowers were so rare and expensive that the disease was generally considered incurable.
I didn’t feel the need to respond to the physician’s reaction.
“Let’s go back,” Richard suggested. I looked around the physician’s office for a moment and nodded.
“That sounds good. But before we leave, I think we should post a knight here just in case.”
Richard turned slightly to glance at the knights nearby after hearing my suggestion.
“Knight Caitel, stay behind and watch over these two children.”
Richard gave the command to one of the knights who had come with us from the courtroom.
It was clear that giving this responsibility to Knights Lorenz and Jason would be too much of a burden, so it made sense to ask Caitel to stay.
After quickly considering this, I followed Richard out of the physician’s office. We got back into the carriage, and he sat down across from me.
As the carriage rattled along, Richard stayed silent for a long time, watching me intently. It wasn’t unusual for him to be quiet or look at me, but right now, it felt oddly awkward.
“Is there something on my face?” I couldn’t stand the awkwardness anymore and asked him.
Richard shook his head and turned his gaze to the window. Yet, the awkwardness didn’t seem to fade.
I didn’t think it was appropriate to ask why he was staring at me if he said there was nothing, so I turned my gaze out the carriage window to look at the scenery instead.
The slowly passing view of the capital was something I never grew tired of, no matter how many times I saw it. Suddenly, I heard faint cheering in the distance. It was coming from the direction of the Colosseum.
Now that I thought about it, the festival was opening in the capital soon. That’s why I couldn’t book a separate hotel room.
The Colosseum was a large festival held once a year in the empire, lasting about two weeks. Gladiators from various regions gathered to compete against each other. It was so grand that people from neighboring countries would come to watch.
Though I was curious, it was far from me, so I quickly dismissed my interest.
I glanced at the distant Colosseum before straightening my posture.
Before long, we arrived back at the Starlight Hotel.
After entering the room, I took off the coat Richard had draped over me and sat on the bed. As the days passed, I was feeling more and more fatigued, and the exhaustion was now stronger than before.
Come to think of it, since I arrived in the capital, I had been constantly exhausted. It made sense though. So much had happened while I was here. Not to mention, I had been paying attention to the trial and the rosié flowers, which added to the strain.
“Why don’t you rest for a while? If you’re uncomfortable, I can step out.” Richard suggested.
I raised both hands to cover my face, and Richard suggested something to me. I lifted my head and looked at him. He was adjusting his clothes, seemingly ready to leave.
I wondered if something was going on, and I almost spoke but quickly closed my mouth. I remembered that earlier in the morning, I had heard there would be nothing scheduled for the afternoon. It seemed like he was trying to leave to give me some space, despite not having anything planned.
I shook my head at him.
“You don’t need to do that on purpose. You must be tired too, so just rest here.”
“It’s not that I’m trying to leave on purpose. There’s something I need to check because of what happened today.”
“What happened today? Ah…”
It was about what Duke Tristan had done today. He had kidnapped Sylvia and Dave, tried to force Dave to commit perjury, and even tried to kill me.
It was certainly a lot to process, and it would be strange for Richard to stay silent about it.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make things worse. It’s because of me that more problems arose.”
When I said this with a regretful heart, Richard looked at me intently. A deep furrow appeared between his brows.
“It’s not because of you. It’s because of Duke Tristan.”
“…Right.”
In the end, if it weren’t for me, Richard wouldn’t have had to go through all this trouble, but I didn’t want to keep expressing my gloomy thoughts, so I forced a smile.
Richard looked at me with a concerned expression before nodding.
“You’ve already had a lot of work today, so rest early. I’ll have the knights stationed outside in case something happens.”
“Got it.”
“See you soon.”
I escorted Richard to the door and then went back inside and laid down on the bed.
Although I had told Richard that it was fine for him to stay, I was so exhausted that I just wanted to sleep right away. With Richard there, I wouldn’t be able to relax, but now that he was gone, I could finally rest comfortably.
As I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, the events from the courtroom came to mind. I could vividly remember Duke Tristan’s terrifying face, his bloodshot eyes as he strangled me.
Even now, the sensation of my throat being squeezed felt real. Just thinking about it made me shiver.
I pulled the blanket up to my neck and curled up. Even with the blanket, I couldn’t shake the cold feeling.
* * *
It was pitch black. I was standing in a place where I could see nothing and feel nothing.
Where was this?
Confused, I looked around, but I couldn’t make sense of anything. Cautiously, I took a step forward. Each step felt as heavy as wading through a swamp. Despite moving forward, I wasn’t sure if I was even moving in the right direction.
In my panic, I stopped in place, cautiously observing my surroundings.
An eerie silence settled around me. There was nothing visible, nothing audible, and the emptiness around me sank deep into my chest.
Then, someone grabbed my hand. I turned my head, and the person who held my hand made me freeze in place.
“Father?”
A monstrous figure, with a grotesque expression twisted into a snarl, was panting heavily like a wild animal. And his face— it was Duke Tristan’s face, one I knew all too well.
“It’s all because of you!”
My father’s voice echoed, his tone filled with resentment and fury, as if two voices were layered together. The pain in his voice was suffocating.
“If you weren’t here, all of this would have been mine!”
After speaking, Duke Tristan reached out toward me. His hand was unnaturally large and seemed more violent than ever. I wanted to run, but for some reason, my body wouldn’t obey. I couldn’t escape, even as his hand reached for me.
“Die!”
Duke Tristan’s hand started to choke me. The horrifying fear of death began to consume me.
I couldn’t breathe, my limbs grew weak, and the pain was so intense that it felt as if my eyes might be torn out. The agony was unbearable, and I struggled, trying to move my stiffened limbs.
* * *
“…Rna!”
A distant voice echoed. The low voice sounded urgent, as if someone was calling for help.
I focused all my attention on the voice, and in that moment…
“Diarna!”
My eyes opened, and the oppressive sensations around me lifted. I gasped for air, finally breaking free from the suffocating grasp. The person who had awakened me was right in front of me.
“Are you okay, Diarna?”
Richard had removed his hand from my shoulder and was looking at me with concern. I nodded and slowly sat up.
“…When did you get here?”
“Just a while ago. It looks like you were having a nightmare.”
“….”
I didn’t answer right away, instead giving a faint, strained smile. I wanted to reassure him by smiling, but I didn’t have the energy to do so.
Richard continued to watch me closely, then sat down on the edge of the bed.
“If you’re scared, you can say it.”
“What?”
“There’s no need to hide it.”
Without saying anything else, he continued to quietly observe me. His blue eyes, which always seemed to see right through me, made me feel exposed. It was as though he could peer into my deepest thoughts.
But for some reason, tears welled up in my dry eyes. Before I could stop them, tears began to fall onto the blanket, dripping silently.
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