You are at the End of the Downfall

It was spring. A vibrant spring filled Lusenford. It was time to put away winter items and fully embrace the arrival of spring.

Even Lusenford, still suffering from the aftermath of war, could not escape the hope that spring brought. It was a day when the previously somber atmosphere became lively again.

The woman who had feared the cold drank poison on this warm day. She chose death willingly and calmly. Her small body, always standing so straight, crumbled too easily.

The woman who had diligently created opportunities to talk with him by walking now lay limp. Her body was rapidly cooling. She had said she hated the cold, didn’t she? That she found it terribly unpleasant and scary. This shouldn’t be happening.

“…Your Highness!”

Shouting voices were heard faintly in the distance. Peon’s consciousness was entirely focused on the woman lying down.

Thump, thump, his blood vessels raced at his temples, pounding his brain. Why was he still alive? When Kaela had decided to die.

“…Ha, medicine…!”

He had thought regression was an opportunity. What a convenient opportunity it was. Knowing well how the future would unfold, if he prepared carefully from now on, he could overcome that dark future. Anyone with many regrets would want to regress.

Peon was the same. Having returned after numerous sacrifices, he thought he would do things right this time, if only to repay those sacrifices.

But for Kaela, his young wife, it seems it wasn’t an opportunity. There was no hope for her. He hadn’t given her any. So it was his fault.

I made a mistake.

As soon as he regressed, he should have quietly disappeared without even catching Kaela’s eye. He shouldn’t have harbored any arrogance about doing better this time or being able to change things.

I made a mistake.

His consciousness scattered like fragments. Memories split, and thoughts snapped off pitch-black. Kaela’s face, eyes closed as if completely ignoring him, overlapped with the Kaela who had lain in that northern tower.

What if he lost her again like that? As soon as he recognized the unbearable loss, a bitter smile appeared.

This shameless man was worried because he couldn’t bear the terrible sense of loss. That’s why she ran away. She fled to death to escape her cruel and incompetent husband.

From the beginning, she had constantly tried to escape. How sick must she have been of the husband who clung to her so desperately?

“Your Highness.”

Couldn’t she just live?

“Grand Duke.”

Couldn’t she just live, since she would fade from his life anyway? She’s only twenty-one. Last time, she was only twenty-five. His trembling gaze wouldn’t leave her white face and small frame illuminated by the fireplace light.

“Your Highness, it’s already been three days.”

He had regressed, so he knew everything, and this time he wanted to protect her without fail.

He wanted to let her go only after ensuring she was safe enough to leave his side. He had sworn to do so. He hoped she would experience a brilliant youth, a mature middle age, a healthy and happy old age, and then pass away peacefully of natural causes.

Peon had never once thought about living happily after regressing. He didn’t even wish for such a thing.

If the world became safe enough for Kaela to live in, he would be fine with disappearing. But beyond safety, if she died now, it would all be meaningless.

His world was dying pitch-black. Where on earth was Kaela’s happiness?

Would Kaela be happy if he saved her? What if she tried to die again? But doesn’t she need to be alive to be happy? Where is the happiness, the happiness she desires?

It must be a nightmare.

He understood that he couldn’t give happiness to a woman who found living to be a nightmare. He also understood that she couldn’t be happy as long as he existed.

“Your Highness. There’s nothing more we can do now.”

Only then did Peon raise his head. Darinka, who had stayed up with him for three nights straight, sweating as she cared for Kaela, was calling him.

“Now we can only watch. So please go and rest. If Your Highness collapses too, who will resolve Her Highness’s grievances?”

Peon, who had been quietly listening to the doctor’s words, turned his head again to look at Kaela. She was still breathing faintly. There was so little life in her that one had to place a hand under her straight nose to barely confirm her warm breath.

The man who couldn’t even ask her to live had tied that weak breath to a body on the verge of breaking.

He had bound her life with his awakened power, but he didn’t know how to wake her up. Not knowing, he could only wait. Peon looked at his wife buried deep in the bed, then stood up.

****

“Your Highness is being deceived.”

The butler, imprisoned in the dungeon for three days, had a broken shoulder and a fractured leg.

Peon didn’t remember doing it, but judging by the handiwork, he knew it must have been his doing. He could cause dissension in enemy ranks with just the flick of a finger, so creating some fractures without even touching someone was something he could do unconsciously.

“She’s a woman from the South! The Emperor’s niece! She’ll sell off this Lusenford! I have nothing but loyalty for Your Highness! You’re bewitched by a woman! How could you do this?”

The dungeon echoed loudly. Having apparently received quite a treatment for three days, the emaciated and withered butler was shouting, out of his mind. Peon regretted his actions. He should have ripped that mouth and smashed those teeth instead of breaking joints.

“She tried to poison, tried to poison Your Highness!”

“I’m perfectly fine.”

“Who prepares the tea…!”

“You prepared the tea.”

The butler’s words stopped abruptly.

“She has never prepared my tea.”

“No! The Duchess always prepares… prepares…?”

The butler speaking became confused. Surely the Duchess had prepared Peon’s tea? Hadn’t she always done so? No, no. That never happened. He, the butler, had prepared the tea. Why?

“Not once since we got married.”

When the butler denounced the Duchess, others including Sir Renard looked at him as if he were mad.

Kaela had never once taken care of Peon’s tea. That’s how it was in this marriage. She hadn’t made any such efforts, pouring out her heart one by one.

Before the regression, she had diligently selected tea and wine every day, but perhaps that ultimately became a trap for her? Or did she give up because her husband wasn’t worth such dedication?

Peon thought it was the latter as he looked at the butler who partially retained his pre-regression self. Yes. It’s not surprising.

If Kaela regressed, why couldn’t this guy? Even if not a full regression, there were those who showed glimpses of their previous life. Unclear, scattered fragments appearing in pieces.

“Besides, our Duchess has no reason to kill me.”

That woman has chosen to die by herself twice.

“I, I saw it! I saw with my own two eyes the Inspector and the Duchess having a secret meeting! That’s why she took her own life, isn’t it?”

Perhaps I should have gouged out his eyes. Peon thought he had done well to keep the butler alive. There was still so much he could do.

“Your Highness, it’s me. How can you not trust this Rolf who raised you so carefully since you were young? I tell you I saw it! If you don’t do something, you’ll regret it someday! She’ll sell Lusenford to the Emperor! Someday in the northern tower, in the tower…”

Every time the gaze looking down at the noisy insect fell upon him, the butler felt as if he was being stripped naked. And Peon seemed to deeply despise him.

“In the tower?”

“…You should… imprison her…”

The butler’s dry mouth gaped. White foam had dried around it. He didn’t even understand why he was saying these things.

“Imprison her and?”

“…She’s… a spy…”

The spy was correct. It was clear, but why did I become so certain? I couldn’t remember.

“What should we do with the captive?”

The Grand Duke, who still looked flawless and beautiful despite staying awake for three days, smiled.

“Should we secretly cut off the food supply instead of me being careless and stupid? Quietly starve them to death?”

The butler was already trembling. He avoided eye contact while shaking.

“It was you.”

Found it. The butler was terrified by the fiercely flashing eyes.

“You ignored my orders and blocked the food for Her Highness.”

“I, I don’t know anything about this. I don’t understand what you’re saying.”

“But you surely have such a memory.”

The Grand Duke asserted.

“For some reason, you have that memory.”

“No, no. I didn’t do that!”

However, there was a deep-rooted belief about the Grand Duchess that he couldn’t understand why.

There was a belief that she was a foreigner and would end up selling Lusenford to the Emperor. Even the butler was confused. Why did he believe this? Why? Because that southern woman would do such a thing!

Peon briefly lowered his head as if pondering, then raised it again. Where else to break, extract, and burst?

“Your Highness, it’s true. I’m sincere.”

“Prove it.”

The torture chamber in the underground dungeon was filled with all sorts of terrifying tools, and only a few of the Grand Duke’s closest knights were standing far away.

“Those mouths that requested Crania to call for an inspector even before I sent the report.”

The butler’s eyes widened as much as they could.

“You’re obviously included, so try naming the rest.”

The face, too beautiful to believe it was human, tilted as if measuring something.

“Make it feel sincere.”

As if reporting on the Grand Duchess, with your utmost effort.

****

Beatrice knew the old facilities of Lusenford Castle quite well. In her childhood, when there was nothing to do but run around here and there, she would rummage through all sorts of places to avoid boredom.

So she could move around Lusenford quietly without being noticed much. She knew how to walk silently, as if gliding.

That’s how she had been secretly entering and exiting the Soleil Palace where the Emperor stayed, without making any noise. Moreover, she had a magical tool she developed herself that could somewhat conceal her presence and appearance. Fortunately, it was in the trunk that remained.

‘At least in Crania, I didn’t have to do this myself…’

I should have thrown a party. Beatrice suppressed a cough and stepped on the shadows carefully.

If she had thrown a party to captivate all the women and men here anew, they would have brought gossip on their own.

She could have just sat still and selected from the incoming information, but now she had to move herself as the situation didn’t allow for that.

Moreover, the information she overheard was terrible, and even that was all strange rumors.

“I heard the butler was imprisoned in the underground dungeon. That Yarpa was also kicked out.”

“She wasn’t just kicked out. Her wrists were all cut off.”

“What? Her wrists were cut off? Oh, how horrible. What on earth did she steal?”

Cutting off wrists is a severe punishment given to thieves.

“Where has she been? Why doesn’t she know?”

“I was in Fueten and just came back this morning. What happened?”

“They say she dared to steal Her Highness the Grand Duchess’s belongings. She was screaming that the butler ordered her to do it.”

“That crazy woman, how could she say the butler ordered that? Why would the butler order such a thing?”

“How would I know?”

Why did he order it? Because when doing big things, you need several insignificant hands. But it seems to have failed.

Moreover, Beatrice was anxious because she couldn’t know where Kaela was or what she was doing, or where Peon was. Beatrice, reduced to picking up gossip from chattering maids, looked for Darinka, but Darinka wasn’t there either.

‘Then who’s said to be sick?’

It’s probably Kaela, who often fell ill and was prone to minor ailments. Did she get shocked? It would be great if she became so ill that she could never get up again. Then Peon would return to her. But reality seemed far from her wishes.

‘This won’t do.’

After waiting for three days, no better news came. Yet Peon didn’t call Beatrice to question her about her relationship with the butler.

Although no one told her anything, she felt anxious and intimidated for no reason.

Of course, no matter what the butler blabbed about, Peon couldn’t touch her as she was the Lady of Monde Duchy, but it was hard to endure this situation where no one paid attention to her.

Beatrice chewed her lips, thinking about her purpose for coming here.

The purpose of restoring her relationship with Peon, which seemed to have grown distant after marriage, and strengthening the taboo. In this situation, there was only one way for her to achieve her goal.

“I’d like to see His Highness the Grand Duke. I’m planning to return to Crania, and shouldn’t I inform the lord of the castle before leaving?”

“His Highness the Grand Duke is outside now.”

Beatrice boldly set out to find Peon.

“Ah!”

The head maid, whose work had increased after the butler was imprisoned, guided Beatrice without showing any displeasure or annoyance.

She maintained just the necessary etiquette without exaggeration in serving guests, like a head maid serving a very old noble family even in Crania.

“He’s over there.”

Peon, standing at the north exit behind the castle where weapons occasionally passed through, wasn’t alone. He was expressionlessly watching something being loaded onto a cart.

As Beatrice approached him, she instinctively tried to smile. But the smell of blood from somewhere stopped her smile. What was being loaded onto the old cart was a person.

His teeth were all pulled out, his jaw was shattered, and where his eyes should have been were black holes with dried blood. His limbs were twisted and he couldn’t move at all.

The knights who roughly loaded the person, who was no different from a half-dead corpse with his face and entire body covered in blood, mounted their horses. The cart started to move quietly.

It was only after watching for a while that Beatrice realized this person was once the butler who used to strut around Lusenford Castle wearing the best clothes.

In the middle of spring, she felt a chill.