The Count stood with his arms crossed, lifting his chin to signal Gerald to continue, but Gerald couldn’t open his mouth. What on earth was he trying to say?
“I tried to do something by giving him sleeping pills and putting him to sleep, but when he noticed, He switched the cups, and he fell asleep. So, were you embarrassed and did that?” Gerald finally managed to speak up.
“It wasn’t just about being banned from going out or having no pocket money. It was the possibility of being kicked out of the house penniless,” Gerald continued, feeling the weight of his words.
“Why don’t you stop talking?” the Count interrupted, clearly irritated. “You’re acting arrogantly without even knowing the topic!”
Gerald, huffing with frustration, continued speaking, causing the Count to hold his head in pain. “I call this guy my son!” the Count muttered to himself as he left the room.
As he exited, he encountered an employee bringing food to Gerald. The Count couldn’t help but think,
‘Is there anything I can eat in this situation?’
Little did he know, another stomach-turning event was waiting for him.
* * *
“I took all the magic tools and clothes. Well, if you leave anything behind, you can just buy a new one, so it’s not important,” Candice mentioned.
The night before her scheduled departure from the duke’s residence, Candice piled up several huge suitcases and sat cross-legged on top of them, pondering deeply about whether she would leave anything behind.
“Okay, I don’t think there’s anything special I didn’t take care of,” she reassured herself, patting her luggage with a satisfied expression on her face. Then, she glanced around the room with a somewhat lonely expression.
Having spent nearly a year here, it seemed she had grown quite fond of it. Her eyes kept wandering around the places her hands had touched, so she roamed around the room, running her palm here and there.
Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Ophelia peeked her face out.
“Uh, no, not yet. What’s going on?” Candice greeted her friend with a puzzled face. Ophelia was holding a thick folder in her arms.
“I have something to give you,” Ophelia said, handing over the document.
“Wow, did you carry this heavy thing alone? Call me!” Candice exclaimed.
“It’s okay, Noah is heavier,” Ophelia responded playfully, showing off her biceps. Although I was half-joking, it was true that Noah, the newborn baby, was much heavier than the pile of documents.
“But what is this?” Candice asked as she skimmed through the documents. Ophelia had handwritten magic formulas on each page, materials she had been researching.
“These are the magic research materials I have been working on for the past 10 years. Now, because it has no meaning to me, I think you need it more than me,” Ophelia explained.
Candice was about to ask what kind of magic it was, but after flipping through a few pages, she realized it herself and closed her mouth.
“This,” Ophelia said, answering Candice’s unspoken question. “I was researching a magic to turn back time. I wanted to turn back time to the day I lost Ayla.”
Candice felt an indescribable emotion as she looked through her friend’s scribbled research notes. Just by looking at a few pages, she could feel how meticulously organized they were.
“It would be a waste to just throw it away. I want you to finish it,” Ophelia said.
“Yes, that’s right,” Candice agreed, holding the documents tightly as if making a promise.
“What if I perfect the magic to turn back time? What are you going to do, then? Are you going to turn back time to that day?” Candice asked cautiously.
“Well…” Ophelia hesitated, unable to give an easy answer. Even just a year ago, the answer was, of course, ‘Yes.’
“But it was different now,” she continued. “I don’t know. Ayla promised, ‘I will come back’. Candice said you would go find that child. And then there’s Noah. What if she turns back time and she doesn’t find that child?”
Candice nodded without saying anything, understanding the complexity of the situation.
“I will find it for you, your daughter,” Candice reassured Ophelia.
“Thank you,” Ophelia responded gratefully.
The next morning, as all the guests were preparing to leave, the Duke of Weisshaven was busy sending them off.
The two sisters were boisterous among the guests, engaged in a spirited argument.
“Let’s stop arguing and get going. There are 90,000 miles to go,” Austin said, shaking his head.
The landlords, Ophelia and Roderick, watched the commotion with warm smiles as they bid farewell to the departing guests.
After the loud sendoff, urgent news arrived—a messenger informed Roderick that the Sekim tribe had invaded the northwest.
Roderick’s face darkened as he realized the gravity of the situation.
“I think I have to go see it in person,” Roderick said grimly.
Despite his worries about leaving his family behind, Ophelia reassured him, holding his hand firmly.
“It was a smile that was soft but seemed firmer than anything else.”
