Side Story 1. On a Warm Spring Day

On the way back from Bremlin, Hyacinth pondered for a long time.

“Propose to me next spring. Got it?”

They were certainly ill-fated.

Hyacinth Hener, with her red hair, was Ethan Erentis’s nightmare, and Ethan Erentis, with his cold demeanor, was Hyacinth Hener’s misfortune.

They had forgiven and been forgiven, so it would have been best to part cleanly.

They were too different. Hyacinth knew well that a mismatched relationship is not easily fixed. Therefore, a complete separation would be the best solution to prevent the recurrence of tragedy…

“You can be rejected once. But propose again!”

But why did she decide to reconnect?

Why doesn’t she regret that decision?

* * *

In a garden filled with the sweet scent of lilacs, Hyacinth received a proposal for the first time in this life. Both the knight proposing and the lady receiving the proposal knew the outcome.

A gentle breeze swirled between them.

Hyacinth looked down at the silver-haired head in her view. Ethan Erentis, kneeling on one knee before her, looked devout and mysterious. Just like when the young and naive Hyacinth Hener fell for him at first sight.

Slowly, Hyacinth placed her hand on the knight’s palm. Ethan tilted his head slightly as if reading her hesitation. His noble features were filled with a mix of emotions.

Worry, concern, a faint hope, and firm resolve.

…He was entirely focused on her.

Unlike in the previous life. Unconsciously, Hyacinth bit her lip. Her rational mind faced the reality clearly: Ethan Erentis was completely different from their previous life.

Back then, her uncle had strongly urged him to propose, but this time, he was asking for her will of his own volition.

Even while mulling over this fact, Hyacinth was caught in inevitable mixed emotions. She couldn’t easily shake off the negative feelings.

The fear of repeating the past. The worry that two mismatched souls might create a new tragedy. The bitter taste of anxiety lingered on her tongue.

“Lady Laurel.”

“……”

“Hyacinth. Hyce?”

A voice roughened by concern.

Only then did Hyacinth realize she was trembling slightly. She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. Pretending nothing was wrong, she declared nonchalantly.

“I refuse. As you know.”

“…Is that alright?”

“Of course.”

Hyacinth answered shamelessly.

Since she didn’t withdraw her hand from Ethan’s, he began to carefully caress each of her fingers. It was more like an inspection than a touch filled with desire. After meticulously examining her well-groomed nails and intact fingertips, he finally clasped her hand.

“I would like to ask just one thing.”

“Yes.”

“…By any chance, do I…”

Ethan, who had finally opened his mouth after a long pause, couldn’t easily continue. Just a moment ago, it was Hyacinth’s hand that was trembling, but now it was his hand shaking. Hyacinth withdrew her hand and lifted his chin. Leaning towards him, she found the right distance and angle.

“I told you to propose again.”

“Is that… really okay?”

“You must.”

“…Understood.”

Ethan Erentis smiled faintly while his face was held. A smile so soft and gentle that it was impossible not to fix one’s gaze on it. His eyes curved roundly, and his usually calm face was filled with emotion.

In the twilight, the man’s smile shone alone.

Even knowing that dragging out the time could turn into rudeness, Hyacinth couldn’t take her eyes or hands off him.

She had never seen him this happy before. Wasn’t he always the man who only wore a formal smile? But she made him smile like this. Not anyone else, but she, Hyacinth Hener, brought about this change in Ethan Erentis.

An indescribable emotion surged within her.

“You can be rejected once.”

She thought it was good she had declared it in advance. Unconsciously, Hyacinth called his name again.

“Ethan.”

“Yes.”

Perhaps because of his silver hair, it felt as if the moon, absent from tonight’s sky, had descended upon him. Staring intently at the subtle shimmer, Hyacinth suddenly realized.

Ethan Erentis was the only thing she couldn’t have.

Ah, so that’s why. Now she understood.

Hyacinth sighed inwardly, finally realizing why she had stubbornly insisted on an ill-fated relationship.

There are emotions that even oneself cannot detect. Hyacinth looked into her true feelings, which had risen from possessiveness.

Even though arrogance had led to her downfall, she couldn’t help her nature; she always wanted to be the chooser rather than the chosen. And above all, she didn’t want to fail. Her pride couldn’t accept failure. Especially in building a family with the man she chose.

Duke Trisel Ethan Erentis was both her misfortune and her most splendid failure…

“Ethan, Ethan.”

Pushing the fear of repeating a new tragedy beyond the root of her tongue, Hyacinth determined that if she did nothing out of fear, failure would remain as failure.

“Please speak.”

“When you return to the North, can I send you letters?”

Ethan’s eyes widened. Even though Hyacinth let go of his face, he remained frozen for a long time.

“…It would be an honor.”

“Good. Then I’ll send them. If I send one letter, you have to reply with five. Got it?”

When she spread all five fingers, Ethan fixed his gaze there. His Adam’s apple bobbed roughly.

“I will do my best.”

“I’ll be counting.”

“Yes.”

The knight, more skilled with a sword than a pen, solemnly swore.

And Ethan Erentis kept his promise precisely.

To Hyacinth’s single letter of barely ten lines, he replied with ten pages. Counting the pages, Hyacinth chuckled.

She had expected him to write more than five pages, and it amused her that her prediction was correct. It also tickled her.

Ethan Erentis had meticulously filled the pages. He wrote about how he was rebuilding Bremlin Castle and how he was sorting out the people of Bremlin. Three pages were about the North, and seven pages were about his concerns for Hyacinth.

Be careful of snakes in the fall, be careful not to slip in the winter, and there are various types of spiders with venom to be cautious of… Thanks to his detailed warnings, Hyacinth learned for the first time how precarious her daily life was. Reading the advice not to lie down immediately after eating, Hyacinth pouted. She had been half-lying on the sofa eating snacks at that moment.

“How nagging.”

A lady’s precious rest should be respected. Instead of getting up from the sofa, Hyacinth curled up more. The letter paper had a refreshing woody scent.

…Ethan Erentis was more meticulous than she had thought.

After receiving ten pages, she couldn’t just send a few lines in return.

This time, Hyacinth diligently wrote five pages. It was filled with trivial stories from Tyche and answers to the questions Ethan had asked in his previous letter. Thanks to Ethan’s diverse questions, filling five pages wasn’t too hard. The effort to avoid making any mistakes was the challenging part.

Ethan’s letters were indeed immaculate. There were no typos, and the handwriting was not just neat but beautiful.

So Hyacinth had to do her best to keep her resolution to send a decent reply.

To her five-page letter, Ethan Erentis sent back twelve pages.

Each containing new content not overlapping with the previous letters. This time, Hyacinth sat upright on the sofa and read the letters thoroughly. Ethan described himself and Bremlin’s winter in elegant cursive.

Reading about ‘the aftermath of organizing all of Bridget Erentis’s belongings,’ Hyacinth wrinkled her nose. She couldn’t imagine what emotions Ethan had while writing those sentences. It seemed she still didn’t know him well enough to accurately guess his reactions.

Did he feel relieved, thinking it was a complete end, or did he recall the wounds he had received and feel anger?

Thinking of Bridget Erentis, who would be resting in Bremlin, Hyacinth clicked her tongue. Though she was the Duchess in this life, she was buried in the Duke’s chapel. Despite the ceremony and tombstone being modest, she was resting in peace.

Considering that she ruined one… no, two lives, wasn’t it too gentle an end? Hyacinth silently grumbled. Once her mind grew complicated, all sorts of thoughts arose.

She only remembered the past through dreams and had quite good resilience, but Ethan was different.

Long-lasting violence couldn’t have left light scars. Moreover, Ethan had to endure tragedy twice, both in his previous life and this one.

Despite that, did he not harbor any negative thoughts when seeing her red hair? If bad memories kept resurfacing, it would be natural to react.

Hyacinth tilted her head. She was not doubting Ethan Erentis’s love.

Ethan, Ethan Erentis…
undoubtedly loves Hyacinth Hener.

He whispers with his whole body that he loves her, having overcome even the gloomy memories of his childhood. The colorless man looked at her as if he was seeing the only light in his life every time he saw her. Sometimes, he even looked at her with a hint of worship, mixed with slight exaggeration. His careful touch, treating her like a glass artifact, and his gaze that didn’t easily leave her, showed how a man in love behaves.

…So, how was that possible?

Hyacinth didn’t write her question in the reply. It was too deep and important a question to ask in writing. She knew well that Ethan Erentis’s answer would be proof that they wouldn’t repeat the same mistakes in this life, even more so.

So she diligently wrote about trivial matters—like the story of the gray cat they saved together. She wrote without hiding how Benjamin named the cat ‘Cory’ and how Cory never listened to her. In the middle of writing, the cat approached and pressed her foot. Though it was a request for a snack, Hyacinth tapped the cat’s head with the end of her quill.

“No. You’ve already had today’s snack.”

Meow— the enraged cat pounced to seize the quill.

Though Hyacinth lost the quill, she managed to protect the letter paper.