Chapter 49. Resigned, Smiling

Click.

I exited the bathroom, closed the door, and headed towards the fireplace.

Since summer was approaching, the fireplace was only lit from dusk until dawn.

When it gets truly hot, we won’t light it at all, and I’ll have to figure out how to dispose of bloody bathrobes then.

Perhaps I’ll have to sneak into the kitchen.

I tossed the bathrobe into the fireplace. The crimson flames licked at the bloodstains, greedily consuming the thick fabric.

In about 15 minutes, it would burn completely, leaving no trace.

I stood in front of the fireplace, staring blankly for a while, then sighed softly and moved towards the window.

The sunset was coloring the ground. I sat in the armchair by the window and watched the scene quietly. The splendid garden of the Winter Palace was being enveloped by the crimson glow of the sunset.

I coughed up blood again.

Though it wasn’t as much as last time, I could definitely feel the strain on my body. Without fail, my lifespan had been shortened. The sensation of life draining from me was unmistakably clear.

If I continued using foresight magic like this, I would surely die within 14 months at most. That’s a generous estimate, and if things were more dire, I might die within 11 months.

Whether I died from illness after being abused by Anderson or from a shortened lifespan after being used by Enoch Bayern, death was inevitable. But this way was better. At least I could choose where to spend my final moments.

‘In the future I saw with my foresight…’

It seemed like someone was by my side as I was dying.

Who was that person? My condition was so poor in the vision that I couldn’t clearly identify them.

…Anyway, I had to get up and tell Enoch about the future I saw. …It’s funny, but part of me felt proud that I could help him. My existence, and my magic, would remain hidden in his shadow, never seeing the light of day, but at least I was undoubtedly helping him make the world a better place. I decided to find solace in that fact.

Click.

I put on a shawl over my indoor clothes and stepped outside. A footman waiting in the corridor widened his eyes at the sight of me and quickly bowed.

I smiled and told them I was fine, then asked them to call Jasmine from the lounge. It would be better to have Jasmine accompany me rather than walking around alone and getting nagged.

A moment later, the footman brought Jasmine, who carefully checked my complexion and asked how I was doing.

“Miss, are you feeling better now? You still look a bit pale…”

“I’m fine. I feel much better after a good rest. I’m sorry for making you worry.”

“There’s no need to apologize. It’s my duty to worry about you, Miss.”

…Jasmine was a good person. I considered it a great fortune to have met her and to be able to stay in this Winter Palace.

So I could smile with gratitude, even if I felt a bit sad. I thought calmly that life is like this, after all.

I’m not particularly unfortunate. Life is just inherently this way. Everyone has unachievable wishes.

“I’m going to see Enoch. He’s in his room now, right?”

“Oh, he’s in the study right now. He said he would wait for you there.”

“…Really? Okay, let’s go to the study then.”

“Yes, Miss.”

With that, Jasmine and I headed to the study. It wasn’t far from my room, so we arrived quickly.

“Jasmine, I need to speak with Enoch alone. Could you wait here for a moment?”

“Of course, don’t worry about me. Go ahead and talk comfortably.”

“Thank you.”

I gave Jasmine a slight smile and then opened the study door and stepped inside.

The air in the study was colder than in other places. The fireplace wasn’t lit to avoid any risk of fire.

It’s May, and it’s this chilly. It must be really cold in the dead of winter. I heard the Grand Duke’s castle in the territory has a fireplace even in the library. The library there is much larger than the study in this mansion and is well-protected against fire.

‘Where is Enoch… Ah…’

As soon as I looked around for him, I met Enoch’s gaze, sitting on a sofa in one corner of the study.

Holding a book in one hand and a whiskey glass in the other, he tilted his head slightly and smiled at me.

His golden eyes looked brighter than usual, reflecting the light from the gas lamp on the desk.

“Hello.”

He greeted me in a low voice. I responded with a faint smile.

“Hello, good evening.”

“It took you quite a while. I thought you’d be here sooner.”

“…Sorry, it’s a rather tricky magic.”

“It seems so.”

The man, who had no idea that this magic was costing me my lifespan, put down his whiskey glass and beckoned to me leisurely.

Like a marionette on strings, I found myself inevitably drawn to his gesture. He patted the seat next to him, indicating for me to sit there.

I paused for a moment and glanced at the seat in front of him. It seemed I could sit there, so why was he insisting on the seat next to him?

He probably knew I found it uncomfortable and was doing it on purpose. Judging by the mischievous smile on his lips, I was almost sure of it.

“What are you doing? Sit down already.”

“…Yes, then.”

I mumbled a small excuse me and perched precariously on the edge of the sofa. This was the only spot where I could sit as far away from him as possible.

He stared at me and laughed as if he found it amusing. It was clearly a mocking laugh, but I didn’t have the energy to get upset, so I simply clasped my hands on my lap.

“How long do you plan to sit like that? Can you stay in that uncomfortable position for hours?”

“…This won’t take hours, will it?”

“No, that depends on me.”

Ah, I see. How capricious. A tyrant without equal.

“Sit properly next to me, Ellen. I don’t want you to cramp up and fall to the floor.”

He spoke in a commanding tone. He was so naturally authoritative that even a king might follow his orders without realizing it. This man was born to rule over others.

I sighed involuntarily. Reluctantly, I stood up and moved closer to him. As I sat down, leaving a hand’s breadth between us, he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me close.

There was no escape now. Feeling entirely trapped, I looked at him with a sense of injustice. Why did I feel resentment toward him at this moment? Why do I resent you, especially when you act like this?

Because feelings I shouldn’t have kept surfacing.

“So, what did you see?”

He asked in a tone that suggested he wasn’t very curious. His indifferent attitude made me feel as if using my foresight magic at the cost of my lifespan was in vain.

Suppressing the resentment welling up from deep within, I spoke as calmly as I could.

“On the 13th… Friday night.”

“Of all days, Friday the 13th.”

“I think Friday the 13th is just a superstition… Anyway, what I saw was you being attacked by someone in a dark place.”

Enoch raised an eyebrow. He looked incredulous, but then, as if something came to mind, he fell into thought and hummed.

“The assailant didn’t pose much of a threat to you in terms of physical combat, but they seemed to be using poison. There was a faint reddish liquid on the knife.”

“…Poison?”

“Yes, I think it was poison… but it might not be. Usually, if something is smeared on a knife, it’s likely poison. Anyway, I didn’t see how you subdued the assailant… That’s all I saw.”

I glanced down slightly, watching his reaction. I was worried that the information I provided might be useless to him, that he might be disappointed by the limitations and crudeness of my foresight magic.

Living means constantly proving your worth. And right now, the person I needed to prove my worth to was this man. Only if he acknowledged my value could I live the remaining year as a human being.

“I see, poison… Well, that could be.”

He pondered something for a moment, then turned to me with a bright smile.

The words that followed were like a bolt from the blue.

“Continue using your foresight magic for me.”

“…Every day?”

“Is every day difficult?”

“Yes, a bit…”

“Then once a week. Every Monday.”

…It felt like I had become a personal weather forecaster for one person. Well, if there had been a mage with my abilities in the past, they would have been ‘used’ by kings or rulers in this manner.

I resigned myself surprisingly quickly. Despite the fact that my lifespan would now be shortened weekly, I didn’t feel particularly despairing. Maybe because I had unconsciously anticipated this outcome.

A life with a deadline, about a year left, due to the gradual loss of lifespan. That seemed to be my fate…

Resigned, smiling, I accepted it.

“Yes, let’s do that.”

* * *