“Jella…”

Having barely suppressed the old memories, he murmured in a pained voice.

He couldn’t bring himself to add an apology after that name.

Because he knew he wasn’t worthy of doing so.

Just as self-loathing began creeping up again.

CRASH!

The window he had been looking through shattered with a sharp sound.

Sharp fragments embedded themselves in his skin.

However, his body, blessed with immortality, healed the wounds on its own.

It was a cursed body that wouldn’t die and would recover even if poisoned, stabbed, or even if the heart was pierced and limbs were cut off.

He had always wanted to kill everyone who made her die in loneliness, but he was an incompetent man who couldn’t even kill himself – the most horrible and detestable one among them.

Yet despite that, he had once again allowed her to make that lonely expression in front of him when he found her again.

Yupheon really hated himself. He hated himself so much.

“…My pretty one shouldn’t have such lonely thoughts.”

He muttered in a faint voice and smiled weakly.

She disappeared during the commotion, and when he tried to find her, it was already too late.

She had returned to the underground district and locked her door, refusing to meet him with the excuse of being tired.

He should have told her clearly right then.

That he had no feelings for that woman.

That he had reached out to that woman only to finally kill her – the one he couldn’t kill 5 years ago.

So, Jella.

That from the very beginning, there wasn’t a single moment when I didn’t want to kill that woman.

What I wished for was just one thing – to kill that woman and restore your peace.

So that you wouldn’t be lonely anymore, wouldn’t be scared, could smile radiantly and beautifully… to restore peace for you.

That was all I wanted.

***

At the same time.

Cail stood in the alley in front of Jella’s house, looking up at her still-lit room.

He had hired an actress who resembled her to take her to the North and had instructed Helasio to summon beasts at the right time.

He had planned to take her to the North under the pretext of treating a benefactor.

The final event of the Founding Festival in the capital square was when the most people gathered.

But the timing was bad.

Just when he tried to explain, things kept happening one after another and he missed his chance.

Both the explanation and the plan to take her to the North had failed.

He couldn’t help but laugh hollowly at how those men had been planning the same thing as him.

Well. Perhaps it wasn’t so strange.

Oddly enough, the three men who got along worst in the world always agreed when it came to matters concerning her.

Thanks to that, he was properly interfered with and failed.

In that chaos, Jella quickly disappeared.

The festival’s final event ended like that.

Niel Alpenhayer went to clean up the aftermath of the ruined Founding Festival, and Yupheon Arne was carried away by priests while continuously coughing blood.

With Yuria’s appearance adding to the chaos, the Emperor of Alpenhayer and the Pope of the Holy Nation would be quite busy for a while.

That was good – less complications.

[Hey, hey. Cail. It’s snowing. Aren’t you going back?]

Helasio asked, fluttering his black wings.

Cail twisted his neck to look at the sky.

Cold snowflakes were scattering from the dark sky.

Though the snowfall gradually grew harsher against his skin, Cail remained rooted to the spot.

[You’re staying here on purpose, right? To look pitiful to Jella?]

Seeing his stubborn behavior, Helasio taunted him.

[Since Jella is weak to pitiful things like you. Are you trying to appeal to her sympathy and dig into her weak spots that way? Aiyoo, Jella should know. How cunning you really are…]

Helasio, who had been chattering non-stop, suddenly closed his mouth at the gaze he felt.

Cail was staring at him expressionlessly.

At those times, his eyes… weren’t much different from when he faced young Lord Amets last night.

[Ahem, ahem! Ah, it’s so cold. I-I’m going in first, goodbye!]

Feeling the quiet killing intent, Helasio coughed awkwardly a couple times and disappeared.

It was such a poor excuse, especially since he had a body that couldn’t even feel cold.

Cail raised his gaze again to look at Jella’s closed window.

Her silhouette moved hazily behind the curtain.

***

Looking in the mirror, a haggard face greeted me.

I hadn’t slept a wink all night.

This is all because of those male leads. It’s because they suddenly started acting strange.

‘What’s wrong with all three of them, really.’

After Yuria disappeared from the square yesterday, they suddenly grabbed me and acted like they were trying to read my mood…

‘The three of them came to visit in turns.’

The first to visit was Niel Alpenhayer. More precisely, it wasn’t him but his aide who came with a letter, as he was busy dealing with the aftermath of the ruined final ceremony of the Founding Festival.

To his letter asking for a moment of my time because he had something important to say, I replied telling him to just write a proper review instead since I had nothing to say.

The next person to visit was Yupheon Arne.

Yupheon came without even changing his blood-stained clothes, nearly making the faint-hearted Felitz pass out.

I sent him away without opening the door, using fatigue as an excuse, and fortunately, he didn’t come back.

And Cail Aleret came last.

Of course, I didn’t open the door for him either, but he waited for me for a long time, standing in the narrow alley.

I was so surprised when I happened to open the window and saw him. I immediately closed the window and drew the curtains, but…

‘I think our eyes met.’

Since I had refused visitors with the excuse of going to bed early due to fatigue, I felt somewhat guilty about lying.

‘Oh, whatever. If you think about it, it’s their fault for thoughtlessly chasing me here.’

I shook my head vigorously to clear away the uncomfortable feeling.

Going downstairs to the office, I saw the underground gang members… no, the honest employees working diligently.

“Oh, Sister, you’re here!”

“Did you sleep well, Sister!”

They seemed particularly loud and excited today.

“You look even more beautiful today, Sister!”

Oh my, flattery?

“Sister, are your shoulders stiff? Would you like a massage?”

One of them even started massaging my shoulders.

“Why all this flattery so early in the morning?”

“Oh my, flattery? That’s not it…”

“Actually, the palace’s financial officer came this morning and paid the remaining balance!”

“Here, here, please look at the ledger, Sister!”

So this is why they’re so excited.

I smiled slightly while looking at the accounting ledger.

After successfully completing Count Pluna’s request last time, and now perfectly executing the Emperor’s request yesterday, everyone seems to be in high spirits.

“His Majesty the Emperor sent a handwritten review!”

“He’s even sending a copy to the Imperial Daily!”

“It’s like a dream, Sister! We’ve actually succeeded in legitimate, wholesome work! And twice already!”

Their excited expressions made me giggle.

Though I was the one who acted as Niel’s escort, everyone had done their part behind the scenes to ensure this request was completed successfully.

Things like drafting and organizing the budget for the Emperor’s escort, subtly promoting to journalists and creating related promotional materials, contacting the palace’s financial officer and organizing the accounting ledger, and other miscellaneous tasks.

Of course, Felitz, who came as my assistant but fainted, wasn’t much help…

“That’s good. But we should still send one more reminder to the palace.”

Niel was a problematic client who had already deceived me once. So, intending to secure his handwritten review more firmly, I was casually writing a reminder when a thought struck me and I asked.

“By the way, has Count Pluna’s review still not arrived?”

“Ah, about that.”

Everyone’s expressions darkened at the mention of Count Pluna.

“We thought the review was taking too long, so we went to visit last night, but the Count’s residence was in a bit of chaos. They said the Count’s daughter had fallen ill.”

“Fallen ill?”

She looked perfectly healthy when she was dating young Lord Amets.

“Ah, well, Sister, since you went to bed early yesterday, you probably haven’t heard, but since yesterday evening, many houses in the capital have been calling for doctors due to sudden illnesses.”

“…?”

“They say people suddenly developed fevers and collapsed, and all the patients were young women like you, Sister.”

“The doctors couldn’t find the cause either. So there’s a lot of talk now. They say an epidemic that spreads among young women is going around.”

“An epidemic? Isn’t that dangerous?”

My expression grew serious at their story.

‘An epidemic in my peaceful world.’

Although I wasn’t a doctor and preventing epidemics was no longer my responsibility, I was still living a new life as an apothecary, wasn’t I?

“So Sister, you should avoid going outside for a while… Sister? Where are you going?”

“To investigate the epidemic!”

“Sister, it’s dangerous…!”

I heard voices trying to stop me, but I easily ignored them and went downstairs to open the door.

‘Huh?’

Something huge and white blocked my path in front of the alley.

‘A snowman?’

But the snowman seems a bit… handsome?