Meeting the nanny halfway down the corridor, Thea came to the room she’d used before marriage. Someone must have kept maintaining it—not a speck of dust was visible, and lace curtains that seemed long out of fashion and a faded dreamcatcher swayed in the breeze.

Then she sat in the console chair that showed signs of wear here and there and stared at the vanity as the nanny began gently brushing Thea’s hair.

“Miss, you came without notice so we weren’t properly prepared to receive you, but please understand.”

“How could I complain when I showed up suddenly?”

When she replied in a tone devoid of emotion, the nanny glanced sideways at Thea’s expressionless face reflected in the mirror, then carefully opened her mouth.

“But… what happened?”

“What… are you asking about?”

When she raised the question with an even lower voice, the nanny shut her mouth completely. Dark clouds had gathered so thickly on Thea’s face that she couldn’t ask anything more.

When the room became unwelcoming in the abruptly arrived silence, the nanny shuddered like the stillness was terrible and tried to leave.

“Miss, I’ll bring you nightclothes. A short-sleeved dress would be fine, right?”

“No, I’d prefer long sleeves.”

At the request, the nanny tilted her head in puzzlement but soon agreed, saying she understood. Then she closed the door and disappeared. Thea, who had been staring blankly at the nanny’s retreating steps, raised her left hand and rolled up her sleeve slightly.

There were hideous scars spread in blotches. This was also a wound Acel had made.

He didn’t seem to remember this scar at all, though.

Recalling that time made phantom pain throb in her arm even though it wasn’t there.

It really hurt a lot. The pain of burning in fire was so terrible it couldn’t be described in words.

When just one part of her arm being injured hurt this much, what must her mother-in-law have felt being swallowed by flames?

“…I don’t even want to think about it.”

Thea looked around the room, feeling parched. Soon she could see drinking water placed on a nearby side table.

The nanny must have brought it. She seemed not to have forgotten that Thea was quite the water drinker.

Just at the right time—the moment she walked to the side table, poured water into a glass, and took a sip—

“Miss! What is that!”

The nanny jumped in shock, threw the nightclothes onto the bed, and rushed over in a fluster to grab the hand holding the water glass.

“Goodness, when did you get hurt? Doesn’t it hurt? I’ll call a doctor right away!”

Her sleeve had rolled up, fully exposing the wound.

At this point, she couldn’t even lie. Thea stared intently at the wound with indifference, then moved her head to look at the nanny who had turned deathly pale.

“It’s been a while since I got this wound, so it’s fine. It doesn’t hurt.”

“How could this happen to our precious miss’s body…”

At the trailing words, Thea raised her eyes obliquely and said,

“Nanny. You can live with people, but you can’t live with demons.”

“What do you mean by that?”

At the tone that seemed completely uncomprehending, she answered with her eyes half-lowered.

“The House of Winter I married into aren’t people. They’re… all like beasts.”

No, to be precise, she should say they were like demons. Because they’d all been completely swallowed by the madness that had been passed down through the family’s men for generations.

Where had all those promises that everything would be fine disappeared to?

Things between Thea and Acel hadn’t been bad from the start. When her father-in-law and mother-in-law were healthy, there were no problems at all.

The family’s “sin” had all been swallowed up by the previous generation, so the couple had been truly peaceful.

That’s why they could get engaged, get married, and set up a household.

But that was only a fleeting sweet dream.

The moment the title and position of family head passed to him, death’s specter danced a joyful dance before her eyes.

Without even a chance to stop it, it came.

After that, only a fall lay ahead.

The more she reflected on it, the more the reality made her laugh hollowly—she recited softly to the nanny whose eyes still rolled around wondering what this was all about.

“Nanny. I can live with people, but I can’t live with demons.”

She would surely be burned at the stake without even living out her natural lifespan.

Wasn’t one person being branded a witch and fading into flames enough?

“That’s all I can tell you right now.”

“…Miss.”

“I’m tired. I want to sleep now.”

Indicating she didn’t want to bring up old stories in detail anymore, she walked toward the nightclothes the nanny had thrown on the bed.

She’d brought a dress with very long sleeves as ordered, and since the material was quite soft, it didn’t seem like it would be uncomfortable to sleep in. 

Just as she reached out one hand to grab the dress, thinking it was a decent choice, the nanny approached and gently grasped her uninjured arm, telling her not to.

“I’ll help you.”

At those words, Thea smiled palely and answered, “I’m not a child anymore. I can change into nightclothes by myself.”

“Still, how can the lady of a household manage without attendants?”

She lightly pushed away the arm of the nanny who was making a fuss about this impossible situation, and as she silently changed clothes, she could see her stamping her feet beside her.

If she wanted to attend to her that badly, giving her work wouldn’t be bad.

“Then… could you bring me today’s newspaper?”

“You’re going to read at this late hour?”

“Yeah, I haven’t been able to read newspapers recently. I want to know how our territory is doing.”

Even though her body had left, Thea was still a person of this family. Even when she was at the Winter household, she’d always wanted to know news of Utro. But since the Winter territory was such a closed-off region, she couldn’t easily learn news of other territories.

At least she could learn now—ending with that request to the nanny, she sat on the bed and watched the still-raging rain and wind.

Tonight seemed too much for the rain to stop. Her feelings were complicated and it seemed hopeless to go to bed, so she decided to read the newspaper the nanny would bring or finish the book she’d been reading until morning came.

“If I kill time like that.”

Thea swallowed the rest internally.

Everything will be okay.

* * *

Clatter, clatter.

At the wordless breakfast, the nanny stood behind her, continuously showing anxiety. Mother and Father sitting at the table, and Thea as well—all their expressions were equally poor.

In a reality where she couldn’t even tell if food was going in through her nose or mouth, Thea finally carefully set down her utensils.

“You’re not eating more?”

At the sight of half the food remaining, her mother asked with sunken eyes. Last night, she must not have slept properly either.

“I have no appetite.”

“I see. Don’t force yourself to eat. You’ll get indigestion.”

Mother also put down her utensils. Everyone lacked appetite equally. Perhaps they’d all been waiting for someone to put their hands down first.

Realizing she’d become that starting point, Thea picked up the neatly placed napkin beside her, lightly wiped her mouth, and looked at the nanny.

“Nanny, could you prepare some warm tea?”

“Of course, Miss.”

When the nanny hurriedly left and only three people remained, Count Yut, the father who had roughly finished eating, lightly swirled his water glass and fixed his gaze.

When she responded like asking if he had something to say, Count Yut made an odd expression.

“You said you wanted to return to the family.”

“Yes.”

“Your husband, Count Winter, won’t let you go easily, will he?”

“He won’t let me go easily, but when a person makes up their mind, what can’t be done?”

At her still calmly revealing her thoughts, Count Yut clicked his tongue lightly.

“I have no idea how you plan to separate. In the first place, I can’t even understand why you want to separate.”

At her father’s threatening words telling her not to do something foolish, in the past her heart would have trembled, but from the moment she’d heard tremendous insults from Acel, whatever she heard left her heart at peace.

It seemed to be because she’d experienced such great pain. Even at her father’s loud voice continuing to talk about him, she only blinked her eyes—no other action existed.

Rather, she wondered if he would stop her from returning. No matter how much he tried to soothe her, she had no intention of going back.

“Father. I…don’t love him anymore.”

Since not even a speck of lingering attachment remained, revealing her heart to her parents was very easy.

“So I don’t want to be with that man anymore.”

“Even so, coming like this isn’t right. You should have followed proper procedures.”

At those words, Thea stared at her father blankly. Like asking how he could guarantee she hadn’t really tried.

“Do you think I’m a fool? I sent letters several times, but they were lost.”

“…You sent letters?”

“Yes, but seeing your expression, it seems they never arrived. So don’t lecture me about procedures.”

Thea, who’d flatly said she wouldn’t listen to sermons anymore, took the warm tea the nanny held out and continued speaking.

“I have plenty of reasons to leave him. He’s treated me like a slave all this time and made me nurse my father-in-law. Anyone living like me in that closed castle would be perfect for going mad.”

At her revealing her unhappy married life in a tone devoid of emotion, her parents seemed engulfed in shock.

Still, Thea’s heart didn’t ache. It was something she could have expected.

If they didn’t receive at least this much shock, that would be the problem.

Right… this is natural.

It’s also something that can’t be helped to survive—she glanced once at her parents who couldn’t easily emerge from their shock, then shifted her gaze. Then she stared blankly at the tea with steam rising from it.

“So I’d like some help.”

“Even so, isn’t this too sudden? And what do you mean he treated you like a slave?”