41: Belated Regret

Kael spent the night drinking, and empty bottles were scattered around him. Groaning from his unsettled stomach, he eventually vomited onto the floor.  

“D*mn it… d*mn it all!”  

Bang! Bang! Bang!  

Kael pounded the table with his clenched fists, then slammed his forehead against it. The pain from his throbbing forehead didn’t even register—his entire body was still trembling from the rage that refused to subside.  

“Aella…! D*mn it! That wretched woman! Who the hell do you think you are?!”  

When Kael lifted his forehead, now reddened and slightly bleeding, his mind echoed with her words and the memories that refused to fade.  

[Say whatever you wish, do whatever you want. I came here willingly for that very reason.]

[Do it while you can. If it brings you peace, then go ahead.]  

Her voice replayed in his head, and the image of her unwavering expression haunted him. Kael gritted his teeth, clenching his hair tightly with both hands.  

“You idiot! That woman is the daughter of the man who killed your father! And yet! Even now! D*mn it!”  

Slap! Slap! Slap!  

Kael slapped himself hard enough to redden his cheeks, but his hands eventually dropped, exhausted and powerless.  

“…If only I had never regained my memories…”  

Tears welled up in his eyes, and soon they rolled down his cheeks.  

“D*mn it! Ugh! D*mn it all!!!”  

As the sun rose and light filled the room, Kael’s anguished cries echoed within. He clutched his throat, coughing harshly.  

“Aella… Aella… Ael…la. Ugh. Ugh. Sob.”  

Kael clawed at his chest, pounding it with his fists, repeating the motion until his clothes were in tatters. Finally, drained of all strength, he collapsed over the desk.  

“Heh… heh… haha! Hahaha! Haha… ha. You fool. It’s too late anyway. Aella and I… we can never go back to how we were.”  

Kael stared at the ceiling with hollow eyes, recalling the past.  

Aella Blueanz, his childhood friend, had been introduced to him because their mothers were close. Kael still vividly remembered the moment he first met her.  

A shy, adorable, and lovely girl. She had peeked out from behind the Countess Blueanz’s skirt, her small face looking at him timidly. That face, and the emotions he felt upon seeing her for the first time, were still etched in his memory.  

He had always wanted to be near her, finding excuses to stay by her side. His mother would nudge him to confess his feelings, but Kael had insisted it wasn’t the right time. He would wait until he became a dignified man like his father, then confess to Aella and make her his wife.  

A faint smile appeared on Kael’s lips as he remembered his younger self saying such things.  

“…Haah.”  

Letting out a long sigh, Kael opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling again.  

The marriage he had longed for with Aella had come true, but his father’s death and the forces behind it had completely destroyed his life—and his relationship with her.  

Kael understood logically that he didn’t need to hate Aella, the daughter of that wretched Count Blueanz, but his heart refused to accept it.  

His hatred for her father extended to her as well, and he despised himself for feeling this way.  

He hated and resented Aella Blueanz, the daughter of Hans Blueanz. Yet, he couldn’t let go of his love for her, which made him loathe himself even more.  

Kael could no longer understand his own feelings. The love and hatred he felt for Aella burned in his chest, and the pain in his head was unbearable. Unable to endure it any longer, he let out a loud, anguished scream.  

“Why don’t you just hate me?! Just hate me, Aella! Please! Hate and resent me too! Ugh… please!”  

Kael covered his face with trembling hands, his body shaking as he bent over. After a moment, he forced himself to stand.  

Staggering, he dragged his weary body to the bed and collapsed onto it, closing his eyes.  

“If only… if only I could die like this, would Aella be able to live peacefully? If only I had died back then… Aella… Aella.”  

With a desperate voice, Kael pictured the face he longed to see so much. His vision blurred with tears.  

“Ael…la.”  

As his eyes finally closed completely, the bright room was filled only with the faint sound of his breathing.  

—

“Your Grace!!!!”  

Kina shot up in bed, her face drenched in cold sweat.  

“A dream…? Haah.”  

Clutching her chest with trembling hands, she tried to steady herself.  

“This… this feels too ominous to just be a dream. I can’t sit still!”  

Kina jumped out of bed and threw open the door, only to be greeted by Ian, who smiled and asked if she had slept well.  

“Ian…”  

“Kina? You don’t look well. Are you hurt—”  

Before Ian could finish, Kina threw herself into his arms, leaving him blushing.  

“K-Kina?!”  

“Sob… sob… sniff.”  

“Kina, what’s wrong? Are you really hurt somewhere?”  

“In my dream… Her Grace…Her Grace collapsed, coughing up blood. Sob. And she told me… thank you for everything… sob, sniff.”  

“Kina, it was just a nightmare.”  

Ian’s soft voice and the comforting hand stroking her back helped soothe her. Kina wanted to dismiss it as just a bad dream, but Aella’s recent behavior had been weighing on her mind.  

“No, I can’t ignore this. I need to check on Her Grace!”  

“Kina! I’ll come with you!”  

Clutching her chest, Kina ran as fast as she could to Aella’s room.  

Meow! Meow!  

“Charlotte?!”  

From behind the firmly closed door, she could hear Charlotte crying pitifully. Kina burst into the room.  

“Charlotte, what’s—Your Grace!!!!!!”  

Aella was collapsed on the bed, her long hair trailing onto the floor.  

“Your Grace! Please wake up! You—ahhh!”  

Blood was smeared around her mouth. The sight was identical to what Kina had seen in her dream, sending chills down her spine. She collapsed, screaming and sobbing.  

“Your Grace! No! Your Grace! Wake up! This has to be a dream! Sob! Your Grace! Your Graaaace!”  

“Kina! What’s—Your Grace!!!”  

Aella’s limp body lay in Kina’s arms, blood pouring from her mouth like a waterfall. The Duke’s mansion fell into utter chaos that morning.  

—

In the dim light of the mirror, Letia’s face twisted with rage. The man who should have died coughing up blood from her curse was alive and well, sleeping on his bed.  

“No way!”  

Letia stormed into the basement, where the materials for her curse had been prepared.  

Bang!  

The ritual site remained untouched. She tore open the envelope containing Kael Hormons’ photograph and hair, only to find its contents altered.  

“That d*mn woman!”  

Furious, Letia immediately sought out Laura, the Count’s servant who had delivered the materials.  

Creak, creak.  

“D*mn it!”  

Finding Laura hanging lifelessly in her room, Letia cursed under her breath and headed to the Count’s vile harem.  

The place was a living hell, filled with screams and suffering. Letia found the Count, drugged and oblivious.  

“Disgusting pig.”  

Letia decided she had taken enough from him and that it was time to cut ties.  

“I’ve gained enough thanks to this greedy swine.”  

Smiling coldly, Letia approached the half-conscious Count.  

“Rot in hell, Count Pig.”  

“Huh? What…?”  

Ignoring him, Letia shut the door on the foul-smelling room and the women crying beneath him.  

Leaving the mansion, she gathered anything valuable and prepared to disappear.  

“Aella Blueanz… how did you find out? Ah… I see. That pitiful woman sacrificed herself for her husband. Foolish woman.”  

Thinking of her own past, when she had resorted to forbidden magic for a man she loved, Letia’s anger flared.  

“This doesn’t feel right. I’ll lie low in the mountains for now… and then make a grand finale.”  

Chuckling darkly, Letia made her preparations and vanished, leaving only a chilling wind behind.  

—

After finishing his meal, Derek received a letter from the Duchess of Hormons. As he read it, his expression darkened.  

‘Why does His Majesty look like that? What could the Duchess have written to cause this?’  

The emperor’s face twisted in anger as the chancellor nervously swallowed.  

“Sir Haron.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty.”  

“Bring Count Hans Blueanz to me immediately… No, I’ll go to him myself.”  

“What?! Y-Your Majesty!”  

As the emperor and the imperial guard moved, the Duke of Hormons’ mansion remained eerily quiet.  

“Y-Your Grace…”  

“Bring her back to life.”  

“….”  

“Bring her back to life, I said!”  

Kael’s bloodshot eyes glared at the doctor, who cowered on the floor.  

“B-but the Duchess is already—”  

“Shut up! If you can’t save her, you’ll die instead!”  

“Ahh!”  

Kael raised his sword, but Matteo and Ian quickly restrained him.  

“Your Grace!”  

“Let me go!”  

While Kael struggled, Kina turned her tear-filled eyes toward Charlotte, who was licking Aella’s face as if trying to wake her.  

“Charlotte…”  

Meow… meow…  

Charlotte’s pitiful cries and desperate attempts to wake Aella brought tears to Kina’s eyes. She approached Kael, her face twisted in anger.  

“Are you satisfied now?!”  

“….”  

“Kina…”  

“Her Grace… willingly gave her life for you.”  

“What are you talking about…?”  

Kina walked to the vanity and opened the top drawer, revealing a stack of letters.  

[Kina, take this.]  

[What is it?]  

[A letter. Read it tomorrow morning, okay?]  

[W-what?]  

[Please.]  

[…Alright.]  

Remembering her last conversation with Aella, Kina bit her lip and pulled out a letter. She handed it to the stunned Kael.  

“Read it. It’s the last letter Her Grace left for you.”  

“….”  

Kael’s trembling hands opened the envelope. Inside was a neatly folded piece of paper, written in Aella’s familiar handwriting.  

As Kael read the letter, his eyes began to shake violently.  

[Kael, I loved you with all my heart. So much that I don’t want to forget, even in death. Goodbye, my Kael.]  

“A-ahhh!”  

Kael threw the letter to the floor and ran to Aella’s side.  

“Aella! Ella! I was wrong! Please… please! Ugh… don’t die! Ella! Ellaaa!!!”  

His desperate cries echoed throughout the room, filled with sorrow and regret that came far too late.