I Became The Younger Sister Of A Dying Woman - Chapter 67

67. Letty’s arranged marriage partner

As I uttered my vow to protect my life, an eerie chill crept in.

Hinting that reality might not flow as smoothly as my words implied.

I shivered beneath layers of blankets on my bed.

“Mi-Mini, is there any open window?”

Or perhaps, a gap somewhere in the layered blankets.

“All the doors and windows are closed.”

“But why is it so cold?”

“I’ll call for a doctor! And I’ll find a portable heater too!”

“Uh, okay. Please hurry.”

Mini rushed out of the room.

I buried my face deep within the blankets and wrapped my arms around myself.

It was spring, and the season was supposed to be warm, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of standing in an icy wasteland.

I couldn’t stop my body from trembling.

‘It’s the first time I’ve felt such a chill.’

Difficulty breathing, weakness in my legs, frequent bruises, bleeding, and now this coldness.

It was a total mess. To the extent that it seems difficult to survive.

I tried not to entertain negative thoughts.

The day of entry into the Royal Archive was drawing near.

It was too early to get discouraged. Even if my physical condition was getting worse and worse.

I…… It’s not a time limit.

Unable to bear the chill that seeped into my bones, I closed my eyes. In that moment, Hernan came to mind.

I longed for Hernan’s large, warm hands.

If those hands were to caress me, if they were to embrace me.

If that were the case, the cold I was feeling right now would disappear. At once. Without a trace.

Hernan. I wonder when you’ll be back.

I had heard that if you wished for something too desperately, it might come true.

His voice reached my ears.

“……Linzel. Linzel!”

I thought I was hallucinating.

But I couldn’t give up hope entirely. I peeked my head out from under the covers.

Then I saw Hernan who didn’t know what to do.

He was staring at me, uncharacteristically restless.

It was the real Hernan. His voice was not a hallucination.

Come to think of it, Hernan had always been like that. Whenever I needed him, whenever I longed for him, he appeared just in time.

If I were a believer in destiny, perhaps he and I were “destined” to be together.

“Linzel! The doctor will arrive soon. Just hold on a little longer.”

Instead of answering, I gestured for Hernan to come closer. I wanted him near.

Hernan climbed onto the bed and embraced me through the layers of blankets.

His arms felt so wide, and even with the blankets between us, I could snuggle against him comfortably.

“You-Your, Your Highness’s embrace is… indeed… warm.”

As I spoke, my lower lip trembled uncontrollably.

I pressed my lips together.

“Why… do you always get sick or have accidents when I’m not around?”

It was true.

It wasn’t accusatory, but rather, his voice carried a sense of concern.

I clung tightly to Hernan’s well-defined waist.

“Well… that’s true. But Your Highness, you always seem to appear just when I need you.”

“…..Don’t get sick when I’m not here.”

“I… I don’t want that either.”

Hernan didn’t say anything more; he just held me close.

Something strange was happening again.

As I nestled in his embrace, the cold that had filled my body began to fade away.

I had experienced something similar on our wedding day.

That time, when I struggled to breathe and nearly collapsed, Hernan came to me and suddenly, I could breathe normally.

Hernan.

Could it be that this man had some kind of mysterious power to heal me?

It’s not just about that.

I closed my eyes and fully embraced Hernan’s warmth.

Soon, I faintly heard Mini and the doctor’s voices.

I couldn’t hear them clearly, perhaps because I was losing consciousness.

I…..when would I regain my senses?

That was the last thought that crossed my mind.

*** 

In the faint haze of consciousness, I heard a voice.

“……Linzel. Linzel! What do you think of this?”

I opened my eyes, and there stood Letty.

“Letty?”

“Yeah! I asked you three times already if you like this Linzel. If you’re tired, do you want to go back to the mansion?”

This?

I belatedly looked at what Letty was holding—a pretty pink dress with frills.

“A dress suddenly?”

I looked around.

“……!”

Surprisingly, I was in a dress shop.

I had been in the palace before I lost consciousness… 

Was this another dream?

“Letty, can you tell me why we’re choosing dresses?”

Letty raised an eyebrow, but she answered my question.

“Linzel, you asked me to come with you to pick out a dress. You said you wanted to look good for Sir Handsome.”

Letty giggled as if she found my love life amusing.

Sir Handsome was someone I knew as well.

A man who had been Linzel’s lover.

And the man who left Linzel with the trauma of having no choice but to meet a handsome man.

Was this a dream showing “Linzel’s past”?

If this isn’t the distant past, then when is this moment?

Letty’s face appeared quite similar to what it is now, so it didn’t seem like a very long time ago.

Could this be the time when Letty had a one-sided crush on Izekiel?

“And you?”

“Mmh? Linzel, what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Do you have someone you want to look good for?”

“You’re quite something, asking me that when you already know everything.”

Letty’s face seemed to harden.

I had asked her if there was someone she wanted to look good for, but for some reason, her expression had turned sour.

Was this a time when things weren’t going well with Izekiel?

“…..I’m about to… enter into an arranged marriage. I’m trying to give up on wanting to look good for someone.”

“Huh? Are you getting into an arranged marriage? With whom?”

Letty made a face as if to ask why I was asking such a question.

I grabbed Letty’s shoulders tightly.

Surprised, Letty dropped the dress she had been holding.

“Tell me who it is.”

Letty, looking taken aback, glanced at the fallen dress and then at my face. Finally, she managed to speak.

“…His Highness Hernan.”

And with that, the dream ended.

The dress shop, Letty, and everything around me began to crumble.

I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, I was greeted by a familiar scene.

“Recently redecorated with luxurious wallpaper…”

Our bed chamber, was nicely furnished with the money of Hernan’s vassals.

It was pitch black around us. It must be dawn.

And I was lying in bed.

I look over and see Hernan, who must have fallen asleep some time ago.

His face was even more sunken than the last time I saw him.

Was he worried about me?

I couldn’t feel the cold that had overtaken me until I lost consciousness.

Instead, it was warm, likely because of Hernan, who had held me tightly.

I tried to shift my body away from Hernan but then gave up.

Hernan was always like a ghost, detecting the slightest movement. I didn’t want to wake him.

I blinked my eyes a few times.

I remembered the last words that Letty had uttered in my dream.

Letty’s words about her arranged marriage.

‘……His Highness, Hernan.’

My goodness. It was Hernan.

That Hernan and Letty were arranged marriage partners was part of the original story.

Did I dream a dream related to the original work?

Was it because the subconscious content I had been holding on to appeared in my dream?

Thinking this way was more logical.

It felt strange, though.

The dream was… just too vivid.

Even now, after waking up from the dream, the dream scenery remained vivid, clear enough to paint if I were an artist.

I rolled over so I could see Hernan’s face, then whispered softly.

“Your Highness. Everything is all right, right?”

A dream was just a dream, after all.

Feeling the chill might have been because I’ve been going out so much lately.

All of it must have been a mere coincidence, right?

I snuggled deeper into Hernan’s arms.

His warm embrace felt like a sanctuary.

Being held by him made me feel like everything would be alright, just like it always had.

I closed my eyes and tried my best to fall asleep.

This time, I desperately hoped not to have another dream.

* * *

In the early afternoon, the interrogation began.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine.”

“Fever?”

“None.”

“Any sore spots?”

“None at all!”

“What about me?”

I smiled brightly.

“You´re good.”

Hernan also grinned back at me.

“That’s a pleasing answer.”

“I’m also quite pleased with you, Your Highness!”

“You boldly answer like this; it seems you’re alright.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

After a good nap in Hernan’s arms, I woke up at noon feeling completely fine.

I also felt better after feeling confused after having a strange dream last night.

‘What a strange dream.’

It must have been a nightmare caused by my poor health.

“Your Highness Hernan. Do you have no busy tasks today?”

“For today, I plan to stay by your side.”

With the laziness of someone who was one with the bed, Hernan gently caressed my cheek as we lay together.

“That sounds nice.”

“Even if you’re in pain… I hope it only happens when I’m around.”

Ah, such words that made my heart flutter.

I responded in a louder voice

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“But, the best thing would be if you didn’t feel pain at all.”

“That’s right.”

“In that sense, rest today. Although the Royal Archive matter is urgent, your current condition doesn’t seem too good lately.”

“No! I received another message from Prince Illiya yesterday. I think we’ve been getting closer, so I can’t stop visiting.”

Although it didn’t seem like we were getting closer in a positive way…

“Again? What did he say this time?”

I told Hernan the contents of Illiya’s message, mentioning that I had delivered food to the palace and that he asked if it was some kind of joke about my health.

Hernan let out a deep sigh.

“He doesn’t realize how poor your health is.”

“Should I tell him?”

“Even if you do, there’s a good chance he won’t believe you.”

From Illiya’s perspective, I was still an “outsider,” so it was likely he wouldn’t trust my words.

But if it came from someone he considered a friend for a long time, there might be a difference.

A friend was more likely to be trusted.

I remembered Lenox’s face, bright red.

At that moment, Hernan’s fingertips pointed to the vase.

His eyes glowed as he looked at the vase.

“But, Linzel, what’s with the roses in this vase?”

…Oh. Is it possible that…..

Are Lenox’s eyeballs in danger?