Chapter 37: A Sleepless Night

Throughout the journey to Dervel, Eirene remained unconscious like a dead person. Her face stayed peaceful even when the carriage shook over uneven ground. 

When Madam Hannon came out to greet them and saw Eirene in Clive’s arms, before she could say anything, he shouted:

“To my bedroom!”

He entered the bedroom with quick steps and laid her down. He had already contacted Dervel Palace’s dedicated physician in case of emergency.

“What should I prepare?”

To Madam Hannon’s question, Clive shook his head.

“Please make sure the servants don’t cause a commotion. I’ll request anything I need.”

After Madam Hannon left, he sat beside Eirene who lay on the bed. She truly had the face of someone sleeping. When he touched her forehead, there was no fever, and her eyes, nails, and tongue still showed no abnormal reactions. 

He had sent away Eirene’s maids after asking if she took any special medication, but they said she didn’t. He needed to know the cause to treat her, but perhaps all he could do was wait, just like the doctor said. 

Clive placed his other hand over the back of Eirene’s hand that he was holding. He brought her hand to his lips, sandwiched between his palms, almost like praying. 

For a moment, anxiety struck him—what if she never opened her eyes again? 

But he quickly dismissed the thought. She looked so peacefully asleep that he convinced himself she would surely wake up tomorrow. He decided to consider this a sleep to recover from accumulated fatigue.

* * *

Clive had taken the unconscious Eirene to Dervel. Upon hearing this news, the Countess Phineas raised her voice.

“You should have brought the young lady back to the mansion!”

“How could we go against His Highness the Grand Duke’s orders?”

Betty pouted and answered with an attitude that suggested there was nothing they could do. Since Clive had proposed to Eirene and left, Betty no longer feared the Count and Countess. 

She would be leaving the mansion anyway, and her real masters would be the Grand Duke and Duchess, so there was no reason to be obedient to the Count and Countess. 

Even when Gemma gave her warning looks, Betty didn’t care and casually scratched her ear with her pinky finger. She really has no respect. Before the Countess could scold Betty, Gemma stepped forward.

“Everything happened so suddenly that we had no time to think. We were all so confused that we had no choice but to follow His Highness’s instructions. We apologize.”

“What did he say when he took Eirene away?”

“He said she might have consumed something harmful and that a doctor advised she should be monitored. His Highness said he would feel at ease only if he watched over her personally. He also mentioned that the physician at Dervel Palace is very skilled, so the Count’s family shouldn’t worry.”

Knowing that getting angry at the maids would be pointless, the Countess’s voice softened compared to earlier.

“What happened to Eirene?”

“We don’t know. It happened in an instant.”

“I understand. You may go.”

After dismissing the maids, the Countess pondered what to do about this situation. Count Phineas was out, and Aishe was nowhere to be seen, having gone somewhere. 

Not that either of them would be much help anyway. The person she needed most right now was Siaran. The Countess hurried downstairs to find the butler.

“Please contact Siaran and tell him to come to the mansion immediately.”

Nothing could happen to Eirene. If she died or remained bedridden, all their efforts until now would be wasted. Even during the period when they deliberately weakened her body, she had never lost consciousness, so what could have happened? 

She had looked perfectly healthy just this morning. If her body became unsuitable for the soul exchange, it would be disastrous. At this point, they couldn’t find another body to house Aishe’s soul. Eirene absolutely had to be fine. 

The Countess planned to ask Siaran to move up the schedule, even if it meant pushing him. Truthfully, if Clive and Eirene married in this state, Aishe wouldn’t be able to bear it. To prevent her daughter’s increasingly violent outbursts, she needed to finish this quickly. 

The anxious Countess left the bedroom to wait for Siaran. A while later, she was looking out the window when she saw a horse entering the garden. She rushed out, but only the servant who had gone to fetch Siaran returned alone.

“Where is Siaran?”

“He wasn’t at home.”

When not at the Phineas mansion, he usually spent his time at his own house. Though he occasionally went to town or walked his dogs, those outings were never long.

“You should have waited and returned together.”

“I waited much longer than usual, but he didn’t come. Also, the house was tidied up. It looked like he had been away for a long time.”

“Explain in detail.”

The Countess remembered the state of Siaran’s house, having seen it before. Unlike his clean appearance, his living space was messy because he kept several dogs. The floor was always full of bowls used by the dogs.

“Not a single dog was visible. The dog food bowls that were always there had disappeared, and the bed was made. The dining table, which usually had unwashed dishes, was clean, like it had been cleared away.”

Siaran wouldn’t disappear without saying anything. Could he have gone to clear his head? At such a crucial time? 

Haa. The Countess cradled her head in her hands.

“Go back to Siaran’s house and wait until he returns. I’ll send someone to relieve you later.”

Watching the servant mount his horse and leave, she pondered what to do. But she couldn’t find a solution. All she could do was wait for her husband.

* * *

At dawn, Eirene remained asleep just like when she entered Dervel Palace, and Clive had stayed up all night holding her hand. He repeatedly checked if she was breathing and whether it truly wasn’t poison. 

The imperial physician who came urgently before dawn also found nothing unusual. Dave, the doctor he was close with, the Dervel Palace physician, and the imperial physician all said the same thing: there didn’t seem to be a threat to her life. 

Let’s wait a little longer. 

To Clive, the previous night felt incredibly long. Madam Hannon came early in the morning, followed by Ulik.

“You’ve been up all night.”

“Yes. I didn’t know what might happen.”

Clive’s face looked haggard. A man who normally looked fresh even after days without sleep due to insomnia now appeared worn after just one night.

“Should we call a mage?”

Clive tucked Eirene’s hand under the blanket.

“Ah, I hadn’t thought of that.”

If she wasn’t dead but appeared dead, someone might be using magic. About ten years ago, a law was passed requiring approval before using magic to harm people. 

Despite resistance from mages, the voices of the empire’s citizens were louder, making it possible. This led to the side effect of more dark mages going underground. Clive thought of Siaran. 

Surely he wasn’t preparing to switch souls with Aishe now. No matter how much of a dark mage he was, he didn’t seem stupid enough to attempt it after Clive had recently visited the mansion. The same went for Count Phineas.

“Could it be dark magic?”

“No. Dark mages would simply kill people, not do something like this. If someone is using magic to keep the young lady asleep, it’s not dark magic.”

“I see. Bring a skilled mage.”

“I’ll go carefully.”

As soon as Ulik left, Clive sent Matilda to the Phineas mansion. He claimed it was to inform them of Eirene’s condition, but in reality, it was to observe the situation at the mansion.

“Find a maid named Gemma. Spend time with her, saying you need some of Lady Eirene’s clothes. If she asks what’s happening at the mansion, she’ll tell you.”

* * *

Like Clive, the Count and Countess Phineas spent a sleepless night. In the end, Siaran still hadn’t come even by morning. Since this had never happened before, they couldn’t even guess what had happened to him. 

He was a person without a hometown or family. He had no close relationships with anyone except the Count and Countess. When called, he came without hesitation and often stayed overnight at the mansion. 

Yet such a person had disappeared. For the Count and Countess, it wasn’t just one day. Since hardly anyone knew Siaran, they couldn’t even send people to look for him. The Count and Countess were truly in a state of shock. 

Watching her parents, Aishe was debating whether to tell them about what happened yesterday. She would obviously get scolded. No, the one who should be scolded was the insolent Siaran. 

He had told Aishe to leave. He was the one who first withdrew, saying he would no longer be involved in their family’s affairs. If they needed to find another mage, it would be better to disclose yesterday’s events as soon as possible. 

Aishe walked gracefully to sit in front of the Count and Countess and told them everything that had happened with Siaran. 

Although her parents had always understood everything about Aishe, this time was different. The Countess Phineas stood up abruptly and stared at her daughter with a blank face.

“Aishe, do you realize what you’ve done? How many times have I told you there’s no dark mage who can replace Siaran? You said you understood that well. How could you drive away Siaran when he’s decided to disappear?”

Aishe’s large eyes blinked.

“That’s not my concern. Whether you find Siaran or a replacement mage, that’s your job, Mother and Father.”

Come to think of it, that was true. Her parents gave birth to her in that form, so they should take responsibility for whatever happened. They managed to give birth to Kailro perfectly fine, so why was she born that way? Why, of the twins, did she have to be born like that?

“Do you know how much money and time we’ve poured into you! Do you know how much blood is on my hands because of you! Why did you ruin everything when it was almost done!”

Count Phineas finally exploded. On any other day, the Countess would have stopped her husband from yelling at her beloved daughter, but today she had neither the strength nor the heart to do so.

“I never asked you to do that! It was you, Father, who poured in money and time, and it was you who got blood on your hands! It was you, Mother, who always gave me hope that I would have a beautiful face and live a long, healthy life! If it wasn’t going to succeed, you shouldn’t have started in the first place!”

Aishe’s gaze transformed. She glared with eyes mixed with resentment and hatred. The look she had given Eirene was now directed at her parents. 

Thump. 

The Countess collapsed into her seat. Where had it all gone wrong? It started the day Eirene emerged from the basement. She thought it was a small mistake. She considered it insignificant. 

But what she thought was a small ripple had returned as a massive wave. Hatred for the Count and Countess was mixed in Aishe’s sharp tone. Finally, Aishe said the words they never wanted to hear in their lives.

“You should never have given birth to me. Or if you did, you should have killed me when you saw what I looked like.”

“Aishe, my child. My poor baby.”

The Countess Phineas slowly stood up and approached her daughter. The family curse. The curse that said one of the children who would continue the lineage would be born a monster. And if that wasn’t enough, they had a short lifespan and died before reaching ten years of age. 

Even though she was born with a monstrous appearance, they couldn’t bring themselves to kill her. 

Despite her monstrous appearance, as they raised her, she was no different from Kailro as their child. Despite her appearance, the child had such a lovable personality that they felt endless pity, sorrow, and sadness for her. 

She was sorry that she had only scolded her lately because she was sensitive about Eirene’s situation and hadn’t comforted her. Today, she wanted to soothe her pitiful daughter’s heart. The Countess opened her arms to embrace Aishe.

“Come here, my child.”

Aishe knocked her arm away.

“We don’t have time for this. I told you Eirene is dying. Find a solution quickly.”

—

T/N: lol Aishe is such a spoiled child!