Chapter 2 – Part 9

“Even painkillers can’t overcome this nightmare.”

Marsden muttered bitterly as he let out a small, dry laugh. Several minutes had passed since he had awakened from the dream, but his hands were still trembling. Olivia had returned, yet he remained trapped in his nightmares. This fear stemmed from the constant terror of losing her again.

It was still the middle of the night, but sleep was no longer an option. He needed to change his bandages anyway, so Marsden pulled the familiar bell cord beside his bed.

“Your Grace!”

Barely a moment passed before Ricardo, the head butler, came rushing in. Marsden gave him a sheepish smile.

“Ricardo, you should be used to this by now.”

“I am, Your Grace, but…”

As if anticipating the situation, Ricardo had brought a silver tray with antiseptics and fresh bandages. He approached Marsden with the tray in hand.

“You look unwell, Your Grace. Another nightmare?”

“Just the usual.”

Marsden answered casually, though his thoughts were entirely focused on Olivia. If he could just see her face for a moment, he would feel better.

“Sit down, Your Grace. I’ll take care of your wounds.”

With a pained expression, Ricardo began to re-bandage Marsden’s hand. For most people, the pain would be unbearable, but Marsden remained stoic.

“Did you find them?”

“I expect to hear from them tomorrow. They’re cautious, but if they know you’re looking for them, they’ll come.”

Marsden felt a wave of relief. Olivia’s voice echoed in his mind.

“Help me deal with those bastards.”

“Just tell me how I can help.”

“We need people to drive them out. I need allies, real allies.”

Despite the distrust in her eyes, Marsden recognized the hope she had in him. He was determined to hold onto that little hope with everything he had.

“I’ve gone through the entire list of vassals. I asked for all those dishonorably discharged or missing to be included.”

“And?”

“They seem to be the cleanest among the vassals. They likely spoke out and faced retribution. I want to bring them back, but it’s embarrassing to say there’s no one in the family who can handle this. So, I need your help.”

Olivia’s words were direct. She looked straight into Marsden’s eyes.

“I will repay you. I don’t expect help for nothing, so please, help me.”

Repay him? Marsden didn’t care if she took the entire ducal estate and ran. If she had to kill him, he would offer his neck willingly. But all she asked was to find some people. That much, he could do.

“You’re thinking about the Marchioness again.”

Ricardo shook his head in exasperation.

“I always think about Buddy.”

“…”

‘If only you had done that sooner.’ Ricardo swallowed the retort that rose to his throat, knowing his master had suffered the most.

“Let me know when you find them.”

“…Where are you going now?”

Even with his injuries! Ricardo jumped, but Marsden remained calm.

“Where else? To see Buddy. Get out everything we bought at the boutique.”

“Why the clothes…?”

Ricardo looked at him as if he were being ridiculous, but Marsden was unfazed.

“Why else? To look good for my Buddy.”

Ricardo squeezed his eyes shut.

His already stubborn master had become a bulldozer since Olivia Charbert’s return.

* * *

“It would have been better if you weren’t born.”

Olivia shivered. As soon as she stepped into the empty room, a voice from the past pierced her heart.

But she couldn’t remember whose voice it was. All she knew was that someone had said those words.

“This doesn’t feel good.”

Olivia swatted at the dust floating in the air. Dust was everywhere, scattering with each step she took. Clearly, no one had been here for a long time, considering it was cursed.

It mirrored her situation. In the original story, Olivia was shunned, believed to bring misfortune to anyone who got close.

Being in this world made it clear. Around the time of her birthday, her parents had been at war.

They wanted to finish the war early to celebrate their daughter’s birthday, only to be pierced by enemy spears and swords.

After their deaths, Olivia grew up under the shadow of the Palmer family. Among her few memories were the whispers of people.

They said she was gloomy and that talking to her made them feel bad. That was their consensus on Olivia.

“Such bullshit.”

Olivia muttered as she rubbed her temples. If she heard that now, she’d be ready to smash their heads against a marble floor or the ground.

The truly aggravating part was why those wretched memories came flooding back the moment she stepped into the room.

Olivia considered ruthlessly digging through her memories but decided against it. She figured it was better to get some fresh air than to torment herself over the hurtful words of the past.

She walked to the window and flung it open. A sneeze escaped her due to the dust, but the fresh air made her feel significantly better. Not just better—comforted.

In this moment of solace, Olivia finally mourned the real Olivia Charbert, something she had longed for while reading the original story. She finally felt a genuine connection with the original Olivia.

“Talking to you always ends up being so depressing.”

“I feel down just being around you.”

“How great it would have been if there was another heir.”

“How can you expect to be loved by anyone like this?”

“Sigh…”

Olivia acknowledged that she never expected her memories to return. If it were possible, they would have resurfaced without needing to come here. Even minor accidents often had lasting aftereffects—how much more so death?

Olivia respected ‘Olivia’. Of course, she hadn’t anticipated that the garbage-like words she had forgotten would resurface, rather than the moments of her death.

Olivia reached into her coat pocket. When she pulled her hand out, it held a small lily of the valley.

“Olivia, Liv, Livvy, Marchioness Charbert…”

“And Buddy.”

She placed the flower on the floor. For the real Olivia, this place was her grave.

“I’ll do my best for your sake. I won’t let us down.”

Until just a few days ago, Olivia had hoped she might return to her original world. But clinging to that hope wouldn’t help her survive this one.

So Olivia decided to accept that she would never go back. She resolved to give her all to this new life.

“I’ll be back.”

She planned not to regard this room as ominous anymore.

She believed that this was the least she could do for the woman who once heard a loving nickname from someone, even if only for a moment.