Chapter 29

Charlotte opened her lips slightly as if to say something, but then closed them again, repeating the motion.  

Her feelings for Erhen, her heart that had wavered toward him, the days that had been thrilling simply because they were together—the emotions defined through the Overseer’s words felt unfamiliar and terrifying. Her lowered eyes trembled finely.  

Charlotte, wearing a pale expression as if a secret she couldn’t speak of had been exposed, was met with the Overseer’s knowing, bitter smile.  

“Your family wasn’t an important part of this world’s story, so the flow could tolerate minor changes. But that boy was different.”  

The Overseer held a glass that had appeared at some point. Charlotte’s pale face shimmered precariously in the transparent glass.  

“As you know, the protagonist of this world is Michael. And this world is designed with various trials for the protagonist’s growth. Just like the organization you suspected, Kopenbach, that boy was also one of those trials.”  

“You mean…”  

“That’s right. A year ago, with that boy’s death, magic was supposed to disappear from this world. That was one of Michael’s trials. Yet, you saved that boy twice.”  

Once by marrying him, and once in front of your house. The Overseer tilted the glass and drank.  

The sound of the liquid flowing down her throat was soon followed by the empty glass being placed on the table. A faint sense of exhaustion flickered in her golden eyes.  

Sigh. 

She let out a small breath before speaking again.  

“This world’s flow has been disrupted because that boy survived due to you. And now, to restore its balance, this world will continue trying to kill both him and you, who defy His fate.”  

A fate to die. Death.  

The phrase had lingered in Charlotte’s mind ever since she confronted Lida, who had been possessed by the god. It was the hypothesis she had feared but tried to ignore ever since Erhen returned to her changed world and altered flow. Quietly, Charlotte swallowed her tears.  

Was fate truly unchangeable, no matter how desperately one struggled? Was I supposed to accept it as it was?  

As though reading her thoughts, the Overseer spoke softly.  

“Then let me change the question. Do you wish for that boy to live?”  

It was a question with an answer so obvious that Charlotte didn’t hesitate.  

“Yes.”  

“Then don’t stay involved with him anymore.”  

“Because without you, I feel like I’m going to die.”

Suddenly, Erhen’s voice echoed in her mind.  

He had been found bloodied in front of her house, clutching her hand with frostbitten fingers, confessing his love. And she thought of herself, who had faced his feelings. She had disguised her shaken heart as a failed one-sided love, avoiding it. But the truth was…  

It was love.  

Charlotte had fallen for him again, and because she loved him, she couldn’t ignore Erhen’s feelings. She had waited during the month he was away, and when he returned, she had scolded him unnecessarily and accepted his cautious kiss. It was all because she loved him.  

As Charlotte bit her lips quietly, the Overseer’s emotionless words continued as if reading from a book.  

“The only way for both of you to live is to sever ties with each other. If you, who were never meant to know each other, live separately, I will grant you and that boy’s lives, as well as this world’s magic, a reprieve.”  

“……”  

“This is the best arrangement I can offer for a mistake I made.”  

Charlotte’s expression turned pale as though she had received a cruel verdict. Her breath faltered, and her vision blurred.  

After a long silence, Charlotte finally spoke, her voice trembling as though grasping at straws.  

“Isn’t there… isn’t there another way? We’ve both lived well for the past three years.”  

It hurt. Her chest ached as though someone were slowly tightening a grip around her heart. What was it about those short moments after reuniting with Erhen, those fleeting emotions they shared?  

“I just started feeling like we finally connected. How could you do this?”  

Charlotte’s voice quivered with tears, but the Overseer’s expression remained cold and unyielding.  

“I’ll give you one month.”  

It was a polite rejection.  

“By the next time we meet, I hope you’ll have an answer.”  

With that, the Overseer lowered her head onto the table.  

Not long after, when she opened her eyes and raised her head, she looked around with a startled expression. Then, glancing at Charlotte sitting across from her, she said with a bewildered look while scanning the pub once more,  

“Huh? Why am I sitting here with you, Viscountess? I was definitely waiting outside the shop just a moment ago!”  

“……”  

“What’s going on? Is this some kind of magic?”  

It was the real Lida, the one Charlotte knew.  

The brown-eyed Lida, who was now fretting about how she had been teleported without realizing it, froze when she saw Charlotte’s tear-streaked face.  

“Viscountess, your face… it’s covered in tears. Did something happen?”  

“…No.”  

Hastily wiping away the tears she hadn’t even noticed, Charlotte replied in a calm voice,  

“Nothing happened.”  

Her tone implied she didn’t want to be questioned further. Raising her glass, Charlotte let the transparent martini slip past her lips. The drink, which would normally have tasted sweet, felt unbearably bitter today.  

***

“You’re late.”  

As Charlotte entered the alley leading to her mansion, a figure approached her.  

It was Erhen. On days when they didn’t go to Blumen to read papers together, Erhen always came to meet her on her way home, which had now become routine.  

The moment she saw his face, the emotions she had barely suppressed surged again.  

Act as usual. As if nothing happened.

Charlotte repeated the mantra to herself and smiled brightly.  

“I told you I’d be late today because of work. Why are you standing here in the cold?”  

“Do you really not know?”  

“Oh, come on!”  

Startled, Charlotte lightly slapped Erhen’s hand and quickly looked around. Thankfully, Lida had disappeared without a trace as usual. Charlotte whispered in an exasperated tone,  

“It’s embarrassing!”  

“Charlotte, I haven’t even said anything yet.”  

“Don’t say anything!”  

With that, she stomped off ahead.  

Smiling faintly, Erhen called out to her retreating figure,  

“There’s fried chicken in the greenhouse.”  

Charlotte stopped in her tracks. Erhen continued,  

“Ras also prepared some wine for you.”  

Eventually, Charlotte spun around.  

“Now you’re even using fried chicken to lure me?”  

“You have to use any means necessary.”  

“Good grief.”  

“And it’s an attack that always works on you.” 

Erhen added with a smirk.  

Guiding the flustered Charlotte naturally toward the house, Erhen walked beside her.  

In front of Erhen, who was kinder than ever these days, Charlotte acted as though nothing was wrong and laughed. But regret washed over her for realizing her feelings too late.  

What decision would I make in a month? Could I even make one? Was the answer already predetermined, as the Overseer had said?  

If she had realized her feelings even a little sooner, she would have already taken Erhen’s hand.  

Charlotte forced herself to swallow her thoughts, pretending to be cheerful.  

***

At a window seat in Blumen, someone approached Charlotte.  

It was a man with wavy silver hair, guided by Lida. Charlotte greeted him brightly as she stood up.  

“Oh, the great actor of Rohadin!”  

“How modest of you to call me that.”  

“Oh, the heavenly tenor sent by the Gods!”  

“It’s been a while, Viscountess.”  

Smiling softly at the conversation between the two childhood friends, Lida quietly stepped back.  

Elias Cherfeld.  

He was a man with stunning looks and a sweet voice, the most popular countertenor in Rohadin. The Cherfeld family, known as major patrons of the music scene in Rohadin, had risen to even greater prominence after Elias gained fame as a tenor.  

Charlotte and Elias had first met when the Cherfeld family commissioned the Rothschild family’s Sonne company to build an opera house. The children, who had accompanied their parents, soon became friends. Elias’s pure-hearted nature, treating Charlotte as a friend despite her being a commoner at the time, played a big role.  

As Charlotte nibbled on a cookie, she spoke.  

“The young ladies are buzzing about your upcoming performance.”  

“Lotte, I’m the heavenly tenor sent by the Gods, just as you said. Isn’t that natural?”  

“Ugh, I can’t argue with that confidence.”  

Charlotte wrinkled her nose slightly and shook her head. Elias laughed and slid two opera house tickets across the table.  

Charlotte exclaimed, “Oh, nice!” and reached out for the tickets. But just as she did, Elias stopped his hand and looked at her meaningfully.  

“By the way, there’s an interesting rumor going around in Heringen.”  

“……?”  

“They say your ex-husband is staying here.”  

He smiled mischievously, as if he could see straight into his old childhood friend’s heart.