That’s probably why she doubted he was the same person.

I wasn’t sure if it could all be attributed to the magic, but I felt that talking about it openly would help clear things up…

“Standing here next to you like this, I feel strangely emotional. It’s really nerve-wracking.”

When I spoke as if I were in a dream, he answered with mild surprise.

“I think I’m the one more nervous. You could never understand how it feels to be the man married to you, Louise.”

“……?”

No way.

I responded in confusion.

“You don’t know how it feels to be the wife of a man like you. It’s like living in a dream.”

“I can’t imagine it being better than how I feel right now.”

“There’s no way. I’m definitely happier than you. You’re the one making me feel this way.”

At my words, he gave in, closing his mouth as if he were surrendering.

Then, he smiled faintly, his eyes crinkling at the edges.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that. After all, nothing matters more than your happiness. Even if it’s my own happiness, it’s nothing compared to yours.”

“……”

Isn’t that unfair…?

I was still caught up in the emotions from yesterday, and now I felt like I was sinking even deeper.

I gazed at him affectionately for a moment before speaking.

“…Alec, I think our relationship has changed a lot. You’ve changed the most.”

“…I have.”

He looked at me briefly before softly agreeing with my words.

He knew better than anyone that he had changed.

“Do you remember the pet names we used to have for each other?”

“…Pet names?”

“Yes.”

Would he remember?

We had a set of pet names that I came up with about a year into our marriage in an effort to get closer to him.

But we never actually called each other by them.

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully before answering.

“I’m sorry. I don’t remember. As I mentioned before, my memory…”

“……”

I had hoped he might remember, but of course, he didn’t.

I guess he really had lost a lot of his memories.

It was a little sad, as if he had traded those memories for his life.

But I wasn’t too upset since I was looking forward to creating new memories with him in the future.

“It’s okay. It’s possible to forget things like that. I’m just glad you haven’t forgotten me completely.”

“……”

His gaze darkened slightly.

He looked surprised and maybe even a little guilty, but I wasn’t bothered.

I smiled, trying to ease his conscience.

“When you woke up in that inn after nearly dying, I was worried you had forgotten about me. The way you looked at me felt like we were strangers.”

“……”

“But then I thought, if it means you could stay alive, I wouldn’t mind if you forgot about me.”

“……”

“You said you had lost some of your memories, but… that’s not the case, is it?”

“…What?”

A thought suddenly came to me.

I was almost certain.

If he had lost all his memories, it would explain why he seemed like a different person.

I took a deep breath and spoke again.

“Could it be that you haven’t been showing it because you didn’t want to worry us? I think… you might have lost all your memories.”

“……”

His lips parted slightly.

Alec’s pupils trembled slightly, but he couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

Was it possible that mother-in-law suspected he was someone else because all of his memories were gone? The various changes he had shown were only possible if he had completely lost his memory. If he didn’t remember how he used to live, it would make sense that he no longer sought out the food, books, or comfortable clothes he used to like.

Despite that, I still had no doubt that Alec was my husband, Alec.

Gripping his hand more tightly, I looked at him earnestly.

“I’m really fine, so please be honest with me.”

“…”

“You’ve already lost all your memories, haven’t you? Including me?”

* * *

‘What’s going on all of a sudden?’

Alec felt like his mind had gone blank, as if he’d been in a sudden carriage accident. Had everything gone so smoothly every time he was at risk of being exposed?

At first, he had been tense, thinking he could be found out at any moment. But lately, he had been living as though he really were Alec, thinking that Alec had died in another world and would never return.

In that time, he had slowly begun to adapt to this world, and the desire to return to where he originally came from had faded. More importantly…

His desire to stay by Louise’s side had grown stronger and stronger.

His feelings for her had built up in his heart until they almost burst, which was why he couldn’t stop himself from making those confessions last night.

He had already forgotten the guilt of her belonging to another man.

His mind was now full of nothing but thoughts of how to make her happy.

He had never imagined she would ask him something like this so suddenly.

“You’ve already lost all your memories, haven’t you? Including me?”

It was a question he had known he’d hear eventually.

He had already told everyone that he had lost some memories after the poison attempt, which had been easier once he started living with the servants who had been in the Duke’s house. It was simpler to say he’d lost his memory.

Louise knew this too.

But to her, the difference between her husband losing some memories and losing all memories, including those of his family, must have been vast.

If it was the latter, could she even think of him as the same person? She might as well see him as a stranger.

Either way, he couldn’t lie to her.

Though it was hard for him to speak, Alec forced himself to respond calmly.

“…Yes. It’s just as you said. Since the moment I woke up at the inn, I’ve had no memories.”

“…”

Louise’s eyes widened slightly.

Her reaction showed the shock she felt.

Would she one day find out that he wasn’t actually Alec?

Right now, it was just an issue of memory loss, but he had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to keep the truth—that he wasn’t Alec—hidden forever.

Louise spoke in a slightly surprised voice.

“…So that’s why people have been thinking you might be someone else.”

“…What?”

People were already suspicious of him?

Who?

He hadn’t sensed anything.

As Alec tried to gauge her expression, Louise asked worriedly.

“So when you woke up, you didn’t even know who you were?”

“…”

Alec recalled that time.

So much had happened since then that it felt like a distant memory.

He could barely remember the emotions he’d felt back then.

After a faint sigh, he spoke as if resigning himself.

“When I looked in the mirror, I recognized myself. Since my reflection was the same as what I knew, I didn’t feel like I was a completely different person.”

“Then you didn’t recognize me or the rest of the family?”

“…”

To him, they had been complete strangers.

He had been shocked and bewildered, not knowing who these people were.

Thinking about that moment again, Louise once again felt unfamiliar to him.

Alec brought his hand to his mouth briefly before lowering it and speaking with some difficulty.

“At that time, I was in such a state of shock. I couldn’t even react to not recognizing you or Mother.”

“So… you didn’t know me either? Did you not even remember my name?”

TL NOTE: More advanced chapter of this story is already up to the site. Visit dusk blossoms for more advanced chapters and stories