Since he had already prepared in his previous life and knew what would happen, it was easier for him to strengthen the foundation and make thorough preparations.

There were already a few nobles in Elsen who secretly knew his true identity. Among them were old noble families from Elsen, such as the Baron Millena household.

This was also the reason why he had asked for Elsen as his territory. The nobles who had dealings with Kallian reacted with caution.

The older inhabitants, who still remembered the era of Grand Duke Elsen, welcomed Kallian with honour. Meanwhile, the families whose ancestors had once stained Lake Elsen with blood also remembered the past.

“Inform our allies in Elsen territory first, Dylan.”

“Yes, understood.”

“Stockpile food in preparation for a possible attack and take precautions against disease.”

“Come to think of it, my lady has made her own moves. I believe she intends to help you, my lord.”

“Let her do as she pleases.”

“But if her actions conflict with our plans…”

“Let her wishes take priority. Either way, I am confident I can handle the situation.”

“…As expected of the last bloodline of Elsen.”

“My wife must have her own thoughts.”

Because he remembered the past – the events of the next three years, to be precise – his preparations to erase Ilmos went smoothly. By simply changing the order of certain events, subtly provoking certain actions, and either altering or exploiting the course of events he already knew, he was able to carry out his plan without much difficulty.

“I’ve informed the ambassador about the spotted disease. We should hear from Zenya soon.

“Then let’s find a way to provoke Seor. In the end, they’ll give us the last excuse we need.”

“Will the Crown Prince really fall into the trap?”

“If he is, he certainly will. Nahir should be a good choice.”

But not everything went to plan.

When Elliope was attacked by Seor’s shadow spies in Zenya, and when she pushed him away, if only for a moment –

“This is your fault.”

“…….”

“You keep making me like this.”

And so, after impulsively blurting out those words and leaving for Nahir, he nearly lost his mind when she was almost r*ped by Theodor.

And when she almost died in the burning house, he came close to losing his mind.

To make matters worse, the burning house incident had been caused by a trap he had deliberately set.

“There will be no war, Your Excellency.”

“Hmm?”

“Not unless Seor’s shadow spies storm the Grand Duke’s residence and wreak chaos.”

Knowing them well, he was certain that with just a little provocation, both Theodor and Charlotte would stage a scene that would provide a justification for war. It was one of the necessary steps in the process of creating a legitimate reason for conflict.

Theodor went through with it, as expected.

But in the process, Elliope almost died.

At that moment, he had to stop himself from banging his head against the floor several times in remorse.

And the punishment for that was clearly on his hands. The wound was caused by trying to force open the secret passage, which was blocked by the intense heat of the fire. He had no choice but to grab it with his bare hands and twist it to force it open, causing the injury.

When he realised where the passage led, all he could do was run madly, desperate to reach his destination.

He finally made his way to Theodor’s office, opened the other side of the passage, and when he finally held her in his arms, it felt like he could finally breathe again.

“I thought I was going to lose my mind.”

“……”

“I thought I was going to lose you.”

At that moment, it was truly overwhelming. Even if all the plans worked out, if he lost her, nothing else would matter.

As he held her, the image of her body before the regression, when she had been coughing up blood, flashed through his mind. The blood flowing endlessly from her small body, her body slowly cooling. Her eyes, gradually losing their light, left a vivid mark on his memory, tormenting him.

These were the things he couldn’t hold onto or prevent. But despite the pain, he found some comfort in the small warmth of her body as he held her. Elliope embraced him.

A large scar remained on his hand, consumed by the flames. Even if he had suffered worse injuries, he would have accepted them, except for one thing. He was afraid that Elliope would feel uncomfortable when he touched her because of the scar. 

“Fortunately…” 

On the contrary, Elliope often responded more strongly to his injured hand. Every time he used it to caress or touch her, and remembered the sounds it made, it gave him a sense of reassurance.

Of course, not everything that happened unexpectedly was bad. Elliope personally went to Zenya for Kallian, sought out Charlotte to put an end to Theodor, and even took him directly to Theodor.

She also visited the Seor ambassador to save her husband. And when he disappeared, she came looking for him, worried.

“If it’s not you… I don’t want it…”

“…I’m not particularly interested in men other than you.”

“Weren’t you the one who told me not to abandon a dog?”

“You are my husband…”

“You are my dog…”

In the end, it wasn’t Theodor she recognised as her husband, but him, and he accepted himself as her faithful servant. The thrill he felt at that moment was indescribable.

After such a long time, Kallian finally felt alive again. He wasn’t just weakly planning and moving, he was acting for someone, for something. 

With that alone he was so satisfied that he wanted nothing more. The moment he cut off Theodor’s body and desecrated the corpse was equally satisfying. Indeed, Theodor had managed to stay alive a little longer than others had expected, until Kallian was ready to dismember him.

“……”

The last glimmer of light returned to the man’s eyes, which had almost faded. Seeing those eyes, filled with strength as they looked at him, Kallian whispered,

“How is it, Your Grace, the Grand Duke?”

In a low, sweet voice, as if speaking only the words Theodor wanted to hear, Kallian whispered,

“You’ve ruined everything.”

“……!”

“She is no longer your wife. She is mine.”

“……”

“I’m glad you didn’t take her body in this life and in the past life.”

At that moment Kallian saw Theodor’s eyes fill with rage.

“Well, there’s no need for you to know.”
“……”
“How soft and warm my wife’s body is.”
“……”
“It’s enough that I know.”

After the last whisper, he cut off Theodor’s neck and limbs. As the body was dismembered and covered with cloth, a smile naturally appeared on his face. Throughout the process, Elliope looked at Theodor as if he were an inanimate object. This pleased her because it meant that there was no trace of any lingering attachment to Theodor in her heart. Nothing of Theodor Von Ilmos would remain with her. Not even the smallest trace would remain.

With the Grand Duchy thoroughly dealt with, all that remained was the decision of the Imperial Family. He kissed Elliope gently on the forehead as she slept peacefully in his arms.

“Don’t worry about anything.”

“……”

“Choose what you want.”

It didn’t matter to Kallian what she chose. He had no interest in continuing the imperial line, but if she wanted to receive the right to the throne and pass it on to her children, that wouldn’t be bad either. Kallian stroked Elliope’s stomach gently.

What came to mind was a conversation he had had with Charlotte sometime in his past life. The conversation that had taken place when she had once again forced him to drink a drink that contained a mild poison.

“Please stop, Miss Marte.”

“Hmm, did it not work this time?”

“Whatever you want, I cannot give you what you want.”

“Oh, you know what I want?”

“I’m talking about playing the role of a stud.”

“Aha, hahaha! Really… You’re quite honest.”

“I have consumed the poison of the Belorante flower.”

“So what?”

“I won’t be able to produce proper seed.”

Charlotte chuckled with a mischievous smile.

“It has recently become known among alchemists that the poison of the Belorante flower has no effect on infertility. I suppose you didn’t know that?”

“……”

“The poison of that flower actually works as an *phrodisiac or vitality booster once tolerance has been built up.”

“That’s an interesting lie you tell.”

“Oh, I don’t lie about medicine.”

Charlotte seemed quite sure of herself.

“That’s why I kept offering it to you. I guess you didn’t know?”

“……”

“It’s a shame you have no intention of using all that accumulated vitality. But I’m always ready.”

With that, Charlotte winked. She didn’t even try to hide the fact that she regularly laced the drinks she served Kallian with mild poisons or toxins.

“Honestly, I didn’t want children… but if it’s yours, maybe it’s worth hoping for.”

“……”

“Wouldn’t you make an excellent seed, Your Grace?”

The only useful thing Charlotte provided was to expose this fact and destroy Theodor. In fact, what he learned from the alchemists and doctors confirmed her truth. While pregnancy might be a little tricky, there was no real problem with reproduction, according to their latest findings.

“Perhaps you don’t know, my lady.”

He was famous for his toughness in battle, known for his tenacious vitality.

If his seed was like that, it was possible that one day a life might grow out of Elliope. He hadn’t quite worked out the details of having a child, but he didn’t think it was completely impossible.

The thought of a child resembling Elliope was endearing just to imagine. Besides, once they had a child, Elliope would become even more attached to him. Although it was already inevitable, their bond would only grow stronger.

“Of course, if that doesn’t happen, I don’t mind.”

For the moments when he desired her every day and held her in his arms were enough for him.

When he wrapped his arms tightly around Elliope’s stomach as she slept, she flinched and burrowed deeper into his embrace. Kallian kissed her eyelids lightly, then gently pressed her crown under his chin.

“My wife.”

The echo of those words enveloped Kallian with great satisfaction. It would remain so in the future.