Epilogue.1

“No! An important guest is coming today. Wait, Alice!” 

“I’ll be back soon!” 

She regained her memories of her previous life around the age of twelve. 

As a result, her life, which had been that of the cheerful only daughter of an Earl’s family until just yesterday, was split into two, just as Nathaniel had once said. She could never return to the time before she knew him. 

In that sense, the Earl and Countess who did not abandon her, even when she was almost half out of her mind, calling out only for Nathaniel, were truly angelic people. They were her parents in this new life. 

They were much older compared to her young age. 

They cherished and loved each other deeply, and perhaps because of that, her father never took another wife or adopted a new child, choosing instead to live focused only on each other, even if it meant having no children. Eventually, they had her with great difficulty. 

So, she grew up receiving all the love from her parents that she should have received in her previous life. They never scolded or reprimanded her for her nonsense of asking them to find Nathaniel; instead, they comforted her and listened to her seriously. Occasionally, the Earl, her father, used his extensive social connections to look for boys or people with that name. Unfortunately, it seemed that he had not yet met the beautiful boy she described. 

Seeing her parents’ care and love, she gradually found stability. At least outwardly. And so four years passed. 

She turned sixteen and was two years away from her coming-of-age ceremony. 

It seemed that the usual course for noble girls of her age was to find a fiancé. 

The guest her parents had invited today was likely for that purpose. So, she quickly fled to a small nearby forest. She intended to catch her breath there for a while. Of course, she planned to return before the guest arrived, not wanting to embarrass the parents who had devoted themselves to her. 

But she still deeply missed Nathaniel and was always saddened by the fact that God had separated them. However, she felt that expressing this inside the Earl’s mansion would only make her gentle-hearted parents uncomfortable, so she often retreated to the forest. 

This place had a landscape somewhat similar to the forest behind the house where she, Nathaniel, and Skoll used to walk together. So walking alone here allowed her to indulge in old memories and cry over them, which was comforting. 

Nathaniel. Have you reincarnated too? Why haven’t you come to see me? Haven’t you found me yet? I keep looking for you by your name and the appearance I remember. Please come quickly. Otherwise, I might end up in another unwanted marriage in this life. 

“Please come quickly…” 

Sitting in a pretty clover field that reminded her of memories with him, she cried for a while, releasing her upset feelings. Then, after finding some plants that could serve as an excuse, she returned to the mansion. 

“Alice! You really are so…” 

“Mother, it’s a gift!” 

She approached the Countess, who was pacing with a worried expression at the door, and offered something she had brought in her hands. A gentle smile spread across the Countess’s wrinkled face. Any sign of intending to scold her disappeared completely. 

“You little rascal.” 

Instead of scolding her, the Countess lightly kissed her forehead. Then, holding the clover, no, the four-leaf clover, she had been given, she cherished it and said she would frame it and always keep it in sight, expressing her happiness. 

“A very important guest will arrive soon. Let’s wash up and dress neatly. Your father has earnestly requested it.”

If it was a guest of her father, it might simply be for business, but if that were the case, there would be no reason to sit her down with them. There would be no need for earnest requests if it were just a simple introduction. 

She cleverly picked up on all these facts. Perhaps because she retained the memories of having lived once as an adult, she sometimes found such insights convenient. 

She thought that maybe they had indeed brought a candidate to pair with her. With an uneasy heart, she washed herself and put on the pearl-colored dress the maid handed her. 

‘Nathaniel…’ 

Seeing herself in the mirror in the dress, she suddenly recalled the time she married him. Of course, her appearance now was quite different from back then. 

Now, she no longer had the deep brown hair or the green eyes he loved. If the previous ‘Cordelia’ had the impression of a scrawny, pitiful brown fox, the ‘Alice’ who grew up receiving the Earl and Countess’s affection had pinkish-beige hair and deep violet eyes like violets, with a face resembling a playful cat. 

If he saw her like this, he surely wouldn’t recognize her. She had changed so much. The thought made her sad again. 

“Miss, why do you look so gloomy?” 

At that moment, Emma, the head maid, spoke to her.

Emma, who was carefully brushing her hair, seemed to have noticed her expression in the mirror and was pretending to be surprised. Being close to a grandmother in age, Emma adored her like a granddaughter. Because of this, she often conveyed her parents’ true feelings or discreetly informed her of the surrounding circumstances. 

She opened her mouth to Emma, as if asking a favor, after a long time.

“Emma, tell me honestly. The guest coming today, you said it was Father’s guest, but isn’t he actually coming to see me? Isn’t that right?” 

Emma’s expression showed a hint of surprise. Being someone whose transparent honesty was a virtue, it was clear she was genuinely taken aback. 

“How did you know? Madame and Master wouldn’t have told you.” 

“I’m not a fool. Many of Father’s guests have come and gone from the mansion, but I’ve only ever greeted them in passing. Yet today, they’re telling me to wash up and dress nicely. It means they’re planning to introduce me.” 

“Oh my, Miss, you really are clever!”

“Emma, I’m not looking for compliments right now… I’m going to be 18 soon. At the party I attended last time, I overheard that girls our age usually find a fiancé around this time, get acquainted, and then marry right after their coming-of-age ceremony. So I think Father has brought someone he considers a match.” 

The comb brushing her hair stopped. Emma looked genuinely shocked that she had figured it out. She was so astonished that Alice wondered if she had given her too much of a shock. But seeing her expression, the answer was clear. It seemed her words were precisely correct. 

“Miss! Please listen to me just once.” 

“You won’t even answer me?” 

“Just once, please. Madame earnestly asked me to keep this a secret, but it’s too precious not to tell you.” 

“What is it?” 

She asked, tilting her head to look up at Emma. Emma, perhaps sensing her expression was sad, stroked her white cheek with her wrinkled hand before moving to stand in front of her. Then, bending down to meet her eye level, she whispered. 

“Yes, it’s true. Today, you will meet a young master. He’s the second son of a Marquis family. But the master isn’t introducing you to him for that reason. I’ve actually seen him once. When you were deeply asleep because you were ill, he visited the mansion. Despite his age, he has a very dignified and handsome appearance. They say he resembles the most handsome man in the Empire, the Marquis from two generations ago, and is even more beautiful, and it’s true.” 

“Emma. What I want to know isn’t whether the young master is handsome or not… Don’t you have any other information? At least a characteristic or a name…”

“Of course, there is!” 

Emma’s intention was clear. She must have wanted to give Alice some interesting information in advance to prevent her from ruining the meeting. However, Alice was utterly shocked by the information that followed. 

“His name is Levin. His bright blue eyes are very attractive, you know? And according to rumors, he’s also very skilled with a gun… Miss!” 

Alice nearly fainted upon hearing that name. Levin, again Levin! And with bright blue eyes! 

She stumbled and fell beside the chair. Emma, alarmed, hurriedly helped her to the bed. 

“W-water, please…” 

“Of course! Here you go.” 

“I don’t like it lukewarm… I want tea. Can you brew some?” 

When Alice started trembling, Emma turned pale and quickly left the room. Alice waited for the sound of her footsteps to fade before she abruptly sat up in bed. 

Oh my God, so the person coming to this house is Levin again? 

She felt nauseated. Why does God keep attaching that name to her? What she wanted was Nathaniel! 

The mere fact that his name was Levin made her head spin. Did she have to meet that wretched man again? And with bright blue eyes, it was almost like a revelation. She would know the moment she saw him. Just from those eyes, she would instinctively realize that the cruel hunter-like Levin would hover around her in this life too. 

She ran out of the room right then. But to avoid worrying Emma, she informed a servant standing outside her room that she was going to the forest for a while. This way, Emma might sigh but wouldn’t be too worried. 

Guests were likely already arriving at the front door. So she dashed through the servants’ passage and slipped out the back door. Then, crying, she entered the forest and called out the name she missed dearly. 

“Nathaniel! Where are you? Why aren’t you coming? You said you’d find me. I’ve been waiting, so why aren’t you here?” 

His absence was painfully sorrowful. 

But then, she sensed an unfamiliar presence nearby. “What’s this?” she thought, turning her head, and then froze.