Chapter 24

It was one of the pieces of news I had heard before the regression.

When I first heard that I was pregnant after marrying Kazak, I was diagnosed by a doctor who said I needed to be careful with everything because my health wasn’t good. I visited numerous doctors, but they all told me that I was inherently unhealthy.

Worried about the baby, I asked Kazak to get me a rare mana stone. There was a saying that even if you didn’t have magical power, having a mana stone around you would harmonize it with nature.

At first, Kazak seemed reluctant, but when I asked again for the baby’s sake, he eventually got one for me. The mana stone was a rare one that was suddenly discovered in the Duchy of Zan.

As it turned out, the rare mana stone did help me. However, I wanted to return it. After placing it in my room, I began to experience strange auditory hallucinations and nightmares.

Kazak was very angry with me because of that. He accused me of being extravagant, impatient, and not loving the baby.

But he came to apologize that night, so I generously thought he was just a bit sensitive because he was afraid something might happen to the baby. For whatever reason, I rarely refused matters related to the baby.

“…If you go to the north of the Zan Duchy, there will be an unfortunate event. I think it’s related to the rare mana stone.”

“How do you know that?”

Julian asked, looking straight at me. It was a natural question. Since getting married, I had only gone back and forth between the Grand Duke’s mansion in Zan and the capital.

I couldn’t tell him that I had died once and regressed. No matter how polite Julian was, he might treat me as a mad person. He might think, “That’s why this woman talks so much,“ and lose my trust.

I decided to be a bit honest while also lying.

“I have a capable friend.”

It seemed okay to talk to Julian about Shaun. I feared appearing too cunning, but it was better than being seen as a madwoman.

As I finished speaking and stared at Julian, he rubbed his eyebrow and said casually.

“You’re talking about Lethe.”

I was startled when Julian said the name “Lethe.” Knowing about Lethe, I was worried about what he might think. My heart started pounding as if I feared he would disappoint me.

“How… did you already know?”

Julian seemed quite pleased with my reaction. It felt like he believed I was being honest with him.

“Just as you investigated me before our marriage, I also investigated you. During that process, I learned about someone named Lethe. I heard that a childhood friend died of an illness. I thought it was a code since you wouldn’t be exchanging letters with a dead person. I apologize, but I opened a letter.“

“…There was no trace of it.”

“Does that make you sad?”

Am I sad? No, just bewildered. I never imagined someone would have opened the letters between Shaun and me. I knew Julian was capable, but I didn’t expect him to be adept at such secretive matters.

“No.”

I shrugged and gave a wry smile. I thought it was something to be kept hidden from him, but now there was no reason to conceal it. Perhaps he could be of help to me. My heart felt considerably lighter.

“Would you be upset if I proposed a deal related to the rare mana stone?“

“A deal.“

“Yes.”

Julian also smiled at me. But the smile soon disappeared. He rarely smiled for long.

“I don’t need anything more from you.”

Is that so? I pondered. I had been hasty to bring up the topic, but I had nothing to offer him.

What he wanted was solely an heir, and I had no intention of bearing another child plagued by illness. Though cowardly, this was a secret I kept from him.

After some thought, I shamelessly asked,

“Can’t it be paid afterward?“

“Duchess.“

“J-just this once. Your wife is being taken by a bad guy.”

I clasped my hands together earnestly. Looking at Julian with desperate eyes, he averted his gaze. It seemed like a sign of rejection, and my shoulders slumped.

But Julian sighed and spoke generously.

“… Let’s first verify if Lethe’s information is accurate.“

“Yes! Thank you, Julian.”

As Julian trusted me, I grabbed his hand. Without looking at me, Julian called for the butler. Seeing us holding hands, the butler was initially wide-eyed but soon chuckled heartily.

“You two get along well.“

“Be quiet and prepare the carriage.“

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Julian stood up with my hand still in his. As I slowly tried to let go, Julian held onto my hand. His hand was rough, calloused from hard work, but the touch was gentle.

“That old man has become quite talkative because of you.“

“That’s a good thing. They say laughter leads to a long life.”

I was in such a good mood that I made a playful joke with a bright smile.

“…If that’s true, you’ll live a long time.”

However, I couldn’t laugh innocently at Julian’s words. How much longer do I have in this life? In my previous life, I had only lived about a year and a half longer. If I valued my life this time, maybe two years… If I hurried, I might be able to bear his healthy child.

I shook my head. I didn’t have that kind of time. If I became pregnant, my actions would be severely restricted. No matter how hard I tried, the baby would still be too weak to be a suitable heir to the Grand Duchy of Zan. Wanting to give him a child was just my selfish desire to ease my guilt.

“Why?“

“It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

I walked ahead to hide my expression, thinking about how my pulled-back right hand was tingling.

* * *

The mine in the far north of Zan’s territory was eerily quiet. There was no sound of the miners working.

“Something is definitely going on.”

At Julian’s words, I nodded in agreement. We went further inside. A miner saw us and, startled, bowed low on the rocky floor. I grabbed his arm to lift him up, worried his knees might break. The miner looked at me with a mix of gratitude and concern.

“Y-your Grace, what brings you here?“

“We are just here to take a look around. But where are all the workers?”

The miner didn’t know what to do in response to Julian’s calm question. But there was no need to rush him. Just by Julian lowering his red eyes and looking at the miner, the miner started sweating and bowed deeply. Respect and fear can coexist.

“I will show you around. But, um, please don’t be surprised…“

“Lead the way.“

“Y-yes.”

The miner led us, bowing his back. The path he led us on was relatively clean and well-prepared for safety. It didn’t look like the harsh environment the capital described the north as. Life for the northern miners seemed quite comfortable.

The place the miner led us to was the entrance of a mine.

“Duchess, it’s dangerous, so please wait here.“

“No. I want to go in, too. I want to see for myself.”

Julian seemed about to say something at my insistence, but then he shook his head and entered. Sensing that this was his way of allowing me to do as I wished, I followed him inside.

It was darker inside than outside, but the equipment was well-prepared, making it easy to see ahead. As I carefully moved forward, avoiding tripping the stones, I heard the miners murmuring.

“Ah, what should we do about this…“

“Shouldn’t we report this?“

“Just making another path won’t solve this. What a predicament.“

“What on earth is this?”

It sounded like someone kicked the wall, but they screamed in pain, finding it more solid than expected.

When we appeared in front of them, they all became flustered. No one living in Zan’s territory wouldn’t recognize Julian. And they would naturally realize that the noblewoman by his side was me. It was only natural to be surprised that the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Zan appeared suddenly.

“Explain what’s going on.”

At Julian’s command, the leader of the miners stepped forward.

“Your Grace, we were following the plan and creating a path. But we encountered this strange rock. No matter how hard we hit it with a pickaxe, it won’t break.”

The wall they were facing wasn’t a wall but a huge rock. Its surface was so smooth and black that it didn’t reflect light even when shone upon. The miners had likely never seen anything like this before. I approached the rock and spoke to Julian.

“We need to bring a mage. If a mage interprets this stone, it could become a rare mana stone.“

“A rare mana stone?”

A miner nearby asked in surprise and then covered his mouth, thinking speaking to the Grand Duchess was inappropriate. I didn’t punish him but instead turned to Julian, who touched the stone with one hand.

“Before interpreting it, it’s just a stone…”

Before I could finish, I suddenly grabbed my head in pain. As I staggered, Julian came to support me.

But the headache didn’t subside; it only got worse. I even began to hear strange auditory hallucinations. It was a sound I had heard before.

A woman’s sobbing…

I had heard this sound when I was pregnant before the regression.

“Who… who…”

I murmured, leaning my forehead against Julian’s chest. The headache was unbearable, but the sorrowful and eerie sound of the sobbing made it even harder to endure. Fear crept up from my feet.

“Julian, help…”

As I gripped Julian’s arm tightly, a woman in black appeared before me.