Chapter 3

The next morning, Asterope opened her eyes. She then opened the window. The blizzard that had continued for days had stopped, and people were beginning to move about outside.

“Grand Duchess, I’ve brought water for your morning wash.”

“Hmm, what’s your name?”

“My name is Anne.”

“Anne. I’ll handle the washing myself, so go downstairs and find out from the butler what the Grand Duke’s schedule looks like.”

“What? Are you sure? Your Grace, you never wash yourself…”

It was true. Asterope was a woman who never lifted a finger and relied entirely on her maids. However, in prison, she had been unable to wash and had to scratch her body incessantly. She had saved a little drinking water to wash only the itchiest spots, so warm water for washing now felt like a luxury.

“It’s fine. Just go and check the Grand Duke’s schedule for me.”

“Yes, Grand Duchess.”

Fortunately, Anne didn’t seem to be the type to argue twice. 

Once Anne quickly left the room, Asterope looked at herself reflected in the warm water. Snow-white skin, black hair, red lips, and large eyes. It was the beautiful appearance she remembered. 

However, three years later, she would become gaunt as if only skin and bones remained, with grime streaking down her body. Her once-lustrous hair would fall out in patches due to malnutrition and would tangle into a wild mess.

She had spent the winter dressed not in fine silk pajamas but in torn muslin that even commoners would discard. Her hands and feet had cracked and bled from the cold.

Asterope suddenly looked down at her hands. The smooth and soft texture of her skin still felt unfamiliar, even though it had been a week since she returned to this time. Slowly, she dipped her fingers into the water.

It was warm and clean.

Just like Kallieon Onyx’s feelings toward her. Asterope bit her lips tightly to keep herself from crying so early in the morning. Then, she immediately thought of Villish Numa, her former lover, whom she must kill in this life no matter what.

* * *

The schedule Anne had brought back for Kallieon was simple. He would hold his usual two-hour morning meeting, then head out for a patrol and subjugation in the late morning. Afterward, he would return to the castle, wash, visit the local villages, and attend to his duties.

It was utterly ordinary.

That was Asterope’s impression of the schedule. Indeed, his routine was always the same. She found it strange that she only just remembered this now.

Had he been so unimportant in my life that I couldn’t recall the patterns he had repeated for years? 

For someone like him to lose his life to someone as insignificant as her, he had been far too diligent and good-hearted.

This was especially true regarding the subjugations.

Serpiewood was a dangerous area that required regular monster exterminations. If left unchecked, monsters could descend into the villages where people lived, so patrols were conducted regularly.

Kallieon made it a point to participate at least once a day, unless he had other commitments. Three times a week in the morning, four times in the afternoon.

When Kallieon joined the subjugations, more monsters were killed in less time. It gave the residents of his territory a greater sense of safety. Serpiewood had originally been abandoned land, so the elderly often recounted the stark differences between the time before and after Kallieon began managing the territory, treating it like a heroic tale.

And there was something even more critical.

In the past, Asterope had made very effective use of the subjugation hours. She now remembered that she had used that time to exchange secret letters with Villish.

The person who delivered Villish’s letters to her was a frail old man. He was a nameless elder who always came begging for food. Asterope would give him bread and milk in exchange for the letters he brought.

The exchange always occurred when the black flag signaling Kallieon’s entry into the patrol zone was raised. That was essentially the signal for their transaction. After reading the secret letters, Asterope would always burn them quickly. As a result, there was no evidence left to prove how despicable Villish Numa was or what she had been doing with him.

The current Kallieon was a loyal servant.

Yes, evidence. That could serve as evidence.

Asterope decided not to burn the letters she received from the old man this time and instead show them to Kallieon. 

What if he calls me a traitor and executed me? No, that couldn’t happen. 

She could tell by looking into his eyes that it wouldn’t.

Kallieon Onyx loved Asterope too much.

Why? That was something Asterope couldn’t understand. It couldn’t be because of her appearance, as Kallieon was an exceptionally handsome man. Even if not as beautiful as her, there must have been countless beauties who adored Kallieon and followed him around.

Her innocent personality? Anyone could fabricate such a thing. Asterope realized that she had been receiving Kallieon’s love all this time without having anything particularly special about herself.

“What if this time it’s different? What if Kallieon says he prefers another woman? What if he says he doesn’t like me?”

Now that she had resolved to kill Villish Numa, events might unfold differently from how they had in her past life. And the events had already begun.

Yesterday, she had told Kallieon to kill Villish.

What if, in this life, Kallieon and Villish ended up on the same side? What if she became the victim of another meaningless death? From Asterope’s perspective, there was no one she could trust. When the person she trusted most, Villish Numa, turned against her, there had been no one left on her side.

Kallieon’s knights had all been killed, and the people of Serpiewood lost their strength when their lord was gone. Moreover, they were convinced that Asterope had been involved in Kallieon’s death and hated her for it. They had never loved her in the first place, so their hatred knew no bounds.

The people of the capital hated Asterope, the wife of the traitor Kallieon. The people of Serpiewood also despised Asterope as a traitor who had killed their lord. There was no one who loved her.

The daily torment she had to endure amidst that coldness—hunger, the freezing chill—just thinking about it made her fingertips tingle.

But regardless of everything, the only person she could trust now was Kallieon.

After all, the current Kallieon Onyx loved Asterope. For reasons she didn’t understand, the fact that he loved her was what mattered.

It was also important to ensure that love continued. Asterope pondered deeply about what she could do. But just sitting at home and thinking wouldn’t yield any answers.

Her breakfast, which in the past would have been a few almonds and a warm glass of milk, had completely changed. She now ate two freshly baked warm loaves of bread and several slices of ham that had been preserved in salt caves throughout the winter. She also didn’t forget to enjoy yogurt thinned with honey and blackberries.

The maids in the kitchen looked at Asterope strangely, surprised by her suddenly voracious appetite, but Asterope had no intention of explaining herself. She merely marveled.

“It’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted.”

The Asterope who used to eat daintily, barely opening her mouth to take a bite, was no more. She tried to eat as much as she could as quickly as possible. It was because of the memories of hurriedly devouring the garbage-like food that would be taken away if she didn’t eat it fast enough. Even though no one was chasing her now, the habit still lingered.

Asterope washed her hands, greasy from the meat, in water and came out into the garden. A large black flag was raised on the walls of the Serpiewood lord’s castle.

It signified that Kallieon had gone out on an expedition to suppress rebels.

And that also meant that the frail old man would soon come. Asterope went to the kitchen, grabbed some bread and milk, and headed out through the back door. The maids, knowing that she would take bread and milk around this time, had already prepared a basket for her.

Some of the maids might have known that she was exchanging letters with someone, but they remained silent. Or perhaps they had even reported it to Kallieon. However, Kallieon likely chose not to believe it.

Does he love me that much? Why?

Asterope questioned Kallieon’s pure and devoted love. 

Was I perhap his first love? Was a first love truly so special? 

Well, for Asterope, Villish had also been her first love. She, too, had been as blind as Kallieon. Neither of them had realized that such love could become poison.

Love is a ridiculous thing. It’s like a potion that most easily renders a person miserable.

With that thought, Asterope headed toward the back door. There were no maids following her. Perhaps it was because she had consistently scolded them over the past year, telling them to leave her alone. 

What if I was assassinated because of it…?

Asterope resolved to start taking the maid Anne, whom she had met earlier that morning, with her every day from now on. Since she had decided to betray Villish, if she were discovered by him, she might be killed even sooner. For Asterope, the sensation of death still felt closer than that of being alive.