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T/N: So many things happened in this chapter: they did the ‘deed’, Carlito turned out to be the person who gave Edmund the mana stones, Damian is waking up, and then this. What else?
Chapter 77
The early dawn lay draped over the world, a dim veil before the sun had yet to rise. Amid the stillness of the hour, Johann suddenly lifted his head. He was a mess. Dark circles hung heavily under his eyes, his skin was dry and sallow. It was obvious he had lost weight in just a few days.
With every other night spent awake, his body was inevitably deteriorating. Yet, paradoxically, Johann’s mind had never been clearer.
“Phew.”
At last, he reviewed the final document and, with a faint sigh, set down his pen.
Rubbing his stiff neck, Johann rose from his seat. The repeated missed meals made him dizzy, and he had to brace himself against the desk, closing and opening his eyes slowly.
Through the haze, the sight of the window caught his attention. Beyond it stretched the silent sky before sunrise. Johann gazed at it blankly.
It had already been three days since Edmund had disappeared. Rumors had begun to spread that Edmund had failed to appear at the unofficial wedding ceremony held a few days ago.
Whenever people gathered, they buzzed with talk of the Princess and Edmund. It was certain the imperial family had caught wind of it, too.
Yet the palace remained silent. They were biding their time, hoping Duke Winter would come crawling back in submission. But Johann had no such intention.
Even if he were to bow down, there was no telling how the imperial family would react. After all, Edmund hadn’t fully participated in the engagement ceremony either. It was possible the Emperor had already decided to abandon the marriage altogether.
Should they yield only for the palace to announce the wedding’s cancellation, it would be the House Winter left humiliated and cornered.
In the suffocating political standoff, should the imperial family discover Edmund’s disappearance, the situation would grow even direr just as Johann feared.
Though he currently held the ducal authority in Edmund’s stead, Johann was not the true Duke. The possibility that the imperial family might ignore him and act as they pleased loomed large, sharpening Johann’s nerves day by day.
To make matters worse, Damian showed no signs of waking.
When an involuntary sigh almost escaped him, Johann quickly drew in a deep breath.
‘He promised he would return.’
Edmund was not a man of empty words, much less one to make promises he wouldn’t keep.
Johann trusted him. The trust they had built was not something so flimsy it would collapse after just three days. With renewed determination, Johann set off with firm strides.
— — —
His destination was Edmund’s office.
Though fully aware that Edmund was not inside, Johann habitually knocked before stepping in. He had brought the documents he processed over the past three days, but the cluttered desk offered nowhere to place them.
After a brief hesitation, Johann set the documents down and began tidying up just to make some space.
Since no servants were allowed inside the office, a thin layer of dust had already settled over everything, despite only three days' absence. As he organized the desk, Johann’s hand paused. Beneath a pile of papers, something caught his eye. Carefully, he reached for it.
“…”
It was an empty picture frame. Johann knew exactly what had once filled it.
‘…It was Madam’s portrait.’
A pang of confusion struck him. Why was this here, in Edmund’s office? He recalled that Edmund had brought it from the North.
With a stiff motion, Johann set the frame down.
["I’m going to find Daphne."]
Leaving the documents behind, Johann hurriedly exited Edmund’s office. It felt as if he had peered into a secret part of Edmund’s heart. His own heart raced.
‘Could it be… His Excellency… loves the Madam…?’
Johann blinked, stunned. It was as if every piece of the puzzle had suddenly fallen into place, and a tremor ran through his shoulders.
Perhaps Edmund’s entire reason for agreeing to marry the Princess had been to extract Daphne from the imperial palace.
A long-buried memory surfaced.
Five years ago, just before Edmund and Daphne’s wedding. They had met to pose for the wedding portrait, and Edmund had shown up earlier than expected.
Johann remembered Edmund hurrying away, face flushed, seemingly unaware of it himself. Through the not-quite-closed door, Daphne had watched him leave.
Only now did Johann realize what had felt so off about that moment.
Why hadn’t he thought of it sooner? Perhaps… he had sensed it all along but chosen to look away.
Lost in confusion, Johann didn’t notice someone approaching until a voice called out.
“Johann.”
Startled, Johann looked up.
“Baron.”
Baron Nouvelle glanced around cautiously before speaking.
“There’s someone here to see you.”
“Who?”
“Just follow me. Quietly.”
Without answering directly, Baron Nouvelle led Johann through the corridors, constantly glancing around. Finally stopping before a door, he turned to Johann.
“Remember the information guild master who handed over two holy mana stones?”
“Yes, I remember.”
“…He’s the one who’s come.”
“What?”
Before Johann could fully grasp the situation, the door opened. When Johann’s eyes fell on the figure inside, they widened in shock.
“…Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”
Inside stood Carlito.
— — —
Meanwhile, in another part of the house, Baroness Nouvelle straightened her back.
The mansion appeared as it always did, but the subtle tension in the air made her uneasy. Shaking her head, she turned back to her task, carefully dripping the remaining blood from the bottle into Damian’s mouth.
“See you tomorrow, Young Lord.”
As always, she spoke the farewell into silence, then quietly closed the door.
Not long after…
Twitch. Twitch.
Damian’s hand moved.
* * *
Drip.
Drip.
The sound of water falling from the ceiling stirred Edmund from his sleep. His eyes opened slowly, greeted by the dark, rocky ceiling of a cave.
As the memories from the previous night flooded back, Edmund stiffened. The vivid memory of tangled breaths and bodies seared into his mind.
For the first time in ages, he had slept deeply. Instinctively, he reached out to the side, searching for her warmth. But instead of familiar skin, his fingers grazed the cold, empty ground.
Edmund’s eyes snapped open.
The warmth that had stayed by his side through the night was gone without a trace. Sitting up sharply, his gaze fell on a single crumpled note left where she had been.
[Go back.]
“…Daphne.”
* * *
At the sound of his voice, Daphne turned her head. But all she saw was the thick jungle. No trace of another person in sight.
Hearing Edmund’s voice – no, the illusion of it – left a hollow feeling inside her.
‘It’s… truly over now.’
Last night wasn’t a mere lapse in judgment. It was the final severance of the five relentless years she could never quite escape. Perhaps that was why, though her body ached, her mind felt startlingly clear.
At dawn, Daphne had packed her things and left the cave, wandering aimlessly for who knew how long. Eventually, before her eyes, the temple she had searched for so desperately revealed itself.
Standing pristine amid the deep jungle, it could only be the temple Sergei had spoken of.
Daphne dropped her belongings and entered the temple alone. Walking for some time, she eventually came upon a wide altar in the empty hall.
‘This place…’
It was the same altar that had once seared her with strange heat at the mere touch. Sensing something wrong, Daphne instinctively stepped back.
‘No.’
She braced herself. She had to save Damian. Whatever Sergei had spoken of had to be here. It had to.
She remembered first seeing Damian after her brutal journey through the northern winter, after her marriage.
The boy bore Edmund’s face, and though they weren’t outwardly affectionate, there was an undeniable bond between them.
At that moment, Daphne had been struck as if by lightning. Alongside the clanging of invisible chains locking around her, she realized it.
She, an omen of misfortune, had no place among their peaceful lives. She wanted to protect them. That had been her choice, and she never intended to regret it.
Soon, she would leave, and this would be the end.
With heavy steps, Daphne approached the altar. She took great care not to touch it, scanning every inch for anything unusual.
“…No. It can't be."
There was no way Sergei had lied. No reason for him to do so. Nor would he have gone to such trouble if he had wanted her dead.
Unable to contain her desperation, Daphne began to search the altar frantically. But no matter how she tore through it, there was nothing.
Breathless, she blinked vacantly. With her only hope vanishing before her eyes, even despair seemed too distant to grasp.
“…Ha, haha…”
A hollow laugh escaped her lips.
“Daphne.”
Again, she heard Edmund’s voice.
“Daphne!”
The hallucination grew louder, closer. When she opened her eyes, she saw him rushing toward her. Edmund, sensing something was wrong, slowed his approach.
“Daph—”
“Stop! Please, just stop!”
Her scream halted Edmund in his tracks.
“Please… let me go. Please!”
Her bloodshot eyes locked onto his.
“…Let’s talk when we get back.”
“I’m sick of this. I just wanted to escape...”
Though she had escaped hell, she had only found herself shackled to an impossible love. The harder she struggled, the tighter the web bound her fragile wings.
For so long, she had slowly torn those wings apart. And now, broken and fallen, what could possibly remain?
Daphne’s breath grew ragged. Her body swayed. Seeing this, Edmund lunged forward, pulling her into his arms.
“Daphne. Daphne?”
He cupped her face, lifting it gently.
“My poor sister seems to be in shock.”
A new voice intruded, cold and unfamiliar.