VHRTDM 11

Chapter 11

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Kahinell stopped in front of Rishua’s bedroom and looked at Taylor.

Taylor shot him a look that clearly said, “What exactly do you want me to do about this?”

“Turn on the lights.”

“Me?”

“Then should I do it?”

I’m holding my wife right now.

Taylor quickly realized his mistake.

“Then I’ll assume Your Grace is allowing me to enter the lady’s bedroom.”

The mistress’s bedroom was a private, forbidden space.

Only Kahinell, as her husband, and the butler Albert were allowed inside.

Taylor had neither the authority nor the right to enter.

The only reason Kahinell brought him was simple—he was the only one who could.

Because Taylor alone knew Kahinell’s weakness.

While Kahinell waited in the hallway, Taylor softly lit the room.

Once the space was bright enough to see, Kahinell finally stepped inside.

Taylor, having finished his task, returned to the corridor.

Kahinell carefully lowered his wife onto the bed.

He had done everything he could consider “proper,” so he turned to leave—

But his steps stopped again.

“…Is she cold?”

Now that he thought about it, she always wore many layers, as if she was sensitive to cold.

Kahinell pulled the blanket up and tucked her in tightly, biting his lip.

What am I doing right now?

“Crazy.”

It was a quiet insult directed at himself.

He tried to leave again—before he did anything even more insane.

“……”

But then he saw it.

The handkerchief in her left hand.

His brows furrowed as he rubbed his forehead.

He still didn’t understand why she had asked for it.

And now he understood even less.

Why is she still holding that thing?

Even though the room was no longer dark, something tightened in his chest, making it hard to breathe.

Kahinell quickly left the room.

“Are you alright?”

Taylor asked cautiously, worried he might be struggling with trauma.

Kahinell looked pale enough to justify the concern.

“Taylor, at dawn, we’re going to the northern wall.”

“Suddenly?”

Kahinell nodded.

Taylor recognized that expression.

He was serious.

“Are you going to subjugate monsters?”

“We were going anyway this winter. I might as well move my body.”

He still trained every morning with the sword, but apparently that wasn’t enough anymore.

He needed real combat.

“If we leave at dawn, we’ll need to start preparations now.”

Taylor suggested waiting until tomorrow, but Kahinell refused.

“What’s there to prepare? We just go.”

Taylor knew better than to argue.

In 12 years, he had never once won against him.

“…Understood.”

Yawning, Taylor went to wake the knights.

“Everyone up! We leave for the northern wall within two hours. Move!”

What on earth is happening?

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* * *

Unlike usual, my body felt strangely refreshed.

Like… I’d never even caught a cold in my life.

“Is this how healthy people feel every morning?”

Wow. This is amazing.

My motivation to break this curse shot up instantly.

After washing up and changing into indoor clothes, I instinctively headed toward the kitchen.

“…Ah, wait.”

Right. I got kicked out by Kahinell yesterday.

Could I even go see him today?

Probably not.

So I went back to my room.

Meeting him at lunch would be better.

If I ruined his mood first thing in the morning, the whole day would be miserable.

“……”

But humans adapt quickly.

I had seen Kahinell every morning until now, and not seeing him today felt strangely empty.

I tried to hold out until lunch.

But patience has never been my strength.

Anna’s doing laundry right now… I’ll go alone.

I went to Kahinell’s office.

He wasn’t there.

Not in the training yard either.

Normally I could find him in one of those places, so I was starting to feel uneasy.

I wanted to ask someone, but everyone looked like students avoiding eye contact with a teacher before being called on.

Eventually, I gave up and went to Albert.

He was the only one in the mansion who didn’t openly avoid me.

“Is my husband not around?”

“His Grace left the castle at dawn.”

“…Excuse me?”

For a moment, I thought I misheard.

But it was true.

Kahinell wasn’t in the castle.

“Did something happen?”

“No, nothing like that.”

If nothing happened… why leave at dawn?

Wait.

Something felt wrong.

Was he… avoiding me?

Did I cling too much?

I let out a hollow laugh, but the seriousness of the situation hit me a second later.

“…I’m screwed.”

My painkiller was gone.

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* * *

Thud thud thud.

I couldn’t sit still for even a moment after my husband unexpectedly ran away.

“When will Kahinell come back? Will he even come back?”

“Of course he will. He is the master of Highrant.”

“Right?”

No matter how much he disliked me, he wouldn’t abandon Highrant.

He wasn’t that kind of person.

Then why leave like a teenage boy running away from home?!

Was it because of yesterday?

Because I said I needed him?

I didn’t want to think that way, but it was the only reason that came to mind.

…Does he really hate me that much?

Sniff…

Tears blurred my vision.

“Your complexion doesn’t look good, my lady.”

“Anna… I think Kahinell might hate me more than I realized.”

“No, that’s not true!”

Anna’s firm denial startled me.

How would you even know that?

“You said His Grace went to the northern wall, right?”

“Exactly. That just proves it. I must be so unbearable he ran all the way there.”

“Maybe he went for the monster subjugation?”

“Monster subjugation?”

My trembling legs calmed slightly.

I grabbed Anna’s arm.

“You mean he didn’t run away from me, but went there for a mission?”

“Well… maybe?”

You don’t sound very sure either!

Anna handed me a piece of chocolate when she saw me drooping.

She always did that when I was down.

I loved it.

“Do you miss His Grace that much?”

“It’s not that I miss him… it’s just that I get anxious when he’s not nearby.”

The curse was getting worse every day.

Which meant the handkerchief alone wasn’t enough anymore.

Its scent was also fading.

When the pain overwhelmed me, I had no choice but to run to Kahinell.

But he wasn’t here.

I only had a week before my death sentence.

And my husband wouldn’t be back for a week.

How am I supposed to survive that?

The pain felt like my heart was being torn apart and dragged into darkness.

I had experienced it too many times already.

I knew now.

I couldn’t survive without Kahinell.

I shouldn’t stay alone. Anna might notice something.

That would be disastrous.

Even though Anna would leave me alone if I asked, I could slip up.

I didn’t want anyone to know.

Not pity.

And especially not Kahinell.

If he finds out… I might have to leave this house.

Once the curse was gone, I would leave even if he tried to stop me.

But not yet.

That was why I endured even his coldness and the servants’ stares.

While worrying about how to survive a week without Kahinell, a thought suddenly came to me.

His room.

That was my emergency treatment center.

It would be filled with his scent—enough to act like a week’s worth of painkillers.

“Anna, I’ll be back in a bit!”

I rushed straight to his room.

But—

“What is this?”

The door wouldn’t open.

I tried pushing and pulling, thinking I had mixed it up, but it didn’t budge.

“Don’t tell me he locked it on purpose…”

Kahinell, you scary man.

How far ahead are you thinking?

Rejected at the entrance, I collapsed onto the hallway floor.

“What do I do now?”

Should I go after him to the northern wall?

…No.

Not there.

The northern wall—the empire’s hell, filled with blizzards and monsters.

There was a high chance I’d die for a completely different reason before even reaching him.

That left only one option.

“I didn’t want to get involved with him…”

The man from the original story’s Rishua’s affair.

Another human painkiller.

At this point, he was my only alternative.