Chapter 6 — I Heard Everything
She took out the little box she had kept on her lap. It was small and old, but the things inside were the opposite—expensive items that were worth a lot. She had brought them “just in case,” but because she’d been living in hiding, she never got to use them.
“Please take these and just… look after Gisele until she’s old enough to live on her own. If I die before that…”
Theo, who had been listening quietly, suddenly grabbed Yulita’s hand. His eyes were full of hope and determination.
“Y-Yulita!”
“Huh? Theo?”
“Please don’t say things like that. Instead… please marry me. With this amount of money, we could even hire one of those high-class healers the nobles use.”
“It’s kind of you, but… no healer can save me.”
Her voice was gentle but firm. Hearing that, Theo shook his head with a devastated look.
“But… but Yulita, I—I love you.”
“…What?”
“I’ve liked you since I was fifteen. I’ve been in love with you for five years. If I can’t cure you, then at least let me make your remaining time happy…”
Even after hearing everything about her condition, Theo looked more desperate than ever.
“So please… please marry me. I’ll be a good dad to Gisele, too!”
Yulita was shocked. Getting confessed to by a man ten years younger than her? And on top of that, she already had a ten-year-old child.
But the person she loved was…
“…No.”
“Huh?”
“Ah—no, sorry. I was just talking to myself. Theo, marriage… it’s too sudden…”
“But I want to be with you no matter what happens. I can’t just let you go!”
Yulita tried to push away the thoughts of him. She thought she got over him when she left, but maybe she hadn’t.
“…Theo, you’re young. It’s just a phase.”
“I’m serious, Yulita. I’ve only ever looked at you for five whole years.”
Choosing Theo, when she was basically waiting for death, made her feel guilty. But Theo truly would be a good father to Gisele. And his family would also treat Gisele kindly.
And… maybe, if she stood by another man’s side, she could finally forget him.
Her heart wavered. Maybe it was because death felt closer, or maybe because she met Mertz again. Either way, her emotions were in chaos.
“Don’t worry, Yulita! I’ll make you happy. I’ll be a good dad to Gisele. I won’t let you go!”
Yulita lowered her gaze. Theo was right in front of her, yet only Mertz filled her mind.
She suddenly felt angry—she wanted revenge, she wanted to forget him completely. She wanted him erased from her heart.
Even if… that wasn’t the right way to do it.
“…Theo. Are you serious?”
“I am! Completely serious!”
At some point Theo had even started crying. Yulita was overwhelmed with guilt.
“I can’t make you happy.”
“That’s fine! Then I’ll make you happy… so please…”
In the end, without fully realizing it, Yulita nodded.
“…Alright.”
“Yulita…”
“I’ll accept your proposal, Theo.”
She reached out her hand to him—hoping that even a little, Mertz’s shadow in her heart would fade.
Meanwhile, Gisele had woken up and heard every single word. She almost screamed, but remembered the walls weren’t soundproof, so she clapped both hands over her mouth.
“Yulita, I swear I’ll do my best! I’ll make you happy! Even if you don’t love me, I don’t care!”
“…Thank you. And… I’m very sorry.”
Gisele listened, and the first thing she thought was:
I’m screwed.
It wasn’t exactly like the original novel, but still—her mom getting tangled up with Theo like this?!
“Mom… what are you even thinking…”
Judging from everything, Gisele was pretty sure her mom was trying to use Theo to forget Mertz again.
“No matter what, that’s not okay…”
If so, then wasn’t she just using Theo’s feelings?
Gisele pressed her ear to the door and kept listening.
“When should we hold the wedding?”
“As soon as possible. And once we marry, there’s somewhere I need to go.”
“Where?”
“…A place I could call my hometown.”
“I’ll go with you—”
“No, Theo. I have to go alone. Please take care of Gisele until I’m back.”
She wasn’t giving many details. Where was she planning to go?
“Mom… what are you planning…”
It was good that her mom wasn’t going to die anymore, but this whole thing was just wrong. What if Theo got dragged into danger? It’d ruin an innocent man’s life.
Then Gisele remembered the recording orb Mertz had given them. Her mom buried it in the herb garden. If she used it to contact him…
“That would also be a disaster…”
Gisele decided to think about it more.
That evening, Yulita prepared dinner and called Gisele to eat—just the two of them.
“Gisele, I made lots of your favorites.”
She pushed a slice of walnut pie toward Gisele. Gisele took a bite.
“Mom.”
“Hm?”
“Don’t you have something to tell me?”
Yulita nodded calmly.
“There’s something I need to tell you. You’ve been confused lately, right?”
“Just say it.”
“Don’t be too shocked… Theo and I decided to get married.”
Even hearing it again, Gisele couldn’t help but drop her spoon. Yulita picked it up for her.
“Sorry for surprising you, Gisele. You’ve had so many weird things happen lately.”
“…Mom.”
“Hm?”
Yulita wiped the spoon clean and put it back in front of her. Gisele squirmed uncomfortably before finally speaking.
“Mom… do you love Theo?”
Yulita’s expression darkened. She shook her head.
“No… I don’t love him. But—”
“Why ‘but’? If you don’t love him, you shouldn’t marry him. That makes no sense.”
Yulita clasped her hands and held Gisele’s tightly.
“Gisele, sometimes adults have circumstances they can’t avoid.”
“That still doesn’t make this okay. It feels like… Mom, you’re using Theo. You want a dad for me, and also…”
Gisele hesitated but forced herself to say it.
“…you’re using him to forget that man.”
Yuliya’s hands went cold. Her face stiffened. She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head.
“G-Gisele… no. That’s not it.”
“Then why accept his proposal? You said yourself you don’t love him.”
“I just thought maybe… it’d be good for you to have a father…”
“How many times do I have to say it? I only need you! And you weren’t planning to marry anyone anyway—you were just going to leave me with someone you trusted!”
Her daughter’s blunt words shook her to the core.
“You shouldn’t have accepted him. You’re dragging in someone innocent. And let’s be honest—Mom, you still like that man, don’t you?”
“Gisele! That’s not true!”
Yulita looked completely shocked, as if she never imagined her ten-year-old would notice something so personal. Her denial was strong enough that Gisele backed off a little.
“…Fine, okay. But marrying Theo is still not right. I don’t want him as my new dad either!”
Gisele’s silver eyes stared straight into her mother’s. Yulita looked away, unable to argue against her own daughter.
“…This is something adults will settle. I’m going to my room—finish your food.”
Yulita got up and left. Gisele felt a little bad for hitting her weakness so directly, but she also felt relieved for speaking honestly. After eating, she went to the herb garden where the recording orb was buried.
“Let’s see… where did Mom bury it…”
After some searching, she found a slightly tilted lily. Under it was the pink-glowing recording orb.
“This is the thing?”
She wiped off the dirt and sneaked back to her room.
“Hmm…”
But now what? She didn’t know how to use it. She tapped the orb, and suddenly a bunch of videos popped up on the surface.
“Whoa…”
This magical tech felt like a fantasy version of a smartphone. Gisele accidentally tapped one of the videos—then it took over the whole orb, showing a fancy but lonely-looking room.
“What? How do I go back?”
She panicked and pressed random spots, but it didn’t change. Suddenly, a boy’s face appeared.
<Who are you?>
He had the same silver eyes as her. He looked a lot like Mertz, except his hair was black with a hint of blue. He stared sharply at her, eyes wide.
<I said, Who are you.>
“Uh… I’m Gisele…”
<Gisele? A new surveillance agent?>
“No! I’m not here to spy on you! I want to talk to the empe— I mean, to His Majesty…”
The boy’s silver eyes locked with hers. He looked at her like she was the dumbest person alive.
He was probably Mertz’s illegitimate son. So… her little brother? Gisele felt weird just thinking about it.
<Why do you need to talk to His Majesty?>
“I have… something important to tell him. Hahaha…”
She laughed awkwardly.
“This is the first time I’ve used one of these, so I don’t know how to work it. Can you tell me how to go back?”
The boy narrowed his eyes, as if evaluating her.
“Ohh, thanks! That’s easy!”
<Wait. Don’t hang up yet.>
“Huh?”
