Chapter 60
“Does this marriage have an end?”
I froze at my brother’s question.
Inside the quiet sitting room, only the crackling sound of burning firewood could be heard.
Flames jumped from the burning logs, then disappeared in the air.
How did he know? What was I supposed to say?
Should I tell the truth? Or lie?
A silver light flickered over my brother’s face. Watching his side profile, countless thoughts rushed through my mind in a very short moment.
But no words felt right.
I swallowed the words stuck in my throat when my brother spoke first.
“I overheard it. Dylan and Caspian talking.”
“…What were they saying?”
“…That there’s an end. And that the Grand Duke also knows.”
Caspian talking carelessly was understandable, but Dylan too?
Why were they discussing our contract marriage inside the castle?
Anger rose sharply inside me.
Damn it.
Since my brother heard the story directly from the Grand Duke’s men, lying would be meaningless.
“Ellie.”
My brother grabbed my wrist.
Without knowing, I had been biting my nails.
I looked down at my brother’s pale, slender hand holding my wrist—not tightly, not weakly either. I let out a deep sigh.
“Brother. Promise me one thing.”
He nodded.
“You might think I’m crazy—no, I’m sure you will. But can you believe what I’m about to say?”
His light brown eyes, so similar to mine, trembled slightly.
But only for a moment. Then he composed himself and nodded seriously.
“Do you remember the day I almost died last year?”
I put down the teacup and clasped my hands tightly as I continued speaking.
Three days had passed since Kailen left for the campaign.
Oak barrels had arrived, I interviewed workers for making Kisty, and I even finished hiring them.
On top of my duties as the Grand Duchess, I also handled Kailen’s workload.
I was constantly moving between the office and the northern part of the castle, with no time to rest.
Every night, I only reached my bedroom after 10 p.m., and every morning, I went straight back to work.
The day after Kailen left, huge snowflakes—almost the size of April’s tiny fists—fell heavily over Winterford.
Thankfully, the snow stopped quickly, but the castle had to mobilize all workers to clean it.
April excitedly played among the servants sweeping the snow.
She looked sad for a moment at dinner, seeing the empty seats of Kailen and Isaiah.
But after we started checking off our list of planned activities, she quickly cheered up.
Today, because strong winds kept her from going outside, April stayed with my brother in my office to learn letters.
Her concentration was short, but my brother was an excellent teacher—patient, thoughtful, and always finding ways to make learning fun for her.
Thanks to him, April talked much more these days. My office was full of her sweet, babbling voice all day long.
Watching my brother lovingly guide April as she drew big letters with crayons, I smiled bitterly.
I couldn’t tell him everything.
I couldn’t say that his real sister, Eliana Lud, the true owner of this body… “no longer existed.”
So instead, I said I had a long, vivid dream when I was unconscious.
A dream that felt so real it seemed like a prophecy.
When I said Kailen became emperor in that dream, my brother wasn’t surprised.
But when I mentioned that another woman stood beside him in that future, my brother’s eyes widened.
I explained the situation behind our marriage—how he didn’t propose by choice, how our family couldn’t refuse a royal marriage, and how I had no choice but to accept it.
So before the woman from his future appeared, I decided to make him emperor and then quietly disappear.
As I continued the story, my brother’s fingers trembled faintly.
He stayed silent for a long time.
Finally, when he opened his mouth, he asked quietly:
“But you… are you truly okay with that?”
How could I tell him that I was originally destined to die, and that even life in a mud pit was still better than dying?
I assured him not to worry—that I had everything planned—and tapped my chest confidently.
He opened his mouth several times, then closed it again, before finally nodding twice.
“Ellie. You’re never alone. You have me, and you have our parents. Never forget that.”
Those were the words he said as I left the sitting room.
His voice still echoed clearly in my ears.
Knock, knock.
A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts.
It was Greta.
“Your Grace, you have a visitor.”
“A visitor?”
“Yes. She said her name is Reyna from Robani.”
Robani—that was the village Kailen visited during reconnaissance.
So she finally came!
I gathered the papers and headed to the sitting room.
Outside the room stood Luke, the children’s uncle.
He was pacing nervously, but when he saw me, he bowed deeply.
“Greetings, Your Grace.”
“You must have come with Reyna.”
“Eh? Ah. Yes…”
His ears turned red as he scratched the back of his head and avoided my eyes.
“Why are you waiting outside instead of inside with her?”
“Ah. I—I’ll just wait outside.”
He bowed again and hurried away—almost running.
“That’s not the way out,” I said gently.
He spun around instantly, bowed again, and rushed past me toward the main entrance.
Greta and Mia both failed to hold in their laughter.
“He must be her lover,” Mia whispered.
I nodded and entered the sitting room.
Reyna, sitting stiffly, jumped up the moment she saw me.
“G-Grand Duchess! I—I’m sorry I’m late!”
“You’re not late. Thank you for coming.”
I gave her a gentle smile and sat across from her.
Still tense, she lowered herself awkwardly back into the seat.
“I wanted to come sooner… but since it’s something I’m giving to Your Grace, I wanted to fix it a little more before bringing it.”
Reyna carefully handed me a rough wooden box.
When I opened it, I almost gasped and quickly covered my mouth.
Inside the worn box were many accessories—bracelets, necklaces, belts, even buttons.
Even without looking closely, I could tell she had put a lot of effort into making them.
The designs weren’t fancy, but they were very well-made.
“What kind of accessories do common women usually wear?”
Reyna snapped her head up.
“Uh, well… usually a necklace or bracelet. Maybe earrings. But many women don’t wear anything.”
“There are no rings?”
“No. At least not in Winterford. Women here work with leather, so rings get in the way. They’re inconvenient.”
I nodded.
Before possessing Eliana’s body, as a reporter in Korea, even putting on makeup felt like a luxury.
Just washing up properly was lucky.
Still, even busy common women had the desire to feel beautiful.
Since accessories made with used Torpaz had no rarity, I planned to target commoners instead of nobles.
After examining Reyna’s accessories closely, I nodded again.
“I have one more question. May I ask?”
“Yes! Of course!”
She nodded so quickly her eyes sparkled wide.
I was just about to speak when Greta called for me.
