- The House of Valencia was the only ducal household in the entire empire.
And the head of such a house was bowing his head without hesitation to Sabina.
Still bowing, the Duke finished his words respectfully.
“I failed to properly manage those under my command.”
Sabina took a deep breath.
And then—
“If you bow your head that deeply, it makes me feel awkward,” she replied calmly.
The sharpness that had been on her face just moments before had softened noticeably.
“I will accept your apology.”
Only after hearing those words did the Duke of Valencia lift his head.
“And also… thank you, for saving my younger brother’s life.”
The Duke smiled faintly with his eyes.
“Our Adrian is clumsy in many ways for his age, but I ask you to continue looking after him.”
“Brother! What are you saying?!”
Adrian’s face turned red with frustration.
“What’s wrong with me? I’m decent enough!”
“Getting so worked up like this is exactly what I meant by clumsy.”
“Ugh, seriously! Brother!”
Adrian snapped again, irritated.
The Duke, unfazed, merely clicked his tongue and looked at Adrian.
That look—it was the exact look an older brother gives a hopeless little sibling.
“Pfft.”
Sabina, watching the two bicker, couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
The brothers’ eyes turned to her.
“Ah…”
Sabina’s face turned bright red, like a ripe tomato.
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
She cleared her throat awkwardly, quickly arranging her expression and added,
“Adrian is a precious friend of mine.”
Maybe… I had some prejudice too.
I assumed everyone would hate and reject me.
…Even though, in reality, that’s not always true.
It felt as if a heavy burden on her shoulders had been lifted, even just a little.
Sabina smiled softly—a light, relieved smile.
—
—
And so, while everyone was smiling warmly—
I was sitting by the window that looked out into the garden, watching everything unfold!
‘Adrian oppa woke up safely.’
Phew.
I let out a deep breath.
Then, I looked once more at the scene inside the bedroom.
Adrian oppa was talking with a smile, and my sister—though she furrowed her brows—ended up responding anyway.
It was a familiar, everyday sight.
‘Really… thank goodness.’
I felt a twinge in my nose.
Honestly, I was really worried too.
What if Adrian oppa actually died?
Of course, I was scared my sister would be hurt. I feared she’d lose someone who could protect her.
But more than that—
‘I didn’t want him to die.’
Because Adrian oppa was precious to me too.
I still remember how kind he was before the regression.
The only person who treated us—labeled witches and familiars—without prejudice.
So I, too—
‘I hope oppa can be happy.’
Watching the warm scene between my sister and Adrian one last time, I leapt down from the windowsill.
I don’t think I have to worry about losing him anymore.
…And that alone made me happy.
—
—
After that, Adrian made a full recovery.
The Duke of Valencia dismissed the family physician and formally filed a stern protest with the Regalis Order.
After stopping the Teryn herbs, Adrian’s recovery was so rapid it was almost frightening.
“Wow, are you sure you’re not a half-demon or something?”
Sabina had said that, her face filled with surprise.
Of course, since demons can’t form aura hearts, it was just a joke.
But Adrian found himself increasingly troubled by the whole ordeal.
‘I knew the Regalis Order was a bit rigid, but…’
Until now, Adrian had never seriously questioned the actions of the Order, having served as one of their champions.
Most citizens of the Empire were devout followers of the Order.
Adrian wasn’t deeply pious, but he had a healthy respect for it, like most imperial citizens.
But after traveling the empire, meeting Sabina and Maybel—
And experiencing the recent incident with the family physician…
‘Sure, no organization is perfectly pure. Still…’
Adrian began to suspect the Order’s darkness might run deeper than he’d thought.
Like the people who hurled insults at Sabina.
—
“She’s a witch!!”
When Sabina had finally agreed to leave the forest, they had encountered some woodsmen at the forest’s edge.
At the mere sight of Sabina, the men screamed and began hurling stones.
They were clearly aiming to hurt her.
“Sabina!”
Adrian shouted, shocked.
But Sabina didn’t even flinch. She casually waved her hand.
The stones stopped midair, then dropped harmlessly to the ground.
“She’s a monster…”
“How can a human do that?”
The men recoiled in fear.
And yet, the hostility in their eyes toward Sabina didn’t fade at all.
“The priest was right.”
“Of all things, a filthy witch settling near our village…”
…What the hell are they talking about?
Adrian, stunned, looked at Sabina.
Her expression was completely blank.
As if she was used to reactions like this.
In the end, Adrian couldn’t stand it anymore and stepped forward.
“What on earth do you think you’re doing?”
The same men who had openly shunned Sabina instantly changed their attitude the moment Adrian showed them the crest of the Regalis Order.
Later, Adrian pressed Sabina about what had just happened.
“They called you a witch! What kind of nonsense is that?!”
“Well, I’m not sure why you’re so surprised.”
Her voice, drawing a clear line, was eerily calm.
Adrian stiffened at her response.
“That’s just human nature.”
Sabina’s lips twisted into a bitter smile.
A sharp, mocking smile.
“To reject those who are different from themselves.”
At the time, Adrian had thought it was only like that because they were in a rural area—far from the capital, where the Order’s influence was weaker.
He knew the Order wasn’t exactly kind to mages, but he still believed innocent civilians shouldn’t suffer for that.
That’s why he thought things would be different in the capital.
Where the Order’s influence was even stronger.
He believed they would step in to prevent injustices like this.
…But that was naïve.
—
“Adrian oppa, what are you doing?”
Just then, a small girl peeked her head out.
Shimmering silver hair.
Bright blue eyes like the summer sky.
Maybel looked up at Adrian, her eyes sparkling.
Adrian quickly composed himself and smiled.
“May, you’re here?”
He squatted down to meet her gaze.
Maybel, still staring at him with concern, suddenly asked,
“You’re not sick anymore?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Only then did Maybel let out a relieved smile.
“Good. Sabina unnie was really worried.”
Hearing that, Adrian suddenly felt mischievous.
He teased her,
“And what about you? You weren’t worried?”
“….”
Maybel’s expression turned slightly pouty.
When she gave him a sharp glare with those big eyes, Adrian felt an unexpected chill.
‘Wh-what was that?’
He had the distinct feeling that he’d just made a terrible mistake.
Cold sweat ran down his back.
Then Maybel snapped at him,
“You’re a dummy.”
And she hugged his neck tightly.
