Chapter 103
Following Ji-eunha’s hiccupping, tearful voice, the flustered Emperor Alexis spoke up.
[Th-That can’t be… Perhaps the saint is mistaken about something…]
[Isn’t the Duke in a romantic relationship with Lady Christener?]
[No, absolutely not! I checked it myself!]
[…Really?]
It was as if she had been waiting for that response—Ji-eunha’s crying instantly stopped, and Jade couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Even so, speaking so openly and plainly… was she really still that naive?
For someone who had earned the grand title of “Saint,” she seemed far too simple and foolish—it was almost exhausting.
Jade clicked his tongue softly. That man wouldn’t fall for her that easily in the first place.
‘I may wish, like Emperor Alexis, that the man comes to you…’
But unless his eyes were rotten and decayed, there was no way he would abandon her for someone like you.
“Currently, Elizabeth Christener is essentially confined in the Duke’s residence under the pretext of safety. Last night, I confirmed that she spent the night with Lixion Luhaness.”
Jade recalled the information relayed to him that morning by another “spy” he had placed in the Duke Luhaness’s residence.
His hand gripping the artifact tightened unconsciously.
While he was relieved to hear that Elizabeth was safe, what followed was enough to crush his mood.
It was entirely predictable, but it was still far more disgusting than he expected.
‘Not content with simply locking Liz away… now they’re forcing her…’
Recalling the details from his spy, he clenched his eyes shut in disgust. Just imagining it made his blood boil and stomach churn.
Jade let out a long sigh, calming the raging storm of emotions inside him, and slowly relaxed his hand around the artifact.
Thankfully, it remained intact, not a single crack. The strong protective magic truly was real.
[“I want to be the Duke’s lover.”]
He heard Ji-eunha’s childish, whining voice.
Jade thought that was the only statement where his interests and the saint’s aligned.
With a faint smile, Jade recalled memories from the distant past—memories with her that had first made him want to claim rights in a life that had only been about duty.
He knew better than anyone that without her, without meeting her, he wouldn’t be who he was now.
Lost in those thoughts from long ago, Jade silently made a vow to himself: this time, he would save Liz.
I collapsed from excessive stress and spent the entire day sick. Whether it was purely from stress or a combination of factors, my body ached badly.
Sir Rachel, the butler at Duke Luhaness’s residence, and even Rowan and Lin stayed close by to nurse me through it.
Thanks to them, I almost fully recovered in a single day, though I still didn’t feel quite right.
「The saint called by the gods descends upon the empire.」
The one piece of good news amid all this was that Ji-eunha had awakened as the true saint.
Through the gossip magazine brought by Sir Rachel, I was able to learn of Ji-eunha’s news even while bedridden with fever.
In just one day, Ji-eunha had already become a star of the empire.
News that Ji-eunha was curing those afflicted by the plague with the power of the gods spread across the continent.
I finally breathed a sigh of relief. My worries that Ji-eunha’s powers might somehow transfer to me had been in vain.
Unlike me, who had only mimicked the saint, Ji-eunha had healed dozens, even hundreds, of plague victims.
I hadn’t even heard that she collapsed from overexertion while using her power.
She willingly extended her abilities not only to the empire’s citizens but also to those in excluded areas, earning her respect and admiration from even more people.
It was truly a relief. I felt deeply reassured that the story had safely shifted to the original female lead.
Of course, there was still one exception to this smooth progression.
Lixion Luhaness—the original male lead—had gone completely off-script and was running wild on his own.
Whether that was fortunate or not, I couldn’t say. For now, this disobedient male lead had disappeared again for several days.
Whether it was because he was busy guarding Ji-eunha or something else, he hadn’t shown his face at all, even though he must have heard I had been bedridden.
‘Who knows which of us got left behind or abandoned.’
After dinner with the children, we were working on a puzzle together. I was about to fit a piece in place when I froze, my face tightening.
‘No, no, no… I should be thankful if Lixion Luhaness stays away and stops showing up in front of me. So why am I annoyed?’
I muttered to myself, unable to hide my embarrassment, frowning.
I had heard that hearts often cool after sleeping with someone, whether man or woman.
If Lixion Luhaness lost interest in me and turned toward Ji-eunha, I would be genuinely grateful.
Shaking off the unnecessary thoughts, I focused on the puzzle. Seeing me frown so intently, the children glanced at me curiously.
Somewhere along the way, I must have fallen asleep in the children’s room.
While asleep, I felt as if my body was floating. Even without fully waking, I sensed something unusual.
What is this? I concentrated, realizing someone was moving my sleeping body from the children’s room to my own.
‘Ah, so that’s it.’
Assuming it was Sir Rachel, as usual, I let myself drift into a deep sleep again.
Just before sleeping, I thought I caught a familiar scent brushing past my nose, but I dismissed it as an illusion.
That night, I dreamt of my parents from the original world.
Even in the original world, they had never appeared in my dreams. But this time, they did.
I ran with all my might toward them as they stretched out their arms, embracing them tightly.
I had missed them so much it hurt, and I poured out everything I had been unable to say while in their arms.
“Mom, Dad… I missed you. I really missed you so much…”
For a brief moment, I felt my floating body shake.
But soon, I drifted again, landing softly on a cloud. I buried my face into the gentle cloud and sank into a deeper sleep.
The next day, I overslept. My overworked body protested for rest.
Since there wasn’t much to do even if I got up, I buried my face deeper into the pillow, deciding to sleep in.
“Liz, Mom’s here!”
Bang! The door suddenly burst open, and a familiar voice called my name.
Startled, I opened my eyes to see my mother running to my bed, pulling me into a tight embrace along with the blankets.
“I really missed our daughter!”
“…Mother?”
Breathless from the hug, I stared at my mother in surprise.
Her skin was slightly tanned compared to the last time I saw her, but she still looked young and beautiful enough to make you question her age.
More precisely, she was the mother who had given birth to Elizabeth Christener, the late Lady Christener of the previous generation.
“My daughter, have you been well? Thanks to you, I even got to try a teleportation magic circle for the first time. I saw the mages in the magic tower too—it was amazing.”
As usual, my mother chattered away at her own pace.
Blinking in surprise, I grabbed her arms, still hugging me tightly.
“Mother… how did you… what brings you here?”
My mother had left on a continent-wide journey with my father right after handing over the family affairs to Michael.
To meet her here, not at our family mansion but at the Duke Luhaness’s residence, was utterly confusing.
“Oh, why? Didn’t our little darling miss Mom?”
She tilted her head as if she didn’t understand my question and smiled brightly.
While I briefly relaxed at her childlike smile, she dropped a bombshell.
“And since I’m here, I came to see our future son-in-law too!”
…Excuse me?
“I saw him, and our future son-in-law is incredibly handsome! Truly, my daughter! How did you manage to catch such a fine man? I’m completely for this marriage. When Duke Luhaness saw me, he called me ‘Mother-in-law’ and smiled—my heart almost fluttered!”
She continued, squealing with joy, her words full of excitement.
