Chapter 9 

No… it can’t be. How could that illness exist all the way here in the distant North?

As Clemen clenched her fist tightly—

The Grand Duchess’s door opened.

“ Aunt, I’m here.”

“Rosia… today… th-thank you…”

At the hoarse voice, Rosia gave a bitter smile and sat beside the bed.

“I brought a special guest today too. Her name is Clemen—she’s His Grace’s meal friend.”

The Grand Duchess’s dry lips parted in surprise.

“Miss Clemen, this is the Grand Duchess of Pruina.”

“…Hello. My name is Clemen.”

Clemen stepped forward, knelt down, and gently took the Grand Duchess’s hand.

Cold.

Not just her hand—

Even though it was daytime, the fireplace was burning excessively.

The room was hot.

There was no trace of the North’s usual coolness.

And yet—

Her body was still growing cold and drying out.

A familiar symptom.

Her cheeks were sunken, her body temperature dropping like that of a corpse, and there was a faint, damp sweetness in the air.

Clemen’s suspicion became certainty.

For a moment, the Grand Duchess’s face overlapped with her grandmother’s—

The fortune-teller who had lived freely until the very end.

Clemen forced a smile and spoke lightly.

“I run really hot, so I’m great to be around when it’s cold!”

Her grandmother had been the same.

Only when she had become nothing but skin and bones did she call Clemen close—

Saying she wanted to leave warmly, without even taking the medicine Clemen had worked so hard to get.

“I’ll come visit often until you get better. Is that okay?”

The Grand Duchess’s dull eyes slowly moved.

The first thing she saw was Clemen’s bright red hair—

Like flames.

Her vision was blurry, but Clemen looked like a figure made of fire.

A meal friend…?

That meant Zephyrus’s curse didn’t affect her.

Even if Zephyrus could never leave his room—

If someone could move between inside and outside, things would already be better than before.

The Grand Duchess gathered what little strength she had left and focused her gaze.

This was someone who would stay by her son’s side.

She had to look carefully.

Her gaze moved from Clemen’s bright hair—

Across her smooth forehead—

And finally met her eyes.

She’ll be fine.

With that thought, she relaxed and closed her eyes.

Some might call it a careless judgment—

But it was enough.

The warmth in Clemen’s eyes felt clear and gentle, like a calm lake.

God has answered my prayer. Thank you…

All those prayers for Zephyrus’s loneliness—

They had not been in vain.

“Be close… with Zephyrus…”

“I like him. I want to be close with him.”

“Talk… with him often…”

“Yes. Oh, and if he’s mean to me, can I tell you?”

The corners of the Grand Duchess’s eyes softened.

She wanted to nod—

But she didn’t have the strength.

Even this short conversation had used up all her energy.

At the end of her life—

She had seen a miracle.

That alone eased her heart.

Only one regret remained.

She wouldn’t be able to see Zephyrus’s face again.

In her fading vision—

She saw him as a child.

That tearful face, locking himself away, telling others not to come near.

Then—

Through her fading senses, a gentle voice echoed.

“Have a good dream. You’ll be warm.”

She really was warm.

For the first time in a long while, the cold faded away.

Even burning firewood all day had never warmed her like this.

Sleep slowly overtook her.

Her breathing became soft and peaceful.

“…Th-this is unbelievable!”

The maid caring for her gasped in shock, then quickly covered her mouth.

She couldn’t wake her.

Clemen smiled gently and gestured for them to step outside.

After quietly closing the door, silence fell.

The maid was wondering how to express her gratitude.

Rosia was still trying to process everything that had just happened.

Clemen casually asked,

“What illness does the Grand Duchess have?”

“We don’t know. If we knew the name, we could at least try to find a cure…”

As expected.

If they had known, they would have already searched for medicine.

They wouldn’t be acting as if she were at death’s door.

According to what she heard from Ruby—

The Grand Duke held power second only to the Emperor.

If a cure existed, they would have found it.

Then why don’t they know?

Even if the North lacked southern knowledge—

The capital didn’t.

Clemen had only passed through briefly, but she had still seen many people from the South.

If they tried, they could have found out.

But that wasn’t her concern.

She was simply someone from the South—

Sharing knowledge that anyone who had been to the desert would know.

“I’ve seen someone with the same… kind of illness.”

“Where?!”

“Is that true?!”

Their reactions were intense.

Clemen gently patted their backs and waited for them to calm down before speaking.

“At first, they can’t eat well. Then they start feeling cold, and their body becomes thinner. They lose strength. And when it gets worse… their body gives off a strange smell. Slightly sweet, but unpleasant.”

“Th-that’s right… there has been a smell lately…”

“I can’t be completely certain, but it’s a desert disease.”

“…A disease from the South?”

“Yes. But why the Grand Duchess has it…”

“D-does it spread?”

Clemen nodded slightly.

“But healthy people are fine.”

“What’s the name of the disease?”

“‘The Flower of Cactus.’”

It was a bitter disease for her as well.

“The Flower of Cactus” wasn’t dangerous—

Not for healthy people.

Like a mild cold, it would pass with rest.

But—

If it infected someone already weak, or the elderly—

It became difficult to cure.

Just like when her grandmother fell ill.

They weren’t related by blood—

But she had been kinder than anyone, and also strict.

When Clemen learned she had the disease—

Her world nearly collapsed.

She couldn’t let that happen.

If she went to the lava fields to gather herbs, her grandmother might die before she returned.

But she couldn’t do nothing.

So she gathered seeds instead.

There were many abandoned seeds near the lava fields where people had failed to grow them.

She thought she could grow the herbs using her own heat—

Though she worried it might harm others.

Still, she couldn’t just let her grandmother die.

So she gathered heat in a place where no one went.

The center became hot enough to melt sand—

And the temperature gradually cooled toward the edges.

Young Clemen planted the seeds from the center outward.

She found the right temperature—

And successfully grew the herb.

Then she brought it to her grandmother.

“You… found the herb?”

Covered in dust and sand, Clemen nodded eagerly, smiling.

Her grandmother looked at her with dim eyes—

Then laughed brightly, despite her frail body.

“Keep it.”

“But you need to take it—”

“Do you even know how to use it?”

She didn’t.

“But you do!”

“I won’t tell you.”

“Why?!”

“Because it will help you, Clemen.”

Her grandmother gestured.

Not to leave—

But to come closer.

It was the first time.

Clemen rushed over and held her hand.

“Pitiful…”

That was what she always said.

But this time—

“Enviable.”

“…Huh?”

That was new.

Her grandmother looked at her golden eyes and laughed softly.

“You’ll live well. Happier than anyone.”

“M-me?”

“Yes.”

“But…”

Is that okay?

She always hurt the people around her.

“Why wouldn’t it be? It’s happiness you’ll create yourself. Don’t blame yourself!”

“…Okay…”

“Now then, will you give this old woman a warm hug?”

“You said not to call you grandma.”

“Hoho.”

Her grandmother was mysterious until the end.

But her embrace felt nice.

It was the first time someone had ever hugged her.

I wish I had done this sooner…

*

Clemen watched Rosia and the maid walk ahead quickly, talking.

She hoped they wouldn’t regret anything.

But will they find the herb in time?

They might manage to get it—

But time was the real problem.

The Grand Duchess’s body was already deeply affected.

Clemen tapped her chin, thinking—

Then started walking.

Behind her quiet steps,

A small resolve began to take shape.