Chapter 63
In the original story, after the descent of Ji Eunha, the Moon of Water would set, and once the twenty-first night passed, a pillar of light leading to another world would appear.
All I had to do was wait for that moment and safely go to the place where the pillar of light would appear.
But there was no need to reveal my power here and draw attention, making life troublesome. I could live subtly, as if I weren’t there, and quietly go my own way.
‘But… still.’
It’s one thing not to notice at all, but it’s hard to ignore someone pleading for help because their spouse or child is sick.
It was the same as with Rowin and Lin. No matter how much I called myself stupid and foolish, I couldn’t forget the desperate expression of that person.
I slowly lifted my gaze from the ground.
‘This time, I can do it a little differently.’
Use your head, think. Come up with a way to help that person without causing trouble for Michael or my family.
All I had to do was do what I could.
I quickly turned to look back along the path I had just walked.
Just then, I saw the city guards dragging a man infected with a contagious disease.
The man’s face was wrapped in an unidentifiable cloth, making it questionable whether he could even breathe.
Watching this, I hurriedly scanned the surroundings. The street vendors in the square had quite a few usable items.
After noting a few of them, I turned my gaze back to Jade.
“Jade, sorry, I have something I need to take care of. You go ahead first.”
“Where are you going?”
I tried to run toward the street vendors, but Jade immediately grabbed my arm again.
Startled, I awkwardly rolled my eyes at Jade’s gaze, which seemed to be holding me reflexively.
“Uh? Oh, actually, I forgot I was supposed to meet a friend today.”
“Liz, you don’t have any friends.”
Damn, right.
I clicked my tongue inwardly at Jade’s words, which always cut to the essence and core. This is why only someone experienced in lying can pull it off—clearly, I wasn’t meticulous enough.
“No, I do! Reina—she’s been my friend since we were little. Haven’t I mentioned her to you, Jade? Hah-hah!”
Still, since I had already thrown out a lie, I had to cover it up, so I quickly replied. The awkward laugh at the end probably seemed forced to anyone who heard it, but I added it anyway.
“…….”
“…….”
Jade stared at me silently with a suspicious look.
Well, suddenly claiming you remembered a promise and had to go meet someone… even ignoring how strange it was, I could imagine Jade wouldn’t feel great about it.
Feeling guilty, I subtly averted my eyes.
“Reina…”
Jade muttered Reina’s name softly. Perhaps thinking of that, his voice sounded noticeably low and glum.
Looking back at him with a slightly guilty expression, I saw a bitter smile forming on Jade’s lips.
“And it’s not just about that man… these days, there are many things you don’t tell me.”
Uh…
Jade’s reaction, somehow subtly hurt, made me pause. Thinking back, in the past, I would tell Jade even trivial things, mainly because he felt like someone outside of reality, which was comforting.
But recently, there were awkward things I hesitated to tell him, so I gradually stopped sharing certain things.
I hadn’t expected that Jade would feel slighted by this, so I was inwardly very flustered.
“Jade.”
Not knowing how to respond, I stammered, when a man accompanying Jade as his guard approached and spoke.
Jade nodded as if telling me to respond, and the man lowered his voice to whisper in my ear.
Hearing the man’s words, Jade’s expression quickly darkened.
He looked at me once, then the man once more, and let out a short sigh.
“Liz, I have something urgent to attend to. It’s unfortunate to part so soon, especially since we finally met…”
Jade hurriedly erased the trace of annoyance in his eyes and smiled.
“Since you also have an appointment, shall we part ways here for today?”
“…Okay.”
Even then, I didn’t know what to say to Jade, so I hesitated and simply nodded, unable to give a proper farewell.
“Make sure to enjoy your time with your friend.”
Jade oddly emphasized the word ‘make sure’.
He gave a brief greeting to Lady Rachel, asking her to take care of me, and then really left. Even from his departing figure, I felt a strange sense of hurt directed at me.
At times like this, I really didn’t know what to do. Saying sorry felt strange, and promising to tell him everything in the future wasn’t possible either.
‘But we’re not kids anymore—do we really need to tell him everything? Is this really something to feel upset about?’
I sighed with a vague feeling of understanding—or not—about Jade. Human relationships, whether in my original world or this one, always seemed unexpectedly complicated.
“Miss, are you really going to Count Tercion’s wife?”
Scratching the back of my head awkwardly, Lady Rachel approached and asked. She must have overheard our earlier conversation while escorting me nearby.
Then I remembered the original reason I had made Jade feel hurt.
I quickly turned to Lady Rachel and grabbed her hand.
“Lady Rachel!”
“No, you can’t.”
…?
I blinked, unsure if I had heard correctly. Strange. I haven’t even said anything yet.
“Every time you call me that, you end up causing trouble.”
“…Really?”
“Yes.”
“But I just want to tell you…”
“No. Absolutely not.”
I had already suspected that Lady Rachel, being a knight, had exceptionally sharp intuition.
Still, her unexpectedly strict stance left me flustered. I realized I couldn’t even start explaining, so I made my face as pitiable as possible.
“Please, just listen.”
I clasped my hands and added that it was my life’s greatest wish.
Slightly softened, Lady Rachel reluctantly nodded.
“…Fine, I’ll just listen.”
As soon as I got permission, I whispered my plan into Lady Rachel’s ear.
“No. Absolutely not.”
Before I could even finish, she cut me off. Her face, which had grown paler the more she heard, was now completely ashen.
I had actually expected Lady Rachel’s reaction. Of course, she would say absolutely not. Even I would think someone I’m guarding going to a man infected with a contagious disease is insane. Given my track record, she would know this wasn’t just nonsense.
“Lady Rachel.”
“I said no.”
She even grabbed my hand, worried I might run off as I had before.
Come to think of it, Lady Rachel came to my house three years ago when Denbill, my original guard, left, and she became his successor. By now, she should have a fair understanding of me.
I nodded to myself, holding her hand, and turned. Lady Rachel followed, her face filled with suspicion and distrust.
We walked side by side toward the street vendors. I bought three pretty handkerchiefs, one glass bottle, and two cups of fruit juice.
I gave one cup of juice to Lady Rachel and filled the other into the glass bottle.
“Miss, what are you planning to do with all this?”
Lady Rachel, curious, asked as she watched me buy these seemingly random items.
I closed the glass bottle tightly and looked up, giving her a sly smile.
“These are all supplies.”
As expected, the man was first dragged to the outskirts of the square and then loaded onto a cart and taken to the Fourth District.
I saw the woman who had shouted that he was a resident of the Fourth District continuing to move with the guards. She was probably trying to help move him to her home.
“How could a rat like this get into the city center despite our surveillance!”
I also saw a superior come by, scolding his subordinates as if catching mice.
“He’s not a resident of the restricted area.”
One of the guards handling the situation urgently informed his superior, who looked shocked.
From that point, they lowered their voices, making it impossible to hear their conversation from a distance. One person ran off, likely to inform the higher-ups.
“The woman and child have probably been caught already?”
“Yes, that’s what I heard.”
“Then lock all three in that house and make sure they can’t leave.”
Passing by the wall where Lady Rachel and I were hiding, I barely overheard this conversation.
Until further instructions came from above, they intended to confine the man and keep watch from outside.
