Chapter 19…………………………………………….
The Shopping District
“So you said not to worry.”
A few hours before what happened at the mansion, Lowell was resting his chin on his desk, staring at the person seated across from him.
Silver hair falling over his forehead, eyes closed, uneven breaths escaping his lips, a frown creasing his face as if he were uncomfortable.
The man before her was asleep, leaning against a pile of books. In the brief moment Lowell had stepped out for a walk and returned, Leon had fallen asleep.
So even if he said he wasn’t tired, I guess he really was.
Lowell felt a twinge of pity.
“…Hmm.”
But when Leon still didn’t wake up after quite some time, Lowell fell into thought. Turning her head, she saw that the moon was already hanging outside the window, and with it a chilly breeze was blowing in.
It’s getting late…
As she hesitated, a sudden idea flashed through her mind.
Teleportation magic!
Rather than waking Leon, who had only just managed to fall asleep, wouldn’t it be better to use magic to move him straight onto the bed in the mansion?
“I really might be a genius.”
Muttering to herself, Lowell picked up the necklace she had summoned earlier with magic and carefully began chanting the spell.
Swoosh.
A small light flared, and the necklace vanished. The spell had been successfully cast.
Now all I have to do is use this on a person…
Teleportation magic was one of the most basic spells, so the chance of failure was relatively low—but the problem was that even this basic spell wasn’t easy for Lowell.
In other words, if something went wrong, it was entirely possible that during the teleportation, one of Leon’s arms might end up on the opposite side of the continent.
“Well, I won’t know until I try.”
Of course, Lowell’s conclusion was simple.
“……”
Lowell slowly opened the eyes she had been squeezing shut. As her vision brightened, the room in the mansion came into view.
“Phew.”
When she glanced down, it seemed that, thankfully, Leon hadn’t lost an arm. His body lay on the bed just as it had been, still fast asleep.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Lowell sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at Leon’s face.
“If you were tired, you should’ve said so.”
After staring at him for a while, Lowell thought that leaving him like this might be uncomfortable, given what he was wearing.
Unlike Lowell, who preferred comfortable clothes, Leon always insisted on wearing formal attire. Something about aristocratic dignity—but to Lowell, it just seemed like he was enamored with how he looked in a suit.
So Lowell decided to undress him a bit. Clothes meant for showing off weren’t necessary for a good night’s sleep.
At least I can take off his jacket.
Thinking that, Lowell carefully reached for Leon’s jacket, making sure not to wake him.
“Just a moment, this—”
But when she slid the jacket slightly off his left shoulder, Lowell froze completely.
Beneath the white shirt was a red, burned-looking scar.
‘Turbidity.’
Lowell had seen this scar before. It was the mark Sion had personally branded onto Aria’s back during her fourth regression, to keep her bound to him.
‘Turbidity’ was a punishment devised by the Khan Empire to restrain those who possessed mana. It was inflicted by pressing a magical tool engraved with a unique pattern onto the body of a mana user.
Those branded with Turbidity suffered intermittent severe pain due to unstable mana flow—and Lowell had seen it up close. She knew just how much agony it caused.
Why does this person have this on his body?
Instinctively, Lowell recalled Aria’s painful moans. The reason the fourth regression ended and the fifth began was because Aria, overwhelmed by that pain, had been unable to escape Sion’s scheme.
Unable to steady her spinning vision, Lowell placed her hand over Leon’s shirt. Looking closer, she realized there wasn’t just one scar. Behind the most inflamed mark, several identical Turbidity patterns overlapped.
Thud!
In that instant, Lowell’s world flipped upside down.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Leon, now awake, had grabbed Lowell’s wrist and pinned her down on the bed.
“…….”
Her wrist hurt. The pressure was so strong it was hard to breathe. But more important than that—
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Lowell asked in a trembling voice, more questions forming in her mind. Who did this? Why didn’t you get treatment? The questions crowded at her lips.
“…….”
Leon only stared down at her in silence, as if he were dissecting everything about her with his eyes.
“It’s none of your concern.”
That was all he said after a long pause, pulling away.
“How am I supposed to not care—”
Lowell started to sit up after him, her voice rising instinctively.
“I said you don’t need to care.”
Leon cut her off sharply. The clipped tone alone told Lowell that he was angry—and that he didn’t want to talk any further.
Bang!
The door slammed shut. Lowell flinched, and as she stared at the closed door, she had to struggle just to steady her trembling gaze.
The next day, inside a carriage headed for the capital’s shopping district. Lowell sat blankly staring out the window.
“Madam.”
“…….”
“Madam!”
Only then did Lowell realize that the person sitting across from her was calling out to her.
“Oh! Yes!”
“We’ll be arriving shortly.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you for letting me know.”
“You don’t look well. Are you all right?”
Lowell lifted her eyes to look at the person in front of her.
Hilda Baumann. She was a maid from the Riefman family. All the mansion’s staff had recently been replaced, and Hilda was someone Leon had personally brought from the main house.
“I’m fine. Just a bit dizzy. Thank you for your concern.”
“Madam.”
“Yes?”
“As I mentioned before, you don’t need to speak so formally.”
Hilda said gently, the corners of her lips lifting.
“Ah, um…”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry. I’m just used to speaking politely…”
“There’s no need to apologize. Please speak comfortably when you feel ready.”
Hilda replied with impeccable posture.
“Still, I’m glad to see it these days.”
After that, silence fell again. When Lowell began fidgeting awkwardly with her fingers, Hilda suddenly spoke.
“At the main house, the young master rarely smiled, and scarcely spoke at all. But after marriage, he’s clearly become brighter. As someone who has served him for a long time, it’s very gratifying to see.”
“Ah… well, yes. Haha.”
Lowell laughed awkwardly. Leon’s angry face from the night before flashed through her mind, but she decided to think of it as a relief that others viewed things positively.
Neigh.
With the sound of a horse’s whinny, the carriage came to a stop. Lowell lifted the curtain and looked outside. The bustling shopping district of the capital filled her view.
“The apothecary you’re looking for is down Third Street, just around the corner.”
“Oh, yes. Thank you.”
Good, it’s not far, Lowell thought.
“Are you sure you’ll be all right without me accompanying you?”
Hilda asked worriedly as she handed over Lowell’s bag.
“Yes, it’s fine. I’ve come here alone plenty of times. And didn’t you say you had other business as well?”
“That is true, but…”
Hilda trailed off, and Lowell immediately picked up on her concern, emphasizing her words.
“Before I got married, I used to come and go here like it was my own backyard. You don’t need to worry. Then I’ll get going first!”
With that, Lowell hopped out through the door the coachman had already opened.
I have a lot to do.
As she turned into one of the shopping district’s alleys, Lowell organized her tasks in her mind.
“Ha, this is exhausting. Pretending not to know much while buying medicinal herbs isn’t easy.”
After wandering around for a while, Lowell sat down on a bench in the shopping district and let out a long sigh.
Beside her were bundles of herbs she had personally selected—jasmine, detox grass, blue herbs, Newrise mushrooms. Various labels were attached in front of each bundle.
These herbs were used to treat Turbidity. While true treatment required holy healing at a temple, these herbs were the most effective substitute when visiting a temple wasn’t possible.
Lowell had watched Aria die with her own eyes during the fourth regression. And after that, she made a vow—to never lose her the same way again.
I never thought I’d be using what I learned back then like this.
Lowell recalled the scars branded on Leon’s shoulder. The same pattern as Aria’s. The difference was that Aria had only one—Leon had several overlapping marks.
Who on earth…
Who could have inflicted such wounds multiple times on the body of a high-ranking magic knight? And how had Leon endured that repeated agony?
Questions with no direction spun endlessly before Lowell’s eyes.
“Whew, let’s just buy everything I need first.”
She lowered the hand resting against her forehead. This wasn’t something she could solve by worrying alone. So she needed to take care of other problems first.
Jingle.
“Welcome—oh my, Lowell!”
“Hello.”
“Lowell! It’s been so long! This is your first time coming since you got married, isn’t it?”
As Lowell stepped into the dessert shop, the owner greeted her loudly.
“You! You should call her Lady Riefman now!”
A large man standing behind scolded the woman at the counter as he came into view.
“What does it matter? Once Lowell, always Lowell. She’s a regular.”
The woman brushed his hand off her waist and smiled brightly at Lowell.
“So, Lowell. Since it’s been a while, what would you like? Financiers? A slice of cake?”
“Could I have one pumpkin pie today?”
“Oh my, even after getting married, you’re still close with the young lady?”
The woman teased with a grin when Lowell mentioned Aria’s favorite dessert.
“Haha… I guess so.”
“Why don’t you sit and wait for a bit? I’ll bake it fresh for you.”
With those words, the couple disappeared behind the counter. Lowell smiled faintly at the sight of the still-affectionate pair.
Come to think of it, it really has been a long time.
A small dessert shop in the shopping district. The sweets here were cute and delicious, so whenever she came to the district, she always stopped by with Aria.
Splash.
And at that moment, Lowell shouldn’t have let herself get lost in nostalgia.
“Looking like a drowned rat suits someone of your standing.”
With those words, water suddenly poured down over Lowell’s head.
Startled, Lowell jerked her head up.
“…….”
Blinking blankly for a moment to grasp the situation, Lowell soon realized that a group of noble young ladies stood before her—and that the woman at the front had splashed water on her.
“…Who are you?”
The question slipped out sluggishly, the event unfolding too quickly for her to even feel angry.
“Who? The rightful owner of the ring you’re wearing!”
Another young lady beside the leader shouted in her place.
“Pardon?”
Only then did Lowell look down at her own hand and the ring she was wearing.
I got it from some marquis’s daughter back when I was in the knight order.
Why should you care? Rings are everywhere—how would anyone know this is that ring?
Leon’s words from some time ago suddenly crossed Lowell’s mind.
