“Why? What is it?”
“…Wow.”
Luzbel, not understanding what was going on, looked at Aisha with concern as she seemed completely dazed.
“Are you hurt somewhere?”
The words coming from his mouth were gentle, and he was handsome, and kind…
“Somehow I feel overwhelmed…”
“What?”
“Because you are too handsome.”
“…You’re beautiful too, Isha.”
To think this was her husband. No matter how many times she looked, all she could do was admire him.
After indulging in her admiration to her heart’s content, it seemed that most of the nobles had already entered.
Since they hadn’t invited that many people, it probably hadn’t taken long.
“Phew.”
Feeling tense, Aisha let out a breath.
Luzbel soothed her, rubbing her back and telling her it would be fine.
When they stood before the banquet hall, a servant loudly announced the entrance of House Valencia, and the three of them soon entered.
Under the dazzling light of the chandeliers, the hall was filled with people glittering brightly.
Aisha lightly glanced around and tightly clasped the hands of Luzbel and Jeron.
As a high-ranking noble, Luzbel must have attended many banquets like this and been used to it, but she had thought Jeron might be a little nervous. Instead, he was remarkably calm.
A quick glance.
Jeron looked as though he had been cast from the same mold as Luzbel.
With the same expressionless face, he stared straight ahead, and only when he felt the pressure in the hand she was holding did he finally glance sideways at Aisha.
“…Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“If you get nervous, tell me.”
“…Yes.”
In any case, the appearance of the three Valencias, which had only been the subject of rumors, caused a small stir.
Gasps of admiration burst out among the young ladies.
Because he was so handsome.
Rosena’s daughter, too, seemed to have fallen for Luzbel at first sight.
Then, when she glanced to the side, Rosena saw her husband, Lisellon, standing there absentmindedly.
“Dear.”
Frowning, she grabbed his hand.
“Ah.”
Lisellon looked at Rosena as if he had just come back to his senses.
“Where are you staring like that?”
Though it felt as if flames might shoot from her eyes, Rosena endured it and asked gently.
“No, nothing…”
Lisellon gave her an awkward smile and turned his gaze away.
Rosena clenched her teeth as she looked at her longtime nemesis smiling.
She had heard rumors that Aisha had gone mad and was on the verge of death, yet she still resembled that fresh, radiant beauty.
***
The banquet proceeded smoothly.
Aisha might not have known, but the nobles gathered here were composed only of those Luzbel had selected and selected again.
There were plenty of people who harbored no hostility toward House Valencia and were desperate to curry favor.
Perhaps because of that, everyone was kind to Aisha as well.
“It feels new to see you again after so long. Lady Aisha, you have become even more beautiful since the last time.”
“Ahaha. Thank you. I hope we can see each other often from now on.”
“It would be my honor!”
The noble Ladies were, in fact, a little surprised. After Aisha married into Valencia and cut off all public activities, rumors had spread that she had gone mad.
In reality, most of the noble Ladies had believed those rumors.
“It seems His Grace has treated you well.”
“Yes. He is very gentle.”
“…Gentle?”
“Yes, why?”
“Oh, no, it is just that calling the Duke ‘gentle’…”
But it was clear that all of it had merely been idle gossip.
That perpetually stone-like expression, devoid of light, had always seemed to lack warmth.
Duke Valencia? Gentle?
It didn’t match at all, yet Aisha looked as though she didn’t even understand why the noble Ladies were surprised.
Moreover, the strongest instruction given when inviting them to this banquet had been to never offend Aisha’s temper.
Perhaps because of that, every conversation topic was being led by her.
Naturally, the old Aisha wasn’t mentioned even for a moment.
To begin with, talking about the old Aisha wouldn’t bring anything good, so everyone was careful on their own.
“You must be pleased.”
“Pardon?”
“It seems you suddenly wanted to show off that you live being loved like this.”
But there were always exceptions.
Aisha, who had been quiet until now, was taken aback by one noble Lady who suddenly took on a hostile attitude.
“What are you talking about…?”
“Huh? Why are you flustered? I was saying it because I envy you, my Lady”
“Oh, really?”
Aisha smiled gently, as if she had never been flustered at all.
“…”
Rosena, who hadn’t intended to attack first, was inwardly flustered by her own mistake as she watched Aisha act so gentle, as if she were a completely different person.
And yet, even after being provoked like this, Aisha was still smiling softly?
“Why? Are you hurt somewhere?”
She was even worrying about someone else?
Rosena had never seen this kind of Aisha before.
“They said she went mad, so did she go mad in a milder way…?”
Without realizing it, she let her inner thoughts slip out of her mouth.
“Yes? Mad?”
“Ah, no. That was a mistake.”
Aisha acted blank, as if nothing were the matter.
The noble Ladies quickly exchanged glances.
Since a reaction they could never have imagined from the old Aisha had come out, everyone was astonished.
But then, thunder flashed, and perhaps lightning struck wrongly, because all the lights in the banquet hall went out.
When her entire field of vision was swallowed by darkness, Aisha flinched and her shoulders trembled.
The other noble Ladies, having never experienced something like this either, were at a loss and stirred in confusion.
“Ah, it seems the magical circuits malfunctioned due to the lightning. We will restore everything immediately after checking, so please remain where you are.”
At that, Monet, Luzbel’s aide who had been standing guard, spoke loudly.
People quickly began to regain their composure.
But.
Aisha was not the same. She didn’t know what had happened, but suddenly her head hurt as if it were about to split.
“…Uh, Duchess!”
Unable to endure the pain, Aisha collapsed limply, and the noble Ladies, startled, caught hold of her.
Hearing the commotion, Luzbel hurried over to Aisha.
“What happened, Isha!”
Aisha, who had briefly closed her eyes as she fell, snapped them open.
“…Where do you think you are touching? Disgusting.”
Then she coldly slapped away Luzbel’s hand as it naturally wrapped around her shoulder.
The sharp sound echoed through the suddenly quiet banquet hall.
“…Isha.”
“…What is this supposed to be?”
Aisha looked around with a cold expression, as if she had never been smiling softly like sunlight just moments ago.
“What kind of farce is this?”
“…”
Luzbel had seen that face before.
It was the Aisha from before she lost her memories, the one he had grown sick of seeing over the past seven years.
***
Luzbel’s heart dropped with a thud.
Had Aisha regained her memories, so suddenly, without any warning?
He stood there in shock, unable to say anything, while Aisha had already left the banquet hall.
With the lights already out, the hall was cold and still, and as Aisha, the protagonist of the day, walked out as if she had become a completely different person, only silence remained.
“…Uh, ah.”
In the midst of that, even Jeron became a problem.
“Ugh…”
Jeron began trembling violently, then suddenly collapsed.
But Luzbel had no presence of mind to worry about Jeron.
After all, he himself was unable to regain his composure after seeing that cold Aisha again for the first time in a long while.
The quick-moving servants hurriedly picked Jeron up, and even then, Luzbel remained standing still, as if nailed in place.
He had thought that she would regain her memories someday, but he had never imagined it would be this sudden, so his mind went completely blank.
Then the chandelier lights that had gone out came back on brightly, and the nobles began rolling their eyes around, trying to grasp the situation.
“Your Grace.”
It was Monet, his aide, who took care of the stunned Luzbel.
“Your Grace. I think you should go to Lady Aisha first.”
“Ah…!”
At the same time, as if he had received a command, Luzbel immediately rushed out of the banquet hall.
Thus, all members of House Valencia disappeared, and Monet moved to handle the situation.
“It seems the banquet will end here. Please return home and get some rest.”
Rather than explaining everything in detail, it seemed better to bring this situation to an end first.
At the same time, the nobles who had been reading the room quickly dispersed.
***
At that moment, Aisha, who had impulsively rushed outside, was in turmoil.
“…What on earth?”
As far as she remembered, she had clearly been living with the expectation of her own impending death.
A body worn thin from not eating properly, vitality that had been steadily fading away.
She knew it better than anyone else. If she couldn’t escape this place, she had thought she would rather die, and endured like that.
But when she came to her senses, she could feel the vitality and energy that had disappeared now present in her body.
On top of that, servants passed by, greeting her warmly as they saw her.
‘Could it be?’
With something dawning on her, Aisha came to a stop.
‘…Did it come out? I had kept it suppressed well.’
Since it was when her body had grown endlessly weak, close to death, it wasn’t entirely impossible. Her suspicion gradually turned into certainty.
“Aisha!”
As she wandered aimlessly, walking and walking while trying to organize her thoughts, a familiar voice reached her ears. When she turned around, a man she hadn’t even seen in her dreams was standing there.
“…You.”
Startled, Aisha froze in place.
How was he here?
“Aisha.”
The man was Lisellon, her first love and former lover from before her marriage.
“…How did you get here?”
As if bewitched, she stared at him, following only his movements, then blinked.
“I wanted to see you.”
“Are you really Lisellon?”
“Yes, Aisha.”
Lisellon strode forward and pulled her into his arms.
Cradled in Lisellon’s embrace, Aisha blinked again.
A familiar body scent brushed past the tip of her nose, and the way their bodies fit together as if drawn by a magnet seemed to say that this man truly was Lisellon.
“…I missed you too.”
The limp Aisha raised her hands as if returning Lisellon’s feelings and wrapped her whole body around his broad back.
At the same time, a dry breath escaped from his mouth.
“Hah.”
“…Lisellon.”
Nothing else mattered.
What mattered was simply that Lisellon was beside her right now. Even if it were a lie, Isha felt like she wouldn’t care.
“…Lon…”
“Aisha.”
Their bodies separated, and soon their gazes tangled stickily.
The way they looked at each other, filled with yearning, was unbearably tender, and just as their breaths were about to mingle—
