~Chapter 114~
For a long time, my consciousness drifted in darkness.
It felt like floating in space—dark, but strangely peaceful.
Beside me, a galaxy streamed past, glittering faintly as it embroidered the black void. I smiled as I looked at it.
Wow. Beautiful.
For some reason, Fabian came to mind.
Fabian—when I looked at him up close, his eyes shone like they were holding the whole Milky Way. Hehe.
[Irene.]
[…Huh? Who’s there?]
I turned my head. A massive light drew near.
It was so strong it blotted out the galaxy entirely.
Through it, I thought I glimpsed a figure with long, flowing hair, but the brilliance was too intense to make them out.
A voice, impossible to tell if male or female, spoke.
[Irene, my beloved daughter.]
[…Daughter? Only my mother gets to call me that.]
I thought of the Duchess of Hartmann—my mother in this life.
She must still be weeping, waiting for me to wake up.
I suddenly missed her.
Mother.
That word no longer felt strange.
The Duchess, who had showered me with love until I couldn’t help but think of her as my real mom.
Am I… dead? Is this the end?
[Dead? Not at all. This is merely a place where consciousness drifts. As long as I exist, you will never die so easily.]
[…That’s comforting. I do want to live a long, long time, but it’s not exactly easy.]
I boldly pressed this unknown presence.
[Then send me back. My parents must be worried.]
Somehow, I felt they could do it.
The voice laughed softly, almost affectionately.
[Alright. I will send you back. But first… a piece of advice.]
Advice? I tilted my head.
[Irene, open the Eye. When you do, everything will be resolved.]
[…Eye? What do you mean—]
My eyes widened.
A woman appeared before me.
In an instant, the scene unfolded.
An impossibly beautiful woman looked at me with a gentle smile.
A soft, divine radiance flowed from her whole body.
And when I realized—her silver hair was the very Milky Way I had passed—
[As my incarnation…]
Her warm yet sharp voice echoed in my ears.
[The Eye.]
“…!”
My drifting consciousness suddenly snapped into clarity.
I opened my eyes.
Above me was a white ceiling—familiar decorations I had seen countless times.
…Wait.
This was my room at the Hartmann estate.
I let out a shaky breath. My body moved.
Beside me, a man sat with his head bowed, hands clasped in prayer.
“…Albert?”
“…Irene?”
Albert’s head shot up. His eyes went wide.
“You’re awake. How do you feel? Are you alright?”
“Ah… yes.”
I was back in reality.
Until just now, I’d been dreaming. But what kind of dream…?
It had been so vivid, so overwhelming—yet the details slipped away.
Instead, I remembered right before I collapsed.
On the way back from mana training at the Tower—the carriage crash.
Right. That accident.
“There was a crash… Am I okay?”
“You hit your head, but nothing serious. I was so worried… Let’s have the doctor check you right away.”
Albert stepped out to call a maid, informing them I had awakened.
Soon, the family physician entered.
“Thank goodness you’re awake, my Lady. Let me examine you.”
He carefully checked my injuries, especially my head, and gave me simple tests.
After several minutes, he nodded.
“Fortunately, there are no severe problems. We’ll disinfect the bruises regularly. But please don’t overexert yourself for now.”
“…Understood. Thank you.”
When he left, I turned to Albert with a little laugh.
“You heard, right? I’m fine after all.”
At last, my mind felt fully grounded again.
I grew a little embarrassed. Everyone must have been shocked because of me.
“But… what happened? The carriage suddenly fell—I thought I was going to die.”
“True. If not for the divine beast, it would have been a disaster.”
Albert sighed in relief, though tension lingered on his face.
He glanced at the divine beast, dozing on the windowsill.
“Why did it happen? Was it an attack?”
“The cause was the wheel. But…”
He hesitated, as if there was more.
Seeing me tilt my head, Albert spoke carefully.
“Irene. There’s something important you need to know.”
A moment later.
Silence filled the air. I stared at him, mouth agape.
“So you’re saying… when I was a child, someone forcibly injected mana into my body?”
Albert had just told me everything they discovered while I was unconscious.
That the carriage accident was caused by someone’s magic.
That my terminal illness wasn’t because I was born with too much mana—
but because someone had forced it into me long ago.
Albert’s face was grim.
“Irene, someone is targeting you.”
“But…”
I was stunned. It was too sudden.
“Targeting me? But I traveled freely. Nothing dangerous happened…”
I had lived so peacefully. How could I suddenly be in danger?
And to think someone had been after me since childhood?
“For now, this is all we know. Whether it’s the same person or not, we can’t be sure yet.”
Albert met my eyes firmly, as if to reassure me.
“So we’ve decided to stop your mana-control training and focus on finding the culprit. We’re already taking action.”
“Ah…”
I trailed off, overwhelmed by the revelations.
Most confusing of all—this wasn’t in the original novel.
Irene’s terminal illness having a hidden cause?
Impossible… Was this always in the setting, and I just never knew?
In the original, Irene was just a villainess. No need for such a backstory.
I bit my lip. Albert spoke again.
“For now, we’ll strengthen your guards. I know it will feel restrictive, but please stay inside the estate until this is resolved.”
“…Alright. I’ll do as you say.”
For now, I felt it was best to listen to him.
I nodded, still dazed.
And thought—
Maybe I truly don’t know everything about the original story after all.
