Her light green eyes trembled sharply at Kael’s words.

“Ah… I… I am…”

Embarrassed, she couldn’t finish her words properly.
In the meantime, Adeline thought that her position as the grand duchess was not hers. She thought it was a position to hand over to Vanessa, and she was just taking over for a while.
As such, she had never borne the role and weight of that position. It was also the last thing she wanted when she entered the marriage contract with Kael in the first place.

However, it was no longer a position to be handed over to someone.
Vanessa didn’t necessarily have to take over the position, and even if she did, she was now dead and unable to establish herself.
When the brainwashing broke, the weight it had on Adeline was palpable.
As Kael had said, he was not the only master of the north. Adeline was also undeniably the lady of the north.

“It’s a place where only you and I are allowed to enter. Repositio.”

Kael once again confirmed Adeline’s position.
Adeline, who was quietly chewing on what he said, suddenly wondered.

“Why does it only allow the grand duke and duchess? Is it because it’s a place in the North?”
“Rather, it is one of the gifts given in return for your dedication to protecting the North.”
“Ah…”
“Since it’s a place where you have to fight so fiercely and so harshly.”

Adeline nodded, understanding now. Even if it came to Adeline as a beautiful and good place, it was undeniable that the north was barren.
Different species were always aiming for the northern boundaries, so they always shed more blood and carried more pain than the rest of the world.
Repositio was the reward for taking care of such lands and protecting the empire.

“Does the Imperial Palace know of the existence of the Repositio?”
“They know. Only those who inherit the throne. Perhaps the current emperor was also guided by the High Priest just before the coronation ceremony.”
“Can’t they just come in knowing it exists?”
“No. They can’t see it at all. Even if Repositio appears.”

The more she heard, the more surprising it was.

“The coldest winter has not yet arrived, so we have some time to spare. We’ll have to stay for another two months. That’s how long winters are in the North.”

Adeline quietly reflected on the two-month period.
It was worth the wait. She was still filled with confusion, so she thought she could solve other questions while she waited.

“I don’t know if I can say it’s a relief.”

While Adeline was quietly thinking, Kael continued.

“Even so, it is a relief. That flower is not a token of harm to you.”

She felt a sincere relief at his quiet voice. His worry about whether Adeline would get hurt again or collapse again was conveyed as it was.
Adeline moved closer to Kael and met his eyes.
She was suddenly cleared of brainwashing and suddenly revealed a new lie, which made her mind wander elsewhere. But what Adeline was most concerned about was her change with Kael.
There was no easy answer on how to face Kael in a situation where there was no relationship to be established or obligation to die.

As she continued to think again and again, looking at his relentless blue-grey eyes, she found only greater confusion. Adeline closed her eyes, then opened them and changed the topic.
First of all, she wanted to correct the lies in front of her.

“As you said, this flower won’t hurt me, so tell me now. What the truth of that day is.”

Kael let out a small sigh when she conveyed her strong will to find out the truth.
He looked down as if trying to clear his thoughts for a moment, then began to talk with Adeline, making eye contact.

“It was a murder. A mysterious group attacked the carriage you and your parents rode in, and everyone lost their lives in their hands except for you.”

Kael spoke very carefully. It wasn’t about anything else, it was about the death of her parents. He knew this weight better than anyone. That was why he hoped that Adeline would be less hurt by this incident than anyone else.

“Then… The fact that the carriage fell off the cliff… And that the knights were swept down into the valley…”
“It was to protect you, Adeline. The Marquis and the Commander of the Knights were trying to protect you.”

Something that Enoch and Leo would probably never tell her flowed from Kael’s mouth.
Kael hoped that Adeline would not lose trust in her brothers. Rather than compassion for Enoch and Leo, he was worried about the aftereffect Adeline would experience if she lost her trust in them.
The truth of the incident, Adeline’s efforts to retrieve her memories, what happened in the process, and even the stories they had no choice but to cover up.
The truth Adeline had been unaware of all this time was calmly and carefully delivered to her.

“Ah…”

When the long story was over, Adeline could do nothing but sigh.
Many emotions rushed in.
The shock of it being something so different from what she had believed, the guilt of not being able to catch the culprit because she couldn’t remember, and the sadness of her parents’ death. Everything was mixed up.
But the most distressing thing for Adeline was that even at this moment, when she heard the story from Kael, no memories had come back.
She remembered Kasus saying that even if she heard about the past from others, it would just sound like someone else’s story.

“They must have wiped it really clean. I don’t remember a thing. Obviously, I’ve been through it all, but I really don’t remember any of it.”

Adeline said, letting out a small laugh.

“My parents, too. The image of my parents, the memory of my parents, just everything…”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke. Adeline clenched her fists and clenched her teeth to stop crying.

When she thought she was living as a character in a book, she didn’t think much of it when she heard about the deceased marquis and marchioness.
For Adeline at that time, it was all a fantasy anyway. Since she didn’t think they were her real parents, she couldn’t empathize even when her siblings showed deep longing.
However, since she hadn’t discovered the truth about her being possessed, and the truth about her having no memories of the past, she would quietly mingle next to the three longing siblings.

‘It wasn’t a fantasy. They were the ones who really birthed and raised me.’

After the brainwashing was broken, the graveness of that moment turned into a flood of even greater longing and hit Adeline.
They were the ones who really birthed and raised Adeline. However, Adeline only knew the faces she saw in the pictures. She had no memory of them.
If they hadn’t been taken away, if it hadn’t been for the black magic, even a warm smile towards Adeline would have stayed on her mind.
Her heart was torn apart because she thought there was nothing left.

“Adeline.”

Kael quickly noticed Adeline’s condition. He could clearly see her being eaten away by the rising sorrow.
As Kael carefully moved to calm Adeline down, she suddenly came closer and softly placed her forehead on his chest.

“Just for a moment.”

Adeline was desperate for Kael’s warmth right now. But she couldn’t bear to hold him in her arms.
But even so, the grief was too great for her to endure alone, so she couldn’t turn away from Kael.
So she approached Kael like she was bumping into him and stole his warmth.

“Please stay like this just for a moment. Just a moment.”

When she whispered quietly not to push her away, an unexpected sensation enveloped Adeline.
Kael hugged Adeline tightly with his strong arms.

“I can stay like this for how long it is needed. As much as you want.”

The moment his consolation was conveyed, Adeline let out the tears she had been barely holding back.
She couldn’t bear it.
The feeling conveyed by his firm arms and the soft voice that tickled her ears were so warm.

***

“I’ll have to ask to prepare a bunch of ice tomorrow.”
“Does it show that much?”
“Did you perhaps think that it wouldn’t show?”

Melissa mischievously scolded Adeline.
Her eyes were already swollen because of how much she cried in Kael’s arms.

“Sleep well, Your Grace. You had a difficult night.”
“Yeah. Sleep well too, Melissa.”

Her words that it was a difficult night lingered in Adeline’s ears. Melissa was right. It was a difficult day because so much had happened, and it was also a difficult night.
Adeline sighed heavily and recalled Kael’s embrace, which had soothed her in the end.
It was as if the warmth that had enveloped her body was still around her.

‘I’m sure he’ll ask specifically what kind of brainwashing it was.’

When she thought of Kael, the following thoughts reached the topic of her brainwashing. She was sure he would ask about the brainwashing, and Adeline had to answer truthfully to find the culprit.

‘How would he react if I said I was desperate for a divorce because of the ending where he had to connect with Vanessa? How would he look at me if I said I tried hard to protect the ending where I would die by his hands?’

There was too much that could not be easily said.

‘I can sincerely love him now. If I show him exactly my feelings, maybe he…’

Adeline hugged her knees with her arms and sighed.
Even if he wasn’t a man she had to return to Vanessa, Kael himself was refusing to love Adeline.

‘Is it because of the curse? Is there anything else I don’t know about? Will anything change if I just pretend not to know? On the contrary, if I reveal it like that, will he run away even more?’

Numerous questions followed one after another.

‘He said he could find out if I was serious. That’s why he just accepted the contract at that time. A mysterious tool… Does he have a magic tool that can recognize feelings? If he found out about my feelings with that tool… And if he decided to end our marriage…’

Though he sometimes crumbled away helplessly, and sometimes accepted Adeline like he did today, Kael was someone who could resolutely push her away at any time.

‘I can’t get caught. I have to be the grand duchess to enter Repositio.’

Adeline closed her eyes and repeated to herself that her feelings could not be discovered. In order to find her memories in the repository of time, she had to keep her position as the grand duchess.

‘And this marriage…’

She swallowed the reason she didn’t want to end this marriage without muttering it to herself. She hid the purest sincerity deep in her heart, as if just repeating it alone would cause her feelings to be found out.

It was a funny situation.
Because she loved Kael, because she wanted to stay by his side, she had to pretend not to love him and hide her feelings.
But Adeline had no other option. She had no choice but to hide it like this and endure it.
Perhaps in the process, her heart would be broken again and again, and her eyes would be filled with tears again and again. But it was better than moving away from Kael’s side forever.

–