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Chapter 39
Katarina’s vision was filled with the sight of René smiling mischievously. Her heart still thumped loudly.
“Why…?”
Strangely, someone else seemed to overlap with René in her mind—the person Katarina had respected and longed for above anyone else in this world.
“No way! Katarina Hugo, get a grip! Are you really going to fall for this woman’s charms?”
But the pounding of her heart showed no signs of slowing down. Even when she climbed onto the small rowboat, it remained the same.
“Wow, look at that sunset, Katarina. Sunset has its own charm, doesn’t it?”
“Y-yes…”
Even with René’s teasing whispering close to her, Katarina’s heart was tangled with emotions she couldn’t untangle.
Then.
Whoosh!
“Oh!”
A strong gust of wind blew Katarina’s hat off her head. Fortunately, it didn’t drift too far, but it got caught in a tree branch above. It was at a delicate distance—too far to reach from the shore, and too far to grab from the boat.
“Ah! No, my hat! And it’s this season’s new one!”
Katarina genuinely pouted. It was the brand-new item she had bought to match the dress she was wearing today. She had put it on with care, determined not to lose to René!
“Really?”
At her words, René rowed the boat toward the hat as fast as he could. Without a moment’s hesitation, he stood up.
Katarina was the one who was startled. The little rowboat began to rock with René’s movement.
“René! Are you okay? Just forget it, really.”
“But it’s new, isn’t it? Don’t you care about it?”
“Well… yes, but… I’ll do it instead.”
“No. I’m closer. Ah, if only I were a little taller… ugh, I think I can still reach it…”
René stretched his hand as far as he could, and the boat tilted toward the stern.
At that moment.
“!”
A dark voice whispered in Katarina’s mind.
Should I just push him? There’s no one here to save him anyway…
But at the same time, a white voice suddenly spoke, trying to persuade her.
But you know the truth, Katarina. That small girl hasn’t done anything wrong.
That voice was probably her conscience.
“….”
Despite everything, René wobbled and stretched his hand toward the hat.
“Ugh, just a little more and I can reach it!”
From afar, the maids watching them gasped in alarm.
“My lady! It’s dangerous!”
“We’ll take care of the hat, please sit down!”
“No, I’m fine! Katarina, could you row just a little? The boat keeps going the wrong way…”
At that moment.
Splash!
The boat capsized.
“Kyaaaah!”
Everything happened in an instant. At the same time, time seemed to slow down.
“My lady! Our lady fell into the water!”
“Katarina! What should we do?”
“We need to report to Sir Kal immediately…”
Even the maids, who were usually at odds with René and Katarina, could only stare in horror this time.
Katarina flailed in the river, unable to grasp the situation.
“What happened? No… did I really push René Blanche?”
But the thought didn’t last long, swept away by the current.
“Help! Save me!”
Katarina was a noble lady. All she knew were embroidery, writing letters in pretty handwriting, and occasionally playing an instrument. So naturally, she couldn’t swim.
“Am I going to die like this?”
She couldn’t even tell whether the water around her was tears or the river itself when suddenly—
“Ugh, Ka… Katarina!”
A faint cry came, and floating before her was something she could grab—the oar of the rowboat. She clutched it like a lifeline.
“Relax your body!”
She focused on the fragile voice and followed the instructions. Soon, the overturned boat brushed against her arm.
“I… I’m saved!”
Clutching the rowboat like a lifeline, Katarina finally caught her breath. Amid the chaos, she quickly turned her head to look for someone.
“What do I do! Oh, René! Where are you?”
She didn’t even realize she was shouting his name out of shock. But no matter how she looked around, René was nowhere in sight.
“My lady! My lady!”
“What do we do!”
Everyone panicked. The wind mercilessly blew harder.
Then.
“René!”
In the distance, Zehnos rode a horse, rushing toward them, his face pale as she had never seen before.
Zehnos…
That was Katarina’s last memory.
“Hmm…”
With her eyes closed, all she felt was drowsiness and a sense of floating. Like drifting in water, her body felt weightless. The comfort was such that she could float forever.
Am I… a jellyfish this time?
I wish I could stay like this for a long time.
As she drifted, feeling as if time had stopped,
Huh?
Someone grabbed her body tightly. As if a natural course of events, her eyes opened, and what filled her sight was…
“René, please…”
To her surprise, René’s eyes, a vivid watery blue, were filled with tears.
W-what? Is he crying?
He wore a desperate expression she had never seen, tears rolling down his cheeks and onto hers.
What’s happening?
She couldn’t process it. Why was the Duke here, crying desperately and calling out her name?
Soon, a strange sensation hit her.
My body isn’t responding.
At first, she thought it was sleep paralysis, but it was slightly different. There was no pressure, no tension. Yet the familiar feeling persisted.
It’s more like an out-of-body experience than paralysis.
Though it was her body in René’s arms, it didn’t feel like her. Her mouth opened on its own, against her will. A soft, thin voice emerged.
“Zehnos, why are you crying…?”
It was her voice, yet everything felt strangely unfamiliar. She had never called him Zehnos before.
Is this… a dream?
It was like watching a first-person movie or observing a dream—she could only watch. Still, her hand trembled as she gently cupped the Duke’s cheek. Her wrist was thinner than usual, almost fragile, like a dying patient.
“René. Please don’t die.”
He placed his large hand over hers, crying pitifully.
Die? Me?
His glittering hydrangea-colored eyes, full of life, began to dim as if he had lost the world. It wasn’t her, but “René” who forced a smile. Meanwhile, the Duke’s eyes burned dark with grief.
“I’ll save you. Stay alive. I’ll search the whole world for a medicine to heal you. So please…”
His low voice was almost mad, with a feral intensity. Yet because it mirrored René’s heart, it wasn’t frightening. Rather, it felt painfully pitiful, like a wounded, frightened young beast.
“Zehnos.”
“…”
“You know too… I don’t have much time left.”
Saying this, René seemed like a withered flower—fragile in body and heart, ready to crumble with the slightest touch.
“No. That’s not true.”
The Duke’s voice was firm, though he likely knew the truth. René was like a faint candle before the storm of fate.
René gave a faint smile.
“You’re the one who hurt me the most in this world. You know it yourself, right?”
“I’m sorry…”
“But even your clumsy side… it’s just like you. How could I not love you?”
Tears began to fill her eyes. The wetness blurred her vision.
The Duke’s breath grew rapid as he witnessed this.
