🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 36
Ah, it’s really hard to please my husband.
I tried my best not to show how ridiculous I thought he was being, but in the end, I had to turn my head away.
Fortunately, I spotted something outside the window that could change the subject.
“Is that… an abandoned mine?”
“Seems like it.”
The carriage slowed to a stop before what looked like a dark cave.
Since it was a mine, there wasn’t a single person around. The whole place looked eerie—enough to make me shiver a little once we were right in front of it.
No wonder fantasy novels always describe such places as crawling with monsters or as gateways to hell itself.
The gaping black entrance and the chill in the air together created a truly spine-tingling atmosphere.
Blake got off the carriage and naturally reached out a hand to help me down, tilting his head as he studied me.
He must’ve noticed how tense my face was, because he looked a bit taken aback.
“Don’t tell me you’re scared.”
“…N-no?”
Yeah, right.
Anyone could tell from my shaky voice that I was scared.
I hurriedly cleared my throat, but Blake already wore an incredulous expression as he muttered,
“With how easily you get scared, how is anyone supposed to believe you’re a necromancer…?”
“Your Highness, I can hear you.”
“You weren’t scared when you came to the graveyard to save me, were you?”
I was terrified—completely!
And it was pouring rain, too. The whole thing felt like a scene out of a horror movie.
Even though I kept reminding myself that I was a necromancer, I was still a total scaredy-cat.
If a little rabbit or something had rustled nearby, I would’ve probably fainted on the spot.
“Well, I had to save Your Highness.”
“My, how admirable of you, Master.”
“I think you misunderstand, Your Highness—‘master’ and ‘admirable’ don’t belong in the same sentence.”
Blake laughed out loud at my sulky tone.
With his blue eyes gleaming, he offered his hand again and said in a surprisingly gentle voice,
“Don’t worry. I’m here today.”
“Well, you did come back from the dead—maybe you can even cut down ghosts now.”
“Of course. I’m a very loyal servant to my master.”
His playful tone made me chuckle as I took his hand.
He must’ve said that to help me relax.
Even though his hand felt as cool as ever, somehow it still warmed me.
Blake told the knights to stay behind and just check the entrance, then went inside the mine with me—just the two of us.
The only light inside was from the torch in his hand. Without it, there was nothing but pitch darkness.
At first, I was scared, but after walking for a while, it was just… an endless, boring tunnel.
Maybe because I was holding onto him tightly, I started to feel safer—though also a little tired of walking.
After a while, Blake said teasingly,
“Strange, Master. I don’t see any ghosts or spirits.”
“Th-that’s not the point of this trip in the first place!”
I didn’t even speak that loudly, but the cave echoed my voice back at me, embarrassingly loud.
Blake’s shoulders shook as he walked ahead—I just knew he wasn’t here to inspect the mine, but to mess with me.
After about ten minutes, Blake stopped at a section where the tunnel went much deeper.
He lifted the torch, looking around, then peered over the edge of a steep drop.
The dark abyss below was so deep I couldn’t even guess its end.
But if the mine went this far down, that only meant one thing: they dug deep and still found no silver.
“Judging from the work here, the silver veins are probably depleted,” Blake said.
I nodded slowly, then secretly opened my hand—the one with the ring on it.
But no matter how I waved it around, the ring didn’t glow.
‘Maybe I need to go deeper? But how do I convince Blake to go down there? And is that even possible? We’d probably need a mining cart to get to the lower levels…’
I bit my lip without realizing, growing more and more anxious.
Blake, sharp as ever, noticed right away and frowned.
“Don’t bite your lip. Use your words, Master.”
“Um, well…”
‘How do I tell you I need you to take me deeper underground?’
…What a straightforward, stupid question.
I kept opening and closing my mouth, lost in thought, when suddenly an idea flashed through my head.
If the ring wasn’t reacting because it was too far from the magic stones, what if I just dropped it down there?
Sure, Father made this ring for me—but it was only an experimental piece anyway.
He didn’t even use any rare materials, and I still had plenty of that glowing butterfly extract left.
So, without Blake noticing, I slipped off the ring, put on my best confused face, and said,
“Oh no, I think I lost my ring!”
Then I subtly made sure it wouldn’t roll too far before dropping it—and lightly stepped on it to hide it.
Blake’s face said, That’s it? You’re panicking over that? He quickly came over, took my hand, and gently pulled me back.
“It’s dark, so stay put. I’ll look for it.”
As he crouched down and shone the torchlight around, I moved backward just as he wanted—“accidentally” kicking the ring farther into the pit.
I might’ve dragged my foot a bit awkwardly, but hey, it worked.
“Yes, sir—ah!”
Wow, even I was impressed by my acting skills.
Until Blake turned to me with a dumbfounded look.
Before he could say anything, there was a metallic clink, and the ring fell into the depths.
For a while, nothing happened.
Even when we peered down, there was no sign of movement or light.
“……”
“Let’s go back, Master. We can make another ring later…”
He hesitated when he saw my disappointed face—probably thinking I was upset about losing it.
But my mind was racing.
‘If there are magic stones down there, the ring should react. Why isn’t it? What’s going on…?’
Then, right in sync with the sound of the ring rolling down, faint blue lights began to flicker.
One by one, the buried magic stones started glowing—like tiny fireflies awakening in the dark.
Soon, the whole cave was lit up in a breathtaking blue glow.
Delighted, I turned to Blake with a huge smile.
“Your Highness, look! They must be magic stones!”
He looked down, then up at me again—his expression unreadable, his lips half-hidden behind his hand.
What’s with that look? Isn’t he happy?
Doesn’t he realize how valuable this is?
“Your Highness! My father’s in the magic stone business—he says even a single one is worth a fortune! But this many—”
“I know. I know they’re valuable. And that your father deals in them.”
“Y-you do? You just seemed so calm, I thought…”
Why doesn’t he look excited at all?
When he finally turned to me, his expression was strange—some mix of amusement and tenderness that I couldn’t quite read.
With the glowing light reflecting in his eyes, he looked like the perfect, impossibly handsome protagonist from an animated film.
Blake slowly moved the torch away from me and said softly,
“To be honest… I’m kind of touched.”
His low murmur made my chest tingle.
“You went through all that trouble, all that struggling for days, just to do this.”
“I-I wasn’t struggling…”
“And you came all the way here even though you were trembling with fear.”
“Well… we were already here. I couldn’t just stay outside.”
I was starting to wonder what kind of image he had of me in his head.
From the way he talked, he must’ve really meant it every time he called me a scared little rabbit.
“There are definitely some suspicious parts, but still… thank you.”
Blake’s straightforward gratitude caught me off guard.
I stared blankly at him before quickly averting my eyes.
It was just a thank you, so why was my heart pounding like this?
But it was the first time my husband—the story’s protagonist—had ever thanked me.
It meant that I had perfectly fulfilled Seira’s role, just as planned.
And I’d even given him the glowing butterfly extract’s effect earlier than in the original timeline.
But Blake’s soft smile wasn’t one of ambition or triumph—he wasn’t thinking about outsmarting Alec or securing his advantage.
Instead, he said gently,
“From now on, I want to do well—with you.”
“W-with me? Do what, exactly…?”
“Whether it’s about the magic stones or the material that reacts to them—everything.”
And with that, he delivered the final blow, smiling as he watched me freeze in place.
“Since you’re the one who showed me all this. Let’s start by making the announcement together, shall we?”
…What? Wait, what?
I didn’t sign up to play that part of Seira’s role!
