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Chapter: 4
“Pardon?”
Contrary to her expectation that he would mete out punishment the moment she arrived, Alexis looked as though all his anger had completely subsided.
What’s gotten into him? That neat-freak.
That alone was surprising enough, but what Alexis said next left her even more dumbfounded.
“If you were nervous, you should’ve said so from the start. Then we could’ve prescribed something to ease your tension before the ceremony, or I could have comforted you myself.”
What on earth was he talking about?
It seemed he had mistaken it for nothing more than nerves. Jeanne found it absurd, but she instantly realized this was the perfect chance to deceive him.
Alexis knows nothing about monsters, after all…
Jeanne lowered her head.
“My apologies, Your Highness. Because I so desperately wished to complete the glorious ceremony you specially prepared for me without incident, I kept my mouth shut, but…”
Feigning frustration, Jeanne clenched her fist and slammed it into the floor with all her strength.
“W-Why would you do that?”
Startled by her self-harm, Alexis hastily ordered the soldiers standing nearby to open the door.
Having locked her up only minutes earlier and now being told to release her, the two soldiers couldn’t hide their confusion.
“What are you waiting for? Open it at once!”
At his shout, the startled soldiers hurriedly opened the cell door.
The same rusty iron bars let out a shrill creak as they swung open, and Alexis rushed inside, crouching down to meet Jeanne at eye level.
“Don’t cry. Calm down and tell me. I’ll listen to everything.”
Seeing her shoulders trembling, he must have mistaken it for sobbing, because Alexis pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and handed it to her.
I wouldn’t use this even with a knife at my throat.
But deciding that she had no choice if she wanted to stir his sympathy, Jeanne accepted the handkerchief and pretended to wipe away tears that wouldn’t come.
“I believe… I’ve been poisoned.”
“W-What? Poison? No—when did this happen?”
“On the final day of the military academy graduation exam. While subjugating an Aconitan, I inhaled the poisonous gas it exhaled.”
“If something like that happened, why didn’t you report it immediately?!”
“There were no symptoms right after I inhaled it, so I thought it wouldn’t be a problem. But since this morning I’ve felt nauseous, and then I committed such an act of disloyalty toward Your Highness…!”
It was an act, but encountering an Aconitan had been the truth.
By mixing truth and lies like this, even if Alexis investigated after she left, it wouldn’t be exposed right away.
“We can’t just stand around. I’ll summon a physician at once.”
“There is only one treatment.”
Clutching her chest, Jeanne put on a deliberately despairing expression.
“The fruit called Fenellia is the only antidote—but there’s a problem.”
“And what might that be?”
“It can only be obtained near the eastern border, and I’ve heard it’s effective only if eaten raw immediately after being harvested.”
“What kind of absurd fruit is that!”
Alexis was about to shout, but instead let out a deep sigh.
“Is there truly no other way?”
“Not to my knowledge.”
“Then what if you remain here and try some other medicine—”
“I’ve heard that severe side effects appear, and if the medicine isn’t taken within three days, the internal organs begin to rot…”
“Ha…”
“Therefore, I have a request, Your Highness. Will you grant me permission to leave Brien?”
Perhaps finding the situation ridiculous, Alexis let out several hollow laughs.
From here to the depths of the forest would take three days on horseback.
In other words, if she didn’t depart immediately, she would miss the golden window for treatment—Jeanne was pressuring him to decide on the spot.
And at this point, Alexis already considered Jeanne his possession. No one—adult or child—likes it when a new toy breaks.
Even if he investigated Fenellia after she left, it didn’t matter. Both its effects and the method of consumption were true.
Alexis hesitated for a long while, wearing a face like he’d bitten into something foul. Then, clicking his tongue, he finally spoke.
“…Go, then.”
Inside, Jeanne clenched her fist in triumph.
“R-Really?”
“I can’t very well let you die like this!”
“Thank you, Your Highness! Truly, thank you!”
Feigning deep gratitude, Jeanne bowed repeatedly.
Alexis told her that was enough and led her out of the dungeon. When he took her hand as if escorting her, she had to suppress the urge to break his arm.
“It will be a rather long journey, so I’ll assign people to accompany you.”
His manner softened, as though he were dealing with a noble lady. The thought made bile rise in her throat.
“That won’t be necessary. Traveling alone is faster than moving in a group.”
At her firm reply, Alexis cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Very well. But you must return as soon as you’ve recovered. Do you understand?”
He emphasized his command as though engraving it into her heart.
Instead of answering, Jeanne lowered her head with a faint smile—and screamed inwardly:
Am I insane? As if I’d ever come back here.
After borrowing a horse from the temple priest, Jeanne headed straight for her hometown without looking back. No matter how urgent things were, she wanted first to see her still-living father with her own eyes.
One year later, the village where Jeanne was born and raised—Dongremian—would be reduced to ruins by a surprise attack from a monster horde.
With only about a hundred residents, such a small village had no force capable of stopping monsters. The destruction of her hometown had been inevitable.
But she had returned to the past. Which meant the village was still intact.
This time, I can protect it.
The journey from the temple to the village took five full days. She rode relentlessly across the endless plains. The anticipation of seeing her father alive again kept exhaustion at bay.
At last, Jeanne stopped before a sign that read Dongremian.
Lights glowed warmly from every house. Children who had been playing outside reluctantly headed home at their mothers’ calls. Cows and sheep grazed lazily.
The village—the people—were alive and breathing.
Standing at the peaceful village entrance, Jeanne remained frozen for a long while. Her whole body trembled, just as it had when she’d seen the village in ruins.
The ashes of her destroyed hometown from her previous life faded from her mind. Tears welled up in her eyes.
It’s a good thing—so why am I crying, idiot.
Before the tears could fall, Jeanne pressed her sleeve to her eyes and wiped them away, then walked into the village.
Several villagers greeted her as she passed. For them, it was an ordinary day no different from yesterday—but for Jeanne, it was a return after decades.
Before long, she stopped again, staring at a small house as if turned to stone.
Light was leaking from the modest brick house where her father lived alone.
With her heart swelling, Jeanne stood before the door. As she reached for the handle, her palm grew slick with sweat. She rubbed her hands against her thighs and took a deep breath, calming the tremor spreading through her body.
Slowly, she opened the door.
Through the opening, she saw her father—Jacques Leclerc. He was seated at the table, spoon in hand, apparently in the middle of dinner.
At the sound of the door opening, he turned his head.
“Jeanne?”
The moment she saw Jacques, countless memories flashed through her mind.
The cawing of crows wandering about in search of corpses. The stench of burning flesh that filled the air from the pyres where dead villagers were thrown.
From the house reduced to a mound of rubble, Jeanne had dug through stones for days on end without eating or drinking, desperate to recover the bodies.
Those watching had begged her to rest, even for a moment, but she hadn’t listened.
When she finally retrieved her father’s body, more than half of it had been crushed. Even veteran knights, hardened by carnage, had turned away gagging at the scene.
Back then, Jeanne herself had been no better than a corpse—battered and broken. Yet she hadn’t felt pain. Compared to her shattered heart, wounds to the body meant nothing.
Overwhelmed by emotions surging from memories of her previous life, Jeanne couldn’t answer for a moment.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Worried, Jacques leaned his upper body toward her—but he couldn’t rise from his seat.
Once a valiant knight, her father had been injured fighting monsters and could no longer stand on his own two legs.
“It’s nothing. I’m home.”
Suppressing the urge to run over and embrace him tightly, Jeanne smiled. To Jacques, it was simply a peaceful, uneventful day.
“I see. Welcome back. By the way, have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“Then come in. Sophie brought over a big pot of venison stew. Let’s eat together.”
“Yes, let’s.”
Jeanne changed clothes in her room, ladled herself a portion of stew in the kitchen, and sat at the table. Just like yesterday—just as if the time when she had lost her father had never existed—it all felt natural.
It felt as though she had returned to everyday life after a long journey.
“By the way, did the knighting ceremony go well?”
