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Chapter 04
As Sylvia opened the door, there stood the physician. Had the butler sent him?
I left the physician to examine me this way and that, just staring blankly. Well, to be more accurate, I was so drained of strength that I could barely move.
The physician applied some ointment and wrapped my ankle tightly with a firm bandage. I swallowed dryly and asked.
“Is it broken? Or is there a fracture?”
“Haha, no. Your shoulder is perfectly fine, and as for your ankle, the ligament seems to be slightly strained, but if you’re careful for a few days, it’s nothing to be overly concerned about.”
“Oh, really? It hurt so much though…”
“Don’t worry. It’s just that your muscles were startled because you suddenly moved after not exercising at all.”
“……”
As someone who doesn’t move except for walking to go eat, that stung deeply.
The kind physician told me to walk carefully for a few days, gave me some painkillers, and left. As soon as I received them, I tossed them all into my mouth.
The medicine wouldn’t take effect right away, but it was at least a comfort to my mind. After getting help from the maids to roughly wash up and change my clothes, I saw that Sylvia had already left the room.
“Miss, what would you like to do about your meal?”
“I’ll eat later. Make sure no one comes in until I go out.”
The loyal maids of the Lephgaen Castle silently left without a sound. Along with the quiet click of the door closing, I immediately fell into a deep sleep.
When I woke up from a dreamless, passed-out sleep in a blanket that felt like it was stuffed with nothing but soft cotton, the surroundings were already dark.
I dragged my faintly aching foot over to the window and drew the curtains. I could see torches lit here and there, guards standing watch, and the muddy ground from what must have been a light snowfall while I slept.
The cold outside didn’t reach this far inside, so I just blankly gazed out the window.
My room is said to be the sunniest and warmest place in Lephgaen Castle. When I first arrived in the North, the butler had said so with a proud expression.
As the butler said, the room was warm despite having a large window that filled one entire wall. However, after much deliberation, I had asked for thick curtains to be installed.
It wasn’t because of the cold. I just didn’t like the sunlight coming in. The butler tilted his head but still granted my request.
He probably thought I was particularly sensitive to the cold.
The curtains, which covered even the gaps in the window frame, were only opened when the maids came in to clean. Or else, in the middle of the night, like right now.
As I gazed at the quiet night scenery, the events of the day came to mind. No, what I had done.
So I…
‘I climbed a tree, bothered people, fell off by myself, and then cried loudly about a sprained ankle and blamed Jess?’
Ah. Really. I pressed my forehead against the cold windowpane. I thought the cool touch might make me feel a little better, but it didn’t help at all.
My head was still a mess. Just like my situation.
My engagement to Jess isn’t just a simple engagement. It’s no different from a contract between the North and the Temple. The North needed divine power, and the Temple needed the North’s allegiance.
When the Temple demanded proof of allegiance through engagement, the North set only one condition: someone who could properly wield divine power.
Aside from Ruelbel, who is favored by the High Priest, the only one left was me. So I was chosen.
‘But then, that crucial divine power disappeared from me.’
I had failed to meet the North’s sole condition. So the North had no reason to maintain the engagement. It was only natural they demanded a breakup.
‘And what did I do in this situation, being the one who got broken up with?’
I blamed Jess, my former fiancé…
I had regressed and various things came to mind, which is why I acted that way, but Jess couldn’t possibly know that. From Jess’s perspective, it must have been just baffling.
Maybe he’s even thinking, ‘Is she trying to shift the responsibility for the broken engagement onto the North?’
“I should have just kept quiet…”
I should have just cried silently. Why did I have to open my mouth? No, I shouldn’t have cried at all. Why did my tear ducts have to burst right there.
I thumped my head against the glass window. It’s not like self-reproach could take back the words I’d already spilled, but I felt like I had to do at least this much.
‘What if Jess comes in and tells me to leave?’
We’ve broken up, so Jess and I are no longer anything to each other. There’s no reason for me to stay in the castle. And if I’m kicked out of here, I’ll have to go back to the Temple. I really don’t want that.
Should I apologize first when I see Jess? Should I plead, saying I’m sorry but can I please stay here?
“Haa.”
I let out a long sigh and straightened my posture. I need to find a solution before I get more depressed. Then another thought flashed through my mind.
That I had regressed, that this world is inside a novel, and that it will be destroyed six years from now.
“……”
Why is everything so gloomy? Why is there no smooth path for me? I thumped my head against the wall again and wallowed in depression for a while.
“Ah… What on earth do I do first?”
After thinking it over, I decided to first organize the future that I know. I put off pleading with Jess to let me stay in the castle for later. That’s something that can only be resolved by meeting Jess in person.
‘But after I blamed him so harshly, would he even want to see me?’
Surely he wouldn’t just ignore me if we run into each other later.
I shook my head a few times to shake off the negative thoughts, then returned to the table and spread out the map that was lying around.
I don’t know how I came to regress, but regardless, it’s a blessing.
My goal is simple. Since it’s come to this, let’s prevent my death and live a long life.
‘And while I’m at it, not just long, but completely wealthy, eating well and living well.’
Avoiding a predestined death seemed easy. I’m a minor villainess without much importance, so if I just stay far away from Jess from the time the original story begins, it should be fine. As long as I don’t do anything to irritate him, right?
‘But to live beyond those six years, I have to prevent the world’s destruction.’
Hmm. That doesn’t look easy. I tapped the end of my pen on the table, recalling the contents of the original novel.
“They said there’s one fragment in the North and one in the East. So could there be one in the South too?”
I racked my brain, but I didn’t know. In the original story, the female lead kept getting caught before reaching the sealing sites. So the exact locations of the fragments were never properly revealed.
All that’s known is that ‘an ancient hero blessed by the gods sealed them in various places,’ so I can only guess that there might be one in each of the Empire’s famous temples.
I wonder if Ruelbel knows something more? She is the female lead, after all. Maybe I’ll bring it up when I meet her later.
I had spent time with Ruelbel when we were young, so you could say we’re reasonably close.
But what exactly should I ask?
‘Hi, Ruelbel? Long time no see. Did you know? This world is going to be destroyed soon. To prevent the destruction, we have to seal the Demon Dragon fragments. Do you happen to know where the sealing sites are?’
…Oh. If I said that, I’d probably just be told I’m crazy.
‘And on top of that, only Ruelbel can perform the sealing.’
Sealing the fragments requires an enormous amount of divine power, and the only person with that much divine power is Ruelbel.
If my divine power were still there, could I have done it? I suddenly missed the divine power that had vanished. Could there be even a little bit left? I twitched my finger holding the pen, then let out a pointless groan and flopped down onto the table.
“So, in summary, I need to figure out the sealing locations, gently coax Ruelbel into going there, and help her seal them to prevent the destruction, right?”
And in the meantime, for an easier escape, I also need to prevent the male lead candidates’ obsessions. Why are there so many things to do?
Other people who get isekai’d or reincarnated think about making money and living well. Why am I planning how to stop the world’s destruction?
I squirmed uselessly and groaned as I moved my injured foot. At that moment, my stomach rudely growled.
Growl.
“Are you hungry…”
I hadn’t eaten all day, but shouldn’t hunger be the last thing you feel in a serious situation? Why is my stomach so assertive?
“Fine, fine.”
Since this is all ultimately to live and eat well anyway, I should eat something. I picked up the lamp and stood up.
I was limping, but it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t walk, so I decided to go down myself rather than call someone. It was late, and I felt bad calling a maid.
Then, as I quietly opened the door, I saw a black, round sphere… no, it was Jess’s head, sitting right beside the door.
“……?”
I blinked a few times, then hastily shut the door again. It made a fairly loud thud.
‘What? Am I not fully awake?’
I had to take several deep breaths to calm my pounding heart. Thinking I’d just seen wrong, I opened the door again, and this time I was unavoidably met face-to-face with Jess’s vivid blue eyes.
