Chapter 11

Railey shut herself away in her room for days, as though consumed by grief. She did nothing but stare out the window, looking as if she were waiting for something.

Her room was the only place in the ducal residence where she could be alone. She stayed there quietly, holding her breath and making herself as inconspicuous as a ghost. The door was firmly locked, and Ren’s barrier protected her from anyone who might try to enter.

Knock, knock, knock.

As expected, Theo came to knock on her door again today.

“Madam, are you really going to keep this up?”

The moment Railey heard Theo’s voice, her heart began to pound as though it would burst from her chest. Her entire body trembled, and anger boiled within her.

She ground out her words through clenched teeth.

“……Leave me alone.”

“Hah.”

Theo sighed at her response and stood before the door, staring at the entrance that remained firmly shut.

This can’t go on forever.

He, too, had been looking forward to the birth of the child. But what he had expected to be a brief period of mourning—perhaps two days at most—had dragged on, and his patience was beginning to wear thin.

“How long are you going to stay cooped up in your room? I feel sorry about what happened to the child, too.”

“……What?”

A surge of burning emotion rose in Railey’s throat at his words.

The whites of her eyes were bloodshot, and her body had grown so thin from barely eating that her bones protruded sharply beneath her skin.

She could even feel the mana inside her body twisting and moving erratically, growing increasingly unstable.

“Railey, calm down.”

Ren gently covered Railey’s eyes with his hand and whispered close to her ear. A blue hue seeped into her green eyes, giving them an enchanting, otherworldly appearance.

“Your body isn’t in any condition to handle this right now. Your mana is in turmoil.”

Ren hurried to calm her down. Her body was already in a dangerous state because of her unstable mana, and the strain was only making things worse.

He hadn’t told her, but it would probably be difficult for her to conceive another child for the time being.

Unless she entered into a contract, her mana would likely remain unstable.

I want to wring his neck right here and now.

Railey wanted nothing more than to twist Theo’s neck until it snapped.

But she couldn’t.

If he died so easily, the child who had once lived in her womb would have suffered such a meaningless end.

When no sound came from inside the room, Theo let out another sigh.

“……I understand how you feel. But wouldn’t it be better for everyone if you forgot about what had already happened as soon as possible? Besides…… Let’s talk about the rest once you come out.”

For some inexplicable reason, Theo couldn’t bring himself to open the door and enter.

Every time he reached for the doorknob, his hand would hesitate and stop.

Fine. She’ll come out tomorrow.

There was something Railey needed to know.

Immediately after she fell down the stairs, Theo had summoned a doctor. The doctor had confirmed that she had miscarried and warned that her poor physical condition would make it difficult for her to conceive again.

For some unknown reason, her body’s vital pathways had become obstructed, making another pregnancy nearly impossible.

Of course, the doctor knew nothing about Railey’s mana.

Well, there’s nothing I can do about that. I still have Anna, after all……

Once again, Theo failed to enter Railey’s room.

He glanced back as he turned to leave, but that strange, inexplicable force kept driving him away.

Railey spent her days in a daze, eating only the food the maids brought to her room. Even then, she barely managed to wet her lips.

“I want to get out of here. As soon as possible.”

She had no tears left to shed. At some point, her grief had faded as well, as though everything inside her had dried up.

Only her vacant eyes remained. She looked like someone who had lost even the last shred of hope for living.

She continued to pass one day after another, as though she were merely enduring life because she couldn’t bring herself to die.

“It’s not too late. Even now.”

Ren tapped his fingers against the table out of habit. His expression was displeased, and his eyes, filled with frustration, settled on Railey’s hollow gaze.

“Just say the word.”

“It’s simple. All you have to do is tell me.”

“……Ren.”

“Kill him. That’s all you have to say.”

Ren abruptly rose from his seat and rubbed his face irritably.

Fortunately, he had been able to use his own power to protect Railey, but he hadn’t been able to save her child.

He was growing tired of watching Railey suffer because of a situation that should never have happened in the first place. That lunatic of a duke still hadn’t come to his senses and continued to bring tears to her eyes.

He has no idea whose displeasure he’s incurred.

If Theo knew who was watching Railey—including Ren himself—he would never dare treat her so carelessly.

“How about killing everyone in the ducal residence?”

So far, Ren had managed to stabilize Railey’s mana with his own power. But he wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep doing it.

Perhaps if they simply eliminated everyone in the ducal residence and lived here alone, Railey might finally find some peace.

“……I can’t let them die so easily.”

Railey shook her head.

She wanted them to sink into despair just as deeply as she had.

They needed to experience firsthand what it felt like to have their entire world crumble around them. They needed to understand, down to their very bones, the agony of losing someone precious.

In a few days, the newspaper reporting the duke’s scandal would arrive. The imperial palace was also reviewing her divorce petition, and she would receive a response as soon as the process was complete.

“What about the things I asked you to get?”

“Here.”

Ren handed her a document envelope.

Railey accepted it and carefully examined its contents. It contained a detailed account of the ducal family’s assets, along with an exhaustive breakdown of their finances.

“I’ve taken care of everything exactly as you instructed. I’ll ask you again, though. Are you absolutely sure you don’t want him dead?”

Railey nodded.

Ren dropped heavily into his seat, crossed his arms, and grimaced.

“That bastard doesn’t even deserve to be treated like a human being. So why shouldn’t we kill him?”

“Ren.”

“Ah—fine! I’ll shut up now.”

Ren raised both hands in surrender and sighed.

I need to clean up the trash surrounding her.

If those people insisted on clinging to life, then he would simply kill them himself when Railey wasn’t looking.

In truth, Ren had already set one thing in motion without Railey’s permission.

Tch. I don’t particularly like this, but if I tell her later, she’ll make an even bigger fuss.

If he couldn’t get his hands dirty himself, he wanted to borrow someone else’s hands to kill them instead.

Someone who might be even angrier about this situation than he was.

Ren entertained the thought for a moment before breaking into a satisfied smile.

“Railey, I definitely haven’t done anything, all right?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Nothing. I just wanted to make that clear.”

Ren shrugged as though it were nothing important.

Railey had stopped moving for a moment, but when he urged her to hurry up and get ready, she resumed what she had been doing.

“Railey, there’s something else about you…… Never mind.”

Ren had been about to bring up Caber, but he closed his mouth instead.

The moment Caber had heard that Railey had miscarried, he had rushed straight to the ducal residence.

“Just remember that there’s someone who thinks only of you and would do anything for your sake.”

“Could it be…… Caber? Did he come here?”

Railey turned to look at Ren.

Just as their gazes met, her eyes drifted down to the object in his hand.

“What’s that?”

“Oh, this…… I wasn’t sure whether you’d accept it, so I was going to leave it here without telling you.”

Ren quietly handed her a small box.

When Railey opened it, she found a pair of adorable baby shoes inside. They looked as though someone had knitted them by hand.

“I couldn’t bring myself to throw them away.”

Railey took the tiny shoes out with trembling hands.

Then she saw the note wishing her congratulations, along with Caber’s name written on it.

And just like that, she crumbled all over again.

“Ugh…… sob……”

All the things she had once suspected Caber of doing behind the scenes had indeed been his work.

She had hated him and pushed him away, yet he had continued watching over her in secret all this time.

Even so, Railey couldn’t bring herself to reach out to him.

She didn’t want to return to the place she had once fled of her own accord.

“Don’t cry.”

Ren wrapped an arm around Railey’s shoulders and gently rubbed her back.

Maybe I really should have thrown those away.

Ren squeezed his eyes shut, regretting what he had just done.

Still, he couldn’t bring himself to disregard Caber’s efforts. Even today, Caber had come by to leave medicine that could soothe Railey’s unstable mana.

He might punch me if he finds out I showed her those.

Ren lamented inwardly, swallowing a bitter smile.

Someone entered Railey’s room while she was asleep.

Ren, who had been guarding her, raised his head and looked at the unwelcome visitor.

“……How is she?”

Caber approached Railey’s bedside and examined her carefully.

She looked haggard, as though she hadn’t been able to sleep properly for days.

He raised a hand and gently placed it against her forehead. Black mana began to ripple beneath his palm.

Almost immediately, Railey’s expression softened, and she sank into a more peaceful sleep.

“Well, I suppose you’re useful in situations like this.”

“……I’ve decided. I’m going to kill him.”

Ren shook his head and folded his arms. His expression remained sour as he looked down at Railey, who was sleeping peacefully.

“Railey doesn’t want that. More importantly, what about the arrangements?”

“I heard the letter should be sent to the residence soon.”

“That’s taking longer than I expected.”

Caber sat beside Railey and brushed the sweat-dampened strands of hair away from her face.

The soft sound of her steady breathing filled the room.

His gaze fell on the sturdy barrier Ren had placed around the door.

“Oh, that? That piece of filth still hadn’t learned his lesson, so I had to take precautions.”

“Don’t tell me he tried something against Railey—”

“Something like that. But he wasn’t the only one.”

Theo, Anna, and even the maids acting on Anna’s orders had refused to leave Railey in peace.

In the end, Ren had resorted to magic.

He had enchanted the doorway so that anyone attempting to open Railey’s door would find themselves turning around and leaving without ever managing to enter.

Railey……

When Caber had heard that she had lost her child, he had been so shocked that he rushed straight to the ducal residence.

The moment he saw Railey sobbing in anguish, he had nearly lost control of himself. He had been on the verge of revealing himself and cutting off Theo’s head right then and there.

『Your Highness, you mustn’t! Please!』

『……Let go.』

『Even if it costs me my life, I cannot let you do this. Not this time.』

Despite the murderous aura that had felt as though it could tear his skin apart, Haban had refused to release Caber.

As a result, Haban had needed a full week of treatment.

Even so, he still believed that stopping Caber had been the right decision.

“Keep a close eye on her. You’re the only person I can trust to do that.”

“Whether you worry about her or not, I’ll protect her just as I’ve always done.”

Ren retorted as he rose from his seat.

He opened the window and gestured toward it with a tilt of his chin.

“So go back and take care of what you need to do.”

“……I’ll come back once everything is settled. Take good care of her until then.”

“By that time, we might not even be here anymore.”

Ren’s tone was indifferent.

Caber’s face twisted at his words, but he couldn’t remain here indefinitely.

From a distance, he could sense the knights waiting for him.

“I’ll be in touch.”

With heavy, reluctant steps, he finally left the ducal residence.

Ren watched the window through which Caber had departed and let out a sigh.

“I’ll never tell her. The only way Railey can be happy is if everyone forgets she ever existed.”

Ren locked the window and returned to Railey’s side.

Sitting beside her bed, he stayed awake throughout the night, keeping watch over her without closing his eyes even once.