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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Permeating Warmth (7)
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There was a reason Isaac was renowned as an alchemist.
Not long after she drank the medicine he made, the muscle aches that had plagued her whole body vanished. The crushing fatigue that had threatened to overwhelm her also receded.
‘Wow.’
After magic disappeared, modern alchemists worked much like pharmacists. They said that in ancient times, there were medicines that could completely heal wounds just by drinking them, but such things could no longer be found.
However, the medicine Isaac made was as effective as the mysterious elixirs created by alchemists of old.
She had only thought of him as a pretty person who smiled easily, but Isaac suddenly looked different to her.
As Ariana began to harbor a subtle respect for Isaac, he was asking Cyrus in a low voice.
“Cyrus, the Duchess wants to go to the Northern Territory too, right?”
“No.”
“What? So you’re trying to abduct her now? Marriage by abduction is what barbarians do.”
“I’m not getting married, nor am I abducting her. Why do you think I would marry that woman?”
Isaac wanted to retort, ‘Are you asking because you genuinely don’t know?’ but he stopped himself. It really seemed like he didn’t know.
Cyrus, who had lost his parents at a young age and lived only to solidify his position as the Northern Duke, was quite ignorant when it came to relationships between men and women.
“Then why do you let everyone call Miss Ariana the Duchess?”
“What concern is it of mine what people call that woman?”
“Oh, so it’s fine if I call Princess Charlotte Blenwit, who adores you, the Duchess. I’ve been calling the Princess the Duchess for a while now…”
Isaac felt Cyrus’s chilling gaze and stopped speaking. Cyrus spoke in a subtle tone.
“Don’t irritate me too much, Isaac.”
Isaac thought.
‘See! He gets this angry if I call the Princess the Duchess! He’s practically glaring daggers!’
Cyrus gazed intently at Ariana, who was with Rui, and said.
“That woman is intriguing.”
“Yes, I suppose she would be.”
“She lived confined in a mansion, doing chores like a maid, so where did she learn horsemanship?”
“Ah, now that you mention it… where did she learn it? It didn’t look like she’d only ridden once or twice.”
“Even with our investigations, there were limits to the information we could gather about that woman. If we find out how she learned all of that, we’d be able to use her easily.”
At Cyrus’s chilling tone, Isaac swallowed a sigh.
He knew why Cyrus put up walls against everyone and refused to let anyone in. There were only a handful of people who knew him as well as Isaac did.
With nothing explained about what had happened to the previous Northern Duke and Duchess, Cyrus’s position as the Northern Duke seemed solid, but in reality, it was like a candle in the wind.
A small candle that would vanish without a trace if someone merely blew a gentle puff of air.
While he understood Cyrus’s inability to feel secure until that candle became a lamp, and that lamp a raging fire, he worried that Cyrus might come to regret this.
“Use her? Are you still saying that?”
“Otherwise, what reason would I have to help that woman?”
Since Cyrus genuinely looked like he didn’t know the reason, Isaac placed his hands on Cyrus’s shoulders and spoke earnestly.
“Whatever it is, if you keep saying that, you’ll definitely regret it someday.”
Cyrus chuckled dismissively and removed Isaac’s hands.
“Regret has no place in my life, Isaac. Regret over past events only brings despair.”
+++
Rui and Noah whispered throughout dinner.
As soon as dinner was over, Rui went into the forest, and Noah brought large, round stones to the fire and began to heat them.
‘What are they doing?’
Ariana, feeling languid from a full meal, barely managed to lift her heavy eyelids and watched what Noah was doing.
‘Is it some kind of spell unique to the Northern Territory? Or do Northern Territory people chew on rocks?’
The Northern Territory, where magic still lingered, was a mysterious land. It seemed to hold countless unknown things that Ariana knew nothing about.
Soon, Rui, who had gone into the forest, returned with a large log slung over her shoulder.
Thud!
When she set the log down, the ground vibrated slightly. Rui showed no sign of effort at all, despite carrying something so heavy.
Rui drew her sword and began to hollow out the inside of the log. Her dazzling swordsmanship poured onto the log. Wood chips flew up in dazzling arcs as she worked.
What she created was a large wooden tub, big enough for at least two people.
‘What are they really doing?’
Ariana was increasingly at a loss. Even the sleepiness that had been weighing her down vanished, captivated by Rui and Noah’s strange actions.
Rui then lifted the hollowed-out log with a flourish, went to the lake, filled it with water, and returned.
Thud!
When the water-filled wooden tub was set down, Noah took out two daggers and used them to pick up hot, glowing stones, dropping them into the tub. One, two, three…
Several hot stones plunked into the water filling the wooden tub. Rui dipped her hand lightly into the water, then gave Noah a slight nod.
Noah then lifted the water-filled wooden tub with a flourish, carried it into the bushes, and returned empty-handed.
Rui approached Ariana.
“Duchess, your bathwater is ready.”
Ariana was dumbfounded and couldn’t reply. She merely looked up at Rui, her eyes wide.
“The water has been warmed, so you can bathe comfortably.”
Ariana covered her mouth with her hand, blinked, and then asked.
“Just now… did you prepare my bathwater just now?”
“Yes.”
“Ah…”
Cutting down a tree, hollowing it out, fetching water, heating the water by adding hot stones—all those troublesome tasks, all for her.
No one had ever done such troublesome things for her before, so Ariana didn’t know how to react.
A poignant emotion etched itself onto her heart, which she had thought was frozen solid.
“I understand if you’re disinclined to wash.”
Cyrus’s low voice brought her back to her senses.
“But since the bathwater has been prepared, why don’t you go and wash? I won’t peek.”
His voice was serious, but his words were playful.
Ariana turned to Cyrus and said.
“Thank you, Your Grace.”
“I didn’t order it, so there’s no reason for me to receive your thanks.”
Then did Rui and Noah do it on their own? Why, when there was no reason to?
Instead of expressing her doubts, she spoke honestly.
“Thank you, Rui. Noah.”
At Ariana’s thanks, Noah smiled brightly. It was a pleasant smile.
+++
When crossing from the Western Territory to the Cameria Empire, they didn’t use the usual road but a rugged mountain path.
Since the relationship between the Western Territory and the Cameria Empire wasn’t bad, the borders weren’t heavily guarded. So, even though the mountain path was treacherous, they could easily cross without being caught by watchful eyes.
From within the Empire, the Western Duke’s influence didn’t reach, so they stopped at a small village instead of camping outdoors. It was a village on the outskirts of the border, without even an inn, but a kind village chief lent them an empty house.
By the time they entered the village, the sun had long since set, so everyone went to bed as soon as they finished a simple dinner.
Having a room to herself after a long time, Ariana felt strangely empty and couldn’t easily fall asleep.
Lying on the floor, quietly gazing at the ceiling of the bedless room, the journey with Cyrus’s party came to mind.
The uncomfortable sleeping arrangements, meals hunted and roasted with only salt seasoning whenever needed, the bathwater Rui and Noah had prepared, and the stamina potions Isaac supplied one by one each day.
Thanks to them, she had been able to come this far safely and comfortably.
Every time she recalled the journey, it felt like a dream.
Had she ever received such gentle consideration in her life?
Even if Cyrus intended to use Ariana, it was an excessive amount of consideration.
‘It feels like I’m going to get burned.’
If he was trying to dull her heart to make her easier to use, he was employing a very effective method. Because she felt reluctant to part, and wished to continue traveling like this.
‘No.’
Ariana coldly cut off the subtle hope that was budding within her.
‘Think of the Third Prince.’
The Third Prince Harold had been utterly sweet. From their first meeting to their last moment, he had been kind and tender. The touch of his hand as he stroked her hair, the look in his eyes that cherished her, his affectionate tone.
She had believed all of it without question, which led to her cruel betrayal and horrific death.
She had been resurrected, given a new chance, and couldn’t repeat the same mistake.
‘Remember your life.’
A child no one loved. A child no one wanted. A child who could be used without affection. A child who could be used in any way for one’s own purpose.
‘You’re that kind of child, Ariana.’
If her own parents couldn’t give her trust and affection, why would a stranger?
‘You were like that even from within the womb.’
Her maternal grandfather, her birth mother, her older and younger sisters, her husband, and her in-laws, all of them.
‘They all tried to use me as they pleased. Because a child even her parents didn’t want could be used and discarded like that.’
Would Cyrus Karha, the Northern Duke, be any different?
Ariana recalled his red eyes, which always seemed to be observing her. She etched the schemes and suspicions held within those blood-red eyes into her heart.
‘This wasn’t just some fun travel game.’
The Bronte family had suffered a major blow from the series of incidents. The names of Victoria and Rachel, who had lived without a single blemish, were now stained with soot.
However, as members of the Western Duke’s bloodline, they wouldn’t crumble from something like that.
They would soon restore their reputation.
‘Victoria will want the Empress’s position. Helena will be content with being a Duchess of the Empire. The Western Duke and Rachel will do anything to make those two Empress and Duchess.’
They would recover their reputation for about a year, and then underground maneuvers would begin.
‘In about three years, Victoria will have a splendid debutante ball and receive the Empress’s favor.’
It had happened that way before.
Victoria had been praised as the most beautiful and wise lady at that year’s debutante ball and captured the attention of the princes.
‘Three years. Work hard until then to climb as high as possible, Victoria, Helena.’
A chilling smile played on Ariana’s lips.
‘Because the higher one climbs, the greater the pain when they fall.’
+++
Morning broke, and she hadn’t slept a wink.
Rubbing her tired, gritty eyes, she left the room to find Cyrus’s party already awake and preparing to leave.
It was a small space that served as both kitchen and sitting room, yet they moved so silently that Ariana hadn’t even known they were awake.
Noah, spotting Ariana, approached her with a bright, innocent smile.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, thanks to you.”
“The village chief shared some ingredients with us. It seems we can make something other than roasted meat for a while.”
“That’s good.”
Ariana gave Noah a gentle smile, then approached Cyrus. Cyrus sat cross-legged on a worn chair, languidly watching his subordinates.
When Ariana stood before him, he glanced up. Ariana stood in a proper posture and spoke to him.
“Thank you for safely bringing me this far. I will repay this kindness whenever Your Grace needs it.”
