"You’re finally awake."
"..."
As soon as she opened her eyes, the first face Alicia saw made her swallow dryly.
Perhaps due to the lingering remnants of a nightmare, her mind was hazy, yet those distinct golden eyes were unmistakable.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Are you in a lot of pain?"
"..."
Like someone in a trance, Alicia blankly stared at Cabelenus, trying to piece together what had happened to her.
She was certain she'd been attacked by Velita, confirmed that Elena was alive, and at the end, that man...
As her thoughts reached that point, Alicia's eyes darted anxiously around her surroundings.
The familiar bedroom appeared serene as if nothing had happened.
Only then did relief wash over her, and her body felt drained of all strength.
"I’ll call for the physician."
Misinterpreting Alicia’s silence, Cabelenus immediately stood up.
"Don’t go."
Alicia hastily grabbed the hem of Cabelenus’s clothing.
She didn’t know how long she’d been unconscious, but just speaking made her throat feel scratchy and raw.
“...Are you okay?"
"Yes..."
She reflexively answered, but in truth, she wasn’t okay at all.
Her entire body ached as if she’d been beaten.
"Even in this state, you still lie."
Cabelenus clicked his tongue and placed a hand on Alicia’s cheek.
It was warm.
Like a cold-blooded creature seeking warmth, Alicia leaned into his hand.
On any other day, she wouldn’t have dared, but her muddled mind made such things possible.
"You’ve been asleep for three full days."
"Three days..."
It felt like she’d only taken a short nap, yet he said she’d been asleep for that long.
Alicia's eyes were spinning.
Having heard that she had slept for three whole days, Cabelenus's face seemed unusually more haggard than usual.
Of course, the difference was so subtle that she wasn’t entirely sure even as she thought it.
"If you hadn’t woken up by today, I couldn’t have guaranteed the physician’s life."
"I-I’m sorry."
Alicia tilted her head to the side.
"There’s no need for you to apologise. It’s my fault for not properly securing the palace defences."
Cabelenus instinctively furrowed his brow in response to the vanished warmth.
"Your Grace is busy."
"That's a different issue from being busy."
Cabelenus let out a short sigh.
Though he was aware of the rebel forces, he hadn’t paid them much attention.
When considering Neustein’s regular army, the level of the rebel forces was clear. It was more advantageous for suppression to leave the amateurish army alone until they revealed their own weaknesses, rather than needlessly provoking and scattering them.
However, the calculated decisions he always made had put Alicia’s life in jeopardy.
"...I heard there may be a scar left on your palm."
He wanted to apologise.
But the words wouldn’t come out.
In the end, what left Cabelenus’s lips was something entirely different from an apology.
"This is fine. I’ve always had scars, anyway."
"..."
"...Did I make another mistake?"
Alicia’s nose wrinkled slightly, her expression troubled.
"No."
Cabelenus shook his head, but his expression remained tense.
"But..."
"I thought I told you not to worry about what others think."
"I'm sorry."
"I've lost count of how many times I've heard you say you're sorry."
"I’m sor—no, no... um..."
Alicia struggled for a long time to find the right words but eventually clamped her mouth shut.
Cabelenus looked down at her lying there and sighed again.
"We’ve got a long way to go."
"..."
"It should be fine, though. We have plenty of time. I won’t rush you, so take your time."
‘Until you’re truly okay.’
Cabelenus left the rest unsaid and placed his hand on Alicia's forehead as she shrank back.
There was no need to be hasty.
To fulfil all the conditions set by Zerpenus and make Alicia the Grand Duchess, much time was needed.
The excessive concern for what others think and the tendency to be startled at the slightest gesture could be changed gradually.
Because she would never leave his side from now on.
・・・・・
"If you have any other injuries, please feel free to let me know."
"N-no. There's no more."
Alicia hurriedly shook her head from side to side.
It was the first time she had ever seen a priest in pure white robes, but she had heard plenty of rumours about them.
Priests with healing abilities were rare and precious, even in the vast empire, and as a result, it was well-known that their services commanded an astronomical fee. Even Alicia, who was naïve to the ways of the world, had heard this famous story.
She couldn’t even begin to imagine how much Cabelenus must have paid to bring the priest all the way to Neustein.
"Stop holding back and speak clearly."
Cabelenus frowned and grabbed Alicia's hand.
Although he had done everything he could to bring the priest as quickly as possible, the distance from the capital to Neustein meant that the priest arrived only after Alicia had regained consciousness.
As a result, he had to endure anxiety while she was unconscious, but he planned to use this opportunity to remove all the scars from Alicia’s body.
"But, the priest's healing..."
She had heard that not only was summoning a priest costly but each time a wound was treated, there was an additional fee to pay.
It made no sense to spend a fortune on treating scars that were already healed and no longer caused any pain.
"Stop talking nonsense. Let’s start the treatment right here."
Cabelenus easily dismissed Alicia's resistance and revealed her scars to the priest.
The priest silently healed the scars that Cabelenus pointed out, one by one.
"It seems I’ve healed all the visible scars for now. Are there any others?"
"Uh, well..."
Alicia hesitated, carefully observing Cabelenus's expression.
"If you’re planning to say you won’t get treated anymore, don’t even bother."
"It's not that..."
"I’m sure I told you to say it properly if you were going to speak."
"Well, the scars are underneath my clothes, so..."
Alicia couldn’t finish her sentence and bowed her head deeply.
Cabelenus glanced at Alicia in confusion for a moment before finally understanding what she meant and pressing his forehead.
"It seems I made a mistake. I’ll step outside, so make sure to treat every single scar. I’ll confirm later…"
Cabelenus cut himself off mid-sentence.
He let out a somewhat rough, deep breath, then turned and walked out.
"His Grace, the Grand Duke, has a surprisingly cute side.”
The moment Cabelenus stepped out, the priest chuckled softly.
"Pardon?”
Alicia was so flustered that she could only blink her eyes repeatedly.
"Don’t you think so?"
"That’s..."
Alicia was usually open to accepting others' opinions, but this time, she couldn’t easily nod in agreement.
No matter how much she thought about it, 'cute' was a word that just didn’t suit Cabelenus.
"When His Grace called me so urgently, I wondered what was going on. It turns out, he was hiding a lady like you."
"It seems like you know His Grace well.”
"You could say that. Not anymore, but when he was younger, he often came for treatment."
"I see."
Alicia awkwardly smiled and avoided meeting the priest’s eyes.
For some reason, she felt a pang in her chest.
"My name is Natalie. I am the twelfth priest of the Temple of Peullaim."
"Oh, I..."
Alicia couldn't find the words to say and tightly closed her mouth.
Although priests forwent surnames as a symbol of dedicating everything to God, the same wasn’t true for the common people.
Those without surnames were typically slaves or commoners.
If she revealed the Neustein family name, it would expose her as a member of the fallen royal family. But if she remained silent, it would imply she was a slave.
"It’s okay. I’ve heard a bit about you already."
Natalie smiled gently, as if she understood everything, and stroked Alicia’s back.
The scars touched by the pure white light enveloping Natalie’s hand disappeared so easily that it was hard to believe her eyes.
"You’ve heard about me?"
"Yes."
Sure enough, the person who told her must have been Cabelenus.
Alicia bit her lip, thinking of the man who had just left the room.
There was no reason to be disappointed, but thinking of Cabelenus telling Natalie everything made her stomach churn.
"...Are you saying you know that I'm a slave?"
"I'm sorry if that made you uncomfortable."
"Pardon?"
"It can be unpleasant when stories you don’t know about reach other people's ears. Even if you get angry with me, I have nothing to say."
Alicia's eyes widened like a rabbit's at Natalie's sincere apology.
Priests with healing abilities held a status comparable to nobles.
Even if Natalie were to slap Alicia right here, there would be no consequences.
"I didn’t intend to hear your story either, but he doesn’t have anyone to talk to. When he can’t bear it alone anymore, he comes to me and unloads all sorts of stories."
"..."
Hearing Natalie’s words, Alicia suddenly imagined Cabelenus being with her.
It was difficult to imagine Cabelenus having a friendly conversation with anyone, but it seemed possible with the priest standing before her.
Her warm smile suited her perfectly, like the sunshine pouring down in spring.
"I’m really sorry. Let me apologise again. Are you very upset?"
"No, I'm not upset. Instead, I was concerned that you might find treating a slave unpleasant."
"Being a slave doesn’t make a difference. Before God, we are all the same."
Her eyes sparkled with unwavering conviction.
Despite her bare face and simple priestly robes, she was remarkably beautiful, but it wasn’t just her looks that made her radiant.
"Don’t worry too much. Everything will be fine. Both of them are stubborn, but in the end, there’s always only one winner. It’ll be the same this time."
She was a good person.
Alicia could easily tell that just from exchanging a few words.
But it was strange.
The more Alicia thought about how good Natalie was, the heavier her heart felt.
"...You seem to be really close with His Grace."
"Does it look like that? Actually, that—"
"How much longer are you going to keep treating her?"
"We’re almost done, so stop waiting outside the door. Obsessive men are not attractive, you know."
"..."
Seeing Natalie interact with Cabelenus so casually made Alicia’s heart pound for some reason.
However, neither Cabelenus nor Natalie, nor anyone else, called out the rude remark.
That was how close they were.
In that moment of realisation, she felt her heart sink with a thud.
"It seems that His Grace dislikes women spending time together."
Natalie pouted as if disappointed, then continued to heal the rest of Alicia’s scars.
But Alicia could no longer bring herself to smile while looking at her.
She couldn’t help but think that Cabelenus and Natalie made quite a good match.
・・・・・
"How is your body feeling? Are there any other places that hurt?"
"No, I’m fine. Thanks to the priest's meticulous care, it doesn’t hurt at all anymore."
As soon as the treatment was finished, Natalie left hurriedly, saying she had other matters to attend to, and Cabelenus didn’t try to stop her.
At a glance, there didn’t seem to be any particular emotions exchanged between them.
"Her skills are certainly reliable."
Even so, Alicia often found herself recalling Natalie, watching the two speak about each other as though they were well-acquainted.
The thought that if Cabelenus were to marry, it would likely be someone like Natalie kept bothering her.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
Cabelenus tilted his head at Alicia's gaze, which was fixed intently on him.
"No, it's nothing."
Although Alicia waved her hand rather abruptly, her exaggerated reaction only served to arouse the man's suspicion.
"If you have any questions, just ask."
"No. There isn't anything like that."
‘What is your relationship with the priest?’
The question surged up her throat, but she couldn’t bring herself to ask.
Such a question wasn’t befitting of a slave.
"I have one."
"Pardon?"
"You may not be curious about me, but I am curious about you."
"..."
Cabelenus deliberately crossed his arms and nodded.
Alicia looked at him with a troubled expression.
"This might be a bit late to ask, but was there perhaps a man you liked?"
"Wh-What?"
It was a completely unexpected question.
Caught off guard, Alicia could only gape like a fish out of water, flustered and speechless.
"I'm asking if there was a man you kept in your heart."
"N-No... I didn’t have the time for something like that..."
"Well, was there anyone you felt even a little affection for?"
"Of course, there wasn’t anyone like that either..."
‘Why is he asking such things?’
Alicia still couldn’t hide her bewilderment and merely muttered under her breath.
But Cabelenus, the one who had thrown her into this state of turmoil, simply nodded with a satisfied expression.
"Then, that's a relief."
‘What exactly is a relief?’
Alicia barely managed to suppress the question that almost slipped out of her mouth.
Cabelenus’s behaviour had not changed overnight.
After Velita's attack, his attitude towards Alicia changed.
Gossip spread that Cabelenus's favour had faded since he no longer mindlessly bought things for Alicia, but the parties involved remained indifferent.
No, to be precise, it was only Alicia who felt that way.
Upon hearing the raucous rumours, Cabelenus began arming the soldiers of Blanche within the castle from that very day.
There was no need to issue an order just to quell the rumours.
The sight of soldiers standing guard in black armour, a symbol of death, reminded them of the fear they had long forgotten in their peaceful lives, and they quietly fell silent.
While it was true that poverty had decreased and the national treasury had improved day by day under Cabelenus's rule over Neustein, the fact remained that he was an invader who had brought about the ruin of a kingdom.
There was no telling when the mercy he was offering might turn into a sharp blade.
People naturally began to avoid speaking about Cabelenus, and the rumours about Alicia also began to fade.
Cabelenus no longer stood by and allowed Alicia to be the subject of others' gossip.
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