Chapter 59

59

"Let's go, Charlotte. Just in case, you have to keep calling me 'Dr. Soph' until we're out of Veronice."

"Yes, I'll remember. Let's hurry."

Charlotte quickly gathered her belongings. Among them, there were a few that she stubbornly refused to let me carry, so I could only shoulder a small bag containing gold coins and magical tools.

Before leaving the room, I double-checked the letter and divorce papers I had left for Theodor. I placed them on the desk where they would be easily seen, so he would find them soon.

The letter contained my farewell and my speculations about the crimes the Everett family and Owen might have committed.

I also attached a document summarizing the information I had gradually gathered over time. ……Even though Theodor probably already knew this information.

‘……I hope it helps a little.’

Still, as a final act…… I wanted to leave behind all negative feelings. Although Theodor had hurt me, he wasn't a bad person.

"Dr. Soph, let's go."

"Right…… Yes, let's go."

On the desk, next to the letter, lay the coin from Camille and the peridot necklace Theodor had given me.

Since I hadn't mentioned the coin yet, he would only think he had lost it. He wouldn't know I had it.

And the peridot necklace……

"……"

……I don't know why, but I couldn't dispose of it. Perhaps the lingering affection I hadn't realized I had was all contained in that necklace.

So, let's leave it behind with the necklace.

Let's leave everything behind.

To a place where no one knows me.

"……Let's go, Charlotte."

I finally opened the door and left the room. I hope this journey, where I leave everything behind, is smooth.

* * *

"This way!"

As we entered a deserted road, a young man from the errand guild, who had been waiting for us, hurriedly guided us.

With little time left, Charlotte and I quickened our steps. Escaping from the Valentina Castle was surprisingly easy due to our disguises, but someone might discover the unconscious knights patrolling the corridors.

However, Jane was impersonating me, so for now, they would think I was asleep. No knight would dare to intrude into a lady's room, so they would only take a quick look at the door.

But the problem would arise once Theodor was informed that the knights had passed out. He would surely check personally and immediately realize that the person in my bed was Jane.

‘……I might be found out within an hour. If I'm lucky, it will be the next morning.’

I don't know if Theodor will send knights to catch me, but based on his past behavior of confining and monitoring me, he will likely try to find me. After all, from his perspective, my escape would be infuriating.

‘……I'm sorry. I'm causing you trouble like this.’

This incident will soon become a topic of discussion throughout the kingdom. I can already imagine the rumors that will spread. I feel somewhat sorry for Theodor, who will be at the center of the gossip. ……But the rumors will die down quickly, and this was my best option.

The only way for me to be happy.

Can't I be happy at least once? My life has always been plagued by misfortune, but I want to spend the last part of it in peace.

In a place without the intrigue of the noble society, without Everett, and without Valentina……

If I can live as just one person.

And if I can finally close my eyes, wishing for Charlotte's happiness, I won't feel sad anymore.

"This is the carriage! Hurry up!"

The young man gestured in front of the black carriage. Charlotte and I quickly climbed aboard.

The door closed with a thud, and the carriage soon started moving.

The carriage we were in traveled for a while. When I peeked outside by lifting the curtain slightly, the landscape of the somewhat desolate northern region, in contrast to the central and southern regions, unfolded.

The world was shrouded in deep darkness, and the carriage had now completely left the Valentina territory, entering a new route. I stopped peeking outside, straightened my posture, and closed my eyes.

This is how I left. The place where I had lived for over a year and six months.

"……"

The river that flowed along the castle, the blue forget-me-nots near it, the golden reeds, the red maples, and the high, massive mountains to the north, the large oak tree in the Valentina Castle garden……

And the old ash tree that Theodor often visited and gazed at, for some reason.

It was time for all of this to be buried in the past and forgotten.

The short time I spent in Veronice…… was relatively peaceful, I realized later. Compared to when I lived in the Everett Castle.

So, let's forget the pain and take only the good memories.

So that when I think of Veronice in the future, it won't hurt.

I closed my eyes and silently whispered a farewell.

Goodbye, Veronice.

Goodbye, Theodor.

* * *

Theodor woke up earlier than usual.

Due to his experience on battlefields infested with monsters, his intuition was highly developed, and he could instinctively sense that something was amiss.

He got out of bed and casually draped a robe over his nightshirt. He put on slippers and hurried out of the room.

The corridor was quiet, shrouded in darkness without even a hint of dawn. Theodor quickened his pace, feeling an ominous premonition.

Soon, he reached the corridor where the lady's room was located and came to an abrupt stop.

The knights he had assigned to monitor Lily were sprawled on the floor.

Theodor hurriedly approached them. Fortunately, they weren't dead, but they were sound asleep, having abandoned their duties.

"……"

Theodor, feeling both astonished and furious, grabbed the doorknob of the lady's room. Before punishing the knights, he had a more urgent matter to address.

He needed to confirm that she was safely inside the room.

Click, he opened the door and entered without hesitation. He paused for a moment when he saw the figure lying on the bed.

Long, silver hair was scattered on the pillow. ……At first glance, it was convincing enough to be mistaken. But her hair color was different. It was whiter, with a pearl-like luster……

"……"

Theodor, stopping his thoughts, approached the bed in large strides. He then abruptly pulled off the cheap silver wig that had protruded from the blanket.

"Get up. Dr. Soph."

"……?"

Jane Soph, startled awake, blinked in confusion.

Jane, still groggy as if in a dream, looked around dazedly before suddenly regaining her senses upon seeing Theodor.

"Ah…… Your Grace? What, what is this―"

Jane stammered, flustered. Theodor, quickly assessing the situation, glared at her silently.

Judging that Jane wouldn't know anything, he turned away without hesitation. His sharp eyes scanned the room and stopped at the desk.

‘That is……’

Thanks to his excellent vision, he immediately recognized what was on the desk. He hurriedly approached it. His heart was pounding so fast it felt like it might burst. As he reached the desk, he extended his hand and picked up the old coin.

It was his brother's coin.

A memento left by his brother. An object filled with brotherly memories. Something very precious.

‘Why is this here……’

He had thought it was lost. He never imagined she would have it. ……And it wasn't mentioned in his diary, nor did he remember giving it to her when he had lost his memory.

……So, did she steal it?

As if by habit, Theodor unconsciously suspected her, but immediately felt self-loathing.

Even now, with things this bad, I……

His hand tightened around the coin. Clenching his teeth, he ran a hand over his face and looked up again.

He scanned the desk once more. A letter, divorce papers, and…… a peridot necklace.

"……"

The pale green peridot sparkled transparently. The white pearls, strung on the necklace, shimmered with a silvery luster. It was a necklace he had given her long ago.

He had thought it suited her from the moment he first saw it. He still vividly remembered the moment he had put it around her neck. Her slender, white neck, the tingling sensation that ran through his fingertips when it touched her soft skin.

……He had denied it, and continued to deny it. After admitting it to himself halfway, he had suffered even more. The daughter of the Duke of Everett, a woman who was essentially a subordinate of his father and brothers……

That's how he had thought of her, back then.