Chapter 24

The owner of the voice was Ivana.

Ivana ran up to us, out of breath.

"Are you hurt anywhere?"

"What happened?"

"Didn't you see Lord Amantha?"

"Oh, I just met him. He was with the Lady."

At my straightforward answer, Ivana's face turned pale.

"…Young Master, Miss Elly. Next time, just avoid the Lady."

"Why?"

In response to my question, Ivana hesitated before answering.

"Lady Amantha is not well. She is suffering from a serious illness. It's a condition where her memory keeps fading."

Ivana gave an awkward smile.

She seemed to find it difficult to explain to us children.

"It will get worse. She is not in good health."

"Why is she not in good health?"

Ivana hesitated before speaking.

"…Lord Amantha and Lady Amantha have one son, Lord Jerit. The Lady's health deteriorated significantly after giving birth to Jerit. Many people become unwell after childbirth."

Ivana seemed to be trying to explain as simply as possible.

"If someone with memory loss falls ill, even an adult can suddenly become like a baby."

She gave a bitter smile.

"Babies are hard to control. You never know what they might do."

"Is there no way to cure it?"

"I don't know. I'm not sure about that. I've heard that patients who lose their memory can sometimes regain it when they encounter a specific object or person…"

Ivana trailed off and shook her head.

"I'm not sure about that either."

"I see."

I nodded silently.

Occlumency disease is an incurable illness that causes memory loss and gradual degeneration.

'She must have thought I had changed overnight.'

That's why she told us to avoid her.

But the Lady's condition didn't seem that severe.

She even called out the Duke's name as soon as she saw him.

"Please, Young Master, Miss. If you see the Lady in the future, inform another servant first. Do you understand?"

Ivana asked as if trying to get a promise from us.

A person with Occlumency disease is hard to control. They become like a baby in an adult's body.

But is leaving her alone the answer?

Her trembling figure wouldn't leave my mind.

"Um, I'm not sure yet."

So I just laughed it off.

Ivana let out a faint sigh and smiled.

"It's okay. You'll understand later."

She straightened her body, which she had bent to make eye contact.

"Now, come inside. It's getting colder."

"Okay. Let's go, Demian."

I held Demian's hand and entered the Duke's mansion.

* * *

Lord Amantha sighed deeply.

Lady Amantha, Viera, glanced at him with a face like she was sitting on a bed of thorns.

"Darling…"

"I had to assign a lot of servants to keep her safe because it's dangerous."

At the Duke's low voice, she closed her mouth.

"Now she's sneaking off again."

"…Darling, I—"

"I know. For that moment, you weren't yourself."

The Duke muttered in a resigned voice and rubbed his face.

Viera, who was not in good health, was suffering from memory loss.

She had regained some composure now, but the frequency of her episodes was increasing day by day.

Despite his warnings to the servants, she managed to escape the mansion somehow.

One night, unable to bear it any longer, he shouted, and she disappeared again, only to be found asleep near a cliff.

He thought to himself.

If this continues, he might lose his wife forever.

But he couldn't tie her up.

Viera loved freedom more than anyone, and he was the one who had restrained her.

It was because Viera had a child.

At first, he was happy. Viera had been eagerly waiting for a child.

But after giving birth, Viera's health rapidly declined.

And now, she had also developed memory loss.

The Empire's medical knowledge was still unable to cure Occlumency disease.

So, the Duke had entrusted the mineral development to his son, Jerit, but he couldn't stay by her side forever.

'Maybe…'

Perhaps she was losing her memory because she wanted to forget everything.

With deep guilt, Amantha muttered in a defeated voice.

"I don't know what to do."

At the Duke's muttering, Viera tightly closed her mouth.

She knew. She knew she had an incurable disease.

But by the time she regained her senses, everything had already happened.

"I'll be more careful from now on."

Viera forced a bright smile. The more depressed she was, the more worried her husband's face became.

"But thanks to those children today, I'm alive."

She changed the subject to lighten the mood.

"…Children?"

At Viera's words, the Duke, who had been rubbing his temples, looked at her.

"Marvin, you saw them too. The blonde girl. She melted the ice from my hands and gave me a scarf. She even took me to a warm greenhouse."

Viera smiled brightly.

"They are really kind and angelic children."

The Duke couldn't take his eyes off his wife's face, which had bloomed with a rare bright smile.

It could be an act.

The children had only been at the Duke's mansion for a short time, but they could have found out that Viera was ill if they had wanted to.

But…

"Approaching my wife must have been for this reason. I have no intention of adopting them. Don't use such cowardly tactics. They won't work on me."

Why was his heart so heavy?

As the Duke's face darkened, Viera smiled faintly.

"Marvin."

Her wrinkled hand rested on the Duke's.

"Come with me tomorrow. We'll meet the children again."

"…"

"And let's apologize together. Can you do that?"

The Duke didn't answer, but Viera waited patiently.

After a long while, the Duke slowly nodded.

Viera beamed.

* * *

The next day, Demian and I were playing in the room.

"Demian, your skin is really good."

"El, Elly…"

To be precise, I was sitting turned toward Demian, pinching his cheek, while he had his eyes tightly shut, unsure of what to do.

"How can it be so soft? It seems better than mine."

"No, no. Elly's is better."

"No, yours is better. Do you want to feel it?"

I turned my cheek slightly, as if offering it.

Demian was startled and shook his head vigorously.

"No, no. I can't. How could I…"

"Then can I keep touching you? I feel good every time I touch your cheek."

"Really?"

Demian's eyes widened. He then closed his mouth, which had been gaping, and nodded.

"Um…"

The agreement was made. Seizing the moment, I quickly pinched Demian's cheek.

Maybe because I had touched it so much, his cheeks were not just warm but hot.

So cute! I suppressed the urge to hug Demian tightly.

"Excuse me, but I must interrupt."

At that moment, Roine entered the room.

"Lord Amantha and Lady Amantha have come to see you."

"Us?"

I widened my eyes and stood up.

As Roine opened the door, the Duke and the Lady really did enter.

"…Good morning, Young Master. Miss."

The Duke greeted us with a slightly lowered voice.

The Lady, who was beside him, also bowed her head. She seemed much better than yesterday.

"Why have you come?"

Is there still something to be questioned? I looked at him with suspicion, but the Duke approached us confidently.

Then he suddenly bowed his head to us.

I blinked in confusion.

"…I'm sorry."

"Lord, Lord Amantha?"

"I misunderstood Young Master and Miss Elly without knowing the truth. I want to apologize for that."

I'm sorry.

He repeated those words and bowed even deeper.

I was at a loss for words.

It was my first time receiving an apology from an adult, especially an elderly grandfather.

In contrast, Demian remained expressionless.

There was no trace of his previous flustered state.

I hesitated to say it was okay.

Lord Amantha was the one who would gain great wealth from the minerals he discovered.

However, the use of the minerals would be discovered a bit later.

While the novel didn't provide a clear reason, seeing the Duke now, I understood.

'The Duke couldn't focus on other matters because he was worried about the Lady.'

Naturally, the development of the minerals was delayed.

From his attitude yesterday, the Duke seemed to be devoted to the Lady. Even with a caretaker present, he might not have felt at ease.

'Then…'

I thought for a moment and spoke.

"Can I make a small request as a way to accept your apology?"

"What is it?"

The Duke asked with a determined voice.

"Will you grant any request?"

"Yes, of course."

The Duke nodded, looking like he would grant any request.

So I deliberately smiled brightly and said,

"Don't be angry with the Lady."

"…Pardon?"

"Patients with Occlumency disease can easily become confused. So don't be angry with the Lady."

The Duke's face froze at my words.