The sight of her reacting so vividly—so full of life—finally began to dissolve the dread that had clung to him like a second skin. How terrifying it had been just moments ago, pulling her from the crushing depths. The sight of her pale face, her chest still and silent, had plunged him into a personal hell. If only he had been faster. If only he had hurried…… Though her fall wasn't his fault this time, Declan felt her mortality so acutely that every misfortune seemed to be his

Her senses remained muffled, as if trapped inside a vat of heavy water. Sounds reached her ears through a damp, distorted filter. [Declan] "…nessa, Vanessa!" The voice vibrating against her eardrums lacked clarity. Still, the recognition that someone called her name forced a frown onto her face, and a crushing pressure surged from her lungs. Vanessa erupted into a hacking cough. When her eyes finally fluttered open, she met his face, half-buried in the shadows. He looked ghas

[Bandit] "Hey, catch her!" [Bandit] "Get back here!" Her lungs expanded until her throat burned like a raw wound. Every swallow felt like a choice between thorns and fire. Her legs trembled, reaching their absolute limit, but stopping meant death—or a fate so hollow she would pray for death. She squeezed every ounce of strength from her failing muscles. Her heart hammered against her ribs, a frantic rhythm of survival. Frigid winds whipped across her face, stinging like physi

Vanessa scanned the chaos with frantic eyes. The horse, spooked after its legs had buckled, already galloped into the distance. She turned her attention to Sir Siden. Though the bleeding had stopped, he remained unresponsive. Leaving him behind tasted like ash in her mouth, but staying meant certain capture. She drew a sharp breath—a silent apology—and bolted. [Vanessa] "Huff... huff......" Clutching her aching shoulder, she plunged into the depths of Mount Siltria. Tommy blo

Vanessa waited for Siden to lower the hammer before rushing forward to inspect the drawer. Inside the locked compartment, parchment lay in a thick, unruly stack. Siden pulled the entire pile out and placed it on the floor. The top layers depicted ordinary nature scenes—colorful flowers and trees rendered in the same paints she had seen on the table earlier. However, as she flipped through the pages, the botanical sketches gave way to portraits of a single person. The moment s

If he had discovered even a single clue, he would have shared it. His expression of regret rang entirely sincere. [Vanessa] "Actually, another one arrived just now." [Former Count] "What? Today as well?" She lowered the letter onto the table. The Former Count sighed, his face a map of confusion and growing concern. She kept her voice light, attempting to ease the heavy atmosphere. [Vanessa] "That is why I believe it is time for me to return to the capital." [Former Count] "To

Ice coated her fingertips. Was I... trembling? Three years had passed, and she believed she had finally shaken off the weight of the past. Yet, dust-like remnants of those years still clung to the corners of her heart, forcing her to acknowledge his presence. That uncomfortable sensation always surged through her whenever they stood face-to-face. However, one thing had changed. Today, the pain that usually accompanied her nerves was nowhere to be found. [Declan] "The short ha

His blue eyes, stripped of their usual menacing edge, appeared unfocused and clouded. He carried the haggard look of a man who had spent several consecutive nights awake. She scrutinized his face before speaking. [Vanessa] "If this is about the medical expenses, my offer still stands. If today’s incident strained your injury, send a letter to the Evarn estate and......" [Declan] "You know that’s not what I want to talk about." His plea sounded fragile, a desperate attempt to

[Dina] "My Lady? What are you doing?" Dina tilted her head, clutching the bouquet she had retrieved from the center of the plaza on Vanessa’s behalf. A brilliant, vermillion sunset slowly consumed the sky. Vanessa stood motionless, her silhouette bathed in that radiant, distant glow. A sharp pang pierced her chest. The sight of a small child cradled in a parent’s arms nearby struck a chord deep within her. It’s alright. Over the years, her perspective had shifted. She told he

Vanessa stroked the stray hairs tickling her neck as her gaze drifted to the stack of correspondence on her desk. An ivory envelope, elegantly embossed with gold foil, sat atop the pile. Habit guided her hand to lift it; the name [Hayden di Ingerote] graced the cover in fine, swirling script. Two years. [Hayden] "I will wait for you. For exactly two years, I will wait." Those were his only words when he visited Evarn County two months after the national wedding collapsed. She

Declan devoured the sight of her lovely face while her gaze lingered on his mangled hand. God had always proved heartless toward a man who traded only in sins. Surely, this brief moment of bliss came with a hidden price—some cruel trial yet to be unleashed. To prepare for the coming storm, he etched every detail of her appearance into his mind. He didn't just look; he burned her image into his skull, pressing the memory deep into his heart. A primal urge to seize her hand, to

A heavy vibration rattled through her bones as they tumbled across the ground and slammed into the wooden legs of a market stall. [Unknown] "Ugh......" A suppressed groan sounded above her head. Vanessa, frozen in shock, blinked several times before scrambling to sit up. Her robe’s hood fell back, allowing her short, golden hair to flutter in the biting air. The figure who rescued her from the charging horse wore a robe that concealed every inch of their body. Her gaze didn't

Reliving the raw desperation of the time before the regression—an even deeper, more soul-crushing despair—he often found himself frantically pulling a body down. The corpse never yielded a single breath; it remained utterly frigid. He cradled the slight figure, his mind a whirlwind of denial. No, she isn’t dead. She can’t be. His heart turned to stone, freezing as if her icy temperature had seeped into his own blood. A dark pessimism flooded him, tempting him to discard his o

Spring, summer, autumn, winter. The cycle repeated, again and again. The seasons turned until they required ten fingers to count. Each rotation altered the colors of the world at the edge of the horizon, and the Evarn County was no exception. Snow had not yet fallen, but the biting wind suggested it would arrive any moment. Slender fingers traced the frame of a window clouded with frost. Beyond the glass, waves crashed against the shore with rhythmic violence. Sunlight, now m

She didn't look away. His face paled to the color of parchment, drained of all vitality. Shock and despair radiated from him—the crushing weight of a prisoner receiving a final death sentence. He stood motionless, his eyelids and fingertips frozen, breath trapped in his lungs. The sight left her feeling hollow. She had repeated these same words for an eternity. In the past, and now in the present. His sudden shock only proved how much his own heart had changed. She pushed asi