The bitter medicine slid past the pale lips of Baroness Hess. The physician glanced between Baron Hess and Nadia and nodded solemnly.
“She’s out of immediate danger. She’ll need to keep taking the medicine regularly, but she should be stable for now.”
As soon as those words left the doctor’s mouth, Baron Hess choked up. He clasped his wife’s frail hand tightly.
“Thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness… My dear, our daughter saved you. You need to wake up and praise her!”
Nadia pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down.
As time passed, the baroness’s complexion gradually eased into peacefulness.
Baron Hess turned to Nadia, his voice slightly high with emotion.
“With the money we have left, let’s buy more medicine. Then your mother can fully recover!”
Nadia shook her head firmly.
“No.”
“Wh-What? Of course, it’s your money, so your decision matters most, but…”
Baron Hess trailed off awkwardly. Nadia furrowed her brows slightly and gently covered his hand with hers.
“Father, don’t worry. I’m not saying we won’t buy medicine. But if we spend all of our remaining money on it now, what about later? If Mother recovers quickly, that’s wonderful. But what if her condition lasts for a year, two, or even longer? Then we won’t be able to afford more.”
“Well, yes, you’re right… But is there another way?”
Nadia nodded.
“I’m going to buy a magic tool for mining.”
“A magic tool?”
“Yes, one that detects veins of minerals. We may not get lucky again and find a mana stone vein like before, but it could help us discover raw gemstones. We can’t keep mining coal forever when the age of mana stones has already arrived.”
“Do you think there are gemstones in Hess territory…?”
His concern was reasonable. Hess had always survived on coal mining, and not once had they found any precious stones.
But Nadia, once Duchess of the powerful Baldwin Duchy, knew better.
There were gemstones near the borders of Hess. In fact, raw stones were extracted just over the border in the Baldwin territory. She even roughly remembered their locations. With that, she could save on mana stones to power the magic tool.
Nadia pulled out a crumpled map and marked a rough location.
“If we focus the mining magic tool here, we’ll be able to find the exact location.”
“O-Okay. Let’s do as you say.”
The discovery and sale of mana stones that saved Baroness Hess’s life—everything had been thanks to Nadia. Without her, the baroness would have surely passed away.
That was why Baron Hess trusted her entirely. He would’ve supported her even if she said she wanted to pluck stars from the sky.
Still, even for someone as kindhearted as the baron, Nadia’s instincts seemed uncanny.
“Sweetheart, how did you know about all this?”
Nadia answered casually.
“Oh, from reading books. I was flipping through old texts in the library and had a hunch.”
“They had the locations of mineral veins in books?”
“Not directly. But reading about what used to be mined in the past and how they managed the territory gave me clues.”
Though it didn’t make much sense, Baron Hess just chuckled warmly, as if her words were absolute.
“Is that so? Oh, your foolish old father could never keep up with you.”
Nadia smiled and embraced him gently.
“Please don’t say that. If you and Mother hadn’t taken me in from that forest, I wouldn’t even be here.”
In her past life, the parents of Rivenia had never provided her with any real sense of security. Her birth mother was too weak, her father was despicable, and her stepmother wasn’t worth mentioning.
But the parents she’d gained in this life were warm, kind people.
Not cunning, nor manipulative—just people who gave even when they lacked, and would never burden others.
Some might have called them fools, but Nadia loved them dearly because they were like that.
“I’ll always be by your side. So please, don’t cry beside Mother’s bed at night anymore. We have to stay strong together.”
She patted his back gently. Baron Hess nodded repeatedly, his eyes suddenly sharpening as if making a decision.
“Nadia, now you go and rest. You’ve worked hard. I’ll take care of getting the mining tool. After all, you already found where the veins might be, didn’t you?”
It was a rare glimpse of determination from the usually gentle baron—yet appropriate for someone running a territory.
Nadia smiled and nodded before leaving the couple’s bedroom.
But as she walked down the dim corridor, her face darkened.
Even if they increased their profits using a mining magic tool, there was still a limit.
The doctor had said Baroness Hess couldn’t be cured instantly. They’d need to afford much more medicine in the future.
And Nadia knew of no more mana stone veins. Their only hope was to mine and sell raw gemstones now.
But that wouldn’t be enough. The people of Hess couldn’t devote everything to the baroness’s medicine.
Nadia leaned against a window and looked outside.
A full moon, silver and gold intertwined, lit the night sky.
“Your hair looks just like moonlight,” a voice echoed in her memory—her young husband’s affectionate compliment.
Nadia ran her fingers through her own red hair and sighed.
“If I reveal I’m the Duchess of Baldwin, I could save Mother and even help the Hess territory prosper…”
But she couldn’t return to that life.
It wasn’t about whether Heinrich believed her.
She simply didn’t want to live as Rivenia Baldwin ever again.
“Rivenia, please… I’m begging you…”
A delicate voice filled her head.
“Your father wants to kill me. He wants to marry that mistress and get rid of me—he’s going to kill me.”
A bony hand clutched her wrist.
“Please save me, Rivenia. Please… save your mother…”
She hadn’t been able to push her mother’s hand away. Then came the grip on her ankle… her calf… her hair… her neck.
Two black, lifeless eyes came right up to her face.
“Letting your mother die… what a bad daughter you are!”
“No, I didn’t… I didn’t let her die…”
Nadia woke to the sound of her own murmuring.
She could barely breathe, as if she really had been strangled.
Clutching her throat, she gasped for air.
Thankfully, the sun was just rising beyond the horizon, calming her quickly. If it had still been night, she might have been stuck in that hellish dream for hours.
She washed up early and headed to the baroness’s bedroom.
Baroness Hess was lying in bed, chatting warmly with her husband.
As soon as she saw Nadia, she smiled brightly despite her weakened state.
“Nadia, it’s such a joy to see your face first thing in the morning.”
She reached out her hand.
Nadia’s dizziness returned at the sight of her gaunt hand—reminding her of the nightmare. She pressed her forehead, and Baron Hess hurried to steady her.
“Are you all right, dear?”
“I’m fine. Just didn’t sleep much.”
She smiled as if nothing were wrong. But Baroness Hess still looked at her with concern.
“I heard you worked hard to cover my medical costs. You overexerted yourself for me, didn’t you?”
She was genuinely worried. That warmth helped Nadia push away the nightmare and grasp her mother’s hand.
The baroness emphasized over and over again that Nadia should put herself first.
“You’re going to lead Hess someday. You must prioritize yourself and the territory. Especially in small lands like ours—we have to stand together.”
Even though she struggled to speak, her gaze was as gentle as ever.
“I’ll only feel at ease once you’re well again.”
After chatting for a while, Nadia excused herself from the room.
She leaned against the corridor wall, lost in thought.
They’re different. These parents are different. Mother wouldn’t seek revenge or blame me for her death…
She stroked her neck, still cold from the dream, and looked ahead with determination.
That’s why… I want to save her. I don’t want to let her die again.
But that didn’t mean she wanted to become Rivenia Baldwin again.
That life had been filled with betrayal, vengeance, and lies.
Even her brightest memories—those days with Heinrich—had all been part of a fake marriage.
With a sense of resolve, Nadia rushed back to her room.
She had no intention of reclaiming her former life.
But if there was someone who wouldn’t care who she really was…
She picked her finest paper and wrote a single line:
“I want the key I entrusted to you returned.”
She carefully wrote the return address and handed the letter to a maid.
A week passed.
One night, as she lay sleeping, she felt a cold sensation on her neck.
She opened her eyes.
A tall man stood at her bedside. Though ten years had passed and his once youthful face had matured, those cynical, ashen eyes were unmistakable.
“It’s been a long time, Conrad.”
