Chapter 13
Late at night.
I was still in the duke’s bedroom.
The only thing that had changed was the number of people.
The duke, his secretary, me—
and even the beast claiming to be the First Patriarch made four.
I sat on the sofa with a guilty conscience,
having just poured out an explanation.
As calmly and clearly as I could.
Not that I had the courage to look the duke straight in the eyes.
‘In this life I swore I’d never lie… I’m sorry, Your Grace.’
After a brief silence, Secretary Logan spoke up.
“So, you’re saying the guardian beast of the tomb appeared and let you breathe? Well, sure, the First Patriarch made the tomb, after all. But isn’t it a bit too fat to be a sacred beast? Looks like an owl to me.”
Haaagh!
[I’m a lion, you idiots! What’s wrong with everyone’s eyes in this house?!]
The sacred beast roared at the secretary,
but since only I could hear him,
he was nothing more than a mewling cat to Logan.
The duke asked,
“Then what was that light? I clearly saw it come from you, and the beast took form because of it.”
“Pardon, Your Grace? What do you mean? Then is this wretched creature the reason the young lady collapsed?”
The sudden rebuke made the First Patriarch’s eyes roll.
[What?! This insolent redhead’s been treating me like a pest since earlier!]
Please, just hold it in!
I hurried to grab the sacred beast by the scruff before he lunged.
[Ack! Let go! Hey! I’m dying here!]
I hadn’t meant to threaten him,
but this so-called “sacred beast” was small enough to go docile in my arms.
“Uncle! It’s a misunderstanding!
He only borrowed the energy of a pure child, that’s all! H-ha-ha…”
How embarrassing.
Calling myself a “pure child.”
I’m twenty-seven, and it’s already hard enough pretending to be a kid—
and now I have to spout this humiliating lie?
But I had no choice.
How could I explain that the duke’s family ring from my past life brought his ancestor’s spirit to me?
And besides, the First Patriarch himself had pushed me to keep the secret.
[You’re still too weak. Even though the power has linked to you, you can’t even let me speak directly. Better to hide it. If people find out, it will only stir their greed.]
Then what is this power exactly?
What is it, saving-the-world level or something?
I suppose it must be—
since he called himself a hero who once saved the world…
But right when I was about to ask,
the duke walked in, and I never got the end of that story.
I shot a look at the furball, begging for answers,
but he’d curled up, pretending to sleep, sulking.
‘So noisy and proud before—
and now this? How petty.’
I was still struggling to think of how to spin my flimsy excuse
when the duke spoke in a cold tone.
“I trusted you. At least I thought you wouldn’t lie.”
“……!”
His words pierced me like a dagger.
In all my lives,
I’d lied to him countless times,
but never had I heard him sound so disappointed.
‘Was it too sloppy? But there’s really no other way to explain…!’
I couldn’t think of what to say,
so I hung my head, crestfallen.
The secretary stepped in.
“Your Grace. She’s only just awakened. You shouldn’t push her so hard. It’s better to let her rest.”
“……”
At his words, the duke rose from his seat and walked with him.
But then, at the door,
he suddenly pushed the secretary out and locked it.
Clack.
Shut out, the flustered secretary banged on the door.
“Y-Your Grace?”
“Go. I have something to discuss with the child.”
His voice was firm.
The secretary hesitated, then turned away—
his footsteps fading down the hall.
What was that?
My heart began to pound.
‘How angry is he really?
But there’s no other way…!’
Step, step, step.
His approaching footsteps made me nervous.
He’d always been distant or indifferent,
but never this cold toward me.
No matter how hard I searched my past life’s memories,
this was the first time he’d looked at me so coldly.
Ah, I can’t take it!
I’ll just tell him everything!
That I came back in time,
that the relic’s power is in me,
that it brought the First Patriarch back—
I’ll say it all!!
The truth: regression, relic, resurrection…
Relic, resurrection…
“You lied about the ring…”
“Actually! I reborn and ancestor revived!”
“……?”
Ah, I shortened it too much.
Wait—did he just say ring?
I opened my eyes to see the sacred beast giving me a pitiful look,
and the duke raising an eyebrow.
Oh. Oh! Oh no!
Right, that lie.
The lie about the ring.
Of course I knew about that!
…Actually, I’d completely forgotten.
Too much had happened, and that tiny theft of the ring had slipped my mind.
Luckily, the “truth” I blurted out sounded like nonsense to him,
and he simply sighed.
“You’re not well, but I won’t put this off any longer. Answer me. Why did you lie? What are you trying to shoulder—risking your life at such a young age?”
“……”
Of course he was curious.
Why would a mere five-year-old he’d barely met offer such loyal devotion?
But to me, the reason was crystal clear.
‘Because in this life, I wanted to help you, Your Grace.’
That was my secret alone.
And there was one more thing he didn’t realize—
as always, he was unaware of his own actions.
I smiled.
“Gonjak-nim, you forgot!”
“?”
For twelve years, he had never once scolded me, always kept me by his side, forgave me.
All of that had vanished in this new timeline—
but I still cherished him for one simple reason:
Because even in this life, when I had no one to rely on,
he came for me.
“You saved me when Ayri hit me.”
“……”
His expression went blank, like a deer frozen in a forest path.
He was probably remembering that moment.
It pained me.
After living for years with only guilt,
he’d unconsciously treated even his own act of rescue as if it never happened.
I wanted to tell him, ‘Your wife’s disappearance wasn’t your fault,’
but couldn’t.
After a long silence,
he finally nodded and said,
“If that’s truly why you did it… then this place is too dangerous for you.”
Huh? What?
Wait.
Was he trying to send me away?
Even though the misunderstanding was cleared up,
he seemed intent on drawing a line, refusing deeper ties.
It stung a little,
but I clenched my fists.
No. I still have so much I can do for you! You’re not going anywhere!
“I won’t! We made a contract!”
“Such things are only paper. Like a letter stating our positions. Don’t worry, I’ll just move you somewhere safer.”
“Whaaaat?”
A “lettterrr”~?
His calm deception left me too stunned even to laugh.
If there are only two kinds of people who truly understand contracts,
they’re the powerful and the swindlers.
And he dares try to pull a fast one on me?
“Gonjak-nim. I can read. A documented contract has legal force. I saw the seal, the witness. Ayri stamped it too, didn’t she?”
For the kill shot,
I opened both hands to show the seal I always carried.
He gave it to me himself, remember?
Handmade, even.
At my sharp retort,
his clear eyes trembled just slightly.
What is this cutting little mouth?
He seemed to be thinking exactly that,
sighing helplessly.
Then, after a moment,
he reached out his hand to me.
“……?”
It was the first time since the day I returned that I’d seen that hand again.
His face looked like it belonged to a man who only loved poetry and music,
but his hands, scarred all over, told the true story of his life.
“One year. That’s all. If you’re going to stay here, you must never throw your life away lightly. Promise me.”
“Yes! Of course!”
His hand felt like rough-hewn wood,
but its warmth was as gentle as I’d hoped.
And of course, just then,
someone had to ruin the moment.
Clack, clack.
The door unlocked, and my “fake uncle” appeared.
“I’m sorry, Your Grace. The elders are making trouble, I had no choice. Oh? Why are you holding hands? The young lady’s close with me, you know.”
He grabbed my free hand.
I had no idea what was going on,
but there we were—three people holding hands.
“What’s going on with the elders?”
“They barged in claiming the dissolution of the council was Marquis Pascal’s decision alone, not theirs, and demanded you cut off their heads if you must.”
“……”
The duke didn’t answer,
but his furrowed brow was lined with weariness.
The same could be said of the secretary.
Watching their retreating backs,
I fell deep into thought.
‘I want to help… but is there really nothing I can do?’
I glanced at the sacred beast, sleeping with a blissful expression—
and suddenly, an amusing idea came to me.
