HDBMTD 57

~Chapter 57~

Last night, after I won chess twice in a row, I felt oddly uneasy and suggested that Nocturne ask me one more question.

But in the morning, thinking about it again, I realized it wasn’t something to feel uneasy about.

Yes, I had won two games in a row, but if you counted the number of questions, I had asked two and Nocturne had asked four.

I had won the games, but Nocturne was the one who really gained more.

Nocturne was the problem too. Even though the patient was still recovering, he actually went ahead and asked that extra question.

‘If he had any conscience, shouldn’t he win at least five more games before asking something?’

No — what he asked last night couldn’t even be called a question.

‘Won’t you pair up with me?’

A pairing proposal.

And Nocturne hadn’t made a proper pair since Aria’s death. This was a symptom that often appeared in Eshape after losing their partner.

It was called “Purification Refusal.”

Even without a partner, an Eshape could still make a pair. The match rate would just be lower. But there were some who, no matter how much their madness grew, refused to pair and refused purification.

Those people struggled to control their madness, couldn’t use their abilities properly, and ended up badly injured in even easy battles. If they accidentally crossed the limit, they went berserk.

A combat-type Eshape who went berserk without a pair — nine out of ten died just like that.

‘Nocturne was lucky not to die…’

The fact that he survived was nothing short of a miracle.

If it had been a formal pair proposal, I would have refused right away, but what Nocturne suggested was a one-time thing.

‘Next month, I plan to wipe out the newly reformed Cambiata Club in the north.’

The Cambiata Club.

It had been Aria’s biggest source of funding for Cambiata — and probably the most vicious group of them all.

I didn’t know how similar they would be to the original, but if they had defensive systems similar to Cambiata’s, it would be difficult to break them without Nocturne’s ability.

Nocturne calmly explained the plan, then raised one corner of his mouth slightly and added,

‘If you refuse, I’ll have to go without a pair.’

His voice sounded joking, but his black eyes were calm and unwavering. Thinking of that, I couldn’t help letting out a sigh.

“Haa…”

This was practically a threat.

While I was troubled, the mood in the hospital room was lively.

“That moment, Her Highness’s heartbeat suddenly got stronger.”

“It was truly a miracle!”

The healers were telling the story of when I woke up, and Tita kept making sounds of admiration.

I’d heard the story so many times already. Didn’t they get tired of telling it?

I asked them casually,

“Why do you need three healers just for a check-up?”

“That’s because we wanted to see you, Your Highness!”

All four answered at the same time.

They looked like angels trying to prove the saying, “You can’t spit on a smiling face.”

Leaving me speechless, they went back to chatting.

“It was such a touching moment that words can’t describe it.”

“I’m sure the word ‘miracle’ was said over a hundred times among the healers.”

Lina, the bespectacled healer who had cried tears of joy yesterday, smiled.

Her eyes were getting moist again — hopefully she wouldn’t start crying.

“That day, I realized that medicine could create miracles. So I worked even harder, and then another miracle really happened.”

“Oh, you mean that boy from the slums.”

“A boy from the slums?”

When Tita asked with wide eyes, Lina nodded.

“The day after you recovered, an emergency patient from the slums came in. Normally we don’t treat for free, but since Your Highness was here, we decided to follow the spirit of the Golden Butterfly and make an exception.”

“Yes. He was in cardiac arrest, so we did CPR, but even after an hour, there was no pulse or breathing. We finally gave up and started packing the equipment… and suddenly, he opened his eyes!”

“My goodness!”

“It was such a shock. And then he just walked out fine.”

“He didn’t even say thank you, just left in a hurry. Maybe he thought we’d charge him money.”

“Still, the fact that he lived — that was a miracle.”

“There was another similar case this morning. The Consul’s son collapsed, and they called us urgently. He woke up after being in cardiac arrest for 30 minutes.”

“Two miracles in a row. Maybe Her Highness’s energy is spreading!”

I listened to the story with a bitter smile.

‘If they got my energy, it’d be closer to a disaster than a miracle.’

At that moment, there was a knock on the hospital room door.

One healer looked puzzled and opened it, and a familiar voice came through.

“I’m glad you look better than I feared.”

The man who entered had shining blond hair and eyes the same color — a handsome man with a striking appearance. With a cream-colored scarf around his neck, he walked in with a gentle smile.

The moment I recognized his face, I jumped up in surprise.

“Lucien.”

The unexpected visitor was Prince Lucien.

After the healers left us alone, it was just the two of us in the room. Lucien looked me over and spoke with relief in his voice.

“You look healthier than I thought.”

“Sorry, I must have worried you a lot.”

Right before I escaped the palace, Lucien had proposed to me and offered to help me escape. But then I was suddenly kidnapped and even drank poison — it must have been a shock to him.

“Of course I was worried. But…”

Lucien hesitated for a moment, then asked,

“What should I call you?”

I paused briefly. His careful tone told me he understood the situation.

“You’ve heard, then.”

“When you disappeared from the palace, the Duke explained it to me.”

Lucien said he had been told both that I was a clone and the circumstances of my disappearance.

Well, Nocturne had known Lucien proposed to me, so he probably expected I might seek Lucien’s help.

“At first, I couldn’t believe it. But after seeing the evidence…”

His voice trailed off, and a deep shadow passed over his face. His golden eyes were filled with loss and confusion.

“Anyway, the Crown Prince keeps sending pursuit teams to the north, but I’ve implanted the suggestion that I’ve already searched the area thoroughly, so he’s withdrawing them. You’ll be safe until you’re discharged.”

Ah, so that’s why I hadn’t felt any threat from the pursuit team while staying in the hospital. I had thought it was strange how peaceful it was for an Imperial hospital — Lucien had been protecting me behind the scenes.

“Thank you.”

“I did it at the Duke’s request. I’ve also been paid, so there’s no need to thank me.”

Lucien answered calmly.

“I’ve been busy blocking the pursuit team, but… honestly, I was afraid to face you. It was hard to accept that Aria was gone.”

His voice trembled as he looked at me.

“Even now, it still is.”

“…That’s understandable.”

Thinking of the palace banquet, when he had happily cried after seeing me awake, made my heart ache.

My existence was blocking the people who needed to accept Aria’s death and move on. In this situation, the best I could do was draw a clear line.

“You asked my name earlier. My name is Vis.”

“Alright, Vis.”

Lucien met my gaze with some effort.

“Don’t speak so formally. Be casual with me.”

“But I…”

“Outside, you’ll have to be called Aria anyway. If you get used to speaking like this, you might slip up later. It feels awkward for me too.”

I looked at him for a moment, then nodded.

“Alright.”

Lucien seemed to clearly distinguish between me and Aria. He was already keeping a proper distance.

While I worried about the wounds he carried, I also felt a warmth in my chest.

Lucien was the first person to know my identity and still recognize me as separate from Aria — and call me by my proper name.