Chapter 113
“Bris.”
“……”
If you’re not going to say anything, then I’ll just say what I need to.
“Didi is someone who cherishes me more than anyone. That’s why, like before, I want to recover by his side. Please let me do that.”
I grabbed his hand and bowed my head deeply.
“Please, Bris. My body used to be as weak as a child’s, but now I’m safely an adult. Even Yggdrasil has permitted it. That means I can touch a human now, right?”
Novembris, who had been quietly watching me, finally spoke, his words heavy.
“…What is that person to you? Why are you leaving a safe path to walk a dangerous and uncertain one?”
Holding his hand tightly, I answered with all my heart.
“When I was in the Grand Castle, no one really saw me. But it didn’t really matter. I just drifted along with time, barely aware.”
But everything changed when I met Dedrick.
“Didi taught me the joy of talking with someone, the happiness of being together. Only he truly saw me.”
“……”
“I want his revenge to bring him peace. It might sound strange, but I mean it. If revenge only brings him pain, Didi will collapse. Right now, he’s dying little by little. I’m terrified he’ll be gone before I can even reach him.”
“…Is it love?”
I nodded without hesitation. Novembris looked down at the hand I held.
“…Then what about me?”
“Huh?”
His voice was so quiet I couldn’t hear it clearly and asked again, but he didn’t repeat himself.
Silence followed, broken only by the sound of rain. Finally, he spoke slowly.
“If you still feel the same even after hearing what I have to say, I’ll let you go.”
“Say it. Whatever it is.”
Because my feelings won’t change.
“If Dedrick Blackwood ever holds even a tiny bit of malice towards you, it will be deadly for you.”
I nodded firmly. Novembrice continued.
“If that malice ever reaches you, or if you die again by someone else’s hands before you’re fully healed, there won’t be another chance. You’ll disappear completely—even your soul.”
It was terrifying, even the second time. But I said clearly:
“I still want to go.”
Seeing I didn’t hesitate, Novembris seemed to realize he couldn’t convince me. He sighed heavily and stood.
“You’re so cruel. Don’t you see how much I worry about you?”
“I do. And I’m always thankful. But Didi is more important to me.”
“……”
He looked at me with a pained expression, brushed his wet hair back, and held out his hand. I took it and stood up.
Looking so sad, he said softly:
“Go, I’ll let you. If I don’t… you’ll probably die from heartbreak.”
I was overjoyed by his permission.
“Thank you! Really!”
“Before that, may I hug you… just once?”
Of course.
I jumped up and threw my arms around him. He gently lifted me and then carefully set me down.
“…Please, fully recover. When your horns grow completely, you’ll be visible to human eyes.”
“Okay!”
“And before you go, hear all the warnings. You must follow them.”
“I will!”
I nodded enthusiastically with a bright smile.
I wasn’t fully healed yet, but finally—I could stand before Dedrick again.
Finally!
I’m going to see you!
***
Since that dream, Dedrick has been desperately trying to find a way to see her again.
The dream didn’t feel like a dream.
He couldn’t even care about the Grand Duchess or Somerset anymore, but he wasn’t alone like before. Milos, Pavle, and Jacob guarded him closely to keep Delani from making a move.
Thanks to them, they could keep Dedrick’s erratic behavior hidden as he searched for traces of Marilyn.
Milos stared at the empty room in disbelief.
“Marilyn is alive? Could that really be true?”
“Who knows…”
“At this rate, the Lord might stay in the Mage Tower forever.”
Dedrick hadn’t left the Mage Tower for days. It felt like you could hear the sounds of exhausted mages being worked to the bone.
Then Milos flinched.
“…Huh? I think he’s back. His energy is intense.”
“……”
Pavle grabbed Milos’s collar as he tried to rush toward Dedrick.
“Why not? Don’t you want to see him?”
“…It won’t help right now.”
His energy overflowed, mixed with desperation and sorrow.
Pavle said bitterly,
“He didn’t find a way.”
“……”
The power around him was sharp but unstable—just like his emotions.
***
In a cold, dark room lit only by moonlight, the air was heavy and still. No one was there—except the quiet sound of breathing from inside the wardrobe.
A hunched figure, tears falling silently down their cheeks.
His empty blue eyes were full of despair.
Like a sandcastle crushed by waves, he had completely collapsed.
“Let me be clear, Marquis. What you’re asking is impossible—like trying to bring the dead back to life. There’s no such thing as eyes that can see someone who doesn’t exist.”
Even while trembling, the Mage Tower Master had told him the truth.
But Dedrick had felt Marilyn’s presence. And now, he was made out to be a madman blinded by grief.
The Mage Tower Master crushed his last hope.
“I was wrong, Mary.”
But that couldn’t be true.
He had felt her.
That dream—it had to be a sign that she was still here.
“You told me to wait…”
That meant you were here, right?
But when everything was denied, even breathing became painful. His face twisted with agony.
“Should I just give up and come to you?”
Without Marilyn, nothing mattered.
Neither power nor wealth. He needed none of it.
Even his revenge—he realized—couldn’t bring her back.
“I’m so tired.”
Staggering out of the wardrobe, the pale moonlight lit his figure.
Blankly, he walked toward the balcony, staring down at the long drop below.
Creak…
The wardrobe door squeaked open, and Dedrick froze.
Then a familiar, dizzyingly sweet rose scent floated in on the wind.
He stiffened.
There was no way he could forget that scent.
It was the same one she always carried—especially when she wore the rose he gave her in her hair and smiled so beautifully.
“…Maybe the Mage Tower Master was right. Maybe I’ve really lost it.”
But still, his heart raced at the scent. With a flicker of hope, he slowly turned around.
Then a voice came from inside the wardrobe, grumbling softly. His breath caught.
“Ugh, I feel awful. I haven’t traveled by wardrobe in a while. My head’s spinning…”
The voice was more mature, but still cheerful and lovely—just like the girl he knew.
Dedrick’s lips trembled. But fear surged inside him.
What if it’s another dream?
What if saying her name makes her vanish again?
He couldn’t even move closer.
Then the moonlight lit up the inside of the wardrobe.
Someone was there.
Long gray hair, two roses in her hair—just like the ones he gave her.
And the small, slightly crooked horn he once said made her look like a rose.
Dedrick’s eyes shook. Slowly, he looked down and met her dazzling golden eyes—like melted sunlight.
Everything stopped.
“……”
“……”
He stared at her, unable to believe it was real.
Then Marilyn smiled through her tears, her face a mess, and called out to him:
“Didi!”
With her arms wide open, she ran to him.
Without a single thought, he sprinted forward and wrapped her tightly in his arms.
