MEBD 02

MEBD

Posted by Aashi, Released on October 14, 2025

Chapter 02

The Marquisate of Wilthierra (1)

When Berenice regained consciousness, she found herself back in her own bed. It was the middle of the night.

She was no longer dressed in mourning clothes but in a soft nightgown. Forcing her heavy body to move, Berenice pushed herself upright and leaned against the bed’s headboard, letting out a long, weary sigh.

Her body ached and her vision was still blurry, but she realized with relief that her condition wasn’t as bad as she had feared.

‘Back then, I must have been completely out of it.’

Even while asleep, she had reportedly cried, called out for Bledin, and muttered incoherently.

Her mother, who had stayed in the capital to take care of her, had been unable to attend Bledin’s second funeral.

‘This time, I’ll make everything right.’

As she quietly sorted through the regrets of her past life one by one, Berenice heard her bedroom door creak open softly.

“Nia, are you awake?”

Her mother stood there in her mourning dress, her face full of worry.

“I’m fine,” Berenice replied.

She tried to smile brightly, but her body wasn’t cooperating; the expression she meant to make didn’t quite reach her face.

The Marchioness of Wilthierra, unable to hide her deepened worry, came closer and sat by the bed. She reached out and gently stroked her daughter’s pale cheek.

“Your fever hasn’t gone down yet. I’m worried.”

“I’ll be better by morning. Please don’t worry, Mother.”

“I spoke with your father. Nia… how about staying here with us for a while?”

“I don’t want to.”

“Berenice.”

Her mother’s voice hardened slightly as she called her by her full name, not the affectionate nickname. It wasn’t anger, but concern that deepened the furrow in her brow.

“I don’t want to,” Berenice repeated firmly.

Her mother looked into her eyes for a moment, then nodded. She understood.

‘Thank goodness.’

Seeing her mother accept her will, Berenice exhaled softly in relief.

In the Egonid Empire, funerals had always been held twice — once in the capital, and once again in the deceased’s territory.

The first ceremony was for three days in the capital, to bid farewell among friends and acquaintances. The second lasted two days in the family’s domain, a private farewell with loved ones.

Among the lesser nobles, this old tradition had long disappeared, but for ancient, high-ranking houses like the Marquisate of Wilthierra, it remained sacred.

In her previous life, Berenice had taken from her mother the chance to say a final goodbye to her son.

Knowing the pain and regret that had left behind, she couldn’t bear to repeat the same mistake now that fate had given her another chance.

“I’ll be fine by morning,” she reassured softly.

“Yes.”

“Even if not, there’s still time before we leave for the territory…”

“Nia,” her mother interrupted gently. “I understand what you’re trying to say. There’s no need to explain further. I’ll make sure you come with us — don’t worry.”

“…Truly?”

“Has your mother ever lied to you?”

She had.

‘I’ll follow soon.’

The lie had been spoken with a soft smile — and it had cost Berenice the last of her family.

But that wouldn’t happen again.

“…No,” she said quietly. “You haven’t.”

The day will never come when my mother must lie to me again.

Leaning into her mother’s warm hand, Berenice nuzzled her cheek softly and smiled faintly.

After her mother left, Berenice lay on the bed, thinking. When the mansion had gone completely quiet, she slipped out of her room unnoticed.

Thanks to the rest she’d gotten, her head no longer spun as it had when she’d first awoken, though the stark white of her hair caught the faint light and glowed eerily in the dark, forcing her to move more carefully than she’d like.

‘For the price of turning back time, this isn’t so bad… but it’s far too conspicuous.’

She sighed softly, brushing her hair back over her shoulder.

If I’d known, I would’ve covered it before sneaking out…

She’d forgotten entirely that her hair color had changed — a foolish oversight.

‘Marienne mentioned a good dye, didn’t she?’

She remembered her friend’s casual suggestion.

‘Pointless,’ she thought.

It wasn’t worth hiding. The color was inconvenient in the dark, yes, but it was also a reminder — a mark she could bear to ensure she never forgot her vow.

With that thought, Berenice moved quietly down the corridor.

Compared to the traps and hidden dangers of the black market mansions she’d once broken into as a fugitive, sneaking around her own home was child’s play.

She chuckled softly, remembering the time she’d nearly died infiltrating a crime lord’s estate for information.

Her destination tonight was Bledin’s room.

She opened the door carefully, making sure it didn’t creak, then slipped inside and shut it behind her, letting out a long, silent breath of relief.

Getting back will be tricky, but at least no one saw me on the way here. That’s luck enough.

‘I’ll take a quick look and leave.’

Even in its master’s absence, the room was spotless — a testament to the servants’ diligence.

It was so clean and still that she almost expected Bledin himself to appear, smiling warmly and calling her name.

‘Nia.’

The sound of his voice echoed in her mind, and she inhaled deeply to steady her heart before beginning to search.

‘I don’t remember exactly, but I recall hearing… there was a thief.’

Back then, she’d been bedridden with a fever when it happened. Half-conscious, she’d overheard fragments of conversation between her mother and the butler.

She couldn’t recall everything, but she remembered clearly the butler saying that something had been stolen from Bledin’s room — though no one could tell what.

“What could they have taken?” she murmured.

Bledin had lived mostly at the imperial palace as a royal guard knight, keeping most of his possessions there.

This room only held things he’d used before entering palace service — items precious with childhood memories, but of little real value otherwise.

At least, not to nobles. To commoners, they’d be treasures worth risking a hand for.

‘But nothing here is worth the danger of breaking into a marquis’s estate.’

And yet, the butler had insisted: “Yes, a thief broke in. But we can’t tell what’s missing.”

Coming from a man who knew the household better than even the marquis himself, that statement had always unsettled her.

‘Maybe nothing was stolen at all…’

But if that were true, he’d have said “nothing’s missing.” Not “we can’t tell.”

In her past life, as she wandered the empire alone, Berenice had often wondered where everything had gone wrong.

This day — this strange, uncertain day — had always stood out to her as one of those turning points.

If only I’d been lucid enough to understand what was happening back then… would things have changed?

Now, she wouldn’t let the moment slip by again.

She moved slowly, scanning every inch of the room, from the door to the far side of the bed.

It was like tracing her way through memory with her fingertips.

Time passed. Then —

Something long and unfamiliar caught her eye on the bed.

“…A sword?”

It didn’t belong there. The ornate sheath bore intricate engravings, though no jewels adorned it. Even without seeing the blade, she could imagine its sharpness.

It was the sword Bledin had received when he was first knighted — a personal gift from the Crown Prince himself.

He had never once been without it.

Then why… is it here?

When Bledin’s body was returned home, he had worn only tattered robes and worn-out armor. His body had been covered in wounds — shallow and deep — and his neck had been severed.

The hunter who’d found him said he recognized Bledin only because of a favor once received in the capital. Risking his life, he’d carried the body home, calling it his final act of gratitude.

Remembering that moment — her tears, her collapse — Berenice squeezed her eyes shut and drew a long breath, clutching the sword in both hands.

No tears came.

Not because the pain had faded, but because she couldn’t afford to cry.

There would be time for that later.

For now, she needed to understand why Bledin’s sword — which no one could find before — was suddenly here.

“We searched everywhere, and it was gone. So why now?”

As she murmured aloud, the memory of the butler’s voice came back vividly.

[A thief broke in.]
[We can’t tell what’s missing.]

“Could it be… this sword?” she whispered.

But why? Of all the valuable things in the house, why this?

Unless… there was something hidden within it.

Her brow furrowed as she lifted the sword to eye level, turning it under the faint moonlight. But the room was too dark to see properly.