“Death…,” Alejandro uttered, appearing as absent-minded as Roselia. “They said it would be difficult to find the body due to the strong currents below the cliff. I think I should go to the palace immediately because of the aftermath. Well…”

As Alejandro, wearing a grim expression, left the study, Roselia slumped into the chair like a puppet with its strings cut off. This can’t be happening… This can’t be happening again… The plot has changed once more. Originally, in six months, Klaus was supposed to die, accused of rebellion, while trying to save the Crown Princess.

It felt as if blood was draining from her entire body. Her hands and feet trembled, and she couldn’t think properly. Fears surged within her, thinking that she had messed up the original story, much like Nadia departing from the original plot. The thought that Klaus might have died because of her made it hard for her to stand properly.

“What did Alejandro say and leave?”

In an instant, Roselia’s shoulders stiffened at Closet’s voice, seemingly knowing nothing. Slowly turning her head, Closet, with an innocent face, looked at her while muttering.

“He just went out with a face like he’d seen a ghost. What’s going on?”

Dry saliva made a gulping sound as it passed through Roselia’s throat. She felt numb, almost as if she had been hit on the head. It was terrifying to tell Closet about this fact.

Moreover, fearing that Closet, who had trauma related to the death of her family, might not be able to handle it. Yes… she doesn’t know yet… she doesn’t know yet.

Smiling with a forced firmness, Roselia looked at Closet. “It seems that Her Highness, the Crown Princess, has been safely rescued.”

“Really? That’s a relief. Klaus will be back soon then, right? Anyway, you have to stop worrying about that guy. Don’t you know that Her Highness, the Crown Princess, is still a little girl in her childhood? So, Crown Prince His Highness must be fed up.”

Closet, who was babbling without a doubt, unintentionally looked at Roselia and made a frowning expression.

“Antonio, are you okay?”

“Huh…?”

Embarrassed, Roselia looked at Closet, who seemed concerned. “Your sweat is flowing too much. Is there something wrong?”

Roselia couldn’t look directly into Closet’s face. Not only because she hid the truth about Klaus but also because it felt like she had killed Closet’s last remaining family.

“Are you feeling unwell? I’m sorry, but I’ll go in first and take a rest.”

“Yeah, go in quickly. If you’re not feeling well, call Nana or Melda.”

Roselia, feeling guilty, quickly turned and headed back to the room, unable to look Closet in the eyes.
Guilt prevented Closet from meeting Roselia’s eyes.

“My condition isn’t good. I’m sorry, but I’ll go in and rest first.”

“Uh-huh. Go in quickly. If you’re unwell, call Nana or Melda.”

Roselia nodded quietly and hurriedly returned to her room, closing the door behind her. Leaning against the closed door, she collapsed onto the floor.

From Nadia’s death to Viscount Bernas’s incident, and Klaus’s premature death—everything felt like her fault.

“What should I do…”

Tears welled up. She had only tried her best to live, to protect the people she loved, and most of all, she loved him.

Was that wrong?

Perhaps she herself was like impurity in this world?

As Roselia pondered this thought, she absentmindedly looked out the open window.

Certainly, she should have closed it before leaving…

Was she so distraught that she didn’t properly close it?

Roselia, rising to her feet, approached the window to close it.

At that moment, a chilly sensation, as if feathers were standing on end behind her, made her suddenly turn her head. Unexpectedly, she had to struggle against a rough force muffling her scream, dampening her senses with a handkerchief.

Sunlight, broken below the window, spilled onto the worn-out bed. Klaus, lifting heavy eyelids on the nauseating-smelling bed, belatedly regained consciousness and sat up.

“Ugh…”

“Now, are you coming to your senses?”

Turning his head in surprise at the unfamiliar voice, Klaus saw a man with a bushy beard casually sitting.

“Who are you?”

“Who else could I be? I’m the owner of this house and the benefactor who saved you.”

Only then did Klaus, checking bandages on his injured shoulders and abdomen, relax and survey the surroundings.

With animal skins hung on the walls and a nauseating wood scent, the man seemed like a hunter.

“Where am I?”

“You seem quite impatient. This is the outer forest of the Hevelt Mountains. I saved you, who was swept down by the river.”

As the cabin where the Crown Princess was discovered was located in the middle of the Hevelt Mountains, it seemed that, according to the hunter, Klaus had been swept quite a distance along the river.

“You look like a soldier. What happened in the upper part of the mountains? The day before yesterday, soldiers escorting a fancy carriage were coming down from the mountains.”