That evening.

“What do you mean? The Crown Prince has changed?”

When Mercian was surprised by Zelda’s words during dinner, Zelda took a sip of wine and said.

“Yeah, I was shocked too. Apparently Prince Daemond attempted to assassinate the current Crown Prince on his wedding day but failed. And you know those cases where imperial women were found dead? It turns out Prince Daemond was the one who took and killed those women. So he was removed from the position of Crown Prince and sent into exile far away.”

“Exile?”

Mercian recalled Daemond telling her to become his mistress and felt chills all over her body.

“I don’t know the exact name, but they say an incredibly outstanding hero who had died came back to life, and for some reason he half-killed Prince Daemond who was imprisoned, breaking all his limbs. There are rumors he’ll never be able to function properly as a person again. Well, it’s not surprising he made enemies after killing so many women, right?”

“Came back to life after dying?”

Was it someone who had gone to war returning?

As Mercian muttered in response to Zelda’s words, Zelda continued while tearing off a piece of bread and putting it in her mouth.

“Yeah, I heard the name but forgot it. It was a really familiar name… Hehe, to be honest I don’t know much about important people. The tea shop owner told me. As I listened to the story, I thought that someone of Crown Prince status would have everything and want for nothing, yet seeing him do such things makes me think those high-ranking people are a bit strange. Anyway, the capital was in an uproar for a while because of that incident. And I heard they recently held the enthronement ceremony for the new Crown Prince.”

It seems Prince Harmon has become the Crown Prince.

As Mercian listened to Zelda’s words, she suddenly thought of the people of the Duke’s household.

They must all resent me for secretly leaving after Ruan died.

No, it was probably a better way since I was going to leave anyway.

“Really, a lot has happened.”

“The tea shop owner said it was such an eyesore how much the deposed Crown Prince screamed when leaving the capital.”

I really disliked that Crown Prince, but he ended up being removed from his position.

Recalling Daemond swinging his sword to kill the fallen Ruan while looking at her with an unpleasant gaze, Mercian felt anger rising again.

If I hadn’t met the Crown Prince at the bookstore then, could Ruan have lived a little longer?

Sigh. I thought I had forgotten it all…

Mercian’s heart ached again at Zelda’s story.

She still occasionally dreamed of Ruan collapsing in front of her.

Each time, she would wake up crying and screaming, unable to approach Ruan who was still falling before her eyes.

“Oh, and I heard an even more interesting story.”

“An interesting story?”

“Yeah, apparently that person who came back to life after dying is searching everywhere for his runaway wife. Did the wife take the money and run away thinking the man was dead? They even put the wife’s portrait in the newspaper and said they’d give a huge reward just for information on her whereabouts. How much was it again? Anyway, the tea shop owner said it’s enough money to live comfortably for decades. How much money did she run away with for him to go to such lengths to find her? Hearing the story made me curious about that woman too.”

“Ah. I see.”

“Oh Rosalyn, remember those sandwiches you packed for me last time I went to the Empire? I shared them with the tea shop owner, and when I went back this time he said the sandwiches from before were so delicious and asked if you’d consider coming to sell them in the capital. He said he wanted to eat them again, so I ended up giving him the sandwiches I brought this time too.”

Mercian, who had been lost in thoughts of Ruan, came to her senses at the mention of sandwiches and looked at Zelda.

“The capital?”

“Yeah, the tea shop owner asked if Rosalyn would consider selling her sandwiches in the capital since they’re so delicious. He’s someone who never spends money, but get this – he said he’d invest if Rosalyn came to open a sandwich shop in the capital. Well, your sandwiches are really delicious.”

A shop in the capital?

Mercian was lost in thought at Zelda’s words.

It was the capital she had fled from after Ruan’s death.

When she followed Zelda here, she thought she would never return.

And now that she was finally trying to settle down…

Mercian felt that if she returned to the capital again, she would struggle with thoughts of Ruan that she had just managed to forget.

Penelope and Lucienne suddenly came to mind at Zelda’s words.

Come to think of it, while she occasionally thought of the people from the Duke’s household, strangely she had never once thought of her family members.

She was suddenly curious how they were doing, but she didn’t want to let Penelope and Lucienne know her whereabouts.

I just want to live quietly here.

Mercian shook her head and replied to Zelda’s words.

“Zelda, I’m sorry but I don’t want to open a sandwich shop in the capital. I don’t want to go to the capital for a while.”

“Ah, right. I forgot because I was feeling good about praising Rosalyn’s delicious food. Rosalyn, I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have brought up the capital and made you think of your husband.”

Recalling how Mercian had been sick for a month with grief over her husband’s death when they first met, Zelda apologized, and Mercian smiled and replied.

“It’s okay. I’m actually more grateful that you’re so considerate of my situation. I’ll be satisfied just selling here.”

“Alright. Well, now that I’ve had dinner, I should get going. By the way, where’s Ruan? I don’t see him?”

At Zelda’s words, Mercian looked around the room and muttered.

“You’re right. The name is the same, but he loves going out so much that when he leaves in the morning he doesn’t think about coming back until late at night.”

Zelda tilted her head at Mercian’s muttering and replied.

“The same name? So it wasn’t a different Ruan? Wait, don’t tell me all the dogs Rosalyn has raised are named Ruan? Come to think of it, Rosalyn is a bit unusual too. Naming dogs is one thing, but even giving names to chickens and ducks? The chicken’s name was Charles and the duck’s name was Clea, right? You’re not going to write names on the eggs if the ducks or chickens lay them, are you?”

“What? Haha. Of. Of course not. I just think of them as family, so I give them names.”

As Mercian laughed awkwardly, Zelda got up and said.

“I’ll be going now, so make sure to lock up well. And are you really sure about Peter?”

“Zelda, it hasn’t even been half a year since my husband passed away. Are you planning to set me up with every bachelor in the village? You seem more desperate than I am.”

“Well, Peter said he likes Rosalyn, so… If you don’t like him, there’s nothing we can do. I’ll be going then. Oh? Ruan, where have you been rolling around again? You’re really quite busy, aren’t you.”

Zelda opened the door, let the mud-covered Ruan into the house, said goodbye and left.

“Ruan, where on earth have you been?”

Mercian picked up Ruan, who was wagging his tail happily at her, and quickly went into the bathroom.

“Oh? Come to think of it, that noble who came back to life that the tea shop owner mentioned seems to have the same name as Rosalyn’s dog? No way, someone that important couldn’t have the same name as Rosalyn’s dog, right?”

Zelda, who had left Mercian’s house, stopped on her way home, tilted her head and muttered, then shook her head and spoke.

A few days later, Suzanna from the house behind came to see Mercian as she was preparing to go to the shop as usual.

“Rosalyn, are you going to the shop?”

“Yes, Aunt Suzanna, is something the matter?”

“No, I actually came to say goodbye to Rosalyn. Thank you for everything.”

“What? Aunt Suzanna, are you going somewhere?”

“Yes. We’re going to move.”

“Move?”

“My in-laws in Syroni village have been asking us to live together for a long time, but houses don’t sell well in a place like this. So I was hesitating, but someone said they’d buy this house. For twice the market price at that. So we’re going to sell quickly before that person changes their mind. Now that we’re actually leaving, I feel sad. We had just started to get attached.”

Suzanna held Mercian’s hand with a sad expression as she spoke.

“Twice the market price? I’m a bit sad too, but I’m glad you’re able to sell the house at a good price and move. When are you moving?”

“We signed the contract yesterday and agreed to vacate the house within this week. Anyway, thank you for everything. You’ve watched our kids when I was busy and cooked for us too.”

“It’s nothing. You helped me a lot when I first came here. Please come visit sometimes even after you leave.”

“Alright, I will. I’m going now. Oh, and we’re planning to leave all the things we have here when we go. If there’s anything you need, feel free to take it.”

“Okay, thank you Aunt Suzanna.”

Mercian watched Suzanna go to pack and tilted her head.

A few days ago, old man Harold who lived in the house across from hers said he sold his house and left this place. And now the house behind?

Why are there suddenly so many people moving away from here?

Mercian found it strange.

The area where Mercian lived was a bit remote even within the village, with only five houses around besides her own.

Yet two houses suddenly moving away…

Is someone building a big house here? Are they going to ask me to sell my house too?

Mercian looked at her house with concern.

It wasn’t comparable to the Duke’s mansion, but it was a fairly large and cozy house for her to live in alone.

If there really isn’t a problem, I don’t particularly want to sell the house…

Mercian thought she should stop by the real estate office on her way home from work as she locked up and headed to the shop.

.

.

.

“What? What do you mean?”

At Mercian’s words, Piero, who worked in real estate, replied with a troubled expression.

“Rosalyn, I don’t know much either. Just that someone suddenly appeared wanting to buy houses.”

“Do you really mean all the houses around mine have been sold?”

Rosalyn asked Piero in disbelief.

All five houses except her own were sold within a week?

“How did all the houses around me get sold? Are you going to ask me to sell my house too?”

Piero waved his hand and replied to Mercian who asked worriedly.

“No, fortunately they said they won’t buy Rosalyn’s house.”

“They’re not buying my house?”

“Yes, so don’t worry.”

What’s going on?

Mercian found it even stranger at Piero’s words.

Out of six houses in a remote rural village, they bought all the houses except hers?

And just one person?

Who on earth and why?

Mercian asked Piero who bought the houses.

But Piero just kept apologizing, saying he couldn’t tell her that.

Mercian felt something fishy about Piero’s words, but she was relieved that she didn’t have to sell her house and left the real estate office.

Yes, at that time I thought it was fortunate.

Until a few days later, when he, whom I had seen dead with my own two eyes lying in a coffin,

Appeared perfectly alive before my eyes, looking unbelievably healthier than when he was with me…

.

.

.

“It’s been a while, my wife. My, you’ve lost weight. Who has been troubling you?”

Mercian looked at Ruan, who was greeting her with a bright smile as if they had parted just yesterday, and said with an unbelievable expression.

“Ru. Ruan? Is it really you, Ruan? Weren’t you dead?”