47 – A Good Story
That incident began twelve years ago, from the palace where a gentle breeze blew in the spring.
“Don’t run, Leticia. You’ll get hurt.”
“I won’t get hurt, Mother. I’m a proper lady, I won’t speak nonsense.”
“You’re quite a chatterbox. Isn’t it because there’s no one who would take you away?”
The king of the Baschill Kingdom at the time, Ronan Baschill, scolded his daughter gently. However, Leticia Baschill, who didn’t listen to her father’s words, continued to bounce around with her innocent and carefree steps.
“What if no one takes me away? If I don’t have a spouse or children, I can just stay by Mother’s side forever.”
“hahahaha, you have a talent for choosing words that I can’t hate.”
“It’s one of the many outstanding qualities I have.”
Leticia Baschill.
She was a charming woman with a lively personality, and she would later become the woman who conceived Glenn Baschill.
“Anyway, Mother is always so tired, so a chatterbox like me is just what she needs, right?”
“Well, maybe.”
Ronan reluctantly agreed. While Leticia’s energetic personality was indeed her innate temperament, he was not a person with thick nerves who could smile brightly even with his mother’s serious illness in front of him.
“Mother, I will never get married until you get better.”
“Why are you saying such things? It’s a dream for both me and Lunia to see you happily raising your child.”
Lunia was the name of the queen, and she was, in fact, the mother of Leticia and the person who would become Glenn’s grandmother.
Upon hearing her father’s words, Leticia clenched her fist and confidently declared, “So tell her to quickly recover and get up. If you want to see Walgadak’s daughter get married soon.”
“…Alright. That’s what I’ll do.”
Ronan replied with a bitter smile.
Since Queen Lunia fell victim to an unidentified monster, numerous proposals had been rejected. The most frequently rejected proposal was the demand to appoint a Royal Mistress.
A Royal Mistress—meaning the woman who would take on the role of a hostess if there were no high-ranking ladies in the palace. It was a position that, despite being noble, no one could mock lightly. Therefore, many noble families had repeatedly pleaded to appoint their daughters as Royal Mistresses.
‘The proposal to appoint a Royal Mistress… has its justifications.’
The fact is, with the queen unable to maintain her position, there were various disruptions in the country’s events. In such a situation, who would dare to criticize bringing in a Royal Mistress? Even Queen Lunia might agree.
However, just seeing the words “Royal Mistress” made Ronan nauseous.
‘But not yet… not yet. I can wait until Lunia recovers. It’s not too late. There hasn’t been a significant flaw in the governance of the country…’
Ronan loved Lunia. As members of the royal family who had unusually met through a love marriage, their relationship was even more tender. He would gladly give up half of his lifespan if it meant she could recover.
“Mama?”
At that moment, seeing Ronan’s strained expression, Leticia called out to him with concern. Ronan relaxed his facial muscles and replied softly, “No. It’s nothing.”
Yes, it’s nothing. Nothing happened, and nothing should happen.
To some, it might be trivial, but to others, it was an incredibly heavy burden. The answer to that burden was given not by the heavens but by humans, because the heavens treated humans like a stepping stone, just like a drunken master making a dog.
All trials were a burden that humans had to bear entirely.
◇
From the mild spring to the scorching summer, and the heat that fades in the autumn when leaves fall.
The condition of Queen Lunia deteriorated rapidly.
Her rare appearances outside the bed became scarce, and the color of death eagerly aimed to stain her face. Ronan and Leticia stood somberly by Lunia’s side as her mind became chaotic.
“Ronan.”
“Speak, Lunia.”
“I’m sorry. You weren’t originally a man who made such a messed-up expression…”
“Messed-up? I married you because I have a good-looking face.”
“Oh, that’s a lie.”
“What?”
Suddenly, Ronan’s eyes widened at the revealed truth. Lunia then spoke with a faint smile, teasingly.
“I acknowledge that you’re handsome, but it’s not my taste. My personal preference was a delicate smiley youth overflowing with weak charm, not a muscular handsome guy like you.”
“Well, I never expected that.”
“Don’t worry. Except for the face, everything else was to my liking. That’s why we got married, and even Leticia was born.”
“… I’m relieved.”
This time, Lunia turned her gaze to Leticia. Then, intentionally recalling an unknown matter, she remarked.
“Leticia, make sure to marry a man whose face is to your liking. I’ve given birth to someone who qualifies for that. You’ll know when you look in the mirror.”
“Oh, oh my goodness…!”
“Stop making excuses, Mother, and find me a suitable groom. I don’t care if he’s a foreign nobleman, just find me a good man and quickly arrange a marriage.”
“Ugh…”
Even if she was a stubborn person like Leticia, in the end, she was still under her mother’s control.
It had always been like that. She easily brushed off other people’s words, but her mother’s words always stuck to her like glue.
Lunia was a peculiar person.
“Cough!”
At that moment, Lunia let out a cough that sounded like her lungs were bursting. Ronan and Leticia were startled and naturally stood up.
“It’s nothing, really. Just a cough. My nose was itchy.”
“Well, I guess that’s it. Maybe it was just an overreaction.”
“Thank goodness…”
To the two ladies who were wiping their chests, Lunia soon gave an excuse to leave.
“I want to rest a little. I’m feeling sleepy. I think I’ll take a short nap for a change.”
“Then we’ll come back later, Lunia.”
“Rest well. Oh my goodness.”
Ronan and Leticia couldn’t hide their disappointment. However, Lunia rarely had the chance to fall into a deep sleep, so they eventually stepped aside.
“Sigh…”
As soon as Lunia sensed that all signs of her presence had disappeared, she ran her index finger across the roof of her mouth. What she pulled out and revealed from her mouth, along with saliva, was clearly blood.
“I wanted to see Leticia finding her match…”
Until then, breathing seemed to be not such an easy task.
Lunia secretly shed tears with a bitter premonition.
“Oh, divine being…”
Please, I beg you, look after this clumsy life a little longer.
I will sacrifice everything, so please…
◈
Every day, I feel a pain as if the world is collapsing.
The moments when I wander the palace in my right mind are few and far between. How does it feel to have the woman I thought I would spend my whole life with disappear? I feel an emotion that I don’t want to know, constantly tightening around my throat.
“Lunia…”
Whenever I close my eyes, old memories sprout like new shoots.
The day I fell in love at first sight in the debutante ball.
The fresh summer when she personally put an umbrella over me and we took a walk in the rain.
The night of confession when I knelt down and handed her a diamond ring.
The wedding ceremony where she wore a pure white wedding dress and we kissed.
The everyday life of making lemon tarts for my wife who had a sweet tooth.
Every moment I spent with her was so precious that there was no faded part. If I could die at any moment, I would give up everything. I would rather suffer in her place.
“Oh, divine being… Oh, divine being… My wife is in great pain. My wife who should stay in her beautiful and young days is in pain. How scary must it be for her when I am so terrified? Please, give Lunia a little more time…”
What I have done so far was not enough. I wanted to show her more, give her more. I swore to make her see and hear only the most precious things in the world. But all I did was give her false hope, nothing but empty gestures.
Rather than being crushed by helplessness, I wanted to die. Sincerely.
From Noble mtl dot com
“Oh, divine being… Lunia…”
In the lonely Alhyeonsil, Roran’s prayer dispersed emptily into the air. In his anxious and restless heart, the pronunciation of the prayer even became muddled. Nevertheless, Roran steadfastly wished for his wife’s happiness.
Did that pure heart bring about a miracle?
The fervent prayer received a response from the will of the gods.
“Do you wish to save the queen?”
“Who goes there!”
Rohan responded immediately.
Although his body was aged, the traces of training did not lie. Rohan, the king of a nation and a renowned knight, drew his sharp sword and pointed it at the intruder.
The intruder was a woman covered in a pitch-black robe, concealing her entire body. Despite her appearance being thoroughly hidden, her delicate voice could not be masked.
Soon, the woman gracefully introduced herself.
“Nice to meet you for the first time, King Vaskhill. I am ‘Mar,’ bestowed with a mission as a servant of the divine.”
“The divine…? Could it be that you come from the temple?”
“Yes, that’s correct. However…”
Silence.
Mar’s hood descended.
Immediately, amethyst-colored hair flowed down like a snowy field onto her pale skin. Her fox-like, torn eyes were enchanting, and her jawline was elegantly defined.
Up to that point, one might have deemed her a beautifully captivating woman.
However, her eyes exhibited a stark difference from those of an ordinary human.
The eerie glow in her pupils, flickering like a mischievous spirit, bestowed upon her an otherworldly beauty. It was only after recognizing this that Rohan deduced Mar’s true identity.
“As you can see, I did come from the temple of the demonic spirits.”
“Demonic spirits… daring to reach the heart of the kingdom!”
“Oh, please don’t be too harsh about it.”
Mar faced the blade that ominously aimed at his neck, drawing lines with seductive lips.
“This is a good story. I’ve come just to tell a good story.”