Reunion
“…….”
“….”
“…….”
“….”
Under the silent moonlight, the stillness of four people settled as thick as the darkness.
Crackle, crackle.
Only the sound of the burning fire indicated that this was not a void.
In the space prepared for camping, the gourmet tour members were gathered, speechless, looking down at a figure lying by the campfire.
The woman, with hair as wild and white as that of a witch and a face covered in grime, had a body so emaciated it seemed skeletal.
Clap, clap.
Old man Rendler stood up after finishing the simple first aid.
He had disinfected and applied ointment to the wounds to prevent infection, warmed the body that was cold as ice, and torn a page from a healing spellbook he had bought for emergencies.
Though immediate recovery was difficult, the essential elements for survival would gradually build up.
Ariel, still bewildered, spoke up.
“So… when you went up to the top floor because you heard crying… you found Lady Remian crying alone? Is that… what you’re saying? That’s unbelievable….”
It was only natural.
Even seeing it with your own eyes, it was hard to believe. How could anyone believe a tale heard secondhand?
The ruler of the north, the great leader of the northern territories.
The highest authority next to the king.
The youngest daughter of Logan Winterfell, adorned with all manner of illustrious titles, was found alone, wasting away in an abandoned mansion in a desolate land. Who could believe that?
To speak such words lightly would be a dangerous insult to the Winterfell Dukedom, likely leading to torture or worse, and thus we had to remain silent for a long while.
“What on earth is going on?”
Rendler, tying up the bundle of first aid supplies, asked me, but I had no clear answer to give.
Like everyone else, this was the first time I had seen her since the Engagement War.
I hadn’t expected to meet her here.
What on earth had happened in the past six months?
No.
How had the youngest daughter of the Winterfell Dukedom, left to waste away in this place, even reached this land, not far northwest from the duchy?
It should have been tumultuous and chaotic.
The Winterfell family should have conducted a massive search to find their kin, and there should have been rampant speculation about the third daughter’s sudden departure or broken engagement after just six months.
That would have been normal.
Not the abnormal state of Remian Winterfell.
That would have been realistic.
Not the surreal loneliness and isolation of Remian Winterfell.
Yet, throughout our journey here, I had never heard a single rumor about her.
The people were merely busy preparing for the harsh winter, living in peace.
“Have you heard any rumors about Lady Remian?”
Looking around at the members, I asked, but only silence returned.
“What on earth… could have happened?”
“I don’t know. But clearly, something very serious happened.”
Rachel answered Ariel’s question.
Something serious indeed.
Rachel’s statement seemed understated for the gravity of what had transpired.
And it was likely that the blood-stained handkerchief she clutched even while unconscious was deeply connected to it.
She had been crying while holding it.
The reason she was crying here rather than in the ducal castle could be broadly classified into two possibilities.
She was either driven out, or she fled.
If the former, Remian must have committed a grave offense to be exiled.
Whatever the offense was, if her father exiled her, it must have been significant.
If the latter, someone else must have committed a grave offense.
And that someone was likely Deron Kellyd.
No one else in the ducal castle could drive Remian to such desperation, to the brink of death.
If Deron was indeed the culprit, I must chastise my foolishness in assuming he wouldn’t dare do anything reckless under the watchful eyes of Remian’s father.
‘What on earth were you thinking, Deron?’
Moreover.
The shock inflicted on Remian by someone’s wrongdoing was so profound it rendered her mute.
It must have been something beyond comprehension.
Something immeasurable.
I looked at Rendler.
“Will she wake up?”
“It’s hard to say. Her condition is very severe.”
“I see.”
“For now, the healing spellbook should be working, so we’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”
Indeed, if we had been any later, even her faint pulse might have been extinguished.
I looked down at Remian lying beside the campfire with a heavy heart.
The decisions I had made to avoid repeating the injustices of my past life seemed to have played a role, however minor, in causing this disaster, and it weighed heavily on me.
I didn’t know how the original story unfolded, but I was certain it didn’t involve the protagonist attempting suicide in a forsaken land, in an abandoned ruin, with no one to acknowledge her.
‘Hmm….’
Even if I returned to that moment, my decisions wouldn’t change, but the feeling that my actions to avoid the tragedy of my past life had inadvertently triggered a new one for Remian was enough to weigh down my heart.
As I sighed quietly, Rendler asked me a question.
It was more crucial than deducing the reason for this moment and this situation.
“What… will you do?”
A question about how to deal with this sudden development.
There were two possible answers.
Provide some help in this coincidental reunion and then go our separate ways as before, or understand the truth and make this coincidence a necessity, walking the same path together.
Having witnessed Remian’s fainting, I couldn’t simply ignore it as if nothing had happened.
Yet, I couldn’t blindly offer help without understanding the situation, not knowing the exact reason for this disaster.
My decision could potentially cause undue harm to the group, requiring careful consideration.
Under normal circumstances, it would be right to ensure her safe return to the ducal castle, but the lack of active search efforts from the Winterfell family and Remian’s apparent distance from the duchy made it clear that this was not a typical situation.
“Hmm….”
I stroked my chin and pondered, feeling the weight of the members’ gaze on me, but I didn’t have enough information to make a decision.
Thus.
“Let’s wait until she wakes up.”
I had no choice but to defer the decision.
Moving the unconscious Remian a great distance was not feasible.
Moreover, our next destination required passing through the Eris Marquisate, which involved traversing the ducal territory.
Hastily taking her back to the ducal territory might bring more harm than good, so waiting for her to wake up seemed the best option.
In any case.
The answer to this predicament likely lay with her.
Thus, we decided to stay in this forsaken land until Remian woke up.
**
“How is she?”
“Her pulse is gradually returning, but she’s still unconscious.”
It had been three days since we arrived in the abandoned Bedran Barony.
It had been three days since we reunited with Remian, yet she remained in a deep sleep.
Fortunately, there were signs of improvement.
Her breathing had stabilized, and her once slow pulse was gradually quickening.
I had worried about pursuers, but for three days, there had been no sign of anyone.
‘If there had been pursuers, they would have caught up by now.’
An exhausted Grand Duchess, unfamiliar with evasion, would not have been able to evade pursuers.
Looking around, I saw clear traces indicating her path, saying ‘I’m going this way.’
This meant that the Winterfell family wasn’t searching for Remian.
It was puzzling.
Logan Winterfell, who valued the family’s honor and prestige, would never want news of the third Grand Duchess’s lonely death to spread throughout the kingdom.
It would bring disgrace to the great Winterfell family.
He would become a father who abandoned his daughter cruelly, and the Winterfell family would be seen as a family that couldn’t protect its members.
Unless he had chosen to bear this disgrace to prevent a greater one.
There might have been some promise or deal, but it remained a puzzling situation.
Of course, from the beginning.
‘It was strange to arrange an engagement with the instigator of the bullying, even for the sake of family tradition.’
Whether it was my modern sensibilities clashing with medieval ones or if the situation was so peculiar it defied comprehension, I couldn’t tell, but the only way to unravel these mysteries was for Remian to wake up.
And on the fourth day.
With Ariel out gathering vegetables to accompany our meal, Rachel out to guard her, and old man Rendler out collecting firewood, I found myself alone at the campsite, watching over Remian.
“…….”
“…….”
Under the cloudless blue sky and warm sunlight, I was able to meet Remian’s gaze as she opened her eyes.
Remian, with the same eyes she had when we found her.
Eyes that seemed not to understand.
Eyes that seemed not to believe.
I handed her some writing materials silently, but she, having just awakened after four days, could only stare blankly at me for a long while.
Yeah her dad must be father of the year
Thanks for the chapter 😁