Chapter 3

Isabella clenched her fists.

“I’ll leave this here. Please make sure you eat.”

It seemed Ijar had no plan to take off his mask. Isabella gritted her teeth. She was sick and tired of her godforsaken body and House Helsington, which had cursed her with it.

I would do anything to get out of this place. To hold back the tears she felt welling up again, Isabella bit her bottom lip so hard that she tasted blood.

***

Count Helsington was deep in thought. The lights in his office were brightly lit.

Countess Helsington, who had been waiting for her husband to join her in bed, had gone to find him in his office.

“Marriage, you say?”

The count had finally shared why the group of men—the Black Wolf Knights working for House Noverdic—had visited.

“Yes, they’re suggesting a marriage between our families.”

“We have nothing to lose by joining our family with House Noverdic.”

“It’s very good for us, indeed. It’s baffling that they proposed marriage at all. They even offered to help us take care of those Delta scoundrels.”

Count Helsington possessed rich, fertile land. Every year, outsiders had their eyes on the lands that produced such bountiful harvests. Those outsiders were from Delta, the neighboring nation. A range of mountains stood between the count’s land and Delta, like a large craggy curtain—but it was no obstacle for them, having grown up around the mountains. They had taken to raiding villages in the winter which caused great trouble for the count.

House Helsington would stand to benefit immensely. On top of that, House Noverdic had the full confidence of the emperor. Perhaps that was why many noble houses sought to establish ties with the Noverdic family—there was no reason for House Helsington to turn down their proposal of marriage.

“My goodness! What do they want from us?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing, you say?” The countess’s voice rose. “Why would they make such a shocking proposal?”

Her husband had the same question. There was no reason for the Noverdics to have an interest in House Helsington.

“Who knows? But they really want this marriage to happen.”

“Did they hear rumors about how beautiful our Iona is?” She cackled.

“It’s not Iona,” the count replied with a sigh.

“Huh? What did you say?”

“The proposal is for Isabella.”

“Duke Noverdic must not have heard about what kind of child Isabella is. My goodness...” If he knew about Isabella’s curse and how she was fated to die young, he would have had no reason to marry her. “We should turn it down.”

Surely they would understand after being informed about Isabella’s condition. Count Helsington had just picked up his pen when the door burst open.

“I will marry him, Father.”

Isabella glared at Count Helsington with a pale face, panting as if she were about to faint.

***

“Do you think Whitney has met with Count Helsington yet?” Clara Noverdic asked. She had obsidian eyes and pigtails of ebony hair.

Angela Noverdic, her mother and the mistress of the house, had been throwing darts at a portrait on the wall, but she turned around at her daughter’s question. The last dart she threw struck the portrait right between the eyes.

“Of course. If he hasn’t, then he has no right to call himself the captain of the knights and butler of House Noverdic, wouldn’t you say?”

“We need to throw a party when Isabella arrives!”

“A party isn’t enough! We need to throw a festival for our Isabella,” Victor Noverdic, the current duke, said.

“Is Isabella really going to come though?”

Angela squeezed both of Clara’s hands before patting her head. “Of course. If the count refuses to send her...”

“Then?”

“We’ll wipe them out,” Angela said with a grim smile.

Clara hung from Angela’s neck, rubbing their cheeks together as if pleased by her mother’s answer.

“You’re the best, Mama.”

“I should start the preparations for the festival! What does Isabella like again? Ah! Isabella tends to get cold easily. I should make sure the windows are properly sealed.” Victor began to fuss.

Angela clicked her tongue as she watched him.

“Mama, are you really not going to tell Cleor about this?”

“About what?”

Clara looked around before she whispered in her mother’s ear. “About our secret.”

House Noverdic had a secret that nobody knew. They had experienced death before. It was a quiet, depressing death, but it wasn’t dramatic. Victor, Angela, their son Cleor, and their daughter Clara lived a life without any regrets. Except for one: Isabella. For some reason, they had all come back from the dead—they had been reborn.

“Cleor? Never!” Victor exclaimed, shaking his head. “If his memories ever return, then...”

“Then?”

“The whole continent will be in danger.”

Angela nodded, agreeing with her husband. Before their deaths, Cleor had loved Isabella very much. He was just like his father, completely blinded by love for his partner. But the circumstances behind Isabella’s death were very suspicious.

At the time, nobody realized because they were overcome with grief. But for some reason, Victor and Angela had come back to life and relived the same lives. The moment they saw each other in the North, their memories of their past lives came flooding back to them.

After that, they started putting together the pieces, one by one. Isabella’s death was not a simple sacrifice.

What if Cleor discovered that? Angela shivered. Cleor was her son, but he was also a fearsome man. He was the one who fought a dragon when they took over the North. He had let go of his sword as the dragon breathed fire, climbed on its neck, and pulled out a dagger hidden in his boot.

Did he use the dragon’s momentum to stab it in the eye? Cleor the fiend: the monstrous young lord. Even his three family members thought the nicknames were appropriate.

“Yeah, I can imagine Cleor doing that. He’s a completely different person around Isabella though.”

Clara also remembered her past life. She regained her memories as soon as she was born and let out her first cry. Cleor was the only one who didn’t remember.

“I can see why. Isabella was such a beautiful and lovely girl. Even a demon would fall in love with her.”

Victor and Clara nodded in agreement.

“Ah... I hope I can see her soon.”

“Me too, Mama. As soon as Isabella gets here, I’m going to show her the dragon teeth, golem eyes, and gray bear paws I’ve been collecting! I’ve got a whole bunch now!” Clara beamed.

Angela’s face darkened, but she couldn’t stop Clara. Her collection was her prized possession.

I don’t think our kids are normal, dear. Angela gave Victor a pointed look, and he chuckled.

***

“I will marry him, Father.”

The office became silent as if cold water had been poured over them. Count Helsington froze when Isabella suddenly made her appearance.

“What do you mean, Isabella?”

“I heard everything. House Noverdic sent a marriage proposal. I want to accept it.”

The count gulped. Isabella’s days were numbered. Who would want a daughter-in-law that’s on her deathbed? Would she even survive the journey to the North? And she couldn’t go empty-handed. She needed a dowry. Whether she died on the way there or at House Noverdic, it would be a problem.

“No.”

“Father! Why not?”

“Because...”

You’re going to die soon. But Count Helsington couldn’t say the words. Instead, he looked away.

“Take a seat, Isabella,” the countess chimed in as she approached, placing her hand on Isabella’s shoulder.

Isabella immediately slapped her mother’s hand away.

“Isabella?” The countess’s eyes flashed with anger. How dare this cursed doll turn down her kindness?

Isabella had never been in a position to turn down anyone’s kindness, no matter how fake it was. She tried her best not to offend the people of House Helsington. When she really thought about it, she realized it was all meaningless. No matter how hard she tried to lower herself and live quietly, they only saw her as a dirty, cursed doll. No more, no less.

“Father, I will proceed with the marriage.”

“Why are you being so stubborn? Are you sacrificing yourself for your family? Rumors say that the young lord of House Noverdic is a fiend. Demonic beasts still roam in the North, and the winters are so harsh that people starve to death. If you’re thinking about sacrificing yourself for the family, then forget it.” Count Helsington tried to dissuade Isabella using groundless rumors.

“It’s not a sacrifice,” she retorted.

Count Helsington narrowed his eyes. He was starting to get annoyed with her stubbornness.

Isabella didn’t want this. Even more than death itself, she dreaded the idea of House Helsington watching her die. She didn’t want to feel any guilt from the Helsingtons taking care of her in her final days.

She had heard the North was completely cut off from the outside world during winter. Count Helsington and his people couldn’t touch her there. The North was a godforsaken land overrun with demonic beasts and bandits—a fitting place for a cursed woman to die. Isabella accepted House Noverdic’s proposal as fate. It was her only way to get out of this damned house.

This is the only thing I can have for myself. The place where her last memories would be. She couldn’t give up. She became greedy.

“It’s a marriage proposal for me. Shouldn’t I be the one to decide?”

“They don’t know that you’re terminally ill!” the count shouted.

Isabella smiled bitterly. She had been standing for too long. On top of that, she had raised her voice. “What if... House Noverdic agrees to the marriage even after I tell them about my situation?”

It would never happen, but at least there was a chance. She was grasping at straws.

“That won’t happen,” the count replied, his voice resolute. His firm attitude strengthened her resolve.

Let’s get this over with. Isabella strode to her father’s desk, full of determination.

Count Helsington lifted his head and looked at her. He had never been so close to his eldest daughter before. From this distance, he could see the veins beneath her pale skin.

What is she thinking, getting married in her condition? Watching her with a frown on his face, he thought she was being needlessly stubborn.

Isabella pulled the white sheet of paper toward her, picked up a pen, and started writing without hesitation.