Chapter 23: Fully Recharged!

“You, a failed princess, claim to be a saint…?
What nonsense.
To tell such lies so brazenly—how vile.”

Cold blue eyes look down at me.

(It’s true! I really can use holy magic now! If you ask the young lord—)

“So that’s how you deceived the baron’s son, posing as a saint.
The lustful princess who loves men—seducing them must be the only thing you excel at.”

(I never did that!
And besides, I’ve only ever—)

“Do not come near me!
The thought that a depraved woman like you was my wife, even for a handful of days, is revolting.
There is only one saint in this world—my beloved Liliana.”

Adolphus draws Liliana’s slender waist close.

Her pink eyes shimmer with tears.

“Lady Rosalind, impersonating a saint is a grave crime…”

“Guards! Seize this criminal!”

The guards rush forward, grabbing me from both sides.

(It’s a misunderstanding! I’m not lying!
And I have a young child—Adolphus, your child—)

“My child?
Do not spout such despicable lies.
I lay with you only once.
There is no possibility that child is mine.
Most likely it belongs to that baron’s son.”

Before I know it, Lowell is in my arms.

(It’s true! Look—he looks just like you—)

“Very well.
If you are so concerned for the child, I shall send him to the next world along with you.”

Adolphus draws his sword in one smooth motion and raises it high.

As the blade slices through the air toward us, I clutch Lowell tightly.

(Stop—!)

◇

“Hyaaah—!”

With a pathetic scream, I wake from the nightmare.

(It was just a dream… thank goodness!)

It was horribly vivid.

My heart is still pounding.

An unexpected reunion with my ex-husband Adolphus.

That alone was enough to shave years off my life.

And then the heroine herself appeared too.

Yesterday, I fled back to the Lycoris Tavern, held warm, soft Lowell close, and crawled into bed early.

But I couldn’t fall asleep easily.

Even once I did, I kept dreaming strange dreams.

I don’t feel rested at all.

Still, morning arrives without mercy.

I would love to burrow back under the blankets and go back to sleep, but when you have a small child and a job, reality doesn’t allow that.

After finishing our usual morning routine, I hold Lowell’s hand and head toward the church nursery.

Even as we walk, those two won’t leave my thoughts.

(That dream yesterday… it was almost like the condemnation scene from the original novel…)

The lines and circumstances were different, but in The Black Wolf General’s Beloved Flower, Rosalind is exposed by Adolphus and Liliana, arrested, and executed.

That must be why.

Just recalling the two of them standing side by side fills me with both “The original couple is so beautiful!” and an inexplicable ache in my chest.

(But I’ve already stepped down from the role of villainous wife, and they’ve reached their happy ending.
There’s no way some condemnation scenario would happen now… right?)

There’s something else weighing on my mind.

Lowell, toddling along beside me with his small hand in mine.

(Should I tell Lowell about Adolphus…?)

That his father is here in this town.

Should I explain the situation to Adolphus as well and give Lowell a chance to meet him?

The capital and Diudo are far apart.

We live as commoners in a completely different world from him.

If we miss this opportunity, Lowell might never meet his father.

(But for those two and their happy ending, Lowell would undoubtedly be an obstacle…)

I don’t even want to think of my precious Lowell as an obstacle, not even in my own mind.

But regrettably, it feels like the undeniable truth.

“I shall send the child to the next world along with you.”

I shake my head vigorously to dispel the memory of the nightmare.

It was only a dream.

Adolphus is an honorable knight.

He would never say something so cruel.

Even so, if he learns he has a son born to his former wife, it wouldn’t simply end with one meeting.

Especially a son born to a former princess.

That would be complicated, no matter what.

(But Lowell would surely want to meet his papa…
Ahhh! What am I supposed to do—!?)

Still unable to reach a conclusion, we arrive at the church nursery.

I crouch down to meet Lowell’s eyes.

“Lowell, I say this every day, but if a ‘gaa’ comes like last time, you must run away immediately, okay?”

“Ro-chan can say ‘go away!’”

“If it’s truly dangerous, you can say ‘go away,’ but first you run, alright?”

Lowell’s magic is certainly powerful, but he can’t control it freely yet.

I asked the young lord to introduce a proper teacher, but apparently there’s no suitable one in Diudo, so it will take time.

For now, on my days off, I’ve started teaching him myself in the backyard of the Lycoris Tavern.

Though “teaching” is generous—we’re just practicing freezing water in a bucket.

It’s nowhere near real training.

Rather than relying on him to use attack magic in a crisis, I want him to run as fast as he can.

“And remember, you mustn’t use ‘go away’ on other people, okay?”

“Okay!”

Lowell raises his right hand energetically.

“Alright then, Lowell. Have a good day.”

“’Kay!”

As always, I pull him into a tight hug.

He hugs me back, then tilts his head as he looks at my face.

“Mama, tummy hurt?”

“Huh?”

It seems my anxious expression showed.

(To worry my child… how pathetic!)

I squish my own cheeks, then lift the corners of my mouth into a smile.

“Mama’s fine. I’ll work hard today!”

Work.

Usually that means heading back to the Lycoris Tavern to prepare for opening with Dan and Hanna.

But today I’m going to the defense force headquarters for the strategy meeting with the monster-subjugation corps.

Just thinking about facing Adolphus and Liliana again makes my chest flutter restlessly.

“…Can I have one more hug?”

“Okay!”

Before I finish speaking, Lowell throws himself into my arms.

I stroke his soft black hair and press my cheek against his plump little face.

Warmth fills my heart.

(Alright. Fully recharged!)

After waving goodbye to Lowell, I leave the church and head toward the defense force headquarters.

(First, I’ll demonstrate holy magic…
Once that’s done, I’ll keep my presence as low as possible.)

That was my plan as I made my way there.

But as expected—

Things did not go according to plan.