IABCBMH Chapter 35

Disclaimer: Some words or phrases may be lost in translation. The word might not have a literal translation in English or there may be sayings in Korean culture that I am not familiar with.

(athanasiafrost)

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The boy bearing a striking resemblance to Johannes remained silent as he finally met Johannes, someone he had eagerly awaited. His gaze was not fixed on Johannes but rather focused on Eloise’s injured ankle, a concerned expression clouding his face. Eloise, however, greeted the situation with a radiant smile.

“It’s only natural for families to look out for one another.”

“…We haven’t known each other for long.”

“But we’re still family.”

With a gentle stroke of Leo’s hair, Eloise continued.

“And I’m fine. This is just a wound from a mishap with my dagger.”

All eyes turned to inspect the injury, confirming their earlier assumptions about Eloise’s lack of offensive capabilities.

“But it will leave a scar! What should I do?”

“Better than it being cut off, whatever. I’m just glad it was a dagger. If it were an axe… Well, I’m joking. Why’s everyone looking so serious?”

Though it may not have been the most appropriate joke to tell with a bright face, an awkward laughter rippled through the group.

“Haha, that’s Eloise for you…”

In fact, Eloise had just told her first joke since arriving in the North, though she hesitated to admit it. The awkward laughter quickly turned to surprise when Johannes chimed in.

“Don’t stand for too long; it’s not good for your ankle. Let’s go to your room. That’s something we can agree both agree on?”

Then Johannes held her in his arms, a display of kindness and concern that nobody had anticipated from the typically indifferent Johannes.

With Eloise safely in his arms, Johannes swiftly made his way into the duchy. As they watched, Serena couldn’t help but grin at Braeden.

“What if my usually cool-headed judgment of the situation is wrong, old master?”

Serena chuckled as she held Leo, whose eyes were sparkling with joy.

“Maybe something significant happened while they were alone. Did I hit it on the spot? Love can strike in an instant, can’t it?”

Hmm… Indeed. Is that kind of atmosphere?”

Pagan furrowed his brows and mumbled, to which Serena replied with a prophetic tone.

“Even if it isn’t, spending time together in that atmosphere is bound to deepen their relationship, don’t you think? Would the Duke normally be one to lift someone up and embrace them like that? I believe many things will change.”

And just as Serena foretold, the entire duchy began to make way, their eyes wide in astonishment, as they observed the Duke and Duchess.

This bizarre scenario arose because, unbeknownst to most, Johannes was, in essence, a gentleman, unlike reputation.

He had already made the decision to send Eloise away. However, he had imagined quietly agreeing on the timing and notifying her.

After all, she had been injured within his domain, so it was only right to provide treatment and ensure her safe departure. He assessed her to be physically weak, especially after a night of riding, and decided she should rest.

Eloise, nestled in his arms, seemed to grasp his thoughts and inwardly sighed.

The pattern was remarkably similar to what had transpired before her regression. Johannes harbored suspicions and caution, but in the end he was merciful to her and allowed her situation to go exactly as she intended.

Although she hates to admit it, he was, at his core, a warm-hearted individual, incapable of cruelty. She would do her utmost to leverage his kindness and maintain hope for her survival.

It appeared that history was destined to repeat itself, and Eloise couldn’t help but smile with a touch of bitterness at that realization.

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(athanasiafrost)

‘Thank God.’

Katie thought as she urgently instructed the search party, who had departed earlier in the day, to swiftly return to the Duke’s castle.

‘Glad, they came back safely…’

Katie, who had not been part of the meeting group, received the news in the dead of night while she was busy with preparations to welcome the knights inside the Duke’s castle.

Two demons appeared, and Eloise, fleeing with Leo, had sacrificed herself to draw the demons away.

In all honesty, it was something that went beyond common sense.

It was astonishing that a noble girl from the south, the object of envy, had acclimated herself to the harsh north. Yet, she willingly risked her life for her stepson, a child with whom she shared no blood and who didn’t hold much affection for her.

‘However… She seems like the kind of person who would do that.’

In reality, every time she graced the North with her innocent smile and declared her contentment, the hearts of the northerners warmed. To someone who saw only the warm and good side of this harsh land, it seemed entirely fitting that she would make such a noble sacrifice.

‘It appears the little prince has truly opened his heart this time. I hope she turns out to be a genuinely good person.’

No matter how emotionally attached she had become to Eloise, who had thrown herself in front of the duchy’s heir, Katie had to maintain a rational outlook.

Johannes had instructed her to keep a vigilant eye on Eloise. Naturally, a woman who had arrived in the North on her own couldn’t escape suspicion. As of now, she had not interfered in the duchy’s affairs and had conducted herself without raising any suspicion.

‘Why did the Duke suddenly come, and how long will he stay? There’s much to find out.’

Katie took a moment to catch her breath as she looked into the distance from the top of the flying tower. Johannes’ visit was sudden, no one knows the reason or the duration.

‘I wonder what will happen to Eloise… .’

Braeden had persistently lamented the possibility of Eloise returning to the south, fearing that Johannes might force her away. Yet, she remained uncertain about Eloise’s fate.

‘I must descend quickly. I need to ensure she’s unharmed.’

As her thoughts reached this point, Katie felt an urgent need to personally assess Eloise’s condition. She was about to come to her senses and climb down her tower.

Thud, thud, thud!

Katie cast an inquisitive glance at the unfamiliar sound of wings flapping.

“…What?”

Her brow furrowed as she observed the carrier pigeon that had just arrived. It wasn’t one of Noavik’s carrier pigeons. That black silhouette with a distinctive red marking on its beak was unmistakable.

“Why is Emmenta…”

Emmenta bordered the Duchy of Noavik and had risen to power after the fall of the Kingdom of Leto. Katie’s expression subtly hardened as she swiftly took the telegram from Emmenta and checked the sender’s name.

With a light sigh, she began to descend the tower, the urgency of meeting Johannes clearly weighing on her.

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“Where is the duke?”

Katie, now at the base of the tower, grabbed a kitchen boy who happened to be passing by and asked. The young lad, who was clutching a cookie, looked startled.

“Um, maybe… In Eloise’s room. I heard he took her there personally.”

“What? This…”

Katie’s heart weighed heavily as she learned that Johannes had personally taken Eloise to her room.

It was none other than Duke Johannes Noavik, a man known for taking matters into his own hands, even if they were small. He was the one who had embarked on a relentless pursuit of the elusive ‘blue ruby.’ While Katie couldn’t be entirely certain, she was convinced that Eloise must have suffered serious injuries.

Katie lightly bit her lower lip, reminiscing about Eloise’s innocent smile. She began making her way towards Eloise’s room, and the kitchen child hesitantly followed, not daring to question her actions. Soon, they arrived at Eloise’s door.

“…What is this?”

Katie came to a halt, and her gaze met Johannes, who wore a similar expression of confusion inside the room.

The kitchen child, trailing Katie, rushed to join the cluster of children gathered around Eloise’s bedside.

“Eloise! Are you okay? this… Last time, I secretly brought back the oatmeal cookies that I heard were similar in color but not in taste! Ah, but how do you know what the old water tastes like?”

It appeared that all the children who had grown close to Eloise at the Duke’s Castle had come to visit her. Behind Katie, her maids and servants also milled about with expressions of concern.

“What brings you here, Katie?”

Johannes stood up, laughing as if this situation was absurd.

“Did you come running out of concern for Eloise, much like these folks?”

“Um… well…”

“It seems no one is giving much thought to the lord they haven’t seen in quite some time. The duchy’s future is indeed very promising.”

Katie realized that there was no cause for her to feel slighted by the situation. She, too, had been concerned about Eloise and had been on the verge of rushing over before the missive from Emmenta arrived.

“What… .”

Katie blinked with a sheepish expression.

“Anyway, since she has sacrificed herself for Duke Leo, as an employee, I would like to thank her…”

“It’s no trouble.”

Johannes rose, the scraping of the chair against the floor accentuating his movement.

“It’s been a while since I visited the duchy. Things seem to have changed rather rapidly.”

Though Johannes’ statement was made in jest, Eloise had not actually played any significant role in the duchy. Still, a hint of surprise flickered across Johannes’ face.

“You got stabbed in the ankle with a dagger? You must have cried.”

“Why would I cry? Oh, there was some cursing.”

That’s because Eloise’s face, who got along with the children without hesitation, showed signs of genuine intimacy.

After a moment of observing her innocent smile, Johannes approached Katie and extended his hand.

“Hand it over.”

“Yes?”

“Aren’t you here to give that to me?”

“It’s Emmenta’s.”

As expected, Johannes had a sharp eye, so he seemed to have already seen the letter in Katie’s hand. Katie sighed and held out the letter.

“Just now… I just received it from the tower.”

Johannes opened the letter on the spot with a deadpan expression. Then he frowned clearly. Eloise was quietly observing that expression.

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(athanasiafrost)

I just came back from Korea and looked at the site. The chapters are supposed to auto-upload while I was gone but that doesn’t seem to be the case. While Chapter 34, 47-50 was uploaded just fine, the rest didn’t. Chapter 41-46 is sitting in my drafts and didnt auto-upload, while 35-40 and 51-54 disappeared and I can’t locate them anywhere.

I am trying to reach to out to WordPress about this as it is a month worth of work. I’m honestly so dejected by this as I did not have any backup and would take me a few weeks to catch up if WordPress is unable to fix this.

In regards to this, if anyone wants to volounteer and help me out, it would expedite the process. If you’re interested, feel free to contact me through the Contact Me page.

If you’d like to help me survive throughout the day, It’ll be greatly appreciated: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/athanasiafrost

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