Chapter 34: Time Magic
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 34: Time Magic
After managing to pull the bell cord, Blair curled up in bed again and waited for Lina. The room was still warm with the lingering heat of the fireplace. Herdin must have lit it this morning before leaving.
A sudden thought occurred to her.
I don't think Herdin was behind the intruder.
He’d readily admitted his mistake and apologized, even staying by her side because she was afraid of the fire. No matter how much he might have hated her, she couldn't believe he would try to kill her.
Just as those thoughts were lulling her back to sleep, a knock came at the door, followed by Lina's voice.
"Madam, I'm coming in!"
Lina entered the room carrying a basin of water for her to wash up.
As Blair sat up, her gaze fell upon her own body. Red marks bloomed across her skin like flowers. The traces of their night together, which had once filled her with shame in her past life, now felt almost familiar.
"Lina, could you get me some clothes?"
"Ah, yes!"
Setting down the basin, Lina quickly brought over a fresh set of clothes.
"Thank you."
Blair took the clothes from Lina and began to dress. However, Lina, who was usually chattering away, was uncharacteristically quiet.
Finding this strange, Blair looked at her, only to see the maid deliberately avoiding her gaze.
Only then did Blair realize that Lina was embarrassed by the marks on her body.
Lina used to go quiet just like this in my past life, too, especially in the mornings right after I was married.
Suppressing a smile, Blair asked, "Where is the Duke?"
"Ah. He left about an hour ago. A knight from the Imperial Palace arrived, saying a magical beast had appeared on the outskirts of the capital."
Hearing this, Blair's expression hardened.
Maintaining public order in the Imperial Capital was strictly the duty of the Imperial Knights.
Yet, even in her past life, Ivan had treated Herdin like his personal knight, always claiming he needed help because the knights from the North, where magical beasts frequently appeared, were far more skilled at fighting them.
Knowing innocent citizens would suffer if he refused, Herdin had always complied without a single sign of displeasure.
Blair hated it.
She didn't want the citizens or the Imperial Knights to be harmed, but she also couldn't stand seeing Herdin endure such unfair treatment.
Once we divorce, my brother will have no excuse to demand favors from him.
The thought made her too restless to remain still.
Blair hastily threw on her clothes and got out of bed. The moment she did, however, her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.
Startled, Lina rushed to support her.
"Madam! Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"Why don't you just rest today? You don't have any pressing schedules anyway… and, well… you've been overexerting yourself lately…"
"No, I'll be fine in a moment."
Blair pushed herself up, ignoring the maid's worried gaze. She couldn't help but chuckle, sensing Lina's silent resentment toward Herdin, the one responsible for her current state.
Worried Blair would overexert herself, Lina brought the basin to the bedside. She then adamantly refused to let Blair go down to the dining room, bringing her meal directly to her instead.
After eating under Lina's overprotective care, Blair felt some of her strength return.
Only then could Blair truly begin her day.
She first stopped by Pippi's room to see how much the creature had grown, playing with it for a while before heading to the mansion's library. She wanted to study the neighboring countries.
I plan to stay in the Kingdom of Clania until Asiel is born, but I don't know where I'll settle after that. It would be wise to study the regions surrounding the Empire.
However, the book Blair was looking for was not in the library.
The librarian wore a troubled expression.
"It seems one of the servants has borrowed it. Since their name is on the list, I will go retrieve it right away."
Although books had become more common, they were still expensive luxury items. Consequently, most nobles rarely allowed servants to enter their libraries.
Yet, Herdin kept the library open, allowing anyone in Delmark to read freely whenever they wished.
Blair did not want to interfere with his wishes.
"No, there's no need for that. It isn't urgent, and the person who borrowed it first should be allowed to finish it."
At that, Mason, who had been watching from the side, made a suggestion.
"Madam, why not look in His Grace's private study?"
Herdin's private study was connected to his office. It was designed so he could easily access reference materials while working.
Feeling as though she would be invading his personal space, she had never set foot in it during her past life.
"Would it be alright for me to go in?"
Mason quietly observed Blair as she asked hesitantly.
Most of the people in the ducal house kept their distance from her. Since she was the Emperor's sister, they couldn't openly mistreat her, but they weren't friendly enough to engage in personal interactions either.
Blair never tried to win their favor or walk on eggshells around them, but perhaps because she was well aware of her position, her actions always carried a certain caution.
Like a guest staying in someone else's home.
Mason, too, had been reluctant when he was first assigned to serve her as the lady of the house. But after observing her closely these past few months, he felt he was finally beginning to understand.
He understood why Esmeralda had so cherished the daughter of her political enemy.
How could anyone not adore a child who worked so hard to learn, who put her all into everything, and who rejoiced so purely at a single word of praise?
Blair resembled Esmeralda, the woman who had raised her with all her heart, far more than she did her own birth mother.
Others might mock him for it, but to Mason—a man well past forty and no longer swayed by the world's prejudices—that was simply how he saw her.
Since their vows had been made before God, he hoped she would adapt well to the ducal mansion and to his master.
"You are the lady of Delmark, Madam. There is no place in this mansion you cannot go, and no object you cannot use."
As if to reassure her, he added, "His Grace has never given any restrictive orders regarding his study, either."
Reassured by his words, Blair headed straight to Herdin's office with Mason. The moment she stepped inside, however, she immediately regretted it.
The office she had left in a complete mess ten days ago was now neatly organized, as if nothing had ever happened. A sudden flush of heat rushed to her face.
Embarrassed, Blair quickly averted her eyes.
Mason asked in confusion, "Madam? Is something the matter?"
"...No, it's nothing."
I shouldn't come anywhere near this office for a while…
With that thought, Blair followed Mason. The passage leading to the private study was on the right side of the office.
"Please call for me if you need anything."
Mason withdrew after guiding her that far.
Opening the door, she was greeted by the sight of a large room with walls entirely lined with bookshelves.
The study was spacious and quiet. At a glance, it seemed tidy, but a closer look revealed unsorted books scattered here and there. Since Herdin was the only one who used this study, they were likely books he had been reading.
I thought he would be the type to keep everything perfectly organized.
Amused by this unexpected side of him, Blair looked around the study and located the bookshelf containing history books of various nations. The books she had been looking for were right there.
She pulled out a few volumes and was looking around for anything else worth reading when her eyes caught the adjacent bookshelf.
What kind of books are kept on this shelf?
Usually, the category of books was labeled in the center of the shelf, but this one had nothing written on it. This only piqued her curiosity further.
Blair walked over to the shelf. It was packed with books written in an unfamiliar language.
Blair recognized it at a glance.
"The Ancient Language?"
Books written in the Ancient Language were usually grimoires. This meant that all the books on this shelf were grimoires.
Come to think of it…
Suddenly, she recalled how he had looked during the New Year's Festival, wielding both sword and magic simultaneously.
Those chosen by mana from birth studied grimoires to master magic and become true mages. Since Herdin was a magic swordsman, he too must have studied grimoires like any other mage.
It struck her all over again that he was the Empire's sole magic swordsman, a man of overwhelming power. At the same time, she found herself intrigued by the grimoires before her as a childhood dream suddenly came to mind.
In her childhood, before she knew that not just anyone could become a mage, Blair had wanted to be one.
She had believed that if she became a mage, she could grant any wish, even those that seemed impossible.
So, at one point, she had diligently read the grimoires in the Imperial Palace's library. Believing she could become a mage by studying them, she had deciphered the incomprehensible Ancient Language using a dictionary.
Though she never became a mage, she had learned to translate the difficult Ancient Language to some degree as a result.
As Blair scanned the shelves filled with grimoires, she noticed one resting on top of the other books.
She pulled it out. It must have been left there for a very long time; a thick layer of white dust flew off, making her cough.
Coughing, Blair brushed off the dust and examined the cover.
<∞>
Unlike ordinary books, which had titles, this black cover bore only a single, small symbol: the symbol for infinity.
Infinity? What kind of magic has a symbol like that?
Driven by curiosity, she opened the cover to reveal the very first page. Written on the faded paper—a testament to the book's extreme age—were words in the Ancient Language.
Blair searched her childhood memories to decipher the characters.
"Time… Magic."
What on earth was Time Magic?
She had barely managed to decipher the grimoire's title, and it only left her with more questions.
Just as Blair was about to turn the page—