Nigel had no choice but to greet Danika with a smile.
“……Hello.”
“I’m Danika Demilan.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Danika. I look forward to getting along.”
Danika didn’t seem the least bit interested in getting along. Her eyes gleamed with a sharp intensity. Eyebrows raised in open hostility, she studied Nigel with a piercing gaze and didn’t even bother to conceal it.
“……You two, leave us.”
Nigel dismissed the attendant and Inas. At the same time, he glanced at Inas’s expression. Though Inas obediently stepped out, his face seemed sullen rather than angry.
Good. You’re not completely rigid, then.
Feeling a touch relieved, Nigel turned to face Danika again. Whatever she took from Nigel’s polite, neutral smile, her own expression turned icy the moment the door shut.
“Nigel.”
“Yes?”
“Do you happen to intend to get engaged to me?”
She got straight to the point, almost absurdly so. Nigel shook his head.
“No. This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“That’s a relief. If you’re not planning to get married, that makes things easier. I was sent here under Count Demilan’s orders to consider an engagement to you.”
Danika gave a bold, fierce smile. In the world of nobility, where indirectness was the norm, such bluntness bordered on rude. But since Nigel also had no interest in marriage, it was a welcome attitude. Perhaps encouraged by his response, Danika pressed on with even more edge in her voice.
“I have no intention of marrying. I’m aiming for the countship. It’s not like titled nobles never marry each other, but our situation’s different. There’s no alliance to be made. No benefit in uniting our families.”
“Well… that’s true.”
Everything she said was correct. But as things currently stood, Nigel wasn’t slated to inherit a title. Had the rumor not reached her yet that ‘Taren’—Etna in disguise—would be succeeding the family line in the capital? Or had she heard and simply dismissed it as nonsense?
Either way, there was no need to explain. All Nigel needed right now was to be removed from Danika’s list of potential fiancés.
“Don’t worry, Lady Danika. I’m not considering engagement at this time, either. Honestly, I’m not even of the age where it should be discussed. You must’ve been quite startled.”
Nigel spoke calmly and maturely. Danika replied with a quiet, “Yes.” Her gaze wavered slightly with unease. Even if she was older than Nigel, Danika was also around fourteen or fifteen. Perhaps realizing how brash she’d been, her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment.
“N-No, it’s nothing. I imagine you must’ve been taken aback too, Nigel. I… I spoke too harshly, didn’t I? I apologize.”
“No, it’s quite alright.”
“I’m really sorry. Right before I came, I had an argument with my younger sibling… and they said something rather dismissive. I think that got under my skin.”
“You don’t need to explain further.”
“…Alright.”
Apologizing was the right thing to do, but regardless of the difference in their family statuses, excessive humility was best avoided. Danika seemed to realize this too, as even her ears were turning red now.
Her awkwardness didn’t come across as unpleasant. In fact, Danika was a competent, virtuous, and model noble. While they weren’t quite friends, they had exchanged political views on occasion and maintained decent relations. Seeing this fresh, unpolished side of her was somewhat amusing.
“You should stay a little while longer before leaving. Even if we don’t end up engaged, it’s best to maintain friendly relations between our houses.”
“…You’re right.”
If Danika stormed out now while still visibly upset, rumors of discord could easily start circulating. She touched her flushed cheek, looking a bit sheepish.
“You’re incredibly… I hope this isn’t rude to say, but you’re very mature, Nigel. Honestly, I assumed someone your age would think more like a child. I didn’t expect this.”
“Well, I am still young. I’m not particularly skilled or anything.”
This wasn’t even close to what one could call ‘skilled.’ Give her a couple more years, and Danika would be handling things at this level herself. Nigel smiled and sipped his tea.
At first, he’d been quite flustered—but now he was glad Danika had been chosen as the first candidate in his father’s arranged engagement scheme. She had clear goals, and since he knew her well, convincing her was easy. That made dealing with the rest far simpler.
The conversation afterward was trivial—casual, empty chatter meant only to pass the time. After a while, when enough time had passed, Danika stood up.
“Well then, I had a lovely time today, Nigel. I’ll be heading off now.”
“Yes, same here. Next time, let’s meet under more ordinary circumstances.”
They shook hands lightly, both smiling. But just as Nigel let go and moved to see her off—
“Ugh…”
He collapsed, unable to stay upright.
“Nigel?!”
Danika’s startled voice echoed from afar. Nigel, gripped by a sudden headache, glared at the window that had suddenly appeared before his eyes.
<system: Loading memory of Nigel Grau Montstein.>
Now, of all times?
He tried to resist, but it was futile from the start. Even if he didn’t want it, the vision forced itself upon him.
A hazy scene unfolded before his eyes. White walls and a white floor covered in flowers. An ocean of blossoms rippling around—and Danika smiling within it. Not the same girl who had just been in front of him, but a fully grown Danika. Yet even so, she looked completely different from the Danika he knew.
She wore an extravagant pure white gown. The ruby earrings and necklace she favored sparkled at her ears and neck. The dress looked so heavy she could barely walk in it on her own. A pristine veil and a dazzling tiara sat atop her head.
“Nigel.”
Danika smiled radiantly. He had never heard her say his name with such warmth. Her voice was soaked in affection—so much that it felt wrong.
“I swear to marry you and spend my life with you.”
In the vision, Danika uttered something unbelievable. Even more absurd—Nigel didn’t deny it. He said the same vow in return.
What kind of nonsensical hallucination is this? This can’t possibly be one of his memories.
Nigel rejected the scene in front of him. He felt so dizzy he wanted to vomit, but he had no way to stop the memory from rising.
The vision he desperately didn’t want to see kept playing.
In front of countless guests, Nigel married Danika. The once-ambitious Danika gave up everything to stay by his side. They lived together, loved each other, whispered sweet nothings at every turn.
It was utter nonsense. He wanted to flee. But his body felt heavy and unresponsive, like it was being dragged on a rope.
Something he had never even imagined with anyone else was being carved into his retina. Unbelievable scenes, distorted slightly, unfolded one by one before his eyes. He couldn’t even close them.
Then, the illusion rippled and twisted dramatically. His already-foggy vision blurred even more. But even as he tried to turn away, the fantasy raced on.
Nigel’s life was peaceful. More so, perhaps, than even when Inas had been by his side.
Inas existed only as a loyal knight—his influence still strong, but his role minimal. Danika, as his wife, shared the burdens of state. Three years into the marriage, she gave birth to an heir. A healthy baby boy who took after her.
“Nigel. Isn’t our child beautiful?”
Danika approached, holding a faceless baby, smiling radiantly. In the hazy vision, her eyes clearly reflected Nigel’s face—his current face, pale as a ghost, staring back like he was trapped in a nightmare.
And then, the illusion shattered into pieces.
Back in reality, Nigel curled in on himself, groaning in pain. He heard Danika calling his name in panic, but he couldn’t respond. He didn’t want to. He didn’t want to acknowledge what he’d just seen.
[That was your original lover.]
Glarus, silent until now, spoke up. The words etched themselves into Nigel’s vision, searing into his mind even through the haze. The damned god mocked him, as if this moment had been precisely orchestrated.
[Inas Idenbach ruined your life. He even stole your lover from you.]
Stole? What the hell was that supposed to mean? Nigel glared at the message, unable to comprehend. He was the one who fell for Inas.
But his body didn’t listen. It trembled, overtaken by that impossible illusion, as if possessed by the life where he married Danika and had a child.
A flicker of intuition crossed his mind. Not just some vague hunch—but more like a near-certainty, formed from all the data imprinted on his soul across countless timelines.
If he reached out to her now, he might fall into that illusion. A future far more stable and secure.
As if laughing at his desperate resistance, another message appeared.
[This world’s story has twisted. Don’t you want to see the one you truly loved?]
A twisted story. The one he truly loved.
What’s the point of that? Even if what Glarus said was true, it didn’t matter. Nigel’s wish was clear.
He wanted to end this cursed, twisted loop alongside Inas.
This idiocy infuriated him. Glarus’s offer was so absurd, it was almost insulting. Did the god truly think this would shake him? Nigel clenched his teeth. As he steeled his resolve, his foggy vision cleared once more.
Danika’s face came into focus. In the illusion, she had been beautiful, and their life had seemed peaceful. But that wasn’t what either of them truly wanted. No matter how ideal it looked on the surface.
“Go.”
Danika’s eyes widened in shock.
“A-Are you alright?”
“Yes. I’m fine. Just… send for someone…Call Inas for me.”
Moved by his desperate plea, Danika gave a sharp nod. She raised her voice slightly, then stood up and hurried out.
As he felt that faint thread of illusion finally snap, Nigel let out a breath of relief and closed his eyes.
In the fading haze of consciousness, a familiar scent wrapped gently around him.
