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Her face flushed as she recalled Robert’s intentions. The change in her complexion was evident, but she didn’t care.

If the artifact hadn’t buzzed…

Their lips would have met. They almost did. Perhaps they did.

She hadn’t been thinking clearly, overwhelmed by the moment. She should have been more proactive. If she had leaned in just a little more…

Regret washed over her, but then she remembered that the only person who would contact Robert through the artifact was the Princess.

Why now?

She couldn’t help but feel frustrated. She bit her lip, her eyes turning cold. Yet, the memory lingered.

What was he thinking?

He was always the one to pull away. She knew he was trying to apologize, but she hadn’t expected him to get so close.

She realized he was wavering.

He seemed calm, but he was clearly anxious about something. She didn’t know what. This was their first meeting since his encounter with the Minotaur.

What could have caused such a shift in his demeanor?

She frowned, watching him communicate with the Princess through the artifact.

The moment was gone. It wouldn’t happen again. A missed opportunity.

She couldn’t deny the disappointment. But she was the closest to him. She was the one he had almost kissed, the one who had momentarily shaken his resolve.

She would let it slide this time.

Though the mood was broken, there was no guarantee such a moment would come again.

“I’ll let it slide this time.”

She touched her cheek, where his much larger hand had been, and chuckled softly.

While she disliked him communicating with another woman, she was pleased by his earlier actions. If it happened again, she would take the initiative.

There were too many vixens vying for Robert’s attention.

She couldn’t afford to hesitate.

Miragen couldn’t say much about the memories. She wasn’t sure if the sudden influx of memories was real.

She had been thinking about Robert ever since. She had no way of knowing if these memories were true.

Why did she remember them as lovers, when they had never been more than acquaintances?

She couldn’t focus on anything.

She couldn’t tell Robert about this.

He would think she was strange. It could also lead to unpleasant rumors, harming both of them.

So, she tried to forget. But the memories grew more vivid with time, feeling increasingly real.

The Robert in her memories seemed brighter, more innocent, than the one she knew.

He was different from the somber man she had first met. If these memories were true, their relationship wouldn’t be what it was now.

She wasn’t sure if they were memories.

Perhaps they were just wishful thinking.

How embarrassing would that be?

Robert would laugh if he knew.

In her “memories,” Robert’s affection was focused solely on her. She couldn’t believe it. It had to be a delusion.

She knew Robert was popular.

Even before he became Duke, and especially after, he had received numerous marriage proposals.

It was strange that he was still unattached. Most men his age would be married with children.

He was the only Duke in the empire, wielding far more power than Adele, whose title of Grand Duke was mostly honorary.

“Haah…”

The reality was frustrating.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t seem to bridge the distance between them.

They had met through a series of coincidences, but both of their lives were becoming increasingly busy.

Robert was in the North.

She didn’t know what he was doing there, but she had heard Adriana was there as well.

She, Adele, and Adriana were often associated with Robert. But were they as close to him as she imagined?

She chuckled wryly.

Compared to them, she was always indebted to him. He had saved her life, helped her navigate the treacherous currents of the imperial court.

Without him, she would have accomplished nothing.

The thought gave her a headache.

Even now, she found herself seeking him out. Not for help, but simply because she wanted to see him.

She knew her feelings were developing into something deeper.

Perhaps that was why these “memories” had surfaced. But if asked if she truly wanted to forget them, she would deny it. She wished they were true.

It was a pleasant fantasy.

She knew she shouldn’t dwell on such thoughts.

The situation in the imperial court was unsettling, orchestrated by her brother, Kaitel.

Even that knowledge came from Robert. She had discovered that the masked figures were assisting Kaitel.

Perhaps Robert had gone to the North to meet with the Grand Duke.

He was sensitive to artifacts, so he might be investigating the masked figures. She had wanted to help, but couldn’t find him.

She was relieved that he had a purpose, a reason to be there.

She didn’t question why she felt relieved. She wasn’t that naive.

Perhaps it was due to her recent fantasies, but she realized her feelings were deepening.

The “memories” continued.

She saw Robert die.

They had promised each other a future just yesterday, yet today, she heard of his execution for treason.

It had to be a nightmare.

He wouldn’t die for such a crime. Even for a delusion, this was too cruel.

She tried to forget.

She tried to distract herself.

But she couldn’t. Everywhere she went, she was reminded of him, of the places they had been together.

Secret rendezvous, hidden alcoves.

Sometimes they were secret lovers, sometimes they were openly acknowledged, the envy of all.

The garden they had visited last time, even the streets outside the palace.

He was everywhere, intertwined with every place she knew. She couldn’t forget the “memories,” even if she wanted to.

They resurfaced unbidden.

Countless memories of them as lovers.

Countless memories of Robert dying, helpless and alone.

“I’ve always wondered. Why did you seduce me?”

“Seduce? I wouldn’t call it that.”

“You deliberately lured me to the garden that day. As if you knew I would be there.”

They wouldn’t have met otherwise.

They hadn’t met the first time, but after that, Robert always seemed to know where to find her. Not the first time, but the second, the third.

They always met in the same place.

Was it coincidence? Or some magical connection?

The more she thought about it, the more her head ached.

She hesitated to contact Robert.

It was too complicated. These intertwined memories, too vivid to be mere fantasies.

Sometimes they repeated the same conversations, sometimes they spoke different words in the same place.

But one thing remained constant.

Robert always smiled when he looked at her.

Their first meeting, their parting, their reunion, even his death.

A gentle smile whenever their eyes met.

She had dismissed it as a delusion, but what if it was a memory?

“When did I last see him?”

Robert didn’t smile often.

He had smiled at her a few times, but not as often as in her “memories.” Had he smiled like that because they were lovers?

She didn’t know.

She couldn’t distinguish between reality and fantasy. She had long since abandoned the task she had started. She couldn’t focus.

Everything she tried to do reminded her of him.

She sat at the table, a servant placing a cup of tea before her.

She took a sip, then looked up. Robert was there, pulling up a chair, his gaze fixed on her.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Just looking.”

There had been a time when simply looking at each other was enough.

She missed those times.

There was something she wanted to ask him. If these delusions, these possible memories, were real, and if he knew…

How did he feel about her? Affection? Sorrow?

She needed to ask him about the unnamed emotion she had seen in his eyes.

Spring had passed, summer was returning.

Time moved on, but she had never felt so impatient.

She sighed and took the artifact from her pocket. She would have regretted it if she hadn’t given it to him when they first met. It was their only connection.

She hesitated, then channeled her mana into the device.

“You were beautiful. I was just admiring you.”

“Robert?”

She wished it was just a delusion.

If it was a memory, then the sadness in his eyes was real.

She couldn’t forget the expression on his face as he held her, bleeding, in the rain.

[Translator Notes]

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