To the Love Born in the Lowest Place

“Is there anyone else who knows your secret besides me?”

At those words, Liv made a pondering expression for a moment, then said with a puzzled face.

“There’s one more person.”

“But you can’t tell me who it is.”

“…It’ll just make your mind unnecessarily complicated. Think of it as someone who won’t be very involved with you.”

“Yes, I respect your wishes, sister.”

Hildegard nodded her head vigorously as if she would accept anything Liv said. For the only Saintess in this country, she was quite obedient.

“Why did I die? Why did I commit suicide?”

When Liv suddenly became curious about the reason for her death and asked, Hildegard hesitated and opened her mouth.

“Well… I think you would be shocked if I told you.”

“If you don’t want to say it, never mind.”

Liv had no intention of forcibly extracting information from Hildegard. However, Hildegard began to speak while gauging Liv’s reaction.

“You see… Originally, you were scheduled to attend the banquet today, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But then some intruder appeared there… and tried to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor.”

At those words, Liv lightly frowned.

“What?”

“So Duke Lartman was trying to protect His Majesty and was shot… and you…”

“Ah.”

It was all too easy to predict her own actions before time had turned back. 

Since Duke Lartman, whom she loved, was in danger of dying, Liv herself must have taken her own life to turn back time. Hoping that Duke Lartman wouldn’t die in another timeline.

“Now that you’re here, Hildegard, this timeline will be different.”

“What?”

Hildegard seemed to not understand, but Liv looked at her with a faint smile.

This was the first time someone had stayed by Liv’s side while retaining their memories. As long as Hildegard, who knew the future, was here, Liv would be able to prevent what was to come. She could understand why God had sent Hildegard to her.

“Why did that intruder try to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor?”

“It’s not hard to infer that…”

Hildegard carefully looked around as if she were about to say something she shouldn’t, and then spoke.

“Everyone is keeping quiet about it, but the current Emperor is a terrible tyrant. There must be more than a few people who hold a grudge against him…”

“I thought so.”

That wasn’t something Liv could do anything about, so the intruder would try to assassinate the Emperor in this timeline as well. Instead, Liv herself would prevent Duke Lartman from being killed by the intruder.

‘Duke Lartman will never die. I’ll make sure of it.’

At that moment, she could hear the voice of god once again.

The one who regressed due to your death is coming now.

Liv understood what that meant. It wasn’t just Hildegard who had regressed in time due to Liv’s death this time.

The fact that they were coming here right after time had turned back meant there was a high possibility that they retained their memories like Hildegard. Also, not forgetting the future meant they had received divine punishment.

While Liv was pondering whether she should tell Hildegard that fact, the butler spoke in an urgent tone from the door.

“Miss Liv!”

“Yes.”

“Duke Lartman has come to see you!”

At those words, Liv mustered strength from somewhere and abruptly sat up from the bed. Her eyes sparkled with liveliness as if stardust had been sprinkled in them.

“Duke Lartman is here?”

“Yes, I was going to escort him to the reception room, but… he wishes to see you right away…”

“It’s fine to bring him to my room. Hildegard is here too.”

Liv’s cheeks flushed red like a girl in love. It was an attitude that didn’t match someone who had been talking about her own death, but Hildegard had realized that she couldn’t understand ‘Liv’ with her own mind. Instead, Hildegard made a strange face and rolled her eyes at something else.

“Why would Duke Lartman come to see you, sister? As you know, he doesn’t like you…”

“Why, he can come to see me.”

“But the Duke has always avoided you. I wonder if he’s here to give some kind of warning? Like telling you to stop chasing after him…”

It was a plausible statement, but Liv had no time to pay attention to Hildegard’s words. Because Duke Lartman, naturally entering according to the servant’s guidance, had already arrived in front of Liv’s room.

At the word to enter, Duke Lartman strode in and knelt in front of Liv.

Seeing Duke Lartman’s eyes, Liv tilted her head. His expression was somehow strange.

‘Have I ever seen him look at me like that…?’

Duke Lartman always had eyes filled with disgust when he looked at Liv. It was only natural since Liv had chased after him despite his rejection.

Even if Liv was deeply in love with him, she wasn’t completely oblivious. It was natural for Duke Lartman to dislike her, and she had no expectation that he would accept her. Liv was merely spitting out her affection for Duke Lartman that filled her insides and made it difficult for her to breathe properly.

However, the current Duke Lartman, instead of despising Liv as usual, was gazing at her with a strange face whose intentions were unreadable. Finally, his mouth slowly opened.

“Liv.”

* * *

Hildegard looked back and forth between Liv and Duke Lartman with eyes that showed it was difficult to understand. Something strange was happening with the situation.

‘Did the Duke call sister Liv by her name?’

Originally, he used to draw a firm line by calling her “Miss Hamelsvoort” with her family name, so why was he suddenly calling her by her name?

“Your Grace.”

On the other hand, Liv, as if she didn’t find this strange at all, looked at Duke Lartman with a bright smile as if it were only natural. Her smile, which somehow felt wistful, also contained joy.

“Did you come to see me?”

“Yes, I came to see you.”

Duke Lartman’s voice was calm. It was different from his usual attitude of always being disgusted with Liv and trying to maintain distance from her in any way possible.

Seeing that, Hildegard recalled something.

‘Could it be… that the Duke also has his memories?’

If it was assumed that Duke Lartman also had his memories, this situation made sense.

The girl who had always chased after him, saying she loved him, had ultimately sacrificed her life for him, saving his life in the end. Even Hildegard herself felt that she would go to see Liv as soon as she returned to the past. 

How devoted a love was this! How often would one receive such love in their life? It was natural for a cold heart to melt, being moved by this.

Yes, it was certain. Duke Lartman had his memories. But Hildegard’s curiosity wasn’t completely satisfied.

‘Even so, can he become so affectionate towards her?’

Duke Lartman usually seemed to have a wall up in front of Liv. It was only natural since Liv ignored etiquette and clung to him.

But today’s Duke Lartman was looking at Liv with such sweet eyes. As if he had become a completely different person.

Liv was simply happy as long as it was Duke Lartman, so it seemed only Hildegard had noticed this fact.

‘Did his feelings change after dying and coming back to life?’

Indeed, it wasn’t strange for his attitude towards her to soften after she had even sacrificed her life for him. If Hildegard were in Duke Lartman’s position, she would have also felt indebted to Liv. Furthermore, it wouldn’t be strange to fall in love either.

Hildegard accepted it that way and asked Duke Lartman.

“Your Grace, you must have experienced something to come here now, right?”

“Experienced…”

Duke Lartman’s eyes became somewhat wistful as if recalling a distant past.

“Yes, you could say I experienced something.”

He didn’t seem like he would reveal what it was. Hildegard decided not to ask him anything more in front of Liv. Liv felt like a being too difficult for her to handle, and it was hard to choose her words in front of her. Instead, Hildegard made up her mind to talk to him about today’s events in order to prevent them.

“I don’t know how much you are aware of the situation, Your Grace… but something big will happen at the banquet tomorrow evening. Something that could put His Majesty the Emperor in danger.”

At those words, Duke Lartman showed a pondering expression for a moment, then slowly asked.

“Do we really have to stop that from happening?”

“Pardon?”

“If we all don’t go there, the situation the Saintess is worried about won’t occur, right?”

“But Your Grace…”

Hildegard looked at Duke Lartman with confused eyes.

“You are His Majesty the Emperor’s closest confidant. Don’t you naturally have to protect His Majesty?”

“Of course, that was the case.”

Duke Lartman lowered his eyes and spoke.

“But my thoughts have changed a bit. It’s no longer important.”

“What?”

Emmett Lartman had been the Emperor’s closest associate since the moment he inherited his title. Although the current Emperor was a terrible tyrant, Duke Lartman had taken on all sorts of dirty work for the Emperor, to the extent that he had the nickname ‘The Emperor’s Hound’. Hildegard recalled him cutting down someone who had insulted the Emperor at a previous banquet.

But now he was saying he had no reason to protect the Emperor.

‘Did he realize something more important due to the existence of the gods?’

But he didn’t seem like someone who had suddenly gained some philosophical enlightenment.

Hildegard finally felt like she was facing the source of the sense of incongruity she had been feeling. She couldn’t explain it, but… yes, Emmett Lartman had become a different person from before.

Emmett Lartman, who had been so loyal to the Emperor, wasn’t worried about him now, and instead called Liv Hamelsvoort, whom he had always considered a nuisance, by her name with a more amiable attitude than before. This… was almost to the extent that he could be considered a different person.