Limited Extra Time - Chapter 46

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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—— Page 1 ——

The moment he reached out to place his hand on Herta’s back, a low, threatening growl reverberated through the air.

“So you do possess the Miracle of Creation.”

“…The Miracle of Creation?”

“It is a rare miracle—one that allows you to manifest anything into existence simply by observing and comprehending it, whether it exists in this world or not.”

Periel Kalos spoke while gazing at Herta, who was indistinguishable from a living being. Carina nodded in agreement at his words.

“…Yes, that’s exactly the nature of my ability.”

“The Miracle of Creation is the most formidable among all miracles. And curiously, every artist who has ever possessed this miracle shares one common characteristic.”

Carina’s eyes widened with intrigue at Periel’s words.

Just as he was about to continue his explanation, Herta stirred.

“Hrrgh!”

“…Peng?”

“Y-Your Excellency? Good heavens, what on earth is….”

As Peng’s startled voice rang out, Millaiyen exhaled a short sigh. Only then did the tense atmosphere begin to thaw slightly.

When Carina hurriedly told Herta to leave, Millaiyen gave Peng a brief explanation of the situation.

After hearing the account, Peng nodded while still unable to tear his gaze from Herta’s retreating form.

Having entrusted the cleanup to him, Millaiyen turned to face Periel Kalos and Carina.

“Let us retire to the Reception Room and discuss this matter.”

No one objected to his proposal. The three of them made their way to the Reception Room together.

Throughout the journey to the Reception Room, silence prevailed. Carina remained quiet, her expression subdued in contemplation, while Millaiyen and Periel Kalos beside her deliberately refrained from disturbing her thoughts.

In any case, Millaiyen and Periel Kalos had matters to discuss between themselves alone.

“Which would you prefer—tea or coffee?”

“Tea for me.”

“Water is fine for me.”

Millaiyen’s question, directed solely at Carina Leopold, received an unnecessary answer in return.

“Then, might I continue with what I was saying?”

When Carina Leopold asked, Periel Kalos nodded readily.

—— Page 2 ——

His long brows dipped slightly before settling back into place.

“The artists who possessed the Miracle of Creation valued their art far more than their own lives.”

“…Art?”

“Yes. According to the records, even knowing that this power consumed them from within, not a single one of them relinquished it.”

Carina Leopold said nothing. She could not deny the truth in his words.

Rather, the only thought that consumed her was that with so little time remaining, she wished to create more—to give her all to her art.

‘How troublesome.’

Her eyes had yet to return to their natural state.

Those strange, beautiful golden irises that anyone would call exquisite were hollow and vacant.

‘…She is dying.’

Periel Kalos observed the perfection of the life Carina Leopold had created and the emptiness in her eyes, and he was certain.

Perial became certain upon seeing the perfection of the life form Carina Leopold had created and the look in her eyes.

Those who possess the miracle of creation stake their lives as collateral. Thus far, there had been no exceptions to this rule….

‘And it seems there won’t be any in the future either.’

Periel Kalos sensed it faintly—the scent of death drawing ever closer to her very breath.

Through melody, he governed both life and death. In her, the stench of death hung far more thickly than any vital essence.

“The miracle of creation….”

Spoken aloud, it sounded grandiose.

“We can discuss the art illness slowly, Carina.”

Periel Kalos spoke with a gentle smile.

“May I see the letter?”

“Of course.”

He readily withdrew the letter from his breast and placed it upon the table.

He slowly slid the letter toward Carina. Sealed with melted red wax, it bore not a single blemish—immaculately pristine.

“Thank you for bringing it such a distance.”

“Not at all. It was on my way, so it was no trouble.”

Periel Kalos responded to Carina’s gratitude with a rueful smile, shrugging his shoulders.

Millaiyen silently offered her a letter opener. She bowed lightly in acknowledgment and took it in hand.

She slit open the envelope and unfolded the letter. As the paper spread open, a familiar hand appeared before her eyes.

Carina forced herself to suppress her heart, which had begun to race and thunder wildly, as she slowly read through the words.

What could be written? What could it possibly say?

In that brief moment of drawing the blade, tearing the envelope, withdrawing the letter, and unfolding it, a thousand thoughts flooded through her mind.

And the moment I saw the first letter, the trembling vanished in an instant.

My mind settled into perfect clarity, and all tension dissolved. There was only the text before me.

“….”

Silence enveloped the room. Only the breathing of three people echoed through it.

Occasionally, the faint sound of Periel Kalos and Millaiyen Pestellio tilting their teacups reached my ears, but nothing more.

Periel Kalos and Millaiyen Pestellio watched me quietly. The letter I had torn open

—— Page 3 ——

contained merely a single page. For a daughter who had traveled so far, it was an impossibly brief letter.

There existed certain customs among the nobility. Even when writing to those with whom they were not intimate, nobles observed propriety by inquiring after their wellbeing, sending at minimum two or three pages as standard.

Both Periel Kalos and Millaiyen Pestellio knew this well. Yet a daughter who had left home received only a single page. While the length of a letter was not necessarily an indicator of affection, it could hardly be called anything but miserly.

Crackle—

My grip tightened on the letter I held. The veins on the back of my pale hand rose into prominence, then faded just as quickly.

After finishing the entire contents, I let my hand holding the letter fall.

It was far more than simply setting it down. It was as though the thread connecting me to something had snapped cleanly in two.

…

The letter fell to the floor, but I made no move to retrieve it, only stared down at it blankly. Baseless hope had given birth to bitter disappointment.

It felt as though a truth I had dimly sensed had been struck down with a judge’s gavel.

…Periel Kalos.

Yes?

Tell me about what happened when you went to Count Leopold’s Residence.

Carina slowly lifted her head as she spoke. The golden eyes that had sparkled with vitality grew clouded and dim.

Periel Kalos regarded her quietly for a moment, then nodded.

I came to deliver news of you, and to see the painting you created.

Carina Leopold didn’t touch her teacup, simply holding Periel Kalos’s gaze steadily.

After seeing the sketch Millaiyen Pestellio shared, I found myself wanting to view the finished work.

I see.

Carina Leopold answered in a dry voice. Whatever she was thinking, she made no mention of the letter whatsoever.

Periel Kalos recalled a memory not so distant.

It was the story of a man who listened to nothing anyone said, one who appeared rather arrogant.

He was certainly worried about his wayward child, yet within that concern lay an unyielding, stubborn conviction that would not bend.

As Periel Kalos spoke, it was Millaiyen Pestellio whose face grew visibly rigid.

Carina Leopold, by contrast, listened to his account in silence with eyes much the same as before.

When the story finally ended, she slowly bowed her head.

He has always been that way.

After a long silence, Carina Leopold suddenly spoke.

He refuses to believe until he sees with his own eyes that his thoughts are wrong—unless evidence is thrust directly before him.

Of course, who would not resist upon hearing suddenly that their daughter is ill? But the words born from such conviction carry a different weight.

He heard that you were in the Northern Territory. How could you be so reckless—what were you thinking

—— Page 4 ——

doing? Even if you are betrothed, did you not consider the rumors that would spread?]

I never expected it to begin with warm regards.

Yet I hadn’t anticipated that among countless words, concern for the Leopold Family would spill out first.

My mind was simply blank.

The short letter, barely a single page, wasn’t even completely filled.

[If you had complaints, couldn’t you have voiced them? Why did you have to leave without a word and bring ruin upon the entire household? Abelia has been so worried about you that she can’t sleep properly, and her condition is deteriorating.]

I had never desired anything extraordinary. I didn’t think I’d wanted anything excessive.

My mind grew cold as if someone had poured ice water over it. The last

remnant was severed as if by a single blade.

[How much longer will you behave like a child?

…In any case, I’ll tell them you went to visit your Fiancé and the checkpoint happened to close. Keep your story straight and don’t bring any more shame upon the Leopold Family.]

Carina bent down and picked up the letter that had scattered across the floor.

She folded it again in the same manner and slipped it back

into the envelope, then slowly rose to her feet.

She gazed quietly at the fireplace, its flames crackling and climbing upward.

As I stared at the dancing flames, I withdrew a small, worn wallet shaped like a bear’s face from within my sleeve.

Periel Kalos and Millaiyen watched her silhouette in silence as she gazed at the fireplace.

The crude wallet bore no elegant or beautiful patterns—

so why did she clutch it as though it were something so precious?

[And if you truly don’t wish to be cast out from the Leopold Family, return the moment the checkpoint opens! We’ll discuss the details when we meet.]

That was all. Not a single word asking if I was well.

I’d heard an odd tale from Periel that he was suddenly ill, yet

there was no question asking whether it was true. All that appeared in the letters was concern for Abelia and the Leopold Family.

That.

I realized I was merely such an existence. My mind felt hollow. After hearing Periel’s words, my trust in the letter only deepened.

He didn’t believe it. Count Leopold—my father—didn’t believe that I was ill.

Because he hadn’t seen it himself?

No, if that fact were truly real….

“Face…”

It would become troublesome.

I stared at the letter in my hand and the worn wallet patched in places, then cast them both into the fireplace.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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