Surviving as a Terminally Ill Heiress - Chapter 56

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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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Episode 56

I rubbed the bridge of my nose and managed to speak.
“Well… I’m just saying this to be clear, but I’m not a physician or anything. Neither is the Duke.”
“Yes. I understand.”
“So what exactly am I supposed to do about sick bees…?”
At that, he clasped his hands reverently together.
“We must pray.”
“Oh…”
“With sincerity.”
Is this really happening?
Should I be trying to escape right now?
I was just starting to lift myself from the sofa when—
“The Founder Amelia of the Ambrose lineage!”
I swallowed my breath with a sharp gasp and quickly pressed myself back down onto the cushion.
Whether I did or not, Evan was already lost in his fervor.
“May you build a world of bees, by bees, and for bees!”
“I think she actually did it for the money, though…”
“Grant these foolish humans a glimpse of sweet honey!”
So it’s supposed to be for the bees, but why are humans tasting honey? If you really wanted to help them, you’d leave their hives alone instead of tearing them apart, wouldn’t you?
But I had the good sense to know better.
I left Evan’s passion unbroken and untouched.
“Heaven and earth remade—six hundred years of Ambrose supremacy!”
“Wonderful.”
I clapped a few times, anyway.
And added, “Actually, it’s been exactly six hundred and forty-eight years.”
“Oh?”
“You’re a person of understanding.”
I’d really rather not be understood by you.
I hid my displeasure behind a faint smile.
At least I now understand why Ambrose Duke and the others don’t want to come here.
‘That doesn’t mean you just hand me over without a second thought, though.’
Wait and see.
When I get back, I’m going to wring you for every last coin of emotional damages.
I was grinding my teeth when Evan wiped the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief.
“In any case, the bees—which are the symbol and very heart of Ambrose—seem to be suffering lately. There are plenty of flowers, the weather’s been fine, and it’s not even mites…”
“Oh my.”
I let my voice trail off sympathetically.
It was a gesture I’d often used with the neighborhood elders back home.
The peculiar thing is, it sounds sympathetic even when you feel nothing at all.
“Do you know why it might be?”
Why don’t you tell me.
I answered while trying hard to keep the light from fading from my eyes.
“Well, I’m afraid I don’t know much about bees.”
“But surely you’re of direct Ambrose lineage.”
So what?
I tried not to show it, but exhaustion was creeping in.
Without meaning to, my shoulders sagged as I spoke.
“Perhaps… they’re simply tired.”
“Tired?”
“Bees can grow tired too. Body and mind alike. Always gathering honey, building nests, raising larvae…”
So they could be tired just like me, talking nonsense right now.
I was rambling without restraint.
My eyes were half-closing when suddenly the man across from me shot to his feet.
What, what is it? Are you going to hit me for spouting garbage?
“That makes perfect sense.”
How could it possibly make sense?
This time too, I swallowed the honest words and smiled instead.
“I’m glad if I could help.”
So can I leave now?
I missed the air of the Capital.
To be honest, the south is warmer and the air is cleaner, but there’s something about that congested, smoggy bustle of the Capital that suits me just fine.
“Then we should pray now so the bees won’t be tired anymore!”
Why does it always end in prayer?
A talented soul who should’ve been at Nibelis Temple ended up wandering into the Apiary instead. That was a human resource tragedy.
Evan, seeing my blank stare, lifted me up and guided me toward the Apiary.
Though it’s called an apiary, it’s really just the desolate gardens of Ambrose Mansion.
At least I was issued a Straw Face Veil and a Protective Suit to cover my entire body.
‘Thank you so much…’
Just as before, Evan—not even wearing a single pair of gloves, completely exposed—strode toward the hives.
Watching made me tremble, yet Evan pressed on without hesitation, even touching the bees.
“Ah, that stings.”
Right. So they do sting.
He winced for a moment, then calmly withdrew the stinger.
And then he kneeled down and began to pray with reverent focus, as naturally as if this were a daily ritual.
While he was on his knees with his hands pressed together, Evan got stung two or three more times. Honestly, if I were a bee and saw someone doing that in front of my home, I’d want to sting them too.
When he rose, he yielded his place to me.
It was my turn. I wish I’d never come.
I trudged toward the hives and whispered.
“Hang in there…”
I’m barely managing myself, but I hope you all do a bit better than me.
I swallowed a sigh and prayed as Evan had.
I’d never really prayed before in my life, so it felt awkward.
‘All I’ve ever begged was: before Mother passes, please let her live just a little longer…’
Perhaps my prayers held some power, because she did manage to live a few days beyond the death date Morgan had predicted.
I smiled faintly and squeezed my eyes shut.
‘Please give these little ones some strength. That way I’ll have to deal with Evan less…’
The moment I finished praying and opened my eyes, naturally, nothing happened.
I simply lifted my upper body upright.
I wanted to get back to the mansion, wash up quickly, rest deeply, and escape at dawn.
But then it happened.
The sound of wings began as a soft buzz and grew louder, until suddenly the bees surged upward with vigorous life.
And as if dancing, countless bees began drawing great figure-eights in the air above our heads.
It was magnificent.
“Wow…”
It actually worked.
Why? No, I’ve decided not to ask “why” anymore lately. For the sake of my mental health.
I simply accept that the world contains many things that a sane person like me cannot possibly understand.
Evan’s eyes gleamed with unshed tears as he gazed at me in wonder.
I smiled back at him gently.
And I made a vow.
‘Never coming back here again…’

* * *

The North, Mage’s Manor.
“Welcome back, Sky.”
The moment I was pushed through the Gate, a clear voice greeted me.
It was Percy, who had received advance notice from Zadkiel and come to meet me.
Still bound in Chains, Sky clenched their eyes shut.
To think I’d returned to this hellhole. I really never wanted to come back.
Zadkiel, who had dragged Sky here like a beast the whole way, carelessly tossed the Chains to Percy and headed toward his quarters.
The message was clear without words: lock Sky in the dungeon below. What came next would be the beginning of true torment.
Seeing how pale and haggard Sky had become, Percy spoke softly with pity.
“I told you not to run away. I said if you got caught, you’d really die?”
“At the time, it felt like I’d die if I didn’t run…”
Zadkiel’s Slaves had no rights, no happiness, not even minimal rest.
Sky had fled purely for survival back then.
Percy understood that heart, but running from Zadkiel truly had not been the wisest choice.
It would’ve been far better to jump off an erupting volcano on foot than to be hunted by him.
Percy shook his head and led the pitiful Sky down into the depths of the manor.
“Well, you did try hard at least. You even dyed your hair on purpose.”
“That was then. Now it’s not.”
“Pardon?”
Sky laughed weakly.
“It actually turned completely white.”
It had happened the night they encountered Zadkiel—the shock of it had done that to them.
Looking closely, the roots that once showed their original color were now purely snow-white.
Percy patted their shoulder in understanding.
After a moment of receiving comfort, Sky glanced at Percy.
“But look at you—when did you start looking like an old man?”
“Oh, Zadkiel received a commission and went out recently. At that time, I pretended to be Zadkiel’s assistant and called him ‘assistant’ as a bonus, which apparently displeased him. So he hasn’t changed me back yet.”
“… You’ve really been through a lot too.”
Because of that demon.
Zadkiel’s greatest victims silently commiserated with each other, swallowing words best left unspoken.
Still, the ever-positive Percy clenched both wrinkled hands with determination.
“Well, it’s fine. The old man look is actually pretty fun. My physical abilities stay the same despite the appearance!”
Percy bounced energetically to demonstrate.
With the appearance of a septuagenarian but the vitality of a spirited fourteen-year-old, the contrast was deeply jarring.

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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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