The Villainess Lives Twice

Artizea blinked a few times and then closed it again.

‘No. It was a good outcome. If the word spreads, there will be non-stop petitions.’

Artizea’s power could not handle it.

Above all, magic leaves a trace.

Even if she draws a magic circle by hiding it inside her sleeve or somewhere, the truth will come to light someday.

Even after she had already decided and thought about it, there was no need to act differently.

Sophie brought hot water. Artizea did not feel thirsty, but when she saw the water, she felt compelled to drink.

To recover.

Sophie, together with another maid, lifted her up. Artizea drank half of the water with difficulty.

“How long have I slept?”

“It hasn’t been long. About 12 hours.”

“…….”

Artizea tried to ask another word, but stopped and leaned against the cushion, letting her body hang.

Cedric would have taken care of the cleanup. Because he knows very well what will happen after the oracle that the Saintess will become the Empress.

Upon hearing that Artizea had woken up, the doctor hurried to run.

Artizea slowly drank the water. With each sip, she felt a little energized, realizing that her body was truly exhausted.

The doctor looked at her with a cautious face.

He has been caring for Artizea ever since she found out she was pregnant.

Cedric didn’t specifically rebuke or criticize him for this.

However, despite being ordered to pay special attention to the Grand Duchess’ health, she collapsed again.

Even with ten mouths, he had nothing to say.

But even if he said that she should do nothing and recuperate in a comfortable place with a good climate, she wouldn’t be able to hear it.

Artizea buried her body between the cushions. And she looked at the doctor with sunken eyes.

“There is no pain.”

“Yes…….”

Since that was true, the doctor has no choice but to answer that way.

Artizea simply lost her energy.

Her body aches and hurts here and there. She couldn’t digest well and her stamina decreased.

But it was not a curable disease. Medicine will be invalid.

“You need to eat healthy food and get plenty of rest. I will give you medicine.”

In the end, he had no choice but to say what he always said.

Artizea nodded her head. The doctor sighed and stepped back.

Sophie laid her down again. Artizea asked,

“What about Leticia?”

“Don’t worry, Mister Marcus is taking good care of her. Last night, the master took her to sleep.”

“I see.”

Artizea closed her eyes.

Sophie got up slightly from the bedside. She seemed to be quiet.

But after a while, a scuffle was heard. Artizea narrowed her eyes and looked back.

Sophie shot at Alice.

“I know you are doing something important. But is it enough to wake her up when she’s sick?’

“It’s for you too, silly.”

Alice pushed Sophie away. Sophie stopped Alice again.

“I know Madam is not feeling well. However, if the news is delayed and you really worry about one thing, it is Madam who will suffer.”

Alice said so.

“Alice.”

Artizea called Alice with a hoarse throat.

Sophie walked away. Alice ran to Artizea’s side.

Then, she knelt down on one knee and whispered in a low voice.

“The Emperor’s undercover investigators have begun investigating the familial relations of the Grand Duchy’s employees as a whole. After that, they will inspect the military personnel who are close to the Master.”

“…… understand.”

Artizea answered in a low voice.

It was good that she disbanded the intelligence organization early.

On the way, she felt frustrated and she regretted it for a moment, but it was right to reduce the size before the blood wind blew.

“Can Sophie’s family escape?”

“You can’t do it openly. Are you sure?”

“Madam said that you are going to the South for recuperation, and I’m thinking of getting a few people out to prepare for it.”

“Now, I don’t have to give detailed orders one by one. You take care of it.”

“Yes.”

Alice bowed her head.

“Do you have anything to say to Prince Eimmel?”

“Did you get any news from there?”

“Some of the sailors went in and out of the owl bar.”

The bar was the place Artizea had set up as a meeting place when forming the intelligence organization.

Although the contact method, location, and name of the store were changed from before, Cadriol would not have had any trouble finding the store.

Maybe later, but it wasn’t really necessary now.

“Now…… , even if you take people out from the South, you better not have anything to do with them.”

“Yes.”

“Is there anything else you can tell me?”

“Prince Iantz and his wife slept here yesterday. The Master told me to prepare the room for them. I’m telling you because I don’t think Sophie would have told you.”

“Yes. Thank you. I’ll get some rest and then go.”

“Yes. Good night.”

Alice bowed her knees slightly and walked out.

Sophie closed the bedroom door.

Artizea said to Sophie with her eyes closed,

“Don’t do that too much. Because Alice is just fulfilling her role. Just like you.”

“I know.”

Sophie answered.

“But…… I hope you don’t think too much about the future.”

“Sophie…….”

“You can finally be happy now…….”

But even Sophie couldn’t tell Artizea to just think about her husband and baby.

She thought so until yesterday. But she could not tell the Saintess to do so.

“Even God is indifferent…….”

Sophie muttered.

“It’s true that God is indifferent, but that’s not the case with me.”

Artizea replied with her eyes closed.

“What you think of is happiness, but I don’t want to be happy that way. There is no excuse for doing that.”

“Madam…….”

“When I die, I want to have no regrets……I wish I could die clean.”

No matter what others say, she hopes she can disappear this time without any regrets.

It would be a luxury to want Cedric by her side at that time.

Artizea cleared her mind. And as she slowly counted her breath, she went to sleep.

＊＊＊

A yellow wind was blowing.

Her hair smelled like mud.

Lysia brushed her hair away and tied it back up again. And she made up her mind.

What was before her eyes was a landscape she had seen in the past.

The wood was dry like a dead tree, but the ground was soggy.

Lysia pulled the reins and pulled up without stepping on the muddy ground. The people who followed her also stopped.

It was broad daylight, and few people were out in the fields. Only children aged seven or eight were coming out and digging.

“I’ll go and find out what’s going on.”

said the official who followed her. Lysia told him not to, as she reached out her hand to him.

And she told the knights that followed her,

“Dig a ditch around this village and keep people out of it. Never even come into contact with people or animals.”

“What?”

“Release people and let them look at the nearby villages.”

Lysia spoke to the official this time.

“Never step on the mud, never drink the water. And when you come back, make sure you come to me right away without meeting anyone.”

“Morten Heir Apparent, those words…….”

“This is a plague.”

Lysia stared at the village until her eyes hurt.

It was when she was twenty-four that the plague began to circulate, as Lysia remembers.

This was four years earlier.

Besides, it was during the Monster Wave that this plague occurred.

To be precise, it’s not a plague, it’s a bug.

It was not a normal insect, but a kind of monster that sucked life directly. And when it came out, it was sticky like water.

As it was different from other plagues, it could not be resolved by maintaining hygiene and isolating patients.

It moved from animal host to human host, so they didn’t even know what the source of the infection was.

Because it wasn’t an infection from a specific bug.

Therefore, even after catching mice and chasing mosquitoes, the spread could not be stopped. It was no use being careful. Because there was no land without insects, and there was no way to stop flying insects.

Lysia healed people and cleansed the land. But she wasn’t infinite, just because she had purifying power.

After the purification, the village got better, but over time, the disease started again. Or it appeared in the neighboring village.

Sometimes even in a city quite far away.

It was after she became engaged to Lawrence that Lysia learned of the source of infection.

After she became the Crown Princess, Lysia was the first to ask Artizea for help with the matter. Artizea struck the quarantine line as if she had been waiting.

She surrounded the village, dug up the ground and burned it up to the grassroots. And there she poured oil.

Lysia healed the plague and cleansed the land in it. The bug problem could not be solved, but once she learned how to prevent it, the rate of transmission was slowed enough to respond.

The scars were deep, but it took less than three months to end the plague.

Lysia thought despondent at the time.

Artizea’s calculations seem to include that Lysia will devote herself to purification and healing.

To what extent was the plan, to what extent was it a coincidence, or to what extent she failed to keep the plan and went wrong, she has no way of knowing.

Anyway, it couldn’t have been without Artizea’s influence at the time of the spread of the disease.

So it didn’t make sense for this plague to go around like this now.

‘Not only the timing, but also the cause.’

If it was a natural outbreak, it should have occurred during the last Monster Wave.

‘There was no way that ordinary people would have gone to Monster Land and returned alive, and it should have started in the military because they said it was really contagious during monster subjugation…….’

No, it started suddenly. This village was in the western plains. However, it was closer to the middle, the opposite end of Monster Land.

There was no way a villager would have gone to Monster Land and returned.

It meant that someone intentionally spread it.

Lysia got off her horse. Alphonse followed her.

Lysia didn’t have to stop him. Alphonse won’t listen even if she stopped him.

She headed to the village.

The children, who were digging the field, looked at her and tilted their heads. As if they had been starving for a long time, their cheeks were slender and their eyes had no luster.