So I Was the Persecuted Grand Duchess Destined to Die? Chapter 29

Chapter 29

“Your Grace!”

The man waiting for Xavier Celeste in front of the cabin was—unsurprisingly—the head butler, Karl.

In truth, even Karl hadn’t been certain the Grand Duke would be here.
Still half-expecting to be wrong, he brightened the instant Xavier stepped out through the gate.

Karl was a seasoned servant who rarely showed his emotions, but he loved his lord enough to rejoice at even the smallest unfamiliar change.

“Your Grace… did you—sleep?”

Xavier, still wearing a vaguely dazed expression, nodded.

Apparently, he had slept so deeply that one side of his hair stuck up, forming a small cowlick.

Even that sight moved Karl to near tears.

“I searched the entire Grand Ducal Castle and couldn’t find you, so I thought I might try here.”

Carefully masking his emotion, Karl handed over a neatly folded cloak and a pair of shoes he’d been holding with both hands.

While Xavier put the shoes on, Karl discreetly helped straighten his appearance.

With the practiced touch of a master butler, the fine dark hair was smoothed back into its usual elegant order.

Lost in thought, Xavier adjusted himself roughly and began to walk.

Thanks to Karl’s quick thinking, at least his dignity had been preserved—but…

It was already a time of day when most servants were busily at work.
There was no way no one had seen the Grand Duke emerge from the direction of the cabin.

With factions already quietly forming among the servants—divided between Katharina Hugo and Renée Blanche—
this alone would be enough to stir the castle once again.

“You don’t appear to be injured. That is a great relief. I regret that I failed to prevent this, knowing your condition had worsened.”

“How would an old man like you stop a swordmaster?”

“Haha, that’s true. Still, Your Grace shows little aggression. Unlike the late Grand Duke… that alone is a blessing.”

Karl laughed easily at Xavier’s blunt reply.

His excitement was understandable.

After the contact with the dragon, when Xavier’s madness had eased—even briefly—the happiest person had been Karl himself.

And when the condition worsened again, the one most devastated was also Karl.

Xavier finally spoke, his voice calm—almost unnervingly so.

“How clearly do I remember last night? Did I take the medicine you prepared?”

“No, Your Grace. I only served a herbal tea said to promote deep sleep. Is something… unclear to you?”

“Yes. Falling asleep. Coming to the cabin. All of it… I don’t remember.”

Karl’s expression gradually hardened.

He had seen his lord tormented too many times by false hope to dismiss this lightly.

Yet he couldn’t afford to panic either.

No medicine, incense, or treatment had ever eased the madness.

It was the illness that had taken Xavier’s father—the former Grand Duke.

His condition had been far worse.

Gentle while awake, he became violently deranged the moment he fell asleep.

Thus the name: Madness of Sleep.

That sickness eventually consumed him, ending in a horrific death.

Xavier’s mother, too gentle to endure it, had withered away soon after.

A boy who lost both parents overnight became Grand Duke—never realizing that the weight of the crown was breaking his neck.

Karl had always found that unbearable.

Xavier never shared his burdens.
He swallowed them. Again and again—until they ate him from the inside.

At times, Karl even blamed himself.

And so would Lady Diana Celeste, the former Grand Duchess, now away from the castle.

After a brief recollection, Karl steadied himself.

Whatever the truth, this was unmistakably good news.

“Do you believe the Grand Duchess knows something?”

“I don’t know…”

Even as he answered, Xavier lacked conviction.

Still, he didn’t want to disappoint the man before him.

After a moment of hesitation, he spoke the conclusion he had been chewing on.

“…Perhaps holding someone while falling asleep is the cure. Damn it. I slept well. Truly.”

Xavier naturally recalled the image of Renée Blanche, curled against him, purring softly in her sleep.

Her smooth, polished skin.
The faintly parted, plump pink lips revealing rabbit-like front teeth.
Silvery hair, fine as spun silk, scattered everywhere like rolling moonlit waves.

She had clung to him, warm and solid, in the way only sleeping people could.

“….”

Xavier deliberately tilted his head back, staring up at the blazing midday sun.

Get a grip. It’s a hollow marriage. You never expected her to play the role of Grand Duchess.

And yet—

The peaceful night he had reclaimed was too precious.

“…Haah.”

His heart kept tipping in one direction.

“Shall I prepare the bedchamber, Your Grace?”

Perceptive as ever, Karl asked gently.

After a long silence, Xavier nodded.

As he walked ahead, the tips of his ears burned red.

Some time later.

…When did I fall asleep?

No one had woken me, yet my eyes opened naturally.

A gentle breeze brushed my skin.
Warm sunlight spilled over me.
Somewhere in the distance, birds were chirping.

But—wait.

This level of peaceful morning atmosphere?

That meant I was definitely late.

“Gasp!”

I jolted upright—then immediately slumped back down.

“Oh. Right. I got isekai’d.”

Apparently, deep in my bones, the instincts of a former grad student still lived on.

The realization that being late meant nothing here filled me with sudden joy.

“Hehehe.”

I flopped back down and scratched my stomach.

Being a legally unemployed person—well, not illegal to begin with—was truly wonderful.

“Wow. That was legendary sleep.”

I couldn’t remember when I’d fallen asleep, but I’d clearly overslept.

The sun outside was already high.

This late?

I’d always been someone who slept easily and woke early.

But today?

“Well… this body’s weak, and I’ve got nothing urgent to do, right?”

…Right?

Guess last night was just a dream.

I glanced at the empty space beside me, then turned away.

Yeah. No way that was real.

Too vivid for a dream, sure—but still.

Whatever. Nothing actually happened.

Just as I lay there luxuriating—

“Wait! Didn’t I promise to plant vegetable seedlings with everyone today?!”

Oh no.

Being late suddenly became very not okay.

Damn it! I’m the professor now! The upper position cannot be late!

As a former grad student who knew exactly how viciously we judged tardy professors, I sprang up without hesitation.

Still in my sleepwear, but performance mattered.

I flung the door open and ran straight into Marie, who was hanging laundry.

The scene was—surprisingly peaceful.

“Madam! Did you sleep well?”

For some reason, Marie looked very pleased.

I made a miserable face.

“I overslept, didn’t I? I’m sorry!”

“Oh my. On days like this, sleeping in is only natural—oh!”

She covered her face, laughing like she’d just committed a grave impropriety.

“…Huh?”

Why did that laugh give me such a bad feeling?

Marie—the only married woman among the handmaids—occasionally dropped dangerously spicy jokes.

“You must have slept wonderfully, after spending your first night not alone.”

…Like this one.

A chill ran down my spine.

“N-Not alone?! What do you mean by that?!”

“Oh ho ho. The whole castle is buzzing. Don’t play innocent.”

“…Buzzing about what, exactly?”