The Villainess Lives Twice
Chapter as24: After Story 24

Proofreader: somnium

Lysia poked her head behind Mielle and asked,

“Long time no see, Sophie. Should I come back later?”

“How have you been?”

Sophie greeted Lysia with a friendly face.

Artizea tried to get off the bed. Lysia beckoned her not to do that, and Alice quickly put the cushions on her back and made her sit up.

Sophie quickly opened the door. Lysia took a step into the bedroom.

She looked around the bedroom without speaking for a while.

Artizea waited in an indescribable mood for Lysia to let the sentiments flow through.

It has different furnishings and decorations than when she was in the Imperial Palace. But this was the bedroom where Lysia had closed her eyes for the last time.

“It’s okay.”

Lysia opened her eyes clearly and spoke cheerfully.

Alice, Sophie, and Mielle tilted their heads, not knowing why Lysia was doing this. Artizea followed Lysia and smiled.

“It’s okay, you can go.”

“Yes.”

Both Alice and Sophie knew how much Artizea had been waiting for Lysia.

The door closed quietly. There were only two people left in the bedroom.

Lysia came with a light footstep and sat down by the bed. Her hair was bobbed.

“Did you cut your hair?”

“It’s been a while since I cut it. How is it? Does it suit me?”

Lysia shook her head once. Her wavy hair moved lightly as if flying.

“It suits you. It’s a bit of a waste…….”

“My hair will grow again. It was a mood changer. Since I cut it, I have done many good things.”

Lysia laughed as she said she gave it to a child whose hair was no longer growing due to burn scars.

Artizea answered this time with only a smile. It was a shame to think about it again, but if Lysia liked it, then it’s fine. The short hair also suited her lively outfit.

In the social world, her appearance would cause a lot of noise, but now she didn’t have to attend any of those things when she didn’t want to.

“Isn’t it difficult to live there?”

“There are difficulties. The standards that Lord Cedric demands are high, and the time and manpower are insufficient.”

“I see…….”

“The budget is increasing, but the fact that we have a lot of money is because we don’t have the ability to properly invest. Because there is a lack of educational facilities in the West. In that respect, it is worse than the North.”

“Because in the North, Lord Cedric had always been concerned about it.”

“Yes. But in the West, the only educational institution is the monastery.”

Lysia let out a sigh.

“It will get better gradually. We are making sure that they receive basic education on the condition that they pay for it in grain from the granary.”

“Great.”

Artizea sincerely thought so. It was good for Lysia as well as for her work, but more than anything else, she seemed to enjoy it.

“But, if there is someone I can entrust with a certain amount of work, I will take a break. About three years, Lord Cedric wouldn’t be able to tell me to work harder, would he?”

“Since you mentioned three years, do you have any plans?”

“I want to travel.”

Lysia smiled.

“Because I have never been to the South. Please lend me a villa, Tia. I want to lie down with my feet in that beautiful sea.”

“That’s good, too.”

“But if I replace someone I can trust, Lord Cedric might covet them. The grain loan office needs people, too, so if I dig them up because I think they’re useful, they will quickly be taken away.”

“Now, the importance of the grain loan is relatively low. We have a good harvest.”

“Did you know that I’ve been holding onto a grudge against Lord Cedric since a while ago?”

Lysia’s eyes seemed to burn.

“It really hurts to lose Lord Forb.”

Artizea couldn’t help but laugh. Lysia probably joked like this to put her mind at ease.

She was happy and amazed that Lysia could tell a story like this now with a smile.

“Are you feeling better?”

“It’s hard one way or another, but maybe this is normal. Because Leticia was a much, much calmer child when she was in the womb.”

Lysia laughed a little. It seemed that Leticia’s remarkable contribution was known even to the far west.

But she soon asked with a serious face.

“What did the doctor say?”

“It’s going to be difficult.”

It may be somehow manageable to keep the pregnancy. However, Artizea did not have the stamina to endure childbirth.

During Leticia, she was in relatively better condition than she is now. She was mentally extremely sensitive, and her nerves bristled. But she ate like never before, and her stamina managed to stay.

Still, she couldn’t stand the pain.

They say the second birth is easier than the first birth, but if both were impossible anyway, there was no need to think of the easiness and difficulties.

Even though there was virtually only one Imperial Descendant, Leticia, it didn’t mean that she wouldn’t make an effort.

[“Kill me, Empress. However, no doctor from this land would dare to say that the Empress and the child could be saved together.”]

The doctor knelt on the floor and said with a bitter face.

Artizea said she understood and forced him to step down.

“To Lord Cedric…… You haven’t told him yet?”

“Yes. He’ll probably give up on the baby.”

She knew without even thinking deeply. Because she knew that despite how much he love Leticia, he had regretted telling her to give birth to the baby.

“So I wanted to ask Miss Lysia first. What do you think? Can I have this child?”

“Tia……. I am not a doctor.”

Lysia grabbed her hand and said,

“You know. My healing powers can heal wounds and disease, but…… , I can’t make the weak better. Even if I replenish their vitality with divine energy, it is only a temporary measure.”

From the moment she received Artizea’s letter, she thought about what to say. Even while running her horse.

Artizea did not have a disappointed face.

“Is this going to shorten my life even more?”

“It won’t matter. It’s not about magic or divinity. You are alive…… , you are doing things that are natural as a person.”

“But……. The baby has nothing to do with the price I have to pay.”

Artizea said as if muttering. Then, she raised her eyes and looked at Lysia.

“Did you hear how I gave birth to Leticia?”

“Tia, are you going to put a knife to your body?”

“If I don’t have the strength to endure childbirth, I thought about how to do it like it did back then. If Miss Lysia heals me, I think it will be possible.”

Lysia’s face changed slightly. She was deep in thought.

With her healing, it was quite possible. If only her life was still there, she could be saved, and if it was wounded, it could be restored without a trace.

Even now, there were no traces of the knife left on Artizea’s stomach.

“It is possible. It’s possible, but first of all, it’s about making a big wound to the body…….”

Lysia said with a choked face.

“It doesn’t affect your lifespan, since you don’t have to pay for the magic anymore, but it doesn’t mean your body will be okay.”

“I understand, I have no intention of giving up my life to give birth.”

Artizea said.

“If it’s impossible to keep the pregnancy or if things get worse, I’m going to have to let it go. I’m thinking about it, too. But, if possible.”

Artizea closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“Then, I want to have a baby.”

“Tia…….”

Artizea bowed her head.

“Isn’t it strange? I was so scared when I had Leticia.”

“It’s not strange.”

“I think I can do well this time.”

Artizea said in a low voice, as if in a whisper.

She loved Leticia. More than when she gave birth, more than when she raised her for a month, more than when she raised her for a year, she was more in love now.

There were times when she thought that it was only after four years that she had finally come to love the child as much as everyone else.

But it was different this time.

“I can love it. No, I think so already.”

She learned to love her baby. She also learned that it’s natural for the baby to love her.

And that she deserves that love.

Although she may not be a very good mother herself, she also confirmed that she may have a different parent than Miraila.

What was growing in her belly was neither sin nor fault, but the result of loving hours. She was able to accept the baby with a completely different heart than before.

“I feel like I have become a human, Miss Lysia. Help me.”

Artizea said as if confessing.

Lysia let out a sigh.

“There’s nothing we can do. It’s the first time you’ve asked for help. I can’t refuse that.”

Lysia smiled and tightened her grip on her hand even tighter. A green blessing rose from within her palm, and then sank.

“Promise. If the doctor says it’s dangerous, give it up right away.”

“Yes.”

Artizea followed with a bit of relief and kept her smile.

“If it’s hard, rip Lord Cedric’s hair off. If walking is difficult, use his feet instead. No matter how much I think about it, it’s all Lord Cedric’s responsibility.”

Artizea laughed.

“I would. I thought Leticia was a miracle, but I got it again.”

“If a miracle happens twice, that’s a good thing.”

“Yes.”

Artizea bowed her head without letting go of Lysia’s hand.

The miracle was here again. Although they were in different positions, they were facing each other in this room, just as they were back then when they gave up everything.

* * *

After that, the two exchanged stories about those they had not heard of because they were far away.

It was when Lysia heard that Hayley was running away from Juli that she had just started to laugh.

Thump thump.

There was a loud knock on the door. Lysia stood up.

“I will go and see.”

It was known who had come anyway. Cedric was standing outside the door. It was a face without a smile.

“Lysia.”

It wasn’t a look to greet each other gladly with a hug.