I Will Die for You, My Darling! - Chapter 35
Chapter 35
“…You’re alive!”
“…The Gods d…”
“Open your…eyes.”
Arietta’s mind swam in confusion. She thought death was the end, but was it not? Was the afterlife, as foretold by the fortune-telling crone, real?
‘Oh, I don’t want this… I wish death were the end.’
Her head throbbed, heavy and aching, like when she was exposed to the outside air without a purifier for too long. If even death brought pain, what was the difference between life and the hereafter? What was the point of it all?
Just as her frustration began to boil over, a thunderous voice cracked through the haze.
“Look at me!”
Arietta’s eyes snapped open at the command. Air rushed into her lungs, her chest heaving as her blurred vision sharpened.
A scarred face loomed over her. A jagged line across the eyebrow, shadows beneath intense eyes, a prominent nose, and a twisted mouth… a face she knew all too well.
The face that always left her wanting.
“Isaac…?” Her voice was a horrible rasp. Arietta turned her head, coughing raggedly. Her body was so weak that each cough sent tremors through her.
As soon as the thought of thirst crossed her mind, the physician offered a cup of lukewarm water with a straw, preventing her from drinking too quickly.
Arietta instinctively drank. Once she finished, maids helped her into the bed, propping her up against the headboard with cushions, following the physician’s instructions.
“We will bring you something to eat.”
With that, the maids retreated like the tide. The physician remained, drawing blood from Arietta’s arm and injecting her with two unknown medications.
“Painkillers and a restorative.” The explanation came unprompted. He didn’t mention the stimulant mixed into the restorative. Arietta’s mind began to clear.
“Am I alive?” Her voice was still rough.
The physician glanced between Arietta and Isaac. Isaac stood to the side, arms crossed, glaring at her. Arietta, her eyes vacant, waited for an answer. The air crackled with tension.
“You’ve passed the critical point.” The words finally came.
“How?” Arietta asked.
“I’ll be waiting in the next room.” The physician evaded the question. He decided to flee rather than repeat the explanation he’d given Isaac weeks ago. With Isaac present, there shouldn’t be any major issues.
Isaac remained silent. The physician took that as permission. He gathered his bag and equipment, and as the door closed behind him, silence descended.
Arietta didn’t bother to fill the void. She blinked slowly, tested her hand, and looked at Isaac, seemingly trying to piece together the situation. No matter how she thought about it, there was only one answer.
She had survived.
She had deliberately thrown herself from the attic to die.
‘Was the height not enough? Should I have climbed onto the roof?’
She felt a surge of displeasure. She had concluded everything, finalized it, and now someone had forcibly extended the ending, leaving a bitter aftertaste. Her weakened body only amplified the discomfort.
Arietta sighed. Isaac watched her like a hawk from his perch. Finally, she turned to him.
“Did you save me?”
Was the dryness in her voice due to her throat’s condition after just waking? Isaac chose to believe so.
“Yes.”
“…It’s not the right time, is it?” Arietta muttered knowingly.
‘Here we go again.’
Isaac always acted as if it had to be December 31st. What was so special about that day? She had asked him in previous cycles, but never received an answer. Every time they regressed, Isaac would disappear after December 20th, perhaps receiving some sort of revelation to kill her during that period.
If only she knew what happened during those ten days he was away from the glass dome mansion. If only she could hasten that event…
Arietta wiggled her toes. She couldn’t feel any strength, but there was sensation.
