The Elven Duke Reluctantly Marries The Cursed Lady - Chapter 73
In the end, Violette fell asleep in cat form.
Hydrangea carried her to her bedroom and laid her on the bed.
Snow White immediately jumped up on the bed as soon as Hydrangea moved away.
The magic beast had grown to a size equivalent to a mid-sized dog in the blink of an eye, and the eyes staring back at him from the dark were ones belonging to a predator.
However, she still drank milk as her main form of nourishment.
“Grrrr….”
“I’m already leaving, so you don’t need to be so weary of me.”
After that, he entrusted the rest to Verbena.
◇◇◇
Hydrangea did not remember anyone who went by the name Auren Ezel, but he did recall that there was a family that carried the Ezel name.
When he whispered the surname in the Laudense underground library, a book automatically descended from one of the shelves.
The book flew gently and landed squarely on Hydrangea’s hand.
It’s title was “The Magic Doctor’s History and Disappearance”, and the book’s author was Kokusagi Ezel.[1]
The Ezel family was a noble family who came in and out of the royal court more than a thousand years ago, and were apparently court physicians.
They had cured generations of the royal family of illness, assisted in childbirth, and healed injuries.
But when magic was considered heresy, Nourushi, the head of the Ezel family who served as the court physician at that time, was executed while the rest of the family were banished from the royal capital.
Apparently, Kokusagi Ezel was Nourushi’s brother.
However, one thing that caught his attention was that this record was about a hundred years before the age where magic was considered heresy.
If they were a family of court physicians, then they would have been treated with respect.
Hydrangea suddenly realized that he had encountered the name Nourushi before.
Where have I seen it before? I feel like I’ve come across it recently.
“Ah!” he exclaimed, unknowingly raising his voice.
It was the author of the book on transformation magic that he was reading in the forbidden archives. Nourushi was the name of the mage who had an affair with the queen.
The age matches too.
Could it be that Nourushi was executed not because of the heretical way he used magic but because the queen’s affair was brought to the king and he, as the queen’s lover, was executed?
Perhaps the truth was withheld to protect the honor of his brother.
[Why are you still reading at this time?]
Hydrangea was used to Pomeranian suddenly appearing out of nowhere. He immediately went back to reading his book after taking a quick look at his periphery.
[Ignoring me now, eh?]
“This is the busiest I’ve been today.”
[Muu]
It’s not cute to hear sulking sounds in a middle-aged man’s voice.
Pomeranian had completely broken his concentration.
The book automatically returned to its original place after he threw it in the air.
[What are you searching for?]
“I am looking for information about the Ezel family.”
[Ezel? Hmm, I haven’t heard of that name before.]
“They were a noble family who worked as court physicians before the time you were summoned.”
[I see.]
The queen who used transformation magic, her older husband, and the young mage — these three people somehow stood out to him.
[Is something bothering you?]
“Not—”
He wanted to think that it was just his imagination. However, he couldn’t help but see those three people superimposed with people Hydrangea knew.
“Pomeranian, what do you know about reincarnation magic?”
[Aah. It’s a magic that allows people with unfinished business with another person’s soul to interfere with the mechanics of reincarnation before their birth and distort their afterlife.]
However, there seemed to be exceptions, and it was said that a soul who had a strong peculiarity before birth may reincarnate as the soul of his or her previous life without doing anything.
[I haven’t told you, but you are a child born through reincarnation with your soul intact before you were born.]
“Huh?”
[Don’t tell anyone, alright? In the same way, your wife, Violette, also reincarnated while inheriting the knowledge and magic of her past life. But in her case, it seems that reincarnation magic was used on her.]
“Pomeranian, why do you know such things?”
[It’s obvious to spirits like me. The soul’s radiance is just different.]
“Then do you know who I was in my past life?”
[Beats… me.]
After saying this, Pomeranian shut his mouth. Hydrangea wondered if it was something he was reluctant to say, but the former quickly turned away when their eyes met.
Perhaps Pomeranian remembered someone he knew, but could not bring himself to say it, so Hydrangea did not pursue it further.
“Today, a man from the Ezel family told me not to interfere with this lifetime as well.”
[It’s undeniable that the person has undergone reincarnation as well.]
“So what’s the difference between a reincarnator who has memories and someone who has none?”
[I guess the difference is between having unfinished business in their past life and the other not having any.]
The reason Hydrangea and Violette did not have any memories of their past lives was because they did not have any regrets, while Auren had a great deal of unfinished business in his previous life.
“So that’s how it is…”
If it were someone executed by the royal family, then I could understand their motive for aiming for the king’s life. But there is something perpetually bothering me.
“Could it be that Tritoma Celsia is the king from ancient times, Violette is the queen, and Auren Ezel is the court physician? But if that’s the case, it doesn’t make sense for Tritoma and Auren to cooperate…”
[You cannot do anything about something you do not understand no matter how much you think about it. Go to sleep already.]
“Fine.”
Hydrangea teleported directly to his chambers.
The fairies who took care of him beckoned him to the bath. Although he just wanted to sleep right away, he still had to take a bath first.
After absentmindedly taking off his clothes, he was guided to the bath but stepped back when he was splashed with hot water.
“Ow!!”
The fairies stuck out their tongues and blew raspberries at him.
After acknowledging them, he went to take a dip in the tub while being taken care of by the fairies and dried himself with magic.
He then headed to his bedroom after changing into his night clothes, but he stopped in his tracks just as he was about to get in bed.
Violette, who had turned back to her human form, was sleeping soundly on top of Hydrangea’s bed.
Naked, of course.
Translator’s Notes:
[1] Kokusagi – “Kokusagi” refers to the Japanese name for the plant scientifically known as Orixa japonica, also known as Japanese orixa. It’s a deciduous shrub native to Japan, belonging to the Rutaceae family. The name “kokusagi” translates to “unpleasant-smelling bush”
