Franz's seizure lasted a long time.
Potion bottles rolled across the floor, and the doctor's orders shouted to the servants, wreaking havoc in the early hours of the morning.
Elisia listened to those voices with a heavy heart.
She leaned her back against the door, then slowly slid down until she sat on the floor.
She felt empty.
It pained her to know that her value to Franz lay only in her usefulness to him.
But realizing she wasn't even that useful left her feeling even more empty.
'What do I represent to you, really?'
Elisia lowered the sleeve of her dress.
The scar on her right wrist, which had not yet healed, remained clearly visible.
She placed the candlestick on the ground and gently touched the wound.
It hadn't even been a month since she had purified Franz.
And now, another seizure?
This repetition was abnormal.
If the purification had succeeded, this would not have happened.
Elisia furrowed her eyebrows and squeezed her wrist tightly.
The veins in her slender hand bulged.
'I'm useless.'
She bit her lip in frustration.
She had endured extreme pain to perform the neutralization procedure, yet it had not worked.
There's a big difference between failing because you didn't even try, and trying—and still failing.
The first meant she only claimed to have purified—which was only possible if she had perfect control over her mana purification powers.
As for the second, it meant the purification process itself had not succeeded.
This was either because her abilities were insufficient—or because her mana was incompatible with Franz's mana.
In both cases, the result was disappointing.
Elisia hung her head, tightening her wrist.
Franz kept her at his side for one reason: to neutralize the mana.
But if her abilities were that bad, was there a reason for her to stay in the Second Prince's Palace?
Was there any reason for her to be the second prince's wife in the first place?
However...
Franz still insisted on keeping her close to him.
Why?
Elisia squeezed her eyes shut.
She couldn't understand Franz's thoughts in her previous life—and lately, it had become worse.
When they were alone, he treated her like she was the most precious jewel in the world, and acted as if all her feelings moved him.
But in front of others, the mere mention of her name seemed to bother him.
He avoided talking about her completely.
At least, Franz in her previous life had been consistent in his behavior.
But now, she no longer understood him at all.
If he hated her, she would just hate him.
If he cared about her, she would let him continue doing so.
But it was neither this nor that.
His contradictory behavior only made her more confused.
"What kind of mess is this?"
Elisia lifted her head toward the strange voice coming from the other side of the door.
It was an unfamiliar voice, but it spoke to Franz with familiarity.
Since he hadn't given any formal greetings, this man likely met Franz often.
"Why did you get married in the first place if that's what it was going to turn out to be?
Wasn't it for neutralization?"
The young man's voice was clear as he delivered his words with a harsh, critical tone.
Elisia hadn't heard Lucius's voice or any of the servants'—it seemed only Franz and this strange man were inside the room.
"Dosage…?"
Franz's weak voice reached her.
Then came sarcastic laughter.
"Do you realize you could die at this pace?"
"Dose."
"I warned you.
There is a limit to what doses can do to suppress seizures."
A moment of silence passed.
Franz was drinking the potion.
Elisia pressed her ear closer to the door.
A secret about Franz—a secret she didn't know—was about to be revealed.
"I'm fine."
"That's what you call okay?
Look at the state of this room.
Even a hurricane wouldn't have left it in such a mess."
Franz laughed softly, sounding calmer.
But even his laugh was painful—as if it had been uprooted from deep within him.
Elisia bit her lip involuntarily.
"Do you think this is funny?
Who said that the wedding night was just to neutralize mana?
And that marriage was just for that?"
The unknown man sneered at Franz, imitating his tone.
Then came Franz's weak, tired voice: "That's enough."
"I say this because I am worried about you, Your Highness."
"I don't want to hear you."
His firm tone silenced the man for a moment.
Any semblance of joking disappeared from his voice.
"Don't forget why you chose the princess as your wife.
Wasn't it for moments like this?"
"If Your Highness does not summon her, I will."
"Aaron!"
When the man named Aaron started to move, Franz hurriedly called out to him.
His steps stopped and approached, then began to retreat.
"I didn't want to say this, but..."
Aaron clicked his tongue.
"The princess's reaction to the mana stone was not ideal.
It was weak.
That meant there were other options.
For example, Lady Nerys Roshank—she hadn't even had the chance to see the stone.
And there were others as well—potential wives who could have easily neutralized the mana."
"So, Nerys would have been a better choice for him in the end..."
Elisia pulled her skirt tight, pulling her knees to her chest.
According to Haroun, she was not qualified to be the wife of a prince.
Many could take her place.
And not just alternatives—but clearly better alternatives, capable of ridding Franz of his Manichaean illness.
"If you refuse to let the princess neutralize Manak, then I will look for another way.
I will also speed up Lady Roshank’s return."
"If you're going to talk nonsense, leave."
"So what's the problem?"
Aaron's voice sounded full of distress.
"Do you hate the princess?
Or do you hate Lady Roshank?
Or both?"
"It's not a matter of preference."
"Even at the wedding, you didn't look happy.
I know it was a political marriage, but still..."
Aaron stopped talking, and silence prevailed.
Franz said nothing.
Perhaps he was showering now—he'd lost consciousness like this before.
Still curled up in herself, Elisia stared at the candlestick next to her.
Her eyes followed the long flame, then looked at the melting wax dripping onto the carpet.
At that moment, Aaron's voice returned.
"What you are doing is cruel to the princess as well."
He was scolding Franz.
"If you're not going to let her help, then take her back to Ambrose.
The palace is no place for her.
You know that.
Keeping her here like this...it's not right."
"I can't do that."
"I'm not asking for the marriage to be annulled.
That's impossible now.
But at least give her some time.
Or perhaps move her to separate quarters.
You can find another candidate there—"
"That's enough.
Get out.
I need to rest."
"Your Highness."
"The next dose will be ready in a week."
"Didn't you hear me?"
At Franz's cold dismissal, Aaron muttered a complaint.
Then his voice disappeared, and he muttered something about Franz's stubbornness.
Elisia blinked, pressing her ear to the door again.
But it seemed as if only Franz had been in the room the whole time—there was no trace of that man.
"Who is he?"
Elisia turned away from the door and lost herself in thought.
Franz had called him "Aaron."
But Elisia didn't remember anyone by that name.
There was a senior wizard from the Magic Tower with a somewhat similar name—but he wasn't "Aaron."
Rather, his name was much longer and more luxurious.
Harnakaron melakerzna.
He was a legendary figure—the founder of the empire's magical tradition and the builder of the Magic Tower.
Elisia shook her head.
"He is not the Great Sorcerer."
The name was different, and the age did not match.
The greatest magician had ruled the tower even before Elisia was born.
The voice she'd heard a moment ago seemed closer to Franz's age.
As for the Great Magician, he would have looked much older.
"I can't expect to know everything about Franz."
Elisia tried to guess Aaron's identity, and extended her hand toward the candlestick.
The candle, which had been longer than her palm, was now only two fingers long.
Depending on the course of the conversation, Haroun was most likely a doctor.
Franz had asked him to bring a potion.
If not a doctor, perhaps a magician.
But Aaron's identity was not important to Elisia.
He was someone she had never met in her previous life—and she likely wouldn't meet in this life either.
Until now, she had only known anything about him by pure coincidence.