The Villainess Lives Twice: Butterfly's Dream (IF Story) - Chapter 111
Shhaaaa—
Each time the wind stirred, the rustling of grass and leaves echoed through the midnight sky.
Cedric, eyes half-closed and lost in a dreamy haze, thought that even the sound of the wind here resembled the sea. The moonlight was luminous and full, scattered like foam across everything, while the breeze caressed his exposed skin like a tepid wave.
He stretched out lazily, gazing up at constellations foreign to this region.
When Garnet had insisted their honeymoon absolutely had to be in the South, he’d been skeptical. Sure, he knew the South was the most coveted resort destination, but for him, the region always conjured images of salt monopolies and tangled international affairs.
He couldn’t pretend the existence of a certain person wasn’t always getting on his nerves.
But in the end, it had been a good choice. The days of swimming and watersports at Duchy Riagan’s residence had been fun, and now, having retreated to this quiet villa, it was bliss to let his mind go completely blank and just spend time with Artizea.
The little villa, a wedding gift from the Grand Duke and Duchess Roygar, was peaceful and beautiful. Surrounded by windbreak forest but open to sunlight, it offered perfect seclusion. A well-kept forest walk of about five minutes led straight to the beach.
In the oversized garden, there was an ancient cedar with a newly installed swing. Woven from vines, it was more like a swaying daybed than a swing. It was big enough for even Cedric’s tall frame, with just his calves hanging off the edge. He didn’t mind.
He let himself sprawl out, drifting into a nap.
A gentle patting on his thigh made him open his eyes, realizing he’d dozed off.
“Ced, are you asleep?”
He wasn’t fully asleep, but neither did he want to get up. Instead, Cedric hooked Artizea’s leg lightly, unbalancing her so she tumbled right into his arms.
“Ah!”
He pulled her, rolled over and curled up. He held her close like a child, and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Artizea flailed her arms and protested.
“I almost dropped it!”
Only then did Cedric open one eye to look at Artizea. She was holding a handful of fruit.
“Sorry.”
He said, but made no move to let her go. Artizea didn’t really seem to want to leave either. He settled on his arm and lowered the fruit she’d been holding up.
She plucked a berry from the bunch and placed it on Cedric’s lips. He accepted it with a flick of his tongue. It looked like a grape, but the flavor was intensely sweet, almost like an overripe tropical fruit.
“Tastes good.”
“Right?”
Artizea giggled and took one into her own mouth.
“I asked the kitchen about it. We tried some new fruits at Duke Riagan’s residence, but I heard there are even more kinds down here. I figured we should try as many as we can before heading back north. Especially the ones you can’t get in the capital.”
“Mhm.”
Cedric obediently let her feed him another fruit, then kissed Artizea’s lips. The sweetness lingering between them.
“Lady Garnet said when she was pregnant, she craved these fruits so much it was torture. But they just aren’t the same once you take them all the way back to the capital, so she was never satisfied.”
Cedric remembered when Garnet had taken a trip south during her first pregnancy. It hadn’t seemed wise for her to travel so far so early, but apparently she’d had her reasons.
“Should we come back, too?”
He murmured, resting his chin atop Artizea’s hair.
“If I’m pregnant?”
“As long as it’s not risky.”
“And you’ll have time for that?”
“I’ll make time.”
“Well, it’s not like there’s any guarantee I’ll have cravings for fruit. Mother told me she couldn’t eat anything when she was expecting me.”
Artizea couldn’t even fathom how unfamiliar this conversation felt.
“She wasted away to skin and bones, and could barely get out of bed.”
It probably wasn’t all just morning sickness. But Artizea mentioned it without bitterness, so he set aside his darker thoughts and just murmured.
“Guess I’ll have to work hard bringing you snacks.”
“Aren’t you the one being fed right now?”
Artizea said with a smile. Cedric searched for his memories, thinking of the cherry-glazed sugar and savory meat samosas. The nostalgia was pleasant, but he found himself wishing those days would come a little later.
When all the fruit were gone, he took the empty stem from her hand, tossed it to the ground, and licked the juice from his fingers. Artizea blushed slightly.
Finally, Cedric released her from his embrace and sprawled out toward the sky, arms wide. Artizea lay down next to him, following his gaze to the sky.
“Were you watching the stars?”
“Not really, just looking up. The Milky Way isn’t visible tonight.”
“It’s because the moon’s so bright.”
“On a snowy mountain, it would be bright enough that you wouldn’t need any other light.”
Cedric closed his eyes again, murmuring drowsily. Artizea rolled toward him, then clambered onto his chest, resting her chin there.
“The sea, too.”
“Huh?”
“When the moon is this bright, the sea must reflect off the water just as much. Maybe not as much as snow.”
He opened his eyes at that. Artizea looked down at him with a smile.
“I’ve been thinking. I want to study linguistics.”
“That’s out of nowhere.”
“It’s not. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I don’t really want to be the Crown Princess’s lady-in-waiting, and honestly, being a bureaucrat sounds boring.”
“Well, being a bureaucrat I get, but wouldn’t being the Crown Princess’s lady-in-waiting be at least interesting?”
“I don’t want to live with that kind of constant tension. I want to study the fundamentals of how thought works.”
Cedric looked puzzled, but Artizea just smiled at him.
“Anyway, just know that much for now. Someday it’ll help Ced, too. But I’m not doing it for you, so don’t get the wrong idea.”
“Alright.”
Whatever she chose, he was sure she’d change the world. It didn’t have to be through clever manipulation or power. Even if she spent her life as a recluse, buried in books, he wouldn’t mind. From the start, he’d just wanted her to find something she truly loved.
In this life, they owed nothing. She had committed no sins, and he carried only minor responsibilities.
So it was enough just to live like this, not striving to pay anyone back, not trying to accomplish anything in particular.
Lost in those thoughts, Cedric simply enjoyed the comfortable weight of Artizea resting on his chest.
The wind made the swing creak gently. It was peaceful.
“One day, let’s come back.”
“Yes.”
She answered his sleepy whisper affectionately.
Cedric thought that Artizea probably didn’t understand what he meant by ‘one day’ or ‘come back’. She probably just thought he was talking about returning to the South for another trip someday.
That was fine. Drowsy and content, he felt certain of a future he couldn’t even picture clearly. They would return here again.
After all, she was a saint, destined to save others.
And perhaps this place was a promised land of salvation, just for him.