Chapter 53

Finally.

The moment I’d been waiting for had come.

If I used this item… I could erase that damn status ailment.

‘A fate where I die on a deadline? Absolutely not.’

This time, I was going to be happy. No matter what.

I’d live well. Eat well. Flourish—right in the faces of those bastards I hated.

‘Just you watch! I’m going to live to a hundred, healthy as ever!’

I pressed YES without hesitation.

The hand holding the scissors began to move on its own—

“…!”

A long, slender red thread appeared in midair.

It slipped out from somewhere near my heart and stretched off into the distance.

Where it led—

I couldn’t tell.

Thud.

Thud.

My heart lurched unevenly.

Was it fear?

A premonition whispered that once I cut this, there would be no going back.

But it wasn’t my will guiding me now. It was the scissors.

The twin blades yawned open like the jaws of a crocodile, glinting ominously.

The red thread caught between them looked unbearably fragile.

With the slightest pressure, it would snap.

But that was what I wanted. Even if it terrified me.

The blades began to close, slowly—so slowly it felt like a scene in slow motion.

And then, at last—

Snip.

The red thread that had bound me to someone—

broke cleanly in two.

In that instant—

“…!”

An image unfolded inside my head like a hallucination.

The severed end of the red thread disintegrated in a flash, vanishing like a sparkler burning out.

And at its end…

Raul.

The thread, burned to nothing, left behind a faint trace like ash over his heart before disappearing entirely.

The system notification appeared, and Raul’s image dissolved like mist.

I blinked several times until my vision settled back into reality.

Then I lowered my gaze.

The red thread that had emerged from where my heart beat was no longer leading there.

Following its slackened line, I slowly shifted my eyes.

At the other end—

“…!”

“…Muriel?”

I parted my lips in shock—and only then realized my right hand felt strangely empty.

Looking down, I saw that the scissors I’d been holding had crumbled into silver dust.

‘What…? Was it a one-time-use item?’

I barely had time to process that before a worried voice reached me again, and I lifted my head.

“Muriel? You’re okay, right?”

“Uh… y-yeah.”

I answered while subtly avoiding his eyes, but Lycian caught my chin and pulled me closer.

“You’re not feeling worse anywhere?”

“N-not at all! I’m perfectly fine!”

His face was too close. I could feel his breath.

Flustered, not knowing what to do, I shoved him away and quickly put some distance between us.

“All done! Now we just have to head back!”

“Want me to guide you out, nya?”

“Yes, please!”

I hurried after Neru, taking a deep breath. My heart was still racing.

Lycian followed close behind, but I deliberately ignored him and pretended to receive a “revelation.”

In other words, I called up the system.

‘The status ailment’s really gone, right? And the D-day’s deleted too?’

After answering, the system pulled up my profile as if to prove it.

‘The status ailment… it’s really gone. And there’s no D-day.’

That said, the formal divorce process still remained.

But it seemed the system already recognized Raul and me as “divorced.”

Why?

Did divine fate carry more weight than the laws of the human world?

“Hmm…”

I wasn’t sure, but escaping a doomed lifespan was something to celebrate.

‘Now I just need to meet Raul and settle things.’

I should start preparing the divorce papers. Dante would probably help.

‘I’m really free….’

Only after checking my profile did it truly sink in. I wasn’t living on borrowed time anymore.

‘Ha… This calls for a drink!’

But the divorce wasn’t finalized yet, so I’d hold off on the celebratory toast.

An affinity rate of 0.01% with Raul… It bothered me that it wasn’t a clean zero.

‘It’s not going to jump to 10% just because we talk once, right…?’

Please—let that never happen.

Just imagining it was horrifying.

---

I was genuinely thrilled to have escaped my doomed fate.

But there was one problem.

When I came out of the hidden shop, two full days had passed…

“Muriel! Do you know how worried I was? Where have you been? You just disappeared without a word—!”

“Really… we were so worried…. I’m just glad you’re safe.”

“I thought you’d gone missing….”

Daphne, Allen, Mikhail.

“Where on earth did you go?”

And even Dante.

Everyone had something to say. Not just one or two comments—more like ten each.

Other guild members even came running up in a panic.

“Muriel! So you didn’t run away!”

“I seriously thought you’d fled because our guild is full of lunatics….”

I felt awful for making them worry, so I gave an awkward smile and made up a plausible excuse.

“I stepped out nearby to gather a medicinal herb I needed. It was essential, but no apothecary in this city carries it….”

Dante eyed me suspiciously, but eventually let it go.

“Next time, please let us know before you go somewhere. With Lycian sticking to you like a cursed doll, I’m not overly concerned, but I do take the safety of my guild members seriously.”

Of all things, why a cursed doll?

Still, I appreciated how considerate he was. I beamed brightly.

“Dante, if you ever gamble yourself into bankruptcy, I’ll lend you money.”

Dante’s eyes shimmered as if deeply moved.

“Muriel…!”

He clasped my hand tightly—and in the next second, Lycian appeared like a ghost and kicked Dante away without mercy.

“Gah!”

A strangled scream burst from Dante’s mouth. After rolling across the floor three times, he jumped up and shouted.

“Seriously, that temper of yours!”

“Don’t touch her.”

“I was just thanking her! Thanking her!”

“Use words.”

“You lunatic! Is Muriel not allowed to even hold someone’s hand?!”

“You’re not.”

“I don’t have ulterior motives!”

While Dante fumed in disbelief, Lycian calmly pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and scrubbed my hand clean.

I could only laugh helplessly.

“Haaah… Tomorrow morning, I’m doing absolutely nothing. Just rolling around and resting.”

“Please do.”

After chatting over lunch with the guild members, I returned to my room.

I flopped onto the bed and glanced sideways at Lycian.

He was preparing a drink to soothe my stomach, insisting I’d eaten too much greasy food.

Watching him diligently stir the liquid in a glass with a muddler, I couldn’t help but smile.

I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“Lycian, you’re like a mom.”

“…….”

He turned to look at me, incredulous, then let out a soft scoff.

“Could you call me your husband instead?”

“M-my husband….”

At that teasing title, the memory of the red thread I’d tried so hard to forget resurfaced without mercy.

Heat rushed to my face, and I yanked the blanket over my head.

Then, unable to contain myself, I punched the pillow repeatedly.

“…? Muriel…. I’m hurt. Do you hate that idea that much?”

“No!”

I shot upright in horror at the ridiculous misunderstanding

—and found myself staring straight into Lycian’s eyes.

“…!!”

Startled, I tried to dive back under the covers.

But Lycian grabbed my waist, lifted me effortlessly, and set me down on his lap.

He picked up the glass from the bedside table and coaxed me in a soft, murmuring voice.

“Come on. Say ahh—”

“…?”