Chapter 1

My husband turned me into a living cure.

The irony was that I was the one who taught him the formula in the first place.

To save the Queen, he ignored whether I lived or died, leaving me to be tormented by the estate servants.

What he did not know was that a living cure could just as easily become a lethal poison.

Even worse, he never realized that the woman sleeping in his bed was the legendary miracle healer known across the continent.

1、

The door swung open, letting in a beam of blinding sunlight.

He stood right at the threshold.

I sat up straight.

This was the first time I had seen him in a whole year since he turned me into his human remedy.

"Claire, you have suffered this past year," he murmured, his tone laced with shame.

I pressed a hand against the cold stone wall to stand up.

"Austin, I just want to know why you did it."

I stared right into his eyes, desperately searching for an answer, but he looked away.

"I just want an explanation for the living hell I went through for twelve months! Is that really so hard to answer?!"

"Claire, all you need to know is that I love you."

Seeing him remain so calm, I pulled up the hem of my dress.

"Do you know that I lost the use of my leg?"

His calm eyes instantly turned bloodshot.

At least in this single moment, I thought he might actually care about me a little.

"Who did this to you?"

Austin grabbed my arm tightly, making me wince and let out a cold laugh.

"Did you forget? I told you this would happen long ago."

Severe muscle degeneration was the unavoidable side effect of turning someone into a medicinal vessel.

I had warned him about it back when we discussed ancient remedies.

He seemed to remember now, and tears welled up in his eyes.

The fight left him all at once, leaving him looking completely defeated.

"Claire, you have suffered so much."

"Yes. So sign the divorce papers."

The silence between us hung heavy in the air.

Austin acted as if he had not heard a word, lifting me into his arms and carrying me out of the back courtyard.

Listening to the steady beat of his heart against my ear, I suddenly felt disgusted.

"Austin, stop pretending you did not hear me."

Looking up from his chest, I could see the blue veins bulging at his temples.

"Claire, what was I supposed to do?!" He snapped, his patience wearing thin.

"She saved my life once!"

He looked completely different from the passionate young man who had once crossed mountains just to marry me.

"Claire, you cannot be this selfish."

When life is on the line, who is not selfish?

Hearing him say those words only made me feel suffocated.

"Then why did you not turn yourself into the living cure?"

Austin finally fell silent.

I watched him open his mouth several times, unable to muster a single defense.

See? Everyone treasures their own life.

They just do not give a damn about someone else's.

Or rather, he simply did not value mine.

For the next two weeks, I was placed in the main manor.

The head maid assigned to me constantly urged me to please Austin.

"My Lady, if you want to secure your place in this ducal manor, learning how to serve His Grace in bed is the most important step."

At first, I tolerated her nagging, but soon grew sick of it.

During dinner, I brought it up to him.

"You are the mistress of this household. From now on, you do not need to ask me about such trivial matters."

As he spoke, he placed a piece of roasted chicken onto my plate.

"You need to build up your strength."

I kept my head down and ate the rest of the meal, leaving the chicken completely untouched.

He noticed, but said nothing.

He seemed to have forgotten that I was allergic to chicken.

It had only taken a single year for him to forget everything about me.

That night, I went to sleep early.

To my surprise, Austin came into the bedroom after finishing his paperwork.

He wrapped his arms around me from behind, burying his face into the crook of my neck.

"Claire, can you love me again?"

I lay there wide awake, listening to the heavy cawing of crows outside and his ragged breathing.

"Never," I answered in my heart.