Hiding My Identity From My Husband - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 15

“You don’t need to worry about me. And honestly, I think I may have overstepped.”
“Overstepped?”
“Mardi and I aren’t in any particular relationship. So for you to be concerned… isn’t that a little strange?”
Lu didn’t answer. Instead, he studied me intently.
“After all, I’m your fiancé, so there’s no need to worry. Tell him that.
Those inscrutable blue eyes swept over me, searching.
“Charles, you really are…”
Lu continued speaking, still regarding me with that enigmatic gaze.
“Impossible to understand.”
What was there to say?
I felt rather at a loss.
“Is it so difficult to accept kindness at face value?”
I shook my head.
“Because I don’t know what thoughts lie behind that kindness.”
“So that’s why you keep doubting my words.”
“What words?”
“That I’m growing fond of you, Charles.”
The words struck something in me, and without thinking, I held my breath.
Why was he saying something like this so seriously…?
I felt my heart suddenly quicken, so I pressed it down with the palm of my hand against my chest.
“That’s… nobody would believe that.”
I spoke while clearing my throat with a soft cough, worried that he might hear my heart still racing treacherously.
“No, I mean it.”
Lu replied with a shrug.
“Believe it or not, as you wish.”
He always did this.
He’d say something unsettling, then stand there acting as if nothing had happened, perfectly composed.
It bothered me.
I snorted and turned my head away.
“Mardi has only one thought.”
But Lu hadn’t finished.
He slowly rose to his feet and continued.
“That Charles receives no more scars.”
“…”
“And I hope for the same.”
Then he pulled the rumpled blanket back over me.
“Close your eyes. I’ll stay beside you until you fall asleep.”
Truth be told, the conversation had woken me, but if I opened my eyes now, I suspected it would only make things more awkward.
So I obediently shut my eyes and, feeling the gentle touch of Lu’s hand patting me through the blanket, slowly drifted back to sleep.

* * *

Fortunately, my body recovered quickly.
Just as the physician had said, it seemed to have been simple exhaustion—after a few days of rest, I felt even better than before.
“Mmmmm.”
I stretched with a long yawn and worked out the stiffness in my limbs.
Then I sat down at my desk.
Now that my body had recovered sufficiently, it seemed time to organize my thoughts.
I stared down at the paper, pen in hand.
‘First, Themis.’
I began to write slowly.

[1. Themis
└ Whereabouts of the Sacred Artifact unknown: It was a trap set by Cataclysm
└ The Crown Prince intended to inform me of Cataclysm. → Why?]

Crown Prince Harold has always been something of a fool, admittedly.
Though his mother keeps that fact hidden from the outside world, by all means.
He’s the type who loves to boast, so there’s a real possibility he might leak information about Cataclysm.
But even if that’s the case, it doesn’t mean all my questions disappear.
‘Why?’
Why would Harold attempt to introduce Themis to Cataclysm, a secret organization of the Empire?
‘And why did the Commander order Themis killed?’
I rolled my pen between my fingers for a moment, then began writing furiously across the page.

[Reason why the Crown Prince was attempting to introduce Themis to Cataclysm: ? Unknown
└ Because of Modified Aura distribution? Uncertain
└ But it seems Themis died because of this]

Which meant that if I could discern Harold’s true intentions, this puzzle would also be solved.
‘I can look into that later…….’
I scratched my pen against the paper again.

[2. Why does Cataclysm wish to distribute Modified Aura?
└ Unknown…….]

Damn.
I know practically nothing.

[3. The wasps]

The giant hornets I’d dealt with at Floria Count’s House.

[└ Adrian acted independently → appears to have been to throw Floria Count’s House into chaos]

This too gives me pause.
‘Why?’
What possible gain would Cataclysm have from sowing confusion in Floria Count’s House?
‘I have no idea what they’re plotting.’
Modified Aura distribution, infiltrating noble houses—
these aren’t things Cataclysm should be doing…….
Something must have happened while I was away from the Empire. That much seemed certain.
I muttered to myself about needing to visit Headquarters soon, then set down my pen and burned the paper.
‘I can’t afford to be discovered under any circumstances.’
It’s not as if I’m dealing with someone who doesn’t already suspect me.
I couldn’t afford to give him even the smallest excuse.
‘Especially not now, while we’re together.’
Thinking of him, I exhaled deeply once more.
That was when it happened.

—So that’s why you don’t believe what I say.
—That I’m fond of Charles.

His words echoed in my mind.
At the same time, my heart began racing. What? Why?
‘Surely… I’m not feeling drawn to him, am I?’
I hesitated for a moment, then let out a hollow laugh.
‘That makes no sense.’
It’s just that his face is far too handsome.
People are always influenced by appearance, so I must have momentarily mistaken an objective assessment of his handsomeness for something else.
‘Me and him? That’s absurd.’
I giggled at the utterly ridiculous thought.
Then I rose and stared at the closed door.
I could sense a presence beyond it.
“Hm?”
The person who entered through the door was Rue, exactly as I’d expected.
“Did you know I was coming?”
“Yes.”
I squeezed past the desk and chair, then moved toward the sofa.
“How did you know?”
“Your footsteps.”
Rue’s footsteps are distinctive.
In truth, they’re so faint it’s almost a misnomer to call them sound at all.
A whisper of presence so subtle that you’d never notice it unless you were deliberately listening.
But why would I know them?
‘It’s only natural to remember every move of someone I suspect.’
That way I can run or manage the aftermath quickly if needed.
Of course, when he’s on an assignment, such things become useless anyway.
“How thoughtful of you to remember my footsteps.”
“I remember them so I can run away when you show up, so you don’t need to thank me.”
“That’s a joke, surely.”
It’s not a joke, though…….
I snorted, drawing air through my nose, and settled onto the sofa.
“How are you feeling, anyway?”
“Much better.”
“Because of me?”
“Because of Mardy, who looked after me.”
Rue’s eyes narrowed slightly, then he strode toward me with long steps.
“So you won’t mind looking at this, then.”
He tossed a newspaper down in front of me with a soft thud.
What is this?
I picked up the newspaper.

[The “Hero” Charles Cortney Who Protected Marquis Baidern—After a Fierce Pursuit, the Assailant Escapes… Yet She Stood Firm to the End Despite Her Wounds]

…….
Below it were accounts of how great a risk I’d taken to pursue the assailant, how much the Marquis’s household was acknowledging my achievements.
“How does it feel for a Guardian of the Holy Kingdom agent to become an imperial hero?”
Ah, my head aches.
I pressed my forehead and shook my head.
“Won’t this level of attention fade away soon enough?”
Rue grinned wickedly.
“That’s from three days ago, by the way.”
Then he laid down another newspaper he’d been carrying.
“This is from yesterday, and this is today’s.”
I examined the newspapers.

[Charles Cortney, Wounded Yet Valiant, Praised as the Marquis Baidern’s Savior]

Hmm.

[“Had It Not Been for Her…,” Marquis Baidern’s House Praises Charles Cortney’s Courage]

Hmm indeed.

[Marquis Baidern: “Charles Is Our Guardian”]

“It wasn’t like this before.”
…….

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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