I Became the Wife of the Hero Who Killed Me - Chapter 129

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#Episode 129

 

The Imperial Physician held up the test paper for everyone to see.

 

Following Elisia’s wine that had tested positive for poison earlier, poison was detected once again. The darkly discolored paper came into everyone’s view.

 

The Empress’s ladies-in-waiting who had been standing at a distance all rushed over at once.

 

“Lady Mariana!”

 

“Your Majesty the Empress, are you alright?!”

 

“….”

 

Mariana lowered her gaze in a daze.

 

She knew that she was not suited to be Empress.

 

She had only become Baldin’s Empress suddenly, pushed by her sister’s untimely death and political necessity.

 

She was neither as clever as Elisia nor commanded public respect like Isabella.

 

However, she was at least not a foolish simpleton.

 

‘So this was it.’

 

The reason why Elisia had caused a commotion earlier than planned.

 

The fact that it happened to be the moment when she herself was holding the wine glass.

 

Even the Imperial Physician’s sudden change of plans after visiting Elisia – all the puzzle pieces fell into place.

 

‘Rosalind’s target wasn’t Elisia, but me.’

 

It was a moment when her spine turned cold with the lightning-like realization.

 

A knight bearing the Lombard crest burst into the banquet hall. He threw down a trembling, pale-faced man onto the banquet hall floor.

 

“We found the culprit.”

 

Everyone’s attention focused on him.

 

Mariana steadied her trembling voice and asked.

 

“Who is that man?”

 

“A servant belonging to the Grand Cathedral, his name is Nazim. This man has confessed everything. Properly confess who ordered you to put poison in the glass.”

 

“Ro, Ro, Rosalind Your Highness!”

 

“…!”

 

Before Nigel could even stop him, Gareth immediately had the real culprit pointed out.

 

The shocked assembly’s gazes all turned to Rosalind at once.

 

* * *

 

Edwin carried Elisia in his arms toward the rest room.

 

At her precarious appearance, having coughed up blood and gone limp, people passing through the corridor couldn’t bring themselves to speak and immediately cleared the way.

 

The fresh blood spread across her pure white dress was visually quite striking.

 

But what was etched just as deeply in their minds was Edwin’s expression, pale with terror and fear.

 

‘This is acting. She’s safe.’

 

He knew it.

 

He clearly knew it in his head, yet memories from the past kept overlapping before his eyes.

 

The sticky liquid that had soaked his feet.

 

The terrible metallic smell that pierced the nose.

 

And someone’s form left alone in the puddle of blood.

 

‘No… open your eyes. Please, please look at me. I was wrong. I was too late… Please, no… Aaaahhh!!’

 

That thing which had already lost its warmth and grown cold overlapped with Elisia’s current blood-soaked appearance.

 

Like when he had just awakened from a nightmare… no, an even more severe trauma than that was revived.

 

His panic continued even after laying Elisia down in the rest room.

 

There were watching eyes, so she couldn’t wake up yet. She shouldn’t be awakened either.

 

Nevertheless, Edwin felt an intense urge to shake her shoulders and tell her to wake up quickly. He felt suffocated and his vision flickered black.

 

Edwin’s condition didn’t improve at all even after Mariana’s Personal Physician had left.

 

The High Priests who had guided him to the rest room paced in front of the door, not knowing what to do.

 

“Your Grace, are you alright?”

 

“Everyone withdraw.”

 

“However…”

 

Though they said the necessary treatment had been completed, the Duke’s wife’s condition was still precarious.

 

But since the Duke was trembling his hands anxiously as if he might do something rash at any moment, the Priests eventually couldn’t endure any longer and left the rest room.

 

“Elisia.”

 

Once they disappeared, Edwin hurriedly turned to look at Elisia.

 

Her chest rising and falling gently indicated that she had fallen asleep for a moment.

 

She had prepared plans all night and attended the festival ceremony from early morning, so she must have been truly exhausted.

 

Normally, he would never have awakened such an Elisia.

 

But right now Edwin had no other choice. He had to confirm in some way that she was safely alive.

 

Only a living, moving Elisia could erase the afterimages of the past that kept surfacing.

 

“Please wake up. Everyone has left, yes?”

 

“…Mmm.”

 

Even a moment’s silence felt endlessly long like an eternity.

 

Elisia, who opened her eyes half-awake, looked around with drowsy eyes. Though it was a short time, she seemed to have slept really deeply.

 

Edwin gently stroked her cheek to wake her up.

 

“Edwin?”

 

Right then, Elisia, who had been blinking blankly, grabbed his hand.

 

Then she opened her eyes wide as if surprised.

 

“You’re trembling right now, aren’t you?”

 

“…”

 

Only then did Edwin realize that his hand was trembling terribly.

 

He had shown an unsightly appearance.

 

He hurriedly pulled his hand away.

 

“No, I’m not.”

 

“But you are though? Ugh… wait a moment. The blood smells too fishy.”

 

Elisia, who sat up abruptly, rinsed her blood-covered mouth with the water pitcher placed by her bedside.

 

She roughly wiped her exposed chest with the handkerchief, but there was nothing she could do about the blood-soaked dress.

 

Elisia hurriedly straightened her appearance and approached him.

 

“What’s wrong? Tell me only.”

 

“….”

 

“Ed.”

 

“You—”

 

His throat suddenly choked up.

 

Even knowing he must look strange right now, seeing her safe made his eyes burn hot with relief.

 

Edwin bit the inside of his cheek.

 

“You really looked like you were dead.”

 

“….”

 

“So I was suddenly terrified.”

 

Elisia was quite perceptive.

 

Even without knowing Edwin’s trauma, she seemed to have guessed what kind of shock her blood-vomiting appearance had caused him.

 

She must have looked pathetic.

 

Instead of laughing, she stroked Edwin’s eyes with an utterly serious expression.

 

Though rough and dry, as if wiping away tears—

 

“I won’t die.”

 

“….”

 

“I have too many precious things. So many beings I want to protect that now I can’t die on my own even if I wanted to.”

 

“Elisia is the citizens’ hope.”

 

From the tournament incident to the poorhouse investigation, she had gained fame not only in Lombard but also in the Imperial Capital through various events.

 

Young intellectuals supported Elisia, and the citizens naturally came to love her as well.

 

If today’s poisoning incident became known to the outside, the Imperial Capital’s public sentiment toward Rosalind would plummet to rock bottom.

 

But Elisia shook her head.

 

“At first, yes. But sorry to them, now there’s someone even more precious.”

 

Her eyes looking at Edwin sparkled like stars in the night sky.

 

“You.”

 

“….”

 

“My cowardly husband who turned pale just because I acted like I was dying for a moment.”

 

Edwin froze in surprise.

 

He honestly couldn’t believe that he was more important to her than the citizens.

 

But Edwin decided not to doubt it. Elisia was someone who might hurt with honesty but never lied.

 

Confirming that his trembling had subsided, Elisia finally burst into laughter.

 

“This is why I always lose to you! How can I beat someone who cries and laughs at my every word?”

 

“Elisia….”

 

“Don’t worry. If I were to die, you’d be the one suffering and hurting more than anyone, so now I absolutely cannot die.”

 

With each word spoken with conviction, the nightmare-like afterimage gradually faded away.

 

What remained in his vision was solely the face of the woman he loved.

 

“Are you a bit calmer now?”

 

“….”

 

Instead of answering, Edwin pulled Elisia’s waist tightly into his embrace.

 

She tried to push him away, saying blood would stain his expensive ceremonial robes, but the more she did so, the more Edwin refused to let her go.

 

“I want to hear your heartbeat. I need the most certain proof that Elisia is alive.”

 

Only then did Elisia stop her struggling.

 

Normally, she would have felt Edwin calm down and peppered him with questions about this and that, but now she simply stroked his hair quietly without saying a word.

 

‘I can hear the sound of it pounding rapidly.’

 

Much faster and clearer than usual.

 

He felt as if the emotions Elisia was experiencing right now were being conveyed to him completely through that rhythm.

 

Edwin closed his eyes while listening intently to the sound of her heartbeat.

 

Even after his panic had subsided, the two remained lying in the same position for quite a while.

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