I Became the Wife of the Hero Who Killed Me - Chapter 139

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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 139

 

* * *

 

We lay side by side on the bed, sharing various stories.

 

Edwin told me in detail about everything happening outside, while I chattered about the trivial daily life I spent inside.

 

Time, which seemed to have stopped when he wasn’t here, now passed by like the wind.

 

Edwin slowly stroked my cheek with his thumb.

 

“There isn’t much time left. I won’t keep Elisia in this terrible place for long.”

 

He was running around everywhere for my sake.

 

Parliament and courts, religious and military authority, and even the bureaucratic organization—he was mobilizing every channel his power could reach to pressure the Emperor.

 

Even so, the Emperor stubbornly held out until the end.

 

He was determined to eliminate me, the greatest threat to imperial authority, by any means necessary.

 

Hearing the story, I could tell the situation was more serious than I had thought.

 

Edwin suddenly muttered.

 

“Right now, killing the Emperor wouldn’t be good, would it?”

 

I looked up at Edwin.

 

Dark shadows fell around his eyes. I was the one suffering in prison, yet his face looked more haggard.

 

“Tormenting him is fine, but only to the extent that there won’t be consequences.”

 

Only after reading the leaflets did I first learn how irresponsibly the Emperor was destroying the country.

 

Moreover, realizing that the Emperor truly intended to brand me as a heretic and kill me, my anger and murderous intent toward him surged even more.

 

But it would be troublesome if a war broke out.

 

Whether he understood my meaning or not, Edwin whispered.

 

“I’d like to do that right now if I could, but it’s not the right timing yet.”

 

“Right, the timing…”

 

I was nodding my head absentmindedly when I suddenly stopped.

 

“Timing? Wait, what timing? What is it? You’re hiding something from me, aren’t you?!”

 

“…Later.”

 

“Huh? I told you everything that happened in prison without leaving out a single detail, and you’re doing this to me?!”

 

“I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

 

When I pressed him, Edwin somehow pouted his lips sulkily.

 

Even while I was anxious that he might cause trouble, that expression looked so cute it was truly a big problem.

 

‘They say the one who loves more loses.’

 

I let out a deep sigh and kissed his cheek.

 

But Edwin’s reaction was different from what I expected.

 

Usually, he would breathe heavily and persistently follow up, but now he let out a pained moan and covered his eyes.

 

He had to leave before sunrise, and dawn was already breaking outside the iron bars.

 

“…”

 

The time for parting was approaching.

 

We silently gazed intently at each other.

 

Until Gareth and Stefan announced from outside that it was time to leave.

 

“Edwin, I’m fine, so go now.”

 

“It will be difficult, but please wait just a little longer. This time… I won’t be late.”

 

Edwin spoke in a suppressed voice.

 

But I shook my head. He was never late.

 

When I first encountered Sister Judith and Brother Matthew, in the cave at Bellamare, and in every other moment of crisis, he had saved me.

 

After carefully kissing me, he left the prison.

 

“Guard the Duchess with your lives.”

 

“Yes, sir!”

 

Edwin stopped in front of the stairs leading down.

 

He looked at me silently. It seemed to weigh on his mind to leave me in such a place.

 

I deliberately smiled and waved my hand.

 

Even so, Edwin hesitated several times before slowly turning around only after being urged to hurry.

 

The meaning of the “timing” he never told me about—I would learn it just a few days later.

 

* * *

 

The audience hall was filled with nobles offering counsel.

 

Those who had surely bowed their heads before the Emperor’s authority until recently were now switching sides and continuously submitting petitions and advice to him.

 

Nowhere in this vast audience hall could his supporters be seen.

 

Vittorio IV gritted his teeth in anger.

 

“Your Majesty, the voices of the citizens demanding the release of the former Duchess of Lombard are growing louder by the day!”

 

“The Holy Capital has sent strong protests through their ambassador. Letters stating that the Imperial Family cannot interfere in heresy trials are arriving daily.”

 

He felt regret.

 

It had been a mistake to summon that woman to the Imperial Capital.

 

Elisia, who had been famous as a fool of the ages, went to the Northern Region and overnight changed her face, strangling his neck like a cunning snake.

 

Despite pretending otherwise, she was clearly aiming for the throne in the end.

 

‘This is the last chance. I must kill that woman.’

 

He had no awareness that he had stirred up the hornet’s nest first.

 

He was dominated by the conviction that sending Elisia back to the Northern Region under public pressure would mean losing the last chance to eliminate her.

 

‘Nigel is ultimately useless too…’

 

He had ordered him to devise a good way to deal with that woman, but Nigel had been holed up in his quarters, using the excuse of being unwell.

 

But Vittorio instinctively knew.

 

That Nigel was intentionally distancing himself from him to withdraw from all the scandals and controversies surrounding the Imperial Family.

 

And that he was taking advantage of his predicament to solidify his own power even more firmly.

 

‘Once this matter is finished, Nigel is next.’

 

He had no need for a son who showed his claws to his father.

 

Joseph would be sufficient as heir. He was still young and had weak support within the court, making it difficult for him to harbor other intentions like Nigel.

 

The Emperor continued speaking while deciding on his next purge target in his mind.

 

“Elisia is indeed a heretic.”

 

“But Your Majesty!”

 

The subjects tried to object, but the Emperor paid no heed.

 

“I have received a divine revelation. A sacred revelation as the Son of the Sun to judge the heretic who disturbs the Empire’s peace.”

 

“A revelation? What do you suddenly mean…”

 

“The sun god Leto informed me through a dream.”

 

The Emperor wasn’t being unreasonable without any evidence.

 

At his gesture, the Archbishop of the Imperial Capital’s Bellenua Parish stepped forward.

 

Receiving people’s attention, he announced.

 

“God’s messengers who will prove that the former Duchess of Lombard is a heretic will arrive soon.”

 

Those were the chosen ones from the Holy Capital.

 

He had suspected betrayal when their news was cut off for a while, but recently he received word from them that they had found solid evidence to support Elisia’s heresy charges and were heading to the Imperial Capital.

 

The message also said that communication was delayed due to hurried travel, but everything was going smoothly, so there was no need to worry.

 

‘I just need to hold out until they arrive.’

 

If those who possessed sanctity, the mark of the chosen ones, declared Elisia a heretic?

 

Then he could brand the Holy Ministers and even Duke Lombard, who was acting presumptuously, as accomplices of heretics and completely reverse public opinion.

 

He would clearly show everyone who was truly using the law for political purposes.

 

“God’s messengers? Who are they?”

 

“That is…”

 

When the Archbishop hesitated, the Emperor waved his hand.

 

It had been a card hidden for a long time, but now it was time to play it.

 

“I have made contact with the Chosen Ones of the Holy See of Arzenbach to resolve the long-standing problem of demon appearances in the Northern Region, and in the process, I received their oath of loyalty.”

 

“Is that true?!”

 

“Aren’t the Chosen Ones very special individuals who can use divine power?”

 

“Yes, they have assured me. They have found very certain and clear evidence to prove that Elisia La Lombard is a heretic. They are coming to the Imperial Capital now.”

 

The audience chamber stirred.

 

People were surprised by this completely unheard-of story and only exchanged glances with each other.

 

At this, the Emperor raised his voice even more triumphantly.

 

“It is the Holy Ministers who are using God’s will for political purposes! They are politically colluding with Lombard to cover up the sins of heretics! Does this even make sense?!”

 

“….”

 

“I will establish the true will of God in this land through the voices of the Chosen Ones.”

 

No one could easily refute his words filled with conviction.

 

Just as the Emperor was about to press his advantage and become more aggressive, an attendant hurriedly entered the audience chamber.

 

“Your Majesty, the Chosen Ones have arrived at the Imperial Capital.”

 

“Ooh!”

 

The Emperor’s face immediately brightened.

 

He decided to seize this momentum and prove to the world that Elisia was truly a heretic.

 

By revealing the suspicious dark magic that was said to swirl around her.

 

“Summon the Messengers of God to Bellenua Square.”

 

This decision was also impulsive.

 

If Nigel had been by his side, he would have restrained him, telling him to act more cautiously, but now no one remained beside the Emperor.

 

Even if someone had been there, it was questionable whether he, blinded by the prospect of eliminating his political enemies, would have listened to advice.

 

“And drag Elisia La Lombard to the square as well! I will personally conduct the heresy trial!!”

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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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