I Became the Wife of the Hero Who Killed Me - Chapter 160

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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 160
I looked up at Edwin.
When he’d handed over the armor, he’d worn a mischievous smile, but now his expression was earnest, all traces of jest erased.
“I need no one but Elisia.”
“But you’ve ridden so far—you must be exhausted.”
“I’m accustomed to it.”
Edwin helped me settle onto the sofa.
Then, with practiced efficiency, he began removing the armor piece by piece and arranging each on the display stand.
The thin shirt beneath clung to him, outlining the contours of his shoulders and the lean muscle of his frame.
I was staring blankly at his back when he reached into the inner pocket of a cloak he’d hung nearby and produced something, holding it out to me.
“What is this?”
I opened the plain box and found, unexpectedly, a single flower inside.
Delicate translucent petals layered upon one another, and when held to the light, they scattered it with a soft luminescence, beautiful as a gem.
“It’s called a Silver Snow Flower. Do you like it?”
……
I widened my eyes in surprise.
I’d read of it in Northern legends and in books many times, but this was the first time I’d ever seen one in person.
It was an exceptionally rare flower, found only occasionally in the deepest canyons.
Seeing my astonishment, Edwin continued.
“I found it by chance on the way back to the castle. I wanted so badly to show it to you that I brought it along……”
His earlobes were even redder than before as he spoke.
Looking down at the small, exquisite flower, I felt my lips curve upward unbidden.
“Thank you.”
I carefully brushed the butterfly-soft petals with the tip of my finger.
Though this was my first love, I was perceptive enough that I couldn’t help but sense the truth.
After our wedding night went awry, Edwin, overwhelmed by guilt, had fled to the Northern Wall like a man running from himself.
So this flower was his way of making peace.
“It’s so beautiful. I truly love it.”
“Next time I’ll bring something better……”
“It’s the thought behind it that matters, Edwin. That you remembered me even while you were tired and struggling. The truth is, I’ve never cared for luxuries. Of course, they’re nice to receive, but it’s not as though I can wear or display such things.”
Gold coins were always welcome in greater quantities.
But gems, dresses, and other such things—they only needed to be abundant enough to uphold the house’s prestige.
Born a commoner, I found myself uncomfortable wearing or carrying items expensive enough to raise eyebrows.
I couldn’t help it. It was simply instinct.
But the heart cannot be bought with money, so the single flower Edwin gave me held more value and meaning to me than anything else could.
“Were you in any pain while you were gone?”
“Not at all.”
“No wounds?”
“Mostly healed. Whenever I try to skip treatment, Gilbert follows me around pestering me about it. And he’s not even afraid of the Duchess—can you imagine?”
As I spoke, I caught a glimpse of Edwin’s wrist.
Perhaps sensing my gaze, he rolled up his sleeve to show me, and to my surprise, his recovery was already faster than mine.
Scars remained, but their color had noticeably faded.
Seeing my astonishment, Edwin laughed.
“I’m a knight who has manifested Sword Aura, so I’m skilled at handling Mana. Mana is the life force of nature, so my healing speed is faster than most.”
“That’s unfair……”
“Well, once you’re well, we’ll be all set.”
Unable to believe it, I tried to look at his wrist more closely, but Edwin slowly leaned back.
He claimed he’d been riding hard since the Northern Wall without rest and was covered in dust.
I was about to say I was fine with it since I’d just come from the castle wall myself, when he suddenly began to undress, moving away.
My eyes widened.
Even the simple act of removing his shirt revealed the powerful presence of his musculature.
His body, honed by countless real battles, was lean and taut without a trace of excess, and the deep grooves of muscle along his spine were overwhelming in their definition.
He looked like a living, breathing predator.
……
Oh—our eyes had met.
Realizing I’d been staring far too intently at him, I quickly turned my head away.
“Elisia?”
“Oh, it’s nothing! Let’s get you washed. I’ll summon the servants.”
I hurried out of the bedroom and called out to the servants to prepare bathwater.
I’d meant to ask him about the Northern Wall’s condition, but my face burned so hot with embarrassment that my mind had gone completely blank.
If my memory serves, the Northern Wall had no particular problems during this period in the past—
‘Ah, forget it!’
Edwin’s solid, commanding physique kept drifting through my thoughts like an afterimage.
I fled across the corridor, ignoring the bewildered stares of the people around me.
* * *
The sweltering summer passed quickly, and the season soon slipped into early autumn.
True to the season of abundance, the public sentiment was at ease and the atmosphere in the streets was pleasant.
Mariana sat by the window and picked up a pen for the first time in a while.
[My dear niece Elisia.
I wonder if you are well and healthy in that distant Northern Region.]
Last summer, Mariana had done everything in her power to suppress Nigel’s suspicions.
To prove that as Dowager Empress she harbored no desire for power, she left the Imperial Palace with Joseph and settled in Luden Castle on the outskirts of the Empire.
Originally used as a Secondary Palace, Luden Castle was very small and modest.
The Imperial Family therefore avoided accepting the castle as a gift, but Mariana found herself content with it.
Because she had bowed her head first, Nigel—contrary to his concerns—showed neither her nor Joseph any particular gesture of suspicion.
He even asked for her opinion as Dowager Empress, at least formally, when selecting the new Empress.
[Joseph and I are at peace with all things.
Compared to our life in the Imperial Palace, our circumstances are modest, but I cannot imagine a more contented heart—we need neither contend with anyone’s will nor endure insults.]
She looked down at Joseph frolicking in the garden.
It was not entirely true that no factions visited Luden Castle; minor political figures completely shut out from Central Politics were among those who came.
But Mariana turned them away without so much as looking at their faces.
Those who visited with any regularity were Isabella and the Grand Duchess Heidelberg, who had become close through Elisia.
With the two of them calling often to keep her company, life in the Secondary Palace was far from lonely.
“Mother!”
Just then, Joseph came running into her bedroom, an autumn leaf bright as blood clutched in his hand, scrambling over the low terrace.
It was undignified behavior for a Prince, but Mariana no longer disciplined or scolded him as strictly as she once had.
Having weathered that ordeal, she had come to know Joseph’s true heart.
When she removed the heavy mask of “Prince,” there remained inside only a small child starving for his mother’s love.
“Mother, what are you doing?”
“Writing a letter to Lombard.”
“To Elder Sister Elisia?”
Joseph’s eyes brightened.
No matter how young a child, he could not forget his benefactor.
Battered and bruised from grueling imprisonment, on a body nearly dead, Joseph had been nursed back to life by Elisia with such care—and he followed her with genuine devotion.
“Then please send this autumn leaf with your letter. It is a gift from Joseph!”
“But wasn’t that the leaf you picked out for me?”
“Well, I—ah! Actually, this is the second-most beautiful leaf. I shall find the very most beautiful one for you, Mother.”
At his flustered excuse, his eyes darting about, Mariana burst into laughter.
At the sight of his mother’s bright smile—the first he had ever seen—Joseph laughed along, not quite understanding why.
Everything was happiness.
[I have found my own peace in this place.
Elisia, though you labor far away in distant Lombard, please take care of yourself and stay well.
– Your aunt Mariana, who always worries for you.]
She carefully folded the letter and enclosed it with the crimson autumn leaf.
* * *
At the same moment, quiet footsteps broke the silence of the Solar Palace.
One of the Emperor’s close confidants entered the office and prostrated himself.
Sensing the presence, Nigel asked without lifting his gaze from the documents.
“Is it done?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Last night we discreetly disposed of the newspaper that published an editorial opposing your policies. Those involved will never pick up a pen again.”
They no longer existed in this world, after all.
The noon sun poured through the window behind Nigel, casting his expression into shadow where no one could read it.
“Politics belongs only to educated elites. When foolish commoners try to raise their voices, the ship merely sails toward the mountains.”
Nigel chuckled softly, then asked again.
“What of the movements at Luden Castle?”

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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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