I Became the Wife of the Hero Who Killed Me - Chapter 172

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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 172
Following the Grand Duchess, even Isabella urged Mariana and Joseph to make their way to the Imperial Palace.
In the end, she woke the sleeping child, dressed him in formal robes, and boarded the carriage with a trembling heart.
The entire street was filled with the people’s cheers.
“Long live the great Empire Valdin!”
“Long live the new Emperor!”
……
For Mariana, the position of Empress had descended upon her like a sudden disaster.
She had originally been intended for marriage into a noble house in Marsen, and the Royal Family had invested little effort in her education.
Her fate was to live a comfortable and level life in the shadow of her elder brother for all her days.
But after her sister Margarita’s death, courtiers grew anxious that the alliance with Valdin would weaken, and the need for a political marriage arose once again.
At that time, she was the only princess of marriageable age remaining in the Royal Family.
Thus Mariana’s entire life was turned upside down.
Cast into an unfamiliar land overnight, she had to struggle to survive the ice-cold machinations of court politics and protect her young son.
Those memories flashed before her mind’s eye like a lantern show.
Mariana was no fool, and as the carriage crossed the Imperial Capital, she could guess what fate awaited them.
“Oh my……”
“Hush, it’s all right, dear.”
Mariana soothed the frightened Joseph.
The civil unrest that had begun in Pavia had already crossed the borders and spread throughout the Imperial Capital.
The vast tide of humanity that filled the city streets left upon both her and young Joseph’s minds an indelible mark that would never fade from their lives.
Isabella, sensing their emotions, smiled gently.
“Do not forget that feeling you have now. Love the people, yet fear them, and strive to see the world not from a high throne but from their own eye level.”
“Can I truly do such a thing?”
“You must. If you do, Joseph will become a lord beloved and respected by all his subjects. Like your sister.”
“Like Elder Sister……”
Joseph, hanging from the window, gazed at the crowd in the city streets as though making a vow to himself.
Though each drop of water was small and weak, when gathered together they could form a mighty wave that would capsize a ship—and this was the power of the people that Joseph would cherish and fear throughout his life.
* * *
What was that brilliant and warm light that had enveloped us?
When I opened my eyes, what greeted me was the eternal night continent—that desolate land I had wandered through for days and nights.
How had this happened?
My memory of holding Edwin’s hand and crossing beyond the iron bars was so vivid.
“Mmph……”
As I tried to raise myself, pain surged through me and I let out a groan.
My limbs, which had felt weightless, now felt as heavy as lead—battered and bruised as I was from rolling and fleeing.
Just then, an urgent voice came from beside me.
“Elisia, are you awake?!”
“Edwin……”
With effort, I turned my head and saw the familiar face of a man.
The great sword he had carried like part of himself lay carelessly on the ground, and his expression looked as though it might crumble at any moment.
I reflexively looked at his left arm. Thankfully, it was intact.
I then checked my own form.
My hair was not the deep night-dark color but a silver as radiant as the Milky Way—the color of Elisia.
I almost thought it had all been a dream.
But Edwin’s expression, the same as when we left the prison, proved that this was not merely a dream or delusion.
As I exhaled a breath of relief, I suddenly looked around.
As my eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, I saw a small, pitch-black shadow huddled at some distance away.
“Nero.”
Though I was certain he heard me, he didn’t answer and flinched away from my gaze.
Yet refusing to give up, I waited for a long while, and at last the limping cat rose and curled up tightly against my side.
Though he bore many wounds, it seemed his life was not in danger.
I asked carefully.
“Are you all right, little one?”
……
Upon hearing my call, Nero slowly raised his head and gazed at me.
One eye was the bright golden yellow I knew, but the other was the violet of a Demon.
This too was no dream.
‘I don’t know either.’
I had mountains of things I wanted to ask Edwin and Nero, but for now I chose simply to be grateful that we were all safe.
Honestly, I didn’t have the strength to press anyone for answers just then.
I promised myself I’d interrogate them properly later, and instead gazed upward at the aurora rippling across the night sky in a daze.
It shone with a beauty so otherworldly, so mystical, it felt unreal.
“Is it all over now?”
“Yes.”
“Edwin and I, and Nero too—we’re all safe, aren’t we?”
Edwin squeezed my hand tighter and nodded.
I exhaled a long, deep breath of relief.
I needed to return to the castle as soon as possible, yet work was piling up like mountains—
But my body ached so terribly, and exhaustion clouded my vision until everything blurred.
“Sleep for a while. When you wake, I’ll explain everything that’s happened.”
“But if I fall asleep in a place like this……”
“It’s all right. I’ll be here with you.”
Could I really fall asleep in the middle of this dreadful continent and survive?
I fought to stay awake as long as I could, but my exhausted body, indifferent to my will, desperately craved sleep.
I finally surrendered to it.
As consciousness slipped away, Edwin wore the expression of a wanderer who had at last reached sanctuary after a long journey.
* * *
To cut to the conclusion: the collapse of the Northern Wall was contained with minimal damage.
Edwin’s swift action prevented the Demons from descending upon the residential areas, and thanks to thorough disaster preparedness measures taken beforehand, reconstruction of the Northern Wall proceeded with remarkable speed.
“My lady, you’re awake?”
“Berry? What time is it……”
“It’s already afternoon. If you skip meals, it won’t help your recovery, so you should get up now.”
As for me, I’d collapsed on the Black Continent and opened my eyes to find myself already back at the castle.
They said I’d slept for nearly a full week straight.
Since I wouldn’t wake, Edwin had been on the verge of losing his mind to anxiety again—everyone said they’d held their breath in relief when I finally came to.
More fortunate still was that all my companions caught in the landslide were rescued safely.
Particularly, the rocks marked with five-fingered prints found scattered at the crash sites—however that was even possible—proved decisively helpful.
Following the handprints, the search party discovered Berry and the Knights scaling the steep cliff face.
Gareth, too, escaped certain death when he spotted a crevice between the cliff rocks just before falling rubble could crush him, throwing himself into that narrow gap.
The miners who descended on foot were never caught in the landslide at all.
Berry helped me up from the bed.
“Should I fetch the master?”
“No—Edwin coddles me far too much. If he’s around at times like this, I can’t get anything done.”
Truth was, a week’s sleep was far too much. I had mountains of work that needed immediate attention.
I had to calm the anxious people, allocate massive personnel and budget resources to manage the crisis, and ensure proper honors for the Knights who fell at the Northern Wall—not a single task could be neglected.
Yet the moment I reached for documents, Edwin’s eyes would widen sharply.
He didn’t say anything, but his expression spoke volumes.
‘I wish you’d stay in bed and rest. Or spend the whole day with me.’
Since returning from the Northern Wall, Edwin still spoke little, but his expressions had grown far more varied than before.
Everyone around us was startled by the change in him, who had always been so impassive.
Of course, Edwin’s facial muscles only relaxed in front of me, but still.
“Could you fetch some documents from the Castle Administration? Sneak them—if Edwin finds out, it’ll be exhausting.”
“The master already left for the Inland Gateway early this morning. An important person from the Imperial Capital has arrived.”
“Did Parliament send them? Or is it Mariana? There are plenty of possibilities…… Anyway, that works out well.”
While I was unconscious, extraordinary events unfolded in the Imperial Capital as well.
Enraged citizens rose up in a massive rebellion.
Nigel, attempting to flee, was caught by the people before he could escape the city—and met a death too gruesome to speak of aloud.
Parliament, moving swiftly to quell the chaos gripping the Imperial Capital, elevated Joseph, first in the line of succession, to the Imperial Throne and granted the Empress Mariana the authority of regency.
The problem was the regent’s advisor who would assist her—apparently, Mariana was hoping that Duke Lombard would take the role… or more precisely, me, standing behind him.
In any case, she was clearly hoping that this side would provide the regent’s advisor.
‘Absolutely not.’
I was already on the brink of death from overwork; I had no intention of taking on more responsibilities.
I detested the headaches of political intrigue, and I lacked the stamina to constantly shuttle between the North and the Imperial Capital.
From the start, I loved my home, Lombard—I was not suited to govern the Great Empire that wielded dominion over the continent.
That much was objective fact.
By that measure, Grand Duke Heidelberg was the suitable candidate for regent’s advisor.
“Since Edwin’s left, I’ll head to the Castle Administration myself while I’m at it. I don’t prefer having official duties brought to me—I go to meet them directly.”
“Yes, my lady!”
I said that, but given my feet were completely shredded and my ankles were unsteady, I docilely leaned against Berry to move.
But before I could reach the Castle Keep, I encountered someone entirely unexpected in the corridor.

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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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