I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 120

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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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There was something strange about Ekian’s behavior. Judith surely knew this as well.

It was just that, given her personality, she didn’t ask since Ekian hadn’t spoken about it.

Perhaps the reason Judith didn’t accept him right away wasn’t because he had hidden his identity in the past, but because of the sense of unease she felt in the present.

Huyd stood there blankly, staring out at the empty entrance for quite a long time.

After publicly declaring the Emperor’s death.

The Marquis’ manor began to be openly called the ‘Marquis’ Estate.’

Because Ekian naturally acted as if he had become the owner of this manor.

And Ekian, who had returned to that Marquis’ Estate, listened to Suha’s report with a dark expression.

“Elizabeth Dail has boarded a cargo wagon heading to Aarten territory.”

“…Companions.”

“None. Ron Dale and Petro Dail remained at home.”

In fact, objectively speaking, Elizabeth was close to being just a country bumpkin who had nothing.

But because he felt a strange eeriness, Ekian had kept surveillance on that woman until the end.

The fact that such a woman was Judith’s biological mother presented him with a great dilemma.

He wanted to eliminate her immediately, but it seemed like he shouldn’t.

While Judith was in the capital, there was exactly one time she had been sharply cold to him.

He learned later that she had been depressed because Isabella and the Soden Marchioness searching for their son contrasted with her own biological mother.

Since they had their first argument then, the fact that she had reacted sensitively was something she herself acknowledged in the carriage returning to the Shrine of the Last Shaman.

‘Honestly, I was also a bit sensitive about that part…’

This meant that her biological mother was still a variable that Judith hadn’t overcome.

‘But she won’t even live quietly.’

Why on earth was that woman coming to Aarten?

‘The fact that Judith is in Aarten is something even the Emperor didn’t notice. But there’s no way a mere commoner like Elizabeth would have caught on.’

She probably wasn’t coming to harm Judith. If that were her purpose, a middle-aged woman wouldn’t have moved alone.

‘Then… could she have figured out my identity?’

That level of deduction seemed possible. His appearance resembling the Emperor, the suddenly appeared Marquis, his actions trying to protect Judith.

‘Is she coming to meet me, then.’

In any case, for Ekian, this wasn’t very good news.

Elizabeth, whom he had actually met, seemed like she would become a bigger problem than expected.

‘That woman, in the end, until the very end…’

Meanwhile, all the tasks Ekian had ordered were proceeding well.

Pretending to have just now found the bodies of the Emperor and the Marquis, they prepared the Marquis’ funeral and sent the Emperor’s body to the capital.

Soon a state funeral would be held and Aarten would become a Marquis’ domain.

The Marquis of Aarten had managed his territory terribly while following the Emperor around, and this became quite an advantageous situation for Ekian.

Despite only quickly handling urgent matters, there were hardly any complaints from the territory’s people.

Especially thanks to Ekian ordering his subordinates and knights to ‘treat the territory’s people courteously,’ the people of Aarten’s anxiety rapidly subsided within half a day of his arrival.

Except for the complaint that came in about ‘a masked suspicious person wandering around and ruining the city’s appearance, please resolve it.’

“And… about the barbarians. The investigation teams have returned. This is the report they submitted.”

Ekian had brought all of his subordinates to this place.

Those he had naturally come to command while working at the Grey Information Trading House, and those who had been waiting for him at the Meius Mansion despite the 5-year gap.

Both groups had the characteristic of being incomparably more capable than the knights’ order that the Aarten Marquis had commanded.

Although the recent barbarian attacks were something Alteon had orchestrated from behind, there were actually many barbarians around Aarten.

Ekian had also ordered an investigation into this.

In his judgment, the frequent barbarian attacks were lowering the quality of life for the territory’s people.

Alteon had also once pointed out that quickly resolving the barbarians would be a strategy for Ekian to quickly establish himself as the new master.

‘It would be troublesome if other barbarians attack to loot the empty castle in the meantime. Of course, if you repel such attacks well, it would be better for establishing yourself in Aarten…’

Ekian read through the report with cold eyes.

“The, the conclusion is…”

His subordinate said carefully.

“It seems the Marquis of Aarten deliberately didn’t subjugate the barbarians. Because the territory’s people would follow orders better if they were anxious.”

He could roughly understand the situation.

When evacuation situations occurred frequently, and the Marquis took his knights to drive off the barbarians, the territory’s people had no choice but to think ‘we really need our Marquis.’

This way, it was easy to raise taxes using barbarians as an excuse, and it was convenient to line his pockets under the pretext of military expenses.

The money collected this way was being used to support the Emperor.

Under these circumstances, while feeling the threat of death daily, there was no way they could think seriously about learning and acquiring knowledge.

So the territory’s people, even when they had anger, hadn’t learned how to think of solutions, and even when there were unreasonable things, they didn’t know how to protest logically.

Perhaps because of this, even when the Marquis’ death was announced and his funeral was being held, the territory’s people weren’t particularly sad.

Since the Marquis had no family, the funeral was even quieter.

“So upon investigation, they’re not particularly threatening in scale.”

“Yes. If we seriously engage, it seems we could easily subjugate them. However, since the barbarians are people who can’t distinguish heaven from earth, they seem to be preparing an attack upon hearing news of the Marquis’ death.”

The Marquis who came in place of the Marquis would be the one to make their graves, but not knowing this, they were thinking of walking into hell…

‘The Crown Prince was right. He said the remaining barbarians would be in chaos, trying to loot the empty castle.’

His thought of completely defeating them and declaring the territory’s safety remained unchanged.

But here, one variable had emerged.

It was Elizabeth’s appearance.

‘The brighter Judith’s life becomes, the more persistently that woman will cling to its shadow.’

For this reason, he even more didn’t want Judith to meet Elizabeth. Especially now when she was carrying a child…

‘I want to welcome her as Marchioness right away.’

Honestly speaking, forcibly placing Judith in the position of Marchioness wouldn’t be difficult.

Given Judith’s nature, if he pushed forward, she would accept it for the child’s sake.

She was originally someone who accepted everything well.

If he insisted on his stake regarding the child, saying he couldn’t just leave the child in her womb alone, Judith would be very disappointed in him but would still follow his words.

Of course, not wanting to do that to Judith was his first priority.

But there was a problem.

‘If I place her as Marchioness right away without preparation, I don’t know what Elizabeth might demand of Judith.’

She would certainly make Judith very uncomfortable in the name of family.

Though she was the biological mother who had abandoned her, still, for a Marchioness to turn away her biological mother at the door wouldn’t look good to the territory’s people either. In Ekian’s view, Elizabeth was a woman who could use that fact very well.

‘I can’t leave her alone any longer.’

Ekian thought with sharp eyes.

‘No matter if she’s Judith’s biological mother, I absolutely cannot just leave her be.’

That woman now had to pay for her sins.

Then he had to use this situation.

Ekian’s mind raced as he pondered how to deal with her in a way that would cause the least damage to Judith.

‘Then I’ll need to set a trap, so I should temporarily leave the territory for a while…’

As he had been reported earlier, there was also a reason he needed to leave the territory.

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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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