I Picked Up My Amnesic Ex-Husband - Chapter 24

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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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I picked up my ex-husband, who had lost his memory.
Chapter 24

Crackle, crackle—the sound of burning logs whispered at his ears. Firelight spilling from the hearth cast a soft glow across her pale face.
Closed eyelids, an upturned nose, lips the color of ripe cherries. Her silver hair, covering her small head, lay in considerable disarray.
He gazed at Wendy, oblivious to his entrance and deep in sleep, then approached with deliberate care.
Moving silently as a cat, the man drew near, his gaze sweeping gently across her features.
“Are you asleep?”
His soft voice invited a response, but Wendy only scrunched her brow slightly before relaxing it. Her long silver lashes trembled once, then stilled.
Kaien stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“……At peace, then.”
Though the hour was late and he’d heard she hadn’t come to dinner yet, he’d sought out his private office on the chance she might be there.
He’d suspected she might try to spirit the bird away in secret, but the birdcage sat undisturbed.
The pure white bird perched on its stand, eyes closed. After staring at it blankly for a moment, he turned and left. His pace quickened as he walked the corridor.
According to Olendo’s report, the woman rarely skipped meals. True to form, she ate all three of them faithfully, and her mealtimes were predictable enough that he could easily avoid her if he wished.
So when she suddenly broke her routine, how could he not take notice?
Rationalizing his own concern, Kaien had found her office—only to have all his wariness dissolve the moment he discovered her sleeping soundly.
Could she really be so unguarded? He studied her face in silence, then released a soft sigh.
This gnawing unease was surely the lingering effect of their conversation this afternoon.
Her voice had been impossibly light when she spoke of her father, yet her eyes betrayed something else entirely.
‘Still, I’m alright now. After all, I’m here, aren’t I?’
The pause that had preceded her words about a difficult life, and then that response—
He remembered the expression she’d worn then. That strange, rough sensation that had clawed at his insides. He still couldn’t make sense of why he’d felt it.
‘So, I don’t have a gift to speak of……. But this time, I’ll make sure your birthday is everything you deserve!’
Her bright voice echoed in his ears, seeming to catch at his ankles and pull. His large hand hesitated in the air for a moment, then gently pushed the chair on which she’d been sitting.
Then, Kaien carefully lifted her slight frame. One hand settled across her shoulder, the other supporting firmly beneath her knees.
He left the office and made his way through the dark corridor at a slower pace than usual.
The night corridor was quiet. Quiet enough to hear the soft breathing of the woman against him, even the faint beating of her heart.
Her body was lighter than he’d expected. Still, she seemed to have gained weight since he’d first seen her. But perhaps women were simply this light by nature. He had no experience to compare it to.
Each time Wendy’s body swayed slightly, a fresh herbal scent with a hint of bitterness tickled his nostrils. The sensation of his mind clearing felt oddly familiar.
What was this?
“Oh my, Your Grace!”
“Quiet.”
Ignoring Fiona’s startled gaze, Kaien entered the Grand Duchess’s chambers and laid Wendy upon the bed.
“Well, I…….”
“Leave for a moment.”
Fiona hesitated briefly before the polite dismissal, then left the room. Now they were alone. The lamplight on the table cast shadows across both their faces.
Kaien reached out and carefully brushed away a strand of hair clinging to her crimson cheek. He stared at her defenseless sleeping face for a long time before speaking in a low voice.
“Quite convincing, always.”
At least, in appearance.
Yesterday, when he’d discovered the mysterious white bird, he’d been certain it was connected to this woman.
The nature of the mana the bird radiated resembled the faint traces of mana he’d detected in her room before.
And this afternoon, when she’d said she’d never learned anything about magic, her expression had seemed truthful at first glance. Without that undeniable evidence of mana, he might have believed her entirely.
A thin light danced in his golden eyes. The flickering lamp stretched his shadow grotesquely across Wendy’s sleeping face.
“……Yes, for now, this will suffice.”
His voice, purified of sentiment, fell softly upon her ears and faded.
After all, revealing the truth about the bird immediately wouldn’t let him punish her or dissolve the marriage. She hadn’t used it to harm him, either.
So he would wait, as always. And conveniently, an opportunity was approaching.
Numerous guests would visit the Grand Duke’s Castle soon, all under the pretext of celebrating his twenty-fourth birthday.
Kaien turned from Fiona’s curious gaze and made his way to his own chambers, his mind working rapidly.
Yes, perhaps it would be better to keep the woman close.
People’s tongues loosen when their guard drops. The more comfortable she felt around him, the greater his chances of extracting information.
Even if Wendy Lemior Dermis truly despised her father, the fact remained: she was behaving suspiciously. He couldn’t afford to be deceived by an innocent-seeming façade and bungle everything.
……Even if that façade resembled someone he missed.
Yet for all his resolve, the moment Kaien entered his chamber, he froze in place.
“This is…….”
A bitter, refreshing fragrance filled the room, greeting him as he entered.
It was the same delicate scent that had drifted from the woman’s nape—how had he not noticed it until now, when it seemed to permeate every corner of the space?
Coincidence? No. Impossible.
Kaien let out a low, hollow laugh. The tangled thoughts that had barely begun to settle churned his mind into confusion once more.
Enough to force a word from his throat, unbidden.
“What exactly is she?”
That woman.

* * *

Four days remained until Kaien’s birthday.
Carriages bearing the guests invited to the celebration were arriving one by one at the Grand Duke’s Castle, settling neatly into place. Normally, the butler Olendo or the head maid would greet them—but exceptions existed.
“Wendy!”
As it happened, this was one of them.
The door of an elegantly crafted white carriage swung open, and a fair-haired boy stepped out. When he called my name in greeting, I smiled and answered in kind.
“It has been some time, Your Highness.”
“You can call me Alec.”
“Then I shall call you Prince Alec.”
I met Alec’s gaze steadily, watching his eyebrows twitch slightly in displeasure. Finally, he sighed and relented.
“Fine. We maintain propriety in public, then?”
“Yes.”
My own family was already desperate for information about the royal household—if they learned I had grown close to the Crown Prince, they would become insufferable. Better to be cautious.
Kaien, too, would grow suspicious of me. There was no harm in taking precautions.
As we exchanged pleasantries, someone descended from the carriage behind Alec. A boy with white hair touched by a faint purple hue, tied back neatly, stepped out and met my eyes, blinking slowly.
The fair-haired boy appeared to be Alec’s age, with skin so pale it seemed he had never seen sunlight. He wore flowing robes and carried a book under his arm.
His appearance alone gave much away, but I feigned innocence and asked.
“Pardon me, but who might this be?”
“Serhi Blaise. He’s my friend.”
Of course. The Blaise viscount!
In the original story, he was Alec’s closest companion and right hand—a prodigy who had mastered numerous disciplines by age ten and could intellectually best the Emperor’s own advisors by thirteen. Brilliant, capable, a strategist of the first order.
I had known they would become friends, but I did my utmost to appear oblivious, offering a bright smile.
So this boy would grow into someone sharp, aloof, and utterly devoted to Alec, willing to cross any line in service to his friend?
“How do you do, sir?”
……
Rather than answer, he regarded me with an intense, persistent stare. Confused, I tilted my head slightly.
Why was he looking at me like that? Did I have something on my face?
“Um… sir?”
“Your name is Wendy, correct?”
“Yes, it is.”
Just as I felt a flutter of unease, Serhi stepped forward ahead of Alec and seized both my hands firmly in his own.
Then, his voice steady and serious despite the sudden nature of it all, he spoke.
“Will you marry me?”
Pardon?

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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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