I’m Going to Change My Husband With a Predatory Marriage - Chapter 63

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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 63

Countess Quinivel cast aside all pretense of dignity and rushed onto the Terrace.
And she too witnessed it.
‘A, a dragon!’
At that moment, the voices of attendants from the Prince’s Palace rang out loudly nearby.
“Arctanus has acknowledged the Crown Princess!”
“This is the first time anyone has received the dragon’s blessing!”
…and so forth.
To anyone’s ears, it was blatant propaganda.
Elementary agitation that neither others nor Lady Quinifel could be swayed by.
But the situation was different now.
A truly mythical spectacle was unfolding before their very eyes.
Countess Quinivel’s younger sister approached and asked.
“Sister, what do we do? And where did Evangeline go?”
“Evangeline went to Artanus Hall for a moment to assess the situation…!”
Countess Quinivel felt the world spin before her eyes.
She herself was this startled and shaken.
Those who had witnessed the spectacle unfolding in the heavens would undoubtedly be far more agitated.
Calming them was now the urgent priority.
Lady Quinifel rushed back into the Ballroom.
‘I must stabilize the people…!’
But the interior was already consumed by chaos.
Everyone’s complexions had turned ashen, and they chattered away, forgetting to lower their voices.
Murmur upon murmur, anxiety and turmoil bubbled up like foam.
“What on earth is happening?”
“Could it be true? Did Arctanus really acknowledge the Princess of Delphin, or rather, the Crown Princess?”
“Wait, where is Evangeline?”
“…Where did she go?”
“I heard she went to the Rest Area with Madame Fileren for a moment.”
“Oh, I heard she went to Artanus Hall.”
“What? We’re supposed to keep her here?”
….
A chill descended upon the Ballroom.
“Wait, then that rumor isn’t true either?”
“What rumor?”
“That… you know! The rumor that the Emperor would attend that banquet!”
“But we were told that was a lie…!”
“Has anyone heard about something like this happening?”
“Well, but wouldn’t the Empress and Evangeline’s accounts be more accurate?”
“But Evangeline herself went to Artanus Hall first! She left us here!”
A sense of disappointment and unease began to swirl among the crowd.
Even as this happened, cries of astonishment continued to ring out from those who witnessed the spectacle unfolding in the sky.
Their amazement, disappointment, and anxiety spread rapidly to those beside them.
A whisper from someone sounded far too loud.
“…Aren’t we just becoming a kite with a broken string left here? If the Prince’s faction decides to vent their anger, we’ll all take the fall alone.”
An awkward silence descended upon the Ballroom.
Not only those engaged in conversation, but even those who had been dancing and noticed the situation late began to sense the mood.
Finally, even the orchestra ceased their performance.
In that silence, someone uttered ‘those words’ for the first time.
“Should we go and see for ourselves?”
“C-can we do that?”
“Evangeline went herself, didn’t she?”
“We’ll just observe the atmosphere from outside the Hall. If it seems wrong, we can return immediately.”
“Besides, the Emperor might be present. Then we should at least show our faces….”
“I-I’m merely following Evangeline’s lead.”
Excuses poured out one after another, and eventually the people in the Ballroom began to slip away one by one.
Where they were heading was obvious.
However, the Countess Quinivel, as the host of tonight’s gathering, could not abandon her post.
Because of this, she bit her lip as she watched the Hall gradually empty.
At the one person who had forced her to hold this ball and ruined everything in this manner.
‘How did this happen, Evangeline!’

* * *

A phenomenon similar to a solar eclipse, yet one that could not be called an eclipse.
A dragon soaring into the sky obscured the sun, casting the dragon’s shadow upon the earth below.
This phenomenon would later be called the ‘Dragon’s Eclipse.’
‘I knew this phenomenon would occur at this very hour, on this very day.’
So when the Emperor commanded that the banquet at Artanus Hall be held a month later, I deliberately made my request.

“Your Majesty, might you grant me a few more days?”
“A few more days?”
“Yes, one month and six days. A month and one month and six days are nearly the same, are they not?”
“…?”

At my request to use more of the budget since we were spending it anyway, the Emperor agreed, though with a puzzled expression.
That one month and six days have now passed, and today is the day.
The exact nature of that phenomenon remained unexplained even years later.
However, I had heard several hypotheses about it.
‘The most compelling theory was that a slumbering dragon had awakened and taken flight into the sky—spreading its wings to dry its scales beneath the sun, or so the theory went.’
If that weren’t the case, there would be no reason for a dragon’s silhouette to obscure the sun in such a manner.
I don’t know if that dragon was Artanus.
But wasn’t it perfectly suited for my purposes?
And there was an important reason why I had decided to use the Dragon’s Eclipse.
‘Evangeline, who exploited everything to reinforce her authority, had never once used the Dragon’s Eclipse.’
She seemed unaware of this phenomenon.
‘Did such an event never occur in the original story?’
‘Regardless, thanks to this, my lie about being recognized by Artanus now has considerable credibility.’
The reactions around me made it certain.
Those within the hall gazed at me with expressions of near reverence.
Evangeline in the corridor was glaring at me as though she wanted to pierce me through with her eyes.
‘Ah, this is truly exhilarating, so refreshing. It’s the best.’
Outwitting Evangeline never gets old.
I looked down at her with a deliberate smile.
‘But this is only the beginning. Don’t be surprised already, Evangeline.’

* * *

Evangeline refused to acknowledge reality.
Yet denying the situation unfolding before her eyes had become impossible.
The dragon’s silhouette still blotted out the sun, suspended in the sky above.
And beneath it, as if to flaunt her victory, Hillia laughed while nestled in Arpard’s embrace.
Her attendants could not conceal their shock at this turn of events.
“H-How is this possible, Evangeline?”
“Could it really be… Artanus himself?”
“Then what becomes of us…?”
I was about to reprimand those around me when someone approached Hillia and Arpard on the terrace.
A woman drew near to them on the terrace.
Yet something about her—more precisely, her dress—seemed oddly familiar.
A voice beside me cried out in astonishment.
“Wait, that dress! It’s identical to Evangeline’s!”
The observation was correct.
The woman in the deep green gown approached Hillia’s side and bowed respectfully.
That gesture alone was enough for everyone to deduce her station.
“Could she be… Delphin Maid?”
“Wait. You mean this woman’s servant is wearing the same dress as Evangeline?”
“…That’s absurd!”
Gasps of shock echoed from all directions.
Every eye converged on a single point.
Evangeline’s expression trembled with profound humiliation.
‘How dare she dress a maid in the same gown as mine?’
Crack!
The sound of grinding teeth rang out.
Evangeline’s murderous gaze fixed upon the Countess of Fileren, who had frozen in shock.
The Countess shook her ashen face in denial.
With all eyes upon them, she could not speak openly.
For if she admitted that Hillia was meant to wear that dress, she would be confessing their conspiracy outright.
My mind began to race with feverish intensity.
‘What do I do? This is making me look ridiculous!’
Then it happened.
Arpard, holding Hillia as if to display her, spoke.
“Well then, shall we head inside? Today is our wedding reception, after all. The bride and groom shouldn’t be away from the festivities too long.”
“…Yes, perhaps we should?”
I wanted to tear apart Hillia’s face as she smiled shyly before Arpard—the hatred was so intense.
It was vile and abhorrent.
‘No matter what it takes, I will drag that woman’s reputation through the mud before Arpard!’
Otherwise, this fury would never subside.
‘Yes! That’s it!’
A brilliant idea suddenly struck me like lightning.
Evangeline’s expression transformed in an instant.
As if she had never worn that murderous look mere moments before.
She became the most pitiful and wretched woman in the world.
Her eyes brimmed with tears as she cried out loudly, her voice trembling with sobs.
“This is too cruel! How could you do this to me? Even if you hated me, this is too much!!”
Those around her froze in shock.
But they quickly understood—Evangeline’s outburst was directed at Hillia.
Evangeline wept profusely, her hand covering her mouth as she continued her tirade.
Beneath her concealing palm, her lips curved upward in a sharp, predatory smile.
“You deliberately stole the design of my dress and had your maid wear the same thing? Did you hate me that much?!”
As her words ended, Evangeline collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.
“I came here as your friend to congratulate you, and yet you subject me to such humiliation…!”
Sob!
Her sorrowful cries echoed through the Artanus Hall Garden, where the dragon’s eclipse had not yet concluded.

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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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