Marriage With A Suspiciously Demure Husband - Chapter 58

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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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Episode 58

Chapter 8. Darkness Comes Bearing Kindness

I returned to the hotel, gathered my thoughts, and caught a public carriage without delay.
Before heading to the dinner invitation, I made my way to the Slave Gladiator Arena.
It seemed like this might be my only window of time.
With dusk beginning to fall, if I’m being honest, the timing was cutting it close.
Anxiety wound through me, my pulse quickening. I trusted that Eggmen would handle himself well—his skills in the original were exceptional—but if anything went wrong, I’d need time to clean up the mess afterward.
The more hurried you are, the sharper your mind needs to be. This is when things tend to unravel.
“Sigh…”
I bit my lip hard and swept my hair back from my face.
Something sweet in my mouth would be perfect right now. Noah came to mind—he always seemed to know exactly what I needed—but I pushed the thought away just as quickly.
Maybe it was a blessing that I’d seen Noah yesterday, had that chance to say hello.
I turned over my conversation with Annie from lunch, letting it turn in my mind.
Let that farewell with you be our last.
With that thought, I closed my eyes briefly, trying to empty my head.

The Slave Gladiator Arena was far more chaotic than the last time I’d visited.
Which made it easier to slip through.
But I had to deploy Illusion Magic far more extensively, which demanded far greater concentration.
On top of that, I was dressed in a more elegant gown since I had to attend the dinner invitation immediately after.
I debated with myself a dozen times whether to push all the way through and meet Eggmen in person, or send someone with a message.
Seeing no reliable staff member, I decided to go the rest of the way myself.
“Hey, Sid. You heading out now?”
As I turned a corner in the corridor, I jumped at the familiar name drifting toward me, spinning around and ducking to the side.
Sid?
Kailas’s subordinate still hadn’t left the Capital? I’d assumed he’d gone straight down with Kailas.
Communication Tools worked reliably enough that I’d naturally expected him to head to Ferarium as well this time.
Did he still have business in the Capital? Maybe Sid moved between the Capital and elsewhere regularly.
“Yeah, just do a good head count today. We’re losing four by month-end, yeah?”
“Right, assuming no ranking shifts. First match at eleven—I’ll report then. Why?”
“Doesn’t matter. Oh, is it Eggmen, or Eggi? Has he been turning decent profits lately?”
Eggmen! I leaned in further, concentrating on their words.
“I thought so, but he’s been pretty lackluster these past few days. Maybe we should bring Ginger back. He used to do better when she was managing him.”
I held my breath.
Bring Ginger back? That was absolutely impossible!
“Ginger Perrian? No way. She’s tied up with something important right now.”
“What is she doing?”
“Something’s come up. The point is, her and Nizela—they hold our whole future in their hands.”
“What nonsense is that?”
“Anyway, just manage the kids well today. I’m going.”
“Got it.”
As their voices faded, I let the tension drain from my body.
That was close.
I hadn’t expected Sid’s words to be useful, but thankfully it seemed to end simply. I’d almost watched Ginger return to the Capital.
A glance down the corridor confirmed both Sid and his conversation partner had vanished.
I pressed a hand to my racing heart.
God, I’ve done my cardio for yesterday and today both.
My heart’s been pounding so hard I feel like I’ve exhaled it out of my mouth and pulled it back in.
I took advantage of the empty corridor to move quickly toward Eggmen’s waiting room.
I put the management staff member just emerging from Eggmen’s room to sleep with a touch, then caught the rapidly closing door and pushed it open.
Confirming that only Eggmen was inside, I smiled slightly.
“Eggmen, sorry to ambush you like this after so long, but could you help get him inside? If people see him lying around like that, they’ll get suspicious.”
“Who are you?”
Eggmen looked at me without immediately recognizing me, his eyes narrowing with caution.
Right—of course. He can’t see through my disguise yet. How could I forget?
I’d taken precautions to keep Eggmen from recognizing my face in case things went wrong, but in my relief at seeing him, I’d momentarily let it slip my mind.
I’d nearly given myself away, and that would have been unfortunate.
“Ah! ‘They say French bread is delicious—is that really true?’ Like that….”
The moment I spoke, Eggmen strode forward without hesitation, heaved the fallen staff member onto his shoulder like a sack of grain, and carried him inside.
“Thank you for your help. I ended up having to come myself.”
Eggmen set the staff member down carelessly in a corner of the waiting room, then straightened up and turned to me.
“How is Ginger doing?”
“Ginger is doing fine—no problems at all.”
“…Then that will suffice.”
I moved quickly to stand in front of Eggmen.
“There’s something I need to tell you. I’m going to get you out of here in four days. Once you escape through the exit I’ll describe, a carriage should be waiting—I’ll have them tie a red cord around the door handle so you can confirm it.”
Eggmen frowned slightly as he calculated the time.
“…That’s four days from now. Is it necessary to rush it?”
I nodded and relayed the plan I’d worked out with Annie that afternoon.
“Things changed suddenly today. You’ll escape first, then Ginger will follow once her work is finished.”
“Understood.”
“When you both meet on the road outside the Eastern Gate, don’t use the gate—just continue straight to Pyrront. I’ll have everything you need inside the carriage. Do you understand?”
“Which direction in Pyrront?”
“Once you cross into Pyrront’s territory, head to Gula Village, find a tavern, and lie low for a few days. The rest I’ll pass along to Ginger. To leave here, you’ll go through the dog hole and board the carriage there—the location of that opening is….”
“I know it.”
“You do?”
Eggmen looked at me as though bemused by the question.
“Do you think I don’t know the geography of this place?”
“Then this will be easier. Take this.”
I pressed a small, elongated red gemstone into Eggmen’s palm—a specially enchanted Mana Stone that Annie had procured for me beforehand. No larger than a little finger.
At first glance it looked like a ruby, but if you examined it closely, you could see a yellow core in the center.
“What is this?”
“You wear shackles normally, right? This will let you break them. I’ve made it small enough to keep in your mouth until you need it—bite down on it and press it firmly against the shackles, and they’ll snap. And this one….”
This time, a deep green Mana Stone. I’d originally planned to find him a Magical Tool he could use multiple times, but hiding something like that would be difficult, and I’d decided a small, single-use Mana Stone would be more practical.
“What does this do?”
“Just in case. It can hide your body for about ten minutes. If you can reach the dog hole in that time, all the better.”
“I understand the idea. As long as the shackles come off, the rest doesn’t matter.”
Eggmen’s confidence reassured me considerably.
“The time window is between 2:30 and 3:00. The carriage has to leave by 3:00.”
“Understood.”
I quickly finished relaying the information to Eggmen and prepared to leave.
“Will you be safe doing this?”
“Me?”
“If we’re in danger, aren’t you in more danger?”
Until now he’d only asked about Ginger’s safety, but now that we were bound to the same course, he seemed worried about me too.
Of course he would be—getting away from Kailas was dangerous.
“I’ll be fine. I’m good at taking care of myself. Just keep the time window.”
“…I wish you luck.”
“And I you.”
After exchanging mutual wishes for success, I left the Slave Gladiator Arena and headed straight for the address Pey had given me.
Fortunately, by moving quickly, I still had time to spare.
“Ugh, I can’t keep doing this forever.”
It felt like I was stretching a single day into forty-eight hours.
As I climbed into the carriage, the breath I’d been holding finally released.
“What comes next?”
Now only the matter of passing information to Ginger remained.
Since arriving in the Capital, I’d deliberately avoided contacting Ginger directly, but if she’d followed my instructions correctly, she’d be removing the remaining gold ingots and liquid funds from the safe and storing them separately.
She was probably also quietly burning any personal documents related to me.
I’d also told her to compile all the records in one place so the Guild could continue operating even if I disappeared—so that’s what she’d be doing.
Originally I’d planned to go to Ferarium myself at the end to wrap things up, but since the plan had changed, I’d had no choice but to leave it all to Ginger.
Thank goodness she was there; if she hadn’t been, I would have had to flee with everything abandoned.
With both money and Eggmen at stake, there was no chance Ginger would deviate from the plan—and that, at least, was a relief.
“Quite a while, then.”
Once my breathing steadied, the dark landscape beyond the window came into view.
House Martin sat along the road that branched toward the outskirts of the Capital.
Pey had told me she didn’t use lodgings despite the considerable distance to the Imperial Palace, commuting from the estate every day instead.
‘It’s nearly an hour’s carriage ride from here to the Palace.’
Quite the diligent one.
Well, I’ve gathered everything I need.
I leaned back against the seat for a brief rest, closing my eyes.

* * *

“Welcome, senior!”
The moment I stepped down from the carriage, Pey, who had been waiting, greeted me with an overly enthusiastic welcome.
Behind Pey, the servants bowed in unison.
“Thanks for having me. I hope I haven’t arrived too late?”
“Not at all! Please, come inside.”
Pey bounced on her feet as if delighted by the mere fact of my arrival.
As I followed Pey into the estate, the surroundings were quieter than I’d expected.
I’d arrived at just the right hour, neither too early nor too late, yet I seemed to be the only guest.
“Are the others not here yet?”
“Yes, that’s right! No one has arrived yet. They should be coming soon.”
“Ah, I see.”
“I’m so happy I could invite you, senior.”
Even the master and mistress of House Martin were present in the great hall.
“This is Hazel Love, my senior who has been teaching me. Senior, these are my father and mother. And the one behind is my brother.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Hazel Love.”
“Welcome. I hear my daughter has been receiving great kindness from you. I am Digess Martin.”
“Thank you so much. I’m Ello Martin.”
The husband and wife of House Martin, both wearing warm and gentle smiles, greeted me courteously.
“Not at all. I’m learning a great deal from her.”
I’ve never been comfortable with such occasions; I merely lifted the corners of my mouth and bowed slightly.
The man who appeared to be Pey’s brother and the heir of House Martin extended his hand to me.
“I’m Cain Martin. Thank you for taking such good care of my sister.”
Everyone except Pey had brown hair.
It struck me as strange that they seemed to get along so well, contrary to what she’d said about being treated coldly, though I found myself relieved by it.
I’d assumed things would be as strained as thin ice, given what I’d heard. Perhaps I’d misunderstood.
“Please have some tea while we wait for the other guests, senior.”
After exchanging greetings with her family, Pey led me to the reception room, offering tea while we awaited the other guests.
Free from the somewhat overwhelming presence of her family, I felt considerably more at ease.
“How is the tea?”
Pey asked with wide, eager eyes.
“It’s quite excellent.”
“I’m so glad!”
As I sipped the tea, a servant entered the reception room and delivered a message to Pey.
Distress clouded her face.
“Senior.”
“Yes?”
“What should we do? The Vice-Captain and the others all have work and can’t come.”

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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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