Marriage With A Suspiciously Demure Husband - Chapter 81

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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 81

What on earth was I doing here? Something felt fundamentally wrong about this. Really, truly wrong.
Even if a zoo monkey were to perform ballet on this stage, it couldn’t possibly draw such concentrated attention.
My stomach churned so violently I wouldn’t have been surprised to vomit on the spot.
The intensity of their stares—burning with curiosity and astonishment—made it impossible to see their faces clearly.
I was developing stage fright for the first time in my life.
The moment Kailas stepped forward, the collective gaze scattered like grains of sand.
Though it quickly fixed itself back on us.
I couldn’t believe how dramatically the atmosphere shifted with just two people entering.
Before the doors closed, I could’ve sworn the room had been filled with cheerful, lively chatter.
“Are you alright?”
He traced a gentle hand down my waist.
I managed to curve my trembling lips upward.
“Not at all, actually.”
“We just need to show your face and then we can leave.”
“…I don’t even like these things, so why on earth are you—”
Even in the original story, they said seeing Kailas at a banquet was as rare as plucking stars from the sky!
And even that was only at the duchy—at the Imperial Palace, he was even harder to find.
Because he saw no need to curry favor with the Emperor.
He despised every woman who approached him, married or not.
And he resented men who casually tried to turn him into their ally.
Beyond that, he kidnapped Lily in the original plot, so he wouldn’t have appeared much anyway.
So why now, of all times—
He stayed at the very center, as though wanting to be seen by everyone.
As if no one could look away from us even if they tried.
It was utterly maddening.
Unable to relax, I took a deep breath, and he immediately called over a passing attendant.
He obtained two glasses of refreshing Carbonated Liquor and pressed one into my hand.
“…Thank you.”
“Think nothing of it.”
Normally I would have refused, but I thought a drink might ease the tension, so I accepted it reluctantly.
The moment the tart, sweet Carbonated Liquor touched my lips, I felt noticeably better.
“Did His Imperial Majesty ask you first? Ask for your help? You didn’t bring this up yourself…did you?”
I’d heard the rough outline this morning during the audience, but my mind had been so scattered that I needed clarification.
Besides, it seemed they’d already had several conversations—I’d just been parroting affirmations like a bird, nodding along vaguely, without time to process anything properly.
After that, all my time had been consumed with banquet preparations.
“I’ve been in contact with him continuously. I’ve simply been too occupied to pay attention.”
“But you’re still busy now. Why did you accept?”
At that, Kailas looked down at me intently.
He could have just answered—why did he keep staring like that?
“I told you. I’m trying to change things.”
Was that really the reason? His eyes held something else, some hidden agenda—
There was more than one thing making me suspicious.
He was still pretending to know nothing about the Divorce Prohibition Order.
His excuse was simple.
He claimed he couldn’t possibly use the Emperor’s absolute decree against him, no matter who he was.
And logically, he was right! Even if he had the power to threaten the Emperor, it would still be impossible!
But something about it felt off.
I’d given up asking because I knew I’d just get the same answer.
“…The others seem extremely curious. They keep staring.”
But they weren’t approaching us to speak.
They just stole glances and whispered to each other in voices too low to hear.
Had Kailas felt this way when he was alone?
The original story did describe how unmarried women would constantly seek him out at every appearance—
“They’re looking because you’re beautiful.”
……
I should have seen that coming.
I brought the Carbonated Liquor back to my lips.
Because he had his arm around my waist, I was half-nestled against him, and even without making eye contact, I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious.
I used the glass of carbonated liquor as a shield and glanced up at him.
Kailas was commanding the atmosphere with practiced ease.
He looked like someone entirely unbothered by every eye in the room turning toward him.
Perhaps it was this studied indifference—this almost weary detachment—that made his presence shine all the brighter.
That attitude, as if he’d been born proclaiming himself alone above all others, was it a family trait passed down through generations?
Was the Previous Baron of Edith the same way? If so, perhaps I could understand it better.
Now that I thought about it, I’d never once heard him speak of his parents.
Back when I still believed them to be the Previous Baron and Baroness of Edith, I’d asked him about them as our marriage approached.

“They’re dead. Don’t concern yourself with it.”

Yes, I remembered now.
The way he’d cut the line so sharply had startled me. For just a moment, in those soft, warm eyes, I’d glimpsed something like contempt.
I never asked again after that. And besides, I had nothing to tell him either.
Trying not to dwell on his gaze only made my mind spiral through every other thought that followed.
I needed to stop thinking about this man.
But there was another trial awaiting me.
As I turned my head away, my eyes met Dylan’s—and he was staring at me with such intensity I could feel it boring through me.
Hic!
A hiccup escaped me before I could help it.
Lux and Josh were with him as well.
Wait—didn’t I hear they all had external commitments this week?
Surely the Crown Prince and Lily weren’t coming too?
I’d explicitly postponed the explanation because they said their schedules didn’t align today, and now if I run into them here, I—!
The expressions on the three of them were nothing short of spectacular.
Lux’s face screamed absolute disbelief, while Josh looked positively stunned.
Dylan’s expression seemed to ask why I’d shown up here without a word after he’d specifically contacted me.
The way all three of them were staring at me felt like a demand for explanation.
God, this is insane. Really.
Though I’d do the same in their position.
Just weeks ago I’d told them I was contentedly running a small guild out in the far countryside with my husband, and now here I was, suddenly appearing as the Duchess Hadid.
There was no excuse for it.
I didn’t have time to explain—what was I supposed to do?
Still, I’d made an effort. I’d even filed a separate audience request once the Crown Prince left the palace!
A large hand came to rest on my back.
Even as it swept down to settle my hiccup, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the three of them.
I tried my hardest to send them a telepathic message—that I’d explain everything later, that I wasn’t entirely blameless in this situation either—but it didn’t seem to get through at all.
Haa…
If I hadn’t gone to the Imperial Palace a month ago, I could’ve just dismissed them as old colleagues and ignored them, but that wasn’t the case.
And I couldn’t very well scold the man who’d promised to make an effort over a situation already done and past.
I found myself wishing the Emperor would appear and draw everyone’s attention elsewhere.
I just wanted the banquet to end.
By now, the carbonated liquor that had been half-full was completely gone.

* * *

‘Him again.’
Following Kailas’s gaze, it was him once more—the red-haired man who’d brought Hazel to the hotel.
He’d been involved in Hazel’s scheme.
Investigation showed he seemed unaware of Hazel’s escape, but he was nonetheless the one who’d introduced Annie.
He’d been an eyesore from the start.
Not that Hazel’s eye would rest on him, but his affable, seemingly sincere demeanor displeased me.
I should’ve dealt with him when I saw how he smiled at Hazel at the hotel.
I’d let the three of them go unharmed only because of Hazel.
But my unease hadn’t diminished.
What guarantee was there that Hazel wouldn’t run again? I had no certainty that the year would be seen through completely.
Would it improve once I eliminated everything that commanded Hazel’s attention?
Perhaps I’d abandon the idea entirely and simply leave rather than erase everything.
I understood perfectly well how uncomfortable Hazel felt. She’d always disliked noise and crowds, so of course this grated on her.
And yet I persisted with this ridiculous spectacle precisely to announce to everyone that Hazel was my wife.
I didn’t want to admit to that petty anxiety—that I wouldn’t feel at ease unless everyone in the empire knew her face.
Until Hazel trusted me completely, I wouldn’t be able to shake this unease.
The key now rested in her hands.
Hazel’s gaze remained fixed on Dylan Banker.
I was sick enough to want to pull her attention back whenever it drifted elsewhere.
I wanted to grab her chin and turn her face toward me, but I found an excuse instead.
A strand of hair had fallen near Hazel’s collarbone.
Before I could even brush her collarbone to remove it, Hazel flinched sharply and pushed my hand away.
She’d startled so badly that her inhale sounded like a stifled sob.
“Ah….”
Hazel, who’d pushed me away with such force, was now wide-eyed—as if she hadn’t expected her own reaction.
“…There was hair caught there.”
“Oh, so I….”
Though I tried to appear unbothered, my body went rigid for an instant.
The look in Hazel’s eyes just now was unmistakable fear. Her halted hand trembled visibly.
“I’ll… I’ll do it myself.”
She quietly curled her hand and lowered it, brushing her collarbone hastily while turning away her gaze.
My eyes couldn’t leave Hazel.
Even that made her uncomfortable.
…….
Hazel is afraid of me.
The day I brought her back.
Even though I’d told her I wouldn’t kill her, she couldn’t believe it.
Me, killing Hazel—was such a thing even remotely plausible?
And yet Hazel truly was experiencing the terror of death in my presence.
I’d thought all along that the way Hazel expressed her anger was her way of fighting back, but now that the true fear beneath it lay exposed, my mind went hollow.

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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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