My Contract Husband Demands a Divorce - Chapter 93

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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 spurred my horse into the forest.
Since it was my first time coming alone without Shan, I kept a tense eye on my surroundings as I headed toward the underground waterway.
Raking my memory, I operated the mechanism just as Shan had done to open the passage and stepped inside.
Navigating the now-familiar corridor, I made my way to Papilion’s room.
When I knocked, a voice thick with exhaustion drifted from within.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me. Amarynthis.”
Normally, footsteps would follow instantly and the door would swing wide open, but today the sounds of movement came a beat late.
Opening the door, Papilion scanned the space behind me.
“Did you come alone?”
“Yes. Shan is a bit injured. Has it been nearly two months? How have you been?”
He showed little reaction to the formal greeting.
Instead, he tilted his head, peering intently into my face.
Feeling a bit overwhelmed, I took a step back.
“What is it?”
“It’s nothing. Please, come in.”
He offered me a seat.
For some reason, he seemed rather restless.
Much like someone who didn’t know how to comfort a person who had just suffered a great misfortune.
There was no way the rumors of my tumble down the stairs could have reached this place already.
As I tilted my head in confusion, he threw out a topic.
“But what brings you here at such an early hour? There’s no more reason to decipher the notebook. Did something happen to the Baron of Huniswald?”
“Well, you could say that.”
“Don’t be too heartbroken—”
“Prince Kildian—”
Speaking at the exact same moment, Papilion’s voice overlapped with mine.
We both stared at each other, our expressions demanding to know what the other was talking about.
Then, Papilion yielded the floor to me.
“You speak first. What did Prince Kildian do?”
“He told Shan to bring him the notebook. He said the one kept closely for jotting down notes wouldn’t have been in the laboratory. I don’t know if he’s suspicious or what, but could I take a relatively recently written notebook?”
“Did Scheit Huniswald say that with his own mouth? When?”
“Before I came here.”
“……Is he conscious?”
“Did you hear about what happened today?”
“Yes. Mostly. That you rolled down the stairs.”
So he knew.
When I nodded, Papilion’s expression turned peculiar.
He seemed to deliberate for a moment before letting out a sigh.
“For now, I cannot give you the notebook.”
I knew he would say that.
Tough as nails, as always.
“But I don’t have an excuse to give him. If we don’t hand over a notebook, Kildian might realize Shan has betrayed him.”
“Tell him to run away instead. What good is staying under Prince Kildian anyway, aside from it being dangerous?”
“If he were the type to run away, he would have done so long ago.”
“Even so, you must persuade him. It will only get more dangerous from here on out. Wouldn’t it be better to leave the Capital, even if just until things settle down a bit?”
“……At this point?”
Those were the exact words I had been hoping for.
Stepping back at the right time.
The three months Beldamin Pollen mentioned were almost up. I only needed to wait about another week.
So, just as Papilion suggested, leaving the Capital for a short while, getting a divorce, and securing my safety would do the trick.
Or I could flee with Shan without getting divorced.
With the inheritance I possessed, I could live affluently wherever we went.
‘But why do I feel so hollow?’
When I made no move to leave, Papilion stood up first and opened the door.
It was a clear sign that I should take my leave.
“And from now on, Baroness, do not come to the Kleinheits Mansion either. I plan to destroy that underground waterway, so please convey that to the Baron of Huniswald as well.”
“What did you say?”
“Have a safe journey back.”
The door clicked shut coldly.
It felt as though he was acting this way intentionally. Pushing me away freezing-cold so that I could wash my hands of this matter with at least a slightly lighter heart.
Knowing that only made it harder to pull my feet away.
After standing before the closed door for a long time, I turned around.
‘It won’t do any good, even if he acts like that.’
Shan was not a man to give up easily.
If Papilion pushed him away, he would go to Princess Isoldra or even the Emperor to thwart Kildian’s plans by any means necessary.
Because the battles Kildian intentionally instigated and the demonic beasts he was breeding would cause innocent people to bleed.
I harbored a firm conviction that I would eventually cross paths with Papilion again as an ally.
‘I’ll tease him then.’
My heart wasn’t heavy.
If the easy path was blocked, I just had to figure out a harder one.
‘What should I do?’
As I pondered, the bundle of papers inside the safe came to mind. They were the ones I had used when deciphering Scheit’s notebook.
I could just forge a new notebook by mimicking Scheit’s handwriting. Since he said he needed a recent one anyway, a brand-new one wouldn’t arouse suspicion.
However, filling an entire notebook would require a fair amount of time.
Realizing I needed to hurry home, I quickened my pace.
Exiting into the forest through the underground waterway, I mounted my horse.
As I dismounted at the estate, I noticed an unfamiliar carriage parked in front of the entrance.
Stepping into the mansion, I questioned the butler.
“Who arrived?”
“Miss Melis Haller is here.”
Melis Haller?
“Where is she now?”
“She is in the master’s room.”
In our mansion while I was away? And she went into Shan’s room instead of the drawing room?
Jealousy churned my stomach once more.
Clutching the skirt of my dress, I marched up the stairs and flung the door open.
Shan was on the bed, and Melis Haller was seated on the sofa.
Shan looked perfectly fine. Yet Melis Haller’s state was rather strange. Her face was flushed, and she was panting. Her attire was somewhat disheveled too.
“……Visiting without notice is quite rude, Miss Melis.”
“I-I’m sorry, Amaryn—ah, no. B-Baroness. I was so worried when I heard the news.”
“Would you mind leaving? I have something to discuss with my husband.”
“Yes, yes! Of course.”
“And I hope there won’t be any more unannounced visits in the future. This is already the second time.”
Melis nodded as she rose from her seat.
The glance she cast toward Shan was bizarre.
Her breathless state grated on my nerves.
But unlike her, Shan looked utterly serene.
Did Melis fling herself at him alone again just now? It certainly seemed that way, but regardless, the fact that they were carrying on like that in a private space was displesembling.
Without even seeing her out, I waited until I confirmed Melis had departed before approaching Shan.
He examined my hands.
“The notebook?”
His tone was odd.
“Papilion said he can’t give it to us. I expected as much. It seems he’s worried about us. He suggested the two of us leave the Capital for a while.”
“…….”
The cheeks of the smiling Shan trembled faintly.
It was the first time I had ever seen such an expression on him.
A chilling sensation rippled down my spine, but I skillfully masked my face and sat beside him.
“Still, don’t worry about what Kildian ordered. I have the decrypted text, so I can just fabricate a fake notebook.”
Only then did the tension melt from Shan’s face.
“I am saved thanks to Amarynthis. I only ever receive help from you.”
Climbing onto the bed, I settled next to his lap and looked down into his face.
“How exactly have I been of help to you?”
“Deciphering the ciphers was one thing, and summoning the Archduke’s Army with the signal fire was another. If not for Amarynthis’s wit, things would have turned disastrous more than once or twice.”
He remembered everything perfectly. These were things no one but Shan would know.
I stared intently at his face, then offered a smile.
“Knowing all that, you let Melis Haller into your room? When you knew perfectly well I’d be jealous.”
“I wasn’t in any condition to go to the drawing room, and I couldn’t just cast out someone who came out of worry.”
“Why can’t you? Next time, just throw her out.”
“And what if that woman spreads rumors that my wife turned her away at the door?”
“Let her.”
None of that mattered to me anymore.
Because I had learned what was far more important than mere reputation.
“More importantly, what do we do now? Since Papilion pushed us away, shall we drop a hint to Princess Isoldra about Kildian’s plan?”
“Must we do that?”
Shan spoke with his usual artful smile.
Yet, completely contrary to his familiar cadence and familiar expression, the words that left his mouth were profoundly foreign.
“It’s not as if our presence helps anyway, and just as Papilion said, spending some time in a safe place before returning doesn’t sound like a bad idea.”
Whatever he was plotting, an unfamiliar and sinister smile quickly spread across Shan’s lips before vanishing.
Blinking in utter confusion, he reached out as if to soothe me. Then, he naturally brushed my hair back.
With his left hand.

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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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