My Husband Lives in a Painting - Chapter 28

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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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My Husband Lives in a Painting 028
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In contrast to the clamorous Banquet Hall, the Corridor stretched silent and empty—not a shadow of another soul.
It was only when I found myself alone in the middle of that cold, austere passage that my senses returned to me.
‘What was I thinking?’
Just because he had hair like my husband’s, I’d followed him on impulse?
The proof that I still hadn’t escaped my dead husband’s shadow burned across my cheeks—heat flooding my face all at once.
I turned around at once and retraced my steps down the Corridor.
“Come on. Get back quickly.”
My pace toward the Banquet Hall began swift, shame propelling me forward, but with each passing moment it slowed.
The Corridor held me back—paintings hung on every wall, decorations at every turn, each one unfamiliar, each one deserving of attention.
Then, without thinking, my feet stopped before a small staircase descending into shadow.
‘A staircase right next to the Banquet Hall?’
In the Imperial Palace—all light and splendor—this was the sole pocket of darkness and damp.
What struck me as strange was the wind rising from below. That meant there was another passage down there, one leading outward.
‘An emergency exit, perhaps?’
Curiosity drew me closer, and I leaned my upper body at an angle over the edge of the stairs.
As I narrowed my focus into the darkness, something violet flickered dimly in the distance.
“That’s…”
My foot slipped without warning—a sudden, helpless slide.
“Oh!”
As I lost my footing and my heel twisted beneath me, I reached out instinctively, searching for something to grip.
Nothing but air met my palm.
“Ah.”
The world tilted into darkness below, and I shut my eyes tight without meaning to.
‘Why is there no railing here of all places?!’
In that instant, I saw the sensational headline already printed in tomorrow’s paper.
—[EXCLUSIVE] Young Widow, Twenty-One. Did She Follow Her Husband Into Death?!
‘No. This can’t happen.’
If I died like this, what would become of my Contract?
If I died, what would become of Kamille, trapped inside my painting?
I was falling, consciousness plummeting with my body, when—
“My word.”
A gentle grip caught me from behind, fingers closing softly around my waist.
A moment later, a subtle fragrance of flowers drifted past me.
And when I heard the voice that followed, my breath caught in my throat.
“You should be more careful, madam.”
The hand that had caught me so effortlessly rotated my body upward, lifting me back onto the stairs.
“……”
Before I could even register the contact with the man’s body, his arm withdrew from mine.
Beneath the deeply drawn Black Robe, the man’s sharp jawline came into view.
“Are you well?”
The question he posed to me was spoken in a voice so disturbingly familiar that it seemed foreign by contrast.
Standing at a distance of barely a step, the man was dressed entirely in black from head to toe.
“You are…”
“……”
“Who are you?”
My voice trembled finely—whether from the contact with him just now, or from what he was, I couldn’t say.
The man’s lower jaw, dimly visible beneath the hood, caught my eye and wouldn’t let go.
“Well… I’m not entirely sure myself.”
The thought seized my mind: I had to see his face beneath that robe.
My mind bleached white—completely hollowed out.
Why.
Why does this man…
…sound exactly like my husband?
“You’re from Ortega, aren’t you, madam?”
“…I beg your pardon?”
“There’s been much talk of you. I thought I should meet you in person, and I’m glad I came today.”
“You… know who I am?”
The man nodded slightly.
“Yes. I’m quite interested in you, you see.”
“What do you mean……?”
“Don’t worry. When the time comes, you’ll understand naturally enough.”
The man’s hand, which had been reaching toward the back of mine in a parting gesture, froze in midair.
Instead of kissing it, he bowed respectfully and turned to leave.
“Well then, perhaps we’ll meet again someday.”
I watched his retreating figure for a long moment, and felt an inexplicable, overwhelming sense of déjà vu.
“…….”
And then I regretted it.
My dead husband couldn’t possibly come back to life. What had I even been hoping for?
“Ob, you’re truly beyond saving.”
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I returned to the Banquet Hall after striking my head a few times, and it was still just as chaotic as if I’d never left.
Meanwhile, Claude had moved from his spot by the pillar to a table in the corner.
Standing with his arms crossed, his expression so forbidding that none of the young ladies dared approach, he caught sight of me and his eyes flashed wide.
I pretended not to notice and moved toward his seat.
“Ahem. I just stepped out for a bit of fresh air — have you been all right?”
“…….”
“……Did you happen to look for me?”
I asked twice, but he said nothing, though his expression remained full of displeasure.
It didn’t take long to understand why he was in such a foul mood.
“Thanks to my wife stepping away, I was able to spend a wonderful time with many young ladies, just as I’d hoped.”
“Oh.”
“I’m so very grateful. I won’t forget this kindness, and I’ll repay it without fail.”
“Ha, ha ha.”
……It was over. That look said he was absolutely going to get his revenge.
Meanwhile, as the banquet pressed on, the floor began to fill with dancing couples.
Watching the amorous pairs spinning across the center of the hall, laughing and chattering away, I suddenly realized I couldn’t see Belladonna anywhere.
Claude, reading my mind, dropped the answer for me.
“Mother left early. Right when you disappeared.”
“That quickly?”
“Well, her work is always demanding, isn’t it?”
The banquet had no king — the tiger had gone, and the fox with her.
It was only in that oddly unsettled atmosphere that certain figures finally caught my eye.
First among them was Noah Pistachio.
“Isn’t that the second son of the Pistachio Count Family over there?”
“They say the embezzlement case has practically been proven true — what on earth was he thinking, showing his face here?”
Noah Pistachio had apparently come as the family’s representative, standing in for the count, who was suffering from consumption.
But he seemed unprepared for such blatant ridicule, his face drained of all color.
“Among my circle, rumors about him have been rife for ages. We all knew he’d cause trouble eventually.”
“Goodness, if there had even been marriage negotiations involved, what a disaster it would have been. Just thinking about it makes my head spin.”
“And yet he has the audacity to hold his head high. I suppose that blood really does run true!”
“……Ugh.”
Unable to find a place anywhere, Noah Pistachio finally pushed back from his seat and left.
Bitter laughter flew after him like arrows, striking his retreating back.
Since I bore him no particular ill will, something about it made me deeply uneasy.
‘Will I suffer through feelings like this for as long as I maintain this contract?’
It would have been better if my emotions simply froze altogether.
But I clenched my lips and composed myself because of what entered my field of view: Pagoda Butter and Densum Kalangko.
If anyone were to step forward for Gale, it would have to be those two.
Yet there they were, tilting Wine Glasses and laughing merrily, completely ignoring Noah’s departing figure.
‘How can they be like this?’
They looked as though they’d never even met Gale before.
The roiling emotions drained away in an instant, leaving me alert.
‘The real culprit is still among them.’
……Right. I mustn’t forget why I came here today.
And just then, Claude, who had been sitting beside me, pushed back his chair and stood.
“I’ll step away for a moment myself. It’s stuffy being inside all the time.”
Since the banquet extended outdoors, he was likely heading for the Terrace to escape the crowded throng.
“Go ahead. I’ll stay here and have another drink.”
I gave him a light nod, appreciating his graceful exit at just the right moment.
But Claude had taken only a few steps before he stopped abruptly, as though something had occurred to him, and turned back toward me.
“Ah, and should anyone suspicious appear, do call out. I won’t have gone far.”

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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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