My Husband Lives in a Painting - Chapter 43

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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 Chapter 43
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Moments that seem eternal end just like everything else, in the end.
Still, we lingered in that afterglow a while longer, neither of us willing to move.
But as the fever that had seized us cooled and reason returned, a thought crept across my mind.
The price. Yes—I still hadn’t paid the cost for this revenge.
“Take my soul.”
At those matter-of-fact words, Kamyu’s eyes turned toward me. But hesitation hung across his features.
“……Ob.”
“Pagoda isn’t the culprit, is that right?”
I recalled the words Kamyu had let slip in passing.
“Never mind the details now. So who is the real killer?”
“……The culprit is Callancoe Duke.”
“I see. I suspected as much, but… hearing it aloud feels strange somehow.”
Not that it’s entirely unexpected. I’ve crossed paths with enough duplicitous people in my life. The Duke is simply another of that breed. The method of murder itself is secondary, then.
“Then let’s resume tomorrow, before he has any chance to flee.”
“Are you truly all right with this?”
“I accepted death from the beginning. You know that as well as I do.”
“…….”
Now, finally, I can end this revenge. I’ve lived for nothing else.
I suppressed the stray thoughts blooming in one corner of my heart, reaffirming that truth again and again.
“Go ahead. Take the price now.”
For some reason, Kamyu hesitated for a long time.
Taking the soul was his right, something he must have waited for all along.
But without voicing the reason for his hesitation, he too seemed to renew some private vow.
“……Yes, all right.”
Kamyu clasped my hand—the one marked with the contract seal—and began to intone an Incantation.
White threads rose up as they had the first time I paid the price, then condensed into a luminous sphere that slipped into his grasp.
This time, though, Kamyu offered no particular reflection—only a flat, measured tone.
“How do you feel? You have only half your soul left now.”
“……I feel a little more composed, somehow.”
“Rest well for a while. A human with depleted soul tends to wither spiritually.”
“Understood.”
Half my soul remaining—since I’d never truly felt its presence to begin with, the reality was surprisingly calm.
‘Just one more step now.’
Yet my heart raced—only from the joy of being able to atone at last.
For Kamyu. For a love that came too late.
I renewed my resolve once more.
‘Don’t be afraid, Ob.’
……But in that moment, I did not yet know.
That my trail had already been discovered.
* * *
“……Then, let us begin the meeting.”
In the darkened chamber, moonlight streaming through the window illuminated those dressed in White Robes.
Gathered around a long table facing one another, each wore an identical Golden Badge upon their chest.
They were the Empire’s messengers, serving only God.
The High Priests of the Grand Temple.
“First, let us hear the reconnaissance report from the Spring Blossom Festival held several days ago. High Priest Emanuel.”
“We conducted surveillance up to ten blocks inward from the Capital Square. We found no evidence of Forbidden Artifacts being traded, nor any Imperial citizens suspected of Heresy.”
“Neither were there any signs of members joining ‘that organization’?”
“That is correct.”
The white-haired elder seated at the head of the table nodded lightly, as if satisfied.
With a fluid gesture, he passed the floor to the High Priest beside him, and the reports continued in measured succession.
“We have successfully completed the detailed survey of the Northern Ruins, as reported in our previous meeting.”
“The results of the Heresy Trial for the fallen High Priests: one under binding restriction, five exiled, and two condemned to the flames…….”
“Through consultation with the Temple Archives, we have finalized the storage protocol for one recovered Artifact. Given that the relic chamber is at capacity, we have decided to establish a temporary repository in the expanded sanctuary, and further measures thereafter…….”
It took well over two hours for each member to deliver their assigned reports, yet not one betrayed boredom or interrupted another.
An uncanny cohesion emanated from those so meticulously disciplined.
“Finally, High Priest Yoanna.”
“Yes, High Priest Cardinal.”
“I understand you have something special to report.”
A special report.
At those words, every eye in the conference chamber snapped toward the speaker as though bound by an unspoken pact.
Yoanna, seated at the far end of the table farthest from the High Priest Cardinal, rose slowly, gripping a crisp sheet of paper in her hands.
“The matter I wish to report concerns two disappearances that have occurred recently. Both victims are unmarried noble heirs, and we have confirmed the remarkable detail that the two were of the same age and maintained an exceptionally close relationship.”
“The disappearance of nobles…….”
The tense atmosphere scattered into disorder in an instant.
Compared to the other matters reported thus far, the gravity of this case fell woefully short. Deep-rooted distrust of the nobility played its part as well.
“What is this? You brought such a trivial matter to us as a special case?”
“Yoanna. Do you understand what sort of gathering this is?”
Yet Yoanna proceeded calmly, as though she had anticipated precisely this reaction.
“I am well aware that the clamor of dishonest nobles, and a matter of mere disappearance at that, hardly befits discussion in this chamber.”
“Continue.”
“The reason I report it nonetheless is…… because in both cases, we discovered traces of a malevolent Demonic Aura.”
“……What?”
In that moment, a shockwave rippled through the hall as though fire had fallen.
Even the dignified high priests lost their composure, beginning to chatter loudly like sparrows.
“A Demonic Aura? Impossible!”
“How many years has it been since we pursued any trace of demons…… Are you truly certain you found actual evidence?”
“This is unbelievable!”
Bang, bang!
The clamorous hall fell silent once more as the High Priest Cardinal’s staff struck the floor twice.
“Yoanna. Your words carry no falsehood, I trust.”
“I swear upon the Divine, it is truth.”
“Then we must proceed with utmost care. Should we squander this opportunity, we may never receive another.”
“I understand.”
Having finished speaking, the High Priest Cardinal fell into deep thought, as though the decision of what came next required considerable time.
As his deliberation lengthened, the high priests around him could not hold their tongues.
“Your Eminence. Surely we must dispatch an experienced priest with at least twenty years of service!”
“I agree. I recommend the Gelof Brothers, who excel in infiltration and espionage.”
“No—we must send the Holy Knights, masters of demon hunting!”
It was then.
“I, Your Eminence.”
“What is it, Yoanna.”
“If I may be so bold, would it be permissible for me to recommend someone suited for this task?”
“……You?”
Though Yoanna held the rank of high priest, she was by far the youngest among them.
Ordinarily, even such boldness in stepping forward would not have been tolerated from her.
“As the one who brought this matter to our attention, I shall hear your counsel. Who is this capable person you speak of?”
“It is an honor. The person I wish to recommend is…….”
At the High Priest Cardinal’s summons, Yoanna stepped aside as though she had been waiting.
From beyond the deep shadow that even moonlight could not reach, a man slowly emerged into view.
“Who are you? State your name.”
Under the sharp gazes of the high priests, the man slowly raised his head. In that same moment, exclamations erupted from all corners.
Hair the color of pale rose, softly composed, and a beauty that seemed to monopolize the favor of the Divine.
‘Beautiful.’
The moment his overwhelming visage captured every eye, the man’s crimson lips parted in a slow, graceful curve.
“My name is Basaria.”
At the unfamiliar name, the High Priest Cardinal’s brow furrowed slightly.
“……Basaria? Where do you hail from?”
Then the man opened his mouth, as though he had been waiting for this very question.
“I come from the Holy Domain of Ethereon.”

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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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