My Husband Lives in a Painting - Chapter 72

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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 Picture — Episode 72
“Anyway, the fact that you’ve come this far suggests you live nearby… What’s your name?”
“I… beg your pardon?”
That was when the child’s eyes began to waver.
“Ah, I… well.”
“Hmm?”
It was a simple question about a name—why such a strange reaction?
The girl tilted her head in bewilderment, but the child’s response was entirely unexpected.
A slow shake of the head—
“What do you mean, shaking your head? You don’t have one? A name?”
Nod, nod.
“… How can someone not have a name?”
Her brow furrowed in incomprehension, but the child deliberately avoided her gaze.
The girl’s complexion visibly darkened.
“…”
Her lips, which had been trembling as though weighed down by a thousand unspoken words, pressed firmly shut for a moment before she seemed to steel herself and opened her mouth again.
“Listen. Would you like to stay here instead?”
“Pardon?”
“I mean Agnus. I’ll ask Father about it. I’ve heard that children like you sometimes come and stay here.”
“Ah…”
The child gazed quietly at the orphans beyond the wall.
A glimmer of longing flickered across those blue eyes.
‘If I lived here, I could eat Muffins every day, couldn’t I?’
No more wandering aimlessly through the streets, no more being looked down upon by children of the red-light district for having no parents.
But at the girl’s murmured words that followed, the child’s ears perked up.
“Though I’m not sure if that man will listen to me. If he says no… I could ask Louis. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll speak to the butler.”
“…”
The child fell silent for a moment, then quietly shook their head.
“You don’t want to?”
“Yes.”
The girl tilted her head in confusion.
But the child didn’t want to trouble anyone because of themselves.
So they decided to lie.
“I… I have a mother and father. I’m not an orphan.”
“…”
The first lie they had ever told in their life.
It stung like a thorn lodged in their throat, but it was far better than facing the girl’s troubled expression.
A brief silence hung between them. And shortly after—
“I’m sorry. I was thoughtless. You must have your own circumstances.”
At the girl’s apology, the child hurriedly waved a hand in protest.
“No! You gave me something so delicious! And truly, just being able to talk like this was more than enough to make me happy.”
“… Is that so?”
Nod, nod, nod!
As the child bobbed their head vigorously, the girl let out a small, unguarded laugh.
That smile bloomed across the child’s face too, bright as a flower.
Then something seemed to occur to them, and they asked urgently—
“If I may be so bold, could I ask your name?”
“My name?”
She seemed startled by the unexpected question, but quickly recognized just how much courage the child had gathered to ask it.
Then she replied gently, her eyes crinkling at the corners.
“I am…”
Thump, thump.
“I am Ob Clodelle.”
Ob Clodelle.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
The child vowed to never forget that name.
Chapter 12. Breaking the Contract
Louis was in a foul mood today.
“Sir! I hear you hunted Demons again? Truly, you continue to distinguish yourself with remarkable achievements!”
“Ha, you flatter me.”
“…….”
No. Looking back, there hadn’t been a single pleasant moment in recent days.
“What’s the secret, really? Could I study that technique from you?”
“Of course. It would be a great joy for me.”
“I’m truly grateful! Then would it be presumptuous to ask for Sparring this weekend?”
“You’re welcome anytime.”
Louis’s lips twisted, a low groan escaping him.
“Damn it…….”
The Temple’s appearance was unchanged, yet the quiet atmosphere that had always prevailed had vanished of late.
At the center of all this commotion stood Basaria—the very man Louis served.
‘What’s got them all in such a frenzy? They’re nothing but fanatics.’
Priests and Holy Knights and nameless congregants alike showered him with praise without exception.
Watching Basaria return their adoration with a benevolent smile, Louis’s face contorted.
‘How can they not see what he really is? Are they all idiots?’
He had completely forgotten that when he first met Basaria, he had been no different from the rest.
“Fools, the lot of them. Tch.”
Just as he was cursing under his breath as usual, a heavy arm descended onto his shoulder.
“Louis, gossiping about someone again?”
Everyone shunned him for his difficult temperament, but this fellow trainee alone treated him with easy familiarity.
Louis replied curtly.
“What are you talking about? When did I ever curse anyone like that?”
“Today it’s that person? You’ve got such a venomous look I’d say you’re pretty bothered.”
“Stop spouting nonsense and get lost.”
Louis, struck by the accuracy of the remark, jabbed his elbow sharply into the man’s ribs.
His fellow trainee only laughed as if amused and continued.
“But you’re really eerie, you know that?”
“What do you mean?”
“People you curse seem to rise without fail, like they’ve made a pact.”
“……What are you babbling about?”
“You didn’t hear the news?”
Louis’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Sarah was promoted to High Priest this time!”
“What?! Again?!”
Louis shoved the man away irritably, his voice rising in incredulity.
“You’re lying! She was barely promoted to lay priest three weeks ago, and now—”
“Hey, hey. Calm down. And think about it—she hunted three Demons in a month. Isn’t a promotion only natural?”
“…….”
“Anyway, she’s impressive. I never knew the Empire had so many Demons!”
“Damn it!”
So Basaria was already a High Priest.
Though his superior’s promotion would ordinarily be good news for him as a Holy Knight, Louis trembled with fists clenched.
“……How could she catch three Demons? I’ve never even seen one in my life. Is she really manufacturing them somewhere?”
The response was a look of weary exasperation.
“Wow…… you really are something. Now you’re even delving into conspiracy theories?”
“What, why, what!”
“Ugh, forget it. Even I can’t defend this one. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear it, so you do what you need to do.”
A sharp, pitying gaze was fixed upon him.
And so his only friend turned away with a dismissive wave, leaving his side.
“Damn it, what did I do to deserve this…….”
Louis’s face flushed crimson with shame.
Naturally, his gaze was drawn back toward the man he’d been watching.
That was when Louis’s eyes caught sight of Basaria suddenly pushing past the crowd and slipping out of the Temple.
‘Where’s he going all of a sudden?’
Louis hurried after him.
Fortunately, he managed to stop him just before Basaria left the Temple.
“Sarah! Where are you going?”
“Ah, Louis. Good morning.”
Basaria stopped in his tracks and responded with a radiant smile.
A damned beautiful face that reminded him, even today, of his dead brother-in-law.
In stark contrast, Louis’s expression twisted sharply.
‘Good morning? What shamelessness!’
He still remembered clearly what Basaria had said to him when they left the Ortega Residence.
“Let us go.”
“…… Yes?”
“You would do better to keep quiet, my lord.”
The man before his eyes was now playing the role of a good person.
Others hadn’t noticed, but Louis, who had served as his dedicated Holy Knight all this time, knew.
The fact that he was deceiving everyone.
‘And ever since returning from the Ortega Residence, he’s been going out without saying a word to me, and more frequently at that.’
The High Priest himself had appointed Louis as his aide, and yet he was being treated like a mere shadow.
It made no sense. Which was precisely why this man was suspicious.
Yes, there was no physical evidence, but he was certain of it!
‘Today’s the day I settle this once and for all!’
Louis stepped into his path, his expression grave.
“Where are you going? If you intend to leave, take me with you.”
“Ah, so you’re saying you’ll come along with me now?”
“Yes! That’s right!”
“Why?”
For a moment, his words caught short.
“Why, you ask—! Am I not your aide?”
“Hmm.”
Unlike Louis, whose face was already flushed with agitation, Basaria tilted his head slightly and regarded him calmly.
In the tense silence that followed, just as Louis was about to burst forth with words he could no longer contain—
“But I don’t need you. How about you just stay crumpled up here instead?”
“…… What, what did you just say?”

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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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