The Fake Wife of the Strongest Husband Wants to Survive - Chapter 55

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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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Chapter 55
Pesha gazed at him with a tumble of conflicting emotions—wonder tangled with apprehension.
Though he was only her husband in name, he felt impossibly distant, a stranger she’d never truly known.
The nobles seated beside her began whispering excitedly among themselves.
“Magnificent. Just witnessing the procession of House of Namoi has made this day worthwhile.”
“Isn’t this a historic moment? Without him, the Empire would still be embroiled in war.”
“The peace we have now didn’t come by accident.”
Heat rose in Pesha’s cheeks as she listened to the young nobles’ admiring murmurs.
It felt thrilling, as though their praise of Owen was somehow praise of herself.
The troops had already fallen into formation before the Emperor.
Owen stood at their center, commanding the soldiers with measured precision.
The mass of them resembled a single, towering wall.
Their flawless synchronization, not a single soldier out of place, drew gasps of admiration.
The crowd in the stands held their breath, eyes fixed on the Military Parade.
When Owen raised his hand to signal the troops, thousands of soldiers lifted their spears and swords in unison and roared with one voice.
“Long live the glory of the Empire!”
The shout reverberated through the entire Square.
Owen turned his horse slowly, inspecting the soldiers as he passed, then saluted the Emperor.
The Emperor regarded him with an expression difficult to read.
Pesha knew all too well how cunning and sinister lay hidden behind those eyes, and she fought to suppress the unease that threatened to overwhelm her.
She’d prevented it all.
She’d rooted out every problem, swept away every misfortune that loomed ahead.
The Emperor’s scheme shouldn’t happen now—and yet this nagging dread refused to fade.
Then it happened.
One soldier caught her eye, and he was staring directly at her.
“What…?”
A strange unease seized her.
His gaze was different from the others—unusually sharp, intensely fixed.
She looked away, thinking perhaps she’d imagined it, but when her eyes returned to him, he was still watching her.
‘Why is he looking at me? Surely not….’
But that couldn’t be right.
She’d rooted out all the traitors.
Even if one had somehow slipped through, the Emperor’s scheme was meant to appear as an attack on Owen himself—not on her. That had never been part of the original plan.
Yet a chill crept down her spine.
“No, it’s just my nerves playing tricks.”
The Military Parade was nearly over. If she could just hold on a bit longer, everything would pass without incident.
As the ceremony ended, the departing columns of soldiers swept past the viewing stands where Pesha sat.
‘Almost done. I think we can safely say the Emperor’s plan has failed, don’t we?’
The moment that thought crossed her mind, someone suddenly drew a blade.
Everything seemed to slow, as if the world itself had shifted into molten time.
Beyond the two officials she’d already neutralized, another soldier was acting out. She understood that much with perfect clarity.
But shock froze her limbs completely.
She’d seen him a few times in Swaph—a Knight in Owen’s service, though they’d never spoken.
Yet the blade he’d drawn was not aimed at the Emperor. It was hurtling toward Pesha.
As the sword point drew nearer, her mind went completely white.
‘Am I… dying? Like this…?’
In that fraction of a second, not even her fingertips could move.
The blade drew closer and closer. Pesha clenched her eyes shut, bracing for pain.
Then it happened.
A violent impact, and she was suddenly enfolded in a firm embrace.
Before her eyes loomed broad shoulders clad in black military dress.
Only one person wore that uniform at the Military Parade…
Owen.
The sharp blade pierced through his shoulder.
Warm blood spattered across her face, and as reality crashed down upon her, Pesha screamed.
“Owen…!”
Even wounded, Owen held her close with unwavering calm, cradling her gently.
“I’m all right.”
The soldiers rushed forward instantly, subduing the rogue Knight.
“It’s nothing to worry about.”
It was absurd that even in a situation where death hung in the balance, he was trying to put her at ease.
Owen’s voice was as detached as always, but blood streaming from his shoulder had soaked the front of his uniform thoroughly.
“It wasn’t me—it was you……!”
Pesha was engulfed in shock, unable to form words properly.
Her entire body trembled so violently that sitting upright was almost impossible.
“Why…… why did you block it? Why did you…….”
With shaking hands, she gripped the bloodstained hem of Owen’s coat tightly.
It was incomprehensible—all of it.
She had believed since childhood that Owen would kill her, but facing death itself, the moment when death’s shadow fell upon her, she could only freeze. And to think it had come at the cost of the life of the man she’d always expected to be her executioner.
At the price of his life.
The parade ground descended into chaos in an instant.
The soldiers who had been standing in neat, disciplined formation just moments before scrambled in confusion at the sudden commotion.
Citizens watching them shrieked and scattered in all directions, while some soldiers busied themselves restraining and dragging away the captured traitor.
Pesha looked up at the dais where the Emperor had been standing, her eyes unfocused.
The Emperor’s seat was already empty.
He must have evacuated hastily the moment the chaos erupted.
With his exalted station, it was only natural—yet it seemed to her that he had simply abandoned everything the moment her trap failed.
‘A coward.’
But she had no room to blame the Emperor now.
Blood poured forth, soaking not just his uniform but seeping into her dress as well.
Even now, his life was draining away.
Pesha pressed her trembling hand against his shoulder.
“The bleeding won’t stop…… it won’t stop…….”
Her voice broke as the words spilled out.
Here was a man stabbed by a blade trying to comfort her—she should have reciprocated that kindness, but she couldn’t bring herself to pretend everything would be alright.
Feeling her hand tremble like an aspen leaf, Owen spoke calmly.
“I don’t die that easily.”
But she could hear his voice growing weaker.
Though the wound was to his shoulder, the blade had pierced through before being withdrawn again, causing severe hemorrhage.
There was no way he could be in good condition.
Pesha swallowed her tears and muttered urgently.
“You have to live. If you die here, I’ll never forgive you…….”
“You’re terrified.”
Even now, he had the audacity to joke—it was exasperating.
This man who normally wouldn’t let a needle pierce his composure was lying here on the brink of death, cracking jokes.
Pesha pushed through the throng and quickly explained the situation to the medical staff rushing over.
“The blade went straight through his shoulder and the bleeding is severe. Have Zanien ground and ready at the Medical Facility.”
The attending medic hesitated and asked in confusion.
“Zanien? Isn’t that just an herb used for cooking?”
“There’s no time to explain! Just relay that order immediately!”
“Yes, understood!”
* * *
While the immediate crisis had been contained, the fact that a national hero had been struck down at an event watched by the entire Empire’s citizens sparked enormous public outcry.
The problem was that the captured traitor took his own life before interrogation could even begin.
It was discovered too late that he had hidden poison in his mouth and swallowed it to evade questioning—long after he was already dead.
“I sincerely apologize. The circumstances were so sudden that there was nothing we could have done.”
The Knight who had come to report the situation spoke with reluctance and difficulty.
Pesha, keeping watch in Owen’s Hospital Ward, felt hollow despair mixed with fury.
The one behind this was undoubtedly the Emperor.

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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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