The Husband I Thought Was Dead Has Returned - Chapter 59

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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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The Husband Who Should Have Died Returns Episode 059
After the tension that had filled the room subsided, the Countess finally spoke.
“…Countess Caslit, she…”
Countess Yotlrey lowered her voice.
“She loves tea. Not just any tea, but the high-mountain variety from the Northern Mountains. It’s the kind she used to drink in the Capital, so it’s difficult to find in the Southern Region. If you gift her that, she’ll be delighted.”
“High-mountain tea.”
“And she’s quite interested in embroidery. She doesn’t do it herself, but she collects it. Especially pieces with antique patterns. She seems to favor vintage designs.”
Countess Yotlrey watched my expression carefully, her eyes searching to gauge whether this information held value.
“At tea parties, she takes a walk after the meal. There’s a time when she sits alone on a bench at the end of the Garden. If you approach her then, it would be a good opportunity for conversation.”
More useful than I expected. She hadn’t dominated High Society for nothing. One needed this caliber of intelligence to maintain such a position. I smiled warmly as I spoke.
“Thank you, Countess.”
Hope kindled in Countess Yotlrey’s eyes.
“As promised, I’ll give you a dress. Yureain, please show her to the collection.”
“Yes, Duchess.”
Yureain and I exchanged a knowing glance. She gave me a thumbs up. Well, I handled that perfectly.

* * *
Countess Yotlrey departed with the dress clutched happily to her chest, beaming with delight. I’d deliberately brought up fashion and dresses from the start, knowing this would be her weakness.
In this regard, she was truly easy to manipulate.
“Have the high-mountain tea procured and sent, Yureain. Will it be difficult to obtain from the Northern Mountains?”
“We should be able to purchase it from merchants. I’ll handle that part myself, ma’am.”
I nodded. Yureain and I were truly an unstoppable team.
I found myself eager to see what we could accomplish next.

* * *
Two days ago, I heard that Count and Countess Bruate had been warmly received at Countess Caslit’s tea party.
They brought high-mountain tea and teacups with them, and the praise for the tea coasters they brought—especially the one Yureain had embroidered herself—was apparently endless.
Today was the day I’d promised to go out with Cherez. Had I ever in my entire life gone to see a festival with someone? I wanted to experience this atmosphere for myself.
When war breaks out, the population of the Southern Region is cut in half. People flee to escape the tyranny of the nobility and to escape the monsters.
I wouldn’t see streets this vibrant again for a long time.
Southern Downtown.
Lanterns hung in rows along the streets. Flower decorations, flags, colorful fabrics. The scent of grilled seafood, fruit wine, and baked bread mingled together until the very air itself seemed appetizing.
The market atmosphere captivated me. Perhaps because it was a festival, people seemed freer than usual. The sound of musicians playing echoed throughout the market from every corner.
When I was young, I wanted cotton candy from the market so badly. My mother bought it for my older brother, but never once for me. There was no cotton candy here now, but there were seafood skewers. I had no friends, but I had Cherez. He made for decent festival company.
He ate well and had good stamina. He wouldn’t tire before me even if I wandered endlessly. I was going to have so much fun today! Perhaps that’s why I was so excited.
Or maybe it felt good to feel liberated after so long. I didn’t know myself. Every moment felt magical.
“Cherez, try this.”
I bought a seafood skewer and held it out to him. Cherez took it and ate it.
“How is it? Salty, isn’t it? I’ve never eaten anything like this before. Actually, this is my first festival ever. What about you?”
Cherez’s eyes narrowed slightly. Why, what—did I do something wrong? That couldn’t be.
“If you didn’t come to festivals as a child, what did you do?”
The original me did dishes. I didn’t cook for my mother; if I didn’t do them, I’d get beaten badly. I was eight years old.
I blinked and tilted my head. Actually, it was the same for Roana. Roana had rarely escaped the cage Petunia created for her. As for what Roana did back then.
“I starved while doing as my mother commanded and practiced calligraphy. She said that to live as a young lady of a noble house, one must first understand etiquette.”
Cherez’s eyes completely furrowed. Then he muttered a soft curse. Words that didn’t suit him at all tumbled out. My eyes widened. I must have misheard.
Cherez smiled at me. Then, as if it were nothing, he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and guided me forward.
My gaze was fixed on the hand resting on my shoulder.
What is this, arm-in-arm? Or… skinship? My eyes couldn’t leave his hand. I swallowed hard, and Cherez held out a cup to me.
“Huh?”
“Fruit wine. You can only taste this at the spring festival.”
At those words, I slowly sipped the fruit wine. The wine pooled in my mouth, releasing its sweet fragrance. It was a deep aroma, aged through the long winter. The fragrance filled me and overflowed, surrounding the space between Cherez and me with sweetness. I held out the cup I’d drunk from to Cherez.
Cherez took the cup without hesitation and drank from it.
…Wasn’t that an indirect kiss? I knew it was silly to get flustered, yet I did anyway. Festivals were like that, after all.
After that came baked bread, candied fruit, and salted roasted potatoes. Some I bought, some Cherez chose. Cherez often—no, most of the time—looked like a young man his age. It was as if the festival’s vitality had stripped away the pressure and responsibility from him.
As evening fell, we arrived at the plaza where the lantern decorations were gathered. Hundreds of lanterns hung from trees, casting bright light. The lanterns adorning the darkening streets seemed to welcome us. The sight seeped into my heart.
“Beautiful.”
I murmured without thinking. I stood beside Cherez, looking in the same direction. Then I turned my head to look at him. Standing beneath the lanterns, Cherez was incomparable.
Colored light fell upon his black hair. Perhaps because he wore such a handsome smile. Cherez seemed to shine even brighter today.
My heart raced. I felt such sorrow that I would only ever see him like this. He would be preserved in my memory, and in the memories of others, exactly as he is now. As a young man of merely twenty-four.
I wanted to remember this moment forever.
The moment that thought came to me, my chest ached. To want to remember meant I was afraid of forgetting.
I admit it.
I didn’t want to forget Cherez.
He was kinder and warmer than I could have imagined.
He, who had been buried in death in the original story, now lived vividly at my side, shining with such radiance.
He was a man who knew how to smile with joy at the sight of lantern light.
“Shall we walk?”
Cherez extended his hand to me. I found the smile playing at his lips—his head bowed slightly—utterly beautiful.
I nodded and took his hand.
Walking beside him, I wished this path could stretch on forever. And I prayed that he would never discover what lay in my heart.
I did not wish to become a burden to him, who would have to leave.
I wanted to remain a cherished memory for him until the very end. I did not wish to be left behind as a source of worry.
That was how I chose to care for Cherez.

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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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