The Husband I Thought Was Dead Has Returned - Chapter 61

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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 061
A few days had passed since the festival ended. The Mansion had returned to its ordinary rhythm.
The only thing that had changed was the bracelet gleaming on my wrist. Yet that single thing had altered so much—the mood of my days, the excitement that visited me from time to time.
Not long after, Linnen brought me a report. The first one she’d submitted had uneven lettering that took time to decipher, but the effort was unmistakably evident.
“You did well, Linnen.”
Linnen scratched her head and smiled.
Linnen was strong. She adapted to this life swiftly, absorbing everything Yureain taught her like a sponge. This too was her struggle.
Linnen wanted to prove that she was a useful person.
Her report contained information gleaned from various social gatherings. Under the pretext of being an assistant-in-training, Linnen attended all manner of events.
Her disability had become an advantage. People made no distinction between what they should and shouldn’t say in front of her.
They spoke to her openly:
“I heard you severed ties with your parents in Bereidan?”
“Things are chaotic right now. Did you know Count and Countess Bruate are here?”
“It’s practically a power struggle between Bereidan and Hejest, isn’t it? Which side are you on, Linnen? Oh, you can’t speak?”
Linnen simply laughed it off, saying it was better than gossip behind her back. Yureain hadn’t chosen this girl for nothing.
Among the news Linnen brought, one detail captured my attention.
[A message from Mother. There was a Harmony Society meeting the day before yesterday. They held their official founding ceremony and changed their name. Liansherus Society. They’re positioning themselves as mutual aid and fellowship among immigrant nobility. Membership has surged, and the organization’s name is being mentioned throughout the social gatherings.]
Harmony Society.
Liansherus Society.
Liansherus.
My gaze froze on that name. The fingers holding the report trembled faintly.
Something brushed across my mind.
I searched my memory, recalling the original work. It was the part of the story after Hayden had grown…
When he returned from the Battlefield and sought to reclaim the Bereidan Duchy, there were forces that appeared before him. Those who couldn’t be distinguished as enemies or allies, who walked the tightrope and played both sides.
Had this name been among them?
I’d skimmed over that section while reading the original, so I wasn’t certain. I hadn’t even known I wouldn’t finish reading it. Regret washed over me. I should have read it more carefully back then.
How could I have known I’d end up inside this story? But I didn’t recall a villainous organization like Liansherus appearing in the original.
Liansherus.
Thinking about it again, the packaging was too polished. If Harmony Society was the shell, this was that shell gilded with gold.
Currently, the Immigrant Nobility Gathering was creating a whirlwind through Southern High Society. I didn’t know who designed it, but they had good instincts. And enemies with good instincts are dangerous.
The face of Countess Caslit came to mind. She was the type who smiled without her eyes smiling. I had a feeling Countess Caslit was holding the reins.
Ah, this is frustrating!
I felt uneasy. My chest grew heavy, sinking. I had no certainty, but my instincts were warning me.
This was not a good development.
I set down the report. Most of it was gossip. But perhaps real danger was hiding among these trivial everyday matters.
Liansherus Society certainly wasn’t just a name change.

* * *
Late afternoon had granted me a brief reprieve while Hayden napped. The pleasant outdoor breeze had drawn me into the garden.
In the Southern Region at this time of year, the days were gradually lengthening. Though it was late afternoon, the sky had not yet taken on its orange hue. The scent of grass carried on the wind was delightful.
I needed to clear my mind, even if only for a moment. Ever since reading that report about the Liansherus Society, my thoughts had been tangled. No, I was certain I’d seen it somewhere before.
Ugh—it felt like I’d left something unfinished in the bathroom, that nagging sense of incompleteness.
As I crossed the garden toward the walking path, a familiar silhouette appeared in the distance. A tall figure. Hair caught gently in the breeze.
It was Cherez.
“Cherez.”
At my call, he turned and spotted me, his steps slowing.
“What are you doing here?”
“Taking a walk. Hayden fell asleep.”
“I see.”
Cherez nodded. Beads of perspiration dotted his forehead—he must have just returned from the Coastal Base. The fact that he was throwing himself into training so intensely meant war was drawing near.
Each time that reality sank in, my chest grew cold.
Seeing Cherez stirred a memory I’d been suppressing. Perhaps it was because I’d heard about the Liansherus Society today. Anxiety often transforms itself into other shapes.
“Cherez, do you have time?”
Sometimes I wanted to hold onto his time, and sometimes I feared how slowly it seemed to pass.
“Now?”
“It’s not urgent. We can talk another time.”
Cherez studied me for a moment, then nodded. The bracelet I’d given him glimmered on his wrist. At the sight of it, my heart softened once more.
Cherez gestured toward a nearby bench.
“No, now is better. Come, sit.”
It was a wooden bench. I couldn’t say who had built it or when, but the surrounding shrubs had grown in just the right way to make it quite cozy. Cherez’s heavy breathing gradually became calm and even.
Wind and silence flowed between us for a moment.
“Do you remember what I said before? That I might have a favor to ask someday?”
Cherez’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“Of course. And I remember telling you I would grant any favor you asked. I thought you had forgotten about it. Do you have a favor for me now?”
“Yes. I’ve finally made up my mind.”
Cherez looked at me, his eyes inviting me to speak freely.
“I’d like to have a villa on Crukt Mountain in Carencia.”
Cherez’s gaze shifted ever so slightly.
“A villa?”
“Yes, somewhere I can spend time alone. Somewhere safe, where few people venture, yet pleasant and abundant with provisions.”
I counted off my desires on my fingers, one by one.
Cherez’s head tilted faintly.
“Crukt Mountain is a fine place. The air is pure, the water clean. But it’s far from the Capital, and the roads are treacherous. Travel is difficult—the sea route is easier than the steep mountain passes. But why there?”
Because that was precisely where I needed to be. When Cherez departed, I would need a place to hide with Hayden.
“And alone?”
Cherez’s eyes narrowed gradually, studying me intently.
“Do you wish to leave this place?”
There was no need to take it so seriously. Sensing the conversation drifting in an odd direction, I hastened to correct course.
“That’s not what I meant. Why would I leave?”
I shook my head with a small laugh.
“It’s just… while Cherez is away on the Battlefield, I thought it would be reassuring to have a place where Hayden and I could hide away, just in case something unexpected happens.”
At my words, Cherez’s eyes darkened.
“Things could become dangerous. I’d like to have somewhere safe for Hayden and me to stay during that time, prepared in advance.”
My heart pounded fiercely.
I didn’t want to burden him with anything as he prepared to leave. That’s why I thought it would be better if Cherez himself prepared a Safe House where Hayden could stay secure.
So he could have greater peace of mind.
At those words, the sharpness in Cherez’s eyes softened, and his chest, which had been taut with tension, gradually eased.
“While Cherez is away on the Battlefield, we’ll stay somewhere safe for a time. And… when you return safely, would you come and fetch us then? Strange things have been happening so frequently lately.”
“…For that, somewhere no one knows of would be best.”
Cherez swept his hair back as he spoke.
“Of course.”
“Somewhere only I know would be even better.”
“Naturally.”
“You’ll wait for me there.”
“Yes, Cherez.”
I hid the truth behind my smile.
In reality, I’m preparing for the time you don’t come back.
But I’ll never speak those words aloud.

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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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