The Search for the Duchess’s Husband - Chapter 174

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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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In Search of the Duke’s Husband – Episode 174

Artia made her way to the Imperial Palace without delay.
Normally, she would have needed to submit a request for entry in advance and obtain permission, but she was able to bypass all procedures and enter directly.
And she did so under the guidance of Nocton von Alihas, Killian von Orpheus’s closest aide.
It was thanks to Killian von Orpheus having made arrangements beforehand.
“Your Majesty is well, I trust?”
At Artia’s question, Nocton von Alihas tilted his head as though hearing something peculiar.
“The intent of your question?”
“I’m asking whether he’s in any pain or discomfort.”
In all his years, Nocton von Alihas had never seen anyone inquire after Killian von Orpheus’s health with such genuine concern.
After all, Killian von Orpheus was called the Mad Majesty and had become an object of fear—his body was so inhumanly formidable that one might question whether he was truly human.
Nocton von Alihas’s eyes widened with amusement.
“He is in excellent health.”
Only then did Artia’s expression soften with relief as she walked down the long corridor.
It was the same path she had walked when she came to seek Killian von Orpheus’s help with the divorce.
Back then, she had been terrified of meeting him.
Now it was entirely different.
‘I want to see His Majesty so badly.’
I wanted to embrace him, meet his gaze, and tell him how much I had missed him.
Suppressing the urge to run forward without dignity, I arrived before an enormous door.
Nocton von Alihas opened the door and gestured respectfully.
“Please, enter.”
When paying respects to the Imperial Family, one’s attendants had to remain outside.
Artia met the eyes of Bibi, who had been following behind her.
‘I’ll be back soon.’
Bibi nodded slightly.
Artia stepped into the Audience Chamber.
She walked along the golden carpet that stretched across the floor, then stopped in her tracks.
Killian von Orpheus sat upon an enormous throne at the far end of the chamber.
At the sight of him after so many days, Artia broke into a radiant smile like that of a young girl.
“Your Majesty!”
The moment Artia moved to approach Killian von Orpheus….
“How presumptuous.”
“…?!”
At his cold voice, Artia stopped in her tracks and looked toward Killian von Orpheus.
Only then did I realize it.
The golden eyes gazing down at me were colder than ever before.
‘What?’
His voice continued toward Artia, whose heart had plummeted.
“Greet me with proper courtesy.”
As my mind went blank, I desperately tried to comprehend the situation.
Did I do something wrong to His Majesty?
Is that why he’s angry?
I bit my lip.
No.
His Majesty has never been angry with me in that manner, no matter the circumstances.
He… he has never looked at me with eyes so cold.
Though I thought it was a mad suspicion, the doubt that surfaced in my mind spilled out.
“Who are you?”
Killian von Orpheus merely stared at Artia without saying a word.
That silence made it even harder for Artia to breathe.
It was a hoarse voice that broke the seemingly eternal silence.
“You caught on quickly.”
“…!”
Following the direction of the voice, Artia’s eyes widened as she turned her head.
Since when had he been there?
In the darkness where I couldn’t see, Arsen sat in a wooden wheelchair.
The moment Artia’s eyes met Arsen’s, she instinctively took a step backward.
For he too was not the Arsen I had met before, radiating an intensity unlike anything I had witnessed.
“What on earth is this….”
Arsen opened his eyes wide with apparent surprise.
“You noticed too? I thought you were just a worthless woman, but you have keen eyes.”
Artia’s entire body began to tremble.
Killian von Orpheus, frozen like ice.
Arsen, sharp as thorns.
Standing between these two unfamiliar men, she felt as though she were trapped in a terrible nightmare.

* * *

I couldn’t breathe properly.
Yet Artia bit her lips until they bled, desperately clinging to consciousness.
Watching her, Arsen muttered to himself.
“I never intended to go this far. Arsen’s opposition was simply too fierce.”
Artia couldn’t fathom what he was saying, but she listened with desperate intensity.
It was the only way to find a clue that might help her escape this nightmare.
“But no matter how much I pleaded and screamed, he insisted on choosing you instead of me—how infuriating. So I had no choice but to use magic.”
The word magic pierced through Artia’s mind like a blade.
“W-what have you done to His Highness Killian von Orpheus!”
“I simply made him listen to his brother. Of course it wasn’t easy. When I poured my mana into Killian’s mind, this pathetic body nearly shattered. But then…”
Arsen’s gaze turned toward Killian von Orpheus, who sat expressionless.
“Killian noticed and accepted my mana.”
My adorable younger brother—how could I not fall for him?
His hazy golden eyes brimmed with deep affection.
In contrast, Artia’s face twisted with shock.
Watching her, Arsen continued.
“You don’t know how long I hated Killian before finally coming to love him.”
That’s why he was all the more precious.
To Arsen, Killian von Orpheus was his entire world. But when Artia appeared, a crack formed in that world.
To Arsen, Artia was an absolute evil whose very existence could not be tolerated.
Arsen pointed at Artia with his skeletal fingers and spoke.
“Killian von Orpheus, eliminate that woman.”
Killian von Orpheus rose from his chair and drew the sword at his waist.
Watching him approach with a cold, emotionless face, Artia couldn’t utter a single word.
He was unfamiliar. Terrifying.
Yet he was Killian von Orpheus.
The Killian von Orpheus she loved.
Artia opened her mouth, her eyes reddened.
“It’s me—Artia.”
….
“I’m Artia, the one you love!”
Her anguished cry filled the vast chamber.
Artia possessed no mana, yet her desperate plea carried an intense force within it.
The fervent wish that the man she loved would shatter the spell and return to himself.
But…
Puhaha.
Arsen burst into laughter as if her struggle were amusing.
“Abandon the delusion that mere human emotion possesses any special power. If such a thing existed, everyone in the world would be a mage.”
But mana was a power possessed only by the chosen few, and before that power, all an ordinary human could do was be crushed like an insect.
As if to prove his words, Killian von Orpheus raised his sword high.
The image reflected clearly in Artia’s pink eyes.
The moment Killian von Orpheus raised his sword, the door burst open and Bibi appeared.
As Bibi entered the room, she drew a dagger she had hidden on her body and hurled it.
Killian von Orpheus paused to block the dagger, and Bibi seized that moment to rush forward and position herself in front of Artia.
Killian von Orpheus swung his sword toward Artia once more.
Bibi blocked his blade with the dagger she held.
Bibi gritted her teeth.
‘The difference in strength is too great.’
She couldn’t hold out for long.
“Flee, my lady!”
Artia, barely regaining her senses, shook her head.
“N-no.”
Even as Artia failed to fully comprehend the situation, her instincts screamed the truth.
Killian von Orpheus would kill Bibi.
‘I cannot abandon Bibi!’
As if mocking Artia’s resolve, Killian von Orpheus’s sword swung again.
Clang—!
She barely blocked it, but cracks began forming in Bibi’s blade.
“My lady, hurry!”
As Bibi cried out urgently, the two swords clashed once more. That was the limit.
With a sharp fracturing sound, Bibi’s sword shattered.
“Bibi, if you encounter a beast stronger than you, never attempt to fight it. Turn your back and flee without looking back.”
Father’s teachings echoed in her mind, yet she could not turn away.
For she was no longer a hunter, but Artia’s loyal maid.
Bibi cast the broken sword to the ground and pulled Artia into her embrace.
Killian von Orpheus’s blade descended ruthlessly upon them both.
With a horrific sound of skin and muscle tearing and bone shattering, crimson blood sprayed forth.
Bibi did not wince. She did not scream.
She only cried out to Artia.
“Go!”
Tears streamed from Artia’s eyes.
There was no time to stand frozen.
She had to escape this place and survive by any means.
Arsen, who had been watching the spectacle with an amused expression, let out a chuckle.
“How do you plan to escape?”
Before Killian von Orpheus, Artia was weaker than an insect.
There was no possible escape.
Artia von Edenberg would die here.
By Killian von Orpheus’s hand.
Then Artia raised her hand. The pink diamond-studded bracelet on her wrist glimmered.

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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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