The Search for the Duchess’s Husband - Chapter 182

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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 182

“…!”
“Orpheus still dwells within me.”
As long as Arsen lived, he would awaken again at any moment and inflict unspeakable horrors upon Killian.
Arsen refused to repeat the same tragedy.
“I don’t care!”
Killian’s expression crumbled like that of a child as he continued.
“It doesn’t matter what’s inside you. I only need you by my side.”
He meant every word.
Killian loved Arsen that deeply. And Arsen felt the same.
And so he….
“I hate it.”
“…!”
“I’ve given you nothing my entire life. I won’t become a threat to you. I won’t allow it.”
A hazy golden light began to emanate from Arsen’s body.
It was not the power of Orpheus.
It was the mana that Arsen von Orpheus had possessed since birth.
Orpheus, who had retreated inward, burst forth.
“Stop, Arsen!”
Orpheus spoke through Arsen’s lips.
“I was reborn! And now you’d cast me back into that darkness?!”
“I won’t let you go alone. Let’s go together.”
Killian shook his head, his face drained of color.
“No, don’t go!”
Arsen smiled toward Killian.
“Be happy, Killian.”
It was a warm smile brimming with love.
Brilliant golden light flooded the space.

After the golden light faded, Killian and Artia returned to reality.
A crown lay discarded on the floor, and beyond it, people stood frozen in ice.
Among them, Arsen lay collapsed.
“Brother!”
Killian rushed forward and embraced Arsen.
A body cold as ice, breathing that had ceased.
It was not like the critical state he had suffered before.
Arsen was dead.
“Aaahhh!”
Killian let out a bestial wail.
‘No, I can save him.’
Killian scraped together his remaining mana and sent it toward Arsen. But the mana bounced away without ever touching his brother’s body.
Only then did he understand.
Arsen’s final spell.
It had been a refusal to end his own life and be resurrected anew.
“Brother… Brother…!”
Killian called out to his brother like a child and burst into tears.
Artia watched his anguish with a sorrowful gaze, then carefully drew him into her embrace.
Hoping that she might share, even a little, in his grief.

* * *

All the nobles present were expelled from the chamber.
What they witnessed was merely Artia harming herself before Killian and then being healed by his magic.
They saw nothing of what transpired within Orpheus’s Mental World.
Thus, the nobles were bewildered.
“What in the world happened during the coronation?”
“Didn’t the Duchess of Edenberg lift some sort of curse that had been placed upon Prince Killian?”
“But why did Prince Arsen perish?”
All manner of speculation circulated—that a foreign sorcerer had targeted Killian and Arsen, that the Empress had cursed the late Emperor and Killian, and countless other theories.
Yet no one possessed the truth.
The gates of the Imperial Palace, the only place where truth resided, remained firmly sealed.
None could enter, and none could leave.
After Arsen’s death, both Killian and the Empress fell into such profound grief that they could do nothing.
It was Artia who tended to them both.
No one within the Imperial Palace raised objection to this.
Though the exact circumstances of what had transpired on the coronation day remained unclear, it was undeniable that Artia had rescued Killian from some terrible force.
Above all, she shared a special bond with Killian.
As proof of this, Nocton von Alihas, Killian’s attendant, naturally followed Artia’s lead.
Nocton spoke to Artia.
“Her Majesty the Empress has finally fallen asleep after taking her medicine.”
When Arsen died, the Empress collapsed on the spot.
She soon regained consciousness and wailed that she must see Arsen, then lost consciousness again upon viewing his corpse.
Learning that the Empress had suffered such a severe shock and required stabilization, Artia instructed the Doctor to administer a sedative.
Watching the Empress sleep with her eyes swollen from weeping, Artia spoke.
“Ensure that at least one Maid remains at Her Majesty’s side at all times, and remove all sharp objects and ornaments from the chamber.”
The shock of losing a beloved son could drive her to self-harm.
Understanding Artia’s intent, Nocton nodded.
As they left the Empress Mother’s Palace and walked through the corridor, Nocton asked.
“Do you not blame me?”
Artia’s eyes widened.
“For what?”
“I knew Prince Killian was being brainwashed, yet I followed him without question.”
“Ah….”
Artia stared at Nocton for a moment before speaking.
“Orpheus even placed a bounty on me and searched relentlessly, yet could not find me.”
Charlotte’s Cabin, where I had been hiding, lay deep in the Mountain Foothills far from the Convent, making it difficult to locate.
But had the Rat Network, Killian’s intelligence apparatus, been mobilized, I would have been discovered immediately.
Yet the Rat Network did not move.
Because Nocton, who conveyed Killian’s orders, issued no such command.
“I know that Lord von Alihas protected me within the limits of what he could do. Thank you.”
At Artia’s words of gratitude, Nocton’s eyes widened before his brows furrowed.
“The Lady of Edenberg possesses a remarkable ability—she can inspire shame even in someone like me.”
He paused, then continued.
“I am grateful that His Majesty chose you as his wife.”
For the first time, genuine respect for Artia flickered in his eyes.
Artia stepped through the door that Nocton von Alihas had opened for her.
In the darkened chamber, Killian von Orpheus sat upon the bed with a vacant expression.
Not the fearless madman of legend, but a wounded child.
He turned slowly to look at her, then extended his hand.
Artia smiled gently and drew him into her embrace. In the quiet room, their warmth merged as one. It felt as though the world held only the two of them.
After a long moment, Killian von Orpheus spoke.
“Since childhood, my brother wished to give me everything. Yet he grieved that he had nothing to offer.”
But that was not true.
He loved me when no one else would.
Though Killian von Orpheus possessed all the riches in the world, he had never known familial affection—until his brother’s love brought him happiness, joy, and delight.
Tears gathered in Killian von Orpheus’s eyes. Artia’s eyes glistened as well.
Still holding him close, Artia spoke.
“Now I will love you.”
Now I will make you happy.
Now I will remain by your side.
Artia’s words flowed endlessly.
Each syllable carried unwavering resolve and tender affection.
Killian von Orpheus wept in her arms.
Without Artia, he could not have endured this pain.

* * *

The next morning, Artia woke with her eyes swollen and puffy. Her gaze widened immediately.
Killian von Orpheus, who had been disheveled until yesterday, now stood dressed in a black military uniform.
His face remained gaunt from the past few days, but his sharp golden eyes were unmistakably different from yesterday.
“Are you alright?”
Killian von Orpheus answered Artia’s concerned question.
“I’m not alright, but I’m going to stop whining about it. It’s embarrassing.”
Artia wanted to protest that there was nothing embarrassing about it, but instead she simply laughed without saying a word.
Because she loved seeing him regain his vitality after so many days.
The first thing Killian von Orpheus did after leaving the bedroom was to prepare for Arsen von Orpheus’s funeral.
He did not merely give instructions to his attendants; he personally attended to every detail.
The night before the funeral, Killian von Orpheus visited Arsen von Orpheus’s chamber.
Arsen von Orpheus lay on the bed with his eyes closed.
At first glance he appeared to be sleeping, but his body had been treated to prevent decay.
The Empress Mother stood beside him.
“Look here, Arsen. Mother has brought a new book. Let’s read it together.”
The Empress Mother, who had been wailing and fainting repeatedly, had at some point begun to behave as though Arsen von Orpheus were still alive.
And she recognized no one except Arsen von Orpheus.
As if only Arsen von Orpheus remained in her world.
Killian von Orpheus quietly observed her, then spoke to the Empress Mother’s Maid.
“We will bury an empty coffin at the funeral. My brother’s body will remain here for as long as Mother wishes. So please care for Mother well.”
The Maid whom the Empress Mother had brought from her homeland was a loyal servant.
She bowed deeply with tears streaming down her face.
“Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty.”
Killian von Orpheus turned his gaze back to the Empress Mother and Arsen von Orpheus.
“Arsen, you have no pain today. I’m truly grateful. I wish it could always be like this….”
The Empress Mother smiled brightly.
Arsen von Orpheus lay with his eyes closed in peace.
Those who had once been his most precious treasures no longer existed in his world.
His heart ached, yet no tears came. He could hold his shoulders high with confidence.
Because Artia was by his side.
“Be happy, Mother.”
Even if this place was nothing but a dream she had created.
With those words, Killian von Orpheus left the chamber.

* * *

The tightly closed doors of the Imperial Palace opened, and Arsen von Orpheus’s funeral was held.

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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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