The Search for the Duchess’s Husband - Chapter 92

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

In Search of the Duke’s Husband – Episode 92

The sweet voice bearing no resemblance to the man who had tried to strike her moments before sent shivers cascading down Frigia’s spine. Instinctive revulsion surged through her. She wanted to wrench her hand away and flee.
Yet she knew that resistance would bring far greater suffering, so she acquiesced and took Count Elysium’s hand.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Count Elysium glanced toward where the unseen voice’s owner might be as he spoke.
“It seems we have a guest with the vulgar habit of spying on others, but there’s no need to concern yourself. He’s merely a cowardly little mouse too frightened to reveal himself.”
With those words, the two departed arm in arm, their manner affectionate.
Only after their figures had completely vanished did Artia exhale and brush back her hair.
Killian von Orpheus gazed down at her, his thoughts crystallizing.
‘That wretch will believe Artia von Edenberg was frightened, but that’s a grave miscalculation.’
Artia was ordinarily composed, yet when necessary, she confronted challenges with unflinching resolve—like a wild hare that fearlessly charges a lion and delivers a devastating kick with its hind legs.
Puzzled by her restraint, Killian von Orpheus asked, “You had that look in your eyes like you were about to strike him across the back of the head with your heel. Why didn’t you?”
“I wanted to.”
The back of his head? No—his nose, his collarbone, his abdomen, his center… I wanted to strike every vulnerable point until he ached.
For a man who dared lay hands on his wife, even that would have been insufficient.
I refrained only because of Frigia.
“An elegant and beautiful lady would never wish to show anyone the sight of her husband’s violence against her. Least of all to someone she dislikes—me.”
So I remained hidden.
‘Besides, even if I had revealed myself, it would be difficult to ensure Count Elysium never commits violence again…’
Killian von Orpheus stared at the dejected Artia and murmured in a low voice.
“You’re too kind.”
“It’s not kindness. I’m simply concerned. I’ve experienced something similar myself.”
In an instant, Killian von Orpheus’s golden eyes turned fierce.
“Shall I drag Lloyd von Rainer before your eyes right now?”
Artia’s eyes widened before her brows furrowed.
“No. I have no desire to see someone I’ve already disposed of.”
Artia failed to notice how Killian von Orpheus’s sharp gaze softened at her words.
Artia didn’t notice that Killian von Orpheus’s sharp, piercing gaze had softened for a moment at those words.

* * *

When Killian von Orpheus returned to the Banquet Hall, an overwhelming tide of stares crashed down upon him. Through the intensity of those gazes—piercing enough to bore holes through stone—his audacious actions continued to unfold.
He had danced with three women in succession.
One was an Elderly Noblewoman with a hunched spine, another was his blood-related cousin sister, and the last was a ten-year-old young lady whom he had coaxed into coming with her mother.
Due to the significant height difference, Killian von Orpheus had to half-carry the child while dancing.
One nobleman, watching the spectacle with an expression that transcended shock—as though the world itself might crumble at any moment—suddenly seemed to grasp something, uttering a single syllable of realization.
“First a divorcée, then an elderly woman with silver hair, followed by his cousin sister, and finally a child. The common thread binding them all is that none of them are ordinary adult women. They are beings who would not register as female to His Highness, given his severe misogyny.”
“Surely it is unreasonable to categorize the Duchess of Edenberg in such a manner.”
“His Highness is sensitive and fastidious. It is quite possible he would not perceive a woman with significant flaws as a normal woman.”
Some nodded, finding the opinion plausible, while others wore expressions of utter skepticism.
The assembled nobility engaged in heated debate, yet none could discern Killian von Orpheus’s true intentions. Ultimately, they arrived at the simplest and most convenient conclusion.
‘The mad prince has done something mad!’
Thus, today’s events were relegated to merely another of Killian von Orpheus’s many eccentricities.
Thanks to this, Artia, now removed from the spotlight of public attention, exhaled a breath of relief.
‘Being perceived as mad is quite convenient, isn’t it.’
After returning to the Banquet Hall, my gaze met Killian von Orpheus’s from across the distance.
In that instant, golden eyes curved softly with warmth. It lasted only a moment—brief enough that no one else could have witnessed it.
‘Please don’t smile like that. My heart is racing again.’
I made every effort to conceal my thundering heartbeat, turning my head away toward the other side of the hall.
In the center of the Banquet Hall, beneath the brightest illumination, I could see Frigia linked arm-in-arm with Count Elysium.
Her beautiful face wore a radiant smile, as though nothing had transpired at all.
‘Beautiful as a flower on the surface, yet rotting and decaying within.’
Just as I once was.
I lowered my eyes, my heart heavy with melancholy.

* * *

Even after the gathering ended and Artia returned home, what she had witnessed in the garden continued to weigh on her mind.
‘Count Elysium, whom I saw in the banquet hall, was so affectionate toward Frigia—as if nothing had happened.’
But that was merely a mask. The true version of him that she had seen in the darkened garden must have been the real one.
Once all the guests had departed, he would surely have revealed his true nature again.
The image of Frigia being assaulted by Count Elysium in a place where no one could see surfaced in her mind.
Yet Artia was an outsider. She could not possibly insert herself into the affairs of a couple she barely knew.
‘This is not something I can involve myself in. I should not dwell on it.’
Artia closed her eyes, struggling to compose her emotions.
In the end, she had not slept properly at all.
The next day, Artia buried her exhausted face into her pillow.
She had thought that since she had hosted the gathering yesterday, she ought to spend the entire day resting in bed—when an entirely unexpected visitor arrived.
Artia hastily changed her clothes and opened the reception room door.
Beneath the bright sunlight, Frigia sat waiting.
Frigia was dressed as impeccably as she had appeared at the banquet hall the previous evening. And yet….
Her already porcelain-white complexion was drained of all vitality, appearing ghastly pale. The corners of her eyes, concealed beneath makeup, were swollen and red.
But what caught Artia’s attention most was the dress Frigia wore.
A gown that wrapped her entire body from neck to wrist, concealing everything beneath.
The rigid, austere design bore no resemblance whatsoever to the Frigia who set fashion trends with dazzlingly elaborate gowns.
‘If she wore it to hide the bruises on her body….’
Seeing Artia’s hardened expression, Frigia opened her mouth to speak.
“You were the one in the garden yesterday, weren’t you? The Duchess of Edenberg?”
“…!”
Frigia continued, observing Artia’s widened eyes as if asking how she could possibly have known.
“We did not speak much, but I remembered your voice and manner of speech. Moreover, you kept watching me throughout the banquet hall. With eyes full of concern.”
I’ve been caught. Artia’s face flushed crimson.
Frigia offered a faint smile.
“I was grateful for yesterday.”
Artia was taken aback.
‘I deliberately did not reveal myself because I thought Frigia would not want me to know. I never expected her to offer thanks so readily….’
Frigia’s smile was strained.
Count Elysium had never been caught directly assaulting Frigia, but there had been occasions when, in his drunkenness, he had spoken harshly to his wife in front of others.
Each time, people had pretended not to notice, unwilling to become entangled in such a delicate matter.
Or they would defend the count, saying, “Even the most beautiful of wives must occasionally receive stern discipline.”
The shame Frigia had felt in those moments was immeasurable.
‘You were the only one who took my side, Duchess of Edenberg.’
The gratitude she felt for having someone stand with her outweighed the shame of having revealed a side of herself she had never wished to show.
Yet Frigia’s reason for coming here was not merely to express her gratitude.
Frigia spoke to Artia.
“Please do not tell anyone what you saw yesterday. …Not Marigold, nor Dahlia.”
Desperation gleamed within her emerald eyes.
I regarded Frigia quietly for a moment before speaking.
“Before I answer, would you permit me to share something first?”
Frigia nodded.
I took a sip of tea and continued in an even tone.
“My former husband struck me as well.”
“…!”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————