This Emperor Is Running a Marriage Scam - Chapter 43

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 43

 

“Huh?”

 

Kyle pointed at Baron, who was nestled in my arms.

 

“That little kid too.”

 

“….”

 

“Children from extinct families aren’t left alive when caught, you know.”

 

“Ah, you knew about that?”

 

“Of course. I’m twelve years old. I’ve been living proudly as a page and receiving knight training since I was eight, then became a wanderer overnight about two years ago.”

 

‘Ah….’

 

“My father was the problem. He was a lustful bastard.”

 

Linda’s assumption that the child didn’t understand the gravity of the situation was wrong. Kyle already knew everything but was pretending not to know while assessing the situation.

 

“These desserts, me and Baron too – we all have good origins.”

 

Kyle, who had been examining the floor, picked up an éclair and looked at the dirt clinging to the cream from various angles.

 

“When something falls on the floor like this, nobles just throw it away. But a dessert is still a dessert.”

 

Startled, I held my breath.

 

This time, Kyle put the éclair in his mouth and chewed it without brushing off the dirt.

 

“It still tastes good when you pick it up and eat it, but I actually know. When you roll around too much, the dirt crunches so badly it makes you feel disgusted. Maybe there are even broken teacup fragments mixed in. So I should spit it out, but….”

 

Even though I could hear the sound of dirt crunching, Kyle couldn’t hide his bitter expression but reluctantly swallowed the éclair.

 

“K-Kyle. I understand how you feel, but let’s spit that out.”

 

“It feels like I’m accepting my fate… I won’t spit it out.”

 

Kyle hung his head low with a gloomy expression.

 

“I don’t want to die.”

 

Baron, nestled in my arms, was just rolling his eyes around.

 

Fortunately, he seemed too young to grasp the reality of the situation.

 

“W-well then! Who’s going to die? Nobody’s dying. Don’t worry.”

 

I deliberately raised my voice cheerfully, put Baron down, and started cleaning up the broken teacup pieces on the floor.

 

Then I spotted a macaron rolling on the floor. When I picked it up, I could immediately see dirt on the white filling. When I turned my head, my eyes met Kyle’s.

 

“Desserts can fall off the table.”

 

I thought at the same time.

 

I absolutely must create a space by the front door. I’ll make everyone take off their shoes inside the house.

 

“If you pick up something that fell within 3 seconds, it’s fine.”

 

I put the macaron in my mouth.

 

I felt both luxurious sweetness and unpleasantness at the same time.

 

“Gasp, Nuna, it’s been way more than 3 seconds!”

 

“No. Baron, it hasn’t been 3 seconds.”

 

Crunch.

 

I stopped speaking when I felt something unusual being crushed between my teeth.

 

“Nuna?”

 

I looked at Baron and Kyle’s wide eyes and forced a smile.

 

“Sorry, Kyle. I absolutely agree with your thinking, you know? I want to swallow this as proof of that. But this is a bit too much.”

 

At that moment, liquid I couldn’t control trickled out of my mouth. Baron and Kyle were horrified at the same time.

 

“Aaah! Nuna!”

 

“Blood!”

 

I quickly covered my mouth and spat the macaron into the fireplace.

 

‘I definitely looked carefully.’

 

Who would have thought a teacup fragment had cleverly gotten inside?

 

The teacup fragment was the same white color as the macaron filling, so I must not have noticed it.

 

“Lady Hailey!”

 

Raven’s urgent voice suddenly rang out.

 

Bang!

 

Then came a sound like the door was breaking… no, when I turned around, the door had already fallen off.

 

I definitely chased him away, didn’t I?

 

Raven, who had suddenly broken down the door and barged in, turned pale as soon as our eyes met.

 

“Aaaah! What on earth is happening!”

 

With Raven’s intrusion, I was the one wondering what on earth was happening.

 

Our house was old enough that it wouldn’t be strange if it collapsed at any time. But still, how could you break down someone else’s door like that!

 

“No, mmph!”

 

“Don’t say anything! I’ll stop the bleeding first!”

 

What I was trying to say was blocked when Raven hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and put it in my mouth.

 

On top of that, I was startled by the feel of the handkerchief touching my tongue and the subtle fragrance that hit my nose.

 

‘This feels like silk? If it’s silk, isn’t that extremely expensive?’

 

My eyes naturally went to the broken teacup.

 

If I have to pay for both the teacup and the handkerchief, won’t the cost be enormous?

 

But before I could think any further, an internal scream burst out involuntarily.

 

‘Aaah!’

 

Raven had lifted me up in his arms!

 

“Don’t remove the handkerchief, hold it tight! Let’s go to the hospital first!”

 

Raven, who had rushed out of the house, shouted to Linda.

 

“Please keep quiet for now! We’ll talk again later!”

 

He ran quickly and said to Kimarise.

 

“Watch the children until I get back!”

 

Over Raven’s shoulder, I could see the children huddled together chattering, the workers Raven had hired, Linda nodding in bewilderment, and Kimarise waving one hand.

 

“Nuna!”

 

“I’m coming too!”

 

And unlike them who were getting farther away, Baron and Kyle were hurriedly chasing after us.

 

* * *

 

It was when we were sitting in the waiting room chairs after registering at the hospital, waiting for treatment.

 

Baron, who had checked the number of patients waiting before us, beckoned to Raven.

 

“Come here for a moment.”

 

Raven looked back and forth between Baron’s retreating figure leaving the hospital first and me with an ominous expression, then let out a deep sigh.

 

“I’ll be right back.”

 

When the two left, Kyle carefully sat down next to me.

 

“…Nuna is stupid.”

 

Kyle, who barely managed to speak as if chewing his words, couldn’t lift his head.

 

“Why did you put trash in your mouth? That kind of thing suits someone like me. If anyone should get hurt, it should be me. Really stupid….”

 

As if tears were about to burst out, Kyle couldn’t continue speaking. The sight of a twelve-year-old kid tensing his jaw, trembling his clenched fists on his knees, and only looking at the floor was pitiful no matter how you looked at it.

 

At the same time, I thought that Kyle might be the future knight commander.

 

Would he become a knight commander after having his life threatened like this, running away, hiding his identity, and making it on his own, then start a rebellion?

 

From the current perspective, it wouldn’t be strange if that story belonged to Kyle. Kyle also seemed to be quite talented.

 

He even seemed to have sufficient reason to sharpen the blade of revenge.

 

Then shouldn’t I also remove any death flags Kyle might have? I should pour love into Kyle too and help him grow into a child with a warm heart.

 

Of course, it would be realistically impossible for me to take care of Kyle as well, so I’d have to find another way.

 

‘There must be a way!’

 

I gently covered Kyle’s clenched fists with my hand. Only then did Kyle finally lift his head and look at me.

 

Seeing his complex gaze that didn’t suit a child, I slightly removed the handkerchief from my mouth and smiled.

 

“It’ll be okay.”

 

Kyle, who had been looking at me with teary eyes, asked in a trembling voice.

 

“Really? Will we really get better?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Both Nuna and me?”

 

“Of course. Everything will be fine. Definitely!”

 

Just then, Raven and Baron returned to the hospital. Raven followed Baron inside, looking gloomy as he trailed behind the clearly low-spirited Baron.

 

‘Raven seems particularly weak when it comes to Baron.’

 

Is there something between those two that I don’t know about?

 

Then I heard someone calling me from the examination room.

 

“Miss Hailey, please come in with your guardian.”

 

At the same time, Raven’s steps quickened, and I also entered the examination room to receive the doctor’s examination.

 

“Oh my, tsk tsk, I understand feeling sorry about wasting precious food.”

 

The doctor, who had only heard from Raven that I had picked up dessert that fell on the floor which had pieces of a broken teacup mixed in, clicked his tongue several times upon seeing my appearance.

 

“Still, in a situation where broken teacup fragments are rolling around, you should be more careful…”

 

The doctor picked up tweezers and a magnifying glass to examine my wound.

 

“Don’t eat things that have fallen on the floor. There’s a small fragment embedded here.”

 

I felt utterly embarrassed.

 

I thought he would find it pathetic, asking why I would eat such things, but he said he understood picking it up to eat.

 

‘Ouch!’

 

Right after I flinched, the doctor placed the tweezers with a very small fragment attached onto a wooden plate he had set aside and handed me some cotton.

 

“Please bite down on this for a moment. Fortunately, the wound isn’t deep, so it will heal naturally if left alone. I’ll prescribe painkillers and antibiotics for you.”

 

I only bowed my head in response to the doctor’s prescription. At the same time, I heard a cheerful voice from beside me.

 

“Thank you, Doctor!”

 

The one who voiced the greeting was Raven, the ‘guardian’ who had watched over me throughout the entire examination.

 

“Nuna!”

 

“Nuna!”

 

When I came out of the examination room after receiving the medicine, Baron and Kyle called out to me simultaneously.

 

“H-how is your condition?”

 

As befitting children, both their eyes were brimming with worried tears. Baron’s fingertips were even trembling.

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