I Married the Mad Duke Who Killed My Husband - Chapter 83
“…Oh! Isn’t that Cassion over there?!”
“Huh? It does seem like someone’s coming… You have good eyes, Madam.”
After dropping off Lorang and me, Cassion ordered the knights to strengthen the security of the Duke’s residence.
While the knights became busy and the servants were occupied reinforcing the doors and walls of the mansion, all I did was walk up and down the corridors of the Duke’s residence.
As I spent time lost in thought, walking the same spaces over and over, the sun had set before I knew it. When Pia told me to return to my room and rest, I looked out the window again and spotted Cassion.
“He told me to be careful, but he’s walking around alone.”
“Come on, it’s different for His Grace the Duke. Wouldn’t bringing knights along just hinder his movement?”
“Still, I think it would be better if he had at least one person with him…”
“Don’t worry unnecessarily, and change your clothes now. Since His Grace has returned, you’ll have dinner together now, right? You skipped lunch, too!”
“Don’t say that to Cassion.”
Come to think of it, I’m still in the same clothes I wore when we went to the palace. I haven’t even changed, let alone sat down.
But I didn’t want to reveal that I had been spacing out for hours without changing clothes since arriving at the mansion, so I quickly ran to my room and changed into comfortable clothes.
“Hurry, hurry! Ah, I won’t be able to remove my makeup.”
“Goodness, that’s why I told you to go in and rest earlier.”
“That’s also forbidden in front of Cassion!”
I don’t want to worry Cassion, who has just returned from meeting with the Second Prince.
Pia clicked her tongue as she watched me struggle inside the nightgown that had twisted as I hurriedly put it on. Then she quickly pulled down the dress, let my hair down, and gave me a sidelong glance.
Hmm, that’s not a very trustworthy look. You’re not going to tattle, are you?
“Pia, don’t follow me. Just go downstairs, eat early, and rest.”
“His Grace told me not to leave your side for the time being.”
“It’s okay because His Grace is with me! Go on, now. You’ve been standing and following me all day; you must be tired.”
Only after pushing Pia, who was absolutely refusing to leave my side, towards the servants’ quarters, did I compose myself and head to the dining room.
Fortunately, Cassion wasn’t there yet, probably taking time to change out of his outdoor clothes and wash up.
“It seems the weather is getting cold again, so I prepared mostly soft and warm dishes today.”
“Thank you. It looks delicious today, too.”
Is it really just because of the cold weather? I gave a thumbs up, impressed by the chef’s sensibility in preparing easily digestible foods, perhaps concerned about upset stomachs due to the complicated situation. Just then, Cassion, who had finished preparing quickly, entered.
“Welcome! You must be tired, Cassion.”
“I just came back from talking, it’s not like I worked hard. I see you’ve been waiting even though I told you to eat first.
As expected, he’s scolding me… But why is he avoiding my gaze?
“Ahem. The meal looks good today, too.”
“….”
Moreover, he sits down with an exaggerated cough. Oh my. I didn’t pick up my chopsticks and just stared at him with narrowed eyes.
“…Asil. It’s late. Aren’t you hungry?”
“Hmm~”
“…What’s wrong? The food will get cold. If you don’t like the menu, I can call the chef.”
“Just try calling him.”
“….”
“….”
Are you trying to avoid this by blaming the innocent chef? I know it’s not proper table manners, but I rested my chin on my hand and stared at him. Cassion, who had been pretending to eat while avoiding my gaze, couldn’t hold out for long and slightly turned his head.
“Well… nothing special happened.”
“Is that so? Then why do you keep avoiding my eyes?”
“I just tried to dissuade the Second Prince from taking the lead in the meeting. It’s obvious that the First Prince isn’t aiming for victory in the war but rather looking for a chance to target the
Second Prince or the Emperor. The involved parties should be careful, after all.”
Seeing him uncharacteristically talking at length, he must be aware of his own guilt. Suppressing the feeling that veins might pop on my forehead, I smiled deeply.
“That’s right. Frankly speaking, we could win this fight just by hiding and protecting His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Second Prince. But it doesn’t seem like His Majesty wants things to drag on.”
“…That’s true.”
“Then they’ll put anyone who can replace the Second Prince at the forefront, right?”
“….”
“Oh my, it just so happens that there’s a war hero Duke who’s the Second Prince’s closest aide!”
“…I’m sorry. We decided to start the search tomorrow morning.”
“Just search? You’ll be the one to capture him too, right? You said with your own mouth that direct combat is your specialty rather than ambushes, and the First Prince is already a cornered rat.”
When I glared at him, changing my smiling face abruptly, Cassion’s head lowered more and more.
Just a few hours ago, you said not to overdo it because you hadn’t heard my answer yet! Even if it’s practically a caught rat!
“Don’t worry, Asil. It’s not arrogance, I’m truly so confident that it would be harder for me to lose on purpose.”
“I know you’re skilled; I’ve seen it myself. I also know that the current situation isn’t as big a war as I should worry about. I know it’s just tracking down a fugitive, but I can’t help worrying!”
This time, I deliberately avoided Cassion’s gaze and started shoveling food into my mouth. As I swallowed hurriedly, as if to relieve stress, Cassion pushed a glass of water towards me with a slight smile.
“Why are you worried?”
“Don’t try to sneakily get an answer after doing something mean.”
“As I said before, isn’t this as good as getting an answer?”
“If you keep doing this, be aware that when the time comes for a real answer, you might hear something unexpected. My answer is flexible, you know?”
“Oh my, I should watch my words then.”
“If you want an answer, you’ll have to be careful with your body, too from now on.”
Despite the continued scolding, Cassion’s expression softened for some reason. And I could feel my irritation and anger inevitably subsiding at his expression.
In fact, I know this is a natural situation. Even if Cassion hadn’t come in apologetically, it was an easily predictable conclusion.
Who would put someone else at the forefront when they have a war hero as their closest aide?
But even knowing all this, I was upset that he was stepping up… My feelings had already grown too big. Now, I had to keep my mouth shut tightly because my feelings had swollen to the point where I couldn’t bear it if I didn’t speak.
“Asil. Can’t you just tell me? I think I’d resolve things better if I was encouraged.”
“That’s a death flag, so no.”
“A death what?”
I want to say that I like him too, and tell him not to get even a little hurt and come back safely. But isn’t confessing to a lover and considering the worst-case scenario too much of a cliché death flag?
I’m not usually the type to consider such things, and it’s not that difficult a task, but I didn’t want to leave even the slightest possibility.
“Just eat quickly! You were saying the food would get cold, but you haven’t eaten anything. You said you’re going out to search tomorrow, so you need to eat well.”
“Alright.”
“After we finish eating, let’s go to your room. I’ll sleep with you.”
“Understood that, too.”
“…Tch.”
I remember the time when I first came to this mansion and called all the knights to greet them. At the dinner table, he blushed at the mere mention of going to Cassion’s room.
It was fun teasing the unexpectedly innocent Cassion back then, not long after we signed the contract, but now he responded without changing his expression at all.
As much as he has changed, have I changed too? Is my heart showing as clearly as his?
“It’s no fun.”
“So, are we not sleeping together?”
Now he’s even teasing me? Where did he learn such nonchalance?
“We’re sleeping with a line drawn between us. I have to hold you down tightly so you can’t leave tomorrow. After all, you’re the one who cornered them all, so if it’s urgent, you can just send someone else to catch them, right?”
“That would be the strongest restraint in the world.”
Cassion knitted his brows in mock fear and began to eat his meal, which had cooled slightly.
However, as if the warm atmosphere of entering the bedroom together after dinner and chatting idly was a lie, when I woke up the next day, only a cold empty space greeted me.
This is a bit too much.
“…You could have at least let me see you off.”
I didn’t even oversleep, was it necessary to leave this early? Feeling as if he had deliberately sneaked out while I was asleep, I dejectedly stroked his empty side of the bed, which didn’t even retain any warmth, when I noticed a note left on the bedside table across from me.
[I felt like I wouldn’t be able to leave if I saw your eyes open to say goodbye. I’ll write you a letter.]
His writing had become much kinder than the memo he left when he went to look for Lorang, but it still made me chew my lip. As I got out of bed barefoot and drew back the curtains, I saw that there were fewer people guarding the Duke’s residence than usual, presumably having left with him.
“…Saying he’ll write a letter means he’s going to be late, doesn’t it.”
I never knew waiting for a future with no traces of the original story left would be this hard.
