A Change of Husband - Chapter 34

A heavy silence filled the room.

They had asked to be informed right away if a letter came from the Grandier family. She had also been eagerly waiting for a letter from her foster father. But in this situation, she couldn’t just bring in Madam Marce without thinking.

Asilie looked at him with a troubled expression.

Her vision was still blurry, so she couldn’t see Esperad’s face clearly, but it wasn’t hard to guess that he looked displeased.

“Can you receive it for me instead?”

Asilie asked, gathering her courage.

He had never refused her request before.

So this was a selfish request, knowing he would agree.

There was no reply, but just as expected, Esperad opened the door and accepted the letter from Madam Marce, then came back inside.

After that, neither of them spoke first.

“…Haa.”

Esperad let out a deep sigh.

His chest felt heavy. He knew what Asilie wanted, but he really didn’t want to open the letter he held.

Of course, he knew that things would eventually go the way she wanted.

“Are you waiting for me to read it?”

“If you don’t want to, that’s okay.”

But clearly, what she hoped for was for him to read the letter aloud.

He really didn’t want to.

He was afraid that if the letter contained useful information, Asilie might think that getting hurt was worth it.

But in the end, he couldn’t say no.

Besides, Asilie couldn’t see properly and had to rely on someone else.

So Esperad bit his lip and had no choice but to open the damn letter.

Surprisingly, everything was just as you expected.

‘Phenome’ only causes paralysis in small doses, but once it passes the lethal amount, it becomes a deadly poison that can kill a person.

At first, the teapot contained only a tiny amount of phenome, so we couldn’t identify it. All we knew was that it wasn’t a life-threatening poison, or at least the amount wasn’t enough to be dangerous.

But with the item you sent this time, we were able to confirm that the poison was phenome, and that it contained more than a lethal dose.

Phenome over the lethal amount first causes paralysis, and once fully absorbed, the paralysis goes away, but by then the poison has spread all over the body. Without proper use of the antidote, the person cannot survive.

Unlike the rare poison, the antidote is easy to find. Just in case, I’ll write down the ingredients and the method on another page and send it to you.

Phenome is a poison from Velkoz, and even in that country, it’s hard to get. Maybe if you trace a family that does active trade with Velkoz merchants, you could find something useful.

Also, most of Velkoz’s tea leaves are imported through the Bellucci family.

The letter reading ended.

As Asilie listened to the contents, countless thoughts slowly filled her mind.

“The tea on our wedding night could’ve been drunk by you too. The amount of phenome then was just enough to cause paralysis.”

Esperad stayed silent and listened to her words.

“But when you were gone, they used more than the lethal amount. That means the enemy didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“……….”

“And even if the Bellucci family brought in the phenome, I don’t think they’re behind it. They have no reason. Actually, I know of another conservative noble who used this poison.”

Count Bonaparte didn’t seem like someone who would take the risk of smuggling poison. As expected, the source was someone else.

Asilie was sure that many conservative nobles supported Count Mirk and that they shared a lot of things among themselves.

“Quite a few conservative nobles must be involved in this, supporting the force behind it. And that power behind it… is probably the person we’ve been suspecting all along.”

Since she knew the future, the most likely suspect had always been Count Mirk.

And most of the things that had happened were deeply connected to him.

The reason she hadn’t said it clearly until now was because Esperad and Count Mirk were cousins, and saying it without proof wouldn’t be convincing.

But now it was time to clearly define their enemy.

“…There’s something I haven’t told you.”

Esperad, who had quietly listened to Asilie, let out a deep breath and began to speak.

“There’s an unspoken rule among the royal family.”

“Unspoken rule?”

“If a royal tries to harm another royal and is caught, they lose all royal privileges immediately.”

Asilie felt like she understood what he was trying to say.

But she also thought that wasn’t a strong enough reason for someone aiming for the throne not to hurt another. She nodded for now and didn’t interrupt him.

“I found a letter in the estate, sent to Benjamin. The handwriting was Count Mirk’s.”

“So there’s undeniable proof now.”

“Seems so.”

“Then we should start making plans.”

“Before that, there’s something I’d like to ask.”

“Me?”

“…I’m sorry, but could you stop digging any further?”

Asilie looked at him, surprised by the sudden request.

She didn’t understand what he meant.

“What?”

“If you go any deeper, it will become really dangerous for you.”

“I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t know why you’re saying it.”

“I realized something for sure through all of this, Asilie. I can’t lose you. But the deeper you get involved, the more reasons the enemy has to get rid of you. How could I just watch that happen?”

Asilie frowned without realizing it.

She could understand what he meant, but to her, Esperad’s words felt too one-sided.

“We agreed to uncover the truth together.”

“That was true at first.”

“But not anymore? I don’t get it. We both said we’re a team.”

Esperad stayed silent for a moment.

It wasn’t because he changed his mind, but because he thought about how she might feel after hearing what he was about to say.

He knew his words wouldn’t be welcomed, but he had no choice but to tell her.

“…If this is what a team is, then we’re not a team anymore.”

“What… did you say?”

Asilie looked at him with a shocked face, like she couldn’t believe what she had just heard.

But Esperad was firm.

“Even if I have to trade my life, I will protect you. That’s why we can’t be a team anymore, Asilie.”

A heavy silence fell.

Neither of them looked away from each other, but no one spoke carelessly.

Esperad saw blame mixed in her amber eyes as she stared at him.

He wasn’t feeling at ease either, but he still hoped she would understand that it was because he cared for her.

This isn’t right.

Asilie thought.

She knew the reason, but to her, this felt far too selfish.

Before she came back in time, she had always lived a life where others made her decisions.

Her own will was always ignored. But because everyone forced her to believe it was the right way, she also thought it was.

But looking back, it was a puppet-like life.

The lesson from her death made it impossible for her to accept this Asilie.

“…I believed it was right to be protected by you. But your idea of protection goes far beyond what I had in mind.”

“Asilie.”

“You’re being too one-sided.”

Maybe because of past trauma, Asilie felt a headache coming.

It felt like the ground was shaking, but she pushed herself to pronounce each word clearly to express her thoughts.

“Esperad, this isn’t what I wanted.”

Her refusal was firm.

But Esperad wasn’t about to back down either.

“I understand how you feel. But what we need to prioritize above all is—”

He started to speak, thinking he had to convince her somehow, but couldn’t finish.

Because Asilie, who had been looking at him with a flushed face, suddenly closed her eyes and collapsed.

She heard the sound of a baby crying.

The moment she heard that cry, Asilie realized what she had always forgotten in her dreams.

But she still couldn’t understand why.

Why did she always hear the sorrowful cry of a baby whenever her life was in danger?

Why did her chest ache every time she heard that sound?

And why did that crying sound seem to get farther and farther away?

Are you trying to leave me?

Asilie asked.

As if it was natural, there was no answer.

At first, the crying had sounded so close, like it was right next to her. But now, it was coming from very far away—so far that she could hardly hear anything else.

 

It was the first time she had woken from a dream without hearing someone scream or shout.

She had thought she would remember this dream clearly, at least this one—but when she opened

her eyes, she couldn’t remember anything.

Her mind was a blank. Not even a speck of dust was allowed.

Asilie blinked out of habit, trying to clear her blurry vision.

Then she remembered that her eyesight hadn’t fully recovered and closed her eyes again. She had given up.

Even when she woke up after being attacked, she hadn’t felt this gloomy. But for some reason, she felt heavy today.

It was very rare for her to start a day like this.

‘No, is it even morning?’

Asilie suddenly opened her eyes wide.

It was too dark to be morning, and she had no memory of preparing to sleep.

Her last memory was…

“Ah!”

“You’re awake?”

As soon as she made a sound, Esperad’s voice came as if he had been waiting.

“How long… was I lying here?”

“Not very long. About two or three hours.”

“Did you turn off the light on purpose?”

“No, I didn’t even realize it had gotten dark. I’ll light the candles now.”

He had just been watching her, not noticing the time passing.

If the doctor hadn’t said that staying by a patient covered in dust would be bad for her health,

Esperad would have stayed by her side without washing at all while she was unconscious.

One day, two days, even if many days passed.

Worried that her poor vision might cause her discomfort, he quickly lit the candles.

Once he had lit all the candles in the room and turned around, Asilie was already standing by the bed.

“I’ll help you.”

Worried she might fall, Esperad quickly approached her. But Asilie shook her head.

“I’m fine.”

“Then at least your hand…”

“No, really, I’m okay. Strangely, I can see well now.”

“…What?”

“I can see clearly. I think my eyesight is fully back. I can’t believe it myself.”

Her blurred vision had been frustrating, so she had hoped to recover quickly. But now that she

suddenly could see well, instead of feeling happy, she felt strange.

Of course, it had taken longer than the doctor expected, but…

“So you mean, you can see everything now?”

Esperad asked again, unable to believe it.

“Yes. I didn’t know earlier because it was dark, but now I can tell. It’s just like before.”

“That’s good, but also strange. Does eyesight usually come back so suddenly?”

“I didn’t hear anything like that from the doctor.”

They both thought it was strange, then suddenly went quiet.

Once the surprise about her recovered vision faded, they remembered the argument they had before she collapsed.

“…About what we talked about earlier.”

“I’m sorry, Esperad.”

Asilie cut him off. He was a bit surprised because she had never done that before.

Even though she was saying sorry, Asilie’s face looked serious and her eyes were firm.

“I don’t think I can do what you want. I want to keep the promise I made before we got married.”

“Even if I don’t want that?”

“Yes. I’m not… a doll, right?”

Esperad had never thought of treating her like a doll.

He tried to explain himself quickly, but Asilie spoke first.

“I know, that’s not what you meant. But if you force your opinion on me, that’s how it feels.”

“Sigh… Still, I’m very worried.”

“I know. So I’ll make a promise. I’ll only do what I can, within safe limits. And I won’t do

anything reckless.”

In his heart, he wanted to force her.

He wanted to tie her down somewhere he could always see her and make sure she was safe.

But that was just his selfish desire. He was already afraid of being hated, so he had no choice but to follow her words.

“…Alright. But please, be careful. If anything happens, share it with me right away.”

“I will. We’re a team, even if you say you don’t like me anymore.”

Even though he had rejected that idea first, when Asilie said it again, his chest strangely felt

warm.

That magical word that tied them together made his hair stand on end.

Now, he really couldn’t deny it or stop.

The feelings he had become aware of had already grown too big.

His heart had become so soft that he even wondered if it still worked properly.

“Asilie, actually, there’s something I’ve been wanting to ask.”

Not knowing how emotional he was feeling, Asilie suddenly brought up something else she had

been thinking about.

“Go ahead.”

“Where does royal succession come from? Normally, the king names an heir, but right now, His

Majesty can’t do that, right?”

“In that case, the Senate chooses the successor based on many objective standards and then makes it official.”

“Then that makes it even stranger.”

“What do you mean?”

“Count Mirk is the most likely person to receive the right to the throne. So why did he try to stop your wedding, even killing people, while hiding the king’s condition?”

At Asilie’s words, Esperad also nodded.

He had always thought it was strange, but never stopped to think why Count Mirk acted that way.

“I think maybe there’s some kind of ‘condition’ we don’t know about.”

“A condition?”

“Count Mirk’s motives are probably related to royal succession. Maybe the reason he killed your fiancées and tried to stop your wedding is because you getting married would fulfill a condition

that gives you the right to the throne.”

Hearing that, something suddenly came to Esperad’s mind.

It was a rule within the royal Astel family. It had only been used once, and he had completely

forgotten about it until Asilie mentioned it.

Even when he remembered it, he never thought it would apply to his situation. It was just a part of history.

“Alternative Succession?”