A Change of Husband - Chapter 92

A miraculous thing had happened to her.
But that didn’t mean she could always expect miracles.
Asilie didn’t want to become someone who clung to hopeless things.

Still… there are too many strange things to just deny everything outright.

Before, there had been no real connection between them.
Of course, it wasn’t like they had never crossed paths at noble banquets or social gatherings, but they had never actually spoken.
Yet after returning to her original world, she kept running into Esperad too often.

Maybe it’s because I’ve changed.

At first, she had been in despair. But to not be ashamed in front of her beloved, she chose to face her situation with strength.
As a result, the always-obedient Asilie was no longer here.
Her world had definitely expanded. She’d met Jonathan, and even grown close to Sophia.
Even her outings had clearly increased compared to before.

Perhaps that’s why she kept encountering Esperad, and why their relationship had changed.
Besides, if Esperad really remembered our time together, or if he too had come from a parallel world like me, he would never have had that kind of secret conversation with Queen Cordelia.

Cordelia was the one who killed Asilie.
If Esperad truly loved her as much as he had, there was no way he would be speaking in secret with Cordelia.

Still… I need to make sure.

Maybe her expectations were too high.
Maybe she was just unable to let go of the man she loved, and her desire to see him again had led her to hope and imagine things on her own.
But rather than just guessing without doing anything, she wanted to find out the truth and face her reality.

She couldn’t keep wasting time on “what ifs” forever.

If it’s true, then it’s true. If not, then it’s not.

She thought it would be nice if Lydia were here.
That girl, with her magical powers, could probably give her a much clearer answer.
But now was not the time to suddenly go looking for Lydia or try to approach her.

Remembering what Agua Nale Roja had said, it was likely that Lydia was in the royal palace, using her powers to extend Hort’s life.
With Lydia’s current unknown situation, trying to find her might put Asilie—who still hadn’t secured her place—at risk.
Clearly, now was not the time.

“My lady is asking for you.”

Lost in thought, Asilie raised her head at the maid’s call—then suddenly realized the voice was one of those she had heard last night on the balcony.
In fact, that voice was…

“What could happen, really? The lady depends on me the most since the head maid left. And nothing’s ever gone wrong when I’ve done what she asked.”
“At midnight on the last night of the banquet. It’s nothing big. Just sneak one ledger out of the library, hide it in the secret archive, and once that woman is kicked out, we put it back.”

Yes—that voice.
The maid who had said she would hide the ledger in the secret archive at midnight on the last night of the Bonaparte family’s banquet to frame her.
This same maid had been attending to Asilie ever since she moved into her new room.
A chill ran down her spine at the realization that such a close enemy had been right beside her all along.

“Why is she looking for me?”

“I’m not sure, my lady. Perhaps it’s about the upcoming banquet at the Count’s house?”

“Is that so? By the way… what’s your name again?”

“Me?”

The maid seemed a bit flustered by the sudden question but quickly composed herself and answered calmly.

“My name is Louisa.”

“I see, Louisa.”

Asilie slowly looked Louisa up and down, from head to toe.
Louisa swallowed nervously under her gaze.

“Is there… something wrong, my lady?”

At Louisa’s question, Asilie gave a small smile and shook her head.

“No, nothing at all.”

Her eyes briefly stopped at a loose button dangling precariously from the maid’s right sleeve.
But she didn’t stare for long. Instead, she stood up as if nothing had happened.

“All right, lead the way.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Asilie fixed her gaze on Louisa’s red hair swaying in front of her, trying to erase the tangled thoughts swirling in her head.

“No other candidates have come forward, so Count Proud will represent the Kingdom of Austin.”

At Esperad’s announcement, the nobles murmured among themselves.
But no one openly opposed his decision.
Even if they sent a delegation, it would take time before any real decisions were made.
The conservative nobles had already agreed it was better to give in once and gain something in return, rather than constantly oppose a king who had only recently taken the throne.

He’s so proud, thinking he’ll be exporting weapons to the Kingdom of Austin. How ridiculous.

Joseph glanced at Esperad and let out a faint snort of laughter.
At that moment, Esperad happened to look his way, and their eyes met.

What’s that about?

Joseph felt something was off.
It was true that the current king didn’t get along well with the conservatives, but there was no reason for him to glare as if he wanted Joseph dead.

Maybe I’m just imagining things.

Because of the rumors about his curse, Esperad rarely appeared at social gatherings.
Maybe that was just his usual expression. Thinking that, Joseph finally managed to calm down.

But Esperad found Joseph especially irritating today.
He had never liked how Joseph wasted time with useless remarks whenever he was given the floor, but today, watching him smirk alone made him feel even worse.
Still, those carefree days wouldn’t last long.

Esperad had no intention of letting the conservative nobles who joined Count Mirk and played with Hort’s life get away with it.

“Looks like Viscount Bonaparte has something to say to me.”

“…Excuse me?”

Joseph looked up in surprise at being suddenly called out.

“You keep making eye contact and twitching your lips. Was I mistaken?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Joseph looked at Esperad with a troubled expression and glanced around nervously.
Count Bonaparte was pressing a hand to his forehead, as if Joseph was hopeless.
Seeing that made Joseph feel stubborn. Come to think of it, his father had never really trusted him.
Especially after that lowly woman had publicly spread rumors about him and Lady Bourbon’s secret meeting at a royal banquet, his father seemed to trust him even less.

“Young Master, you’re doing the work that should be the Lord’s responsibility. What do you think that means?”
“What do you mean by that…?”
“I learned this while helping with family affairs. You’re handling most of the duties that should be the Lord’s responsibility, and some of those are even things only a successor of the family should deal with. I don’t think that’s something to take lightly.”

Asilie’s words kept bothering Joseph.
It couldn’t be true—but then again, maybe it could. You never know.
Joseph wanted to clearly prove his presence and firmly establish himself as the heir to the Bonaparte family.
He quickly recalled the conversations he had heard at the conservative nobles’ gathering. He didn’t want to look like a fool.

“I… I’ve been thinking it would be best if His Majesty quickly welcomed a new queen to bring stability to the kingdom, and I’ve been wondering how to express this loyalty.”

At those words, Esperad suddenly remembered a conversation from the past.

“Your Majesty, it is time to choose a partner and bring peace to the royal family.”
“That is not possible.”
“Why not? Have you not found a suitable woman?”
“I haven’t.”

Now, Asilie was close by. He could see her whenever he wanted.
Still, remembering what he had lost made his chest ache with pain.
Esperad looked down, trying to calm his emotions, then raised his head.

The conservative nobles were murmuring in confusion as they looked at Joseph, and Count Bonaparte’s face was clearly full of dismay.

“Is that the loyal advice of the young lord?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Amazing. You’re telling me to take a new queen when the mourning period for the late queen isn’t even over.”

Only then did Joseph realize why the atmosphere had turned so cold. But he felt wronged.
No one had told him that pressure would come after the mourning period to push Esperad to choose a queen. No one had even told him when the mourning period would end.
Joseph didn’t think this was his fault. Still, it was up to him to fix it.

“O-of course, I know that. That’s why I was only thinking about it. But since Your Majesty asked me…”
“Is that so?”
“Y-yes!”
“But if you knew, then telling me to take a queen is quite a careless thing to say. It seems your loyalty was a little too much.”
“T-that’s…”

Hearing such criticism in front of all the other nobles made Joseph’s face turn bright red.

It was then that Count Mirk stepped in to support Joseph.

“He’s still a young man without much experience. His words came from true loyalty and concern for Your Majesty. And besides, it’s not entirely wrong.”
“Not entirely wrong?”
“Didn’t the queen pass away sadly not long after Your Majesty’s coronation? We all know she was in poor health, but the people see it as ominous and unsettling.”

Esperad frowned. He didn’t like Count Mirk speaking of Siena’s death as something ominous or troubling.
Count Mirk seemed to know that Esperad was displeased but continued anyway.

“Whatever the case, it’s true that Your Majesty currently has no partner. That’s something many people worry about.”
“So, what are you trying to say?”
“Once the mourning period ends, perhaps you should consider finding a new partner.”
“…I also think Count Mirk is right. It’s not good to leave such an important position empty for too long.”
“For the peace of the people and the order of the kingdom, it’s something that must be done.”

Looking at the conservative nobles agreeing with Count Mirk, Esperad could instantly tell what they were up to.
They were looking down on him too much.
That’s why they were planning to produce a queen from their own faction to try and restrain him.

That idea was deeply unpleasant to Esperad.

“Interesting.”
“……”
“Being a wise and dignified king without flaws is important, but so is being a king who can share in joy and sorrow with his people.”

That was something Esperad had learned over many years on the throne.

“Mourning the death of a partner is natural, no matter the time or place. A king who doesn’t observe even basic customs can never earn the respect of his people.”
“……”
“I will act as if I never heard this conversation. Now, let’s end the meeting.”

With no attempt to hide his discomfort, Esperad was the first to leave the conference room.
Benjamin approached him quietly and whispered.

“Your Majesty. The former queen is waiting for you.”

The former queen—Cordelia.

Only then did Esperad remember that he had promised to meet her on the day of the royal banquet and had even sent a servant to arrange a time.
If not for Benjamin, he would have completely forgotten about the meeting.

Sigh.

To be honest, he didn’t want to see Cordelia right now.
Facing a situation so similar yet completely different from the past made his chest feel painfully tight.
And to make matters worse, what Cordelia wanted was probably no different from what the conservative nobles had just said.

But just because he didn’t want to didn’t mean he could avoid it.
Especially since he was someone who had the power to change many things, he couldn’t afford to act lazily.

“Take me to her.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. I’ve already shown her to a nearby reception room.”

At Benjamin’s words, Esperad nodded and began walking.
Maybe it would be better to deal with both the conservative nobles and Cordelia—who shared the same goal—all at once.

Thinking that made him feel a little lighter.
Esperad walked through the door Benjamin opened and stepped into the reception room, telling himself he needed to think more positively.

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