IELNDMH - Chapter 73 < Unholy Affection >

IELNMDMH - Chapter 73 < Unholy Affection >

I Ended Up Living Up Next Door With My Ex-Husband

An hour later, inside the Emperor's private reception room.

“Henry Bart...”

Emperor Letitz muttered as he poured whiskey into a crystal glass.

“Yes, I remember. He didn’t seem trustworthy as the head of a family, but his appearance seemed to be quite acceptable.”

Tsk. 

The sound of clicking one's tongue rang softly in the quiet waiting room.

“...That beautiful face was so miserably ruined that it died.”

The Emperor shook his head and handed out glasses of whiskey.

“Let’s all have a drink. This is our Cedric, this is High Priest Diat, and... Ah, is this whiskey too strong for the Grand Duchess to drink?”

Emperor Letiz asked, handing me a glass of whiskey as I sat on the sofa across from him.

Because of that unpleasant incident, the imperial banquet ended earlier than scheduled.

Afterward, Emperor Letiz invited us to his reception room to unwind the rest of his worries.

I shook my head and accepted the cup that Emperor Letitz held out for me.

“Not at all. I will drink it gratefully, Your Majesty.”

At that moment, I desperately needed a solo drink more than anything else.

Henry Bart.

Didn't I clearly see his gruesome body with my own eyes?

'I can't believe Henry Bart died so vainly... If it's the original work, the plot involving him and Lobelia is still in full swing.'

It was time to calm my startled mind and take another sip of whiskey.

Cedric, who had been watching my expression the whole time, gently grabbed my shoulder.

“Rebecca, it’s a strong drink, so drink it in moderation.”

I nodded slowly.

"i know. I know... I really need that strong drink right now.”

Hearing my words, Cedric let out a long, sad breath.

“I’m afraid you seem very surprised.”

As soon as Cedric finished speaking, Emperor Letitz's eyes widened.

The same was true for High Priest Diat, who was next to the Emperor.

“Now you two...”

The high Priest Diat quickly closed his mouth, as if he belatedly realized that he had spoken without realizing it.

A look of disapproval was evident on his face as he immediately looked away.

Emperor Letitz quickly changed the subject before the war of nerves between Cedric and High Priest Diat could be rekindled.

“I just feel sorry for the woman to suddenly lose her husband, huh!”

Then he hurriedly turned his gaze towards Cedric and continued his speech.

“Oh, you’re also from the North, so you understand? Her name is Lobelia Bart. She is the only daughter of the Bart family, so I think her husband inherited the earldom.”

Cedric nodded his head at this.

"Yes. She is not a frequent woman in society, but she is well known.”

“Thank goodness. She is also from the Grand Duchy of Twins, so you will need to take good care of her.”

“Of course.”

Cedric's voice as he answered that way was extremely dry.

It was as if he had no interest whatsoever in Lobelia's residence.

As if my feelings were not wrong, Cedric immediately changed the topic.

“Anyway, what were the results of the investigation?”

Emperor Letitz was unable to hide his troubled expression in response to Cedric's question.

“They said there weren’t any traces of murder. I don’t know how he got up to the top floor, which was deserted, but because of that, there were no witnesses at the time of the incident.”

“...”

“In the end, we have no choice but to conclude that he was drunk and lost his footing. Some people say that Henry was very drunk.”

“Are you saying there wasn’t a single thing that seemed suspicious?”

In response to Cedric's question, Emperor Letitz touched his chin for a while and then slowly nodded his head.

“There is one thing... I don’t think it’s something worth attaching much significance to.”

He paused for a moment and then let out a small laugh as if he was dumbfounded.

“Straw.”

“...?”

“He was holding it in his hand like it was a very precious object. Where on earth did that come from in this imperial family? "

“...Straw?”

A new voice came out from between my lips, which had been silent the whole time.

Emperor Letitz blinked his wide-open eyes slowly.

“That’s right....”

At that moment, Cedric and I looked into each other's eyes without even thinking about who was first.

'If it's a straw... Could it be related to that straw doll?'

Cedric seemed to be thinking the same thing.

It was at that time when I was exchanging anxious glances with him.

“It’s ridiculous to even think about it again. What is a straw? I don’t know if it’s ‘that note’...”

Emperor Letitz, who had been muttering loudly, soon looked at Cedric again with an expression filled with frustration.

“According to those who spoke with Henry Bart in the banquet hall, he received a note from Viscount Levart and headed upstairs.”

“Then shouldn’t Viscount Levart have been on board the dragon?”

“I wish I could do that. But Sir Levart said he never sent such a note. His group, who were with him the whole time, also testified to his alibi.”

Emperor Letitz sighed softly.

“Moreover, the note was not found anywhere on the body.”

Then, the high  Priest Diat, who had been listening quietly until then, frowned slightly and added.

“Then why did Count Bart leave the banquet hall, telling such a lie? Why?”

“...There must have been circumstances in which the sender of the note could not be revealed.”

I was lost in thought the whole time and muttered to myself.

And suddenly, when I raised my head, my eyes met the eyes of three men who were all focused on me.

Just as he was blinking in embarrassment, Emperor Letitz slowly parted his lips.

“Tell me more, Grand Duchess.”

At the same time, the High Priest Diat's brow furrowed slightly.

It seemed that the Emperor was dissatisfied with the fact that he still called me ‘Grand Duchess’.

I paused slightly as I looked at him, but eventually continued speaking again.

“If you are someone who has to lie to those around you, even to the wife who was next to you... It can be broadly thought of into three categories.”

"Which is?"

“The person who was planning an impure plan with Count Bart that had to be hidden from the world, or the person who was threatening him, or... Count Bart’s affair partner.”

I lowered my eyes for a moment and then looked back at the Emperor.

“Or maybe all three.”

“... !”

Emperor's eyes slowly widened.

“What the Grand Duchess is saying is that there may be resentment or passion involved in Count Bart’s death?”

I shook my head.

“What I just said is simply about the sender of the note. We cannot be sure that the sender of that note killed Count Bart, Your Majesty.”

“...”

“Of course, given the current situation, the possibility of that happening is very high.”

As far as I know, the only person Henry would lie to those around him was Camilla Dmitry.

Moreover, now that the sender of the note had emerged as the biggest suspect, I couldn't continue to pretend I didn't know about their turbulent relationship.

I looked at the Emperor with a more serious face.

“Your Majesty, why don’t you investigate in earnest into Count Bart’s grudges and political affairs?”

Of course, if Camilla and Henry's affair is revealed, Lobelia will also be in the crosshairs.

She is most suspected in the affair case because, more than anyone else, she is the spouse who was betrayed in love.

'I feel sorry for Lobelia to think that way, but I can't help it.'

Moreover, she would not have wanted the deaths of Lobelia and Henry to end up as accidents without a proper investigation.

And it was the same for me.

The investigation into this incident had to continue somehow.

'Then you'll be able to find some clues about the straw of unknown origin.'

If that straw doll really haunted the imperial family, wouldn't that be a big problem?

Of course, on the contrary, it may not have anything to do with straw dolls...

'No matter what the conclusion is, there's no harm in checking it.'

That was when I gathered my thoughts and raised my head.

I immediately made eye contact with Emperor Letitz, who seemed to have been observing me the whole time.

“That’s pretty...”

He paused for a moment and closed his eyes with a dazed expression.

“That makes sense...”

Emperor Letiz nodded his head slowly a couple of times.

Then, after a while, he took note of his expression and spoke emphatically.

“I will order you to take the time to properly investigate Count Bart’s grudge relationship.”

Emperor Letiz immediately called his attendant and had him convey the imperial order.

As the attendant stepped out of the reception room, Emperor Letitz's eyes turned to me once again.

“...As I expected, you have changed a lot from before, Grand Duchess.”

As Emperor Letitz said that, he looked like he had seen me again.

The high Priest Diat also looks surprised.

Cedric just watched their faces with happy eyes.

I felt embarrassed and joked for no reason.

“Speaking of which, have rumors about me reached the capital?”

“No, it wasn’t like that.”

“Then how...?”

“It was Cedric who made me think that way.”

Emperor Letitz smiled faintly as he looked at me puzzled.

“Recently, whenever a story about you came up in front of me, Cedric’s expression and attitude changed completely.”

“Your Majesty, why even say that...!”

Cedric was uncharacteristically upset.

At the same time, the corners of Emperor Letitz's lips curved upward.

Cedric's exasperated appearance seemed to have encouraged Emperor Letitz's playfulness.

“Listen to me, Grand Duchess.”

Emperor Letitz said, leaning towards me.

“Just between us, actually, in the past, Cedric’s expression would suddenly turn cold when anything about you came up. Even I got chills.”

“Uh...Your Majesty, why bother telling me that..."

“No, Grand Duchess. Why don’t you just listen to what I have to say first?”

Emperor Letiz, who cut me off, gestured towards me.

When I followed the gesture and leaned forward, the Emperor continued speaking again.

“But these days it’s completely different.”

“...How?"

“He couldn’t help but smile when he heard your name or even a similar name. Even though he came from the conference room in a really bad mood.”

"Really?"

“Is that so? I guess I'm trying to hold back, but my eyes can't deceive me. Oh, whatever.”

Emperor Letitz giggled as he looked at Cedric's blushing expression.

“Cedric, is it true what His Majesty the Emperor said?”

"Ha..."

The moment when I had a hard time suppressing laughter while looking at Cedric, who couldn't deny it.

The suddenly heard high-pitched voice of High Priest Diat instantly chilled the surroundings.

“I think the former Grand Duke and his wife have become quite comfortable with each other.”

At the same time, several frozen faces turned straight to him.

However, High Priest Diat continued to speak with a blunt expression without even the slightest change in expression.

“I understand that it is rare for a divorced couple to live this comfortably with each other.”

“Look, Diat...”

Emperor Letitz called him as if admonishing him, but High Priest Diat seemed to have no intention of stopping.

“Moreover, aren’t you two people who haven’t even seen eye to eye since before the divorce?”

A new sound of air coming out of his lips came out.

“Are you finally getting used to acting like a married couple?”

A question that is clearly sarcastic.

The voices that came out one after another were also extremely cold.

“Otherwise, it couldn’t be....”

He paused for a moment, and his eyes were full of suspicion.

“It’s not like something ‘unholy’ happened between you two, like love blooming late, right?”

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