After I Died, My Husband Went Mad [EN]: Chapter 12

Rumors of ominous events at the Inverness ducal residence were slowly leaking out.

Initially, everyone worried about the Duke’s family. They hoped for the safety of those who were dearly loved by the Northerners. However, once it became known that the protagonist of the rumors was the brazen Duchess, people’s attitudes changed completely.

“I knew it would come to this. There’s no way the first Duchess would let such a woman get away with it.”

“It’s less unsightly to die cursed now. Isn’t an honorable death better than being beheaded as a spy?”

Glen spent each day with a heart elated by the increasingly vicious rumors. She was worried about her husband not returning, but it was okay because things were working out well in a different direction.

Glen stroked her daughter’s hair and said in a languid voice.

“God loves those who work hard, they say. It’s really true.”

“Yes?”

Flora, who was eating fruit in her arms, raised her eyes as if puzzled.

“What did you say?”

“It’s nothing. I was just saying that I’m glad the harm to our family is disappearing like this.”

Glen’s gaze, which trailed off, turned to the drawer.

There, a letter intended for a contract killer lay dormant. In fact, Glen was planning to murder Sebelia disguised as a suicide.

The preparations were all finished. If she just sent a letter, Sebelia would immediately become the Duchess who committed suicide out of despair from the terrible rumors.

‘But it’s cleaner for her to go crazy from the curse and commit suicide.’

There was no need to dirty her own hands, so this was definitely more advantageous. Smiling with satisfaction, she made eye contact with Flora and suddenly clutched her head, complaining of pain.

“But I keep feeling uneasy.”

“What are you so anxious about, Mother? I’m here.”

Flora, who was in her arms, looked up and met her eyes. Glen managed to smile at the sight of her puffing out her cheeks as if acting cute.

“You’re not worried about that curse, are you? You said you don’t believe in ghosts, Mother.”

“Ah.”

The curse, yes. She said that the woman could become a ghost and kill other people.

Glen frowned at the bizarre story, even after hearing it again.

Even now, the servants she sent to monitor Sebelia’s condition, hoping she would die soon, were often found passed out.

They complained about seeing ghosts in broad daylight, but when Glen went to the detached house, nothing like that happened.

‘Honestly, Northerners are too superstitious.’

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to prepare. If it only concerned herself, she could just ignore it, but…….

“Don’t worry, Mother. That bastard will never harm us.”

Flora wrapped her arms around Glen’s waist and snuggled into her arms. Glen looked down at her lovely daughter and made a decision. For her daughter’s sake, there were times when she had to believe even such nonsense.

Glen took Flora’s hand and opened her mouth.

“Now that I think about it, I heard that a skilled shaman [a person believed to be able to contact the spirit world] lives not far from here.”

“Yes?”

“He’s especially knowledgeable about curses….”

She said slyly, lightly pinching Flora’s cheek.

“I know you’re still afraid of the curse, baby. You’re losing sleep every night, worried that that vicious woman will drag you away, aren’t you?”

“Th, that’s.”

Flora’s face flushed with embarrassment. Glen burst into laughter.

“Don’t worry. I’ve already called the shaman. He will isolate the area around the detached house with a barrier and prevent the curse from leaking out.”

Glen kissed Flora on the forehead and said.

“You’ll be safe forever.”

“Mother…….”

“So just wait a little longer. I’ll make you the mistress of Inverness.”

Flora was filled with emotion.

“Thank you.”

She hugged her mother tightly, dreaming of the day she would marry Diheart.

* * *

Meanwhile, Denisa successfully sold the jewels that Sebelia had received as dowry and got the money in her hands.

She had to sell them urgently in a distant city through a broker, so she had to sell them for less than the original price, but Sebelia was satisfied, saying that was enough.

“You’re too selfless, Miss. That’s the problem.”

Denisa sighed as she prepared the meal. Was it because she had always had to give up while living? Sebelia was a child who didn’t desire anything from a young age. It broke her heart to see resignation and abandonment in that young child’s eyes. So she unconsciously took the hand of the timid child.

Daring to sympathize with the young lady, even though she was just a new maid.

‘Everyone told me I was crazy back then.’

Denisa recalled the past and slowly poured the soup into the warmed bowl.

In the end, she even heard from her parents that she was ruining her future because of a child from a Count family. But she didn’t regret it.

‘Sebelia is a child who deserves to be loved.’

She still felt the same way. There was no child in the world who deserved to be despised just because they were illegitimate.

Denisa picked up the tray and carefully headed to Sebelia’s room. She was still lying in bed. Denisa chuckled at the sight of her pulling the blanket up to her face.

“You haven’t been waking up on time since you came to the detached house. Have you suddenly turned back into a child?”

Denisa said teasingly and yanked the blanket off. And she collapsed on the spot.

“Oh my!”

Pressing down on her startled heart, she looked closely and saw that it was Velita lying there.

“Oh my, oh my.”

Soon, Denisa’s eyes flashed with anger.

“Miss……!”

“Denisa.”

Sebelia appeared, drying her hair with a towel as if she had just finished washing.

“What’s wrong? Ah.”

Her gaze turned to Velita lying in bed. Denisa crossed her arms, looking at Sebelia, who was giving an awkward smile, with stern eyes.

“……There’s a story behind it.”

“What kind of amazing story is it that she’s lying in Miss’s bed?”

At Denisa’s sarcastic words, Sebelia hesitated and carefully sat down. The steaming soup was giving off a delicious smell.

She was about to pick up a spoon, but she had to open her mouth first because of Denisa’s glare.

“I have to leave far away after making a fake corpse. I had to see if the illusion was okay even from a distance.”

The illusion that Sebelia had created had never left her side until now.

That was the blind spot that Sebelia realized before the big event.

“Fortunately, it seems to be fine.”

“You should have told me in advance. I almost had a heart attack.”

“I’m sorry,” Sebelia apologized to Denisa and took a bite of the potato soup. Then, a fluffy and pleasant texture filled her mouth.

It was a taste that warmed the inside of her heart.

“But…… it’s over now, Denisa.”

Sebelia continued, looking at the window where the sunlight was coming in with a soft smile.

“Finally, I’m getting out of this damn mansion.”

Her blue eyes shimmered faintly as they caught the sunlight.

* * *

The outskirts of the city, where you couldn’t see an inch ahead, were covered in a damp, fishy smell.

‘The smell is deadly.’

It was definitely the smell of blood. Diheart frowned, kept his distance, and followed Rush.

How on earth was this damn road made? It split into several branches in the middle, and he almost lost Rush. After chasing him for a long time, Rush suddenly disappeared inside a fence with an impressive thick iron gate. Diheart frowned and looked at the high fence.

“There’s a gatekeeper inside, or…….”

At that moment, Diheart’s eyes flashed as he examined the gate.

“Oh ho.”

His fingertips brushed the edge of the iron gate. Then, with a subtle vibration, a strange pattern appeared on the black iron gate.

“It’s black iron with magic on it.”

Then there’s no need to worry.

He smiled and suddenly raised his arm. Lion flinched and stepped back.

Kwaang-!

It was a momentary event. White thorns covered in gold cut through the air, and the iron gate was split in two.

Koo-oong…….

Diheart, who kicked the two-piece iron gate with his foot, stepped into the fence with a nonchalant face. Lion followed him, swallowing a sigh.

“What’s going on?”

“It’s at the entrance. Move!”

The sound of people moving noisily could be heard from afar. They must be the dirty rats guarding this place.

“We need to clean up quickly before the commotion gets bigger.”

White light filled the inside of his golden eyes. Lion clung to the fence even more desperately.

‘I know you want to go back as soon as possible, but isn’t this too much?’

His plea rose to the tip of his throat, but it was not conveyed. Soon, the noise that had been deafening Diheart’s ears turned to silence.

“Ah, it’s much easier to hear now. Look at this.”

Diheart smiled, shaking off the blood on his sword by turning his wrist. When he closed and opened his eyes, which were stained with white light, he could hear Rush’s voice inside the building.

“……Thank you for your performance… great skill……. As soon as possible…….”

“…Then……. Right next……. On standby….”

“There’s still no contact from my wife…….”

Diheart, who was concentrating on the sound with his eyes closed, suddenly dropped his head.

“Ha……. Haha.”

An empty laugh fell on the corpse. He tried to understand what he had just heard.

‘Her scandal has spread throughout the empire? An assassin is on standby to disguise her death as a suicide?’

Did I hear that right? Diheart, who buried his face in his hands, let out a painful groan. A streak of pure white light began to crackle from his spine.

‘How dare you, how dare you, how dare you…….’

A terrible feeling seeped into his body. It seeped into his blood and made his heart pound.

“……Lion.”

Crazy eyes flashed between his fingers. Lion was already kneeling before him.

“Go to the North right now. Go and get my wife to a safe place.”

An eerie voice echoed through the blood-stained hallway.

“Don’t let anyone know your whereabouts, not even… Aunt and the butler, and proceed quickly.”

Now that Rush had stabbed him in the back, he couldn’t trust anyone. Diheart took his eyes off Lion, who was retreating with precision, and threw away his blood-stained gloves.

‘Sebelia……, please be safe.’

At this time, he could not know. Sebelia had already left the mansion.