Don’T Get Caught By Your Husband! [EN]: Chapter 93

#93. Uninvited Guest (2)

2024.05.28.

Escalion dropped the unconscious man to the floor.

At first glance, his expression seemed unchanged, but the sudden clenching of his jaw muscles betrayed his anger.

“Wh-Who is that person?”

Belladonna asked, her voice thin and trembling.

“Sorry for waking you when you were sleeping soundly.”

“That’s not the problem right now…”

Instead of answering, Escalion began to search the man’s body on the floor.

“D-Did he die?”

Again, there was no answer.

Belladonna pulled the blanket tighter around herself.

She was terrified that a stranger had entered Gribalta’s castle in the middle of the night, and even more so that he appeared to have died in their bedroom with Escalion.

Escalion, noticing Belladonna trembling with fear, straightened up and headed towards the door.

“D-Don’t go.”

Belladonna cried out softly, afraid of being left alone with the corpse.

Escalion turned to her, a look of concern on his face.

Belladonna quickly threw off the blanket and tried to get out of bed.

She wanted to go to him, but her legs gave way, and she collapsed.

“Bella!”

Escalion rushed to her and scooped her up in his arms.

He kissed the top of Belladonna’s head and held her tightly.

“I wasn’t going to leave you. I was going to call someone to take him away. So don’t worry.”

“I’m scared…”

“I’m sorry.”

His steps, heading towards the door with Belladonna in his arms, halted. At the doorway, his golden eyes seemed to darken with coldness.

Belladonna looked up at him, her face etched with anxiety. Why, why…?

“I think there’s one more.”

“…!”

Another assassin?

A chill ran down Belladonna’s spine.

Before she could decide whether to get out of his arms or hide in the room, Escalion roughly flung the door open.

Down the dark hallway, they heard the sound of someone running away quickly.

“Damn it…! Lock the castle gates immediately and summon the Knights!”

Escalion shouted loudly into the dark and quiet castle.

Soon, lights began to flicker on from the lower floors, and the servants, startled by the midnight commotion, woke up and began to murmur.

* * *

“Where the hell did that rat hide?”

Graham scratched the back of his head as he entered the drawing room.

Following him, Hazel hurried in from the opposite side and said,

“Vice-Captain, I don’t think he’s here.”

Belladonna was sitting in a comfortable chair in the drawing room, wrapped in a thick blanket.

Cindy brought her a cup of hot tea.

She didn’t particularly want to drink it, but Belladonna silently accepted it, needing something warm to hold.

“What did they find on his body?”

“There was no special evidence.”

“Nothing? Damn it, what the hell is going on…?”

Graham raised a hand and rubbed his troubled face.

Belladonna, still feeling the tremors in her body, looked up at them with an anxious expression.

“Madam, you must have been very surprised. Don’t worry. We will quickly find the culprit and get rid of them.”

Hazel approached her with a forced smile.

What on earth is going on…

Still feeling like she was in a dream, Belladonna pulled the blanket tighter around her.

At that moment, Escalion, his face a mask of fury, strode into the drawing room through the open door.

“Oh, Captain…”

Before Hazel could finish her greeting, Escalion landed a heavy punch on Graham, who was standing in the middle of the drawing room.

Graham, caught completely off guard, flew backward and crashed into the wall.

The impact sent a nearby table tumbling over, and objects crashed to the floor with a loud noise.

“Kyaa…!”

“Captain! What are you doing!”

The startled maids screamed, and Hazel hurriedly rushed to stop Escalion.

“Kuhuk…”

Graham, lying on the floor, frowned and rubbed his jaw.

Escalion, looking down at him, demanded with fierce eyes,

“How the hell are you managing the security of the castle that two unidentified people broke in in the middle of the night? And into the lord’s bedroom, of all places?”

“…”

“If I hadn’t noticed, Bella and I could have been killed. The lord and lady of Gribalta could have been killed in their sleep!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Graham lowered his head and muttered.

Hazel stepped in front of Escalion, trying to calm him down.

“Captain…! Stop it! I know you’re very angry, but this is something our knights couldn’t have prevented. We searched every inch, but there were no signs of forced entry.”

“Then what the hell is it?”

“T-That’s…”

“Then are you saying they fell from the sky or sprang from the ground? Are you just making flimsy excuses because you didn’t search properly?”

Escalion, still unable to contain his anger, took a step towards Hazel, his intensity sharp and intimidating.

Hazel, her face showing her fear, slowly backed away.

“Besides, you haven’t found the one who ran away yet. What the hell are you guys good at?”

“…I’m sorry.”

At his words, Hazel also lowered her head.

Belladonna, who had been quietly observing the scene, bit her lower lip and stood up.

In this situation, it couldn’t be said that the knights, who were responsible for protecting the castle, were entirely blameless.

However, the intruders had left no trace, and nothing suspicious had been found on the body of the assassin Escalion had killed.

Besides, this kind of internal conflict wasn’t helpful at this moment.

“…”

Belladonna approached the furious Escalion and gently took his arm.

Escalion turned to her, breathing heavily.

The emotions of relief, fear, regret, and apology were all evident on his face as he met her eyes.

“Bella, I really…”

“…”

“If I hadn’t woken up in time, if the person he targeted first wasn’t me but you…”

Belladonna shook her head.

That hadn’t happened, and now, rather than turning on each other, finding those responsible was the top priority.

Belladonna calmed Escalion, turned around, and gestured for paper and a pen.

[Please call a magician.]

“Why a magician all of a sudden?”

Escalion frowned as he read the words.

At the unexpected request, Graham, who was still sitting on the floor, and Hazel, who was standing in front of him, also turned their heads in surprise.

[You said there were no signs of intrusion, right? I have something in mind.]

“What?”

Belladonna moved the pen with a calm expression.

[Please ask for a magician who specializes in teleportation magic.]

* * *

The magician, who had been summoned to Gribalta Castle early in the morning, adjusted his thick glasses and swallowed nervously.

The lord, standing in front of him with an imposing physique, seemed very displeased, making him even more anxious.

“Ah, good morning, Lord.”

“Thank you for coming so early.”

“Ah, no. We are just people who move for money…”

The magician trailed off, rolling his eyes.

At that moment, his gaze fell upon the menacing figures, and he noticed a small woman sitting quietly in one corner.

“Oh? That person is…”

As soon as he recognized Astanya’s Saintess [a holy figure in the Astanya religion], a dark shadow blocked his view.

“Oh…”

“I heard that you can create teleportation portals not only in designated places but also in other locations.”

The magician raised his head high and looked up at Escalion, who was blocking his path. Wh-What is this pressure…?

The magician swallowed hard again and slowly opened his mouth.

Throughout the Elinus Empire, there were designated locations with concentrated magical energy where public and private portals could be installed.

The client seemed to be curious about that.

“Ah… Yes. Are you asking if it is possible to create a portal that can secretly move into the castle without passing through the gates? It is possible, but only in theory.”

“What do you mean?”

“As you know, installing teleportation portals in places other than those authorized is strictly prohibited by the Elinus Empire Law. In addition, it requires quite complex formulas and consumes a lot of magical power because you’re installing a portal in a new place where there is nothing, rather than in a magical pathway that is already established. Therefore, it is impossible for an ordinary magician to even attempt it. There is no reason to do so.”

He began to explain what he knew in the calmest voice he could muster.

“Especially since Gribalta is a place where magical power doesn’t flow well due to its terrain, it is impossible to secretly install a teleportation portal in a place like this without anyone knowing…”

The magician trailed off, looking at the rugged terrain visible through the window.

Escalion, looking down at him, spoke again.

“So, are you saying it’s impossible?”

“Ah, yes. But a high-level magician might be able to… Ah, no. It’s impossible!”

“High-level magician?”

Escalion frowned and repeated the magician’s words, latching onto the phrase that had slipped out.

The magician hurriedly waved his hands and answered.

“Ah…! I misspoke. The magician who can install a portal in this kind of terrain is practically the Magic Tower Lord [the leader of the Magic Tower, a powerful organization of mages]. So you can just consider it impossible. Besides, it would be difficult for them to create a round-trip portal. Maybe only a one-way trip, if even that…”

The magician, muttering to himself, continued to speak.

“Hah, but why would such people bother to create a teleportation portal inside the castle? There is a perfectly good portal installation space not far from the castle gate! The one I used to come here!”

Escalion crossed his arms and glanced back at Graham and Hazel.

When they nodded slightly, he turned back to the magician and asked again.

“Where is the Magic Tower Lord currently?”

“Yes? E-Eh… Are you suspecting the Magic Tower Lord right now? He is not so free as to concern himself with such trivial matters!”

“Just answer the question.”

The magician flinched and stammered,

“W-Well, the Saintess over there would know better than me, wouldn’t she?”

“What?”

At the magician’s words, everyone’s eyes turned to Belladonna.

Belladonna felt a wave of dizziness and let out a small sigh.

I thought so…

Soon, the magician blurted out in a cheerful voice.

“Oh? Didn’t everyone know? Isn’t he in the Vatican [the headquarters of the Catholic Church]? He is very close to the current Pope!”

Escalion dropped the unconscious man to the floor.

Although his expression seemed unchanged at first glance, the twitching muscles in his jaw revealed his immense anger.

“W-Who is that person?”

Belladonna asked in a thin, trembling voice.

“Sorry for waking you when you were sleeping so soundly.”

“That’s not the point right now…”

Instead of answering, Escalion began to search the man’s body on the floor.

“D-Did he die?”

Again, there was no response.

Belladonna pulled the blanket closer to herself, clutching it tightly.

She was terrified by the fact that a stranger had entered Gribalta’s castle in the middle of the night, into the marital bedroom she shared with Escalion, and also by the fact that he seemed to have just lost his life.

Seeing Belladonna trembling with fear, Escalion straightened up and walked towards the door.

“D-Don’t go.”

Belladonna cried out in a small voice, startled at the thought of being left alone with the corpse.

Escalion turned to look at her, a troubled look on his face.

Belladonna quickly lifted the blanket and stepped out of the bed.

She wanted to go to him, but her legs gave way and she collapsed to the floor.

“Bella!”

Escalion rushed to her and picked her up.

He kissed the top of Belladonna’s head and hugged her tightly.

“I wasn’t going to leave. I was going to call someone to take you away. So don’t worry.”

“I’m scared…”

“I’m sorry.”

Holding Belladonna, he stopped heading towards the door. At the doorway, his golden eyes seemed to turn cold.

Belladonna looked up at him with an anxious expression. Why, why?

“It seems like there’s one more.”

“……!”

Another assassin?

Goosebumps rose on Belladonna’s back.

Before she could decide whether to get out of his arms or hide in the room, Escalion roughly opened the door.

At the end of the dark hallway, the sound of someone running away quickly could be heard.

“Damn it… Immediately lock the castle gates and summon the Knights!”

Escalion shouted loudly into the dark and quiet castle.

Soon, lights began to turn on from the lower floors, and servants, startled by the midnight commotion, woke up and began to murmur.

* * *

“Where the hell is that rat hiding?”

Graham scratched the back of his head as he entered the drawing-room.

Following him, Hazel came running from the opposite side and said,

“Vice-Captain, I don’t think he’s here.”

Belladonna was sitting in a comfortable chair in the drawing-room, wrapped in a thick blanket.

Cindy brought her a hot cup of tea.

She didn’t particularly want to drink it, but Belladonna silently accepted it, needing something warm.

“What did they find on his body?”

“There was no special evidence.”

“Nothing? Damn it, what the hell is going on…”

Graham raised a hand and ran it through his troubled face.

Belladonna, still feeling her body tremble, looked up at them with an anxious expression.

“Madam, you must have been very surprised? Don’t worry. We will quickly find the culprit and get rid of them.”

Hazel approached her with a forced smile, noticing her condition.

What on earth is going on…

Still feeling like she was dreaming, Belladonna pulled the blanket closer to herself.

At that moment, Escalion, looking very angry, strode into the drawing-room through the open door.

“Oh, Captain…”

Before Hazel could finish her greeting, Escalion threw a heavy punch at Graham, who was standing in the middle of the drawing-room.

Graham, who had been standing defenseless, flew backward and crashed into the wall.

As he collided, a nearby table fell over and items fell to the floor, making a loud noise.

“Kyaa… !”

The startled maids screamed, and Hazel hurriedly ran to stop Escalion.

“Kuhuk…”

Graham, lying on the floor, frowned and rubbed his jaw.

Escalion, looking down at him, asked with a fierce look in his eyes.

“How the hell are you managing the security of the castle that two unidentified people broke in the middle of the night? And into the lord’s bedroom, of all places?”

“……”

“If I hadn’t noticed, Bella and I would have been killed. The lord and lady of Gribalta could have been killed overnight!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Graham lowered his head and muttered.

Hazel blocked Escalion’s view, who was still agitated, and tried to calm him down.

“Captain…! Please stop! I know you’re very angry, but this is something our knights couldn’t have helped. We searched every nook and cranny, but there were no signs of physical intrusion.”

“Then what the hell is it?”

“T-That’s…”

“So, are you saying they fell from the sky or sprang from the ground? Are you just making flimsy excuses because you didn’t search properly?”

Escalion, still unable to calm his anger, took a step towards Hazel with a sharp intensity.

Hazel, with a frightened look on her face, slowly backed away.

“Besides, you haven’t found the one who ran away yet. What the hell can you guys do properly?”

“…I’m sorry.”

At his words, Hazel also lowered her head.

Belladonna, who had been quietly watching them, bit her lower lip and stood up.

In this case, it couldn’t be said that the knights, who were responsible for protecting the castle, were entirely without fault.

However, the intruders had left no traces, and nothing special could be found on the body of the person Escalion had killed.

Moreover, this kind of internal division was not helpful at this moment.

“……”

Belladonna approached the angry Escalion and grabbed his arm.

Escalion turned to look at her, breathing heavily.

The emotions of relief, fear, regret, and apology quickly surfaced on his face as he turned his head to meet her eyes.

“Bella, I really…”

“……”

“If I hadn’t woken up in time, if the person he targeted first wasn’t me but you…”

Belladonna shook her head.

That didn’t happen, and right now, finding those behind them was more urgent than being angry at each other.

Belladonna, having calmed Escalion down, turned and found paper and a pen.

[Please call a magician.]

“Why a magician all of a sudden?”

Escalion asked, frowning as he read the words.

At the unexpected words, Graham, who was sitting on the floor, and Hazel, who was standing in front of him, also turned their heads.

[You said there were no signs of intrusion, right? I have a hunch.]

“What?”

Belladonna moved the pen with a calm face.

[Please, a magician who specializes in teleportation magic.]

* * *

The magician, who had been summoned to Gribalta Castle early in the morning, adjusted his thick glasses and swallowed hard.

The lord standing in front of him, with his enormous physique, seemed very displeased, which made him nervous.

“Ah, good morning, Lord.”

“Thank you for coming so early.”

“Ah, no. We are just people who move for money…”

The magician trailed off, rolling his eyes.

At that moment, as his gaze fell upon the menacing and frightening figures, he noticed a small woman sitting in one corner.

“Oh? That person is…”

Recognizing the Saintess of Astanya, a dark shadow blocked his path.

“Uh…”

“I heard that you can create teleportation portals not only in designated places but also in places that are not.”

The magician raised his head high and looked up at Escalion, who was blocking his path. What, what is this pressure…?

The magician swallowed hard again and slowly opened his mouth.

Throughout the Elinus Empire, there were designated locations where magical power flowed, allowing for the installation of public or private portals.

The client seemed to be curious about that.

“Ah… Yes. Are you asking if it’s possible to create a portal that can secretly move into the castle without passing through the gates? It’s possible, but only in theory.”

“What do you mean?”

“As you know, installing teleportation portals in places other than those authorized is strictly prohibited by Elinus Empire law. In addition, installing a portal in a new place where there is no original flow of magical power requires quite complex formulas and consumes a lot of magical power. Therefore, it is impossible for ordinary magicians to even attempt it. There’s no reason to do so.”

He began to explain what he knew in the calmest voice possible.

“Especially since magical power does not flow well in Gribalta due to its terrain, it is impossible to secretly install a teleportation portal in a place other than the ones already made in such a place…”

The magician trailed off, looking at the rough terrain visible through the window.

Escalion, who had been looking down at him, opened his mouth again.

“So, are you saying it’s impossible?”

“Ah, yes. But a high-level magician might be able to… Ah, no. It’s impossible!”

“A high-level magician?”

Escalion frowned and asked back at the magician’s words that had slipped out.

The magician hurriedly waved his hands and replied.

“Ah…! I misspoke. The only magician who can install a portal in this kind of terrain is practically the Magic Tower Lord. So you can just consider it impossible. Besides, it would be difficult for them to create a round-trip portal. Maybe only once, if possible…”

The magician, who had been muttering to himself, continued to speak.

“But why would such people bother to create a teleportation portal inside the castle? There is a perfectly good portal installation space not far from the castle gate! The one I used to come here!”

Escalion crossed his arms and glanced back at Graham and Hazel.

When they nodded slightly, he turned back to the magician and asked again.

“Where is the Magic Tower Lord currently?”

“Yes? E-Eh… Are you suspecting the Magic Tower Lord right now? He is not so free as to concern himself with such trivial matters!”

“Just answer the question.”

The magician flinched and stammered,

“W-Well, the Saintess over there would know better than me, wouldn’t she?”

“What?”

At the magician’s words, everyone’s eyes turned to Belladonna.

Belladonna felt a wave of dizziness and let out a small sigh.

I thought so…

Soon, the magician blurted out in a cheerful voice.

“Oh? Didn’t everyone know? Isn’t he in the Vatican [the headquarters of the Catholic Church]? He is very close to the current Pope!”