After I Died, My Husband Went Mad [EN]: Chapter 49

I Died and My Husband Went Crazy (49)

Meanwhile, unlike her “insane” husband, Ryan, the rather diligent and capable adjutant, was laying the groundwork to gradually reorganize Hillend Hall.

‘Still no word from Dwyer, huh?’

He frowned, looking at the mountain of paperwork piling up as quickly as he could process it. He would have been happy if even one of them had come from Dwyer, but the reality was that more than half of it was related to the work of Marquis Lims.

Tsk, he clicked his tongue and picked up his pen.

‘If I could just get in touch, I could start the plan to break the Marquis’ spirit.’

While Ryan was eagerly awaiting someone’s call, Marquis Lims was rampaging through Hillend Hall with great vigor.

Just like now.

“Get out of my way! Who dares block me!”

The office door, which should have been guarded by two knights, was wide open. Ryan ignored him and continued his work. But Marquis Lims didn’t hesitate. He strode across the office and slammed his cane on the floor in front of the desk.

“Sir Leon, I believe you have something urgent to discuss with me.”

It was Lims who was ignoring him. Ryan didn’t get involved with Marquis Lims, who deliberately called his name wrong, and silently moved his pen. The silent confrontation continued, and the butler, who had rushed over, begged Ryan with a desperate face.

‘Please, save me.’

“Haa.”

There was no other choice. There was no point in continuing to resist. He could at least confront him head-on, but the other servants would have to put up with all his antics.

“I apologize for making you wait. I couldn’t interrupt my urgent work.”

Eventually, Ryan put down his pen and bowed to Marquis Lims. But Marquis Lims only snorted. He didn’t like the fact that Ryan was sitting as if he were the owner and greeting him.

‘What can you do about it? The Duke clearly left me as his representative.’

Ryan deliberately smiled and led him to a seat.

“Please, sit down, Marquis. What brings you to this remote place?”

“Enough with the flattery. There are only two things you need to do: restore Flora’s allowance to its original amount and pay for all the expenses for this banquet.”

Lims, with his hand on his cane, warned him in a low voice. Ryan’s eyes narrowed, glanced away, and then looked back at Lims.

“I’m sorry. I can’t do that.”

Ryan didn’t mince his words. Lims raised his eyebrows at the firm refusal that left no room for argument.

“Are you refusing my order?”

“I’m refusing the Marquis’ request. Furthermore, I am using the power I received from the Duke in the right direction.”

Ryan clasped his hands together and hid his smiling mouth behind them. But Lims didn’t miss the way his usually stern eyes crinkled at the corners. His face hardened.

“Miss Flora is only a distant relative. Until now, we have treated her as a direct descendant in consideration of the dedication of her father, Sir Rash, to the Duke and his position.”

There was no emotion in his stiff voice. Ryan lowered his clasped hands and continued.

“For the same reason, Hillend Hall has no obligation to pay for the banquet. Do you want a banquet? Very well. We can lend you the venue. But Miss Flora herself will have to pay the price.”

“What, you…!”

Lims scoffed at the perfect logic that flowed out smoothly without any hesitation. It was at that moment that Ryan, who had risen from his seat, passed him and whispered in a voice only he could hear.

“If you care so much for your niece, then you should pay for the banquet yourself, Marquis.”

In fact, he knew that Flora was just a figurehead. The real instigator of this banquet was Lims – a ridiculous ploy to rally the nobles and bring them to his side. Ryan had seen through it and cut off the money supply.

“You bastard…”

“Then, if you’ll excuse me.”

Ryan bowed politely and quickly left the room.

“Damn it… If only I didn’t have that blasted letter of appointment!”

Bang, bang! The sound of the cane hitting the floor echoed through the hallway. Finally, he had landed a blow. Ryan felt the blockage in his chest disappear as he walked away. But the problems were still piling up. And the most troublesome of them all was his superior.

‘What on earth are you doing, Duke?’

He gazed out the window with weary eyes.

* * *

Strangely enough, Dihart was pondering the same question at that moment.

‘What am I doing here?’

Two days had passed since the day he introduced himself to the brown-haired Sebelia, or rather, the self-proclaimed ‘Bella’. During that time, Dihart stayed close to her, constantly monitoring her. He intended to question her immediately if she did anything suspicious.

But… contrary to his expectations, Bella was living an extremely peaceful, and in some ways, a very leisurely life: eating, taking walks, or reading books.

‘She’s acting like she’s on vacation at a villa.’

Sebelia hadn’t done anything else for the two days he had been watching her. She didn’t even pay much attention to him! Dihart was shocked by this.

‘Get a grip. You know that brazen face is an act.’

She had clearly met him in the square, but she shook his hand as if he were a stranger. Yes, people didn’t even know the inner thoughts of the people they had lived with their whole lives. He patted himself on the back, recalling the experiences of Gren and Rash.

But no matter how hard he tried to calm himself, he couldn’t help but feel embarrassed, especially in a situation like this.

“Ah, Dihart. Could you please take three steps back for a moment?”

“Like this?”

“Yes. Just stand there. If you’re tired, you can go up on that rock and rest.”

The problem was that he had followed her out of the house with a basket, unlike usual. He quickly followed her, thinking that she must be doing something suspicious, but she was just picking some strange weeds in the nearby forest.

“I knew it was black nailwort [a flowering plant]. I guess I couldn’t see it because it was hidden in the shadows.”

“…You have a good eye.”

A low voice echoed through the forest. Dihart folded his legs and sat down where he was standing. In an instant, his eye level was the same.

“But why are you picking herbs yourself? This should be the job of Wartz, the physician, or his assistant, Claude.”

Sebelia, who was carefully dusting off the dirt from the herbs, turned to him.

“I asked him to do it. I haven’t started working yet, so Wartz agreed to help me.”

“Are you planning to become a herbalist?”

For some reason, the words came out awkwardly. Dihart quickly waved his hand and continued in a kind tone.

“I didn’t mean that you wouldn’t be a good herbalist. As you know, going into the mountains is dangerous.”

“…I know. Don’t worry, I didn’t misunderstand. I’m not trying to become a herbalist. I just thought it would be useful to have some specialized knowledge to live on.”

When Sebelia confided in Wartz about her worries about what she should do and how she should make a living in the future, this was the method he suggested.

[How about helping me while you’re at the lab and learning about herbs? Specialized knowledge is valuable anywhere. You might be able to get a job at a pharmacy after you leave this place.]

So Sebelia helped Wartz from time to time, collecting and bringing him the herbs he needed. She wondered why Claude wasn’t doing this job, but she soon found out.

‘He’s away from his seat more often than I thought. Where is he going so often?’

Claude was an assistant who bought daily necessities and received letters from the post office for Wartz, who hated meeting people. But for some unknown reason, he suddenly left his seat for no reason. The reason was unknown, but…

“Hmm…….”

Sebelia carefully put the black nailwort in the basket and swept up her hair. Just then, a gust of wind blew, and she carefully closed her eyes. At that moment, the sunlight that shone through the dense leaves lightly landed on her, as if waiting.

Dihart held his breath and admired the scene. It was a sacred and breathtaking moment, as if he had stepped into a masterpiece.

Her cute bobbed hair that barely reached her shoulders, her slightly trembling eyelids, and her rose-colored lips and cheeks that sparkled even more in the sunlight… Dihart almost reached out to Sebelia, who looked like a fairy.

He wanted to capture her in that moment.

But fortunately, that didn’t happen. It was a good thing for Dihart, who had been scolding himself every night not to be charmed by her. But what followed did not have a good effect on him.

Suddenly, Sebelia, who had opened her eyes, shone her lake-like eyes and reached out to him.

“Gasp…!”

Momentarily thinking that she had found out what he was thinking, Dihart unknowingly backed away. And in that position, he fell backwards.

“……!”

Fortunately, he managed to avoid the worst-case scenario by touching the ground with his hands before he fell completely. But it was undeniable that he had been careless.

‘Damn it, damn it. Damn it…!’

His whole body, starting from the nape of his neck, turned red in an instant. The breath he exhaled felt hot due to the sudden rise in body temperature. Dihart could tell even without looking in the mirror how ridiculous he must look now.

“Ahem, ahem.”

When he barely cooled his flushed face and straightened his posture, Sebelia was staring at him with a blank face. Soon, a slight sense of guilt settled on her beautiful face.

“I’m sorry. I saw a windflower at Dihart’s feet, so I unconsciously…….”

“Ah, no. I was just clumsy and fell.”

Dihart clenched his teeth and took a deep breath to shake off his embarrassment. What am I really doing here? This isn’t why I came. A deep sense of self-disgust filled his chest.