After I Died, My Husband Went Mad [EN]: Chapter 50

It seemed I was indeed suffering from amnesia. Sebelia glanced at Dihart, who was following her around like a puppy, and tightened her grip on the basket. Dihart’s eyes crinkled as he smiled brightly at her when their eyes met.

‘Ugh.’

Sebelia hugged the basket tightly and turned her head away. *I need to get back quickly.* As she quickened her pace, the sound of footsteps behind her also quickened. It felt like she was being chased by a well-behaved wolf. In short, it was hard to tell if this was a good thing or a bad thing.

“Go slowly, Bella. You’ll fall.”

But one thing was certain: if this was acting, the Empire had definitely missed out on a great actor.

* * *

The man was affectionate. Suffocatingly so, constantly clinging to her, making her skin crawl. Sebelia retracted her earlier statement that she didn’t care whether he was acting or not.

‘I feel like I’m going to have a stomach cramp.’

It had been five days since she had introduced herself to Dihart, who had lost his memory. She was on the verge of developing a neurosis from the constant gaze that followed her everywhere. She almost thought it would be better to be looked at with contempt, like at Hillend Hall.

‘I can’t say harsh things to a patient who doesn’t even know who he is.’

Sebelia sighed deeply and placed a bookmark in the page she had been reading. She had come out to the garden today because she was annoyed that Dihart subtly came out to the living room whenever she read a book there.

If she felt like he had some sinister motive or was trying to harm her, she would push him away. But he had never tried to touch her carelessly, nor had he shown any strange signs.

He was just like a baby bird that had just hatched from its egg, curious about everything she did, trotting after her and meddling.

‘Every time, I get this strange urge.’

For some reason, every time she saw Dihart, she felt like raising her hand and smacking him on the forehead, which always surprised her.

‘Was I originally this kind of person?’

She sighed and inadvertently looked up. And she met Dihart’s eyes, who was looking down at her from the window.

“Gasp…!”

“Good morning, Bella. What’s that book?”

There was no time to protest. Dihart rested his chin on his hand, smiled softly, and blinked his golden eyes. He was confident even though he had been caught spying.

“I didn’t want to interrupt you because you seemed so focused. But today’s choice of location is unusual. You usually read in the living room.”

Sebelia blinked slowly at the flood of words and closed the book. A small furrow formed between her brows.

‘I really think he has amnesia.’

The Dihart she knew was not so slick. He was always sharp and sensitive. A twisted man who didn’t trust people and was always suspicious of his surroundings.

‘Even I, his wife, never managed to get into his heart.’

Even the thought that he was opening up to her at one point was a delusion. Sebelia realized that painful truth through the words he whispered to her on the day of betrayal.

[Don’t be too upset that you were caught. Everyone makes mistakes in life.]

[But… if you had remembered my words to know your place, this wouldn’t have happened.]

Where did the man who stared at her with cold eyes and wiped away her tears go? Did he really disappear, the one who stroked her cheek with rough hands and then completely pushed her away? As she thought that, a sigh naturally escaped her lips.

It wasn’t so much out of sadness, but because the personality that appeared after he disappeared was like that.

‘Should I just leave him like that? Should I help him recover his memory now?’

Sebelia’s blue eyes stared at him with an unknown emotion. But it might be better for him to completely forget about her. The three years of marriage were a wound to her, but they wouldn’t have been good memories for him either.

* * *

Meanwhile, Dihart was working hard to imitate Ilay, trying to figure out the true intentions of the fake Sebelia. He leaned against the window frame, looking down at Sebelia, and said in a soft voice.

“Do you concentrate better when you read in the garden?”

“It’s not a matter of concentration. It’s just, a matter of mood.”

“Hmm… a matter of mood. Then I should try reading a book in the garden too.”

“Pardon?”

“You know, I don’t know anything right now. Since I don’t remember anything, I should accumulate as many new experiences as possible.”

Sebelia’s eyes widened as Dihart stood up and spoke. He chuckled at her bewildered expression.

‘Yes, you must be flustered.’

But I won’t miss your every move. Dihart picked up a book at random from Claude’s bookshelf and headed to the garden.

‘What was she trying to do in the garden instead of the living room?’

Hmm. Dihart made a deep humming sound and quickly went down the stairs. Lately, she had been going outside the mansion, which was quite suspicious. She was probably trying to inform the person behind her that he had amnesia.

“Hoo…….”

Before opening the side door to the garden, Dihart looked at his face reflected in the window and managed his expression. Affectionate and kind. So that he could gain people’s favor like that damn Ilay.

“Okay.”

Dihart opened the door with a smile. In the distance, he saw Sebelia sitting on a bench, looking at him. He felt complicated emotions as he looked at her.

“Mr. Dihart.”

Looking at her blue eyes, which were gently shining in the morning sunlight, he tried to calm his rough breath. *Stay calm, don’t be fooled.* Think of the foolish tyrants in history. Remember the idiots who were backstabbed and destroyed by fake lovers brought in by sycophants [people who try to win favor from wealthy or influential people by flattering them].

‘Sebelia is buried in Hillend Hall. I personally… kissed her forehead and placed flowers on her chest.’

The moment Sebelia’s coffin was buried in the ground, the boiling blood instantly cooled. He felt a jolt, as if he had fallen into cold water, and goosebumps ran all over his body.

Dihart bowed to Sebelia, who was looking at him, and asked kindly.

“May I sit next to you?”

And he shuddered at the sight of himself.

He knew that his personality was not very good. And he had never tried to gain someone’s favor or get close to someone in his life. So he chose to imitate Ilay, who was known to be affable [friendly and easy to approach].

But this plan had a fatal flaw.

It was none other than Dihart’s appearance. Unlike Ilay, who was a likable type who seemed to adapt well even if he was thrown into a mountain village, he was a sophisticated and edgy handsome man. Thanks to that, all the actions that Dihart took, thinking he was being considerate, exuded a decadent [characterized by or reflecting a state of moral or cultural decline] scent. He himself was not aware of it at all.

“Ah… yes. Please sit here. I’ll move over. I was just about to get up because I was feeling a bit chilly.”

Sebelia, who had been suddenly seduced from the morning, got up from her seat with a dazed face. She had lived in the mansion for over twenty years and had a political marriage with Dihart, so she was not immune to this situation. Her husband had never done anything to increase her immunity.

And the person responsible shamelessly blocked Sebelia’s path, pretending to be sulky.

“You don’t have to make up excuses for me. I don’t want to take Bella’s seat. Let’s sit together. Like this…. There, now we can read together nicely.”

Dihart sat Sebelia back in her seat. And he sat next to her, leaving only a hand’s breadth of space between them. Sebelia was confused by the natural flow.

‘…What is this?’

And while she was off guard, Dihart launched an attack. He casually asked, looking to see if there was anything stuck between the pages of the book she was holding.

“The book is quite thick. Did Mr. Watz lend it to you?”

“Ah, yes. But it will be boring for Mr. Dihart to read. It’s about herbs.”

“Hmm…. So Bella thinks I’m not interested in that kind of book.”

Sebelia flinched at the meaningful words. When she turned her head, Dihart was looking at her with an interesting look. Sebelia swallowed hard and looked back at him.

The two people’s eyes intertwined in the air. Exploration and wariness thickly stained the fresh morning air.

And a voice rang out, breaking the silence.

“What are you two doing there?”

Claude appeared with a basket full of laundry. His furrowed brow looked very displeased. He looked back and forth between Dihart and Sebelia and put the basket on the ground. Then he gestured to Dihart.

“It’s good to gain knowledge, but you should also learn how to do housework. Come here.”

“…….”

“Moving your body will help you remember things you didn’t have. Are you ignoring the assistant doctor’s words now?”

Claude crossed his arms and scolded him with a stern face. Annoyance flickered across Dihart’s smiling face and disappeared. As the confrontation continued, Sebelia suddenly stood up from her seat.

“I’ll help you.”

“No, Bella, you go inside and rest.”

“Let’s do it together.”

As Claude tried to stop her with a serious face, Dihart quickly followed. Two golden eyes of different saturation stared intensely at each other. *Tsk.* Dihart clearly witnessed Claude clicking his tongue.

“I’ll do the heavy lifting. You two lead the way.”

Dihart lifted the basket full of laundry and blocked Claude’s refusal. Sebelia hesitated and nodded. Dihart carefully looked at the cover of the book she was reading and followed the two.

‘This won’t do.’

Getting closer was good, but she was still very wary. Well, anyone would be flustered if the target of the operation suddenly lost their memory. Until new instructions are given, she will act passively.

Dihart felt the need for a new operation while hanging laundry according to Claude’s instructions. He felt that he had to shake her up more actively to find out her identity in order to relieve this frustration.

It was the moment when he threw the fluttering duvet cover over the clothesline.

“Bella!”

Claude’s scream echoed through the yard. The peaceful air froze in an instant. Dihart turned his head. Through the white cloths, he saw Sebelia slowly collapsing.

The next moment, he was holding Sebelia in his arms. When he looked up, he saw clothes tangled and messed up on the floor. Claude was shouting something towards somewhere.

But he couldn’t hear anything.