Don’T Get Caught By Your Husband! [EN]: Chapter 114

#Episode 114. Because I’ll Always Be With You

2024.06.04.

Graham responded to Hazel.

“The Pope is definitely dead, and Cardinal Nicholas was found nearby. The knights caught him trying to sneak back into the underground passage.”

“He’s a coward to the end.”

“The Master of the Magic Tower was also arrested. Apparently, he not only helped the Pope escape but also confessed to illegally invading Gribalta by creating a portal some time ago.”

“Well done! But… what exactly was the relationship between the Master of the Magic Tower and the Pope?”

At Hazel’s question, Graham shrugged.

“How would I know? Some say the Pope must have had some hold over him to help that much. I can’t possibly know the details of what goes on with those higher-ups.”

Graham’s expression shifted, and he looked at Belladona with concern.

He swallowed hard, hesitant to speak.

“Madam…”

Hazel, sensing what Graham was about to say, also looked at Belladona with a troubled expression.

Astarnea had descended into chaos overnight.

The Pope, once respected and loved by the citizens of the Elinus Empire, was revealed to have committed immoral acts against the commoners and died. The Saintess, the only person who could maintain order within the Papal States, was the one who killed him.

Moreover, the Saintess had lost her divine power and regained her voice….

It wasn’t hard to imagine the chaos that would engulf Astarnea, or rather, the entire Elinus Empire, when day broke.

“Madam… well…”

“Is she being handed over to the court?” Belladona asked, cutting off Graham, who couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

Graham bit his lip, unable to give a clear answer.

“The Knight Commander is waiting in the lobby.”

“Let’s go, then.”

Belladona rose from her seat.

A heavy sense of fatigue and dizziness washed over her.

Belladona, about to leave the reception room, stopped and looked at Graham.

“Before that, I want to see Escalión.”

* * *

Belladona pushed open the heavy door.

Escalión was lying on a sickbed temporarily set up in the Papal States.

His arm, greatly swollen, and his upper body, wrapped tightly in white bandages, made him look unfamiliar.

He seemed to be in a deep sleep, or so still that he might never wake up again.

Belladona closed the door tightly behind her, suppressed her tears, and approached the bed. She pulled out a chair, sat down carefully, and quietly looked at Escalión, slowly reaching out to him.

Belladona’s hands were also thickly bandaged.

Holding the candlestick for so long had caused it to dig into her skin, resulting in minor injuries, but strangely, she felt no pain.

“…”

When she placed her hand on Escalión’s bandage, she could still feel the swelling.

The Imperial Knights were still investigating what drugs the Pope had injected into the commoners and Escalión.

However, the documents that the Pope had hastily hidden or burned while fleeing hadn’t been recovered.

‘The Pope…’

Belladona, thinking of the Pope, closed her eyes tightly and shook her head violently.

If she stopped thinking, even for a moment, the heavy sensation that had struck her fingertips would dominate her mind.

She felt as if the pungent smell that had filled the chapel after the Pope fell was engulfing her from all directions.

“Haa…”

Belladona gasped for breath.

‘Did I really…? Did I kill the Pope with my own hands…?’

Even though she knew she had no choice, she felt endless guilt for what she had done.

Her hand, placed on Escalión’s body, trembled uncontrollably.

At that moment, a warm, large hand covered hers.

“Bella.”

Surprised, she turned her head and saw Escalión, his eyes open, staring at her. His golden eyes were clear.

“Escalión? You’re awake?”

“I had no choice but to wake up when you were trembling so much.”

Escalión raised his hand and brushed her hair back.

Belladona suppressed her tears and rubbed her face against his hand.

“I thought you would never wake up again…”

“Don’t say such terrible things.”

“Is your body okay? Is anything uncomfortable or painful?”

Belladona, who had been leaning on his hand, sat up and scanned his body.

As her hands touched him, Escalión groaned.

“I don’t know if it hurts, but it feels good when you touch me.”

“Don’t joke around…!”

Belladona said tearfully.

She hated that he only said playful things even when he had been near death.

Escalión, seeing her like that, laughed, making a sound like air escaping, and asked, “Where’s Scarlett?”

“She’s in the next room. Fortunately, she’s not in danger, and they said she’ll get better with rest.”

Escalión’s expression relaxed at the news that Scarlett was safe.

“Was the Pope captured? Seeing that I can lie here and face you peacefully, the Imperial Knights must have done something.”

“…”

“Did everything happen after I lost consciousness? I must have been an unsightly sight, collapsing like that.”

“…”

“If it’s mostly finished, let’s leave the rest to Felix and go back to Gribalta quickly. I’m getting stiff. I want to get out of this hot place as soon as possible.”

“…”

When Belladona didn’t answer, Escalión looked at her.

He spoke again, “Bella.”

“Bella, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

At his question, Belladona shook her head.

Nothing was wrong. The Pope was dead, and everything was over.

Escalión was safe, and everything that threatened Belladona had disappeared. But….

“Then what’s wrong?”

“…I.”

Belladona slowly opened her mouth.

Escalión listened.

“I… killed the Pope.”

At Belladona’s words, Escalión closed his mouth and looked at her. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

“I hit the Pope in the back of the head. If I didn’t… I was afraid he would get up again and grab me, that he would really kill you….”

“Bella.”

“I killed the Pope of Astarnea. The Pope whom the people of the Elinus Empire believe in and look up to… the representative of God… I did it with my own hands… I, the Saintess…”

“Bella, look at me.”

Escalión reached out and grabbed Belladona’s waist, lifting her onto his lap. Belladona, surprised, looked at him with tears in her eyes.

Escalión fixed his gaze on her.

“Thank you.”

“Yes?”

“I said thank you.”

Belladona blinked, confused. ‘I said I killed the Pope, but why…?’

“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here.”

“…”

It was terrible to imagine Escalión not being there….

“Thanks to you, your husband, Scarlett’s only brother, and the lord of Gribalta were saved.”

“That’s…”

Belladona quietly took a breath.

Escalión grabbed Belladona’s wrist and shook it, continuing to speak.

“You protected your husband and your husband’s sister with these frail hands.”

Belladona looked at her hand, bandaged and large.

A ridiculous hand.

“How hard must it have been?”

Escalión said nonchalantly.

Being with him, who took what happened to her for granted, calmed her anxious heart.

“There’s no need to feel guilty.”

“…”

“You acted in self-defense to protect your family.”

Belladona looked at Escalión, who was caressing her hand as if playing with a toy, hiding his inner beast, and opened her mouth.

“But now I have to go to the capital for trial.”

“Ah, that’s a problem.”

Escalión, who had been holding her wrist tightly, groaned and leaned his face on her shoulder.

He took his hand off Belladona’s wrist and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“I thought I could finally take you to Gribalta, but is there more?”

“I might go to jail instead of Gribalta….”

“Please don’t say such terrible things, Bella.”

Escalión raised his head, his golden eyes full of dissatisfaction.

“I won’t let that happen.”

“But the decision is made by His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Even though he’s old, his judgment hasn’t been clouded. If he can’t judge that much, he should step down from the throne.”

“Please, someone might hear you…!”

Belladona was startled and covered his mouth.

Even if they were alone, it was disrespectful to talk about His Majesty the Emperor like that.

Escalión kissed her palm.

“I’ll always be with you, so don’t worry.”

“No. Escalión needs to rest. We don’t know what might happen to your body.”

“Your side is where I rest.”

Escalión said firmly.

Belladona looked at him and opened her mouth.

“If I had divine power, I could have healed Escalión….”

“I like your soft voice more.”

Escalión, who had been staring at Belladona, opened his mouth.

“Kiss me. I think I’ll get better.”

“That’s not related.”

“Yeah, actually, just do it. Because I want to.”

Belladona slowly lowered her head towards him.

Perhaps it felt too slow, Escalión, unable to bear it, raised one hand and pulled the back of her head.

Soon, their breaths intertwined.

Belladona tilted her head and pressed her body closer to him.

Accepting his hot breath, she could erase all scary thoughts.

She gripped Escalión’s shoulders tightly, as if drowning and grabbing a rope.

Escalión responded by moving his upper body, wrapping his arms around Belladona’s waist.

They focused on each other and pressed their bodies together for a long time.