Don’T Get Caught By Your Husband! [EN]: Chapter 2

Don’t Get Caught by Your Husband! Episode 2. Intruder of the Papal States (2/130)

#Episode 2. Intruder of the Papal States

2024.03.02.

Having become the Pope’s daughter and a saint praised by everyone practically overnight, Belladonna had two main concerns.

First, should she reveal to the world that she could speak?

The answer was no. Absolutely not.

‘How am I even supposed to do this…?’

Belladonna pondered, gazing at her empty hands as she strolled through the Papal States’ garden.

In her previous life, though only witnessing it from afar, she had seen the Saintess heal someone with paralysis in their lower body.

Standing on tiptoes amidst the crowd, the Saintess placed her hand on the legs of the man kneeling before her, then quietly closed her eyes.

‘…Then a blue light emanated from her hand, and the man’s eyes widened as he jumped to his feet, or so I remember.’

Recalling the memory, Belladonna closed her eyes once more and focused all her energy on her fingertips.

Iyap…!

“……”

But as expected, nothing happened.

Clearly, she possessed no divine power at the moment.

‘This probably has something to do with my soul.’

The Saintess lost her voice and gained divine power, so it was only natural that she, who still had her voice and whose soul had been replaced, would not have any divine power.

Therefore, she couldn’t rashly reveal to anyone that she could speak.

‘What if they try to test my divine power…?’

“Saintess Belladonna. Many devotees have come to see you today as well.”

Just then, a voice came from behind her.

Belladonna quickly lowered her hands and turned her head. A priest, still quite young, stood there blushing and looking hesitant.

Belladonna silently smiled and nodded.

The priest gazed at her beautiful smile with a dazed expression, bowed deeply, and turned away.

In the distance, many people could be seen waiting in front of the entrance to the Papal States.

Why are there so many secrets in this world?

Belladonna stood still and began to wonder how she would get through the day. Should she count every pattern on the ceiling instead of the floor today…?

“Saintess Belladonna, is she trustworthy?”

At that moment, a low voice began to be heard from nearby.

Huh? Belladonna slowly turned her head.

Under a large, beautiful tree, two high-ranking nobles were standing close together, engaged in a secretive conversation.

Because the tree was blocking them, she was apparently out of their sight.

“Ah, of course, she’s trustworthy! She’s chosen by God. She’s called the Saintess of Astanya!”

The man across from him said in a slightly louder voice.

Oh, they’re talking about me.

If she left suddenly, they might notice she was standing here.

Belladonna held her breath and quietly hid behind the tree.

“No, still… What if her divine power disappears later on and she regains her voice, revealing everyone’s secrets?”

The other man cautiously muttered.

Listening to their conversation, Belladonna quietly sighed.

If they were so uneasy, they could just leave the Papal States right now…

“Hahaha, the reason Saintess Belladonna is revered as a saintess is also because she keeps everyone’s secrets very securely. She can’t reveal our secrets as she pleases.”

The man across from him smiled.

“You know that those chosen by God cannot do anything that harms people, right? Promises made in the realm of God, that is, the Papal States, must also be kept until death.”

“Th-that’s true, but…”

“The Saintess will take our secrets to the grave. Besides…”

The man looked around for a moment, then lowered his voice as much as possible.

“…After all, she’s not even the Pope’s real daughter. Just think of it that way.”

“Cough, cough…”

“We just need to receive the grace, comfort, solace, and wisdom that God bestows through the Saintess.”

“Grace and comfort… Solace and wisdom…”

The man who had spoken first stroked his mustache and pondered.

“Good! Put my name on the confession list. I’ll have a lot to say!”

“You’ve made a wise decision, Baron!”

That man was a baron [a nobleman ranking below an earl or count].

Hiding behind the tree, Belladonna let out a small sigh.

In any case, Saintess Belladonna seemed to be a great source of comfort and solace to the people of the empire by listening to their confessions. She recalled how much she herself had loved the Saintess in her previous life.

Therefore, she couldn’t reveal that she could speak now and disappoint people.

‘At least I shouldn’t do anything that would tarnish the Saintess’s reputation.’

Since the current Pope took office, the Saintess’s divine power had only been used specially at a few imperial events a year, such as His Majesty the Emperor’s birthday or the Great Christmas Celebration.

Fortunately, there were no scheduled events for the time being, so there would be less chance of being caught…

That day, behind the tree, Belladonna decided that she should keep the fact that she could speak a secret for now.

Next, what she had been constantly worrying about was this:

Should she look for the poor farmer’s daughter who was her in her previous life? She must be dead already…

“Saintess, you must meet the devotees today as well.”

“……”

“Saintess, you have an interview with the priests today.”

“……”

“Saintess, you must attend the mandatory worship service this morning, and a banquet is prepared for this afternoon.”

“……”

But…

‘Saintess Belladonna is too busy!’

Belladonna couldn’t find any personal time at all.

She hung her head low and tugged at her lustrous silver hair.

‘And I can’t rashly ask someone to look for the farmer’s daughter either…’

She decided to postpone looking for her previous self for the time being.

“Saintess, you have lunch with the Pope today.”

At the priest’s calm voice, Belladonna, who had been contorting her face, quickly raised her head.

See, she’s so busy…

She forced a smile and slowly nodded. At her warm smile, the priest, with a relieved expression, sighed and bowed before leaving the room.

As soon as the priest disappeared, Belladonna turned her head to look at the clock.

‘I have about 20 minutes to spare.’

She slowly got up.

Instead of going through the long corridor, she was planning to go outside the building and head to the dining hall along a large, winding path.

The path that went around the west side of the Papal States’ building was a path that priests and devotees could not enter, a path allowed only to the Pope and the Saintess.

Whenever she had even a brief moment of time amidst her busy schedule, Belladonna would slowly stroll and contemplate there.

When the Pope wasn’t there, she could at least hum a little tune on that path…

‘The Pope must have already arrived at the dining hall…’

Descending the stairs and entering the west side of the Papal States’ building, Belladonna carefully looked ahead, behind, and to both sides to see if anyone was there.

“……”

Only the sound of a very faint breeze; the path seemed to be empty.

Right, there’s no way anyone would be in a restricted area!

Belladonna relaxed and slowly took a step. Entering the path, she raised her head, opened her mouth, and let out a deep sigh.

“Haaaaaaah…”

Compared to when she used to work in the fields all day long under the scorching sun without any shade, unable to even properly eat and trembling with hunger as she fell asleep, her current life was more than abundant and satisfying.

At least here, cool shade, delicious meals, and warm sleep were guaranteed.

“…The problem, if there is one, is that it’s too boring.”

Belladonna chuckled, muttering very quietly.

It had only been half a year since she had become the Saintess, and she found herself amusingly troubled by such a luxurious concern.

Yes, where else could she live like this? Belladonna nodded.

So what if she couldn’t speak forcibly, so what if her freedom was restricted!

So what if she had to live with everyone’s heavy secrets in her heart!

At least it was incomparably better than her previous life, wasn’t it?

Feeling much better, she closed her mouth and began to hum a quiet tune.

“Hmm hmm… Um, hmm…”

It was a labor song that some of the farmers would start singing, looking up at the sky with their backs straightened when they were too tired from farming.

No matter who started the song, it would quickly spread like an epidemic and soon become everyone’s chorus.

“Hmm hmm… I ask the sky… For a bountiful year…”

Was it because she was too excited?

Belladonna had become so engrossed in the song that she even began to recite the lyrics with a frown.

What was the next verse? Was it about birds flying in, or harvesting grain…

“Beautiful little bird… Your winG- Aah!”

Belladonna, who had been quietly singing the labor song, suddenly screamed.

Startled by her own voice, she covered her mouth with both hands. Otherwise, an even longer and louder scream might have come out.

“……”

Her eyes widened, and she froze completely.

Under the shade of a tree that she had been mindlessly glancing at, a large man was lying with his arms crossed and his eyes closed.

‘Wh-what is it?’

Belladonna thought, clutching her pounding heart.

W-who is he? How did he even get here?

…Could he have heard my voice?

Standing there for a moment, she stealthily moved her feet and approached the lying man.

“……”

Even though she had just screamed, the man remained lying in the same position, not waking up.

‘Is he sleeping, or is he dead?’

Tanned skin and a prominent nose. A manly, sharp jawline and an enormous physique.

A man who exuded a relaxed and leisurely yet somehow dangerous atmosphere.

His body is very good, and he has a strangely rough feel to him… Is he a mercenary [a professional soldier hired to serve in a foreign army]?

There was no way that priests or devotees could enter this place, even if it meant violating the rules. This man was clearly an outsider unrelated to the Papal States.

Belladonna couldn’t bring herself to get close and looked around at him, then suddenly turned around and started running away.

He had his eyes closed anyway.

Even if he had heard the sound in his sleep, there was no way he would have thought it was Saintess Belladonna.

She prayed to God that the illegal intruder would not open his eyes and ran up to the dining hall where the Pope was waiting.

Please… Please…!