The Returning Husband Refuses to Divorce Chapter 24

Mariel waved her hand dismissively.

“That’s enough. I’m well prepared.”

“Understood.”

Yulia bowed respectfully.

“If you need anything later, please let me know right away. I’ll be waiting nearby.”

The maid’s obsequious attitude lifted Mariel’s mood a little.

She’s more useful than her mistress, at least.

A short while later, Yulia brought her some tea and cautiously asked, “By the way… has anything been troubling you?”

Mariel glanced at her.

“Why?”

“You don’t seem to be in a very good mood.”

Yulia hurriedly waved her hands.

“Ah, of course, it’s not my place to ask. I was just worried that we might have made some mistake while attending to you…”

The maid was fairly perceptive.

Mariel hesitated for a moment before scoffing.

“It has nothing to do with you.”

“That’s a relief.”

Yulia’s face brightened with relief.

Then, as though it were nothing important, she added, “I thought perhaps Her Grace had made some kind of mistake.”

Mariel’s eyebrow twitched.

“The Duchess?”

“No, not at all!”

Yulia hastily covered her mouth, pretending to be startled.

“I shouldn’t have said that. It was a mistake. Please forget I ever said anything.”

Her reaction was suspicious enough to make Mariel narrow her eyes.

“What do you mean by that?”

“It really is nothing.”

“Tell me.”

“But…”

Yulia glanced around uneasily.

Mariel’s curiosity only grew.

“It’s fine. Just tell me.”

Only then did Yulia speak, very cautiously.

“The truth is, Her Grace has been the subject of some… unpleasant misunderstandings around the castle lately.”

“Misunderstandings?”

“Yes.”

Yulia let out a deep sigh.

“It’s upsetting for us, too. I’m sure Her Grace has good intentions, but people keep taking her actions the wrong way.”

Mariel stared at her.

It was a curious way of putting things.

Yulia wasn’t openly speaking ill of Ines. If anything, she sounded as though she were defending her.

And yet, the way she spoke naturally made Mariel want to hear more.

“What happened?”

“Well…”

Yulia hesitated for a long time.

Then, as though something had suddenly occurred to her, she spoke again.

“Actually, this is a little unrelated, but seeing the people from the temple reminded me of something.”

“What is it?”

Yulia glanced around discreetly.

Her voice dropped much lower than before.

“Things have been rather unsettling in our domain lately.”

“Unsettling?”

“Yes.”

Yulia whispered.

“There’s a rumor going around that there’s a witch in the domain.”

“…A witch?”

Mariel’s expression changed.

The other priests nearby had also been listening and discreetly turned their heads toward them.

“What does that mean? Explain in detail.”

Yulia began describing the mysterious illness. An unknown disease that had swept through a small village. People dying without anyone knowing the cause.

Then Yulia suddenly widened her eyes as though she had just remembered something.

“Oh.”

“What is it?”

“Come to think of it, there’s a girl from that village working at our castle.”

Mariel’s expression stiffened.

“Here, at this castle?”

“Yes.”

Yulia smiled sweetly, looking as though she knew nothing at all.

“She’s the personal maid serving Her Grace the Duchess.”

Her Grace…

Ines Chartier?

Mariel couldn’t help scoffing.

“Hmph. How fitting.”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing. Forget it.”

A woman who had failed to become a Saintess.

A land where people pointed fingers and claimed she had been abandoned by God.

And now, a maid from a village plagued by a mysterious disease.

This is utterly ridiculous!

The other priests said nothing, but the glances they exchanged suggested they shared similar thoughts.

Yulia cautiously continued.

“There was actually a bit of trouble because of this.”

“What kind of trouble?”

“The other maids are frightened of that girl.”

“Of course they are.”

Mariel answered without hesitation.

“The cause of the disease hasn’t even been identified. Why would anyone want to associate with someone who came from a place like that?”

“Exactly!”

Yulia’s eyes sparkled.

“But recently, Her Grace severely reprimanded the other maids over the matter.”

“The Duchess?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know either.”

Yulia smiled awkwardly.

“She seems to be quite fond of a girl named May.”

“…”

“She even took personal custody of an item the girl had brought from her hometown.”

Mariel’s expression shifted subtly.

An item from a village plagued by a mysterious disease.

And Ines had taken it into her own hands?

Mariel fell silent, deep in thought.

“It might be interesting to meet that maid. I’m curious about the circumstances.”

“If you wish, I can bring her here.”

Yulia answered eagerly.

But Mariel shook her head.

“No. I should report this to Lady Helien first.”

“Ah…”

For just an instant, a flicker of disappointment crossed Yulia’s face.

As I thought.

This maid was trying to use them.

She must dislike Ines, doesn’t she?

Whatever she might think of others, Mariel wasn’t someone she could deceive.

Still…

There’s no harm in it.

The temple was hardly separate from worldly politics. With so many people gathered under one roof, countless competing interests were inevitably entangled within its walls.

It’s obvious that an ordinary maid is trying to scheme.

But Mariel only needed to obtain whatever useful information she could.

Besides…

The truth was that the delegation hadn’t traveled all the way here simply to celebrate the victory.

That was merely their pretext.

Their real mission was something else.

〈Ines Chartier belongs to our temple.〉

Mariel recalled the voice she had heard before their departure.

A face that was always young and beautiful.

Eyes that curved gently at the corners.

〈She has fulfilled her responsibilities sufficiently. It is time for her to return.〉

The Pope’s voice had been gentle but firm.

〈To the place where she belongs.〉

Mariel thought those words were only natural.

Someone born in the temple should remain a member of the temple until the day they died.

They absolutely could not allow Ines Chartier to mistake this place for where she truly belonged.

Never.

If I dig a little deeper, I’m sure I’ll uncover something useful.

Mariel rose from her seat without delay.

“…That is what happened.”

When Mariel finished her explanation, silence briefly filled the room.

Helien offered no response.

She merely set down her teacup and sat quietly, lost in thought.

“You said the maid came from a village afflicted by that mysterious disease?”

“Yes.”

“And Ines personally took the item the girl brought with her?”

“That’s right. The other maids were uneasy about it, but Her Grace apparently defended the girl instead.”

Helien’s gaze grew cold.

Seeing her reaction, Mariel felt secretly pleased.

As expected, Helien clearly found it suspicious as well.

“Shall I bring the maid here?”

“…”

Helien did not answer immediately.

After a moment, she asked, “Where is the maid who told you this?”

“She’s waiting outside.”

“Bring her in.”

Mariel’s eyes lit up.

“Yes.”

Just as she was about to hurry outside, Helien stopped her.

“Mariel.”

“Yes?”

“Do not tell anyone else about this matter yet.”

“Ah…”

Mariel hesitated briefly.

But she soon nodded as though she understood the reason.

“Don’t worry.”

Helien meant that she should keep quiet until they had concrete evidence.

It was just like her to be so cautious.

After Mariel left, Helien remained alone.

For a long while, she silently gazed down at her teacup.

Eventually, her cold eyes slowly shifted toward the door.

“…A witch.”

The words escaped her in a low murmur.

That night.

“To the victory of the Evanhardt Knights!”

Someone raised their glass high.

“To victory!”

A moment later, thunderous voices rang throughout the banquet hall.

Clink!

Glasses struck against one another.

Laughter erupted all around them.

…Everyone seems to be having a good time.

Standing beside Zecard, Ines quietly observed the scene.

Contrary to her worries, the banquet was proceeding smoothly.

No one’s picking a fight with me, either.

That had actually been her greatest concern today.

Ines had plenty of enemies both inside and outside the castle.

All four groups attending the banquet—the knights, the vassals, the imperial delegation, and the temple delegation—viewed her unfavorably.

The vassals, in particular, were likely to include people who had sided with Selena. Ines had expected at least one of them to pick an unreasonable fight with her.

They must have taken a hit when Selena fell from power.

Yet, for some reason, everyone was exchanging greetings with Ines in a seemingly cordial manner, at least on the surface.

They weren’t so carefree that they would overlook their grievances simply because this was a victory banquet. Which meant the reason was probably…

Ines discreetly turned her gaze to the side.

Her husband, Zecard Evanhardt, stood beside her.