I Became The Wife Of The Cursed Grand Duke Chapter 41

“It is true that the Grand Duke defends the empire from demons. As Emperor, it is only right that we honor his service.”

 

“If the Grand Duke’s power grows too great, the imperial power is bound to falter, Your Majesty.”

 

Julius smiled a smile of conversion as he saw all sorts of anxiety swirling in the emperor’s violet eyes.

 

“I implore you, then. Send the crown prince and the saint to Parminion.”

 

“A holy woman? The holy woman is said to be on a pilgrimage because she is not well, and her presence will hasten the Grand Duke’s awakening.”

 

Julius’s mouth twisted into a grim line as he looked at the trembling emperor.

 

“The oracle has not yet descended, and a holy woman who has not yet fully recovered cannot influence the Grand Duke’s awakening, so you must restrain him now and turn this into an imperial favor.”

 

Cedric was the emperor’s only son, the only one with imperial blood in his veins, no matter how broken.

 

Even if he hadn’t been so bad, it was obvious what the emperor, who was beginning to rock like a ship in a storm, would do.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The town of Litchev, Parminion Province, southwestern edge of the Empire.

 

An earthy wind blew desolately through the buildings.

 

Beneath the walls of the city, built along a ragged ridge, several colorful buildings clustered together like toys.

 

The largest of the blue buildings had a banner reading “Bernard Medical Center,” but it was half torn and flapping in the wind, adding to the eeriness.

 

“Oh, my God!”

 

Reah leapt from the wagon, grabbed her bag and threw it down, then hurried toward the medical barracks.

 

“I was wondering where everyone went, and here they are, huddled together?”

 

Litchev was a port in the western part of the continent, a town with a lively atmosphere that was characterized by a lot of human interaction, combined with the sunny weather.

 

But on the drive there, there wasn’t a soul on the road, not even a seagull.

 

The normally clean streets were littered with garbage and stray dogs fighting over dropped food.

 

Even the emerald sea, the symbol of Litchev, was dull and murky, as if filled with all the dirt and gloom of the world.

 

“This isn’t normal.”

 

Growing serious, Reah ran toward the men camped in front of the barracks. As she closed the distance, she could smell the stench of rotting flesh wafting from them.

 

She wrinkled the bridge of her nose, and stares flew toward her.

 

“No, look who it is, isn’t it Reah?”

 

“Hello, mister! How are you?”

 

The villagers who recognized her greeted her happily.

 

“I heard you’ve been to the capital and made a fortune, but what are you doing here? I’m afraid you’ve caught some terrible disease.”

 

“Why, to help the Count, of course. What’s that covering your mouth, by the way?”

 

Reah’s eyes flushed at the sight of him, looking so vigorous despite the rashes covering his body.

 

Dabbing at her eyes with her sleeve, Reah pulled out a handful of cut-to-size hides from her large bag and handed them out.

 

“I’m going to hand them out to you, in case it’s spread by saliva, so please do it, even if it’s uncomfortable.”

 

The entire carriage ride, they wore a mouth-cover made from a cut piece of tough leather at Evelyn’s insistence.

 

‘I’ll be honest, the entire ride, I was skeptical of its usefulness, but Evelyn saved my life.’

 

It was too good to be true.

 

“Besides, everyone… has red eyes and black lips.”

 

This also fits Evelyn’s description.

 

This meant that their home village of Litchev was about to become a ghost town.

 

“As soon as we get to the village, we need to stock up on food and water, and isolate the healthy in their own homes and the sick in abandoned buildings. It won’t be long before they start complaining of thirst.”

 

“And that thirst can only be quenched by… human blood.”

 

As Reah clenched her fists and rolled her eyes nervously, she heard a few people muttering in her ear.

 

“Ugh, I’m so thirsty no matter how much water I drink, I thought my fever was gone, but I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

 

“Me too, and now I’m nauseous to my stomach?”

 

‘Oh, God.’

 

Reah couldn’t hide her panic.

 

“Oh my God, this isn’t the time for this, is it?”

 

Reah’s heart pounded uneasily as she ran to her brother, who had just in time to greet her.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Dawn the next day.

 

After the vanguard entered the swamp first, Evelyn rode with the rear guard, led by Max.

 

The swamp was littered with the carcasses of grotesque insects as the vanguard swept through.

 

The air was sticky, and the dense, tree-shaded space reeked of blood.

 

Evelyn’s face tensed as she watched.

 

“Ugh!”

 

Max quickly caught Evelyn’s arm as she stumbled over a rock in her distraction.

 

“Be careful. The rocks are slippery with moss, so it’s best to tread in the shallow puddles, even if they’re a little wet.”

 

“Thank you, Sir Max.”

 

“It would have been more comfortable if you had traveled in a carriage, but His Highness seems to have been somewhat anxious.”

 

“Anxious?”

 

“Well, it’s a sign that he cares a great deal about you, and he’s determined to keep you close to him. Ha-ha!”

 

But Evelyn knows. This is not an act of affection for her.

 

He’s keeping her around because he doesn’t want her to get into trouble if she goes off the rails like she did in the temple.

 

“Besides, this is the first time you’ve inspected the path beforehand. If you’re going to do it, you’re going to do it as you go.”

 

Max was right. After all, they’d just defeated the Frost Giant, so why would they be afraid of a bog?

 

Seeing Evelyn’s low sigh at the thought of inconveniencing him, Max added urgently.

 

“His Majesty trusts you the most, so I’m sure he didn’t mean to leave it in the hands of others in the first place, which is why he captured the strange creature.”

 

“…Is that so?”

 

Evelyn smiled awkwardly, then her face instantly turned to horror.

 

The knights had come face to face with the carcass of the creature on the packhorse they were pulling.

 

A grotesque creature with ears that stuck together and a dark magic marking.

 

The implications were clear.

 

“Someone has created a mutated beast with black magic.”

 

After studying Evelyn’s speechless complexion, Max spoke up cautiously.

 

“Oh, by the way, I’m so sorry about last night. I can only imagine how upset you must be…”

 

He was referring to the news that had flown in from the imperial palace. The news of Louise’s death.

 

“Ah…”

 

The woman who had brutalized her mother, cursed her, and ultimately brought both mother and daughter to a miserable end.

 

Evelyn, who returned with the memories, was the one who met her end, but in the end, the miracle of her mother’s return did not happen.

 

‘An overly tranquil death, considering the horrors she committed.’

 

The scorn and injustice Evelyn had suffered for twenty years was not erased by Louise’s death.

 

There were times when she closed her eyes and wished that tomorrow would never come, that her death would not be a time to shake it off as if it were all made up for.

 

Perhaps that’s why Evelyn was unmoved by the news of her death.

 

‘I had hoped she would live out the rest of her life in hellish agony.’

 

She knew in her bones that the deeper the anger, the colder the mind.

 

But even aside from her own resentment, the Countess’s death had caused quite a stir in the Order.

 

‘The corpse of a demon, processed with black magic, and governed by the laws of the North…’

 

A blatant attempt to slander the Grand Duke.

 

It was true that Kalian had spoken of punishing them, but the fact that it had actually happened at the hands of another was another matter.

 

Evelyn’s expression grew even more serious as she realized that she could be the one to blame for the Grand Duke’s vengeance on the Countess.

 

Evelyn’s expression grew more serious.

 

With them hounding them from all sides, what if there was trouble at the gate?

 

What if there are civilian casualties?

 

‘It could be a repeat of the past, when we were hated by our own people.’

 

She was horrified by the events that seemed to suggest that what had to happen would eventually happen.

 

But she wasn’t about to let it happen.

 

She’d rather be grateful if the other person revealed it to her first. It would make it easier to figure out their purpose.

 

‘Let’s just hope no harm comes to them.’

 

Evelyn’s eyes narrowed as she gathered the bag over her shoulder.

 

 

* * *

 

 

She wondered how long they walked.

 

The humid air made her clothes stick to her skin.

 

“It’s a canyon from here. Ah, there’s the vanguard waiting for us.”

 

The density of the air shifted in an instant, revealing a landscape unlike anything she’d ever seen before.

 

“Ah…”

 

A canyon nestled in the midst of impossibly huge rock cliffs.

 

After a few moments of feeling overwhelmed, Evelyn joined the vanguard, ate a quick bite to eat, and then picked herself up.

 

Her body was drenched in sweat from practicing her aura at every opportunity, but she could handle the march.

 

“We’ll be traveling on horseback from here. It’s nothing compared to the mountains of the north, but the terrain is rugged, so we must be careful.”

 

At that moment, Kalian, who had commanded the knights in the lead, approached her and held out his hand.

 

“Ride with me from here.”