After I Died, My Husband Went Mad

When did it start? Dehart pondered, his chin resting in his hand as he gazed at Rash, who sat unconscious across from him.

 

Since when have you been planning to get rid of Sebelia?

 

In this pitch-black room, he stood there fixated on that one question.

 

It couldn’t have been a sudden plan.

 

Dehart blinked slowly, chewing on his lips.

 

Yes, this must have been going on for a long time, because…….

 

“Hurry and wake up, Uncle,” he said with a cold smile, still staring at the tied-up Rash. 

 

His family dared to plot behind his back.

 

“Such a perfect situation and timing. It’s clearly something they’ve been preparing for a long time.”

 

Just thinking about it made his golden eyes turn cold.

 

Everything was part of their plan.

 

From isolating Sebelia in the mansion, to the sudden circulation of rumors about her. Even the internal circumstances that led him to abandon her on their wedding anniversary.

 

“Hah,” Dehart laughed bitterly before glaring at Rash, whose body started to twitch.

 

After sending Ryan away, he had knocked out the struggling Rash and brought him here right after. Then, he locked all the doors and lowered thick curtains over the windows, so that no matter what terrible things happened inside, no one would know.

 

As dawn passed, and the sun rose, Rash’s body suddenly jerked up, then soon after his eyes snapped open.

 

“……!”

 

But darkness was the only thing he could see.

 

“D-Dehart. Dehart?” he called out in a hoarse voice.

 

Savoring the quivering in his voice, Dehart closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again.

 

“Uncle,” Dehart finally answered.

 

Rash’s shoulders stiffened at his deep voice that reverberated throughout the place.

 

“I can explain everything,” he quickly interjected, realizing that the man in front of him was no longer the docile nephew he knew.

 

He belatedly noticed that the insecure child who leaned on him, counting on his affection as family and the shadow of a forgotten father, was no more.

 

But at the same time, he unwaveringly believed that Dehart would prioritize Inverness over anything else.

 

His ultimate belief that his nephew would choose the family over Sebelia, a bastard from the capital; that belief was what gave him the courage to speak.

 

“As you know, Gwen and I were opposed to this marriage from the very beginning.”

 

The story that began like that gradually went back further into the past. And finally, when Rash, with a dry cough, ended his speech……

 

BOOM!!!

 

A dazzling light suddenly came through the shock-swaying curtains and cut through the darkness.

 

“Do you realize what the two of you have done?”

 

The lone figure standing in the darkness stiffened under the cold light.

 

“As if deceiving her wasn’t enough, you even betrayed me!”

 

“Dehart, it was inevitable.”

 

“Inevitable? Was it inevitable to trick her into helping the man who murdered my parents?” Dehart roared, his eyes burning with a blazing white light.

 

On that day, the villagers trembled, holding their breath, at the sight of dozens, or rather hundreds of thunderbolts striking the ground.

* * *

 

When he came back to his senses, Dehart found himself on the road. 

 

“Ahhh,” he sighed, brushing his dripping hair back.

 

The pouring raindrops had turned into a relentless drumming on his body, so he decided to tie his horse to a tree and sat down next to it.

 

“Damn it.”

 

He was struggling to remember what had happened just moments ago; he recalled taking the horse from the stable and rushing out of the city, but the events before that…

 

“…….”

 

Then, his face suddenly turned gray; his expression resembling someone who’s been strangled to death as the memories he locked away due to shock resurfaced again.

 

[Gwen persuaded that child. She told her that by doing so, she would win your favor back.]

 

The husband and wife had used Sebelia as a tool to satisfy the selfish ambitions they had for the family.

 

[Since you insisted on keeping a woman you should have abandoned, we had to do what was best for the family!]

 

Knowing that he would be angry.

 

Knowing that he would be hurt….

 

They deliberately instigated her to help the disaster-stricken area in the east.

 

“I guess they wanted me to completely turn my back on her.”

 

Dehart covered his throbbing eyes, and let out an empty laugh.

 

Yes, just like they expected, he had pushed Sebelia away.

 

There was no reason not to.

 

“I was this close to losing it at that time….” 

 

The money noblewomen get from relief projects was not given directly to the victims.

 

After organizing fundraising events or charity balls, they would pass the funds to the lord of the affected area.

 

And the person Sebelia had tried to contact was none other than Duke Kalle.

 

One of the main accomplices of Dehart’s youngest uncle, who was believed to have murdered his parents, and the person who refused to search the accident scene.

 

Who can look kindly upon a wife who’s trying to give money to the person who killed their parents?

 

To make matters worse, this wasn’t the first time Sebelia had betrayed his expectations.

 

[Didn’t I clearly tell you to know your place!] 

 

So, he treated her even harsher than before.

 

While Dehart was lost in his memories, droplets of water that had yet to dry, dripped down his chin.

 

“Hah…….” he sighed again, burying his face in his hands as the wind, and rain whipped his back.

 

[I considered the first time a mistake and let it slide. However, I can’t let this go this time.]

 

What was the look on her face then? He couldn’t remember.

 

[If you want to foolishly waste money, make sure it’s the money you use to buy your food and clothes!]

 

“Yes, that’s when it started.”

 

After that day, Sebelia left the Duchess’s chambers with her own two feet, and locked herself in that godforsaken attic.

 

[I will take responsibility for my actions.] She had said.

 

And he had sarcastically asked if she wanted rumors that he was mistreating the Duchess to spread.

 

Crack!

 

Out of nowhere, a massive lightning bolt struck the tree standing across from him.

 

“.…”

 

Dehart stared at the burnt tree with darkened eyes.

 

Everything was a mess.

 

“Haha…”

 

Yes, they knew the truth, and tricked her.

 

And foolish Sebelia, in her desire to regain his favor, completely believed in their words and decided to atone for her sins.

 

Dehart couldn’t even laugh it off. This whole situation was too pitiful to even be called pathetic.

 

“What a wonderful family we are. It can’t get any better than this.”

 

Apart from spitting out a bunch of twisted words, there was nothing he could do.

 

With cloudy eyes, Dehart gazed at the gradually clearing sky.

 

The sunlight piercing through the clouds was now gently covering the ground. And in the face of that radiant sight, his misfortune became even more obvious.

 

Then…..

 

“My Lord!”

 

At that moment, a desperate call echoed from afar. Dehart lifted his eyes–stained with heavy emotions–and the golden orbs that had been buried in the shadows grew bigger, and bigger.

 

“……Ryan?”

 

Struggling to ride the horse, the knight approached, covered in blood. 

 

There were even places where blood was still oozing out, and eventually, before Dehart could even get up, Ryan collapsed.

 

“Good heavens!” Dehart rushed over,  catching him before his body hit the ground.

 

Meanwhile, the dark clouds had completely dispersed.

* * *

 

“Ugh…….”

 

“The emergency treatment is complete … but there’s no sign of him waking up,” Dehart said with a frown as he looked down at Ryan, lying there with a pale face. “His body temperature is high….”

 

After staring at the knight’s bloodless face for a long time, Dehart stood up.

 

It was still a bit cold since it had only stopped raining not too long ago.

 

Leaving Ryan on the floor, Dehart approached the tree that had fallen victim to the thunderbolt because of him and began to pick up the branches that were still intact. 

 

At the same time, Ryan was fighting through a nightmare thanks to the excessive blood loss and a high fever. 

 

It all began the moment he encountered Flora.

 

“Stop right there! Call for reinforcements immediately and seal the gate!” Flora had shouted behind him as he managed to escape the guards.

 

No matter how many times he recalled it, her voice was spin-chilling enough to make one’s neck go numb.

 

“I have to keep going,” he kept repeating to himself.

 

Knowing that there was no time to stop by the post office, Ryan tightly held onto the reins,  and quickly fled the mansion. 

 

And without even treating his wounds, he headed towards the trading city where he had parted ways with Dehart.

 

The problem was that by the time he arrived, Dehart was no longer there.

 

“……Damn it!”

 

For some reason, the room was entirely covered in black ash.

 

What the hell happened?

 

In the middle of the burned room was Rash, bleeding and unconscious.

 

By the looks of it, something terrible had occurred between them.

 

Baffled, Ryan tied Rash up, and locked him in the basement. But before he could even leave the mansion, lightning struck not too far away. 

 

Kwang-!

 

He immediately knew it wasn’t a natural phenomenon.

 

As someone who had watched Dehart closer than anyone else, he could tell.

 

Squeezing the last bit of strength he had left, Ryan headed towards the spot where the lightning had struck, where he knew he would find Dehart.

 

The reason he was willing to go to such lengths was obvious- It was to inform Dehart about Sebelia’s death…

 

“Ugh.”

 

At that moment, Ryan woke up from the nightmare, jumping up as if someone had thrown ice-cold water on him. 

 

The first thing he saw was Dehart walking towards him while holding a partially burnt branch?

 

“Ah, ah, ah…” 

 

“You look pathetic, Ryan,”  Dehart said with a wry smile, his face equally ravaged.

 

Clenching his fists, the knight looked at his master.

 

Damn it; he cursed inwardly, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment.

 

Then after reopening them, he placed a hand over his chest.

 

“Do you have any internal injuries?” Dehart said this time.

 

And as he gradually got closer, Ryan couldn’t bring himself to speak.

 

Inside his coat, there was a thin piece of paper on which two short sentences were written. 

 

He had come all this way just to deliver that letter, but now that Dehart was right in front of him, Ryan felt a strange sinking feeling in his chest.

 

“..Your Grace.”

 

Yet, despite everything, his trembling fingers somehow managed to pull the thin piece of paper out.

 

“Please, hurry back.”

 

In the end, Dehart had to receive the dreadful news.

 

And on a bright afternoon, after all the dark clouds had dispersed, hundreds of thousands of lightning bolts struck, setting the forest next to the city on fire.