After I Died, My Husband Went Mad

Thank you, Astarria, for editing this chapter 💋.

 

 

[May my last scream reach your ears.]

 

Those were the last words left by Belita as she lay dying at the hands of her beloved husband.

 

“Was I too emotional?” Sebelia sighed as she closed the book she was reading about the first Duke of Inverness.

 

On her way back from the doctor’s appointment, she had stopped by a stationery store to buy some paper, but the problem was that she had also picked up a small book titled “The Cursed Duke’s Story”. 

 

The fact that she had unintentionally borrowed Belita’s last words and written it at the end of her own will  was now irritating her conscience.

 

“Ugh…” 

 

Sebelia rubbed her flushed earlobe and frowned 

 

She had to admit it. Looking back now, it seemed like she had immersed herself too deeply into emotions when writing her will. But if asked whether she could have stopped herself back then, she would probably have to say no.

 

“Well, it couldn’t be helped. Those were my true feelings.”

 

Covering her mouth with a book the size of her palm, Sebelia hid a bitter smile. A truly cursed and insane woman wouldn’t have had the presence of mind to write a suicide note.

 

Could I have even been able to hold a pen properly? I probably would have painted the walls with blood and hanged myself; she thought. 

 

But she didn’t do that.

 

That note was her last statement as Sebelia Inverness, so she decided to just say everything she wanted to say. 

 

All the resentment, sadness, and anger that she had never been able to express.

 

By doing so, she wanted to shock those who would pretend to mourn her after she was gone, even if just a little.

 

But  maybe that was a bit too much.

 

After all, there was no guarantee that they would regret what they did after reading her will, and…

 

If one just looked at the contents of the letter, wouldn’t it seem like she, Belita, would turn into a vengeful ghost and come back to curse them?

 

“Maybe I should have written it more calmly.”

 

Sebelia felt like she was an adult watching a teenager going through a turbulent puberty crisis; Except that the teenager was her own past self.

 

“ha….”

 

Sighing heavily, Sebelia returned the book to its place and walked toward the rack of paper.

 

She had to tell Denisa a strange mix of sad and happy news. The fact that her illness was progressing slowly but surely, and the faint hope that they might find a cure.

 

* * *

 

As soon as the morning dawned, the atmosphere in the mansion became tense.

 

Everyone was glancing at each other with anxious eyes, their eyes darting back and forth.

 

Hylend Hall had been closed down. That fact alone was shocking enough. What on earth was going on?

 

People were paralyzed with fear, unable to predict the duke’s antics. But what was even more surprising was the fact that no orders had been given to them since then.

 

“What on earth happened? Are we just supposed to carry on with our duties as usual?”

 

“I guess we have no choice. No separate instructions have been given…”

 

However, everyone knew deep down that something really bad had happened. Lady Gwen’s nervousness and the uneasy feeling that hung in the air were evidence of that.

 

“I heard that Sir Ryan was seen taking some of the servants for questioning…”

 

“It’s fortunate that the Duke is no longer causing a ruckus, but somehow I have a bad feeling about this.”

 

After what seemed like days of walking on thin ice, the knights who had been staying at the port suddenly returned.

 

“That’s…!”

 

“Oh, my God!!!”

 

Amid the tense atmosphere, a mixture of relief and despair burst forth. It was the realization that they no longer had to endure nameless terror, yet simultaneously understanding that the Duke had drawn his sword against his own family.

 

“What is the Duke thinking?”

 

The knights had returned from the port, escorting a shabby-looking Rash in chains.

 

* * *

 

“De…hart…” Rash called out to him in a desperate voice.

 

“Well, it seems you didn’t have a comfortable trip, Uncle.”

 

As Dehart said, Rash’s appearance was far from pleasant. 

 

As the family’s oldest son, Rash always maintained his dignity, but now he looked as unsightly as a rat in the gutter. Dehart thought this appearance suited him well and greeted him with open arms.

 

“Sorry. I wasn’t in my right mind, so I couldn’t take care of you, uncle.”

 

Dehart’s smile, which seemed to be mocking, was quite unpleasant to see.

 

Rash also seemed to think so as he glared at him with reddened eyes. However, Dehart had truly forgotten about him.

 

“It’s a fact with no ounce of falsehood, but it seems I have hurt your feelings.”

 

How could he possibly care about his uncle, who stabbed him in the back in the face of his wife’s sudden death?

 

“Of course, I believe you will forgive me. After all, you’re the one who drove me to this point.”

 

Dehart chuckled thinly, meeting Rash’s resentful gaze.

 

“Don’t look at me like that, Uncle. You’re trying to conjure up sympathy where it no longer exists.”

 

“Dehart… You’ve finally lost it…”

 

“Maybe.”

 

Dehart, lighting his cigar, spoke in a languid voice as he opened the window.

 

“But where did you get the confidence to spout such insults to a madman and think you’ll be fine afterward?”

 

There was no trace of amusement on his turned-away face.

 

“Is the madness hereditary?”

 

Like a finely crafted porcelain doll, the only thing adorning his beautiful face was cold madness.

 

Only then did Rash remember the stories he’d heard as he’d been dragged here, gulping down nervously.

 

So the curse manifested and drove him mad…! Rash thought as he felt a shiver down his spine.

 

“Hmm…”

 

Meanwhile, beneath his stoic face, Dehart was fighting the urge to burn everything to the ground.

 

I know why I forgot about my uncle until now; he said inwardly.

 

The moment he met those fake innocent eyes, Dehart had felt an overwhelming urge; a selfish, intense desire to burn it all down, to destroy everything and then kill himself.

 

Maybe I erased him from my memory because I knew I couldn’t control these emotions.

 

Dehart took a deep drag from his cigar, sending a sarcastic applause to his own exceptional brain.

 

Ever since Sebelia’s death, a burning pain that resembled flames would occasionally rise from his chest to his throat.

 

“Phew…”

 

And those flames wished not only to consume him but to engulf the entirety of Hylend as well. 

 

He craved to turn every place she was absent from into ashes, to make all those who tormented her scream in agony. 

 

“No, no, not yet.”

 

It wouldn’t be too late for that after the truth about Sebelia’s death was revealed. 

 

So, not yet. 

 

Not yet…

 

“That would be too easy of an ending for them.”

 

Dehart muttered incomprehensible words as he paced frantically around his office like a madman while Rash watched him in horror.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Marquis Weddon, who was about to enter Hylend Hall, was filled with disappointment.

 

 “This….”

 

He clicked his tongue, thinking of the Inverness family’s burial ground in the garden. 

 

“We’ll have to open it to be sure….” Marquis Weddon furrowed his brow and sighed. 

 

Then, Neithan whispered in his ear.

 

“I have an idea.”

 

Silas’ eyes stared at Neithan, seemingly admiring his wit

 

“If we ask that illegitimate child’s nanny, wouldn’t she know something?”

 

“……”

 

“Leave it to me, I’ll take care of it,” he added confidently.

 

* * *

 

It was only a matter of seconds before the news of Rash having been dragged in spread throughout Hylend Hall.

 

“Oh my god, how could this happen!”

 

Gwen, who had been waiting for news of her husband, finally appeared. And Dehart briefly wondered if he should be glad that he had caught her, who had been running around like a mouse all this time.

 

“Rash, what is the meaning of this?” Gwen asked as she untied the ropes that bound him. 

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Rash looked up at Gwen with a face filled with emotion.

 

“Y…Yes honey.”

 

“I can’t believe you’ve been subjected to such suffering… It’s unbelievable.” 

 

With trembling hands, Gwen cupped Rash’s cheeks and kissed his forehead, praying to God. Then, with eyes filled with anger, she glared at Dehart.

 

“”You  don’t even recognize your own family now? Rampaging like a thundering beast. Aren’t you afraid of how Lord Rims will react if he finds out about this?”

 

“Aunt, I admit it’s hard to recognize my uncle in such a state,” Dehart leisurely mocked Gwen’s words, and her eyes widened with anger. “But was it wrong for a nephew to bring his uncle home?”

 

“You didn’t have to bring him home tied up like a criminal!”

 

“Well, yes, that’s true.”

 

Dehart momentarily dropped his polite demeanor, causing Gwen’s face to flush with incredulity.

 

“ I simply treated him the way he deserved, what’s the problem with that?”

 

“…I can’t take this anymore.”

 

Gwen’s voice trembled with humiliation as she spoke.

 

“I tolerated you shutting down the estate and causing chaos in our household. But this is the limit. Our family will leave Hylend Hall.”

 

In truth, this was a plan Gwen had been thinking about from the moment Hylend Hall was shut down, but she spoke of it as if the idea had just occurred to her.

 

“To receive such treatment after raising you like my own child. I can’t take it anymore.”

 

Although her intentions were entirely different, Gwen pretended to be a wounded parent, along with Rash, and tried to leave.

 

Dehart is currently unpredictable. We have no choice but to avoid him for now and wait for a later opportunity; she thought to herself.

 

Just let him continue to rampage like a lunatic. That way, his reputation and credibility will naturally decline.

 

The day will come when people start to doubt his abilities.

 

That will be the day I must reappear.

 

Having calculated her moves, Gwen maintained her composure to the very end. 

 

“Farewell, Dehart. If you ever need my assistance… we can talk then.”

 

Then, with a bitter smile, she placed her hand on the doorknob. 

 

Click, click.

 

“Huh?”

 

However, the office door had already been locked from the outside for a long time.

 

Upon realizing this, Gwen turned her head with a puzzled expression, and her gaze directly fell on Dehart who was casually staring at her.

 

“You….”

 

“Where are you trying to go in such a hurry, Aunt? You’ve been avoiding me for four days straight.”

 

“Dehart, please have pity on me. I don’t have the energy to talk anymore. I need to take care of my wounded and sick family.”

 

Gwen appealed with a pleading look as she embraced Rash.

 

“Please, just let us go.”

 

Yet, Dehart merely shrugged his shoulders.

 

“I apologize for not meeting your expectations.”

 

Looking at the cage on the desk, he spoke with a tone devoid of any emotion.

 

“Unfortunately, I cannot easily let go as you are the only family I have left.”

 

It was a mood closer to sincerity than mere empty words.

 

“Well then, since you are here, wouldn’t you like to reminisce with me about how Sebelia lived before she died?”

 

His golden eyes emitted a cold light as he stared at her.

 

“I am very curious about those last few days before she died, the ones I do not know about.”

 

The moment her eyes locked with those icy golden ones, Gwen realized he wasn’t going to let her go so easily.