Don't Get Caught by Your Husband!

Escalion asked, pulling his body away from Belladonna.

In his head he was wondering what there might be in Serelinia that she might like, but the thought of leaving Poetry was unexpected for him.

He looked at her determined face and opened his mouth towards her.

“It’s still cold in Griblata. Your body is too weak for you to stay….”

“But we can’t leave Griblata every time winter comes.”

Belladonna calmly sighed.

“Furthermore, this winter is the first winter since I married you, and if the lord’s wife leaves the manor alone during the first winter, it may give a bad impression to the people of the manor. So, even though it’s a hassle, I think it’s better to go back.”

Escalion crossed his arms and gave a disapproving look.

If there was anyone who thought that way about Belladonna, I felt like kicking them out of Griblata right away.

“And when you get back, please call Scarlett.”

“Scarlett?”

“Yes. She’s your family. I want to invite her to the castle and have a meal with me.”

In response to Belladonna’s additional suggestion, Escalion quietly stared at her with eyes that didn’t understand the meaning.

Are you offended? He hasn’t opened up his heart to me yet, so maybe I’ve gone too far…?

Just when I was starting to worry that he might not know the topic, Escalion nodded and spoke.

“Okay. If that eases your mind.”

“Thank you.”

Belladonna was relieved and answered him.

* * *

“Ma’am, I’m so sorry……!”

Cindy, who was packing her things, sat down and sighed.

Belladonna looked at her, feeling sorry that so many servants and knights had to travel a long way again just because of her whim.

“But I was also starting to miss Griblata.”

Cindy, who had been sitting quietly looking at her luggage, suddenly turned her head and said.

“The weather is really nice here, but the food doesn’t taste that good, does it? Griblata has a variety of flavors in any dish, but this place is full of either very salty or very sweet things.”

Is that so?

Not only did Belladonna not eat a lot of food in the first place, but even if she did, everything she ate seemed delicious.

Is it because she starved so much in her last life…?

“I was missing my younger siblings that I left at home, but it turned out great! Now I have to go back and check to see if my father is taking care of my younger siblings.”

I didn’t know if she was sincere, or if she was thinking of me, who had a heavy heart in many ways, but I was grateful to Cindy for saying that.

“When we went back, did the lord would call a wizard?”

When Belladonna nodded, Cindy let out a satisfied voice.

“Good! How convenient was it when I came here thanks to the portal!! But the wizard called this time is not the old wizard from last time, right? It seems like the lord doesn’t really trust him.”

Belladonna shook her head.

The new wizard that Escalion hired this time was much younger and had outstanding abilities.

‘Now that I think about it, Fabion…’

It felt strange to think of the old wizard who knew her secret.

Will we ever meet again? I thought about him for a moment, but I didn’t know whether it would be a good thing to see him again or never to see him again.

Belladonna sat down in her seat and let out a small sigh.

As soon as the carriage passed through the portal through Sirlenia and Griblata, Belladonna felt great regret.

This was because the immense cold that seemed to penetrate right through her bones came upon her.

‘Wow… the weather is no joke at all.’

Belladonna walked out, almost being hugged by Escalion, and looked at the servants of Griblata running out of the castle carrying thick coats.

She sniffled and already missed the warm Sirlenia.

“Lady! Hurry up and put this on.”

“It was still bearable until last week, but it’s gotten colder since yesterday.”

Yes, even though I chose the wrong time, I chose the wrong time…

Belladonna entered the castle of Griblata, putting her arms under the thick wool coats they held out.

As I passed through the door with Escalion, the servants lined up and bowed their heads to greet them.

“My lord, madam! Did you have a good time?”

“Did you have a good trip?”

After checking her finger, which was wearing a ring with the same design as Escalion, the employees looked at each other and smiled happily.

Belladonna felt embarrassed for some reason and climbed the stairs, hiding her hand under her coat.

* * *

“Ma’am, this is Wolff.”

The next afternoon, Wolff visited Belladonna’s room.

After receiving her permission, Wolff sat down and opened his mouth with a determined look on his face.

“I heard you would like to invite Miss Scarlett Layton.”

When Belladonna nodded her head, he placed the paper she was holding on her table.

“It seems that the lord has finally spoken.”

“……”

“I was aware that you were concerned about Miss Scarlett, but I am sorry for not telling you in advance. For me, I couldn’t open my mouth until the Lord spoke first…”

As Belladonna smiled in understanding, Wolff continued his speech.

“My lord always react cautiously when it comes to anything related to Miss Scarlett. He hides her existence more than necessary, and sometimes it seems as if he ignores her altogether. Even if it causes unnecessary misunderstanding among people.”

Yeah, it seemed like that… Does Escalion know that his sister is perceived by others as a mistress?

Belladonna let out a small sigh of her own.

“But please know that, this was his way of protecting Miss Scarlett.”

“……”

“Before receiving Griblata, the lord was a mercenary who wandered the entire continent rather than staying in one place. Aside from the issue of low salary, there were so many people targeting it. Being on someone’s side is the same as being someone’s enemy.”

Mercenaries are hired by lords or wealthy nobles and become swords for them.

The role of mercenaries is to start a fight where they want and kill who they want.

‘So naturally, there would have been forces that would keep Escalion in check, a mercenary who was superior to others. They were able to threaten Escalion by using Scarlet as a weakness.’

“The lord at the time thought he had neither the power nor the qualifications to protect his family. Even for Miss Scarlett. As he kept his distance from her, he was unable to naturally play the role of a friendly older brother, and as time passed, the two of them became almost like strangers. Miss Scarlett only contacts him when she needs him.”

It was obvious how poorly Escalion, who had never had a proper family, treated his younger sister, whom he paradoxically had to keep a distance from because he wanted to protect her.

There may be a thicker wall between the two than I thought…

“If you look at them from the side, you can see that they are actually siblings who care about each other more than anyone else, but since only the two people involved don’t know…”

Wolff, who spoke with a sigh, was immediately startled and quickly threw up his hand.

“Oh, my! Forget that last word, ma’am. I even added unnecessary words.”

Belladonna shook her head.

Just by listening to what Escalion said, I could tell that in his heart he cared for his sister more than anyone else.

“Ah, anyway… Miss Scarlett is currently living in a house provided by the Lord in Griblata. Shall we put the flue in there, madam?”

Bella also nodded her head.

76 Euphrang Street. It was her turn to send her letter there.

* * *

Belladonna, who had written the invitation with Wolff’s help, looked down at the envelope, neatly sealed with a wax seal.

‘Is this enough?’

I was both excited and worried about how Scarlett would react after receiving the letter.

I hope that through this opportunity, Escalion and Scarlet will become a little closer and become like normal siblings…

I wanted to give Escalion, who had never had a true family before, a family as a gift.

‘And me too….’

Belladonna’s heart began to beat slightly.

‘I also want to become his true family. Instead of going back to Astanya like this, I want to stay by his side and continue to play the role of his wife from now on….’

Belladonna, who was sitting quietly looking down at the envelope of the letter she had written, turned her gaze to the side.

Letter envelopes with the seal of the Vatican were gathered in one place.

These were all letters sent to her by Pope Pronance.

As I was looking at them, I naturally sighed.

Not long after she came to Griblata, she kept replying to the Pope’s letters reminding her of her divorce a few months later, saying that she was aware of it.

At that time, she felt strongly that rather than adapt and remain in the unfamiliar Griblata with her unfamiliar husband, she should return to Astanya, which was at least slightly familiar to her.

She also believed that no matter what she became, she was a saint and had to follow the Pope’s orders.

But she recently…

“…….”

These days, Belladonna’s will to remain by Escalion’s side rather than return to Astanya has become stronger, and she hasn’t responded to any of the Pope’s letters.

And perhaps because Pope sensed hia impatience at his lack of response, he was sending more letters these days.

Belladonna lifted one of her hands and pushed the unopened envelopes away.

‘But i can’t continue to ignore the Pope like this.’

In any case, after the three months that the Pope had promised, he would take issue with Escalion’s defect and demand a divorce.

‘Before that, he need to find out what’s wrong with Escalion…….’

Belladonna’s blue eyes, frowning and contemplating, turned to the envelope she was holding.

From what she had observed so far, there was nothing about Escalion that the Pope could take issue with.

He had no enormous hidden wealth, no military organization or justification to stand up to the emperor or the Pope, no physical defects at all, or anything else.

But there’s just one thing: Scarlett…

<Revival effect due to sympathy for the saint who returned home after being beaten by her husband for his promiscuous private life. Let’s aim for these two birds, this is it!>

Belladonna, remembering the Pope’s sinister voice, frowned and bit her lower lip.

As for his private life, it was clear that the Pope also knew Scarlett as Escalion’s lover.

He took the saintly woman, who was greatly respected and loved by her subjects, as his wife, and then he have a mistress and took issue with Escalion, who wasn’t faithful to his marriage, on a large scale. It was probably an intention to make her return to Astanya.

‘What should I do to stop this?’

At a time when it hadn’t yet been officially announced that Scarlett was Escalion’s younger sister, Belladonna couldn’t reveal it on her own.

And when it’s revealed that Scarlett is Escalion’s half-sister, it’s rather…

‘Scarlett could get hurt, as Escalion feared for her, and she could furthermore become a target for someone.’

I’m not even sure it won’t be the Pope…

There was still about a month left until the promised three months.

Belladonna turned her head and looked at the Pope’s neglected letters.

‘First, i have to find out what exactly the Pope’s thoughts are.’

Belladonna opened her drawer and took out a blank piece of paper and a pen.

I had to pretend that I was still on Pope’s side and read the card i was holding.