FYH Chapter 31

After spending another restless night in his chamber, Roderick woke up and habitually looked at the wooden statue by his bed. He playfully flicked the statue’s peculiar nose and spoke to it.

“You keep distracting me, so my wishes aren’t coming true. Were you thinking about someone else all night?”

But as he stared at the statue, he noticed something odd. The statue looked significantly older, slightly charred, and even had a small crack.

Frowning, he summoned the chamberlain.

“Are you awake, Your Majesty?”

After a brief greeting, Roderick immediately presented the statue.

“Who gave the Queen this kind of wood?”

The chamberlain was taken aback by the sudden question. On closer inspection, he too noticed the issues with the wood. It was warping.

“Get her some good wood. Something nice for Hailey to play with.”

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

The chamberlain hesitated before responding. The King’s cute phrasing aside, the Queen didn’t seem like someone who played with wood blocks. Rather, it seemed like she was working on something. Or, as she put it, cultivating herself.

“The Queen doesn’t have any other hobbies. You all should pay more attention. What are the Queen’s maids doing?”

The chamberlain became very solemn. Objectively, the Queen’s maids were exceptionally good at their jobs, even better than the King’s attendants. This was all thanks to the flawless leadership of the head maid, Deborah.

“Summon Jade,” Roderick ordered.

“Yes, he has been waiting outside since morning,” the chamberlain replied.

The chamberlain, who had apologized repeatedly despite doing nothing wrong, looked grim as he exited. As soon as he left, Jade asked eagerly,

“Did the King get some sleep?”

“Not at all. He looks extremely unhappy.”

“Should we deploy the Queen?”

“It seems necessary.”

After the previous incident, they were convinced that the Queen was indeed the King’s pacifier. Although the King had seemed displeased initially, he appeared to like the Queen even more afterward. With this, the Little Duncan had proven her qualifications as the leader of the pacifier squad.

Jade, running his hand through his hair, knocked twice and entered the King’s chamber. Before Jade could even salute, Roderick asked,

“That report on the Queen. When can I review it? Didn’t I set the deadline for after the hunting competition?”

The King had been pressing Jade about this for some time. Initially, it was for a simple reason, but recently, he had felt very uncomfortable. The differing attitudes of the Queen and the Duke bothered him.

“I will submit it by this afternoon. It’s an important report, so the cross-verification took some time.”

“Make sure it’s done well. Don’t keep me waiting.”

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

Jade’s expression darkened. He had been significantly involved in preparing this report, and the results were far from satisfactory for the King.

 

The captain of the knights, Jade, returned to Roderick late in the afternoon.

“Glory to Cayenne,” Jade saluted, and Roderick acknowledged him with a mere nod. Jade approached the desk and presented a thick report.

“This is the report on the Queen. It is more detailed than before. However, Your Majesty…”

“What is it? Speak.”

“I’m sorry, but there is no significant difference from the previous content.”

Roderick furrowed his brow.

“What do you mean? My order was to correct the inaccuracies.”

“I apologize. But this information was gathered from people around the Queen. Her tutors, servants and cooks from the Duke’s household, and her childhood friends. I personally verified it as well.”

Noticing the King’s skeptical expression, Jade added cautiously,

“Moreover… Lawrence also confirmed the reliability of the report.”

Roderick slammed the report onto the desk.

“Tell them to be careful if they value their lives.”

“…”

“How dare that crazy bastard meddle with another man’s wife…”

The chamberlain and the commander of the knights exchanged glances as the man with madness called a seemingly sane young man crazy.

Roderick, still frowning, skimmed through the report. He didn’t know much about his wife of less than two months, so he focused on external details like her preferences and hobbies. He sighed after confirming her favorite tea and desserts and chuckled in disbelief at the mention of her habit of humming songs. He felt like his madness was acting up.

“Commander, did you also review this report?”

“Yes, I was deeply involved in the investigation.”

“Then let me ask you, do you really think this describes the Queen?”

Jade also couldn’t affirm the King’s question. Bowing his head, he remembered something else to report.

“There is one peculiar thing.”

“What is it?”

“The second daughter of the Hopfman family had a private audience with the Queen last week. They have had a personal friendship and often attended tea parties together since childhood.”

Roderick, without taking his eyes off the report, nodded for him to continue.

“She felt that the Queen’s mannerisms and attitude had subtly changed.”

“Is that so?”

Roderick, tilting his head, frowned.

“But isn’t that natural? Does she still think the Queen is on the same level as her?”

“…”

“If she thinks she can speak informally and be equals like when they were children, let her try. I won’t stop her if she wants to die.”

Roderick flipped through the report with slightly irritated movements. His gaze fell on the family relations section.

“She never defied the Duke’s words?”

“…Generally, that was the case.”

“This is maddening.”

Something felt subtly off, but he couldn’t pinpoint what it was. And it seemed no one else thought this was important.

Roderick pushed the report aside. Perhaps he could interrogate the Queen directly, but he didn’t want her to know he had investigated her.

‘Use me.’

She wouldn’t get angry, but the distance between them would grow. That would only prove her words were right.

“What is the Queen doing now?”

Feeling a severe headache, Roderick asked about the whereabouts of the cause of his headache. Jade immediately replied,

“She is by the lake again.”

“What obsession does she have with water? Or is she hiding something there?”

Roderick looked displeased.

“You all think the Queen is just a gentle person. It’s even written here in detail. But she’s not like that at all. The Queen has some strange beliefs.”

“…”

“Is walking by the lake that important?”

“…”

“I will go to Hailey.”

Roderick roughly ran his hand through his hair and stood up. Despite his annoyed expression, his steps toward the Queen were somewhat hurried.

 

As the foreign spirit appeared, Lee-Jae glanced around. The maids and knights were standing at a somewhat awkward distance. The King had ordered them to stay close to prevent any foolish actions, while the Queen preferred to be alone. This was the result.

Lee-Jae turned her gaze back to the lake, and the foreign spirit curiously asked,

– Are you afraid of water?

“No, I like it.”

– Then why don’t you go in?

Lee-Jae looked shocked, as if she had heard something unbelievable.

“Are you a vengeful spirit? What are you trying to tempt me into? How many people have you killed like this?!”

– I’ve never tempted anyone into the water. I have tempted them in other ways, though.

“…You’re disgusting, really.”

Realizing she had unintentionally let her guard down, Lee-Jae quickly checked her surroundings. The foreign spirit smirked and casually showed her his sword. It was clearly no ordinary sword, so Lee-Jae respectfully clasped her hands together.

The cursed mouth of hers spoke out of turn again.

With a humble expression, she whispered,

“Won’t you really help me?”

– I thought we settled this last time? Why are you being so persistent?

“I can’t handle it on my own. The spirits keep coming back. If this continues, I’ll be the one to die first.”

– Then give up. Why make it so complicated?

“Please don’t say that so easily. His life is at stake.”

As Lee-Jae spoke sullenly, the foreign spirit smiled slightly. When she even bowed her head, the eyes that had been teasing her took on a different light. Unlike the spirits, his eyes looked at her with affection.

– Kang Lee-Jae, are you worried?

“I don’t want to lose my husband. He’s a good person too.”

– Well, I’m not so sure.

“He really is. He’s not a bad person. No matter how I look at it, he doesn’t deserve such punishment. Please help me a little.”

– Your evaluation of him has improved quite a bit. Did something happen between you two?

Lee-Jae, struck by the question, fell silent.

– How far have you and Roderick progressed?

“That’s personal! Even if you’re a spirit, you can’t just say whatever you want!”

Lee-Jae was indignant, but he nodded as if he understood.

– So, you’re not that close yet.

“…”

– Roderick is going to have a hard time. He and I have very similar tastes. It’s quite interesting.

The foreign spirit smiled meaningfully.

– You’re doing well so far. Keep at it.

“If you’re not going to help, don’t praise me like you’re doing me a favor. It doesn’t encourage me at all.”

As Lee-Jae spoke sharply, the foreign spirit, who had been smiling, suddenly disappeared. She looked around, bewildered.

The people nearby were murmuring and seemed restless. The King was approaching.

The knights, who had been some distance away from the Queen, awkwardly smiled and quickly closed the gap. Truly, they were people of the castle.

“Hailey, do you always have to take your walks here? Is this some new form of protest?”

“Your Majesty,” Lee-Jae laughed, looking troubled.

“If you’re expecting me to fill in that lake with dirt, I’ll do it. Just watch me shovel for three years straight. I’ll do it diligently.”

The King, who had been anxious until he confirmed the Queen’s safety, immediately became sullen.