Married to a Man who Wants to Kill me

 

 

“Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”

 

“Oh, no. It’s not like that.”

 

If they continued their journey for two more days, they would arrive in Lerian Province. Originally, it would have taken three more days from this point.

 

However, due to Erita, who had been urging them relentlessly without a moment’s rest, the journey had been considerably shortened. For some reason, she seemed different from her usual self.

 

Theo couldn’t help but notice the anxiousness in Erita’s actions, who had been restless throughout the carriage ride from Asha.

 

Her habit of incessantly nagging and complaining had disappeared completely.

 

Oddly, even when he tried to start a conversation, she didn’t seem particularly eager to engage.

 

Today, she appeared uncomfortable making eye contact with him, and her restless pupils continuously roamed the space.

 

Theo had never seen her like this before.

 

Somehow, he had a gut feeling that Erita’s behavior might be related to Prince Tolle. What could Prince Tolle be plotting by using Erita?

 

Theo considered the possibility that Erita might be involved in some sort of scheme in Asha. Unpleasant speculations crossed his mind one after the other.

 

He had been observing Erta closely for a while but hadn’t found any conclusive evidence.

 

There are two main reasons why Erita would be in such a hurry. Either she needs to leave quickly, or she needs to get there quickly.

 

If the case is the former, it could imply that something significant was happening in the capital, and in the latter, it might suggest that she had something hidden in Lerian.

 

Theo hesitated for a moment before speaking to Erita, as if testing the waters.

 

“Let’s take a short break. Even horses need some rest. We look like we are evacuating rather than going on a journey.”

 

Erita’s eyes widened in surprise.

 

“That’s not possible. We must hurry.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Well… I just want to get to Lerian quickly.”

 

As she said that, Erita lowered her head. It still seemed strange.

 

“Is it just because of that mysterious rock?”

 

“Well, what other reason could there be?”

 

Erita responded sensitively to his seemingly casual question. Theo deliberately threw a meaningful remark at her.

 

“You’re hiding something from me.”

 

Her face turned pale at those words. 

 

Could it be related to Lethenia?

 

As soon as Theo stood up, Erita grabbed his arm and urgently shouted,

 

“You promised to go with me to Lerian!”

 

The sharpness of Erita’s voice confirmed Theo’s suspicions that she was plotting something.

 

It was then that he felt the Ophelia Gemstone he always carried vibrate.

 

It was the emergency call of Apomenon, signaling that something had happened to Lethenia.

 

His heart grew cold. A deep darkness filled his gaze as he looked at Erita.

 

Erita felt an unfamiliar sense of dread in Theo’s demeanor. She swallowed hard and gently released his arm.

 

××××××××××××××××××××××

 

As I opened the door and stepped inside, a narrow corridor greeted me. A faint light, perhaps from a magical candle, illuminated the surroundings.

 

I continued on the path. This place was accessible only to the Emperor.

 

It was also where Ian kept his most precious belongings. I wondered how he would react if he knew I had been in and out of the chamber.

 

And, above all, what should I do now if the Healing Stone doesn’t work? These complex thoughts left me feeling increasingly anxious.

 

After a while, I came to an arched entrance. I stepped inside slowly.

 

The interior was surprisingly large for a secret chamber. The first thing that caught my eye was a white cloth hanging on the opposite side of the entrance.

 

It looked like it had been hung to hide something. As I turned my gaze slightly, I saw various items displayed on shelves.

 

True to his word, there were things that should never be seen by others.

 

Mostly, they were ancient magical artifacts marked with the insignia of ancient mages and a massive pile of documents.

 

It was a far cry from my expectations of gold and silver treasures and land documents.

 

I carefully examined the displayed magical tools one by one. 

 

Pocket watches, helmets, teacups, candlesticks, and other everyday objects.

 

If they weren’t labeled as magical artifacts, I wouldn’t recognize them as anything special.

 

On one side of the shelf, several books had peculiar, mystical design on them. I wondered if there might be spirits bound on them.

 

My curiosity was piqued for a moment, but I soon shifted my attention to something else.

 

In a transparent box, there was an ordinary-looking stone. It was undoubtedly the healing stone that Ian had used on me.

 

‘I found it.’

 

My focus was drawn to the area that was covered in a white cloth directly across from the entrance.

 

I wonder if there was anything he wanted to keep hidden, even in this secret room where no one could enter other than him.

 

I had a feeling that his most important belongings might be hidden there.

 

Maybe there was another passage connected to this secret chamber. Driven by curiosity, I cautiously pulled back the white cloth.

 

Finally, I was able to see what was beyond, and for a moment, I was stunned.

 

‘This is…….’

 

There was no secret passage. Instead, the wall was filled with canvases of various sizes, all featuring a unique art style that I hadn’t seen before. The protagonist of these paintings was the same person.

 

I moved closer and examined each one of them closely.

 

It was a girl smiling brightly at someone.

 

Dressed in a lilac dress that matched her own eyes, the girl wore a crown made of white flowers.

 

It was Lethenia in her innocent days with no resentment, no hate, no sorrow.

 

Looking at her inexplicably cheerful appearance, so pure that it was unimaginable, somehow tugged at my heart.

 

I moved my gaze to the other paintings one by one.

 

Each one vividly recreated memories shared between the two of them.

 

Among the numerous paintings, there was one that particularly made my heart heavy.

 

It occupied a large portion of one wall.

 

In it was Lethenia wearing a white wedding dress. I stared at the painting for a long time.

 

[Ian reached out to take the bride’s hand with a heart as heavy as a beast being led to the slaughterhouse. It was an unfortunate wedding that no one blessed.]

 

In the original work, the wedding of the two was described like that. However, Ian’s true feelings for Lethenia were not mentioned anywhere.

 

Did he want to preserve the memory of her walking toward him in the white dress for a long time?

 

I could see what this space meant to him.

 

‘He hadn’t forgotten Lethenia.’ 

 

I noticed a space where numerous brushes and palettes were neatly arranged.

 

I recalled the painting of Favia that I had seen in the storage room.

 

It was undoubtedly painted by Ian.

 

He had sent a gift in the name of the Duchess of Rahedel before. 

 

Was all his contemptuous behavior toward Lethenia up to this point insincere?

 

At that moment, it felt like all the content from the original story I had seen was nothing but a lie.

 

All the doubts regarding Ian and Rosetin’s relationship, as well as his excessive animosity toward Theo, suddenly seemed to be resolved.

 

The protagonist, Ianhart, has always been in love with the hated villainess, Lethenia.

 

××××××××××××××××××××××

 

I approached Ian, who was lying on the bed, with the healing stone. There were bloody bandages tightly wrapped around his wounds. I placed the Healing Stone on top of them, and just like before, the stone emitted brilliant and mysterious multicolored light, even more intensely this time.

 

Ian let out a weak groan.

 

The mysterious light gradually subsided. Is it all over now?

 

For some reason, the healing stone had lost its original color and had turned dull.

 

I examined Ian’s condition again. I wanted to check if his wounds had healed, but I hesitated to remove the tightly wrapped bandages.

 

There was nothing more I could do. However, I couldn’t leave like this; my heart was uneasy.

 

After all, he had risked his life for me.

 

I couldn’t help but feel like I owed him, even if it was to save Lethenia’s life, not mine.

 

If the Healing Stone had an effect, he would wake up soon. I decided to sit at a table a little away from the bed and wait for him to regain consciousness.

 

How much time has passed? While waiting, I unknowingly drifted into a light sleep.

 

Then, I felt the sensation of someone’s fingertip brushing my cheek, and I slowly opened my eyes.

 

When I turned my head, I met Ian’s gaze, completely awake and looking at me with surprise in his eyes. I asked him with a startled expression.

 

“Are you okay now?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

He looked so healthy that it was hard to believe he had just crossed the river of death.

 

Unconsciously, I let out a sigh of relief. The healing stone had indeed worked.

 

Then, the memories of the events that had led him to this state flashed back in my mind.

 

“Back then… I was grateful. I was the one who was supposed to get hurt like this.”

 

“Even if we could go back to that time, I would have done the same.”

 

Ian still had the same emotionless doll-like appearance as before.

 

However, from his response, I could sense just how deep his affection for Lethenia was.

 

I began to wonder how much effort he had put into maintaining this facade, and I couldn’t help but find him a bit pitiful.

 

Of course, I felt most sorry for the real Lethenia, who was gone forever, never knowing all of this.

 

Still, his quiet question carried weight.

 

“Did you use the healing stone?”

 

“……Yes.”

 

“…….”

 

“But I had no choice. Your condition was… so dire.”

 

“I’m not blaming you.”

 

Silence lingered between us. His gaze remained fixed on me. Knowing everything now, being alone with him felt even more agonizing.

 

I stood up quickly and told him.

 

“Now that you’re okay, I’ll take my leave.”

 

But Ian urgently grabbed my wrist as I was about to leave. I turned to look at him with a questioning gaze.

 

His eyes, somewhere between distant and earnest, stirred up complex emotions deep within me.

 

“Lethenia.”

 

“…….”

 

“You know what’s in there now.”

 

From his voice, which seemed somewhat poignant, one could sense a deep yearning and regret toward Lethenia.

 

 

 

𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝑲𝒐-𝒇𝒊