Episode 6
It was only natural, since her body had been tamed to be that way from a very young age.
A bitter smile hung at the corners of her lips.
The pain that gnawed at her insides, the tinnitus ringing in her ears, and the terrible color of her blood told her: she didn’t have much time left.
“….Chelsea?”
Startled by the low voice that sounded in the dark room, Chelsea flinched and shrank back.
It was okay, though. She’d finished cleaning up.
Quietly closing the bathroom door, she turned around.
Under the faint moonlight, the Marquis, with a drowsy expression as if he’d just woken up, was looking at Chelsea.
“Is there a problem?”
“It’s just… my stomach’s a bit unwell.”
“Let them bring you some digestive medicine then.”
Chelsea, trying to dissuade the Marquis who was trying to call over a maid, hurriedly spoke,
“I threw up and it made me feel better. There’s no need for that.”
“But…”
“I just don’t want to take any medicine.”
The Marquis stared at Chelsea’s staunch attitude.
“Call the doctor tomorrow for an examination.”
He whispered, forced to take a step back.
His unbelievably gentle tone made her feel like she was going to cry.
Even though she knew it was just the same sort of care he’d hold for a toy, she kept relying on it.
“Hold me, please.”
Reaching out her cold arms, Chelsea asked for something she shouldn’t dare to wish for.
His wide-open eyes fixed on Chelsea.
“Hold me, your highness.”
“….”
The Marquis looked at Chelsea in silence.
Was she being too presumptuous again?
“…You’re like a fool.”
The Marqus, who hastened to stand before Chelsea with hasty steps, hugged her as hard as he could. It felt like she would suffocate trapped in those strong arms.
“Come here.”
But he was the one who came first.
With a secret smile, she buried her face in his broad chest.
The full moon illuminated the two.
On the day of the next full moon, at Lauford Harbor.
At the end of that day, Chelsea would be leaving this country for forever.
So, just until then – couldn’t they stay just like this? Couldn’t she be forgiven for at least that much?
Savoring the warmth transmitted through her skin, Chelsea hoped and wished again.
* * *
“The fruit sent from the fruit was a kind of poison. Wow, these people are definitely some extraordinary lunatics.”
I got lost in thought while reading <CMD>* 1abbrievation for Chelsea and the Marquis’ novel, The Contracted Marchioness Seeks A Divorce! using cash.
I was already suspicious that a family that used to abuse her on a daily basis wouldn’t give her anything good, but they were even worse than I’d imagined.
Judging by the novel, it seemed that the body’s condition gradually deteriorated when you stopped taking it..
Was the plan to tie Chelsea under the Viscount’s influence by keeping to make her need the fruit?
Chelsea, who now had a deadline because of the poison, misunderstood her husband’s intentions and left the Marquis behind.
Misunderstandings could be cleared up, but what about the poison?
First, I had to somehow catch her…
‘Wait, she said she was leaving the country on the night of the full moon.’
What shape was the moon in today?
It was already a time when the sun had completely set.
With an ominous feeling, I got up from my seat and went to the window.
Bright moonlight was shining through the window.
“It was today?!”
Unexpected Mission Alert!
You found out that Chelsea is leaving for a faraway foreign country tonight.
We must stop her!
Go to the Lauford Port and prevent Chelsea from sailing away!
Completion Reward: 2000 cash, ???
Lauford Port is currently a Class S risk zone, so extra caution is advised.
I pressed my temples while looking at the sudden mission window glistening in red.
S-Class Risk Zone? We needed to go right now?
‘But it’s already late into the night.’
It would be too late if I alerted the Marquis and waited for backup. Chelsea would leave the country before then.
I had no choice but to get dressed and hastily call for a carriage.
Who would have thought I’d be visiting a Class S Risk zone by myself this late at night?
The fortunate thing was that I had means to cope with it using cheat codes to some extent.
-Welcome, Customer! Come on into the Stat Boost Shop.
When I opened the Stat Boost Shop to enhance my abilities, I was greeted with a message adorned in typical capitalist manner.
This was the new system that was added when my job grade raised from D- to D.
With this, I could enhance various abilities using the cash I’d collected so far.
How vulgar that you became as much stronger as the amount of money you put into it. I loved it.
“Let’s see… What’s useful in the current situation… Maybe this?”
[Grand Opening Sale!] Limited-time Stat Boost.
– Raises a specific ability to a very high level for 3 hours.
“It drinks up 500 cash per ability, so this is the most optimal.”
In fact, with only 1600 cash left, there weren’t many other options.
I had spent it all on reading the novel.
It was all because of the library system that was designed to not let you skip any episodes – you had to read one to read the next, and so on.
I definitely didn’t just get too engrossed in the novel.
“I need to think about this in more detail.”
Before I knew it, the carriage, which had now arrived near Lauford Port, gradually slowed down.
The dark night sea beyond the window felt menacing.
‘Is Chelsea planning to cross that sea alone with her ailing body?’
While thinking of Chelsea, who must have endured all sorts of hardships, my mind cleared.
I had to hold her back somehow.
Steeling my resolve, I slowly got out of the carriage.
* * *
Lauford Port was a small port that was closer to a fishing port than a trading one.
Even now, there were fishing boats of all sizes moored here.
‘There’s no way you can board a proper international ship from a port like this. Chelsea must be planning to smuggle herself out of here.’
Geographically, it was close to foreign countries, thus perfect for engaging in illegal activities.
The ‘S-Class Risk’ mentioned by the system was likely related to this.
I purchased a temporary ability enhancement (Observation).
After purchasing Observation enhancement from the stats boost shop, I surveyed the area around the harbor again. Then, things that were not visible before began to come in clearly.
‘These people are behaving suspiciously and awkwardly, unlike ordinary fishermen.’
They kept looking around nervously or pretending to work.
At the same time, they continued watching the coastline, as if waiting for something.
‘The ship hasn’t arrived yet.’
I looked down and pondered for a moment.
To retrieve Chelsea, I needed to infiltrate among these people…
I was debating whether a hiding ability or disguise ability would be more effective.
Disguise was easier for infiltration, but the downside was that there was a big risk of being exposed due to lack of understanding the group dynamics.
Hiding was the best if successful, but it was inherently more difficult.
So, my choice was…
[Purchased a time-limited stat enhancement (Hiding Ability, Disguise Ability)].
Yeah, buy both. Just flex a little.
If I was about to die soon anyway, why bother being stingy?
‘Let’s start with the disguise first.’
I brought over some fisherman clothes hanging on the clothesline and left behind a good sum of money.
Naturally, I would charge the Marquis for all of these costs.
The owner of the clothes makes money, I get the disguise, and the Marquis gets his Marchioness back, so it’s a happy ending for everyone.
After disguising myself with the clothes I bought (?) I smoothly blended into the group.
I didn’t attract much attention thanks to the hiding ability, which weakened my presence.
Those who hadn’t noticed my presence whispered among themselves.
“There are a lot of people I don’t know here. Why did our numbers suddenly increase?”
“I heard Shark’s coming today, so they all gathered in a hurry.”
“What? Why are they coming?”
“I didn’t hear it in detail, but maybe…”
Huh? What was ‘Shark’?
Curious, I focused on listening to the conversation.
“…It’s dangerous. We need to move quickly and finish.”
“Don’t stand out to them for no good reason. We should warn the ‘guests’ properly too…”
It seemed like the ‘Shark’ was a different, more dangerous group than the one currently moving.
Was that why the level of risk was higher?
By the time my guesses ended, I could see several ships entering the harbor.
At the same time, people who had been hiding revealed themselves.
‘It’s Chelsea!’
Among them was a face I had been searching eagerly for.
Chelsea, dressed in a robe, looked much thinner than I had seen in the portrait.
A man who looked like a boss gathered people who wanted to smuggle themselves into other countries, including Chelsea.
“Alright. Now that everyone is here, let’s go. We must move with special care today.”
He glanced sideways at a nearby fishing ship as he spoke.
When I turned my head in the direction of his gaze, I saw workers carrying boxes out of the ship.
Were these people ‘Shark’?
‘Still, this distance is no problem. Let’s quietly approach Chelsea.’
I seamlessly mingled among other stowaways and casually approached the ‘guests’.
Chelsea was unsteady, almost pitifully, perhaps because of her ill health.
Because of this, she was quite far away from the others.
“Are you not feeling well?”
Chelsea, startled by my calm voice, flinched and hunched her shoulders.
“I-I’m fine. It may be because I’m sleepy. There shouldn’t be any problem getting on board.”
She nervously replied in a frightened voice, seemingly worried that I, a stowaway, might abandon her.
To see things a little more, I continued the conversation nonchalantly.
“It’s going to take a long while. It won’t be easy to come back.”
“I know…”
“Did you leave anything behind?”
“That’s…”
Her cracked lips trembled slightly.
Chelsea, who hesitated for a while, shook her head as if she had made up her mind.
“…nothing.”
Aww poor Chelsea 🙁
Posted bc I was stressed af due to my exams and needed a break!
Sorry, updates will be irregular until next month!
This whole set up makes the title music from Morrowind play in my head. Strong Camonna Tong vibes here.
Thank you for translating the chapter!
The bit about loving how vulgar the stat shop was pushed the FL into top10 for me