♡ TL: Khadija SK
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Theodore was inwardly impressed by Annette’s behavior.
He had instructed this woman to pretend to love him, and she fully grasped the situation in a matter of moments.
Furthermore, her performance exceeded his expectations.
The woman whom he had believed to be nothing more than a living corpse with an empty head, instinctively, had found a way to stay alive and clung to it strongly.
When Theodore inwardly applauded Annette’s impeccable performance, the people around them were shocked to see them embracing each other.
“Did the word ‘wife’ just come out of his Highness’s mouth?”
“Has anyone read any articles about the Duke’s remarriage?”
“Instead, is he married to that madwoman Annette? It has been said that she killed Marquis Cheringen and fled. I can’t believe what my eyes are seeing now!”
The Grand Duke had come to the Alicia Asylum to search for the Grand Duchess whom he loved dearly.
Everyone had doubted this short sentence multiple times.
To begin with, the phrase “Grand Duchess” itself was dubious.
Theodore was the Grand Duke, but he had never had a wife.
There had been news of his marriage a few years ago, but the bride died on the wedding day shortly after the ceremony began.
In the newspapers at that time, heated and enthusiastic discussions erupted about whether this marriage should be considered valid or not.
And as a result of the exhausting debate that took place, public opinion agreed that the marriage was invalid because the bride died before the couple shared the wedding kiss.
So if the Grand Duke ever found the woman who would truly become his wife, the place this woman should go would be the cemetery, not the mental asylum.
Also, people wondered about the place of the word “lover” in the syntax.
That Theodore back then had never known the meaning of love.
Theodore had grown up receiving unlimited favor from the former Emperor, but he did not know how to reciprocate the love he received to others because of his harsh and arrogant nature.
For him, love and affection were meaningless, like sighing in the air.
However, Theodore back then was searching for his beloved wife, and it had reached the point where he personally came to a remote village where Alicia Asylum was located to find her.
The most interesting point here was that the person who claimed to be his wife was Annette.
Everyone knew except the Crown Prince that Annette was madly in love with the Crown Prince.
The spectators couldn’t determine the most shocking part, so they continued to look at Theodore standing before them with their astonished eyes.
Regardless of their thinking, Theodore was not a person who possessed a heart capable of containing love, even if that love – spoken of – meant tearing the heart of the other party into pieces.
Such a person was now…
“I apologize for being very late.”
Theodore hugged Annette gently and tried to calm her down.
The nurses covered their mouths in astonishment while the hand that had broken the doctor’s nose gently caressed Annette’s cheek.
They felt as if they had seen something they shouldn’t have seen.
This scene before them was more obscene than Theodore’s scandals exposed by the popular newspapers every day.
Annette, aware of the stares of these people, buried her face deeply in Theodore’s hand.
‘I don’t know what’s happening now, but I have to become the loving wife of this man and go along with what he does. So let’s think about the next scene of this play.’
Annette pretended to be a passionate lover intensely.
Annette thought she had abandoned her will to live, but when this opportunity presented itself to her, she wanted to seize it.
In fact, she wanted to live too.
To the extent that she decided to hold Theodore’s hand, knowing better than anyone else how devilish and wicked his personality was.
“How did you find me here?”
“The people who imprisoned you here falsified your identity. They put you in the hospital under a different name other than Annette Cheringen.”
“As expected, someone deliberately imprisoned me here.”
“I’m sorry for leaving you alone in a place like this.”
“It’s okay. After all, the important thing is that you found me in the end.”
Annette hugged his strong body, and pretended to be sad and moved like a tragic novel FL.
It seemed that the two were passionate lovers who met again after a desperate tragic story.
But reality was quite different…
They were both busy exploring each other.
Who is this man?
Who is this woman?
Why do you pretend to be my husband?
Why do you obey me?
Why did you suddenly appear and tell me to cooperate with you if I want to live?
How is it possible that you understood what I asked of you immediately even though I suddenly appeared before you?
However, that moment was not suitable for getting to know each other, so they decided to focus on their performance at the moment.
“No one believed that we were truly married.”
“Is the reason our secret wedding? If they only knew our love story, no one would doubt our relationship at all.”
“It seems difficult for you to speak, so don’t strain yourself too much.”
Annette muttered a curse under her breath.
Theodore seemed outwardly concerned about her, but in reality, his actions indicated quite the opposite.
If Annette, who did not know the scenario Theodore had invented to get to this place, continued talking, she might say something different from the story he had told them.
His words meant that no loopholes should occur, so he was telling her to keep her mouth shut and remain calm.
The opportunity for her escape had come, but at the moment she made a mistake, her escape plan would fail here.
Annette had no choice but to give him the answer he wanted.
“Yes, you are right.”
It was improvisational theater, but the audience was deceived because the acting was excellent—
They truly seemed married.
As the fake emotions rose in the play, a man rushed into the room.
“I extend my warm greetings to the noble Grand Duke. I am Walter Rogner, the director of this asylum.”
As soon as the employees summoned him, it was evident that Walter, who arrived late to the room, was very surprised by the sight he saw.
He was usually dealing with the homeless on the streets as the director of a mental asylum.
For such a person who didn’t deal much with the rich, let alone nobles, the Grand Duke was in a very high position for him.
Theodore was the half-brother of the current Emperor and the uncle of the Crown Prince of this empire.
After seeking the throne all his life, he became a nuisance to the Emperor and an enemy to the Crown Prince…
But that also meant Theodore had enough political standing to dare to covet the throne.
Why on earth was a person like him searching for his precious wife in such a rundown hospital?
Walter saw his son unconscious bleeding on the wall, but he couldn’t protest.
“Are you the director of this mental asylum?”
“Yes, yes, yes. I am the director.”
“I want you to explain immediately the mistreatment of the Grand Duchess in a place like this.”
“I’m sorry, but I was ignorant of her identity and hadn’t heard about the wedding ceremony of His Highness…”
“Do I seem to you like a fool who can’t be married?”
“No-! That’s impossible. I seem to have been too lazy to read the news published in the newspaper.”
The director gasped and waved his hand trying to explain the situation, but Theodore ignored him and called out the name of the person standing outside the door.
“Hans.”
As Theodore nodded towards him, the lawyer Hans handed the document to the director.
It was a document proving the marriage of Theodore Clayst and Annette Cheringen.
“I was postponing the announcement of the wedding due to personal circumstances beyond my control. And when I was about to reveal this truth to the public, the Grand Duchess suddenly disappeared.”
“This is madness… It’s impossible to believe this… When did you get married…?”
“Do you want me to take off my clothes now and make love with her or what?”
“I… I didn’t mean that.”
“I think the explanation that we are married is over at this stage.”
“Yes…”
“Explain.”
“Excuse me?”
Theodore’s voice sent shivers down Walter’s spine, but the latter couldn’t figure out the purpose of that cold question.
“Explain the reason for my wife’s disappearance here.”
“That… What exactly should I explain?”
“To the extent that I agree with your explanation.”
Walter thought to himself: I’d rather hit my head against the wall and lose consciousness–
But now was the time to turn on his brain to come up with an excuse, not hit his head.
He had to explain to the Grand Duke that they imprisoned Annette in exchange for a large sum of money offered by those seeking the position of Marquis Cheringen.
But confessing that he mistreated the Grand Duchess in front of the Grand Duke was no different from committing suicide with both hands.
It was Annette’s voice that prevented Walter from committing suicide.
“Darling, I’m very scared.”
Annette cried and grabbed Theodore’s shirt collar.
“Can we leave first? It’s very difficult to stay here.”
“I’m sorry, Annette. I didn’t think about it because of my stupidity. Being here must be very scary for you. Let’s leave quickly.”
Theodore gently stroked Annette’s hair.
Their performance was very good, but there was no script to follow.
So, to avoid being exposed as improvisers in this play, they had to match the details of their scenario behind the scenes.
Theodore was pleased with Annette’s cleverness, who invented a reason for them to leave at the right time.
She was a woman truly worth searching for.
Theodore hugged Annette’s frail body and carried her between his arms.
Some people gasped in admiration at his smooth movements, making it difficult for them to understand whether his strength was great or if Annette was weightless.
Doesn’t he resemble the brave knight rescuing the princess from the devil’s castle in the legends?
As Theodore, carrying Annette, passed through the iron gate, Walter, astonished, made loud noises in protest of his actions.
“Patients are only discharged from here with permission from the treating physician…”
“Annette is not a patient. And even if she were, she deserves treatment in my home, not in this pigsty. Furthermore, I am legally considered her guardian.”
Walter closed his mouth frustrated by Theodore’s swift response.
For the money he received, he was trying to hold onto Annette and keep her here, but there was no way to do that.
Theodore passed by Walter, carrying Annette between his arms, then he paused for a moment.
“There will be a comprehensive investigation into the abduction and confinement of my wife in this place.”
“We didn’t abduct her!”
“You forcibly confined someone here, isn’t that considered abduction?”
“We never confined her forcibly. Her family brought her here and left her, so I don’t know anything about…”
“Her family? That means someone from the Cheringen family instigated this abduction. I will also deal with them.”
Walter closed his ugly mouth.
“Hans.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Please inform the asylum of the complaints and legal actions we will be sending their way in the future.”
“I will inform them of everything, Your Majesty.”
Hans bowed sincerely.
While the director remained frozen in place, unable to move, Theodore left the asylum.
The carriage was waiting for him outside the door; which was wide open.
Theodore, carrying Annette as if she were a precious treasure between his arms, placed her on the seat and closed the door.
At the same time, the masks of acting were removed, and their faces returned to their natural expressions.
They looked at each other but never opened their mouths.
Only after the horse moved with a loud neigh, did their lips part at the same time…
“Who are you?”
“Why did you save me?”
These words were not suitable for the image of the couple who were passionately calling each other lovingly just moments ago.
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Thanks a lot!❤️🔥❤️🔥😻
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