The Villain's Terminally Ill Wife

Chapter 43

Dave accepted the 10 gold coins I handed him with both hands and checked them several times. No matter how many times he looked, it should have been 10 gold, but he seemed eager to confirm if it was real.

“With that much money, you can take your sister to get treated. If it’s not a serious illness, they might even be able to treat her there.”

“C-can I really accept this much money?”

His voice trembled slightly. He must have realized what he had done, after all. He had tried to kill me at someone else’s behest. And now I was giving him money and asking him to testify against that person.

While it was hard to forgive the child for trying to kill me, I had to focus on the fact that I was safe now. Ultimately, it was the person who instigated him that needed to be punished.

“If it were up to me, I’d want to turn you over to the guards right now.”

“…….”

Seeing him quickly deflate and start to glance at me nervously, I let out a soft sigh.

“But if you testify for me, I’ll let this one slide.”

“R-really?”

“Yes. But I don’t think you can stay in this house today.”

“What?”

The Duke Tristan’s side would have realized that Dave failed to kill me. They would likely want to eliminate him to remove any loose ends.

If I left Dave and his sister here, I wouldn’t be able to meet the children the next day.

So, I had to take the children out of this slum.

“It could be dangerous. For both you and your sister.”

He seemed to tremble at the thought of his sister being in danger more than himself. He didn’t fully grasp what I was saying but seemed to understand it instinctively.

“So, Dave, do you want to come out with your sister? Jason, help Dave and bring his sister out.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Knight Jason responded to my words and took Dave back into the house.

After a moment, we could hear some whimpering sounds from inside, and then the two came back out. Unlike before, Knight Jason was now holding Dave’s sister in his arms.

“It’s best we head back to the hotel now.”

We began to retrace our steps. Since it was a new route for me, I had to rely on Dave to guide us.

After a while, we finally arrived at the Starlight Hotel.

“Olivier, do you think you could take care of these children? I could reserve a separate room for them, but that might lead to unforeseen issues.”

For example, the children might try to run away.

Considering the state of Dave’s sister, it wouldn’t be easy for him to escape without anyone noticing.

Both Dave and his sister appeared emaciated, likely because they hadn’t been getting proper nutrition.

Moreover, his sister was in a very frail condition due to her illness. She seemed unable to walk on her own, meaning Dave would have to carry her if they were to flee.

I couldn’t help but wonder how a thin child like Dave could manage to carry his sister.

Still, I couldn’t ignore the possibility of something happening.

After all, Dave had a history of trying to kill me.

“Yes, I will take care of these children.”

“Thank you. And I’d like them to be… bathed and fed, if possible.”

“Yes, I will do as you request.”

Olivier responded without any sign of displeasure.

I felt a twinge of guilt seeing her always accommodating my requests without complaint.

“I’m sorry for making you do this every time.”

“It’s no trouble at all. This is my job.”

She replied with a bright smile despite my apology.

I returned her smile.

“I’m going to go in and rest now.”

“Yes, my lady.”

We arrived at our hotel room via the elevator.

After the trial in the morning, visiting the Wizard’s Tower to learn about the blooming conditions of the Rosier flower, and bringing the child who tried to kill me to this place, I was exhausted.

Originally, I had intended to rest quickly after the trial since it was physically draining, but circumstances kept me outside longer than expected.

Perhaps that was why I felt so fatigued that I couldn’t hold out any longer.

As soon as I entered the hotel room, I lay down on the bed. The soft touch of the plush bedding wrapped around me, lulling me into a deep sleep.

* * *

Richard, who had gone out for business, returned to the hotel later than anticipated.

It was late at night, and the surrounding darkness engulfed everything, illuminated only by the flickering moonlight.

Upon entering the hotel, he went straight up to the eighth floor. However, he hesitated as he was about to enter his hotel room.

He noticed that Lorenz and Jason were standing guard outside the room.

Although the knights usually took turns guarding the hotel room, it was unusual for two of them to be stationed there instead of just one.

“Welcome back, Count.”

“Welcome back, Count.”

Lorenz and Jason saluted Richard in unison. Their voices were soft in the night, but their movements were precise.

“Why are both of you here?”

Richard asked, not bothering to hide his confusion. Lorenz and Jason exchanged glances before turning back to face Richard.

“There was an incident today.”

“Incident?”

“Yes. The lady was attacked while she was out.”

“……What?”

Who attacked her, and what happened?

He furrowed his brow at Lorenz’s words.

“So, what is Diarna’s condition?”

“Fortunately, Jason and I discovered her and prevented any harm. The lady is safe.”

“……Good.”

Richard let out a long breath upon hearing that Diarna was unharmed.

“Report on the details.”

“Yes, Count.”

Lorenz provided a detailed report about Diarna’s outing, from visiting the Wizard’s Tower to bringing back the child from the slum who had attempted to kill her.

As Lorenz continued his account, Richard’s expression grew more incredulous, but he refrained from interrupting and listened to his report.

“So you learned about the blooming conditions of the Rosier flower?”

“Yes. According to the wizard, love is the condition.”

“Love.”

Richard muttered softly, then let out a chuckle. If love was the condition, then sadly, there would be no chance for the Rosier to bloom between Diarna and himself.

What he felt for Diarna was not love, but rather pity and a sense of kinship.

Naturally, Diarna did not love him either.

So, there was no chance for the flower to bloom between them.

“I’ll have to leave the flower to someone else.”

“As a matter of fact, the head maid and the lady have discussed that.”

“Alright.”

It was a reasonable course of action. If the flower simply fed on love to bloom, it wouldn’t necessarily have to come from the parties involved. It was much more rational to leave it to someone else than to gamble on a love that was unlikely to ever be fulfilled.

“And what about the child from the slums who attacked Diarna?”

“The head maid is taking care of him. Just in case, we’ve stationed knights in the area as well. However… the lady intends to call the child, Dave, as a witness in tomorrow’s trial.”

“…….”

Richard narrowed his eyes. He disapproved of Diarna’s decision this time. Sparing someone who had threatened her life was far too lenient.

What if that child was an assassin disguised as a poor kid?

There was a possibility that she could lose her life while they were resting here.

Jason and Lorenz were also worried about this, which is why they were guarding Diarna’s room.

Everything had to be prepared for any eventuality.

There were plenty of others who could guard this room even without Jason and Lorenz, who had been assigned to protect Diarna during the day. However, the two of them were likely here to ensure proper reporting.

“Well then, you two should swap with others and get some rest. You’ve done well.”

“No, Count. We were just doing our job.”

Richard patted both of their shoulders once and then entered the room. In the dark room, he saw Diarna sleeping soundly on the bed.

He sat on the edge of the bed next to her and looked down at her for a moment.

Each time Diarna inhaled and exhaled, her small, delicate shoulders shook gently.

She must have been very tired.

Diarna had almost collapsed during the trial. She must have expended a lot of mental energy discussing their differing positions with her stepfather, Duke Tristan. And on the way back, she had expressed her distress over the abuse she had suffered at his hands.

For someone as fragile as her, these events would have already worn her out significantly, and now she had to wander outside without resting peacefully afterward, which must have increased her fatigue tremendously.

And then there had been an attack.

Richard looked down at her softly closed eyelids.

Although he pretended to be strong, he knew that she was an endlessly gentle and fragile person.

He still remembered her tears as she recounted her experiences of abuse.

In a situation where things were deteriorating like this, she was hesitating over whether it was acceptable to hate Duke Tristan.

Foolishly so.

But Richard did not dislike this side of her.

He continued to gaze at her sleeping figure in the darkness and reached out his hand toward her.

Just as his hand was about to touch her cheek, she stirred slightly and let out a soft whimper.

Startled, Richard withdrew his hand momentarily.

It had been an especially long night.

P.S: Uhmmm, Uhmmm… The fire of love is igniting👀