I Wish My Husband Were Dead - Chapter 25



Only Krnovel

Ropal Wizard Association
2023.11.25.

The room was shabby. The first thing I noticed was the dust and cobwebs piled up here and there. There was only an old side table and a bed full of fleas, and even though it was still late summer, the air was so cold that my hair stood on end.

Helena’s appearance had changed beyond comparison to a few days ago. No one would believe that she was a countess, seeing her yellowed dress and greasy hair.

“How dare you leave me here!”

As soon as Helena realized that Cordelia was the one who opened the door and came in, she immediately snapped her claws and cursed.

“How have you been, my lady?”

“You ungrateful thing! You don’t even know the favor I’ve done for you and you’re locking me up in this tower? If I leave here, I will never leave you alone! I will call all the people in the castle to beat you, strip you of all your clothes, and throw you into the market!”

“How are you going to get out of here?”

“… … You!”

“Craig has already rightfully inherited the earldom and I am the countess. Now no one will remember the previous countess, Helena Abrams. If you stay here for another month, people will forget your name?”

“It’s all lies! Lies!”

Helena screamed until her throat bled. Her appearance was not scary, but rather pitiful and funny.

The past when she was at her fingertips seemed like a long time ago.

Then Baron said,

“The freest woman in this country is not a woman who divorced her husband, but a woman whose husband is sick and has all the power as a wife.”

“… … .”

“If my master regains his health and Cordelia returns to this castle alone, every blade of grass and every handful of dirt in Abrams Castle will be yours.”

“Mine.”

“Even Helena Abrams’ life will be at your fingertips.”

Baron whispered sweetly, as if coated with honey. Cordelia thought for a moment.

Divorce was something she had always dreamed of since she got married. The reason she wanted to become a magic appraiser was because she needed a suitable job to live alone after divorce.

However, if Cordelia were to control Craig’s body as Baron said and rule the Abrams Castle, the story would be completely different.

Furthermore, Helena and Arnold were also trapped in the tower.

“Let me out of here! Don’t go! Aaaah!”

Cordelia turned and left the room. She could hear Helena’s screams from behind her, but none of them reached her ears.

* * *

“What? You were so sullen just a while ago and didn’t say a word to me.”

“Am I young? Since I’m going anyway, I should prepare properly.”

Leonard was suspicious of Cordelia’s sudden change in attitude, but since it was the way he wanted, he didn’t say anything else.

“Yes. I thought well. You’re going to be by my side for the rest of your life anyway.”

“Yes, yes. Master. I will serve you.”

“You don’t know how great an honor this is, but there are so many who want to serve you but can’t. Please serve me with a more joyful heart.”

“Can’t you see how happy I am right now? I’m so happy I could fly.”

“Don’t whine. Do it right.”

“If Beluche keeps picking on me, I won’t be able to serve you well even if I want to. Oh, I told you to get out of the way.”

Beluche glared and blocked Cordelia’s path. Of course, she didn’t blink an eye. As the standoff dragged on, Leonard waved his hand.

“Enough. Beluche, finish what I tell you to do and come back.”

“… … Yes.”

“Cordelia, come here and draw the magic circle again.”

“I understand.”

Beluche glared at Cordelia until the end and left the room. As soon as Beluche left, she grumbled.

“Why does that man like you so much, Master?”

It was an unexpected question. Of course, I thought the author would ask why she was so rude.

Leonard handed Cordelia a piece of paper and said,

“How much do you know about Ingrion?”

“A prominent knight family, and quite powerful in central politics?”

“The Marquis of Ingrion values ​​honor more than his own life. That’s why he tried to kill Beluche several times.”

The hand holding the pen shook at the unexpected words. Because of that, he ruined the half-drawn magic circle. Leonard handed her a new piece of paper.

“He tried to kill his own son? Why? Because he was an illegitimate child?”

“The Marquis thought of Beluche as a stain on himself. Beluche was not born of a formal marriage, and Beluche’s mother was a woman of the lowest profession. That’s why the Marquis tried to kill him the moment he found out about his existence. Beluche is still alive because she entrusted her life to me.”

“If you hate him so much, why did you give Beluche your surname?”

“The Marquis didn’t give it to him. Beluche himself revealed that I am the Marquis’ son, so I have no choice but to call him Beluche Ingrion.”

“No matter how much he claims it, the Marquis can deny it.”

“How can he deny it? They have the same eyes.”

“The same eyes?”

The conversation ended there, because the servant announced the arrival of a visitor.

“I heard you called, Count. Oh, and the Countess is here too.” It

was Baron Dean Lancaster. He sat down across from Leonard with a polite greeting.

“Yes. The Baron has something to do.”

“What should I do?”

Whether it was because he couldn’t forget what happened that day in the dining room or because of his nature, Baron Lancaster had become a very loyal subject.

“I will be away from the castle for a while.”

“When do you mean for a while?”

“I will leave in five days, and I can’t say for sure when I will return.”

Baron Lancaster, who heard the longer schedule than expected, spoke with a voice mixed with concern.

“Five days? But it hasn’t been that long since the Count inherited the title, and he probably hasn’t fully recovered.”

“I understand that the castle is in disarray. That’s why we need someone more trustworthy.”

“No matter how trustworthy someone is, they can’t compare to the Count.”

Baron Lancaster had a talent for making flattery seem like flattery. Leonard looked quite pleased when he glanced at him.

“I know that. But this is urgent, so I can’t put it off. “I will tidy up as quickly as possible and return, so I would like the Baron to act as the Count in the meantime.” “

Me? The Countess is here, so how could I dare?”

“Oh. My wife is accompanying me.”

“Yes? The Countess is coming with you? Where on earth are you going?”

“It doesn’t seem like I’ve called you here to report my every move to the Baron.”

Baron Lancaster took a deep breath at Leonard’s polite warning and soon bowed his head.

“I’m sorry. I have presumed.”

“I appointed you as the Count because I trust your loyalty and ability.”

“Count.”

“I hope I have not betrayed that expectation.”

Leonard patted Baron Lancaster on the shoulder with a gentle smile that Cordelia had never seen before.

“Of course. I will faithfully guard the Count’s household until the day you return. Please return safely.”

The young earl’s trust-filled Baron Lancaster left the room even more alert than when he came in.

Cordelia’s heart became troubled again as she watched his back.

“Why are you looking at me with such a hazy expression? Do you have feelings for him?”

“There’s nothing you can’t say to a married woman.”

“What about a married woman? Her husband is dead, so what?”

“It’s okay. It’s not like that. Just, seeing that you’re even appointing an acting earl, I wonder if you really intend to go.”

“Oh my, where have you heard me say this all this time?”

“I didn’t want to believe it, so I just listened to it with my ears and let it go.”

“You’ll be the first and last person to not even listen to me.”

Leonard couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity. If someone in the Magic Alliance had heard it, they would have fainted.

“Master.”

“Why?”

“Please explain in detail how precious your only disciple is.”

“What?”

“Hurry up. I think I’ll feel a little better if I hear that. “Please calm my anxiety that I might be used as a means to lift the barrier.”

Her confident request made him no longer laugh. However, in a way, Cordelia’s anxiety was not completely incomprehensible, so Leonard answered as seriously as he could, despite the annoyance.

“Do you not trust me that much? I can give you my heart too.”

“Oh, Master, I don’t need your organs, so tell me how precious I am.”

“Organs? That’s really… … . Do you know what a heart means to a wizard, no. Yes, my disciple. You are precious enough to give me my heart, okay?”

“Why are you so obsessed with my heart? I told you I don’t need my heart. Besides, what would you do if some villain kidnapped me and asked to trade all my assets?”

“What? Do you think those assets are more precious to you than my heart?”

“That little fortune? You just said that little fortune, right? Then you’d gladly trade it for me? That little fortune is nothing compared to mine, right?”

“How on earth are you interpreting what I’m saying?”

“How do you interpret it? You interpret it in my best interest.”

Cordelia’s face looked much better than before, although she didn’t know what consolation she had gained from this chaotic conversation.

“Thank goodness. The Master knows how precious his one and only disciple is.”

“… … Yes. It’s precious, it’s precious.”

“So please protect my life even when I go to Delorana’s territory. I really want to live a long and thin life.”

“If you say precious and naive one more time, I’ll give you double the homework.”

The effect of the homework threat was tremendous. Cordelia immediately shut her mouth and devoted herself to drawing a magic circle.