I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 112

The Grand Duke’s voice as he gave that order was utterly dry, but among those still haunted by the trauma of hearing “bring in young women,” a sense of foreboding immediately spread.

Especially since he added the strange specification of “green eyes,” the tension only grew.

“Uh… are you referring to all the residents of this territory? The population’s not small enough to identify everyone at once…”

“I’m aware. Even if it takes several days, check thoroughly.”

But they couldn’t defy the Grand Duke’s command, so they began assembling investigators as slowly as they could.

“And spread a rumor throughout the territory.”

“Excuse me? What kind of rumor?”

“That the master of the Grey Information Guild is looking for his wife.”

The addition of such a suspicious order only deepened the vassals’ anxiety.

***

‘A complete mess.’

He had expected it, but the territory truly was in shambles. Just skimming a few major documents made that clear.

Well, to rise in the Emperor’s favor and serve as his closest ally, the previous lord must have squeezed the land dry.

After taking care of the urgent matters, Ekian slowly rose to his feet. In truth, although he had ordered an investigation into “green-eyed women,” he wasn’t expecting much.

He excluded red hair, since that could be dyed or hidden under a wig, which would create far too many possibilities.

Perhaps publicly announcing the Emperor’s death would be a better way to draw Judith out. And now that he had also spread the rumor that the master was looking for his wife, he had done everything he could.

Still, he couldn’t just sit in the office waiting—that was how restless his heart was.

Donning a hood and mask, he concealed his presence and stepped outside.

Wishing for a miracle, that he might bump into her by chance.

Or hoping that a rumor might reach her ears about a masked lunatic wandering the territory.

Please, please let her be in this land.

It was while he was aimlessly wandering the crowded streets—

“Hey, did you hear?”

A child ran up to another around the same age who was guarding a trinket shop and said, “Mr. Hud is teaching class today! Didn’t you say you wanted to go to medical academy? Why don’t you close the shop and come check it out?”

…Hud?

Countless conversations were taking place all around, but the name “Hud” struck Ekian’s ears like lightning.

Hud Ramis, still known as “Felix Soden” in the Marquisate of Soden—the first son of House Soden.

Though he hadn’t looked into it deeply, being so obsessed with Judith, Ekian could easily guess why Hud hadn’t revealed his status as the missing eldest son while residing in the Soden Marquisate.

‘He wants to build power.’

It was a traditional tactic in noble families, especially when trying to raise an illegitimate child or someone from a collateral line as an heir.

‘Those who suddenly rise by bloodline alone are bound to be ignored. Even more so if their previous status was low. The Marquis of Soden must want to polish his past to make him more acceptable…’

Thinking of the kind-hearted doctor with brown hair, Ekian’s gaze darkened.

‘…It must be Hud’s own decision.’

Had he returned to House Soden immediately, he could have lived comfortably as the long-lost heir.

Instead, he was living as a model doctor in a major clinic, steadily building his own reputation. So even if he entered the house later, few would object to his succession.

Ekian had used a similar method to claim his title as Grand Duke.

He had already been known as the Young Duke of Mayus. So when he suddenly became a Grand Duke, people respected him—because he had history behind him.

‘Hud Ramis… turned out to be more ambitious than I thought.’

He once seemed like a commoner youth only concerned with feeding his siblings, but now Ekian understood why he had changed so dramatically.

On the night Judith was scorned at the imperial banquet, Hud must have had the same look in his eyes as Ekian.

In any case, Hud Ramis had not yet revealed his true identity to the public, so he was obviously still using the name Hud Ramis.

‘Haa…’

And he had definitely said “medical academy.”

The thought that his rival might be here made his blood boil.

At the same time, he had a strong gut feeling that Judith was indeed staying in this territory—and it made his mood worse.

‘Looks like he came for medical volunteer work. He may have money and status now, but he’s still living as a commoner.’

It had to be a coincidence, right?

If so, there was a good chance he hadn’t gotten entangled with Judith yet.

Just imagining the possibility that the two of them might be in the same place made his head spin.

In any case, Ekian stopped in his tracks to hear more of the children’s conversation.

“Let’s go, come on. You always miss it because you’re stuck minding the shop. Who knows when Mr. Hud will teach again? The kids don’t really like his classes. That’s why Miss Yuth comes most days. Honestly, I like her better too.”

“But… still… my parents will be mad. You know how they are. They always say there’s no point in studying and just yell at me. And the pay for military doctors here is awful… They told me to stop dreaming and just inherit the shop.”

The boy guarding the trinket shop stomped his feet and sniffled.

Ekian found himself approaching the boys before he realized it.

“Should I watch the shop for a bit?”

He swore to the heavens—it was purely out of goodwill.

Hearing the boy say “what’s the point of learning” tugged at his heart.

After arriving and looking through the documents, Ekian had already identified education as one of the territory’s biggest issues.

And now that this place was becoming his domain, he couldn’t help but care about every resident. The boy looked about Karl’s age, which made it all the more personal.

He was wandering around trying to find Judith anyway. He couldn’t focus on work, so watching the shop for the duration of a two-hour class wasn’t a problem.

The trinket shop boy brightened and leapt up.

“Wow, awesome!”

Ekian had always earned trust and likability wherever he went, so the boy’s reaction felt natural.

Just as Ekian was about to say, “Alright, could you show me what to watch out for while watching the shop?”—

“If someone suspicious comes snooping around, I’ll just say I got scared and shut the shop!”

The boy jumped up and quickly locked the door.

“There’s a rumor spreading through the market about a strange guy wearing a mask wandering around!”

Then he dashed off at full speed.

Ekian stood frozen in shock. Now that he thought about it, as he’d wandered like a madman, he hadn’t noticed the strange stares.

Well… he had intended to attract attention, but he hadn’t expected this kind of reaction from the general public.

Come to think of it, even in the capital he hadn’t gone around in this getup. When he had, it was always among nobles, so no one openly mocked him.

‘Ah…’

Ekian concluded that under no circumstances could he let it be known that the masked weirdo was the new Grand Duke.

Though he had learned a valuable lesson, he couldn’t let the matter of Hud slide now that he had heard the name.

Since he couldn’t watch the shop anymore, Ekian decided to go confirm Hud’s identity.

It wasn’t difficult. Though the boy had disappeared into the crowd, Ekian could easily follow the two boys.

So, suppressing his presence, he made his way toward the “school” the boys were heading to.

He planned to wait in front of the school and, if the man he knew as Hud Ramis came out, he would tail him.