I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 115

“Ah, is it because that suspicious person showed up in the next market? That scared me too, honestly. Walking around in a mask and a robe—what a nutcase…”

The flower shop girl said brightly.

“Still, it seems His Grace the Grand Duke is quite a decent person. They say he’s handling matters well, and there was even an official announcement saying that we should go on with our daily lives in peace because preparations are in place in case the barbarians attack again. I’d been feeling vaguely uneasy, so it’s a relief.”

She handed the neatly wrapped bouquet to Hud with a smile.

“If you report that lunatic to the guards who came with the Grand Duke, I’m sure they’ll catch him right away.”

“I see. Still, I should probably tell Yuth to stay home until they do.”

Hud shivered as he spoke.

“Anyway, something just feels off…”

“Are you living a shady life that you’d be followed? If not, what’s there to feel off about? I mean, our upstairs neighbor once had an affair and got caught by his wife, but… that’s not your case, right?”

“Right, well. Anyway, thanks for the flowers.”

“Oh, and there was something else… someone said the Grey Information Guild is here? Just thought you should know. Ever heard of them?”

“No, I’m not really familiar…”

Ekian sighed inwardly. The mention of the Grey Information Guild was so incomplete.

Hud had indeed been to the Grey Information Guild once, but only at Judith’s request, and he had never made any real dealings—so it seemed he’d already forgotten the name.

“Thanks again. I should get home.”

Hud bowed his head and took the flowers. His face was filled with anticipation—disgustingly so.

If his guess was correct and Judith was currently pregnant, then seeing that expression despite knowing it would only make him angrier.

‘Please, please don’t let Miss Yuth be Judith.’

With that, Hud mounted his bicycle again and started pedaling.

Somehow, Ekian felt like he had become the pathetic husband tailing his unfaithful wife and her lover, just like in the flower shop girl’s story.

But what made it all the more tragic was that he didn’t even have the right to be angry.

He and Judith were currently divorced. Even if she was living with Hud, it wasn’t an affair, and he had no grounds.

Hud’s bicycle rolled down the path and stopped in front of a small government house. It was much closer to the manor than expected.

Ekian hid behind a tree.

<Ah, Hud. Why are you so late?>

A middle-aged woman opened the door and spoke in a foreign language. She had a kind face and her graying hair was tied up.

<A notice came down to submit the list of residents in the government housing. Looks like the new Grand Duke is trying to organize the territory. Mm, and those flowers?>

“Ah, well… they were so pretty, and I thought maybe they’d be good for prenatal care or something, so…”

Ekian narrowed his eyes and tried to peer further inside.

“Hud, are you back?”

A red-haired woman poked her head out from inside.

“How was class today? Did it go well?”

“Well… there were some new kids,” Hud answered as he stepped into the house.

The door slowly began to close.

Ekian could no longer hold back.

He suddenly ran forward and grabbed the closing door.

Hud, startled by the door bursting open behind him, turned around.

And Judith, who had been peeking her head out from the room, widened her eyes.

“Uh… Master?”

Judith’s voice trembled.

“Is it really you… Master?”

Hud backed away, breathing hard.

Only then did the scattered fragments of memory begin to connect in his head.

That something-something Grey Information Guild…

The masked lunatic spotted in the next market…

Now that he thought about it, the information guild Judith once sent him to had a name like Grey something.

And now he remembered—the Master who had worn a mask and spoken in that bizarre voice.

That mysterious man who had seemed to know everything, like he was possessed.

“A-are you really the Master?” Judith asked with a trembling voice.

In truth, Judith didn’t know his face or name, so she was well aware that anyone could impersonate him with a mask and robe.

Finally, Ekian opened his mouth in a cracked voice.

“Judith.”

At the low voice calling her real name, Judith’s eyes widened.

At the same time, she wore an expression that said, ‘I’ve heard that voice somewhere before.’

Since he wasn’t disguising his voice like usual, it came out just like the Ekian Mayus she had once known.

He took a deep breath and stared at Judith through the mask.

The slightly loose but modest dress suited her well, and perhaps due to the bobbed hair reaching her shoulders, her already youthful face looked even younger.

The round glasses suited her perfectly, and above all, her bright green eyes sparkled with the same intelligence as before. No matter the situation, the urge to embrace her and kiss her rushed over him violently.

But first, he had to prove himself.

Conscious of Hud nearby, he abruptly asked, “That day, in the annex, was that when the child was conceived? Is that why you left the Mayus estate?”

“Ah…”

Judith still looked dazed.

She blinked for a moment, then nodded. Before long, her round eyes welled up with tears.

“Master… it really…”

She was so overwhelmed that she couldn’t even finish her sentence.

“You didn’t abandon the child… or me…”

Her voice held a touch of emotion. It felt as if she had braced herself to be abandoned.

But Judith couldn’t say anything more.

Because Hud, who had just dropped the bouquet with a thud, swung his fist at the mask.

“You—you irresponsible bastard!”

That was the harshest insult the upright Hud could manage.

Fuming with rage, Hud’s face turned red as he swung another clumsy punch.

“You—you got a married woman pregnant? Then left her with nowhere to go and disappeared? Huh?”

He hated everything about the man, but Hud believed that was his gravest sin.

He had left Judith with nowhere to go.

In the end, he had made her leave the Mayus estate and wander alone.

The masked man didn’t resist and took Hud’s blows as they came.

He didn’t even flinch—it was like striking an old tree.

“H-how could you… with a married woman, one with circumstances no less!”

“Hud, that’s enough. It was consensual. I liked the Master, that’s why. Of course, it was wrong of me to have a child with another man while married…”

Meanwhile, Castin, unable to understand the Imperial tongue, simply watched them with confused eyes.

“Judith is not someone who would ever betray the trust of House Mayus!”

“P-please. I did betray it…”

“She said it so many times—how she’d always do her best in her duties as a servant…”

As Hud fumed, Judith also shouted in pain, “Ah, I said stop! I already feel guilty enough!”

Judith looked genuinely ashamed.

Her face showed more than anyone else that she knew she wasn’t blameless.

Master stared intently at her face and let out a deep sigh.

“I didn’t want it to be revealed like this…”

While no one paid Castin any attention, the man slowly took off his mask.

“Judith, you did nothing wrong.”

Even though he could’ve avoided it, he hadn’t dodged Hud’s punch, and a reddish mark had bloomed on his face.

Fortunately, Hud had no talent for physical fights—small mercies.

As the large hand removed the mask, jet-black hair and fine features were revealed.