I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 30

The Master seemed at a loss for words after Judith’s comment, so she continued speaking gently.

“It’s not that I don’t like you, but I think it would be better if you didn’t visit so often. It makes me feel uneasy for the owners of the mansion.”

“What do you mean by that? Are you afraid I’ll be caught? If that’s the case…”

“Imagine how it would feel for the owners to find someone wandering around their home uninvited. It’s a rather unsettling situation, isn’t it? Up until now, I could overlook it since it was for the sake of the family, but from now on, if it’s not urgent, we should communicate through official channels.”

Judith emphasized her point with a more principled reason. The Master folded his arms and tilted his head.

“Official channels?”

“Yes, like through Hud Ramis or something like that.”

“It seems Hud Ramis has become closer to you than I am.”

“Well, isn’t that natural? Hud and I live under the same roof.”

“That’s true, but let’s not put it that way.”

His tone sounded displeased.

Judith was on her way to see the Duchess, so she didn’t dwell on the remark and immediately asked the Master what brought him there.

“If you have something to discuss, could you please tell me quickly? I need to go get permission from Mother to leave.”

“Mother…?”

Judith shrugged casually as she answered. “She asked me to call her that. Why are you reacting so strangely? She’s my mother-in-law, so I call her Mother.”

The Master was silent for a moment, then let out a soft laugh.

“…I see.”

“To be honest, I like her more than my own mother, so even though I’m only a temporary daughter-in-law, I don’t feel uncomfortable calling her that.”

Judith explained, but then paused, rolling her eyes.

“Hmm… Is it strange to bring up my own mother here? It’s not like I can compare them… Do you think it’s odd to say that to anyone else?”

“I’m not sure.” The Master answered slowly, “In my case, the one who gave birth to me and the one who raised me are different. In fact, I only recently learned about my birth mother’s existence.”

“Oh.”

Judith was momentarily surprised, but quickly composed herself. Although she was shocked inside, she didn’t show it.

Even on the night when he had come to her room and revealed that he had learned “the truth,” he hadn’t shared any details with her. She hadn’t asked because the matter seemed too serious…

Sensing Judith’s discomfort, the Master quickly turned his attention to the bookshelves, pretending to arrange the books as he changed the subject.

“Where are you planning to go?”

Judith saw no reason to hide her plans, and given that the Master was the head of an information guild, he would soon know regardless, so she answered honestly.

“To the Shrine of the Last Priestess.”

The Master’s movements froze at her words.

He slowly turned his head toward her.

“The Shrine of the Last Priestess?”

His slow, deliberate voice sounded strangely cold. Even though it was difficult to decipher his tone, Judith felt a chill and instinctively took a step back.

“Why are you going there?”

“Well…” Judith swallowed dryly and glanced around before answering, “I want to pray for the safety of the baby…”

“We all know there’s no baby.”

“I also have something personal I want to ask…”

“I’ve heard no one has ever received an answer at the Shrine of the Last Priestess.”

The Master’s sharp question followed.

“Does this have anything to do with the fact that the Marquis Soden and his wife visit that shrine every morning?”

Judith bit her lower lip in shock. After all, it was the Master she had asked about the Sodens earlier that morning. Lying her way out of this would be difficult.

“Well, Master,” she said firmly. “I don’t have any obligation to tell you everything about my life, do I?”

This time, it was the Master who flinched. After a brief silence, he replied slowly, “…You’re right. Ever since you became the fake daughter-in-law of the Mayus family, I’ve been too curious for my own good. It seems I’ve overstepped.”

The Master’s calm admission made Judith blink in surprise.

“You’re only an employee here, but I’ve been treating you as if you’re part of the family… I was confused.”

Judith nodded slowly. Everything he said was true, and she knew it better than anyone.

“If you don’t have anything urgent to say, I should go now to get permission for my outing.”

But hearing it from someone else made Judith feel a bit foolish. She had spent the whole day worrying about helping Hud find his real parents, despite being a temporary employee, brought into the family for money, with no real stake in the Duke’s or Marquis’s affairs.

Between two parents who loved their children so dearly, Judith suddenly felt a pang of loneliness.

The Duke and Duchess of Mayus, as well as the Marquis and Marchioness of Soden, were waiting eagerly for their children to return. But there was no one waiting for Judith. Once all of this was over, she would be alone again.

The emotions she had tried so hard to suppress started bubbling up inside her.

“As you said, I’m a fake. I was hired out of necessity, and I need the employer’s permission before I can act.”

Her voice came out cold, almost unintentionally.

She turned to leave, but as soon as she opened the door, she regretted speaking so harshly. However, when she turned around to say goodbye, the Master was already gone.

‘What’s going on?’

Judith bit her nails absentmindedly as she sighed.

‘I was acting strangely today, but so was the Master.’

Though they had always gotten along, today was the first time they had clashed like this.

The reason for the miscommunication was clear. Neither of them had been honest about their feelings.

Judith hadn’t been able to say, “I’m just feeling a little pathetic, knowing I’ll be alone in the end.” And when the Master reminded her that she was a “fake,” emotions that didn’t belong in the conversation had spilled out.

‘Does the Master have something he hasn’t been able to tell me as well?’

She relaxed her shoulders and thought.

‘Since the moment I mentioned the Shrine of the Last Priestess…’

***

Ekian had spent the entire night awake, reflecting on his irrational behavior.

When Judith asked him if he had something to say, he had nothing. In truth, he had no reason to visit her.

Ever since Hud had come to him, talking about the woman he liked, Ekian’s mood had soured. Though he had managed to discourage Hud by playing dirty tricks, the idea that Hud and Judith would remain in the same mansion gnawed at him.

Ekian wasn’t in the mansion, but Hud was. And Hud knew Judith wasn’t really pregnant.

The image of Judith, laughing and drinking with Hud without a care, made Ekian feel worse.

Even the fact that Hud had delivered the letter to Judith annoyed him, because it meant they would meet again.

‘Why is Hud Ramis closer to Judith than I am?’

The very idea seemed absurd, considering he was Ekian Mayus—on paper, her husband. Half out of spite and half on impulse, he went to her room. Or rather, it had once been his room.

But when he was met with Judith’s unexpectedly cold response, he froze.

“I don’t have any obligation to tell you everything about my life, do I?”

That was the reality of their relationship. For three years, they had maintained a business-like partnership. In the end, they were strangers.

She didn’t have to share anything she didn’t want to, and there was no need for them to disclose everything to one another.

If there was no purpose, they wouldn’t meet, and even if they lost contact, that was just the way things were meant to be.

Ekian had completely forgotten that. Ever since she had entered the Mayus family as his fake wife, staying in his room and living like a part of the family, he had forgotten that essential truth.

Without realizing it, he had started to believe that they shared something special… as if, even though it was a contractual arrangement, they were somehow like a real married couple.

He had foolishly fallen into that illusion all on his own.

“…You’re right. Ever since you became the fake daughter-in-law of the Mayus family, I’ve been too curious for my own good. It seems I’ve overstepped.”

She’s a fake. A temporary presence. She had only been hired to play the role of his wife.

And yet, he had overstepped, without even revealing his own identity to her. Worse still, he had shown a sense of jealousy toward Hud, as though he were protecting his own wife.

Looking back on it now, the whole situation was utterly ridiculous.