I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 83

In any case, after waiting some time, a reply came from Hud.

[Very well.

A festival would be good to avoid others’ eyes.

Could we meet at 3 p.m. on the day of the Founding Festival, at the annex on 11 Gaiten Street?]

Reading the reply, Judith secretly smiled.

If it was the annex on 11 Gaiten Street, it must be one prepared by the Soden family.

And the fact that he was now using that annex so naturally showed that he was adjusting well to his position as the marquis’s eldest son. For someone who truly cared about Hud, it was heartwarming news.

Judith returned Melanie’s dress to the imperial family, with a note hidden inside the lining.

It was a tiny note on which she had written the date, time, and location, and she had informed Melanie in advance.

Fortunately, with the emperor away from the capital, surveillance had loosened a bit, and it would obviously take some time before any message could get through.

‘Everyone must meet in secret.’

From the perspectives of Alteion and Melanie, they had no reason to trust Judith, whom they were practically meeting for the first time.

So it was best to bring Melanie directly to the annex. That way, she could hand over Alteion’s blood and receive the antidote on the spot.

Even if the antidote couldn’t be made on-site due to lack of ingredients, if they could at least figure out a rough formula, it might still be possible to secretly produce it.

The only problem was that the annex on 11 Gaiten Street was a bit far. Perhaps lacking the financial power of House Mayus, the Gaiten area was located in a more remote part of the capital’s residential district.

‘If three carriages suddenly come and go, it might arouse suspicion.’

Judith calmly thought.

Each of them should park their carriages nearby and move separately.

Thus, time passed and passed again, until the day of the Founding Festival arrived.

With no news from either Ekian or the Master.

***

Elizabeth Dale was someone who clearly knew what she wanted but lacked the courage.

She had always been pushed along by greater forces.

She had loved a servant who grew up with her since childhood, but since her father wanted her to marry a nobleman, she married a man she didn’t love.

Though she eventually became lovers with the servant she brought from her family home, she lacked the courage to divorce or run away to live with him, so she just continued her life as it was.

It wasn’t until the indifferent husband she had lived with left behind a massive debt and passed away that she finally stopped making excuses.

She took her lover’s hand without hesitation and ran away.

The debt would likely fall to her daughter, but, well, that much…

She had turned a blind eye to the hardships her lover had endured while staying by her side. So she could turn a blind eye to her daughter’s suffering as well.

When they arrived, after much running, in a quiet coastal village in the countryside, Elizabeth finally thought she was happy.

She married the lover she had hidden away, and no one imagined she had once been a noblewoman.

They lived by running a small trinket shop.

The little shop did reasonably well, they had a cute son, and surprisingly, Elizabeth found herself completely enamored with the boy who resembled her lover.

“Mommy, mo meat! Mo meeeat!”

When she gave birth to Judith, her body had just been exhausted, and the baby’s cries had only been annoying.

Her ex-husband had been indifferent toward Judith and had shown no interest. She, too, left the baby entirely to a nanny and weaned her early.

But her son, Petro, was simply adorable. Even his tantrums were cute, and his soft skin and clear eyes felt like miracles.

Perhaps it was because she now had a husband who played with the child every day and helped raise him together. It felt so different from when she had given birth to Judith at age twenty.

‘I could give up my life for this child.’

Elizabeth thought as she held Petro.

‘Gladly… truly.’

That’s why.

Because her maternal love for Petro was genuine.

“Elizabeth Dale.”

One day, a strange man suddenly came to find her.

“Or should I say, Elizabeth Ailan. The former baroness, after all.”

Elizabeth believed she could do anything for Petro.

“That child’s life.”

The man grinned as he pointed at Petro.

“His Majesty the Emperor desires it.”

He bore the seal of the imperial family.

“Since you’ve exhausted your worth as a mother, how about paying for your child’s life?”

Elizabeth had no choice.

“If you succeed, you’ll be given half this territory, and your son will be made a noble.”

On the spot, she knelt down and swore that she would do anything if it was His Majesty’s command.

However, within only a few hours—

Elizabeth came face to face with another man.

“Speak.”

A man with jet-black hair and red eyes pressed a sword to her throat with a chilling face.

“What did the Emperor order you to do?”

***

The Founding Festival was grand and boisterous. Every street was crowded with people, and it was equally chaotic.

Loud banners fluttered, and street stalls from merchants across the country left no space to walk.

Amidst that chaos, some had planned to meet in secret.

At the appointed time—

Hud was the first to arrive at the annex. The next to arrive was Judith.

“Ah, Judith.”

“Hud!”

It was the first time they were seeing each other since the banquet. Having seen each other daily at the ducal estate, it felt like a long time had passed.

“Have you been well?”

Judith greeted him with a bright smile.

“You must’ve been in a hurry—thank you so much for helping.”

“Not at all. Judith, you don’t have to thank me for the rest of your life.”

“Even so.”

Hud came already knowing the general situation. That the person Judith wanted to meet through him was the Crown Princess, and that this matter involved the imperial family.

For someone who had merely been the physician of a ducal house, it was a dizzying scale of events.

At the same time, when he informed his parents and borrowed the annex, the Marquis of Soden had exclaimed with delight.

“A personal request from the imperial family! Hud, this is exactly what will cement your standing. To be owed a favor by the imperial family is a tremendous thing.”

Even forming the slightest connection with the Crown Prince was considered amazing.

“This young lady Judith must truly be impressive… To become close to the Crown Princess so quickly. Then again, the Young Duke Mayus and His Highness the Crown Prince have always been close.”

From the standpoint of House Soden, even having the Crown Prince be involved once was an honor—and yet that very prince was a close friend to Ekian.

Thinking about that, Hud occasionally felt an immense distance between himself and Ekian Mayus.

“Anyway, thank you so much. Once Her Highness the Crown Princess arrives, I’m sure she’ll thank you even more.”

Judith smiled bashfully.

Hud quickly scanned Judith’s expression.

As always, she appeared calm and cheerful. But something nagged at him.

He had heard that Ekian Mayus returned on the evening of the imperial banquet.

Knowing that Judith once had feelings for Ekian made him uneasy. But he had already left for the Soden territory and couldn’t return to the capital.

While staying in Soden, he had been deeply anxious. He knew all too well that there was nothing between Ekian and Judith, but he still feared they might end up together.

If that happened, he wasn’t sure he could sincerely congratulate them.

“Um… Is it alright staying at the ducal estate?”

Suppressing his impatience, Hud casually asked.

“I heard… the Young Duke has returned.”

Judith nodded lightly. “Ah, yes. He has returned. It’s such a relief. Father and Mother were so happy. Ah, and Karl too!”

There wasn’t a hint of shyness in her cheerful words. She spoke as if a long-awaited employer had returned.

“Of course, he’s very busy. It hasn’t been long since he got back, and he’s hardly been at the estate, so everyone’s a bit concerned.”

“I… I see. And you, Judith?”

Judith replied brightly, “Ah, it doesn’t really matter to me. We’re getting divorced anyway.”