My Husband Caught Me Having an Affair - Chapter 12

‘…Come to think of it, the travelogue of the Kingdom of Muint was in the first volume. She might have actually read at least one volume.’

Ethan steadied his thoughts and asked another question. “Rados nearly died during his travels. Where was that, and why?”

“In Souran, Alec. He was mistaken for the murderer of the lord’s wife and was captured.”

“…Ivandeus lost an eye at the Battle of Helitos. Who shot the arrow?”

“It wasn’t the Battle of Helitos, but the Battle of the Plouanel Plateau. And it wasn’t his right eye but his left. The arrow was shot by Numagael, a thirteen-year-old boy soldier from Daershilant.”

“……”

Camille smiled sweetly at the speechless Ethan. “This is fun, like a quiz. It also helps me review what I’ve read. Any more questions?”

“……”

The innocent-looking expression on her face was infuriating.

By now, he had to admit it, even if he didn’t want to. Camille had indeed read The History of the Erendel War in its entirety.

At the same time, he felt a renewed realization that the woman before him was completely different from the Camille he had known.

He had known it for a while, but understanding it intellectually and accepting it emotionally were different matters. After all, he had seen her in a certain way for five years.

‘…She fooled me completely.’

Ethan’s lips twisted into a reluctant smirk.

***

I basked in the exhilarating sense of victory as I gazed at Ethan. His face, stiff with frustration, was undeniably satisfying to see.

To be honest, there were several times when I struggled to keep reading. But whenever I felt like closing the book, I held on by recalling Ethan’s disdainful expression. I placed reference books side by side and read as if I were cramming for an exam, cutting down on sleep to get through it.

It was all worth it. Though it was tight, I managed to finish reading just in time.

“If you have no more questions, I’ll take it as your acknowledgment of my win.”

“……”

Ethan stared at me, his lips twitching slightly.

‘A handsome man glaring in humiliation… This is great… Oh dear, I might be developing a strange taste.’

Whenever Ethan showed a crack in his usually composed demeanor, like when we were in the library, it gave me a peculiar, tingling feeling in my chest.

I cleared my throat lightly and continued. “So, it seems I’ve won the bet. You’ll keep your promise, right?”

“…Promise?”

“You said if I finished the book within the time limit, you’d grant any wish of mine. Surely you haven’t forgotten?”

A peculiar light flickered in Ethan’s eyes. It seemed he finally remembered. “Are you going to ask to lift your confinement? I’ve told you before, that’s not possible until the truth is clear.”

“Oh, you said you’d grant any wish, and now you’re changing your tune? The name of the great Duke of Dumont will be tarnished.”

“……”

I chuckled. “I’m joking. Don’t worry. I wouldn’t waste such an opportunity on something trivial like lifting my confinement.”

“…Then what do you plan to ask for?”

“That’s still a secret. I’ll tell you when the time is right.”

“When the time is right? And when will that be?” Ethan pressed.

“It won’t be long.”

Yes, if my guess was correct, it would be within the next ten days.

By then, it would be exactly one month since Liam was released.

***

A quiet village far from the capital.

Liam staggered drunkenly through the dark streets. Since being expelled from the capital, this had become his way of life. Almost all his possessions, including his estate, had been seized by Duke Dumont as compensation for his indiscretions with the duke’s wife.

Even to approach a noblewoman required at least some status and background. Without those, he drifted from one low-status woman’s house to another in this remote village, drowning his sorrows in cheap alcohol.

In truth, it wasn’t that he had no chance of making a comeback. After all, he still had his good looks and charm.

But honestly, he was terrified of women now.

All because of Camille.

‘If only I had managed to steal that ledger…’

Camille had claimed the ledger was fake, but the Duke of Girard, wouldn’t have known that.

His plan had been simple: hand over the ledger, receive a generous reward, and then disappear abroad or somewhere far away.

Still, Liam wasn’t entirely out of options. He knew where the real ledger was hidden.

Of course, not even the Duke of Girard could break into the Imperial Bank, but that was for him to figure out.

‘Even if it’s not the full amount originally promised, I could still get a decent reward for this information.’

The problem was, Liam had no way of contacting the Duke of Girard. Their meetings were always initiated by the other side.

Girard had even threatened that if Liam tried to contact him, he couldn’t guarantee his life.

‘Damn it, I don’t care anymore…’

He was crossing a bridge over the river when he collided with a man coming from the opposite direction.

“Hey, watch it!”

The man growled with a menacing look. He was a huge guy, at least one and a half times Liam’s size.

“What do you mean, watch it…”

Liam had seen the man coming and tried to move aside to avoid a collision. It felt like the man had intentionally bumped into him. No matter how drunk he was, he couldn’t have mistaken that.

“This bastard must be crazy. You start a fight and then pretend it’s nothing?”

The man grabbed Liam by the collar. Despite his own considerable size, Liam was lifted off his feet with ease.

“Wait, I can’t… breathe…”

Liam struggled, pounding on the man’s hands, but he didn’t budge. As his breath caught and his vision began to darken, a sense of impending death washed over him.

‘Am I going to die? Just like this, so pointlessly?’

His life flashed before his eyes.

If he had known it would end like this, he would have tried to live a bit better, even just a little.

That was his last thought before he started to lose consciousness.

“Argh!”

With the man’s scream, Liam was suddenly freed from his grip. He fell to the ground, coughing violently. Saliva dribbled from his mouth as his head spun. When he finally came to his senses, he saw the large man lying unconscious beside him. Someone was standing next to him.

Through tear-filled eyes, Liam looked up at his savior.

“Who… who are you?”

“That’s none of your concern.”

“That’s none of your concern,” the man said curtly. He was not as large as the man who had attacked Liam, but he was still tall and well-built. With a grip that was far from gentle, he pulled Liam to his feet.

“So, are you ready to spill the truth now?”

“Wh-what do you mean?” Liam stammered.

“Still haven’t come to your senses, have you? Why do you think that guy was trying to kill you? If I hadn’t stepped in, you’d be greeting the fish at the bottom of the river by now. Everyone would think it was just a drunken brawl gone wrong, or some idiot who lost his footing and fell in.”

“……”

A sudden, icy realization hit Liam like a splash of cold water.

“No way…”

“So, you’re not completely brainless. Yes, someone wants to shut you up. And they waited a whole month, choosing the least suspicious method possible.”

“……”

Liam’s face turned pale.

“You have two choices. One: tell me who put you up to seducing the duchess and stealing the ledger. Two: spend the rest of your life running from assassins. I don’t need to tell you which is the wiser choice, do I?”

Liam’s legs trembled violently. He almost collapsed again.

“If… if I tell you… will you protect me?”

“Of course. A new identity, escape funds, everything you need to disappear safely abroad. Not even the Duke of Girard will be able to find you.”

“……”

Liam bowed his head, thinking frantically. But there was no need to think at all. The answer was already clear.

Liam squeezed his eyes shut and spoke.