My Husband Caught Me Having an Affair - Chapter 138

“Do not attack those who are unarmed. But don’t let your guard down. Remember, there may be agents disguised as servants.”

Ethan addressed the knights.

“We split up according to the plan. Block all exits and prevent reinforcements from entering. If anyone spots Marlon Girard attempting to escape, capture him immediately and send someone to inform me.”

“What should we do about the Duchess of Girard?”

One of the captains under Mael asked.

“Let her go. Same for the rest of the family. We’re not here to take hostages. Our target is Marlon Girard alone. Understood?”

“Yes, my lord!”

Following orders, Mael and the captains split up and led their respective forces in different directions.

Ethan, along with Jacques, the intelligence agents, and the remaining knights, headed for Marlon’s chambers.

No one stood in Ethan’s way. The few servants they encountered were too frightened to do anything but flee.

Marlon’s room was in the western wing on the second floor. At Ethan’s signal, the knights broke down the door and stormed inside.

“Marlon Girard! Surrender at once!”

The knights fanned out and searched the room. But there was no sign of Marlon anywhere.

‘Where did he go?’

There were no traces of a hasty escape. Both the office and bedroom were dark, as if they’d been unoccupied for some time.

“Search behind the bookshelves and walls. There may be a hidden chamber.”

“Yes, sir.”

As the knights began tearing through the room, Ethan approached a maid curled up in a corner, clutching her head.

“Where is Marlon Girard?”

The maid flinched at the question. But she didn’t respond, nor did she raise her head.

A knight grabbed her wrist and forcibly pulled her to her feet.

“The Duke is asking you a question! Answer! Where did Marlon Girard go?”

“Eek… P-please don’t kill me!”

The maid cried out in terror. At Ethan’s glance, the knight released her.

Ethan asked again in a low voice, “If you answer honestly, you’ll be let go unharmed. Where is Marlon Girard?”

“I… I don’t know.”

The knight scowled and gripped the hilt of his sword. The maid turned even paler and shouted, “I swear it’s true! I really don’t know anything! Please don’t kill me!”

“There’s no sign that the bed was used. Marlon didn’t sleep here tonight, did he?”

“No, he didn’t. He went out earlier and hasn’t returned.”

“He went out? Where?”

“I-I don’t know.”

“Do you want to die? Answer properly!”

The knight barked, causing the maid to scream and clutch her head again.

“I really don’t know! I’m just a lowly cleaning maid. I don’t know where the master goes!”

At that moment, Jacques approached Ethan. “We found a secret room. But Girard isn’t inside.”

“……”

Ethan fell silent, deep in thought.

Had Marlon anticipated the raid and fled in advance? No, probably not. If that were the case, he wouldn’t just run away—he’d set traps and try to counterattack.

‘He’s gone to Camille.’

For Marlon, just as for Ethan, this was a race against time. To avoid being caught, he had to extract the spy’s identity from Camille and destroy the evidence as quickly as possible.

If they could figure out where Marlon had gone, that would be where Camille was being held.

“Go find the butler. The head maid will do, if needed. Find a high-ranking servant who might know Marlon’s whereabouts and get the information out of them.”

“Yes, my lord.”

The knights and agents followed Ethan’s orders and swiftly left the room.

When they reached the first-floor hall, Mael and the knights were engaged in battle. They were holding the main entrance and cutting down waves of incoming enemy forces.

“What’s the situation?”

“Their numbers are increasing. Looks like the Girard knights have been deployed.”

Ethan checked his pocket watch. By now, the second unit should have reached the front gates of the Girard estate.

“Just hold out a little longer.”

“Leave it to me,” Mael responded as he struck down the newly arrived soldier in a single blow.

“My lord! We’ve found the butler!”

Ethan rushed toward the direction of the voice.

“Speak! Where did Marlon Girard go?”

Jacques demanded, grabbing the butler by the collar and pinning him to the wall, his feet lifted off the ground.

“I-I don’t kn—”

“Nonsense. The butler doesn’t know his master’s whereabouts?”

“I-I really don’t— Ghhk—!”

The butler choked and flailed.

“Let him go.”

At Ethan’s words, Jacques released his grip. The butler collapsed to the ground, coughing violently.

Ethan drew the sword from his waist. At the chilling sound of the blade being unsheathed, the butler flinched. Ethan lifted the man’s chin with the tip of his sword and looked down at him.

“Patrick Bianc.”

The butler’s eyes widened at the sound of his name.

“You’ve served as head butler at House Girard for forty years. I’m sure you’ve developed a degree of loyalty. Perhaps even some pride in your position.”

Ethan’s voice was devoid of tone.

“But that ends today. House Girard will fall tonight. So make your choice. Will you die here, clinging to a sinking ship? Or tell me where Marlon went and preserve your life?”

“……”

The butler gulped with a pale face. The movement of his throat grazed the sword, leaving a thin cut from which blood trickled.

“Three.”

Ethan began to count in a low voice.

“Two.”

“I—I really don’t know! I’m not lying! The master only said, ‘I’ll be back shortly,’ and didn’t mention where or when he’d return!”

“How long has he been gone?”

“Two hours… no, about an hour and a half.”

“Did he leave after receiving a message from someone?”

“N-no, he didn’t. He just suddenly ordered a carriage to be prepared.”

“Was anyone with him?”

“……”

The butler hesitated. Ethan gripped his sword tighter. The sensation of the blade pressing into his skin made the butler pale further.

“A-a doctor went with him!”

Ethan’s eyes narrowed. “A doctor? You mean Girard’s family physician?”

“No. It was a doctor who visited the mansion for the first time yesterday. I believe the master summoned him personally, but I don’t know why.”

The butler paused, as if remembering something, and added, “That’s right. When you visited the mansion during the day, Your Grace, that doctor had just seen the master and left.”

“……”

Ethan glanced at Jacques, who returned the look with a serious expression.

Ethan asked again, “What’s the doctor’s name?”

***

After a knock, a servant entered the room.

“Master. Preparations are complete.”

At those words, Marlon rose from the sofa.

This would be his second time overseeing a torture session. In truth, Marlon didn’t enjoy torture. It was usually too noisy, and the smell was foul.

Moreover, extracting valuable information through torture required great patience, since the victims often lost their sanity. Marlon disliked dealing with those who couldn’t be reasoned with. It was why he avoided children and animals.

He had considered leaving everything to Toma again this time. But given the importance of the matter, that wasn’t an option.

So Marlon had instructed Toma: “Call me once the Duchess of Dumont starts talking.”

The summons had come sooner than expected. He’d thought she would last at least an hour—perhaps it had simply been the limit of a woman.

Marlon descended into the basement. But as he neared the room, he halted instinctively.

Something was wrong. The guards who should have been stationed at the door were nowhere to be seen.

“Open it.”

Marlon looked back at his guards and ordered. One drew his sword and approached the door, turning the knob.

Inside the room, neither Toma nor Camille were present. Only the torture table stood empty, with two guards collapsed beside it.

The veins on Marlon’s hand clenched around his cane.