I Stole the Child of My War-Mad Husband - Chapter 9

TL: Lilac | PR: Shree

 

 

“Do you have anything to say?”

“…I have something to say with regard to the Marchioness.”

“What’s going on?”

Ordin looked at his master with a peculiarly polite demeanor.

“It might have been obvious, but it is regarding the new behavior of the lady that changed recently.”

“……”

“Besides that, the ruins that she managed to find this time.”

He glanced at the pile of papers next to him.

“The information she gave us at the time was real. ”

Ordin said carefully.

“The Marchioness explained everything quite clearly and all of it was right. It is uncertain to say that she simply conveyed what she heard from her relative.”

“…right.”

“Besides, I’ve mentioned this before, but she usually doesn’t read even a single book.”

“I know.”

“If you already knew that, I assumed that you would think the same as me. The Marchioness has changed and so suddenly at that.”

The two men were too rational to simply rejoice at the fact that someone had spontaneously changed one morning.

“……”

“Do you have any guesses as to how this happened?”

“Well…”

Thinking of his subordinate’s words, Rupert sank back into his chair.

At the same time, he thought of his wife’s words.

[I just wanted to get to know you a little bit.]

Almost immediately, his eyebrows frowned.

‘It must be a lie.’

Perhaps when he first saw Noel, he might have had a little crush on her.

This was because her vivid green eyes reminded him of the nostalgia from his past.

Those pupils resembled the woman who saved him from death in his childhood.

‘It was a clear illusion, but-‘

From the very first meeting up until now, Noel has shattered every bit of his expectations.

The more time they spent together, the worse their relationship got.

Now, Rupert doesn’t expect anything from Noel.

Their relationship was somewhere between indifference and hostility for each other.

People can’t just change one morning, there’s definitely another intention behind this.

‘The problem is that I can’t guess the reason.’

“You care too much about useless rumors. It’s not like you, Ordin.”

Rupert denied his aide.

“Noel Ainel has not changed, nor is she different, it is nothing but a façade that she became wiser and more merciful.”

“I think so too, but the problem is-“

“It must be because she got lucky that she has succeeded in this investment, and that the information she managed to get accidentally was correct.”

Rupert mumbled, picking up his pen again.

“It is clear that she will go back to her old self after a while anyway.”

“… if it’s nothing but a simple whim, it might be a good thing, but what if it is a trick?”

“Then the answer will be easier and simple.”

He said coolly.

“I’ll simply throw it away, that is enough.”

Even Ordin paused at the Marquis’ cold tone.

However, Ordin knew very well that his lord was a man who would continue to remain so.

Anyone who has ever seen Rupert on the battlefield would think so.

‘It’s time to get rid of it, so if you don’t mind, it is well and good.’

Ordin hated Noel. She was a stupid woman who couldn’t even think properly.

Her parents were even worse.

Soon enough, he bowed his head.

“Alright, Marquis.”

The aide left the office, leaving Rupert to think about the situation with a conflicted expression.

Does she want to be friends with me now?

‘That can’t be true.’

Noel was a woman who could never be a friend.

With that thought, Rupert looked out the window.

Leah and Noel were playing hide-and-seek in the garden on the first floor.

It was a sight that he had never seen before.

He heard the sound of laughter all the way to his office.

Looking at the sight, Rupert repeated his previous thoughts.

Never!

“It can’t be changed.”

In this damned damn life, you shouldn’t expect anything from anyone.

 

***

 

I roughly knew the biggest factor leading to Rupert killing me and Leah.

To put it simply, it was because of the curse put on him.

How he was cursed was not described in detail, so I don’t much about it either.

However, if the curse was not suppressed periodically, Rupert seemed to suffer a tremendous urge to kill.

‘This setting shows the extreme bad luck of the main character’

In conclusion, he killed me and Leah that day because he could not suppress the curse in time.

‘Even if it isn’t a curse, it is a trait that makes him want to kill someone to the very end.’

And I knew how to properly suppress this curse. There were two ways in the novel.

One was by committing slaughter.

And the other way… was to find a partner that you loved sincerely.

It was like a fairy tale.

Only true love can break the curse.

The second is still an unknown method, and it was revealed only in the latter half of the novel.

Of course, the current Rupert had no idea that there was such a method.

Until now, he never really loved anyone.

Of course, the second method was something that only the heroine could try.

‘Then what should I do?’

From my point of view, Rupert is like a ticking time bomb.

When the day comes where he can’t control his curse by mistake, it causes him to pounce on Leah.

‘Is that really the only way?’

It was hard to make a decision easily because Leah was also there.

“……”

After a while of being in agony, I came to a conclusion.

‘Shall we find out more about the person named Rupert and then decide?’

I mean, I did receive an apology for what he did that day.

At least it meant that he was someone who kept his promises.

‘If you get rid of your prejudice against me, you might be a little more merciful towards me.’

If I changed my attitude, I don’t think that the story would flow exactly as in the original novel.

Before I recovered my memories, the attitude of ‘Noel Ainel’ was really bad.

So I decided to look at Rupert’s ‘humanity’ and then decide my future plans.

The reason Rupert commits slaughter, so much so that he is called ‘the evil spirit’ was to suppress the curse.

So I wondered what kind of man Rupert actually was, regardless of the curse. I wanted to find out if he was someone who I could have a normal human-to-human interaction with.

‘It’s a shame that I have no choice but to unconditionally trust a war fanatic, a demon, or someone with such a nickname.’

I respected the lives of people during the ten years I worked as a nurse and tried to act like that now. Also, I was proud of myself and my work.

However, Rupert, whose life revolved around the battlefield, was the opposite of me.

‘It’s the story of a character in a novel – you’re strong, and feel cool when killing people.’

I didn’t really want such a person to become my husband.

So I needed proof that the human part of Rupert was objectively okay.

‘But how could you make a judgment?’

Out of distress, I kept pacing around the room for a very long time.

Then suddenly, my gaze fell on the picture on my desk.

It was a picture that Leah drew.

I muttered while fiddling with it.

“… should I make my judgment based on how Rupert treats Leah?”

Even in the original novel, there were many scenes showing Rupert’s desperate love for the heroine.

However, there was no information of whether he could be a good father or not.

‘Let’s see whether or not Rupert could be a good parent who cares for Leah.’

On the contrary, if he doesn’t have any affection for Leah, hurts her, or threatens her- I glanced at the picture and spat out.

“Then I really have to run away with Leah.”

Of course, I am also a person who had my own demerits. I wasn’t sure if I could be a good mother to Leah.

Nevertheless, I intend on doing my best.

I am not sure if this feeling is motherhood or simply a sense of responsibility as an adult.

What is certain is that I don’t want the child to be wronged by her parents.

As I thought about this, I carefully put Leah’s painting in the drawer and made a resolution.

‘Alright, let’s do this.’

To live a life free from my parent’s restraints was more than enough for me to live a life as the person named ‘Noel’.

 

***

 

After that, I watched Rupert eagerly for three days.

What I’d discovered while doing so was that he really wasn’t interested in Leah.

Throughout the three days, he never once went to see Leah. The child seemed to be uncomfortable with her father, and if she encountered him somehow, she would always run away with a rather frightened look.

Already, I feel skeptical.

‘Could this person really be a father?’

A war fanatic who could only be cured after meeting the heroine.

I didn’t have any expectations, but I still couldn’t believe it.

With that thought, I stood in front of Rupert’s office.

Of course, I didn’t come to see him out of my own will.

It was Rupert who called me.

‘You hate even looking at me, so what’s wrong with you now?’

I hoped it wasn’t bad news and lightly knocked on the door.

“Marquis, it’s me.”

After a while, a low voice came through the door.

“Come in.”

When I opened the door, I saw Rupert sitting on a chair on the other side. As always, he was looking at me with cold eyes.