A Marriage Alliance for Revenge - Chapter 39

The meal was quickly finished.

 

As the warm potato soup entered the hungry stomach, warmth enveloped the chilled heart.

 

“I should go out.”

 

Lucas said, gazing at the bustling outside.

 

The small house at the village entrance was close to the makeshift tents of the knights.

 

The knights residing in the makeshift tents outside the village were those who had not suffered severe injuries or harm.

 

“By now, the ones sent by Count Delevinge to Perta Forest should have arrived.”

 

“Oh?”

 

“Just in case, I have prepared extra provisions and medicines.”

 

Deception.

 

To save her people, she had to wield the blade against them.

 

It would have been ideal if there were no sacrifices, but she had to deceive Gusto’s spies and handle them while protecting her own people.

 

As time passed, with discontent brewing among the peasants towards the Empire, some joined the ranks of the rebels, creating a somewhat intricate relationship.

 

That was also the reason Lucas had pondered endlessly.

 

He constantly questioned the righteousness of involving even those who had come out with farming tools just to survive in his affairs.

 

However, surrounded by advice warning that the longer it dragged on, the more damage would accrue, he couldn’t help but agree.

 

And above all, Briella, left alone in the Imperial Palace, remained unsettled in a corner of his heart.

 

His feelings towards her were still unclear, unsure of whether they were suspicions or worries.

 

After all, the marriage itself had been a rather impulsive decision.

 

Lucas gazed calmly at Briella, waiting for her response.

 

“It must not have been easy to avoid Gusto’s gaze.”

 

“We’ll disguise ourselves as merchants for the festival. Some of Count Delevinge’s entourage disguised themselves as people who had departed from the capital.”

 

At Briella’s words, Lucas let out a dry laugh.

 

Lucas was in Perta, while Briella and his butler were at the imperial palace, and Count Delevinge in his mansion in the capital.

 

The audacity of working so closely with the people of the capital’s mansions, away from Gusto’s venomous eyes in the imperial palace, was remarkable.

 

No easy task, even with the cooperation of Count Delevinge and his butler behind the scenes.

 

“Was it your idea?”

 

“Count Delevinge and the butler all had the same idea.”

 

Her lowered lashes fluttered under Lucas’s gaze.

 

The lashes, long enough to create shadows under her eyes, fluttered like a butterfly landing on a petal every time she closed and opened her eyes.

 

‘Butterflies.

 

Lucas chuckled inwardly at his own thoughts.

 

Had there ever been a time after a battle when he had spent such leisurely and tranquil moments?

 

“I can’t believe you were with Olivia, even if you said you were.”

 

“The Imperial Court is a place where rumors travel fast. They say the walls have ears, and there are mirrors that can talk.”

 

“Impressive.”

 

It was pure admiration.

 

Even for Lucas, who had spent his early years in the palace, it was an unheard of phrase.

 

While Lucas marveled, Briella herself was at a loss.

 

“It’s merely a skill I possess.”

 

“Olivia wouldn’t have been stingy with praise. You are too harsh on your own evaluation.”

 

Putting on his coat, Lucas spoke as he prepared to go outside.

 

Watching Lucas get ready to go outside, Briella fidgeted with her fingers.

 

From him, the name Olivia brought a sudden sense of melancholy.

 

“‥‥‥Do you happen to know much about her?”

 

After hesitating for a while, Lucas, fully dressed, turned his head at the words that finally came out.

 

Briella, slightly bowing her head and gazing at the shadow cast by the sunlight, seemed inexplicably lonely.

 

“She was someone who laughed excessively without purpose.”

 

Lucas approached and stood in front of Briella.

 

The shadows of the two intertwined affectionately.

 

“She also tended to focus excessively on trivial matters.”

 

Raising Briella’s face with long fingers that had been pointing towards the ground.

 

At the sudden contact, Briella’s lips parted slightly.

 

“Above all, she was a warm person. Resembling spring in those eyes.”

 

The fleeting moment when the gazes of the two met.

 

However, it was not to the extent that the whirlwind contained within went unnoticed.

 

It was Lucas who first averted his gaze from Briella’s eyes.

 

Even as Lucas’s hand withdrew from Briella’s face, Briella was as motionless as a winter ice sculpture.

 

‘Thunk,’ the door closed, and time passed like a winter trapped in spring.

 

For a long time.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“What should we do with this?”

 

Emma’s question caused Eve’s brow to furrow.

 

She had thought that distributing the brought-in items would be a simple task that would end once everything was shared.

 

Everyone bowed their heads, expecting to express gratitude for her generosity.

 

She hadn’t anticipated that such chaotic and intricate tasks awaited her.

 

Mountains of supplies were piled up, all lost and unattended.

 

“Our supply of soup is running out. What should we do?”

 

A woman wearing an apron murmured, glancing at Eve.

 

She was one of the women who, at Briella’s request, were boiling hot soup in the courtyard.

 

“I’m in a hurry, but may I borrow some medicine?”

 

Baron, weary from exhaustion, staggered into the inn.

 

Baron looked around at those who had arrived before him, lingering in front of Eve.

 

They were all villagers, unrelated to the recent battle.

 

Due to a sudden storm they faced with the harvest approaching, a year’s worth of hard work had turned to naught for these people.

 

Some of them, mixed among the rebels, even held up pickaxes against the Ron Empire.

 

They all gathered at the inn, where Eve was staying, to receive the necessary supplies.

 

It was a struggle to protect their own lives.

 

It was a starkly different scene from the nobility, who distributed bread in the slums and wiped tears with handkerchiefs.

 

“‥‥‥Yes.”

 

Responding to Eve’s call, Countess Lawrence, who was partly lost in thought, approached her.

 

“Please distribute the necessary items to the people.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

Surprised by Eve’s words, Countess Lawrence looked at her in astonishment.

 

On the contrary, Eve’s face, which had left a bombshell statement, was infinitely peaceful.

 

Apart from nodding her head in acknowledgment of what Eve had done since preparing for the journey to Perta, there was nothing else she could do.

 

Occasionally, she had pretended to take the lead, considering the attention of others, but she didn’t know exactly what was in the luggage she had been carrying.

 

“Hurry. Lady Lawrence, many are waiting,” Eve said, elegantly raising her finger to address Lady Lawrence.

 

Suddenly, the focus shifted to her, and Lady Lawrence’s face turned pale.

 

Yet, Eve gracefully surveyed the people, maintaining the dignity and elegance spoken of by the court etiquette instructor.

 

‘What is it? Why is everyone looking at me like that?’

 

There were no tears of joy or admiring glances directed at Eve.

 

In the gaze of the Perta peasants, Eve awkwardly smiled.

 

The disdain on their faces was something Eve had not anticipated.

 

Though dressed less lavishly than in the palace, compared to the chaotic attire of the Perta people, Eve’s attire was distinctly foreign.

 

Baron chuckled at Eve’s words.

 

With Briella’s disappearance, almost everything in Perta came to a standstill.

 

It was a moment when Briella’s vibrant presence from the previous night was vividly missed.

 

Emma and the villagers exchanged glances.

 

Upon Lady Lawrence’s instructions to wait until she called them back in a hurry, the people inside the inn rushed outside.

 

“What do we do? It will get colder after sunset. There’s no food for the children tonight.”

 

“To repair the collapsed embankment, we need more than just a couple of items.”

 

Looking at the piled-up items around the inn as if they were a heap of regrets, everyone sighed.

 

The knights from the palace, who came with Eve, guarded the passage with a stern look, deterring anyone from approaching.

 

“Um… Where is Lady Viterpan?”

 

One of those gathered to receive scarce supplies cautiously inquired about Briella.

 

Though not openly expressed, they all longed for Briella’s presence.

 

In less than a day, Briella had captivated the hearts of the Perta peasants.

 

Baron, listening to the peasants, marveled at Briella’s skill.

 

She appeared when needed, charmed people, and vanished in an instant.

 

From persuading people diligently the night before, Briella seamlessly integrated among the peasants without causing any offense.

 

‘Could this all have been planned?’

 

Muttering to himself, Baron gazed at the inn where Eve was staying.

 

Establishing a foundation is challenging. Briella had built everything and then disappeared.

 

If Eve played her cards right, she could potentially seize everything Briella had built.

 

Briella’s gamble was risky. It could easily bury her existence altogether.

 

‘Seems like the Lady’s wit surpasses even the Lord’s.’

 

Watching the peasants searching for Briella among themselves, Baron shook his head in dismay.

 

It seemed as though they might storm the lodging where Briella was staying at any moment.

 

As the Perta peasants began to sense Briella’s presence anew.

 

After a quick bath, Briella rummaged through her belongings and changed her clothes.

 

Emma’s dress, once the finest in her collection, was wrinkled and stained in various places overnight.

 

Looking at the dress that must have been Emma’s favorite, Briella sighed softly.

 

After a moment of contemplation, Briella decided to hand over one of her own clothes and stretched leisurely.

 

‘Tired.’

 

Her silent remark seemed to shatter in the void.

 

She realized that being alone like this was truly rare.

 

Eyes that had always watched her, whether at the Viterpan estate or within the palace, were no longer there.

 

The tension dissipated in the peaceful afternoon, despite the outside commotion.

 

The weight of fatigue pressed down on her entire being.

 

Briella sat at the table with Lucas for a meal.

 

‘So sleepy…’

 

Unintentionally, she laid her head on the table, gazing out of the window.

 

Amidst the bustling knights, Lucas was nowhere to be found.

 

His eyelids, which had been fluttering, gradually closed.

 

To the lullaby of the soft chirping of birds, Briella fell into a deep slumber.

 

After Briella had fallen asleep, the creaking sound of a door opening was heard.

 

Emma carefully moved her feet, searching for Briella with her eyes.

 

“Madam.”

 

Her cautious voice resembled a whisper.

 

Although she had mingled with them last night, Briella was of noble birth.

 

She was the lady of a duke, no less.

 

“Ah…”

 

Emma, who had spotted Briella, bit her lip.

 

Emma could not bring herself to wake Briella, who was sleeping on the table in the face of deep exhaustion, unable to rest comfortably or lie down.

 

After much hesitation, Emma brought a blanket from the room, carefully draped it over Briella’s shoulders, and withdrew.

 

Even the sound of the door closing did not rouse Briella easily from her slumber.

 

“Emma. Where is the lady?”

 

As Emma stepped out of the house, the people who had gathered there crowded around her all at once.

 

“Well.”

 

Emma glanced at the door she’d closed and shook her head.

 

“So you’re not helping us anymore?”

 

“She is the duke’s wife after all?”

 

The people’s expectations and hopes turned to despondency.

 

Maybe the children would still have to eat this evening.

 

The men who had gone to repair the broken dike might also have to eat.

 

The cold winter wind wrapped around them and departed.

 

“That is not it. She’s resting.”

 

“What?”

 

As Emma spoke, everyone stopped in their tracks and looked at her.

 

“Indeed, she’s never been through anything like this before.”

 

“Yes, and she has suffered much!”

 

Emma’s voice shouted as if she suddenly remembered, and everyone’s faces turned serious.

 

Emma’s face seemed especially on the verge of tears.

 

It was Emma who covered Briella, who trembled and bled profusely, with a blanket and offered her clothes.

 

Briella had only eaten a bowl of potato soup, hadn’t rested properly, and had spent the night running around.

 

“It would be best to let her rest for a while.”

 

At Emma’s words, everyone quietly nodded and retreated.

 

While Briella took her afternoon rest, strange rumors spread among the peasants and knights of Perta.

 

“Hessel.”

 

“Yes, my lord.”

 

“What of the adjutant?”

 

It was after a series of complex events had subsided.

 

The hand pressing against the forehead was rough.

 

“There were no significant injuries to his life.”

 

“Has he been rendered unable to wield his sword?”

 

Hessel nodded in response to Lucas’s inquiry.

 

An arrow had pierced through his shoulder, lodging itself in the quiver.

 

Worse, it hung there for a long time.

 

It was no wonder.

 

“I should go see him after the evening meal.”

 

The adjutant was a vital piece of evidence in this case.

 

Gusto would not readily admit that the flood had washed away his man.

 

He’d be relentless in his harassment and suspicion.

 

The adjutant was a crucial piece of evidence in this matter.

 

Gustavo would not easily admit to the flood that swept away only his people.

 

It was clear that he would persistently torment Lucas with suspicion.

 

But if the lieutenant were to step forward and provide an explanation, the situation could easily change.

 

“How shall we proceed with the evening meal?”

 

Steam was rising vigorously from the pot placed at the center around the hearth in the main hall.

 

Watching that scene in silence, Lucas rose from his seat.

 

“Do not worry about me, go ahead and eat first.”

 

“What troubles you?”

 

It was Lucas, always in the company of knights.

 

Hessel cautiously inquired about Lucas’s perplexing behavior.

 

If it was to meet with Sir Sergel, who was guarding the rear, Lucas intended to keep close to him.

 

There was always the possibility that Gustavo’s spy, yet to be uncovered, might still be lurking.

 

Caution was paramount in every aspect.

 

“No. I will head there with my wife.”

 

Gazing at the setting sun, Lucas rose from his seat.

 

With brisk steps, Lucas left the main hall.

 

As he arrived at the small house where Briella was, the sun had already concealed its tracks.

 

Thud.

 

Something solid met Lucas’s footstep as he followed the darkened path to the house.