110 - The Evil Husband (15th Anniversary Edition) Chapter 110
110
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Nyah, a thin cry echoed in the alleyway. Diego stroked the cat's head with his large hand. The cat stiffened its tail and rubbed its body against Diego's leg.
"This guy is the boss cat in Venue Street. Look at the size of his paws and head. He's huge."
Diego boasted as if it were his own cat, saying it had huge paws and a huge head. Rohan, who was smoking a cigarette, tossed out a curt, "Cute."
Diego, who was freely petting the cat that had flopped on its back in front of him, quickly became covered in fur.
"Oh, geez."
He couldn't be all covered in fur in front of Aileen. Diego belatedly regretted it and diligently picked off the cat hair clinging to his uniform, one strand at a time.
The knights were conspicuous enough as it was. With three of them standing in line in front of the pharmacy, they were drawing too much attention, so Senon decided to represent them and buy the medicine alone.
Rohan and Diego were about to head straight to Aileen, but they were temporarily waiting for Michele's signal. After confirming who was daring to tail the Archduchess of Erzeht, additional measures might be needed.
Unbeknownst to Aileen, the Erzeht Grand Ducal Family was suffering from various threats. After Cesare's successful conquest of Kalpen, the surrounding countries outwardly congratulated him on his victory but were also afraid. It was because they didn't know where the Traon Empire's sword would be pointed next.
In reality, Cesare was focused on eliminating the nobles of Traon one by one. The surrounding countries sent spies to the Empire in various ways, which made it difficult for the Erzeht Grand Ducal Family to even hire new employees these days.
Naturally, all sorts of riffraff stuck to Aileen and Cesare, but most of them were taken care of by the knights. Nevertheless, things like this occasionally happened.
"Rohan, my back."
Diego showed his back to Rohan. Rohan put a cigarette in his mouth and removed the fur on his back with practiced hands. Diego took out a cigarette and muttered.
"If those nobles had fired a single shot on the battlefield, the number of spies would have been cut in half."
He was frustrated to see them blinded by money, women, and power, cooperating with espionage instead of helping.
During the Kalpen conquest, the Traon Imperial Army didn't even receive proper supplies. It was because of the nobles' obstruction. With those who didn't want to spend money on those who were going to die anyway and spies cooperating with Kalpen, no one was willing to help the Imperial Army.
Cesare contributed his private funds, but it was difficult to properly deliver the goods to the battlefield because the supply route was not secured. Only after the war progressed and victory began to be secured did the nobles slyly begin to supply.
Until then, the Imperial Army had stubbornly endured with nothing but faith in Cesare and patriotism to defend their country.
"Just a bunch of bastards."
Rohan said a word and then closed his mouth again. Diego stood next to Rohan and smoked a cigarette before suddenly saying.
"Not much time left. Should we all go together this time? With Aileen."
"Aileen will be busy, there's no need. I can do it alone."
"We want to go too."
Diego shrugged, saying that Madam had already hinted at it. Rohan smoked his cigarette in silence.
Diego, who had been leaning against the alley wall, simply turned his body to the side to face Rohan and blew out smoke. Diego chuckled as he watched Rohan's face, half covered in burn scars, contort.
"We're gathering under the pretext of the anniversary. Aileen too, and us too."
Rohan didn't answer until the end. But he didn't deny it either. Diego arbitrarily made a promise, saying that they were gathering that day anyway. It was when Rohan silently nodded.
"Hek, hwek, sh, shibal..."
Michele burst into the alleyway as if rolling. Michele's face, panting and mixing curses indiscriminately, was pale.
Before Rohan and Diego could ask what was wrong, they first took out their guns. Michele waved his hands at them as they quickly and swiftly loaded their guns.
"Guns, no, put them away, shibal, aoh..."
Michele barely squeezed out his voice, drenched in cold sweat.
"It was His Imperial Majesty..."
Diego and Rohan's eyes widened at the mention of an unexpected figure. Michele explained the moment he encountered Leone.
At first, he thought they were just guys tailing Aileen. He was just thinking of beating them up quickly, handing them over to the soldiers, and then going on a date with Aileen.
But what appeared before Michele was the Emperor of Traon, with his direct bodyguards. Leone smiled with a troubled face and greeted Michele, saying.
"I would appreciate it if you could keep it a secret for now."
It was a gentle tone, but a clear command. Michele froze and unknowingly answered.
"That is... impossible."
Only after speaking did he realize that he had dared to disobey His Imperial Majesty's order, but it was already done. Michele belatedly added an excuse.
"The, the report must have already been sent... and Grand Duke Erzeht too..."
"Ah, yes. Even if I am the Emperor, Sir Michele has no choice but to prioritize Cesare. I understand perfectly."
Leone sighed softly and sent Michele away. Michele couldn't understand the situation at all, why the Emperor was tailing the Grand Duchess. So, as soon as he got away from Leone, he ran to his comrades.
"We need to bring Senon."
Rohan, who made a judgment as soon as he heard the story, immediately instructed Diego and Michele.
"You guys go to Aileen's side right away."
Michele suddenly disappeared, and Aileen, left with the soldiers, was having a very friendly time.
At first, the soldiers were very nervous and stood stiffly at attention without saying a word. Aileen also awkwardly fiddled with her glasses.
It was difficult to strike up a conversation because they weren't familiar soldiers. But not saying anything seemed too impolite, so she struggled to find a topic and opened her lips.
"Um, thank you for coming all the way to the pharmacy..."
And as soon as Aileen opened her mouth, the soldiers all widened their eyes at once.
"Please speak comfortably!"
Their loud shouts drew attention. Noticing the questioning eyes of the people, Aileen hurriedly dropped the honorifics.
"Ah, thank... you. For, for coming to buy the medicine."
As she shyly gave her thanks, the faces of the soldiers, each holding a bag of medicine, turned red. Aileen also blushed at their embarrassed appearance.
They were huddled together, their faces red, when the soldiers spoke first this time. A young soldier shyly said to Aileen.
"I have been waiting since I heard that the new medicine formulated by the Grand Duchess would be released."
They were people who didn't know the efficacy of the medicine. They weren't soldiers who had much contact with Aileen, so she was curious as to why they were so enthusiastic about buying the medicine, even standing in line for so long. Reading Aileen's curiosity, the soldiers were very embarrassed and told her the hidden truth.
"Um... within the Imperial Army, the Grand Duchess is regarded as a symbol of good luck. So, there are those who buy the medicine bottles as talismans."
"A symbol of good luck?"
She had been by the soldiers' side for over a decade, but this was the first time she had heard this story. She wondered why she would be a symbol of good luck, so she tried to ask more, but suddenly Diego and Michele appeared.
The two knights, as if they had been running, were panting heavily. They stood behind Aileen with stiff faces. While Aileen was flustered by the unusual atmosphere, a man in a black robe slowly approached Aileen.
Aileen's eyes widened when she saw the man. The robed man slightly tilted his hat so that Aileen could see his face.
"Your Majesty...?"
As she called out in astonishment, Leone smiled faintly and placed a straight finger on his lips. He stood in front of Aileen and looked down at her silently for a while.
"I would like you to spare me some time."
At the sudden appearance of His Imperial Majesty, Aileen moved her stiff lips and barely managed to answer, "Yes." Leone held out his hand to Aileen. As she took the hand offered for the escort, he naturally led Aileen away.
At first glance, it looked like two men and women were walking down the street together amicably. But Aileen's complexion was stiff, to the point of being pale. Leone glanced at Aileen and asked in a calm tone.
"Have you ever heard Cesare talk about his mother?"
Aileen didn't understand the question right away. Recognizing that his words were ambiguous, Leone corrected himself slightly.
"I mean our twins' mother."
