CHAPTER 74…………………
Larrienne held Etisha’s hand and gently massaged it, trying to calm her down. Etisha looked up at Larrienne with hazy eyes.
“Unnie…?”
“Yes, it’s me. I’m here.”
“How did you….”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of everything.”
Larrienne snapped her head up.
Right nearby, the noble ladies were sprawled about in disarray. And at the center of them, the Countess of Montmadre—who had been cornering Etisha—was clearly visible.
Fire sparked in Larrienne’s eyes.
“Are you all insane?”
“…What?”
“I asked if you’ve all lost your minds—did you collectively eat your own brains?”
“Wh-what did you just say?”
“Don’t you see she’s sick? She’s drenched in cold sweat, and yet you gang up on her like this? If my Tisha dies because of you, who’s going to take responsibility?”
Larrienne didn’t care in the slightest who those noble ladies were, or how prestigious and powerful their families might be.
The only one she cared about was Etisha.
If anyone so much as harmed Etisha, Larrienne would curse and fight back—even if that opponent were the Emperor himself.
“Die? What do you…”
The ladies stared blankly at Larrienne with vacant expressions.
A strange lady, suddenly appearing on horseback. Her rough riding skills, her coarse tone—it was all shocking enough. But her appearance was so otherworldly that it was even more striking.
Her thick red hair, scattered in the breeze, drew every gaze.
Even while she was raging like a goddess of fury, she looked breathtakingly beautiful, enough to leave them stunned.
“Tisha’s sick. Can’t you see? Do you even understand? Hah—if anything happens to her, none of you will be safe. I’ll hunt you down, one by one, and crush you with my own hands. You think I’m joking? Think I’m just saying it? Not a chance.”
Larrienne clenched her teeth.
She had always known about Etisha’s wasting disease, but this was her first time witnessing the symptoms with her own eyes.
Etisha was dying.
Etisha… was dying.
Larrienne felt like she was going insane.
Watching Etisha gag made her chest plummet as if a boulder had fallen on her, her skin crawling and her body twisting as though it had been flayed.
Her hands trembled as she struggled against the torrent of emotions.
Just then, Countess Montmadre, straightening her crumpled dress, shot back in a disapproving tone.
“Well, I’ve never seen such a boor before… That face, that hair. If I’m not mistaken, you must be Lady Heinz, once notorious in the capital. Do you think you’ll get away with this after what you’ve done to me?”
“What?”
“Such exaggeration, too. Saying Lady Wintel will die? That’s the very line I should be saying to you. Because of that horse you came charging in on, I felt the threat of death myself! I could have been gravely injured—or even killed!”
“…Ha.”
Larrienne let out a hollow laugh.
She was simply beyond disgusted.
“Fine… I suppose someone needs to be made an example of…”
Muttering to herself, she rolled up her sleeves.
Then, without warning, she grabbed Countess Montmadre by the hair and twisted it.
“Gasp!”
The Countess and the surrounding ladies all gasped in horror.
Lady Heinz, seizing Countess Montmadre by the hair?
That such an unthinkable scene was unfolding in broad daylight was utterly unbelievable.
Impossible. Truly impossible.
“Listen, madam.”
Larrienne, voice dripping with venom, hissed into the Countess’s ear.
“I don’t care who you are or what family you come from. Tisha has less than ten months left. If you pose any threat to her, I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll show you what a real mortal threat looks like.”
“Wha—what did you just say… Ten months?”
“…”
Instead of replying, Larrienne yanked and shook the Countess’s hair. Her neatly styled gray locks came undone in a mess.
“Agh! Aaaagh!”
“Unnie!”
Etisha, belatedly snapping to her senses, called out desperately to Larrienne.
Too much had already happened for the situation to be salvaged, but she had to stop it now.
“Enough! Larrienne!”
Etisha forced herself upright and grabbed Larrienne’s arm.
She pried Larrienne and the Countess apart and pushed Larrienne back.
“What on earth… haah… what is all this?”
“Tisha, stay out of it. I know the look in nobles’ eyes like hers. Leave her be, and she’ll come back to haunt you. We have to settle this now.”
“What…? Come back to haunt?”
“Wait. Before that—how are you? Are you okay? Are you not hurting anymore?”
“…”
Etisha thought she might faint.
As if Larrienne’s sudden appearance weren’t enough, she had gone and blurted things like Etisha being sick, dying, even that she had less than ten months left. Everything was a mess.
And it all happened in the brief moment when Etisha couldn’t focus due to her symptoms.
Her vision darkened.
Completely oblivious to her turmoil, Larrienne kept pressing her.
“Tisha, what’s with your face? Still in pain? Should I fetch a doctor? Maybe magical healing will help a little.”
“…No.”
Etisha barely shook her head.
Calling a doctor would only make things worse. It would only increase the risk of her illness being exposed.
“Why do you always have to do things like this…”
Last time, she’d assaulted Dieter. Now it was Countess Montmadre.
At least that time, no one had seen it. But now they were surrounded by noble ladies. This would not blow over so easily.
Worse, the risk of Etisha’s disease being revealed was far too great.
Already, she had shown symptoms in front of everyone, and Larrienne had poured fuel onto the fire.
What do I do…
Etisha clenched her fists tightly.
The only small comfort was that no one would dare ask about what happened with Dieter at the wedding anymore.
One mountain after another…
Etisha slowly parted her lips, planning to deal first with the chaos Larrienne had caused.
“First, I should introduce her. This is Larrienne Heinz. Though we’ve cut ties, she is…”
Countess Montmadre cut her off sharply.
“Lady Heinz!”
“…”
“Do you think you’ll get away with this? To insult me so outrageously… I won’t stand for it. Never. And you, Lady Wintel—what were you doing, just standing by? Watching your sister run wild without stopping her? What’s this nonsense about being sick and having less than ten months left?”
Larrienne, who had been watching silently, started to roll up her sleeves again.
Etisha, startled, grabbed her arm tight.
“No, unnie.”
“Why not?”
“Don’t.”
Just as the situation teetered on the brink, a languid voice suddenly drifted in from behind them.
“Kukuku… What an amusing spectacle this is.”
“…?”
“More entertaining than a wolf hunt, wouldn’t you say, ladies?”
Someone strolled in leisurely.
Silver hair, blood-red eyes, and an unearthly, bewitching appearance.
“I had only meant to observe from afar, but as I watched, the misunderstandings grew too large to ignore. I had no choice but to step in.”
The Countess of Harfden murmured under her breath, almost like a sigh.
“Marquis Hexion…?”
Buis Hexion. What was he doing here?
All the men had gone out to hunt gray wolves. And yet, he alone remained.
Sensing their puzzled gazes, the marquis shrugged.
“I have no talent for combat. I fear the sight of blood. If I joined, I’d only be a hindrance.”
Larrienne’s expression turned incredulous.
The man who had admitted to slaughtering the Hexion family during the war to seize the marquisate—now spouting blatant lies without blinking.
Guarding Etisha, Larrienne kept wary eyes on him.
Even Countess Montmadre, usually favorable toward him, addressed him with sharpness this time.
“What business brings you here, Marquis?”
The Countess’s pride was clearly wounded, having been seen with her hair seized by Larrienne.
“As I just said, I came to clear up a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding? What do you mean?”
“Hah… Do none of you see?”
Marquis Hexion gestured toward Etisha. His languid eyes curved with a faint smile.
“Lady Wintel’s condition.”
“…?”
“Surely you haven’t noticed?”
His smile deepened, while Etisha’s face grew stiff.
Whatever “misunderstanding” he intended to clear up, it was obvious this boded ill for her.
“Sudden gagging. Cold sweat. And mention of less than ten months remaining… With symptoms this obvious, how have you not realized?”
Etisha swallowed hard.
Her eyes met Larrienne’s for a fleeting instant.
He knows…
Marquis Hexion had seen through her illness.
He had realized everything—that Etisha was terminally ill, and that Larrienne had lashed out because of it.
“Please, Marquis, wait.”
Etisha shook her head, stepping forward. She had to stop him before he spouted nonsense.
But he was faster.
“Lady Etisha Wintel is pregnant.”
“Marquis… what?”
“Pregnant, with Duke Kaien’s child. Congratulations, Lady Wintel.”
“….”
Etisha was struck speechless.
At that moment, Larrienne chimed in enthusiastically.
“That’s right! Tisha’s with child—what if something happens to the baby!”
“Lari-unnie?”
And Marquis Hexion pressed on without missing a beat.
“Less than ten months until delivery. She must take care. Judging by the nausea, the morning sickness must be severe.”
“Marquis?”
“Our Tisha—if anything happens to her, none of you will be spared!”
“Haha, Lady Heinz’s sisterly devotion is truly touching. Of course, if Lady Wintel is with child, such overprotection is only natural.”
“….”
Etisha was dumbfounded.
Larrienne and Marquis Hexion, complete strangers, had suddenly fallen into perfect rhythm, weaving lies as if they were partners in crime.
With not a flicker of hesitation, they had turned her into a pregnant woman.
Would Countess Montmadre and the other ladies really believe such a story?
Surely it can’t be that simple…
Etisha doubted it.
And yet, on second thought, there was no better cover.
Pregnancy explained everything—the nausea, the cold sweat, and even Larrienne’s excessive protectiveness.
