As My Husband Said, I Brought in a Lover

* * *

It’s been a week since the banquet. So far, the capital has been overly peaceful. People in the capital were accustomed to a peaceful daily life, except for the social commotion that often became noisy, but there were some people who experienced this peace for the first time in a very long time.

The tip of the long index finger regularly tapped on the table. Maxion, who was playing moves on the other side of the chessboard, looked at Edward and opened his mouth. “Is there something that bothers you?”

“No.”

Maxion made a move. Edward’s eyes were still fixed on the chessboard, but his hands were busy tapping the table.

“Lord Edward.”

“

?”

“I won.”

“…I see.”

Edward’s hand stopped. Only then did he look at the chessboard properly and laugh.

“I can’t believe there’s a day like this. Maxion, your chess skills are improving day by day.”

“It’s not that my skills have improved, but it seems that Lord Edward hasn’t been able to show off your skills.”

“…That also true.”

Edward swept his black hair back. A little long black hair flowed down through the gap of his fingers like silk. His red eyes stared out of the window and turned to Maxion, who sat opposite him.

“Is tomorrow you’re off duty?”

“Yes.”

“I hear you’re visiting the Count Cloette’s mansion.”

“That’s right.”

Edward’s eyes narrowed. “Have you investigated Madam Cloette? NO, I don’t think you need it. You said she was your friend.”

“It was a long time ago. As ordered, I’ve investigated her recent movements, but there was nothing other than what was known on the surface.”

“So what kind of person was the Madam Cloette you say?”

“…You’re asking a difficult question.”

Maxion sighed. Silence fell in the parlor. He tended to think for a long time before coming up with a thoughtful answer.

Edward, who returned injured a few days ago, ordered him to find out about Countess Cloette. The source of his injury was an assassin sent by the emperor and a traitor was hiding among them, but it was unexpected that madam was there.

The next day was his official day of entry into the capital. The knights first completed preparations for their entry near the capital and walked in, receiving a grand welcome. From the audience with the emperor to the welcome banquet that immediately followed, he had no time to learn about Countess Cloette due to his extreme busy schedule.

In the meantime, he met Countess Cloette in the banquet hall that night. Compared to Countess Cloette, who was constantly being talked about in the society, that person was his old friend, Luize.

Luize looked almost the same as she did 10 years ago. Maxion smiled slightly as he remembered the six years he had spent with her.

“She’s a warm person. She has some similarities with Lord Edward.”

“Similarities? It’s a statement that will shock anyone who hears it.”

“…Please pretend you didn’t hear what I said.”

“These days, there are a lot of people who enjoy making secrets with me. Am I really that trustworthy?”

“It’s almost time for dinner.”

“Now, are you act like a servant and try to avoid answering?”

“Yes.”

“That’s shameless.”

Edward rose from his seat with a smile. He continued, looking straight at Maxion. “Maxion.”

“Yes.”

“You’ve been separated from the countess for a long time?”

“It was 10 years ago.”

“Cloette is a fairly loyal family among the emperor’s faction. She seems to know nothing, but don’t let your guard down just because you’re glad to see her.”

“Yes.”

“I have a lot of questions about that madam…”

“I will answer as far as I know.”

“It’s okay. I’ll find out about it myself.”

“Yes?” Maxion looked at Edward with a quizzical look.

Edward rose from his seat with a smile as if he had made up his mind. “I don’t have any special plans yet, but I’d like you to help me if anything comes up, Maxion.”

“I’ll do that.” Maxion answered without much thought.

Edward looked at him with an obscure look and added. “You can say no if you don’t like it.”

“…Yes.”

Edward nodded his head as if he had finally received a satisfactory answer.

* * *

Luize had a perfectly happy morning for the first time in a long time. A smile appeared on her face as she washed her body and prepared to welcome her guest. The servants looked at her quizzically, but no one asked her a question first.

Contrary to her mood, the weather was a little gloomy. The sky looked dark, as if raindrops might pour down at any moment.

At the appointment time, she saw a horse entering the entrance to the mansion a little ahead of time. Luize went down to the first floor and welcomed the guest with a happy face. “Maxion, you’re here!”

The huge man got off his horse. The man in light everyday clothes, looked like a brown bear. The top button of his shirt, which was loosened comfortably without a cravat, was similar to the days when he spent with Luize. Luize smiled at his unchanged appearance.

“Thank you for inviting me.”

“I’m grateful you’re here. I have a lot of stories I want to tell.”

Maxion followed Luize to the parlor. Herbal tea and apple pie were prepared on the tea table.

“Do you still like apple pie? I didn’t know what you’d like, so I prepared something you used to eat.”

“…I like it.”

“Thank God. It’s my first time inviting a friend to the mansion, so I don’t know what to do.”

“First time?”

“Yes, I don’t have any friends in the capital yet. Let’s take a walk later.”

“It looks like it’s going to rain.”

“I know. Still, I don’t think it’s going to rain for a long time. There’s also space there to shelter from the rain.”

“Okay. You know the weather better.”

Luize smiled with joy.

Maxion thought she hadn’t changed at all. Luize was still thoughtful, and even though she knew it was going to rain, she still had her quirky side to the point where she insisted on taking a walk in the garden.

“How have you been since you left my house?”

“After receiving some work and saving up for travel expenses, I was on my way back to my hometown. I met the grand duke at his estate and became a knight.”

“I see. I’m glad you’ve been well. You look so much better than you did at Perils.”

“I had been well as much as back then as I do now.”

“Really?” Luize’s face got brighter.

Maxion smiled and opened his mouth. “You.”

“Yes?”

“Have you been doing well?”

It was an ordinary question asked out of courtesy, but Luize’s expression hardened for a moment. She then answered with a smile again, “Of course.”

“That’s a relief.”

“…It’s thanks to meeting a good husband.”

“You said your husband is Count Reiad di Cloette.”

“Yes.”

Luize looked around. Servants were standing everywhere. Although they pretended not to be interested, their ears were filled with a lot of information, and their mouths were as quick and light as the news that was floating around all the time.

“

, my husband went out today because he had some work to do. He’ll be back around evening. He was very sorry that he couldn’t say hello.”

“…I see.”

“We can’t just stay here, let’s get some fresh air. I want to show you everything I want to show before it rains.”

“Yes.”

Luize got up first and got ahead quickly. She headed to the garden with the servants following her, then brought up her childhood story. The memories of the day she first met Maxion and their time together kept the conversation going between them.

The sky cried low. It was a sign that it would rain soon. Luize hurried to open the umbrella. The umbrella didn’t open well, but it was still okay. Today was the perfect day as she went for a walk with her friend whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

“…Luize.”

“

?”

“The umbrella is broken.”

Luize looked at the umbrella in her hand. Due to forcefully trying to open it, the umbrella’s ribs got misaligned, causing about half of it to break and making it difficult to use.

“I see.” Luize smiled weakly. “It is broken.”

It started to rain. Maxion tilted his umbrella towards Luize. His umbrella had a flying hawk pattern of the Lindeman family.

“…Come here.”

One of Maxion’s shoulders became wet. Luize hurriedly raised her head. “Sorry. The place to avoid the rain is over there.” She took Maxion’s hand and walked into the garden.

Maxion walked quietly along Luize, tilting his umbrella to keep her from getting wet. His eyes followed her back, not caring that his shoulders and back were wet.

At last, they arrived at a gazebo made of marble. The dome-shaped ceiling was sealed to prevent rain from entering, and the walls, centered around six pillars, were low barriers reaching up to the waist on the five sides, leaving one side open as an entrance. It was small enough to fit two people when they went in, so it looked like a small cage.

“Your shoulders and back are all wet.”

“It’s okay.”

A rain-soaked shirt clung to his back and shoulders. Maxion opened his mouth as if to turn the subject around when Luize made an apologetic face. “Is master in the capital too?”

“No. Master died five years ago in the arms of nature.”

Maxion’s face was in disarray. It was a topic that would be brought up one day, but he felt sorry for not noticing anything strange when she didn’t talk about it first.

“…Master?”

“Yes. Master had chronic illness.”

“I should have stayed.”

“You left, so there was nothing that could be done. But we’ve met now, so that’s enough.”

“It must have been difficult.”

“Difficult…”

Luize bit her lower lip. She raised her head and saw the rain pouring down the garden.

“Yes. It was hard. Still, I thought I might be okay with Reiad by my side.”

“…”

“I thought I escaped from the prison…”

“…”

“But this place is just a prettier prison.”

“…”

“Still, I thought everything would be okay. But it wasn’t.”

Luize shifted her gaze to look at Maxion. “The truth is, everything is a mess. The scariest thing is…”

Maxion quietly stared at Luize who was looking at him. Her mouth was smiling slightly, but her eyes looked like she was about to cry at any moment.

“I may end up shattering this peace with my own hands.”