So the Duchess Disappeared

39. Still Between Husband and Wife

Psyche doubted if the reflection in her retina was a false image of the person standing before her. The presence of someone unbelievable made her wonder if she had somehow traveled back to the past.

Tears welled up in her eyes from the overwhelming shock.

In an instant, she recognized who he was.

A man she couldn’t forget, who couldn’t be erased from her memory.

Duke Clint Valentine, her husband.

“Why is the Duke here…?”

“How could he find this place…?”

Various thoughts swirled in her mind for a moment.

Encountering him in such a place and under such circumstances was truly unexpected.

Deep down, she had never completely ruled out the possibility of him finding her, but she had deliberately denied it. She didn’t want to think about him.

Their eyes met precisely.

Narrowing his eyebrows, Clint pointed at Shiret with an outstretched finger.

“Wha… What is this child?”

Before Psyche could answer the previous question, he asked again.

Startled, Shiret rushed behind Psyche, whispering, “Scary…”

His face displayed a mix of curiosity, confusion, and a sense of relief for finding Psyche, creating a strangely complex expression.

“Why does this child call the lady ‘mom’?”

“…”

Psyche alternated her gaze between the Duke and Shiret hidden behind her.

The fact that the two of them were in front of her was unbelievable in itself.

She took Shiret into her arms and held him tightly.

“This is none of your concern.”

“None of my concern? A child is calling the lady ‘mom’!”

Soon, he expressed his bewilderment with an angered tone.

In response, Psyche stood up with Shiret in her arms.

For some reason, the first thought that came to her mind was that she should run away with Shiret.

More than any other judgment, that was her priority.

Without knowing where the strength came from, she turned away from him with Shiret in her arms.

As she turned away from Clint, his face immediately filled with confusion.

If it were any other time, he would have quickly caught her. However, Clint couldn’t think straight due to the presence of the child.

He probably heard the rumors that she had a miscarriage.

But why a child…?

Moreover, the child unmistakably called Psyche ‘mom.’

‘Mom?’

Clint’s mind suddenly became noisy.

He had initially thought that he would find Psyche, bring her back as a duchess, and return to the Valentine estate.

Did a child appear?

And who was the other party?

With such thoughts, he couldn’t bring himself to catch Psyche in front of the child.

Watching Psyche hastily walking away, he finally followed her.

Psyche wanted to escape from the Duke.

Initially surprised by their encounter, she began to worry about what might happen if he treated her and the child badly.

“Ugh…!”

In her haste, she stumbled and got her foot caught on a protruding edge.

“Ah…!”

Shiret tightly clung to her, causing their center of gravity to shift as they fell to the ground. She shut her eyes tightly as their bodies spilled onto the ground.

“…?”

She felt a sensation of weightlessness as if her body was floating in the air.

“Lady, be careful.”

Clint, who quickly caught up, had a firm grip on her arm and exerted force.

Without his help, she would have almost fallen to the ground with Shiret in her arms.

Startled, Psyche quickly regained her balance, twisting her arm out of Clint’s grasp.

She was initially taken aback by the fact that Clint was the one helping her to her feet.

Clint let out a faint sigh and then spoke, looking at her and Shiret simultaneously.

“First.”

After taking a deep breath, he spoke again.

To Psyche, his demeanor seemed like he was suppressing anger.

“For now, let’s go back and talk.”

Clint thought it would be better to take her back to the Valentine estate first.

And…

If the child she was holding was indeed Psyche’s child…

He was frustrated by the thoughts about what to do with that. Despite feeling choked with frustration, he decided that taking Psyche to the Valentine estate was the priority.

Psyche, whom he met after several years, had changed significantly from before.

There was no sign of her wearing luxurious dresses and exuding a leisurely aura.

Of course, she remained beautiful and elegant, but there was something more elusive about her.

Clint wasn’t pleased with the change.

When he suggested returning, Psyche, who had remained silent, abruptly turned around and faced him.

“If it’s because of the child. Fine. Let’s take the child for now.”

The words ‘for now’ held a certain weight.

Psyche avoided his gaze.

“I’m not going.”

“What did you say just now!”

“I said I’m not going.”

When Psyche firmly stated her refusal, Clint awkwardly burst into laughter.

“If this much flying is enough, let’s go back, my lady.”

“…”

“We are still husband and wife.”

“…?”

Upon hearing that, Psyche trembled in surprise.

Having lost his child and hidden for so long, she thought he would easily abandon her.

The fact that he had been searching for her for such a long time was incomprehensible.

As they confronted each other in silence, gradually, Clint’s attendants, including Alejandro, began to appear.

As expected, the one who warmly welcomed Psyche the most was Alejandro.

“Goodness! My lady!”

He looked like he was about to greet her enthusiastically, but Clint gestured to stop him.

Like a dog wagging its tail upon meeting its owner, Alejandro squirmed as he nervously observed the situation between the two.

Breaking the silence, Clint spoke again.

“Alejandro, guide the lady.”

“Understood!”

“I said I’m not going!”

Clint’s eyes became stern at her words.

“There’s something to discuss about the child.”