Stepmothers Are Not Always Evil

Chapter 108 I woke up to the sound of wind rattling the window.The moonlight streaming into the room was clear, and as I rolled over to try to get back to sleep, I realized that the place next to me was cold.‘… Helios?’Obviously we went to bed together, but he was nowhere to be seen.Noticing that Helios’ nightgown was missing, I got out of bed and left the room.A dim light leaked through the door of the office at the end of the darkened hallway.Instead of knocking on the door, I gently twisted the doorknob.“…….”Helios was leaning on the chair and closed his eyes. A long shadow fell over the face that was engulfed in sorrow.I waited for the moonlight, which was obscured by the clouds, to dispel the shadows, and only after the light filled the room I entered the office.“What are you doing here, not sleeping.”It was as if he knew who he was without looking at me, and his deeply submerged voice was kind.I approached him slowly and stroked his rough face.“I came because I was lonely, sleeping alone.”“You talk about dangerous things in the middle of the night without fear.”Helios raised his eyelids and kissed my wrist.I couldn’t feel it because of the bandages, but it was an excruciatingly hot feeling.The eyes looking at me were deeply sunken.I sat at an angle at the desk and looked down at him.“You can’t sleep?”“Yes, a little.”“Is there anything you can tell me?”“… No.”“Tell me.”“I was thinking about how to protect you.”“…..”My face was filled with gloomy eyes. It was sad that I was the cause of his anxiety, but I couldn’t fix it.“What did Your Majesty say?”“He doesn’t do anything.”“Is it because we refuse to marry Escal with Princess Adela?”“He doesn’t trust me.”What a shameful person.A person as powerful as an Emperor is trying to retaliate by putting his personal feelings first.“Even if there is evidence that the Marquis Melks intervened?”“He said that you could make up all the evidence you wanted.”Helios said quietly.I knew the Emperor’s temper, but I hadn’t expected him to be so openly hostile to Helios.It was only when the Duke of Eaton was overthrown that so many people were able to put pressure on the Emperor, but this is purely a conflict between the Duke of Anthemion and the Emperor.After Helios received the medal, the number of nobles who were holding back the increase in the power of the Duke Anthemion also increased, so it would be difficult to find someone who would support Helios even while hating the Emperor.“We just cover this and move on. Neither I nor Escal was seriously injured, so rather than going against His Majesty’s intentions….”“This won’t be the end of it.”Helios said flatly.“Your Majesty gave us too much, assuming Escal would become his son-in-law. He must be regretting it by now.”And regret turned into anger, looking for an opportunity to strangle Helios.The price for receiving something I didn’t want was too high, but there was no way to get it back.“If we don’t accept the marriage talk, it will continue to be like that.”“Perhaps. He seem to think that if he keep pressuring us, we’ll be forced to accept the marriage.”Helios said, pulling me around the waist to sit on his lap. His body temperature was low despite the cold weather.I suddenly hugged him and whispered.“I will go along with your decision.”“…….”“Don’t feel sorry for me, Helios, do your own thing.”His hand, which was slightly touching, hugged me tightly.As if the conclusion had already been decided, he did not hesitate.“I know best how painful an unwanted marriage can be.”“…….”“I don’t even want to send Escal as a hostage to the Imperial family.”“…….”“Nor can I stand by and watch the Duke Anthemion fall into the hands of the Imperials.”“So?”Helios’ fingers brushed the flowing hair.There was no rush. I eagerly waited for his mouth to open.“Shall we leave the capital?”“… Are you okay though?”“I think it would be better to stay out of sight of His Majesty for a while. It’s easier to protect you.”It was a proposal that I had no reason to refuse, as it was full of things to be concerned about by staying in here.I was a little concerned about Escal’s education, but if I left the capital, I and Helios would be much more relaxed than now, and I could teach him the basics, and we could find a tutor, so it wouldn’t be a problem.“Where are we going?”“Duchy of Anthemion. It is safest there.”I nodded at his words, thinking in my heart that I would like to go to Viscount Evelyn territory.Leaving the capital doesn’t mean you’ll be completely free from the Emperor’s grasp, so it’s better to go somewhere safe than to get your parents involved.“Let’s do that.”I smiled broadly and pressed my lips to Helios’ lips. ***** Once the decision was made, preparations for departure were made in a flash.Helios, who had been banned from entering the palace, sent a letter to the Emperor saying he would go down to the estate for medical treatment on the pretext of my health, but there was no reply.So, I was able to pack my luggage with ease.“Wherever you are, please take care of yourself. Duke.”“Take care of the mansion.”Merlin, who came out to see us off to the front door, wiped away his tears.Merlin, who had to stay in the mansion because he was too old for a long trip and had a bad back, was very sad.“I am in good health. Merlin.”“Goodbye, madam.”I said goodbye to Merlin and got into the carriage.“Let’s go.”At Helios’ glance, Dustin, who was sitting on the carriage, swung his whip.The knights disguised as servants, the servants who followed us to the estate, and the carriage with our luggage left the mansion in a line.Escal looked out the window until the mansion completely disappeared from view, and turned his head sullenly.“What’s the matter, Escal? Are you sad?”“… No.”“Then why are you gloomy?”“What if Tia comes while I’m away?”Escal asked with wet eyes if he was worried that Tiaris might not be able to meet him even if she came.“That won’t happen, I assure you.”Helios shook his head firmly.“You can only meet her if you sleep a hundred nights. Understand?”“Yes.”Escal nodded, his face relaxing, as if he didn’t believe me, but Helios did.I looked back and forth between the two look-alike men and smiled.  ***** The carriage journey was long and tedious.The sense of freedom from the Emperor’s watchful eye had worn off within a week of leaving the mansion.The carriage was soft, but not as comfortable as at home, and the inn bed that was lifted in between was far more uncomfortable than the carriage. Furthermore.“Ugh!”“Escal, are you okay?”“Yeah, I’m fine… cough!”From the first day of departure, Escal’s motion sickness symptoms gradually worsened as the days went on.Since yesterday afternoon, it was difficult to sit in the carriage, so I had to stop the carriage once an hour to rest.“Helios, how much further do we have to go?”“”One more day and we’re at the manor.”“A day?”I don’t think he can make it.I looked at the child anxiously and looked out the window. A village would have been a good place to stop for a break, but the carriage was still traveling through a dense forest.“I’m fine, Mom.”Escal shook his head with a blank expression on his face. I felt very sorry for his thin cheeks because he could hardly eat because of motion sickness.‘Is it because of an accident?’It was speculated that the carriage accident may have left trauma to the child.“Helios, I will walk with Escal, so would you like to go first?”“It’s not even an hour or two away, and you’re going to walk there, on horseback?”“It’s better than stopping the carriage again. We’ll get some air, walk slowly, and when we feel better, we’ll come back….”“Dustin, stop the carriage.”Helios opened the middle window and shouted to Dustin. While waiting for the carriage to stop and as the door was open, Helios jumped out of the carriage first.“Get down, Escal.”“Yes?”“Come down.”Escal got off the carriage with a bewildered face. Helios stopped me as I was going to follow and closed the carriage door.“You stay inng.”As if not to think about getting off, he blocked the carriage door and called the driver behind him.Helios grabbed Escal and rode on the horse with him.“Helios, what are you doing dangerously?”“I will ride with him.”Helios calmly got on the horse and wrapped Escal around his back.As the horse’s back was higher than expected, Escal held the reins with a frightened face.“Don’t do anything dangerous, let him down.”“It’s not dangerous at all. And I’ve been riding alone since I was five.”“Because you are such a reckless person…!”“Let’s go.”Helios cut me off and kicked the horse in the back.“Hah.”I shook my head in disbelief as I watched the horse gallop past the carriage.