After I Died, My Husband Went Mad - Chapter 258

“Ahhh!”

“Look at that!”

Screams from the crowd shook the manor. What the hell is going on? Groaning, Dehart opened his eyes, his body feeling impossibly heavy.

“Ugh…”

It felt like his head was about to split open. He barely managed to collect himself, but his vision spun so badly that taking a single step seemed impossible. Still, even if he had to cling to the wall, he needed to deal with whatever was causing this commotion.

The reason was simple: those noisy voices had started to focus on Sebelia.

“Is that one of those illusionist tricks?”

“Can anyone actually see her? Where’s that so-called female illusionist?”

Who the hell do they think they are, talking about her like that? Gritting his teeth, Dehart staggered forward. If it came to it, he’d burn down the whole garden to get rid of these pests.

Just as he made this drastic and horrifying decision, according to Sebelia, he threw open the window—

“….”

He was the one who should have been shocked. Honestly, everyone—including Dehart—was utterly dumbfounded by what they saw.

“What on earth…?”

What the hell is this? Dehart slowly closed and opened his eyes. But the unbelievable scene didn’t disappear.

Lush greenery, reminiscent of a jungle from a distant continent, had taken over the entire garden. Towering trees and exotic-looking flowers filled the space.

And in the midst of it all was Claude, suspended in midair by a vine as thick as a man’s arm.

“Mm, ack!”

Claude struggled desperately, clearly bewildered. It looked like he’d tried to summon an illusion to help himself, but the little familiar he managed to call just flitted over and perched at Sebelia’s side.

“…!”

Eyes full of betrayal, Claude finally gave up and went limp in the vine’s grasp. Down below, standing beneath Dehart’s office window, Sebelia simply shook her head at the sight.

“I told you to just give up, didn’t I?”

“…”

Claude shot her a sulky look. Sebelia sighed deeply, as if she’d known this would happen, and waved her hand. Instantly, the plants near the wall grew even thicker, completely blocking the onlookers’ view.

“Next time you get the urge to run off and solve everything by yourself, I hope you’ll remember what happened today.”

With another flick of her hand, the vine that held Claude vanished. He dropped to the ground in a heap.

So… what the hell was that?

Dehart found himself asking the same question, slumping against the window frame in defeat. The scene was so absurd, it just drained all the energy out of him.

As he pressed his aching head, a voice called up from below.

“Duke!”

Recognizing the voice, Dehart looked down to find Eli.

“Huh?”

Dehart blinked in confusion at Eli’s ragged appearance. Between sleep deprivation and poor nutrition, his brain just wasn’t working right. Only after a few moments in the cold air did he remember he’d sent Eli to Hillend Hall.

“Oh.”

With a low groan, Dehart rubbed his tired face.

The past few days had been a blur. Ever since Rosalyn’s sudden appearance, he’d barely slept or eaten, scrambling to deal with the issues inside and outside the family. No wonder Eli had slipped his mind entirely.

Trying to compose himself, Dehart splashed his face with cold water several times.

“Whew.”

Finally looking more or less human, he met Eli’s bright gaze from below

“Come up to the study.”

His voice was low, but Eli didn’t hesitate, hurrying into the manor. After a brief pause to catch his breath, Dehart shut the window. His unsteady retreat just showed how worn out he was.

As Sebelia silently watched him go, Claude sprawled in the garden, catching his breath.

“I didn’t want to believe it was real.”

Sebelia looked down at him. With a bitter smile, he confessed why he’d tried to leave the manor alone.

“I just couldn’t accept that it was true.”

“So your solution was to just vanish without saying a word?”

“I just wanted to check for myself, that’s all.”

Sitting up, Claude tried to make it sound like no big deal. He admitted he’d acted rashly, but still grumbled that Sebelia’s approach was a bit much.

“Sigh. I get it. There’s always a chance Lady Rosalyn is a fake, sure. I mean, I fled and faked my own death, so it’s not unreasonable to suspect as much. But don’t you think you were a bit too reckless?”

“…”

“Let’s go inside and get you treated first.”

Sebelia frowned at the scratches on Claude’s wrists and ankles. She thought she’d gone easy, but apparently not enough.

It wasn’t until then that Claude seemed to notice he was more than just covered in dirt—he stared at his scratched wrist in surprise.

“This might not be the best time to say it, but… that was kind of amazing.”

“If you’re trying to distract me so I’ll let my guard down, it’s not going to work.”

Still, she felt a sense of relief. The way Claude dusted himself off and got to his feet was just like old times.

Not wanting him to run off again, Sebelia took him by the arm and started guiding him slowly back inside.

But even as they walked, she couldn’t shake the image from moments ago from her mind—the empty, broken look in Dehart’s eyes, as hollow as a shattered sun.