The Ugly Wife of the Shady Duke - Chapter 127.1

‘Ah… I didn’t expect it to explode this violently.’

Coughing lightly, Grace looked around. The blast had been loud, and the surrounding area was devastated. But as expected, she herself was unharmed.

To avoid suspicion, she had only damaged the hem of her dress and the tips of her hair.

Grace had asked the artificer who had infiltrated this far with her whether he could damage part of the space, using the library’s hidden chamber as the focal point.

‘I knew he was skilled, but he was even better than I thought.’

He had instantly located the magic tools installed throughout the library and activated them all at maximum output. By exploiting the fact that when mana stones are overdriven within a certain range, their energies clash and cause small explosions, he sets off a chain reaction.

It wasn’t enough to collapse the building, but this was a library. A few sparks were all it took for paper and wood to catch fire, and with a small amount of additional mana, he triggered a controlled explosion.

Thanks to his help, Grace was able to secretly secure the materials she wanted and damage the remaining documents just enough to make later reconstruction difficult.

They could be restored eventually, of course, but it would take considerable time. That alone made it far more likely Grace would escape suspicion.

‘If I show this to Benjamin… how should I explain it?’

As she was supported by the knights and mulled over her next steps, she felt someone watching her.

“Your Grace?”

“……”

It was Benjamin.

His expression was deeply complicated. It would have been natural for him to be shocked. Something terrible had nearly happened to Grace, but the emotions written on his face went far beyond that.

Grace had grown accustomed to Benjamin, yet whenever he had an expression like this, he felt strangely unfamiliar, like he was looking past her, at something else entirely.

Fear beyond fear, anxiety tangled with relief, and an unreal sense of disbelief.

Benjamin stood there blankly, unable to approach her. Even as several artificers rushed into the damaged library and the knights noisily checked Grace for injuries, he alone couldn’t move, not even his fingertips.

“Your Grace, what’s wrong? Are you all right?”

It should have been Grace receiving that question, yet Benjamin looked far worse.

Since Grace herself had suffered no real harm, she took a few steps toward him. He flinched and stepped back.

The box he had been holding fell to the floor with a dull thud.

“…Ah.”

Benjamin seemed startled by his own reaction, his face stiffening further as he stared at the fallen box.

“I—I’m sorry. Wife, I wasn’t avoiding you.”

His words began to tumble out in a rush.

‘…The explosion.’

Grace could only assume he was reliving the day the gate had exploded—through her.

Even though Benjamin hadn’t been there at the time, the sound alone must have dragged the memory back.

Grace hesitated, then asked softly,

“…May I come closer to you?”

Benjamin always asked permission before escorting her or touching her. She had found it odd between husband and wife, but now she mirrored his habit.

“There is nothing you are forbidden from doing to me.”

Normally he would have said it smoothly, without pause. Today, his voice trembled faintly. So subtly most wouldn’t notice.

But Grace did.

She slowly approached and picked up the fallen box. Judging by Benjamin’s startled expression, he hadn’t even realized he’d dropped it.

“I’m sorry if I frightened you.”

“It wasn’t your fault, Wife. How could I blame you?”

‘But it was my fault…’

Guilt pricked at Grace’s conscience. She truly hadn’t expected the explosion to be this loud. If she’d known Benjamin would be this shaken, she would have chosen another method.

As the chaos around them gradually settled, Grace reached for Benjamin’s fingertips. They felt noticeably colder than usual.

“Let’s go back as soon as possible.”

Benjamin pressed his lips together and nodded.

* * *

Before leaving, Grace was examined by the artificers and gave her testimony about the incident. She stated that a stranger had suddenly appeared and the library exploded and deliberately pointed them in the opposite direction from where he had actually fled.

‘He probably won’t be caught.’

He had seemed confident, after all. If he were captured, things would become complicated. But that wasn’t Grace’s most pressing concern right now.

When they returned to the Ducal residence, Benjamin sat beside her in the tea room, back to his usual composed expression.

Rather than reassuring her, that made Grace even more uneasy.