The Duke Stole Everything - Chapter 24
Even if she couldn’t earn big money, in winter there were cases of receiving necessities instead of money, so she had to manage her livelihood that way.
‘I have to be careful of frostbite. I suffered last year.’
The memory of going to wash clothes in the unfrozen stream water or digging for medicinal herbs on the frozen ground last year, and having her hands and feet nearly frostbitten, getting scolded harshly by Bireta, came back vividly.
It was unavoidable.
Sharti had been in the habit of enduring alone since childhood, without anyone to tell when she was sick, or even thinking of telling.
“Teacher, thank you for your hard work.”
Sharti emerged from her reverie at Tristan’s voice.
“The wind is ominous, so I’ll escort you again today. But… what’s this?”
Sharti handed several notes to Tristan who had come just in time.
They were notes listing medicinal herbs and the conditions of the wounded soldiers, which she had written after finishing the cleanup.
“You even drew pictures. Thanks to this, I can see at a glance where they’re injured and what’s troubling them.”
“Thanks to this, I can report in detail on the condition of those who can’t return with us.”
The soldiers thanked her and took the notes.
“Teacher, we’ll pay the treatment fees all at once when we visit the village again. Until then, please take good care of the remaining men, that’s our intention, so please be sure to accept.”
Sharti nodded, indicating not to worry.
Having received even meat, there was no way Sharti would neglect the treatment of the wounded.
“Yes!”
It was when Sharti was about to leave the inn holding Tein’s hand.
“Oh?”
Tein, who was waving goodbye while looking back, suddenly tugged on Sharti’s hand.
When Sharti turned around, the mobile wounded and soldiers had come down.
Sharti’s heart pounded at the sudden situation of being surrounded by many soldiers.
As she reflexively tried to grasp the doorknob tightly, Tristan gestured to them.
“Teacher!”
The soldiers shouted vigorously and bowed at a right angle towards Sharti.
“Thank you so much.”
“……”
“Thanks to you, no one had to die. We are truly grateful.”
“Thank you, Teacher!”
Sharti was momentarily speechless, her mouth opening and closing slightly.
She felt the gazes of Tein, Patricia, and Tristan, but couldn’t react.
Right now, the imperial soldiers were bowing in front of her, expressing their gratitude.
“……”
It was an indescribable feeling.
Receiving thanks as a doctor wasn’t such an awkward thing.
But the moment of helping others and receiving gratitude never became familiar.
Just the fact that she had helped someone made Sharti choke up.
“The teacher is really amazing.”
As Tein next to her sniffled proudly, Sharti came to her senses.
After patting Tein, Sharti awkwardly bowed her head.
Thump. Tristan, who had been watching contentedly, stomped his foot once.
At that, the soldiers who had straightened up smiled with kind faces.
“Please go home safely, Teacher!”
“We’ll see you tomorrow!”
Thwack. As soon as she left the inn, a fierce wind greeted Sharti.
Due to the wind that had intensified in that short time, they split up – Tein with Patricia, and Sharti with Tristan to escort them.
After waving to Tein, Sharti climbed the mountain.
“Aren’t you cold?”
Tristan expressed concern, looking at the robe fluttering violently in the wind.
Only then did Sharti rub her warm cheeks.
‘I’m fine.’
Strangely, she didn’t feel cold.
Rather, it was a bit hot.
‘Is it because my heart is warm?’
Sharti climbed the darkening mountain path, embracing a pure sentiment that Tein would likely express.
As the mountain was rough and it took a long time to reach the log cabin, Tristan and the soldiers began to chat.
“Did you know that the border area guys get 3 times our monthly pay?”
“The frontier and the border can’t be the same. If you’re going to compare, do it with the capital guard guys. It’s 5 times with them.”
“What? No way, do the capital guards get paid that much?”
“Originally, the pay is measured according to the status of the subject they have to protect.”
“Ugh, that’s unfair.”
Sharti partly agreed.
‘Unlike the Kingdom of Krianet, the Newyten Empire has benefits and rights strictly divided according to status.’
In the Newyten Empire, status could be largely divided into royalty, nobility, commoners, and slaves, but even among nobles, there were ranks from Grand Duke to Baron, and not all slaves were the same. The value of slaves was determined by whether they were domestic or foreign, and their treatment differed accordingly.
Land prices were set based on distance and location from the imperial palace at the center of the Newyten Empire, and the environment varied accordingly. There was even a joke that the quality of life changes as soon as you leave the capital a little.
“In other teams, there are guys saying it’s better to just work as mercenaries.”
Befitting an empire that had fought countless wars, Newyten was generous to mercenaries.
Unless accused of murdering a noble, mercenaries were often pardoned for most crimes depending on their skills.
‘Grandma Bireta is an exception though.’
Of course, it depended on which noble they had offended.
Listening to the soldiers’ worldly stories and grumbles, Sharti was able to arrive at the old log cabin with her ears pleasantly entertained.
“Well then, Teacher. We’ll be going now.”
Like yesterday, Tristan stopped at a suitable distance from the log cabin.
Sharti, who had been staggering in the strong wind, barely turned to face Tristan and the soldiers.
They were all soldiers who would leave the village at dawn.
‘Will it be okay with the wind so strong?’
It didn’t seem like it would rain, but she was worried because the wind was fierce.
As if sensing Sharti’s concern, the soldiers smiled.
“It’s fine as long as it doesn’t rain. Though sleeping outdoors might be a bit tough.”
Reassured, Sharti bid them farewell.
“We’ll see you next time, Teacher.”
At Tristan’s farewell greeting of seeing her again, Sharti swallowed dryly.
Still, she didn’t tremble with fear like before.
Sharti waited until the soldiers disappeared from sight before hurrying towards the log cabin.
‘I meant to come early, but it’s already evening.’
Thinking of the positive news to tell Ren, Sharti hesitated as she grabbed the doorknob.
‘What about the rumor of the deserter on the run?’
Sharti brought up the worry she had briefly buried for half a day.
While lost in thought, her hand diligently opened the door and her feet naturally entered the house.
Thwack.
The house was quiet, just like yesterday.
‘You’ll have to keep hiding until the rumors die down, right?’
Sharti made a dejected face, recalling Ren’s expression brightening at the news of going out.
She shouldn’t have rashly mentioned going out.
“What are you doing without coming in?”
Sharti looked up startled at Ren’s voice.
Ren, who had been hiding in the utility room, approached with a puzzled look.
“The footsteps were different.”
Ren answered briefly with a nonchalant face.
When Sharti showed no particular reaction, Ren frowned.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen? Is it because of the soldiers?”
Unlike just before, the low voice that spoke in succession was filled only with worry.
Sharti hesitated before reaching out to him.
Ren reflexively held out his palm in response.
“I see.”
Sharti quietly watched his reaction.
There was no change in Ren’s expression as he watched the written conversation.
Sharti felt even more sorry.
“I understand.”
Sharti looked at Ren’s expression with a surprised face.
It wasn’t the reaction she had expected.
“So, why were you standing in front of the door for so long?”
Ren’s expression was serious as if he had something else he was curious about.
Rather, Sharti became serious.
‘No, he doesn’t understand that we can’t promise when we can go out, and that we have to keep hiding like this?’
Thinking that his amnesia might have affected his comprehension and that her explanation was insufficient, Sharti conveyed the news of the impossibility of going out to him again.
“……”
Ren’s expression changed at the repeated explanation.
He looked a bit dejected.
“Was it because you couldn’t keep your promise to go out with me that you were standing here alone looking so serious?”
When Sharti nodded, Ren stroked his chin.
Ren, who kept touching the corners of his mouth, somehow looked pleased.
At the somewhat direct words, Ren cleared his throat and rested his chin on his hand.
“About going out, what if I cover my face too?”
Sharti’s reaction was delayed at Ren’s sudden words.
While Sharti just blinked, Ren began to consider more specifically.
“For instance, what if I wear a robe over my head? …No, that might look more suspicious. Then rather, how about wrapping my face with bandages?”
Ren, after checking his own build and physical condition, came up with a compromise on the spot.
He asked so sincerely that Sharti moved her index finger without even feeling displeased.
Sharti had persuaded with an appropriate reason for covering her face since settling in the mountain village with Bireta’s help, so her situation was different from his.
“Aren’t there any poisonous herbs that cause rashes on the face?”
Sharti glared and slapped Ren’s forearm.
“So there’s no problem. Can’t I just apply medicine and wrap it with bandages?”
“That wouldn’t be a problem either.”
“…?”
Ren’s expression, with his chin resting on his hand and a grin, exuded confidence.
Thinking he was talking nonsense again, Sharti glared at him.
“Because I have two doctor teachers.”
Speechless, Sharti let out an empty breath.
‘He scolded me when collapsing the cave, but now this!’
Ren went even further.
Sharti, who had been glaring at him with all her might, realized that he couldn’t see it because of her hood and relaxed her eyes.
Only her poor palms and eyes hurt.
Sharti asked sarcastically, pointing out the reality.
Ren didn’t answer.
‘Did it sound too sarcastic?’
As his gaze lowered a bit, Sharti withdrew her embarrassed hand.
“There’s something I want to ask about this amnesia.”
“…?”
“How does one get amnesia?”
It was an abrupt change of topic.
But it was natural for a patient to ask about their condition.
If anything, Ren was late in asking.
Sharti wanted to explain his symptoms in detail, but she was weak in the field of neurology.
Instead, she had figured out the causes in her own way.
“Hmm… So in any case, this part received a shock?”
Ren tapped his own head.
Alarmed, Sharti stopped his action.
Ren checked the head wound area that he hadn’t noticed even in the mirror.
Watching Ren, who seemed lost in thought and silent, Sharti chose her words.
‘Should I tell him my guess?’
*
Save yourself from story hunger — the novel below will blow your mind!
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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