Wicked Husband-Chapter 73 - 72

As Eileen stepped out of the carriage, guided by Diego, a sea of curious gazes fell upon her. Diego clicked his tongue and muttered under his breath,

"Goodness, they’ve swarmed like bees."

The word "bees" hardly did justice to the sheer number of people gathered. It felt as though there were even more than at the Imperial Palace’s grand balls.

Eileen, her face pale with anxiety, followed Diego’s lead with unsteady steps. Diego gently adjusted the hem of her dress and whispered reassuringly.

"They’re all here just to see you, my lady."

Nobles who hadn’t been invited to the wedding had come to catch a glimpse of Eileen on her first day at the palace. Eileen could hardly believe that so many had gathered simply to see her.

Fortunately, perhaps due to Diego’s presence, no one dared to approach too closely. As they made their way through the throng, Eileen suddenly found herself face-to-face with someone she had hoped to avoid.

"Eileen!"

A woman with flowing platinum-blonde hair hurried over, her voice bright and cheerful. The woman who called Eileen’s name with such familiarity and flashed a wide smile was none other than Ornella. As she drew near, Ornella suddenly embraced Eileen.

"I’ve missed you. How have you been?"

To any onlookers, it would have appeared to be a heartwarming reunion between old friends. Eileen stood there, momentarily stunned by the unexpected display of affection, as Ornella continued with her warm tone.

"This is my father."

Ornella smiled as she lightly placed her hand on the arm of the middle-aged man standing beside her. The man, whose green eyes bore a striking resemblance to Ornella’s but were slightly darker, greeted Eileen with a polite, faint smile.

"It’s an honor to meet you. I am Duke Farbellini, Assef von Farbellini. I saw you from afar at the wedding, but this is our first time meeting up close."

"It’s I who should be thankful for your greeting, Your Grace," Eileen replied, her voice tinged with awkwardness. The Duke smiled, but his gaze lingered on her with a cold, scrutinizing air. A shiver ran down Eileen’s spine as she instinctively braced herself, forcing her feet to stay firmly planted.

At that moment, Ornella’s eyes widened with feigned surprise.

"Oh my, come to think of it, hasn’t Baron Elrod arrived yet?" she asked, leaning playfully against her father with a teasing tone.

"Surely, he’ll be here on such a joyous day?"

Eileen realized what Ornella was subtly flaunting—something Eileen could never have.

As Eileen struggled to find a response, Diego, who had been standing quietly behind her, gently tugged at her dress and directed her attention elsewhere. Following his gaze, Eileen saw a man moving through the now-quieted crowd.

It was Cesare, coming to greet his wife upon her arrival.

But Cesare wasn’t alone. Beside him was Baron Elrod, Eileen’s father, his face pale and glistening with cold sweat.

Baron Elrod had recently been quite content.

Although his household had fallen into disarray and financial ruin, leading to many days of misery, he was unexpectedly buoyed by the remarkable rise of his daughter to the position of Grand Duchess. It was like a windfall from the heavens. Baron Elrod was thrilled at the prospect of leveraging his daughter’s new title to his advantage, eagerly anticipating the benefits it would bring.

However, as the father of the Grand Duchess, he knew he needed to maintain a certain level of dignity. Thus, he resolved to acquire wealth more subtly than before. Even before the wedding, visitors had started arriving—bringing drinks and showering him with flattery.

He envisioned a future where he would no longer need to exert any effort; others would eagerly provide him with riches. All he had to do was enjoy himself, or so he thought.

But Baron Elrod’s rosy future began to crumble the very next day after the wedding.

Early in the morning, a harsh knock on the door startled him. When he opened it, he found a large man standing on his doorstep. Baron Elrod’s eyes widened in fear as he looked up at the man. With half his face marred by burn scars, the visitor was someone Baron Elrod recognized all too well.

"Sir, Sir Lotan...?"

"Good morning, Baron."

Baron Elrod instinctively recoiled, feeling his knees weaken. The man was one of the Grand Duke Erzhet’s personal guards.

The Grand Duke’s four chosen and meticulously trained personal guards were utterly loyal to him. Their devotion was so complete that they would follow any order, even if it meant their own death.

As expected from those hardened by the battlefield, the personal guards were all known for their ruthless nature. They had once forced Baron Elrod to sit in the torture chamber and watch someone being sliced alive right before his eyes.

Baron Elrod, imprisoned in the torture chamber, was compelled to endure the horrific scene for hours. Eventually, he was even forced into the chair where the victim had been bound. Just recalling that day filled him with such terror that his vision seemed to darken.

He remembered the hot, sticky blood on his palms, buttocks, and back, and the overpowering stench of blood that seared into his lungs.

As these memories resurfaced involuntarily, Baron Elrod forced a pale, strained smile.

"What brings you here...?"

There seemed no reason for one of the Grand Duke’s knights to visit a house where Eileen no longer lived. The unexpected visit filled Baron Elrod with dread, and unfortunately, his fear was well-founded.

"You must come with me."

Lotan grabbed Baron Elrod by the arm and pulled him out of the house without a word. The Baron was then thrown into a military vehicle, with no explanation given about their destination. Though it was effectively a kidnapping, Baron Elrod could only tremble silently throughout the journey.

They arrived at a ranch about an hour’s drive from the capital. This tranquil ranch, managed by an elderly couple and their son, was surrounded by open plains.

"You will be staying here from now on," Lotan said.

The small house attached to the ranch was to become Baron Elrod’s new home.

Baron Elrod froze, his eyes wide with the terror of a death sentence. He wanted to protest, but he was too frightened of Lotan to utter a word.

Lotan glanced down at him and issued a clear warning.

"Don’t try anything foolish."

From that day on, Baron Elrod was forced to work at the ranch. As he moved hay and milked cows, he struggled to accept the harsh reality of his new life as a mere laborer. He couldn’t reconcile his fall from grace with his previous life of luxury.

Unable to bear the thought of remaining in a place devoid of alcohol, women, and gambling, Baron Elrod desperately searched for an escape route. However, the elderly couple and their son kept a vigilant watch over him, and soldiers patrolled the ranch’s perimeter, making escape impossible.

Then, one day, as he was toiling under the sun, he was abruptly whisked away in a military vehicle, just as suddenly as he had arrived.

Shivering with fear and anticipating execution, Baron Elrod’s eyes widened in recognition as the familiar sights of the capital came into view.

Once back in the capital, he was given the chance to bathe and don new, respectable clothes. Though he savored the return to his noble appearance, he was equally anxious, unsure of what was happening.

"How have you been?" Grand Duke Erzhet greeted him.

"Y-Your Grace, the Grand Duke," Baron Elrod stammered.

Baron Elrod broke into a cold sweat as he bowed deeply. Clad in his imperial army uniform, Grand Duke Erzhet remained as stunning as ever, his beauty almost eerie.

The Grand Duke’s blood-red eyes swept over the baron, who had been meticulously groomed for this occasion. The weight of that crimson gaze made Baron Elrod’s knees nearly buckle.

With a smirk, Grand Duke Erzhet observed the baron’s pitiable trembling. He made no attempt to explain the abrupt banishment to the ranch or the conditions of the baron’s release. Instead, he made the baron’s purpose clear.

"Today is the day Eileen takes on the name of Erzhet."

"Ah! Has it already been that long...?"

Though Baron Elrod knew it had been seven days since the wedding, he had completely forgotten that today was the day Eileen would formally adopt her husband’s name. In fact, he had been so consumed with devising an escape plan from the ranch that he hadn’t thought about anything else.

"It’s a joyous occasion, so her father should naturally be present to congratulate her."

Baron Elrod nodded vigorously, his hands trembling as he followed the Grand Duke. Before he knew it, they had arrived at the Imperial Palace.

Meeting her father in the Imperial Palace felt surreal to Eileen.

She had been planning to visit him herself to issue another stern warning, but she never anticipated that he would appear on his own accord.

The Grand Duke must have brought him...