Toxic Marriage - Chapter 20.1

Chapter 20.1

“What’s the matter?”

Erik’s eyes, stained with betrayal, faced Freya as she pretended not to know anything.

“This was on the tailor’s wagon as he was going back, hiding among the piles of lace!”

Erik pulled out a small note. He nervously opened it in front of her.

If anyone finds this note, please give it to Cardinal Heirn.

There wasn’t much written, but it was definitely Freya’s handwriting. Just by looking at the handwriting, you could tell right away who the sender was.

“How… How could you stab me in the back like this?”

Freya sighed.

“I just wanted to contact my guardian. You never gave me any of the letters that arrived for me.”

“Still…!”

“I have to argue with you for over thirty minutes to get just one thing I want, and even then, I only get the bare minimum. How am I supposed to endure life here if you even cut off contact with the person who has been my guardian for so many years?”

How could she be so confident when she was caught doing something she shouldn’t? Erik was taken aback for a moment.

“If you explained it to me, I could have helped…”

“I would have to do it for hours then, not just thirty minutes.”

“A-Anyway, this crossed the line!” Erik, who was stuttering, gave emphasis to his gaze. “Of course, I will report this to my master.”

“…”

“Just wait a moment!”

There was no answer from Freya.

She seemed somewhat depressed even though she looked indifferent, so Erik had to strengthen his resolution so that he wouldn’t become soft-hearted again.

Snorting, he left the room, and headed straight to Fenrir’s office to report on what Freya had done.

Yet, his steps felt heavy, as if he was walking in the mud. Freya’s expressionless face kept coming to his mind like an annoying bug.

Why was he like this? She was just plotting to deceive him. Was he really weak against beauty, like Arne had said?

However, Erik soon recalled Freya’s brutality and erased his shallow sympathy.

As his weak mind dispersed and disappeared, the corners of his eyes went up again.

That note was almost leaked to the outside. It was scary even to imagine that.

He didn’t want to admit it, but if it weren’t for Arne’s nagging, he wouldn’t have noticed it at all. The reason he was able to find Freya’s note was thanks to Arne, who had come to him once more to tell him this.

“From what I’ve heard, she was very picky and sent back most of the tailor’s fabric. Did you check the pile that was sent back carefully?”

He felt uneasy, but he thought something like that wouldn’t happen.

Was she saying that Freya, who had been sending back the fabrics brought by the tailor because she didn’t like them, was trying to put something in them and have it delivered to the empire?

A premonition spread through him as he denied it. The tailor’s body was searched by the maid, but he hadn’t thought of checking each pile of fabric.

Feeling a sense of insecurity that could not be ignored, Erik stopped the tailor who was about to leave and checked the lace fabric on the wagon.

And he found a note hiding between the piles, unbelievably. Or maybe he just didn’t want to believe it? He could recognize at first glance that it was Freya’s handwriting from when she signed the marriage contract.

Erik stood in front of Fenrir’s office while cooling down his anger.

He wondered how to tell his master about his mistake. Even though he had seen him cut people in two without mercy, he had never seen him get very angry, but he didn’t know.

Freya’s comfort was incomparably more important than anything so far.

“… Excuse me, Master. I have something to tell you about Lady Freya.”

Erik walked into the office trembling, closed his eyes tightly, and got straight to the point.

“I sincerely apologize for saying this… Today, I noticed that Lady Freya was trying to secretly deliver a note to the outside.”

Fenrir bit into a ripe, crimson plum, the juice flowing down his lips and wetting his chin.

Erik opened his eyes to the sound of flesh being crunched and forgot the tension he had felt for a moment at the strange sight he saw. He stood there blankly, staring at Fenrir.

“The note.”