CH 16

The door to the banquet hall opened as armored men rushed in.

“They are knights from the capital.”

“No wonder they’re so energetic.” I nodded at my husband’s explanation.

A glass case containing a golden chalice was hoisted on the shoulders of the knights. It was smaller than I thought. For all the praise and history, I thought it’d be bigger than a hand. All kinds of gems were embedded into the chalice, but they weren’t rare. I was disappointed. Before I knew it, a noble approached my husband and me and placed the chalice on the table.

Lukas frowned. “Where is Marquis Phineas?”

Carcalos was supposed to be presented by the marquis, who was the chancellor. I wondered if this was intentional because of my husband’s enemies.

“Oh… The marquis is still recovering from his shock…”

I followed my husband’s gaze. In the corner of the room, the marquis was like a dead man surrounded by nobles. It was as if his soul left his body. He was so pitiful I couldn’t even look at him for long. Since he was the leader of the pro-witch faction, I thought it’d be fine if we were close. I glanced at the parchment my husband pushed to the side. I should give them to the marquis eventually. The information there wasn’t much. Of course, if he wanted the answer to that last question, my favorable impression of him will disappear.

The shaking noble coughed, intimidated by the duke’s presence. “This is Carcalos, bestowed by His Majesty. I, Count Sobenian, in the emperor’s place, offer this cup as a blessing for the husband and wife.”

“Thank you. I am grateful for His Majesty’s blessings.”

As soon as they exchanged formal greetings, a servant took out a knife and removed the wax on the chalice. There was alcohol inside. It really was just enough for a sip.

“Do you want to drink it?”

“No.”

“Hmm, it’s quite strong. You’ll be drunk in a matter of seconds.”

It wasn’t good for him to drink it either, but before I could say anything, my husband took the chalice. A pleasant aroma permeated the air. There was a rumor the emperor ensured the highest quality of Carcalos was delivered to his beloved nephew, and it seemed to be true. This was the first time I was interested in wine. Only for a moment.

Something was off. Since ancient times, a witch’s five senses were more sensitive than a human’s. It was no exaggeration to say our sense of smell and sight was equal to an animal’s. I noticed a different scent mixed with the wine. It was sweeter yet more horrifying. It… had to be poison, right? The fragrance of wine hid the scent, but it was definitely poison. I quickly looked at the guests to see anyone acting suspiciously. That familiar purple-clothed figure caught my eye. Count Dorison said he wouldn’t attend the ball because he was sick. The moment I saw him smile, I was sure of it.

I looked at my husband. Unsurprisingly, he hadn’t noticed, but he was about to drink from the chalice. I felt conflicted. Of course, Lukas was an awful person who didn’t care that I was a witch, but my life was quite good in Havel.

If either of us dies here, the peace treaty will be broken.

I gritted my teeth. If I claimed the wine was poisoned, no one would believe me since it was Carcalos. Also, not drinking would imply we weren’t loyal subjects of the emperor. But if my husband drank it… He’d be dead. That was the main problem.

“Only one of you can drink it.”

I remembered being told such a while ago, but my hand already moved. I didn’t think of anything else. I refused to let this human die.

I grabbed my husband’s arm, and he looked at me in surprise.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’ll drink it.”

“Wait, you should—”

Taking the chalice away from him, I poured all of its contents into my mouth and swallowed.

“Ella!”

Other people were stunned, but no one said anything because it wasn’t against the rules. In this situation, I only saw one man giggling. I frowned as I noticed the count who stood near one of the doors. I thought it was better for me to drink the poison than a human. The terrible aftertaste of poison lingered in my mouth. Even as I drank the wine, my throat felt as if it were on fire.

…This felt nothing like a celebration for newlyweds.

***

“Ugh…”

I wanted to die. As I struggled to walk, a variety of curses flowed out of my mouth. All because of the poison I consumed.

“Will I be fine tomorrow?” I left the banquet hall with the excuse of wanting to rest. It’d be great if I could return to my room unhindered. “Why are you here?”

Of course, I was talking to my husband. As soon as I walked out, he chased after me. At this point, he was going to follow me into my room.

“Did something happen?”

“Is it strange for your husband to always be at your side?”

“…We’re not even in a real relationship.”

It was an arranged marriage. Nevertheless, I wondered if he was saying anything about us as a married couple.

“You were so worried I’d get intoxicated that you drank Carcalos in my stead.”

“…”

He was enjoying himself. I frowned, which only caused his smile to widen.

“If you like alcohol so much, you should have told me earlier. There was no reason to force yourself to drink tea.”

From now on, if I was going to drink tea, I would do it from a glass instead of a teacup. I shook my head. “I don’t like alcohol.” Do I look like a drunkard?

“It wasn’t the typical Carcalos given out to the nobility.”

“What?”

“I heard His Majesty intentionally sent something that was very strong.”

No wonder. As soon as I remembered how I drank that terrible liquid, I felt myself get a headache. My throat still felt like it was burning.

“Are you all right?”

“…I’m fine.”

“I see.” He didn’t believe me.

However, it wasn’t quite so much a lie. I was still moving around and talking. “I’m going to sleep alone tonight.”

“Do you want me to return to my room?”

I wondered if we were like this because we got used to sharing the same bed. I blocked the door before he let himself into my bedroom.

“I remember telling you it was dangerous until tomorrow.”

“You’re being paranoid.” I wanted to make a joke that he shouldn’t be scared, but my stomach was upset about fighting with the poison I swallowed earlier. At the same time, he wasn’t overreacting. One of us almost died tonight. How would he respond if I told him I saved his life? Would he show even the tiniest bit of gratitude? I was curious but didn’t say anything.

“In case—”

“I want to sleep alone tonight.”

“Did you hide a delicious cookie in your room?” he asked, standing in front of me. He was being more annoying than usual.

“Don’t tell me you’re the one who’s scared of sleeping alone.” I watched his expression change. It made me feel better for some reason to the point where I forgot about my stomachache. “Good night, I’m tired.”

I quickly closed the door after waving my hand. I thought he was going to force himself into the room otherwise.

“Finally, peace and quiet.”

I felt relieved. I dismissed the maids immediately. After taking a quick bath, I fell on the bed without drying my hair. A lot of time passed as I stared at the ceiling.

“Hmm… I’m still fine.” I felt a little nauseous, but it could’ve been worse. “Definitely was poison, though…”

It was strange. I could still taste the poison in my mouth. Perhaps poisons made to kill humans didn’t affect witches as much. In certain cases, fatal diseases to humans were mild to witches.

“A poison made by a human can’t kill a witch.” Chuckling to myself, I lay on my side. I still felt unwell, but I thought sleeping would make it disappear. I pulled the blanket over my head and closed my eyes. I couldn’t wait for morning to arrive.

“Blech!”

I felt a sudden pain in my chest. I wondered if that pervert of a husband broke into my room and climbed onto the bed, but it was only me here.

“A-Agh…!”

I had a splitting headache; my hands and feet were freezing. I was also short of breath, and the blanket was soaked in red.

“I-I thought… I’d be…”

I was too naïve. I glanced at my reflection in the mirror when I felt something drip onto the bed. As I expected, blood flowed out of my eye sockets, ears, and nose. I began to feel dizzy. I clutched the pillow tightly.

“This was worse than I thought.” Blood continued to stain the sheets. My stomach felt like a pit of lava. “Is this a poison that melts your insides at different times?” Retching noises filled the room.

That explained why I was fine earlier. It was my mistake to believe the poison would take effect immediately. If one of us died instantly at the ball, the people who prepared Carcalos would be suspicious. How clever.

“If he drank it, he would’ve died.”

It was good that I was the one to consume the poison. The problem, of course, was that I had to endure the pain of my innards being melted inside out. I got chills imagining my husband motionless.

“What should I tell the maids in the morning…” Using all my strength to sit up, I smoothed out the wrinkles of the blanket. They were probably going to be scared when they see all the blood. I was glad I sent the maids away early and kicked out my husband. I shouldn’t bother them anymore today. I lay down on the bed and continued to endure the pain in silence. I drifted off to sleep…

Knock, knock.