A missing husband, my foot.
I've never even been married. So where would a husband come from?
Well, I can understand the misunderstanding. When I first arrived in this human village with only Skai, who was 18 months old at the time, people quickly assumed I had a husband.
As time went by, the story somehow evolved into: 'my husband' went missing while doing his job, leaving me alone with Skai.
I never bothered to correct them. My status as an abandoned wife made me more accepted by the villagers, most of whom were elderly. They felt sorry for my situation and always helped me. I didn't want to ruin that with a complicated truth.
That much, I could understand.
But now, she thinks the man in the photo is my husband? More than that, she claims to have found him?
That's impossible.
Because... Shax Wulfric is dead. I killed him.
"Mrs. Barrack, are you sure you're not... mistaken?" I asked carefully, holding back the sneer about to spread out.
Yes, I was sure they had the wrong person. Even so, I still couldn't answer one question. How could that photo, which should have been the only one in the world and was kept with the few belongings I had brought, be in Mrs. Barrack's hands? Did she steal it? But why?
"That's why you should come with me," her tone full of certainty. "So you can see for yourself."
See what? Shax as a frozen corpse?
I glanced at my hand, which she was holding tightly. My suspicion grew. Maybe this was all a trap. But my curiosity was stronger than my fear. Besides, it would be too strange to refuse to check, right?
"All right. I'll come out right after I bring Skai."
I returned to the room, pulled the gun from under the pillow, and checked the magazine. Good, it was fully loaded with silver bullets. I tucked it into my waistband, then carried Skai, who was still asleep.
I followed Mrs. Barrack up the mountain, passing through the village streets bustling with the sounds of chickens and livestock in the morning. But all that noise couldn't dampen my heartbeat.
In less than twenty minutes, we stopped in front of a house with a yard full of medicinal plants.
Was Shax really in this place?
I snorted softly and shook my head. 'These ladies must have seen wrong. Shax couldn't possibly be here. It must be another man.'
The door opened. An elderly couple greeted Mrs. Barrack warmly, then she introduced me to them. The couple's gaze scanned me from head to toe. They whispered in low voices, as if assessing something about me. Eventually, they ask me to follow them inside.
As soon as I stepped inside, the warm air mixed with the scent of medicine filled the room. The elderly couple led us to a room near the stairs. The grandfather opened the door to the room.
Mrs. Barrack put her arm around my shoulder and patted me gently. "Ms. Michelle, look at that."
When my gaze followed the direction of her finger pointing somewhere, my feet froze, and my breath caught in my throat. On a simple mattress lay a man with long black hair, a strong jawline, a pointed nose, and... a mole under his eye.
"No way—"
His face may have been thinner and his body gaunter, like someone starving for months... but I couldn't have mistaken his face. For ten years, I had only had a crush on one man. And that was his face.
Something was wrong.
I approached the bed, closer, as my heart pounded against my ribs. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was weak. With trembling hands, I lifted the collar of his worn shirt. Right below his collarbone, three small moles were clearly visible.
My legs gave out.
"Ms. Michelle!" Mrs. Barrack immediately supported me, helping me to stay on my feet.
They weren't mistaken. This man was Shax Wulfric—the very Shax Wulfric whose life I had taken two months ago. But now, he was still... breathing.
Skai woke up, his soft cries threatening to peak until Mrs. Barrack picked him up to calm him down. While I... was still trying to process this reality.
The grandpa told the story. He found Shax lying on the ground, almost buried in snow, on his way back to the village after picking up food supplies downtown. He brought him home and took care of him, hoping someone would come looking for him, until this moment.
I could hear my heart drumming in my ears.
'That's crazy. So for the past two months... Shax and I have been in the same village?!'
If this were all true, then all my sins were in vain. But I would rather sin than have to see that face again!
Just as the grandpa finished his story, Shax opened his eyes. His gaze fixed on me. Cold, sharp, reminding every fiber of my being how much he hated me.
In a split second, he grabbed my hand, knocked me down onto the bed, and pinned me down.
'Damn it!'
I didn't have time to grab the gun when he pinned my hands above my head! What should I do now?!
His whole body caged me, his hot breath sweeping across my face. His gaze showed a twisted glee, like a beast that had finally caught its prey after playing with it and was now about to devour it.
I hissed. 'Is this my last moment?'
He grinned slightly, eyes full of anticipation, "Oh? You must be my wife..."
Huh? Wife?
ME?!
"Ah, right, I forgot to mention," the old man said from the side. "Actually, he doesn't remember anything about himself."
Why didn't you say so earlier, Grandpa?!
Wait, has he really lost his memory?
When I studied his expression again, his gaze wasn't as cold as I had initially thought. Strangely, he actually looked like he was... happy to see me?
Is it possible for a man like Shax to be happy to see me?
There's no way.
Shax opened his mouth again, and his eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Am I wrong? You... aren't my wife?"
I racked my brains. What should I say? If I say no, does that mean he'll hunt me down again? But if I say yes-
"Dda-dda! Dda~" Skai babbled, his tiny hands trying to reach for Shax, as if asking to be picked up.
"Oh my, the little one recognizes his daddy," Mrs. Barrack replied happily.
Shax looked at Skai, his pupils enlarged and almost trembling. For a moment, his face was filled with an emotion I could describe as touched. His grip on my hand weakened. He looked at me again, his gaze asking for confirmation.
I held my breath. At that moment, it hit me that something was strange. Losing a damn memory or not... all right, let's prove it!
"Yes, I am your wife," I said, eyes on him straight.
I grabbed his collar and pressed my lips against his.