Chapter 128 - The Secret Note

Vaughn read the note. The more he read, the more he disliked the sender. It did not come from Redivo.

[Young Madam,

I am Duke Gordon Milford, and I admit that you fascinated me earlier when I saw you across the street and handled those thugs. I don't believe that the man beside you earlier was your husband – forgive me for being straightforward.

I can tell that you are ordinary travelers. Merchants, perhaps? If you are interested to do business in Solaria, you may want to meet me at Magasiner Au Coin Dela Rue. Just ask the receptionist, and I will know that it's you.

I am looking forward to our meeting.

Sincerely,

Duke Gordon Milford]

Vaughn crumpled the note and wanted to burn it with his eyes. He heard the name before but couldn't remember the face. His little devil inadvertently attracted a pest that should be exterminated at all costs.

Zenia finally returned after half an hour. She looked at Vaughn who was very angry at the time. She wondered what made him that way.

"Hey, is there something wrong?"

Vaughn looked at Zenia who was smiling at him. His anger somehow dissipated. He walked to Zenia and hugged her tightly. Zenia found it odd. He was fine just a moment ago.

"Promise me that you won't leave me."

"I won't leave you even if you beg me someday, okay?"

Vaughn thought that it would be best to let Zenia know about the note. He gently pushed her away and gave her the crumpled note. Zenia gently unfurled it and began to read. 

Her eyes widened and asked, "How did this note arrive?"

She remembered that she did not see anyone on her way to meet the manager. If someone slipped it through the crevice of the door, the sender could be one of the guests.

"Someone shot an arrow containing the note after you left. Why?"

"If it's through the gap underneath the door, the sender is one of the guests. We can pin them right away. I did not see anyone when I went down earlier."

"Do you want to meet this Duke?" Vaughn was feeling anxious.

Zenia looked at Vaughn and finally uncovered the mystery behind Vaughn's mood earlier.

"Hubby, this is just a random note without definite meaning. We don't know the true motive of the sender. He could just be creating a wedge between us, a potential business partner, or something else. We look like an ordinary couple. Let's discuss later if it's good to meet him or not. Right now, let's focus on that Jorick guy."

Vaughn liked the way Zenia had called him  hubby . His mind stopped processing every word that Zenia had said when he heard her called him hubby.

"Did you understand?" Zenia got annoyed by Vaughn's lack of response.

"Huh? What?"

Zenia repeated what she said before and Vaughn was relieved that his wife was not interested to meet Duke Gordon. As they discussed what they must do, Jorick secretly slipped from the inn and went to the place where he met the Ninth Prince's secret guard.

Upon reaching the meeting place, Jorick blew a whistle. The secret guard immediately dropped down in front of him. He had no idea where the guard came from or whether the guard was monitoring his every move.

Jorick found it odd that a secret guard could come immediately when he blew the whistle but no one was there to help him each time he was bullied.   

"What do you want me to do?" 

"Take care of those men who beat me up earlier."

"How do you want me to take care of them?"

"Kill them."

Although Jorick talked like that to Zenia earlier, he also thought that those men might trouble her later. Not that he cared for her safety; he did not want to owe anyone a debt of gratitude. Having one benefactor was enough.  

"Anything else?"

"That's all for now."

The secret guard disappeared without a trace.

Zenia and Vaughn discussed what to do with Jorick now that they were certain that he was the spy that the Ninth Prince had put in Solaria Inn. They were trying to figure out Jorick's identity. He did not look like he was someone from Tissuria or Ishelon. 

"We need to interview him without him realizing that we are already interviewing him." Zenia's eyes were shining when she told Vaughn about her plan.

Vaughn got dizzy from what Zenia had told him. He had no idea what she was trying to say but also somewhat grasped what she wanted to do. He thought that it would be best to just nod his head in agreement.

"When do you want to do the interview? We still need to go back to the capital." Vaughn thought about the Royal Decree once more and decided that it would be best to tell Zenia about his hunch.

"Let's do it tomorrow. I also would like to go back to the capital. I have a terrible feeling that the Left Minister and the King did something despicable."

"I have a hunch if you want to hear it. But please don't get furious."

Zenia looked at him, "I am already furious. Why do I have this feeling that I won't like whatever it is you're going to say? But, you need to say it now while I'm being good."

Vaughn sighed, and he knew that it would be best to come clean than suffer the consequences later. He did not want to go through the same ordeal again. He already learned his lesson.

"I think the King already gave a Royal Decree to receive Verone as my second wife."

Zenia's face darkened and she quickly took out the dagger and stuck it on the table. Half of the dagger went through the table, and Vaughn began to sweat.

"Are you telling me that I need to PERSONALLY EXTERMINATE a pest when we get home?"

"T-this is just my hunch. Redivo and grandpa may be trying to block the news from spreading and decided not to let us know."

Zenia pulled out her dagger and threw it on the wooden pillar. Only the hilt and a small part of the blade were exposed. Vaughn gulped and knew that Zenia used too much force. His wife was definitely angry.

"That could be true. Grandpa doted on me so much that he didn't want me to receive unpleasant news while on vacation."

The room was shrouded in deafening silence. Vaughn was lost with what to do with his wife. Zenia walked back and forth in the room. Vaughn was not certain what was going on in her head. But, he was certain that she was not planning to divorce him.

"I will go out for a while to clear my head. Don't wait for me and just go to bed."

"But…"

"No buts! I will be back quickly."

Their change of clothes arrived just in time. Zenia paid for the clothes and went to the bathroom to bathe. Vaughn thought that she would no longer go out once she was refreshed.

When Zenia got out of the bathroom, she was wearing a man's clothing. She took Vaughn's clothes.

"You can bathe now and just wear my clothes. You will just go to bed anyway and don't loiter around anymore."

Zenia pulled out her dagger from the pillar and sheathed it before she jumped out of the room. Below, a shadowed figure saw her leave the room.

"Interesting… It looks like the supposed husband just left. The Young Madam is all alone. What is the identity of this husband?"

"I am still investigating it, Your Grace. Should we go visit the Young Madam in her room?"

"Hmm."