From Despair to Delight

Yexi’s report reached the Marchioness quickly. The Lady slapped her thigh. “What are we still doing here?” She immediately gathered some attendants and started back, preparing to have a long-overdue “family meeting” with her dear husband.

Though Yexi informed her that the estate was destroyed and there might be no comfortable place to rest, the Lady didn’t care in the slightest.

“Pekoin City itself was in peril,” she declared, her voice ringing with authority. “As the Marchioness, I was unable to share in the hardships of my husband, my son, and our soldiers. That in itself was a dereliction of my duty. Now that the battle is won and the city is safe, for me to enjoy comfort here alone while our wounded soldiers, my wounded husband, and my son have no proper place to rest—that is not what I should be doing. I should be by my husband’s side, helping him comfort the soldiers after the battle. Not for some empty title, but because I wish to help my husband and my son.”

Seeing that they could not dissuade her, the others gave up. The care of the evacuated townspeople was entrusted to the old butler, who would arrange for their return to the city the next day. Traveling at night was normally unsafe, but with Yexi present, it was no longer a concern.

Yexi felt a deep, profound exhaustion settle into her bones. The frequent back-and-forth travel, the high-intensity battle with a top-tier assassin, and the numerous other smaller skirmishes had taken their toll. Even she was feeling the strain. It was the first time she had felt this kind of weariness since coming to this world. But it was a fulfilling exhaustion.

That was the only word she could use to describe it. Her body was tired, but her heart was content. She didn’t understand why she had this strange feeling. In her past life, she had experienced similar levels of fatigue, but it had only ever been a physical state. There had been no other feeling, just a numb process of lying down, resting, accelerating her recovery, and preparing for the next mission.

Yexi found herself enjoying this novel sensation. When the Marchioness asked if she was tired and wanted to rest in her arms, Yexi refused without a second thought. Partly because resting in the Lady’s arms was improper in itself, and the Lady would never just let her rest quietly. But a larger part was that Yexi didn’t want this feeling of satisfaction to disappear. She couldn’t be sure if it was related to her physical fatigue, but if she could obtain this feeling simply by enduring a little weariness, she felt it was well worth it.

Upon returning to the city, Elienla was immediately pushed by the Marchioness to go and be with her sweetheart, the young master Klieg. The Lady herself, accompanied by Yexi, went to see her injured husband first. From a distance, the Marchioness saw the Marquis talking with a majestic-looking knight, his face etched with sorrow. “Who is that with him?” she asked curiously.

Yexi knew who she meant. “He is from the Grand Holy Church’s reinforcements, the Commander of the Pegasus Knights. He is in charge of thoroughly inspecting the estate after the incident to gather clues about the enemy.”

“Xi-chan, don’t you think my husband looks a bit down? Didn’t you say he was only lightly injured?”

Yexi glanced at the Marquis, then leaned in and whispered with a smile in the Lady’s ear, “The Lord’s little treasury was within the blast radius of the explosion that destroyed the residence.”

The Marchioness understood immediately, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. “That little treasury was destroyed?”

“Not just destroyed. It’s completely gone. Not even a single brick is left.”

“And he doesn’t know that I moved all the valuables out long ago?”

Yexi shook her head with a grin. “No. The Lord is probably worrying about the cost of renovating the residence, rebuilding the damaged houses in the city, and the pensions and rewards for the soldiers.”

“Pfft.” The Marchioness couldn’t help but laugh. “That fool. Yexi, don’t say a word. Watch how I tease him.”

The Marchioness patted her cheeks, composed her expression into one of stern, barely contained anger, and stormed toward the Marquis.

The Marquis and Thomas naturally noticed the approaching, ill-tempered Marchioness. The Marquis’s face fell even further. He felt as if he had been cursed by the god of misfortune today. First, he was targeted for no reason. He barely managed to survive the battle, only to find his home had been destroyed. Not only was his home destroyed, but his treasury was gone as well. And now, his wife had rushed back overnight to hold him accountable.

“Sigh!” A thousand words were condensed into a single, mournful sigh.

Thomas, seeing the Marquis’s ashen face, asked with concern, “Is something wrong, Marquis? Should you go and rest?”

“No, it’s nothing. Just a little troubled. Commander Thomas, I’ll leave things here to you. I need to have a word with my wife, and then I must go and comfort the soldiers.”

“Of course. Please, leave it to me.” With that, Thomas tactfully went to inspect the scene, not wanting to be a third wheel.

“Are you finished chatting?”

The moment Thomas left, the Marquis heard his wife’s icy question from behind him. He turned mechanically, a forced smile on his face. “My dear, why are you back so soon? The battle just ended, and there’s no proper place to rest…”

“Hmph. So you’re saying I’m the kind of woman who can eat fine food and sleep in a soft bed without a care in the world while my husband and son are fighting for their lives on the battlefield?” The Marchioness’s interrogating gaze made the Marquis’s scalp tingle.

“No, that’s not what I meant! How could you be such an unreasonable person? I just want to give you the best of everything.”

The Marchioness pretended to wipe away a tear. “I am not some helpless, ordinary woman. Though I may not be as battle-hardened as you and our son, I am no armchair general. Few in your army can match my skill in magic. But you… you have no consideration for my desire to share in your hardships. You drugged me and had me sent out of the city before a major battle. Have you ever done such a thing before when you went to war? Have I ever disobeyed you or caused trouble? By doing this, you only told me how dangerous this battle was. But do you have any idea how terrified I was? I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sit still, my heart felt like it was being torn apart… I… sob~”

As she spoke, the Marchioness’s feigned tears turned real, and they began to stream down her face. Yexi quickly handed her a handkerchief and shot the Marquis a sharp glare.

The Marquis panicked. “My dear, my dear, please don’t cry! It’s my fault, it’s all my fault! I shouldn’t have made you worry so. I shouldn’t have hidden it from you. I swear to the heavens, I will never do this again!”

“Really?”

“Absolutely!”

The Marchioness pouted. “Well, that’s more like it.”

The Marquis thought he had weathered the storm and breathed a sigh of relief. But his wife’s next, casual words made his heart leap back into his throat.

“Most of the house is destroyed. The renovation will cost a fortune, won’t it? Do we have enough money? And the soldiers fought so bravely; their pensions and rewards can’t be lacking. I also saw some damaged civilian houses on the way here. We should probably repair those as well. My dear? My dear? Are you listening? Are you alright? Why is your face so pale?”

The Marquis forced himself to remain calm, thinking Yexi hadn’t told his wife about the treasury. “I’m listening, my dear. Money… these are all small matters. Just leave it to me. Don’t worry, we have enough to cover everything. My face is pale because of this little injury on my shoulder. Standing for so long has made me a bit tired. I’ll be fine after a little rest.”

The Marchioness said with concern, “If you’re injured, you should rest. Leave the matter of comforting the wounded and the soldiers to Klieg and me. My dear… you’re not out of money, are you?”

The Marquis froze on the spot, a cold sweat breaking out on his brow. But he forced himself to stand tall. “What are you talking about, my dear? How could I be out of money?”

“But if I remember correctly, your little treasury was over there, wasn’t it? It seems to have become a pit in the ground. My dear, if you’re out of money, you can just tell me. I have some reserve funds in the town. Don’t be too stubborn.”

“I’m not being stubborn! How could I let you spend your money?” The Marquis declared, his male pride on the line. He could take money from his son, but he had to maintain his dignity in front of his wife. He straightened his back. “I… I anticipated that the treasury might be in danger, so I had the valuables moved out beforehand! You don’t need to worry, my dear!”

“Really?”

“Really!”

“When did you move them then? I didn’t know any of that.”

“Uh, not long after I sent you away. Yes, that’s it. I suddenly thought of it right after you left and had them moved.”

“That’s strange. Did you move the very ground the treasury was built on, my dear?”

“Yes, I… huh? What do you mean by that, my dear?” The Marquis looked at his wife, confused.

The Marchioness grinned mischievously. “I moved all the money from your treasury to the next town months ago. I was planning on scaring you a little, but you didn’t even check on your treasury for months. Your vault was already just an empty plot of land. I was going to tell you about it soon, but who knew… hahaha.”

Watching his wife trying to stifle her laughter, the Marquis stood frozen. His eyes darted to Yexi, hoping for some kind of confirmation.

Yexi also chuckled softly. “The Lady is telling the truth. To keep it from you, my Lord, she had me and the old butler secretly cooperate, moving everything out in several trips.”

The Marquis still couldn’t believe it. “But Yexi, you said before…”

“I only said your treasury didn’t have a single brick left. That is indeed a fact. I never said anything about the valuables inside. It was you who jumped to conclusions, my Lord.”

From the depths of despair to the heights of ecstasy. The Marquis had gone from being a wealthy lord to a pauper, and back to a wealthy lord again, all in the span of a few minutes. The emotional rollercoaster was too much to contain. He threw decorum to the wind, swept his wife up into his arms, and began to spin her around.

“Hahaha! My dear, you are truly my lucky star! I love you so much!”

The Marchioness was startled. Seeing the curious gazes of the Pegasus Knights, she blushed and began to pat his back. “Put me down, you fool! So many people are watching!”

“Ow, ow, ow!” The sudden exertion on his injured shoulder made the Marquis cry out in pain, and he quickly set his wife down.

The Marchioness immediately asked with concern, “Are you alright, my dear?”

Looking at his wife’s beautiful face, so close to his, all the pain and despair the Marquis had felt vanished. He leaned in and captured her lips in a deep kiss, ignoring her struggles. After a moment, she melted into his embrace.

“I love you, my dear.”

“I love you too, my husband.”

Everyone around them smiled at the scene and quietly went back to their work. Yexi, standing to the side, also offered the couple her silent, heartfelt blessing.