Forget My Husband, I’ll Go Make Money – Side Story 5.2

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* * *

Aristine held Tarkan’s hand as she stepped out of the carriage.

As soon as she got off, she saw a line of warriors standing in formation.

“Your Majesty.”

Aristine smiled when she saw Durante at the front.

“It has been a while, General Durante.”

“I’m glad to see you are well.”

“You too, General. I heard the recent demonic beast subjugation was another success.”

“All thanks to Your Majesty’s barriers. I apologize for not being able to return to the palace and report right away.”

“No need for that. Keeping the country safe is more important.”

Hearing that, a faint smile appeared on Durante’s usually expressionless face.

“I said that wrong. I think it would be more accurate to say it’s a pity I couldn’t return.”

“…?”

“It’s a pity I couldn’t see Your Majesty for so long.”

Durante placed his hand over his heart and bowed courteously. His movement was picturesque.

“As you said, hiding the truth is also deceit.”

Aristine chuckled at his additional comment.

“That’s right, I did say that when we first met, General.”

Aristine could still remember that day very clearly.

Tarkan couldn’t come out to meet her because he was busy subjugating demonic beasts.

So, Durante had come in his place.

Seeing her in a disheveled state due to the maids’ scheming, Durante must have misunderstood. So, when she asked—

《 And where is my husband-to-be?》

《 He went hunting.》

—Was his reply.

As if hunting for sport was more important than meeting Aristine.

“Do you remember what you said back then, Your Majesty?” Durante glanced at Tarkan. “You said Milord must be very shy.”

“Very shy? Me?” Tarkan raised a brow.

Aristine laughed and hugged her husband’s arm.

“That was before I even met Khan, but I guess I was right on the mark.”

“What?”

“After all, my husband is shy.”

Seeing his wife looking up at him with all smiles, Tarkan realized what she was saying and shut his mouth.

A very shy pervert.

He felt he finally understood why his wife called him that.

“Alright then, please enter this way.”

Durante said, prompting Aristine to move forward.

Tarkan followed along and whispered in his wife’s ear.

“It’s only with you.”

“What is?”

“I’m saying I’m only like that with you.”

“Oh, you’re only shy with me?”

“…Shy doesn’t sound right.”

Aristine smiled softly when she saw her husband averting his eyes and grumbling.

“Well, of course, it should be only with me. Were you planning to be shy with others too?”

“…Seriously.”

“You’re the cutest when you’re shy.”

Aristine quickly stood on her tiptoes and pecked Tarkan on the cheek.

Tarkan froze in place.

It was just a small kiss yet his heart couldn’t stop racing.

Both then and now, his wife was always able to make his heart flutter.

While Tarkan clutched his racing heart, Aristine briskly walked over to Durante.

“Speaking of which, back then, I thought Durante was my husband-to-be.”

“Did you really?”

“Mhm, I heard my husband-to-be was coming to greet me.”

“You must have been disappointed to see me then.”

“Not quite?”

Aristine tilted her head.

“I thought time would only tell but I think my impression of you was not bad?”

It was only natural for Aristine to think like that.

She had embarked on her marriage journey under the belief that she was marrying a monster.

Of course, Aristine thought her father, the deposed emperor Alpheus, was the true monster.

Durante had been wary of her, but he didn’t seem like an unreasonable man like her father.

“Not bad?”

“Mhm, Durante. You look quite decent, no?”

Durante chuckled.

“Thank you for the kind words.”

“Thank you for what? It’s just the truth.”

Tarkan, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation from behind, was hit by a wave of shock.

‘How could she think Durante looks like a decent marriage partner?!’

* * *

Near the gate, business was thriving.

Some people were heading into the capital, while others followed the newly constructed road to other cities.

Taverns, restaurants, and inns were bustling with people.

The gate had become a significant hub.

“Hey, did you hear? A new barrier road to Pertas has opened! This is amazing!”

“Yes, now we can get to Pertas by land. How great is that?!”

“It’s all thanks to Emperor Aristine.”

“I never thought she’d develop such an amazing barrier and use it to create safe roads!”

“Thanks to her, even small traders like us can travel freely. It’s so wonderful.”

“Before, the only choice was to travel by sea, which is so expensive.”

“Right? And they used to raise the boat fares knowing we had no other choice.”

“Isn’t that why we had to raise our prices? People like us had no choice.”

“But then those large merchant groups could sell their goods cheaper and push us out.”

“Back then…I really felt like it was over for us.”

The merchants shook their heads as they reminisced.

“But look at us now! Everything’s different!”

“Bless Emperor Aristine! We can only live like this because of her.”

“Yes, yes! As expected of the rightful heir with the sight of the Monarch.”

“I couldn’t even imagine this happening during the deposed king’s reign!”

This was a resting stop that many used after a hard day of peddling.

A bunch of very drunk people raised their beer mugs high and clinked them together.

“To Emperor Aristine!”

“Here’s to her good health!”

People downed their beers in one go. Nearby, were two figures with their hoods pulled low, sitting quietly.

It was Aristine and Tarkan.

They were traveling incognito.

“I heard the people here can’t stop singing your praises. Looks like that’s true.”

“…Constantly?”

“Of course. These are people who lost their means of living under the deposed king’s tyranny.”

“As you know, Alpheus the deposed was obsessed with hoarding money to build his army.”

“But thanks to you, they can make a living again.”

“Rineh, this is the result of your efforts.”

Aristine held a cold beer mug in her hand and looked around at the people, then at Tarkan.

When she was imprisoned, she never could have imagined any of this. But meeting Tarkan had made it possible to dream.

And now, with Tarkan, it had become reality.

“It’s not just my effort. It happened because of everyone who helped me.”

Creating the barrier took the efforts of many people.

Ritlen and his blacksmiths, Asena and her guild of magicians, the warriors who pledged to help test the barrier whenever needed, and the court ladies who cared for Aristine tirelessly.

And.

“It was possible because of you, Khan.”

The fact that he lent her his smithing forge with hesitation. He grumpily told her that this was her home and that she was free to use anything she wanted. He also mulled over her worries with her. Even when she drew a line and said it was her responsibly, he helped her solve it.

‘It was you who kept coming back to me.’

So all of this was possible because Tarkan was by her side.

Even now.

“Marrying you was the greatest blessing and happiness of my life.”

“…”

“Tarkan, my flower.”

Tarkan stared blankly at Aristine, who was looking straight at him.

‘This woman…’

How could she smile like this?

How could she be so breathtakingly beautiful?

Even in this noisy tavern, filled with beer spills and dirt, his wife was shining brightly.

Tarkan swallowed hard.