The System Gave Me A Yandere Husband

Chapter 10: What Do I Have?

The dance came to an end, and the ballroom filled with the silence again. Eveyr didn’t let go of her from the dip. He held her above the floor, breathing heavily, his eyes locked on her flushed cheeks as if he wanted to remember the moment.

When he finally pulled her upright after another minute, instead of letting her go, he pulled her against his chest and tucked her under his shoulder. His one hand rested on her hip while the other cradled the back of her neck like a shield.

High above the dance floor, Crown Prince Julian watched them.

"Your Highness, The Duke almost killed a lord. The Emperor..."

"He will do nothing," Julian replied, still watching them. "Eveyr Aldric is too valuable on the northern border. One dead lord won’t make any difference."

"And the duchess?"

Julian tilted his head. Below, Eveyr was saying something to Esme and she was responding with the same unbothered expression she had worn all night. He was actually listening to her.

"Fascinating," Julian murmured to Sylas. "The scared little spy I sent to him a month before the wedding is gone. The woman standing with him is herself a predator."

Julian turned to Sylas.

"I want to have a private meeting with her soon."

"As you wish, Your Highness," Sylas replied.

Down, Eveyr was done with the banquet.

"We are leaving," Eveyr said firmly.

Esme nodded. She was tired and had triggered his jealousy. She was done for the night. She glanced at the system as Eveyr steered her towards the exit.

[Obsession Meter: 68%]

Daily Cap: Reached.

Vitality Buffer: 7 days.

She smiled, satisfied. She had pushed him as far as she could. The jealousy trigger had worked well but she wasn’t naive enough to think it’d work forever. She needed a long-term strategy.

They stepped into the freezing night. Her shoulders instantly prickled with goosebumps. Eveyr immediately removed his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

The footman by the carriage kept his eyes down. Eveyr lifted Esme into the carriage himself, climbed in after her, and slammed the doors shut. The ride back was suffocating.

"You enjoyed that, didn’t you?" he asked. "You liked pushing me to the edge of killing him in front of the entire court."

Esme casually smoothed her dress and crossed her legs.

"I enjoyed the champagne," she said, resting her chin on her hand. "You acting like my overprotective prop just kept the evening from being boring."

Eveyr stared at her for a second before laughing. Then suddenly, he was on his knees on the carriage floor, gripping her thighs tightly.

Esme’s heart raced. Before she could push him away, he lowered his head and rested his forehead on her knees, letting out a long, shuddering breath.

Gradually, his fingers loosened on her thighs. It was an act of submission. He was a man who had destroyed countless cities, killed his enemies without flinching, and now, here he was, kneeling at her feet. It was the most terrifying thing he had ever done.

Esme’s hand moved instinctively. Her fingers slid into his hair, making him freeze like a wild animal unsure whether to bite or lean into the touch.

"I am going to build a cage so beautiful for you that you will never want to leave it," he murmured. "You belong to me now, Esme. I will never let you go."

Sorry, husband! But you’ll have to let me go once I complete my mission!

The carriage finally stopped as they reached the estate. Eveyr pulled back from her knees, his hair mussed from her fingers. He stepped out, turned, and offered her his hand. She took it.

He led her through the silent corridors, his hand on her waist. When they reached the bedroom door, he stopped and turned to her.

He took her hand, raised it to his lips, and pressed a slow, lingering kiss to her knuckles. Then he walked away without a word. Esme stood at the door with her hand still raised, feeling the warmth of his lips on her skin.

She shook her head, rubbed her knuckles to remove his touch and stepped inside the room.

The moment she shut the door, her mask dropped.

She slid down the door and sat on the cold floor with her knees drawn up. Eveyr’s jacket slipped slightly but she immediately held it with her trembling fingers. Her whole body was shaking from the adrenaline of managing her yandere husband for three hours.

Tonight was a success, but it was too close. Triggering his jealousy to farm system points is effective, but it’s too dangerous. Eventually, he would snap and kill someone, and I would be collateral damage. I need a new plan.

She stood up and began searching the room to find something useful. The wardrobe had nothing. The vanity had only cosmetics and jewellery. She crouched by the bedside table and opened the drawer. It was empty. She checked under the mattress, behind the curtains but found nothing.

Fuck!!! There is nothing useful here!

She stomped her foot on the rug in frustration. The sound of a floorboard creaking caught her attention. Esme looked down immediately.

"What’s there?"

She knelt and removed the rug. Beneath it was a slightly loose floorboard. She pulled it up and found a small journal hidden underneath.

"Whose diary is this? The original Esme’s?"

Esme opened it and began to read.

October 3rd: Arrived at Aldric Keep. The staff is terrified. The head maid hasn’t spoken above a whisper since I arrived. The Duke has missed all the meals.

October 7th: First sighting of the Duke. He was in the eastern corridor at 2 AM. He didn’t see me. He was walking towards the wine cellar, but he went past it. There is something there.

October 15th: Had dinner with the Duke for the first time. He didn’t speak. He stared at me throughout the entire meal. I smiled and pretended not to notice, though my hands were shaking under the table.

Esme flipped through the pages faster and realized original Esme was Julian’s spy. Her mission was to find the northern ledger and discover Eveyr’s weakness.

Esme was a spy sent by Julian? The original novel had no such plot. Then why now? Is it because of me?

I need to know more.

She continued reading.

November 2nd: I found a passage behind the wine cellar, behind a stone shelf that slides open if you press the right brick. It leads down. But I was too afraid to go further. Eveyr almost caught me.

November 14th: I finally went down and found a cage made of silver and carved bone. It was empty.

Esme’s heart pounded as she turned the page.

November 20th: I’ve been watching him more carefully. Every night at dinner, he looks into my eyes like he is searching for something behind them.

Esme reached the final page.

December 3rd: Julian sent me here to find a ledger. Instead, I found a monster who is hunting for something that lives behind people’s eyes. When he looks into my soul tomorrow night and realizes I don’t have what he is looking for...I know he is going to kill me.

Esme closed the journal slowly.

He looks into my eyes every single night, searching for it.

"Searching for what?"

She recalled how Eveyr had stared at her after she had said ’until death’ during their vows. His pupils had dilated. She had thought it was because of her boldness.

But what if it wasn’t? What if he had been looking for something in her eyes and had found it?

The original Esme didn’t have it. So he killed her. Am I alive because I have it?