Chapter 3 – Part 2

Ruby’s funeral was held at the Grit Estate, and Eli headed straight to Shuban.

“If you’ve stamped the divorce papers, she’s no longer Lady Grit, so there’s no need for us to hold the funeral for her.”

Marie clicked her tongue as if dissatisfied.

“Don’t you realize that if you have a funeral here, you’ll be widowed, and that won’t help you get remarried?”

“Mother, I told you the divorce papers were never officially granted, so Ruby is still my wife.”

The first thing Eli did upon learning of Ruby’s death was to cancel the divorce proceedings, he wanted to make sure she was treated with all the respect she deserved as the Marchioness of Grit.

He didn’t understand Marie’s resentment of Ruby, even in the face of her untimely death.

“Okay. It’s your decision, so I won’t throw up anymore. But you can’t give her a funeral like you promised.”

Eli wanted Ruby to receive all the treatment as the wife of Marquis of Grit, even after her death, and Marie didn’t want to announce that Ruby died in an accident.

Behind it all, she had his remarriage in mind.

Eli had no intention of remarriage, but without saying anything, he agreed, knowing his mother, who was never satisfied with anything.

One marriage was enough.

For Eli, marriage was something that sometimes worried him.

It wasn’t until he and Marie were done negotiating that he was able to bury Ruby in the Marquis of Grit’s mausoleum.

Only Eli, Leton, and a few servants were present.

“Brother! How long will you be gone this time? Teach me horseback riding again. I think I can ride alone if I learn just once more!”

Emily asked, even though she knew he had just returned to the mansion and visited Ruby’s grave.

She didn’t look sad at all, even though she must have heard the news about Ruby.

“Later.”

“Why not now? Can’t you do it now? We don’t know when you’ll come back again.”

Emily pouted as usual. Normally, he would have given in to her pouting. Today, he didn’t feel like doing that. For the first time, his lovely sister seemed annoying.

“Emily, I’m not in the mood right now.”

His voice was filled with irritation.

Without saying anything else, Eli passed by without hugging or holding her hands, unlike usual.

With a frightened expression, Emily didn’t try to stop him anymore.

“It’s the baggage that my lady used to carry.”

The maid informed him, saying they were Ruby’s belongings. However, it was just one small, modest bag, and Eli couldn’t understand why it bothered him so much.

The purchase history Eli had seen indicated that she had bought dresses and jewelry frequently. However, there was nothing in the luggage she took just before the divorce that could be of any value.

“Our family won’t be greedy just because we entered your household. We’re not those kinds of people.”

He recalled Ruby’s words when she proposed marriage.

Honest, Ruby Grit.

It was only for a moment, but Eli couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at the unexpected words.

“Where is her dressing room?”

“Here.”

Guided by the maid, Eli arrived at the dressing room where many clothes and decorations were displayed.

However, strangely, there were few things that Ruby had bought after her marriage that suited her.

Those clothes reminded him of Ruby’s awkward and tired appearance rather than the happy Ruby.

Eli, with a small smile on his face, left the dressing room and went to Ruby’s room.

It was the first time he had entered Ruby’s room during the day.

Was it always like this?

Feeling unfamiliar, Eli stood in the middle of the room and looked around.

“What about the things Ruby used?”

“I sorted everything out after the young madam left.”

It meant that there was nothing left of the things Ruby used.

“Mother is really quick.”

An irritating feeling surfaced.

Unlike usual, it seemed like no one, not Marie, Eve, Emily, and even the servants, cared about Ruby’s death. Since Ruby’s death, everything had irritated Eli.

Unable to bear the feeling any longer, Eli slammed the door shut and left.

***
Eli returned to the capital after Ruby’s funeral.

After that, he immersed himself in work even more than before. No, he became even more absorbed in work than ever.

Even Leton suggested that he should take some rest and sleep.

But there was no way to shake off this irritating feeling without working.

“You’ll collapse if you keep this up.”

Suddenly, Kane Vance, his friend, came to his office and tried to stop Eli.

“You haven’t slept for a whole week.”

“I can’t sleep.”

His eyes were heavy, and fatigue overwhelmed him, but he couldn’t sleep. More accurately, he couldn’t fall asleep. He spent nights thinking and reminiscing about the past with Ruby, unable to close his eyes.

As this continued for several days, Eli changed his daily routine to a pattern of pushing himself until he almost passed out before finally falling asleep.

“Work has always been like this. Besides, with the ongoing civil war in the Kingdom, there’s a lot to prepare for.”

“Funny. You, who used to guard your sleeping hours like a fortress?”

Eli casually dismissed Kane’s objection.

“If you rest, the people below you can rest too.”

Then, Eli finally looked at Leton. There were dark circles under his eyes.

“When it’s time to rest, go and rest. Don’t worry about me.”

“…No, I will stay and work with you.”

Leton, who looked a bit embarrassed for a moment, sighed and lowered his head in resignation.

“Eli.”

Just as Kane, with a stern face, was about to give a lecture, a knock was heard, and a servant cautiously entered.

“Lady Blora is here to see you, sir.”

“Lady Blora wants to see me? Why all of a sudden?”

Eli and Kane shared the same puzzled expression.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Without waiting for permission to enter, a woman came in before the servant, the person Eli had seen before the wedding, Ruby’s friend.

Eli gestured for her to speak.

“Ruby, I’m taking her.”

Her irritated footsteps and determined breathing conveyed Lady Blora’s feelings.

“What does that mean?”

Eli asked when she mentioned Ruby’s name.

“I can’t leave Ruby buried in the Grit cemetery.”

“Lynn, this isn’t something to be emotional about.”

As Baron Blora came in after her, he lightly greeted Eli to calm Lynn down.

“I don’t want Ruby to stay in the place where the people never respected and treated her well”

“What do you mean?”

Eli asked, confused by the unintelligible words.

Calming Lynn, who was about to speak out of anger, Baron Blora stepped forward to speak.

“When we heard the news of the Lady Grit, We went to Shuban, It’s a bit late, but we wanted to offer our condolences.”

Thinking about it, Lynn wiped away a tear with her index finger. Lord Blora put his arm around her shoulders and soothed her.

“But we haven’t even been to the grave, they keep telling us there is no grave of Ruby in your graveyard.”

“That can’t be true, there’s a caretaker there, and you can go anytime you want with a visiting list.”

Eli made a small face in disbelief. He’d seen Ruby laid to rest there himself.

“Even when we showed the Blora crest, he still refused. After a lot of arguments, he eventually headed to Lady Marie. We wanted to ask permission to her ourselves but…”

“She said no!”

Angry, Lynn interjected while Baron Blora spoke in a calm manner.

“Ruby was not buried there!”

Her tearful exclamation made Kane, Leton, and Baron Blora tune out.

“And you were even having a party?”

Lynn let out an absurd laugh.

Eli’s face hardened, giving off a chilling aura.

“Even Viscount Rainier was turned down and no matter how many times he wrote to you, you still said no! You won’t even show her family her grave, how can you call that polite?”

It’s been a while since Eli has been in the Marquis’s mansion.

Eli didn’t even remember receiving a letter from Viscount Rainier. He’d been buried in work since Ruby’s funeral.

“You can’t do that, she’s your wife after all, how can you do to her!”

Tears fell from Lynn’s eyes.

“I didn’t want Ruby to get married in a shabby way, so I didn’t tell her congratulations even though it was her wedding, and that always bothered me.”

Eli curled his fist into a small ball at Lynn’s sobbing. His head dropped lower and lower, unable to look her in the face.

“But she apologized for not attending my wedding… and apologized for having only this as a gift. She was even sorry for not being a good friend when in fact, I was the one who was not there for her when she badly needed one”

A sobbing Lynn leaned on Baron Blora’s shoulder.

In her hand was a jeweled hairpin.

“May I see it?”

Lynn handed the hairpin to Eli, who stepped in front of her.