Chapter 3 – Part 7

“This is it?”

As Ruby got ready for bed, Eli, who had come out first, headed for the warehouse.

It was where Bella had said the dress Ruby had bought was.

“Is this all?”

“Yes. These are all the dresses that have arrived at the mansion.”

At the suddenly chilly tone, the maid spoke cautiously, sensing something.

There were only five dresses Ruby had bought.

“But why are they here instead of the dressing room?”

Moreover, it wasn’t the original dressing room, but a room currently used as a warehouse.

“Because the young lady… ordered them to be stored here.”

The maid answered as if following Ruby’s orders, but she shrank her body as if it were her fault.

Ignoring the frightened maid, Eli turned around and left the warehouse. The frightened maid quickly followed him.

Eli made his way to the mansion’s main dressing room.

The place was full of familiar dresses.

“Damn dresses.”

It reminded him of Ruby in the past, wearing outfits that didn’t fit her, and she couldn’t have said anything about her taste when she bought them.

Looking at the dresses Ruby had personally chosen, it became clear that the clothes he knew were not to Ruby’s taste.

“My Lord, um, is there… any problem?”

The terrified voice of the maid barely spoke at a low volume, but her expression seemed like she was about to cry.

“Call Bella and tell her to stop by here.”

“Yes. What should I tell her about the reason?”

“Tell her to make a few more dresses from the designs here, as soon as possible.”

“Okay.”

“Empty this place and fill it only with Ruby’s dresses.”

As soon as Eli’s command ended, the maid quickly left the dressing room.

***

At the Marquis Remade’s party, Eli was busy deflecting the gazes directed at Ruby. People avoided eye contact with him as if it were frightening when their eyes met.

“Why?”

Eli, busy on his own, noticed Ruby’s gaze on him and asked.

“It’s nothing.”

Ruby had a look on her face that seemed like she had a lot to say, but whether it was because of the people around them or for some other reason, she didn’t speak. Eli didn’t ask further, but he couldn’t take his eyes off her either, telling her to let him know if she needed anything.

The dress Ruby chose this time suited her well. From jewelry to makeup to hair, everything was perfect. People passing by couldn’t help but glance at her.

Eli both liked and disliked how pretty Ruby looked. It meant an improved reputation in social circles, which would be good for Ruby. However, from Eli’s perspective, it leaned more toward the negative side because leaving Ruby alone to work made him uneasy.

***

After conversing with the Marquis Remade, Eli became worried about Ruby, who had been left alone for a while. Just in case she heard something she shouldn’t have.

It was when he hurriedly left the party hall.

“Marquis Grit.”

Now, there was Iana, who had become the Countess of Chain. Eli’s eyes slightly furrowed at the familiar situation that had occurred before.

“Countess Chain.”

Of course, now that she was the Countess of Chain, her tone was different than it had been then, with a stronger sense of pure annoyance.

“It’s been a while.”

“If you’re looking for your wife, she is in the lounge.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I’m interested.”

That answer made Eli raise an eyebrow. Her words seemed to read his mind, and she let out an absurd laugh as if she found it ridiculous.

“If we were to be precise, it would be admiration. Living with the Marchioness must be quite remarkable.”

“…”

“You’d better hurry. The malicious ladies might bother her and cause some wounds.”

With those words, Iana turned and headed towards the party hall.

In the common room, Ruby was sitting on the couch, her head tilted slightly as she tried to figure out what was wrong.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Looking into her eyes in response to his question, Ruby seemed to have slightly reddened eyes, as if she had a fever.

Worried, Eli approached her quickly.

In doing so, he discovered a newspaper on the table. He couldn’t understand why such a thing was in the lounge. He couldn’t and didn’t want to understand. He quickly got rid of the newspaper, feeling a nauseating emotion. He thought about talking with Marquis Remade about this matter.

“You knew about it?”

She seemed to have seen it even though he wanted her not to.

“People have been talking about the article. I didn’t even know it was about me.”

“It was an article you didn’t need to see.” 

“Maybe it’s better to call it a night and go home.”

Eli called for the carriage to take Ruby home. However, Ruby seemed persistent.

“Wouldn’t it be better to divorce at this point?”

It was a piercing remark. Eli felt a pang in his chest, a confirmation of what had been lingering in the corner of his heart.

“That’s ridiculous.”

“I don’t need to create a scandal or find any reason. Misunderstandings are already occurring. This might be a better opportunity than anything.”

Eli’s heart tingled at the thought of Ruby saying she wanted to divorce him, even though she knew how dishonorable it would be to do so with such a scandal.

“It’s not opportunity, Ruby. It’s called a crisis.”

Eli tried to ignore the pain in his heart.

“You just needed a woman who wouldn’t bother you. So, if it’s not me, you can meet another woman and maybe that person would be more beneficial to you than me.

His composure was shattered when he heard Ruby tell him to find another woman. He wanted to shut her up about her mean words and show her that it was her whom he liked.

No, it was more like a burst of desire that he’d been holding in before he’d even thought about it.

Still, Eli pressed his lips to hers as gently as he could, promising himself he wouldn’t do it if Ruby didn’t want to. There was a conflicting part of him that wanted her to accept him.

When she closed her eyes and allowed herself to be touched, he couldn’t contain the overwhelming emotion he felt for her.

“Maybe you’ll change your mind about that damn divorce when we have kids.”

“There won’t be a child,” Ruby said, pushing Eli away.

In the heat of the moment, Eli thought about what she meant. It wasn’t until a moment later that he realized what she meant.

“You never know.”

“No, there won’t be.”

The firmness of her answer reopened a wound in his chest that hadn’t healed.

“Ruby.”

“Now, there’s even more reason for a divorce. Not being able to have an heir is a significant flaw.”

Everything seemed to be a reason for divorce to Ruby.

For a moment, Eli couldn’t control his expression because she didn’t seem to want to tangle with him that much.

It was all he could do to stare at her blankly.

“So, there’s no need to force it.”

Forced? You or me?

He wanted to express his feelings, to keep Ruby from saying such words, but if she truly didn’t want it, Eli had to step back without saying anything.

So, he didn’t ask. If she truly hated him, he had to let her go.

He couldn’t do it yet. Yes, not yet.

He needed time to show that he had changed.

Eli pulled Ruby into a hug as she opened the door. Then kissed her neck deeply

“What’s this?”

Ruby asked, surprised.

“A seal. A rumor about a happy marriage is expected to spread.”

Eli hid his pain and pretended to be unaffected.

Ruby seemed surprised by his sudden behavior, but it was little things like this that would lead to rumors of the beloved Marchioness spreading far and wide.

“You’d better hurry. The malicious ladies might bother her and cause some wounds.”

Eli thought as he recalled Countess Chain’s words.
***

“Marquis, the boat is complete.”

Eli put away the letter he was reading into a box at Leton’s report. It was a letter from the Marchioness that he had been keeping in the box since his time in Miligal.

He could only assume that something had happened, given her uncharacteristically weak hand gestures.

“Is it safe?”

“We’ve completed the tests. It passed all the criteria.”

He couldn’t count how many times it had happened. Even boats that were completed would be dismantled if they didn’t meet Eli’s rigorous safety standards. After dozens of boats were dismantled, finally, one that met his strict criteria emerged.

“Would you like to see it in person?”

“Let’s go.”