“Why are you here…?”

Standing at the end of the corridor was a neat, well-dressed Richt. He stared at Isabelle and Eden with a dry gaze, though subtle cracks appeared on his expressionless face.

“Was this the reason?”

Richt, glancing back and forth between Isabelle and Eden, let out a short laugh. The questioning stare, like a husband raiding the scene of an affair, flustered Isabelle.

“I didn’t expect you to come here.”

His gaze lingered around her ankle for a while. Trembling slightly, Isabelle hesitated, unable to move forward.

“Is it strange for a husband to come looking for his wife?”

Husband and wife.

Since the paperwork wasn’t sorted out yet, the terms were still valid. But he approaching so oppressively. Even though she hadn’t done anything wrong, she felt anxious.

Eden took the first step, closing the distance between with him and Richt, taking over for Isabelle, who stood silent. It was as if he was creating a barrier between the two, a gesture that seemed to hide Isabelle behind him.

“It’s been a while, Duke of Calitheon.”

“What brings you here, Viscount Ross?”

Only then did Richt’s gaze shift away from Isabelle.

“I had some business with Count Blanchette. I didn’t expect to encounter Isabelle here.”

“How imprudent of you to address another man’s wife so casually.”

“Isn’t it you who is treating his own wife casually?”

“What?”

“Your wife came to her family’s house carrying luggage. Can’t say the husband bears no responsibility.”

“And you took advantage of that to touch my wife’s feet? How unscrupulous of you.”

Eden’s brow furrowed deeply, which meant Richt been watching since before Isabelle had spotted him. The gaze Richt directed at Eden was fierce, with colder eyes than ever before.

Eden didn’t avoid the gaze either. Their eyes met in midair, neither hiding their displeasure. A chill ran through their gazes. As the atmosphere between the two became somewhat tense, the anxious Isabelle belatedly approached Richt.

“Let’s go inside for now.”

Isabelle pulled Richt’s arm, but he didn’t budge, his gaze fixed on Eden.

“I just checked to make sure her foot wasn’t hurt from tripping.”

“Don’t call that a feeble excuse for touching her foot.”

“Contrary to appearance, you seem to have a rich imagination, Lord Calitheon.”

“Don’t you think it’s presumptuous of you to lecture me, Viscount Ross.”

The atmosphere sharpened with each word exchanged.

“Enough.”

Isabelle said, turning to Eden. Normally, Eden wouldn’t have stirred up unnecessary trouble, but he continued speaking.

“It’s been three years since we’ve seen each other, and Isabelle seems to have a lot to tell me. She was upset, wondering why I didn’t send her letters, when I should have sent them.”

“A letter, yes, you should have. I’m sure she wanted to know how you were doing.”

“She said she had missed me.”

Richt’s lips, slightly raised at one end, looked displeased. Eden was convinced that his guess was not wrong.

“Would you mind stepping aside? We haven’t fully unraveled the misunderstanding yet.”

“I’d like to, but I also have a lot to discuss with my wife. There are many things between a married couple that you wouldn’t know about. You seem to have completely ignored that.”

Richt emphasized the word ‘couple’ and pulling Isabelle’s waist.  As Eden stared intently at Richt’s arms enveloping Isabelle’s waist, Richt subtly pulled her closer, as if asserting his possession.

It was uncomfortable being caught in the middle. Isabelle wished Eden would step aside first as Richt had no intention of doing so.

“How long are you going to stand there?”

Eden didn’t answer, just looked at Isabelle.

“Will you be okay?”

Isabelle nodded. Richt’s face became even more hostile at his affectionate voice.

“Do you think I’m going to hurt her or something?”

“You never know.”

“What a dull joke. Cut it out. There’s only so much I can take.”

Isabelle pulled away from Richt’s strong arms around her waist and stood between the two men.

“I’ll talk to you later. I’m going in.”

Afraid that a new confrontation would start again, Isabelle sent a glance to Eden. Fortunately, Eden quietly stepped back. In the hall, only Isabelle and Richt remained. Despite Richt’s mention of having something to discuss, he remained silent.

As always, he had the knack of making people uncomfortable with his silence. Eventually, Isabelle, feeling uneasy, broke the silence.

“I thought Fabian would send you some papers.”

“What papers?”

“Divorce papers.”

“Whatever”

‘I’m not important to you, am I? Why bother?’

Richt’s face looked visibly angry, preventing Isabelle from speaking her mind. With a sunken expression, she couldn’t help but wonder. She couldn’t imagine why this man would want to stay married. Was it for his pride? Did he not want to listen to her requests? Because of the reputation around him?

She couldn’t think of any reason. If only she could express his feelings clearly. Frustrated, hands fidgeting in the discomfort, an uninvited guest interjected from a distance.

“Duke of Calitheon!”

***

Timogere welcomed Richt and ushered him inside.

Coincidentally, it was dinner time, and so, Richt, Isabelle, Timogere, and Eden found themselves seated around a long dining table. It was an awkward combination of four people who didn’t quite fit together.

“If I had been informed, I would have returned home earlier. How have you been doing, Lord Calitheon?”

“I’ve been busy that I couldn’t contact you.”

“No, it’s good to see you after all these years.”

The exchange of formal greetings was somehow cordial.

“I heard you had some trouble building a harbor in Panador, how did that go?”

“Fortunately, I received some help from the Imperial Court.”

“That’s good to hear. You should also exchange greetings with Viscount Ross.”

“I saw him first in the garden.”

“Is that so? Viscount Ross is staying with our family temporarily due to some business.”

Only after Timogere explained the situation did Richt turned his head towards Eden, but even before that, his senses had been drawn to him. The tension from the confrontation in the garden lingered between them, though neither had spoken.

Ever since learning that Isabelle hadn’t received his letter, Eden’s expression had remained hardened. Richt felt uncomfortable, too, as he couldn’t get the image of Isabelle and Eden walking so affectionately out of his mind.

Richt wondered if Viscount Ross might be the reason for the divorce. The look in Eden’s eyes as he looked at Isabelle hadn’t changed.

The sinking feeling reminded him of something that had happened before.

The day of Richt and Isabelle’s wedding.

‘That’s surprising. I thought the Blanchette’s young lady was tied to the Ross family’s heir.’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘Didn’t you know? The bride, young lady Blanchette, and the eldest son of the Ross family were very close.’

‘Oh my! This is the first time I’ve heard of it.’

‘You’re slow on the uptake. Those in the know already heard about it. There’s nothing new now.”

‘Oh, well, you can’t marry for love alone. Even if I were Young Lady Blanchette, I would choose the heir to House Calitheon.’

‘Well, I’m sure you’d be willing to forgo love for the position of Duchess of Calitheon.’

Richt thought it was just baseless gossip spread by noble ladies who liked rumors until he saw Isabelle crying in Eden Ross’s arms.

The look in Eden Ross’s eyes as he gazed at the woman who would become his wife was the unmistakable gaze of a man in love. Richt wondered why did she hate arranged marriages so much as he saw Isabelle crying bitterly.

Richt blood ran cold at the thought of the rumors becoming true, but he didn’t want to appear as a desperate man begging for her. He turned away pretending not to know. He wanted to be the kind of husband who could forgive his wife for her past.

He felt a strange jealousy bubbling inside, but he didn’t show it. Although they were a couple bound by the will of the family, he wanted to believe that Isabelle would be faithful to their married life.

But that faith was shaken by a small matter.

Unlike Richt, who had fallen madly in love with Isabelle since their marriage, his wife always seemed to be calm, and his attempts to please her with all sorts of exquisite gifts were met with lukewarm responses.

Around the time he was living in the capital with some concerns, he received a report from Lucien that a letter from Eden Ross had arrived at Barsk Territory.

He hadn’t seen much of her due to his work, and he feared that Eden would fill the void. The thought that their hearts might still be for each other never left his mind, and he was on the verge of developing anxiety.

Hence, Richt secretly ordered Lucien to dispose of the letters. Consequently, their letters never reached each other. Despite not receiving any replies, Eden continued to share his news with Isabelle, and Lucien faithfully executed his master’s command.

Eden’s letters stopped coming after about three months. Richt thought that was the end of it.

Richt clenched his fist under the table, alternating his gaze between Eden and Isabelle. Eden seemed to notice Richt’s involvement in the letters, but he didn’t mention it to Isabelle. His face showed only discomfort.

The tension that had hung over the table eased a bit after the servants brought out the food. Mouthwatering roast turkey, fresh vegetable salad, soup with tomatoes and corn, and ham were neatly arranged on the table.

Timogere cut a large piece of ham with his fork and popped it into his mouth.

“I was thinking of sending Isabelle back anyway, I’m sure you, Lord Calitheon, will understand my immature sister.”

Everyone knew that Richt hadn’t come here for no reason, but Timogere was the first to bring up the matter that was left unsaid.

The fact that the Duke of Calitheon had come all this way made Timogere realize that his relationship with Isabelle had not deteriorated beyond repair. His usually foolish head was surprisingly sharp when it came to calculating gains.

“Regardless of what my wife may have said, it all stemmed from a trivial misunderstanding.”

“I am well aware of that.”

“How long will Viscount Ross be staying?”

Richt shifted the topic toward Eden.

“Well, I’m not sure. I think there might be about two weeks left.”

“I see. Since Isabelle hasn’t been home in a long time, I’ll stay for a few days as well.”

It was unlikely that Isabelle would want to go back to Barsk right away, and he didn’t want to leave her with Eden in the Blanchette household. In that case, Richt had to stay here as well.

“Of course, and I’ll make sure your stay is comfortable.”

Timogere smiled pleasantly. Richt’s presence had been decided against Isabelle’s wishes. To her displeasure, Isabelle pushed back her chair and stood up.

“I’ll go upstairs first, I don’t feel well.”

Isabelle made her intentions known and left the table without a second thought. The stew, which had been barely touched, remained almost the same.

Timogere turned to Richt and said he had something he wanted to show him, then excused himself.

An air of discomfort hung over the table as the two men remained alone. Richt and Eden each took a few sips of the wine placed in front of them. The food on the table was cooling rapidly.