Ah, seriously. Did you contribute to my short height?

She might have been short, but she had a temper. Ignoring Satin’s sharp glare, Rublier sat next to her and poured white milk into her water glass.

“Drink.”

“Why?”

“You need to drink a lot of milk and grow taller.”

Gjorn looked at Satin with wide eyes, as if asking if they knew each other. Not just Gjorn, but other students also glanced at Satin and Rublier.

After this happened a few times, Satin stopped drinking milk. Not drinking it became a habit, and that habit continued to this day.

Satin took a sip of the strong black tea without milk. Rublier spoke up.

“I’m going on a business trip.”

Satin nodded.

“Have a safe trip.”

“It’ll take a while.”

“How long?”

“Since it’s far, about two months? Two and a half months? I’ll try to come back quickly.”

It was good news. Satin’s cheeks glowed with excitement.

“It’s okay. Don’t rush at all, take your time. It’s national business, so you should be careful.”

Rublier chuckled, as he expected this reaction.

“What do you have to say?”

As if waiting, Satin put the book on the table. Rublier read the cover.

Caldeblanca Code.

A legal code?

“I looked up the law. From three months after marriage, divorce is possible.”

Rublier stared at Satin, who was talking about divorce right after marriage.

He often found various reasons to laugh at Satin, but he couldn’t laugh at this.

“Divorce?”

“There are processes for agreement and property division, it’s a bit complicated, but at least three months.”

Satin declared with a bright smile.

“Let’s cleanly separate after three months.”

The Cardinal preached that marriage was ‘a process of striving to love your partner.’ But not all couples go through that process successfully.

People say that even after seeing each other for four seasons or ten years, they are still different. Satin had experienced it. Gjorn, who she had known for not ten but twenty years, became a completely different person when he met someone he truly liked. Especially since she and Rublier weren’t a good match or close from the beginning, it was needless to say.

Living together requires some compatibility. Forcing incompatible people to live together isn’t feasible. For such people, the Caldeblanca Code allowed divorce under various conditions. The three-month period was a minimal measure to prevent reckless divorces.

“You’re saying we should divorce after three months?”

Rublier asked again. Satin nodded.

“We’re not a couple who will live happily ever after. I think it’s better to divorce and go our separate ways.”

“Why do you think that?”

“……It’s obvious, right?”

It was a response that felt like he was asking if there was a reason why an apple is red. Rublier tilted his head slightly.

Ah. We’re not a couple who will live well together, huh?

“I don’t really understand what’s so obvious.”

He leaned back deeply and cast a long glance at Satin.

“What’s the specific reason we can’t live well together?”

Instead of an answer, he returned a question. Satin was flustered.

What’s the specific reason we can’t live well together?

It sounded like he didn’t necessarily want a divorce. Why? The first conclusion that came to mind was one.

“…Does Ka Dillon need Del Mare’s name?”

Just as Sel Wio did, if Ka Dillon were looking for the best match for their family, it would undoubtedly be Satin. Among the five guardian families, Del Mare was the only family with a daughter of marriageable age.

Unlike Satin, who had many options if age wasn’t a factor, she had been settled early due to the family’s early engagement. Ordinarily, it wouldn’t have been strange for Rublier and Gjorn to compete over Satin.

“What?”

“Otherwise, I can’t understand it. From Sir Ka Dillon’s interference in the wedding to not wanting a divorce. Of course, I’ve received a lot of help so far as a result. I appreciate that. But Sir Ka Dillon doesn’t like me, do you?”

For a moment, Rublier burst into laughter.

“Why do you think I didn’t like you?”

Satin, with wide eyes, tilted her head and counted on her fingers.

“Well, we didn’t get along well before…”

She avoided Rublier because he was burdensome and uncomfortable. Once, she was caught openly bad-mouthing him to Gjorn. They were a relationship that couldn’t be close.

“So, you think I disliked you because of that?”

On reflection, his expression was somewhat off. She couldn’t recall a time when Rublier directly said he disliked her.

“…Let’s just say we had an awkward and uncomfortable relationship.”

Satin corrected her answer.

Awkward and uncomfortable relationship. Rublier repeated Satin’s words.

“So, even though we had an awkward and uncomfortable relationship, we got married because of the value of Del Mare’s name?”

“Yes.”

“Marriage isn’t necessarily based solely on name value.”

Rublier countered. Satin didn’t deny it. She had heard that ordinary people, for whom family status wasn’t as important, usually married for love. But that didn’t apply to Rublier and Satin. For nobles, especially those from guardian families, love was the least necessary condition in marriage.

“My engagement was my parents’ decision. The person I was to marry was decided the moment I was born. It was Gjorn. I lived for over twenty years without questioning it for a moment.”

Gjorn’s name came out of Satin’s mouth. For a moment, Rublier’s expression changed.

But Satin didn’t notice. The word love made her laugh involuntarily.

“But in the end, my marriage fell apart because of love, didn’t it? Because of Gjorn’s love. And we were both caught up in a huge scandal. I’m not denying love, but it’s that dangerous. Look at all this damage. Now, the guardian families will be very wary of love. My parents will be, too.”

“According to you, our marriage wasn’t based on that dangerous emotion called love, and we both gained name value, so why do we need to divorce?”

“I already told you the reason. We don’t match. We’re not a couple who will live happily ever after.”

Given the family, she didn’t expect much love. She just needed a husband she could trust to live with in friendship and loyalty, like Gjorn before he met Delilah.

Satin firmly insisted.

“I can promise you this in return for helping me wrap up my scandal neatly. I won’t divorce and remarry into another guardian family. As you can see, things are already strained with Sel Wio, and I won’t go to Jan Sillot or Quan Theon either. I don’t want to marry an older man when I’m not lacking in conditions. So, there’s no need for Sir Ka Dillon to worry about Del Mare.”

Rublier watched Satin’s lips as she spouted unnecessary promises.

“So, let’s get divorced after three months.”

And Satin’s conclusion remained the same.

“…I understand what you mean.”

“Yes, that’s a relief.”

Rublier decided to go along with Satin for now.

The woman who had lost her spirit had regained it by talking about divorce, so he should at least pretend to listen. But he had no intention of backing down easily.

How could he give up after seizing such an opportunity?

Satin seemed somewhat relieved by Rublier’s feigned understanding. She stood up with a more relaxed posture. She finished her tea neatly and gathered her law book, showing a fleeting, satisfied smile.

For now, he shouldn’t ruin that smile. If he mishandled it, Satin would retreat under her prickly defenses like a hedgehog.

But it irked Rublier to just let her go comfortably. He threw a hint at Satin’s brightened profile.

“But Satin. Think again about the old days. It seems a bit different from my memory.”

Three months. It could be short or long. He would finish his business trip as quickly as possible and return to change Satin’s mind.

Under one roof, two hearts harbored different schemes. Outwardly, it was a peaceful evening.

The next day, Rublier left early in the morning.

Given the distance, he had to hurry to reach the Holy Knights near the Papal Palace and depart with the knights.

So, the mansion’s servants were busy from early morning. Satin, sleeping in another room, woke up hearing the commotion.

The first night in the new house, away from her family home, was restless, with her waking up repeatedly. She considered ringing for Larie but decided against it. There was no need to add to the already busy atmosphere outside.

I’ll go out a bit later. No need to uncomfortably face Rublier early in the morning.

Satin drew the curtains and opened the window wide. It looked easy watching Larie do it, but when she tried, it didn’t tie up nicely.

“Should I wake Madam to inform her you’re leaving now?”

“No need.”

She was shaking off her sleepiness with the fresh breeze when the door opened without a knock.
Satin blinked.

Rublier was standing there.

Satin, still dazed, continued to blink.

Rublier shrugged.

“I thought you were sleeping.”

Hearing that made it more absurd.

If you thought I was sleeping, why did you come in?

Rublier was fully prepared for his trip. Instead of the splendid ceremonial uniform he wore at the wedding, today he was dressed in a dark navy uniform.

Except for the Holy Knights’ emblem embroidered in gold thread on his chest, it was a simple and practical outfit. Thus, Rublier’s straight and sleek physique was more pronounced.

“I’m off, Satin.”

“Yes.”

A hand suddenly reached out.

As Satin stood there blankly, Rublier ruffled his hair lightly and turned away. He walked briskly, receiving farewells from the servants.

A moment later, she saw him riding off on his pitch-black horse. Watching him from the window, Satin felt a bit awkward.

I should have at least wished him a safe trip, considering he’s going on a long journey that will take over two months.

By the time he returns, it won’t be long before we divorce.