She’d come all the way to the imperial palace because he asked her to go together, called him by his name like he asked—she’d done everything, so what was this man’s problem now?

Rayenne hoped Jin would hurry up and go take care of his business, unable to understand.

“Yes, my lady.”

‘I’m not asking you to answer!’

Somehow Jin’s bright blue eyes seemed to sparkle like glass marbles.

‘It almost seems like he’s enjoying this situation…?’

On the other hand, maybe not. It also seemed like he had something to say.

In short, no matter how much she looked, his expression was so consistently the same that she couldn’t read Jin’s inner thoughts.

“Go take care of your work now, Jin.”

“…”

Rayenne was about to start burning with fighting spirit as she watched Jin, who once again gave no answer.

“I’ll be back, my lady.”

His unwavering gaze collided with hers, instantly stealing away Rayenne’s fighting spirit.

The deflated Rayenne greeted him back with a smile more comfortable than the awkward one from moments ago.

“Come back safely, Jin.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Again.

In that moment, Rayenne clearly saw those bright blue eyes softening, filled with warm warmth.

***

After seeing Jin off, she felt like all her energy to read books had been drained.

Thanks to that, unlike earlier when she’d been excited with anticipation, Rayenne was able to enter the library with a calm demeanor.

The imperial library was peaceful and beautiful like a glimpse of paradise, with books filling every direction and light streaming through the latticed windows.

It was a satisfying sight enough to make her completely forget the subtle back-and-forth with Jin from moments ago.

Rayenne moved slowly, figuring out the classification system.

It was to find the book she’d already thought of on the way here.

One step, one step—with each leisurely pace, the rustling sound of fabric brushing echoed faintly.

The footsteps that had continued for a while stopped at one spot.

Standing before a bookshelf filled only with educational texts, Rayenne’s hand went back and forth several times before her expression gradually became more elevated.

After returning the last book she’d read to the shelf, Rayenne headed toward an empty window, feeling breathless from being too excited.

There was no stopping the smile gradually seeping onto her lips.

‘Since I can write, I had a hunch!’

Thanks to being able to write the content she thought of, Rayenne had successfully drafted the divorce contract, and she’d tested it several times since then.

As a result, while she absolutely couldn’t write in the Korean that now only vaguely came to mind, she could automatically write in the language the original Rayenne would have used.

It was the same now.

Whatever book she read, as long as it wasn’t extremely high-level content, she had mastered the contents of most educational texts.

Rather, the more she read, the more the knowledge felt like it was becoming perfectly hers, and Rayenne felt herself gaining confidence.

As Rayenne placed her tightly clenched fists from excitement on the cool windowsill and calmed her elevated heart while feeling the breeze blowing in through the window, a presence approached her side.

“Didn’t expect to see you here.”

At the unfamiliar but somehow familiar voice, Rayenne quickly turned her head to the side.

The man’s face that flashed in her mind like an alarm bell appeared before her eyes exactly as expected.

“Mr. Close Friend!”

When she lowered her voice as much as possible and spoke to the self-proclaimed close friend, Dante, he let out a chuckle.

“I’m even more pleased that you’re calling me that.”

She really didn’t like the way he smiled, gently creasing the corners of his eyes.

Rayenne narrowed her eyes and clearly showed her displeasure.

“Anyone watching would think we really are close friends.”

Since she’d already dropped formalities once before, and Dante was also speaking informally, Rayenne was uninhibited too.

“Because we really are that kind of relationship.”

Rayenne’s eyes narrowed further, but Dante added one more thing with a pleasant expression.

“We’re also academy classmates, aren’t we?”

It was a fact she hadn’t known at all.

The original Rayenne had always been quiet and was someone who had no interactions with others.

Though there would be many people who remembered the original Rayenne, she felt completely caught off guard because she’d never thought there would be someone who would acknowledge her first like this.

“Our duchess friend doesn’t seem to remember me—how disappointing.”

To avoid showing her flustered state, Rayenne answered sullenly.

“Because that’s the extent of our relationship.”

Returning the words Dante had just said, Rayenne looked around and sighed, whether fortunately or unfortunately, at finding no one there.

“Are you going to keep acknowledging me like this from now on?”

At the sudden formal speech, Dante widened his eyes exaggeratedly.

“Wouldn’t it be funny to pretend not to know each other now, after I already called you my friend in front of the duke, Duchess?”

His grinning face was so irritating, and his tone was as slippery as his expression, making Rayenne’s gaze automatically sharpen.

She felt like she wouldn’t be satisfied unless she shot back at him.

“I’ll have to hope we don’t run into each other as much as possible!”

After shooting back at his insistence on acknowledging her and turning around, Rayenne picked up a book that caught her eye and settled down to sit.

It was intended to avoid mixing words with Dante any further, but Dante unconcernedly brought a book like Rayenne and sat across from her.

Fortunately, unlike her expectation that he would keep bothering her, Dante just quietly read his book.

He read his book so quietly that Rayenne even glanced at Dante.

Seeing that even his page-turning speed was consistent, he really seemed to be reading.

Since leaving her seat would seem like she was paying too much attention to him, Rayenne also stopped paying attention to Dante and focused on her book.

Since it was a book she’d grabbed roughly as it caught her eye, it didn’t take long for Rayenne to close it.

At the same time Rayenne stood up from her seat, Dante also closed his book.

He looked around leisurely and asked, “What should I call you, Duchess?”

At the out-of-the-blue address talk, Rayenne’s brow furrowed.

“You’re frowning again. Since we’re close friends, I want to call you by your name. How about it, Rayenne?”

To Dante, who tapped her brow pointedly while smiling, Rayenne returned a sigh first.

“What if I say no?”

“Then Rennie? Rien? What’s your nickname?”

Rayenne’s brow furrowed even more.

“What nickname?”

“Then Pretty?”

Rayenne thought she’d like to throw a punch at that grinning face just once.

“Do whatever you want.”

“You call me whatever you want to call me too. For reference, my nickname is Dan.”

“As if I’d have occasion to call you.”

Though it was a question, the tone was no different from making a definitive statement.

Rayenne, who turned away sharply, thought it would be better to be with her statue-like husband instead.

“If you have occasion to call me, call me anytime, Rayenne.”

At the voice heard quietly from behind—when had he followed?—Rayenne’s shoulders flinched.

“Why do you keep doing this to me?”

When Rayenne suddenly stopped and asked, Dante also stopped behind Rayenne’s back.

Accordingly, an intense and refreshing scent rushed in from behind.

It was a scent that strongly left traces of his presence in places he’d been.

“Because I make you question things?”

Though the tone remained light as always, the content was not light at all.

What kind of questions had he felt?

Rayenne felt a chill down her back and moved one step forward.

But Dante, who stepped one step forward, stood even closer behind Rayenne than before.

His breath was precariously close to touching her ear at any moment.

“That I became the duchess?”

“I’m not interested in that.”

Why did the much lower, emotional voice only sound unpleasant?

Rayenne thought the reason was the sense of distance she felt from Dante.

His cold and dark eyes, which tried to see through others but didn’t reveal any of his own inner thoughts, clearly showed an invisible wall.

“Even if we were academy classmates, I know we weren’t even friends.”

Since it had never been described even in a single line in the original, Rayenne could be certain.

But Dante’s face showed he felt no problem with that part.

“I was watching with quite a bit of interest. Sadly, it seems you had no interest in me at all.”

Dante now whispered in her ear.

Rayenne, who got goosebumps, jumped forward a couple steps like she was fleeing and quickly turned around.

Even facing Rayenne glaring at him fiercely, Dante’s face remained only leisurely.

Dante took a large step, once again instantly closing the distance she’d created in her escape.

His graceful lips slowly rising opened slowly, and Dante’s face loomed over Rayenne’s face.

“Different.”

Dante’s eyes were dark green. Like grass leaves crushed by a child playing house.

Meeting those eyes that looked almost black at a glance, Rayenne clenched her fists.

“Like you’ve become a completely different person.”

She knew she should deny it, telling him not to talk nonsense.

But Rayenne couldn’t even move her mouth at the feeling of her breath being choked.

Rayenne, who glared at Dante until both eyes reddened, barely spat out one phrase like vomiting.

“…I.”

Once she opened her mouth, her breath at least cleared somewhat.

The illusion of being strangled also quickly disappeared. Then her rigidly stiffened body moved.

Rayenne, who pushed Dante away with both hands hard enough to make a thud, staggered back one step from the recoil.

“I just don’t want to live like before.”

Rayenne gritted her teeth and turned around. She didn’t want to exchange any more words with Dante.

Behind Rayenne quickly exiting the library, fortunately, Dante didn’t follow.

Having actually exited the library, Rayenne had nowhere to go and ended up stopping after just a few steps.

Though she was anxious that Dante might come out from behind, she didn’t bother to turn around and check.

As Rayenne furrowed her brow facing a fork in the road, someone appeared around the corner from one path.

“My lady.”

The calm tone and low, composed voice were more welcome than anything.

“Your Grace!”

Enough that Rayenne unconsciously brightened and welcomed him.

But Jin, who had been striding forward, stopped short at those words.

At the steady gaze that now felt like a habit, Rayenne, who had been approaching Jin, finally realized her mistake.

“Jin, are you heading back now?”

When she called him with a different address, Jin looked down quietly at Rayenne standing before him and slowly nodded.

“Let’s go back now, to our home.”