Chapter 1 – Because of My Wish

Not long ago, everyone expected that Epona and Karos would soon divorce, but the couple had managed to maintain their marriage for almost a year now. People whispered that they seemed to be getting along better than expected.

But in reality, it was nothing like that.

“I wanted to be a happy couple. I really wanted to become a happy couple….”

Early dawn. In the quiet prayer room where no one else was present, Epona knelt before the statue of Goddess Beatrice and murmured.

At first, it was good. After all, she had married the man she fell in love with at first sight.

But the longer she continued her married life with him, the guilt she had tried to ignore grew bigger and threatened to consume her. Karos, who was forced to marry her due to the Goddess’s revelation.

Even so, Karos fulfilled all his duties as a husband. At parties where couples were supposed to attend together, he always looked after her, and he often visited the Laura Marquisate’s mansion, Epona’s father’s residence.

So there was a glimmer of hope. Perhaps he didn’t completely dislike her.

But that hope was in vain. Even after a year of marriage, they had never spent a night together in the same room or the same bed. Whenever their fingertips accidentally brushed, Karos would recoil in shock and step back. What followed was always a stern expression.

Whenever Epona saw Karos like that, she realized again.

She could love this man, but he would never love her.

She could be happy thanks to him, but he could never be happy because of her.

That fact climbed up from her ankles and strangled her throat. Perhaps that was why facing Karos was always so difficult and miserable for Epona. But not seeing his face was even more painful, so she couldn’t leave.

“I’m sorry…. I dared to make such a wish….”

She had made a selfish wish and troubled the person she loved. Yet, she was so disgusted with her own selfishness that she couldn’t bear the thought of divorce.

So she always came here to pray.

“If someone he loves appears, then….”

She would let go of her own greed and let go of him.

She couldn’t let her wish make him unhappier.

But even so, she desperately prayed that the person he would love would appear as late as possible.

* * *

‘If that ignorant Ordo family son ever bothers you, tell me anytime, Epona.’

On her way back to the mansion by carriage after leaving the Temple of Beatrice, Epona recalled what Marquis Laura had said to her long ago while gazing out the window.

Her father had always been dissatisfied with Karos. He behaved like a father marrying off his precious daughter to a thief.

But Epona thought differently. All this happened because of her wish, so Duke Ordo should be the one lamenting. However, lacking the courage to tell the truth, Epona remained silent.

She was a coward.

“We’ve arrived.”

At the coachman’s voice announcing their arrival, Epona stepped down from the carriage, drained.

The newlywed mansion was familiar yet somehow alien. The longer she stayed here, the more it felt like Karos became unhappier, which made her suffer.

But if not here, there was no other way to see him, so she couldn’t leave on her own. And so, a year passed by in a blur.

She truly was a terribly selfish person.

As soon as she stepped into the mansion, she sensed someone right in front of her. When she looked up, Karos was staring at her indifferently. Strangely, he looked as if he was waiting for something.

Just as Epona was about to ask if something was wrong, Karos spoke first.

“Where are you coming from?”

“Huh? Ah… I went to the Temple of Beatrice.”

“At this hour?”

At that moment, Epona looked up at Karos.

Was she just imagining the interrogative tone?

She thought it was nothing and nodded.

“Yes. There are fewer believers at dawn, so it’s easier for me to go quietly.”

Even before marrying Karos, she always went at dawn.

She wondered if maybe he didn’t like her going at that hour, but thankfully, Karos said nothing more. He simply held out his hand to her.

“Then, how about having breakfast together for the first time in a while?”

Karos tried to share at least one meal a day with her. At first, Epona was grateful and happy for this, but after realizing it was just a duty, she couldn’t help but feel bitter.

“Okay.”

She couldn’t refuse, even though she knew. No, if she could, she would want to cling to that sense of duty.

But the guilt that had grown deep inside her said this:

Karos should no longer have to sacrifice himself because of her selfishness.

* * *

“Aren’t you tired?”

It was their first breakfast together in a while. As the food was being served, Karos asked in a low voice.

“No, I’m fine.”

Even before marrying Karos, Epona always went to the Temple of Beatrice at dawn. Perhaps because it had become a habit, she didn’t even feel tired.

“Come to think of it, um….”

Karos paused for a moment, then looked straight at Epona and spoke again.

“Are you free ten days from now?”

“Ten days from now?”

Was something happening ten days later?

Epona looked puzzled for a moment, then nodded.

“Yes. I think I’m free.”

“Then, let’s meet then.”

He was always the type to keep a blank face.

But strangely, just for this moment, he seemed to be in a good mood. No, to be precise, he seemed excited.

‘Is something good happening?’

If they were an ordinary couple, she would have asked lightly. But since they were not yet comfortable with each other, Epona swallowed her curiosity and kept her mouth shut.

Then, suddenly, it occurred to her.

‘Ten days from now is our wedding anniversary.’

It was their first wedding anniversary. Epona had been preparing a gift for Karos for months.

‘Could he be remembering our anniversary?’

The hope she had tried to cut off for so long suddenly began to grow inside her.

Was he remembering their wedding anniversary too?

Was he asking to spend time together on that day?

Epona tried hard to suppress her rising smile and clenched her hands tightly.

Somehow, she felt good.

* * *

The next morning, Epona hurried to the jewelry shop as if she had been waiting for this moment.

“Is the item I requested coming along well?”

“Of course. Would you like to see it?”

The jeweler smiled brightly and placed the gift box in front of Epona. When she untied the carefully tied ribbon, inside was a finely crafted emerald brooch.

“It’s even more beautiful than I expected.”

Epona smiled softly as she inspected the emerald brooch closely.

The clear and vivid color was reminiscent of fresh early summer greenery, and she couldn’t help but admire it.

Epona thanked the jeweler repeatedly and left the shop. She couldn’t wait for her wedding anniversary, so she could give this brooch to Karos.

‘I hope he likes it.’

She felt that Karos would at least wear the brooch out of courtesy. Of course, what Epona wanted was not a sense of duty, but genuine sincerity from the heart, but she knew well that such a wish was just her own greed.

‘Will it suit him?’

Epona looked down at the gift box in her hands and wondered.

With his fair skin and handsome appearance, it would surely suit him. She could already picture him wearing the emerald brooch she had prepared on his chest.

Just imagining it made her heart flutter pleasantly.

‘I want to see him wearing the brooch….’

With excitement, Epona hurried toward the mansion. Just then, she saw a familiar figure from behind, turned her head to the left, and saw a flower shop with bright flowers neatly displayed. In front of it, a woman was smiling shyly, and—

‘Karos….’

Her husband was standing there.

The woman covered her face bashfully, and Karos smiled at her. The sight was so unfamiliar.

The Karos she knew always maintained a blank expression. But now, he looked like someone else, with a constant smile on his face.

“….”

Epona paused for a moment and looked down at the gift box in her hands.

The gift she had prepared so carefully for months now felt wretched and pitiful.

* * *

From the moment Epona accepted that Karos had no feelings for her, she had expected that a day like this would come.

If her husband found someone he loved, she would leave without regret.

But she hadn’t expected his partner to appear so soon, even before their first wedding anniversary.

Actually, she thought Karos would never find someone he loved. No, she wanted to believe that. While hoping he would give her loving glances, she still couldn’t imagine that cold man falling in love with anyone.

‘So what should I do now?’

Upon returning to the mansion, Epona put the gift box as far from her sight as possible. But even so, her gaze kept drifting toward it.

A gift without an owner.

It felt like her own heart, which made her even sadder.

‘No, don’t jump to conclusions.’

Maybe he just heard a funny story and laughed. Maybe she was overthinking things.

But the next day, Karos went to the flower shop again. She tried to rationalize that he was just buying flowers, but when she saw the flowers in the shop lady’s hands, Epona froze.

The flowers Karos had prepared for her on their wedding day. Karos was smiling at the woman holding those flowers.

In the end, Epona had to admit it.

Her husband had found someone he loved.