When I couldn’t continue my response, Matilda persistently exploited the gap.

“You might say you were too busy, but please don’t forget that marriage vows often take precedence over the wedding ceremony itself.”

“……”

At that moment, I realized. Whether I ran away or did anything else, Matilda would eventually spread the word.

I considered begging her, but soon gave up.

Not only would my pride not allow it, but eventually Alex would speak up, and even if not him, there’s no knowing how the word had already spread.

After all, there’s no such thing as a perfect secret.

“By the way, our innocent young ladies will be quite shocked. The newspapers were going on about a perfect couple’s marriage of the century, but the reality is completely different.”

“……”

“Still, I’ll admit you look good together. The saying ‘birds of a feather’ suits you all so well. A mentally ill man with a child on one side, and a divorcee who ran after money on the other—or should I call you an adulteress now?”

I felt the anger that had been boiling finally explode, cutting off my reason.

I stood up and approached Matilda. As I got close, she seemed startled, widening her eyes and shrinking back, but only for a moment.

She smiled faintly and said,

“What? Are you going to hit me? How vulgar.”

“No, the vulgar one isn’t me, but you, Duchess.”

“What?”

Matilda’s face contorted with anger and embarrassment, and I smiled slyly and whispered in her ear,

“You, are you still in love with Alex?”

“……”

And I clearly saw it. How she froze at my single remark. Judging by her trembling eyelashes and the bewildered expression on her face, I could roughly guess her state of mind.

“Is that why you’re doing this? I had what you couldn’t have, and my new husband after breaking up is even better.”

“……”

“Be honest. Are you jealous? Dying of jealousy?”

Matilda trembled with wide eyes.

“That’s not it!”

“Does Duke Icalion know? That you still love Alex.”

“I said that’s not it!”

Matilda shouted spasmodically and stood up. Looking at me with murderous eyes and raising her hand, she seemed ready to slap my face.

“No?”

“……”

“Why are you so angry? If you get so angry about something that’s not true, it makes people more suspicious.”

“You……”

“Fine, I’ll admit it. Yes, I’m a divorcee, and I have a contract marriage with that man.”

Matilda’s eyes widened.

“What?”

Having denied it all along, when I suddenly admitted it, Matilda looked surprised. As if she had been hoping I would beg her not to tell anyone.

“But he doesn’t have a mental illness. He’s not only mentally sound but exemplary. Too much so to be gossiped about by someone like you.”

Matilda’s face twisted viciously.

“Someone like me? Are you saying that to me? What about you? Didn’t you just admit you’re a divorcee? Aren’t you the dirtier one?”

I chuckled and said,

“Yes, I’m dirty. I’ve been desperate to restore my position as a dirty divorcee. Using one person? That’s nothing to me. I’m already a divorcee, how much lower can I fall?”

“……”

“And Duke Esteban is truly a good person. He has everything from looks to wealth, and he’s even kind enough to only look at me. Wouldn’t you use him too?”

“What? You really……”

Matilda looked at me with an expression of disbelief, and I delivered my final blow,

“In summary, since he means nothing to me, it’s a waste of time to torment him. When the contract period ends, I’ll divorce him cleanly and move on.”

Just as I finished speaking and turned my back on Matilda to return to my original seat, a sound came from somewhere, and when I turned my gaze, I saw a slight gap at the door.

‘Was someone eavesdropping?’

Who? A servant?

Though Matilda was in front of me, this wasn’t the time to worry about that. I hurriedly opened the door and left the room, and soon I could tell who had been eavesdropping.

I could recognize him just by his back.

‘Assel.’

It felt like all the blood in my body was turning cold. The misunderstanding he might have if he hadn’t heard my words from the beginning was obvious.

I hurriedly ran to him. When I grabbed his arm, he turned his head in surprise, and faced with eyes that seemed hurt, I desperately shook my head.

“Assel, let me explain. I understand what misunderstanding you might have, but that’s not it. So, this is……”

But Assel coldly shook off my hand and said in a cold voice,

“Your guest is waiting. Go see her. We’ll talk later.”

“Assel, that’s not it……”

I shook my head, but he didn’t listen. He turned his back and was about to leave, but then looked back and murmured in a low voice,

“I, I can’t bear it anymore.”

His voice was thick with emotion. Also, when I encountered his resigned face, I couldn’t say anything more.

Because I felt like a wall had formed between us that had never been there before. A high and solid wall pushing me away.

Because of that, I could only stand there blankly, unable to hold onto him as he turned his back and walked away.

❀❀❀

While I was away, Matilda had left the reception room. According to the maid, she had boarded a carriage to return home. Her steps had been particularly hurried compared to other visitors.

Well, it would be stranger to remain in that situation.

Anyway, now that Matilda has been dealt with, the remaining task is…

‘I need to go see Assel.’

I need to meet him and tell him it’s all a misunderstanding and explain the circumstances.

But somehow I felt uneasy. I had an ominous feeling that he wouldn’t listen to me at all, and even if he did, he wouldn’t believe me.

Sure enough, when I entered the room, he was packing his things. Though he must have heard my presence, he didn’t give me a single glance as he packed various documents into a large suitcase.

To speak up, that wall he had erected earlier felt too high.

But I believed it was just my feeling and began,

“Assel, please listen to me. You didn’t hear the conversation from the beginning, right? Of course you would misunderstand.”

“……”

“That woman was threatening me. She said she would spread the fact of our contract marriage.”

To be precise, she had threatened me by mentioning his mental illness, but I couldn’t tell him that truthfully.

“So, I had no choice but to……”

It was at that moment. When he turned his head, his eyes, which had shown no emotion, held me and revealed their true form, like a butterfly shedding its cocoon.

He gazed at me with eyes that mirrored his shattered feelings like a mirror.

Then his lips opened.

The voice that came from his lips trembled, just like before.

“You seem to have a great misunderstanding.”

But his voice, tinged with confusion, implied that he found it bothersome to listen to my explanation.

“I heard almost all of it. Thanks to being a mage with particularly good hearing.”

“You heard everything…?”

He heard everything and still acted so coldly?

“Wait, Assel, I don’t understand.”

“And another misunderstanding you have is that I’m not leaving because you did something wrong, but because I did something wrong.”

“What does that mean?”

I looked at him with wide eyes, and he looked back at me with bloodshot eyes and spoke in a tone that seemed about to collapse,

“It was all an act from the beginning.”

“……”

“The contract marriage and all that. It was just an excuse.”

“……”

“Because I loved you and wanted to keep you by my side somehow.”

“……”

“Is that enough?”

“……”

“Now that I’ve said this, there’s no reason to continue our marriage. Let’s end it.”

“Assel!”

Why? The moment I heard Assel’s words about ending it, my head went blank without me realizing it. As if receiving a death sentence.

The words that didn’t affect me when I said them to him came back as a dagger piercing my heart. My chest hurt as if it was being torn apart. To the point where I couldn’t breathe.

“Why? Have you suddenly developed feelings that weren’t there before?”

“……”

“Because you pity me with my mental illness? Because a man with a decent appearance is so foolishly kind?”

“That’s not… that’s not it! Please listen to me. I……”

I love you.

Such words were about to rise from my throat without my realizing it. But before I could finish my sentence, he interrupted,

“I thought it was okay to be used. I thought if I could keep you by my side that way, it would be fine.”

“……”

“Even if it was a sweet lie, I could just believe it was the truth on my own.”

“……”

“But now, I can no longer… I can’t think that way anymore. No, I shouldn’t.”

“……”

“I can’t trust you anymore.”

With those words, Assel closed his briefcase. The sound of the bag closing with a thud felt like the sound of his heart turning away from me and building a solid wall.

Only then could I realize the essence of this whole situation.

Trust had been broken.

Assel no longer trusts me.

No matter what I say to him from now on, it won’t cover the sound his heart makes.

Even though it was a result I had brought upon myself, just being reminded of that fact was unbearably painful.

For several minutes after that, we didn’t say anything despite being in the same room.

Only the sound of paper being scratched filled the void as he packed his documents.

Then, feeling this couldn’t go on, I opened my mouth,

“So what are you going to do? Are you really suggesting we divorce?”

He who had been silently packing documents turned around. He looked at me blankly and then nodded.

“I’ll send the divorce papers to the mansion soon.”

“When you say mansion, which mansion are you referring to?”

“I’m referring to this mansion.”

“The Esteban ducal residence?”

Assel nodded.

“Until you sit on the family head’s seat, we shouldn’t appear divorced on the outside.”

“……”

“And it’s also a courtesy for my unilateral breach of this contract.”

I widened my eyes.

“You want me to stay alone in this big mansion? Where will you go?”

“……One can find a home anywhere.”

I found myself in an embarrassing situation after asking. This is because he is the wealthiest man in the entire Empire.

I realized that asking such a man where he would stay was quite ridiculous.

“Then, rest well. I’ll be going now.”

And the moment I gained that realization, he stood up, soon opened the door, and disappeared from my sight.

Simultaneously, the breeze created by the closing door tickled my ankles.

When I turned my head, I could see the full summer landscape beyond the glass windows of the bedroom.

A peaceful scene where long-stemmed, light green plants poked out their necks, the sun shone intensely, and cicadas chirped.

As I blankly gazed at that scene, having forgotten the fact that I was divorced, I was soon enveloped by an empty feeling, as if my chest had been hollowed out.

Starting with that, my chest began to tickle, and tears flowed from my eyes, wetting my cheeks, as I could no longer hold back.

I bit my lips to suppress the sobs that kept trying to escape.

Suddenly, Estelia’s words came to mind,

“But there’s no guarantee that a relationship once gone will ever return. Cherishing the present opportunity and holding onto it desperately is the only answer to maintaining a relationship.”

I thought perhaps I was being punished.

Punished for taking the given opportunity for granted, and for the arrogance of not being able to measure the embarrassment of the hand extended first because I was so caught up in my own emotions.

“Hic, huu, huuk.”

When sobs kept trying to burst out, I bit my lips even harder.

Why are you crying, what have you done right?

That person must have cried countless times because of my selfishness.

Thinking of the many nights he must have spent alone, I didn’t even deserve to cry comfortably.

❀❀❀

After crying silently for a long time, when I came to my senses, the long summer day was already setting.

I headed to the bathroom. After washing my face several times with the water already drawn, I looked in the mirror.

My face with the makeup washed off was haggard, proving the sleepless nights of the past few days. Moreover, my eyes were swollen from crying too much, making me look quite ugly.

If I were to face someone like this, it would be proof to anyone that I had been crying, so I hoped I wouldn’t encounter anyone…

But when I opened the bathroom door and went out, there was an unexpected guest.

“Mom!”

A clear and lively voice like staccato. A small height not even reaching my waist, and a face that looked soft and fluffy.

A boy who was the Duke’s nephew but strongly resembled him.

“Sion.”

It was Elysion.

But I couldn’t just be happy to see Elysion. Not only was my appearance haggard, but Elysion was dressed in outdoor clothes.

The implication of outdoor clothes, not indoor clothes or pajamas, was all too clear.

“But where are you going?”

Elysion nodded with a bright smile.

“Dad said we’re going on a trip. He said Mom is too busy to come, but he told me to say goodbye.”

“Ah.”

So he’s finally leaving me…

“Next time, Mom will come too, right?”

I hesitated before answering,

“Yes, Elysion. Let’s definitely go together next time.”

Unable to tell the child that there wouldn’t be a next time, I gave a faint smile.

“Have a good trip, Sion.”

Elysion nodded, but then puffed up his cheeks and asked,

“But Mom……”

“Yes?”

“……Can’t you hug me before I go?”

“Ah.”

I nodded willingly with a smile. I approached and held Sion’s small body for a while.

The touch and warmth of that small body, and the faint scent of baby powder, felt unbearably precious.

Once he leaves, I’ll never see this child again. Feeling inexplicably heavy-hearted and barely holding back tears, I took in the child’s image countless times before speaking,

“You know Mom loves you very much, Sion?”

“Yes, Sion loves Mom very much too.”

“Yes. I’m sorry I couldn’t take care of you enough.”

For being an inadequate mother… I’m truly sorry.

I always said I was working and couldn’t play with you properly except during our regular meeting times.

A sense of guilt toward the child suddenly surged like a tide, but I soon let Elysion go.

“Goodbye, Elysion.”

The child, who had already left my embrace, was saying goodbye to me.

“Yes! I’ll come back soon!”

A farewell that might be the last.

After waving hands for a long time, Elysion finally turned around, and I followed his cheerful, pattering footsteps out the door with my gaze.

After Elysion left the room, I suddenly had such a thought,

‘Maybe it’s for the best.’

Rather than the innocent Assel and that child being covered with that filthy muck, it might be better for me to bear it alone.

❀❀❀

That day, after Assel packed his suitcase and left, I became dazed.

Literally, I was just blankly doing nothing in the large mansion.

I lived a life of doing nothing—sitting blankly on the bed looking out the window, eating tasteless food when hungry, and sleeping only when I couldn’t resist drowsiness anymore.

After some time had passed, to the point where I was starting to forget how much time had elapsed, an outsider visited the mansion.

He left just one envelope with Sherry and disappeared, and Sherry brought that envelope and handed it to me.

Normally, I would have neatly cut it with a knife, but strangely lacking motivation, I just tore the sealed opening with my hand after receiving the envelope.

Simultaneously, the documents inside the envelope were revealed, and as I roughly took them out and unfolded them, I froze.

At the top of the document, the words ‘Divorce Agreement’ were written in large letters.

“Madam, what kind of document is that?”

Sherry, who knew nothing about the situation, looked at me with a puzzled expression and then approached me with worried eyes.