Chapter 2

“What about that name…?”
 
As he spoke up to this point, he scolded the maids, perhaps belatedly realizing that there were many listening ears.
 
“Get out of here!”
 
The maids, startled by his brutality, ran away like an ebb. In an instant, only he and I were left in the room.
 
Oh, this situation is a bit nerve-wracking. I mustn’t show any signs of nervousness, though.
 
He gritted his teeth and asked.
 
“How do you know that name?”
 
Nervousness flashed across his face, like scum who cares about his reputation.
 
Perhaps because he was thorough about being followed when going to meet Serwen, he seemed confused about how I came to know that name.
 
“Did you follow me?”
 
“Think whatever you want.”
 
Of course, I found out by reading the original story, so no matter how hard you dig, you won’t find the source of the information.
 
It must have been a shock. He probably thought he had hidden it perfectly. He must have been humiliated at being discovered.
 
I lifted my lips at an angle.
 
“If you want to call our divorce your idea, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
 
Since I don’t love my husband, his feelings are irrelevant to me. All I want is neither more nor less.
 
The astronomical alimony from my wealthy husband. That’s all.

* * *
Oscar Crestwell looked at Marlena with a pale face.
 
Even though he always showed off that he didn’t like it, she pretended not to notice and just followed Oscar around, which was disgusting, pathetic, and funny.
 
Maybe she was that stupid.
 
The way she cowered before him, trying to get a piece of his affection, was disgusting.
 
But the way she looked at him now, with her arms crossed and her head tilted at an angle, was so different.
 
As if all that lack of behavior had been an act, Marlena now faced Oscar with confidence.
 
With a seductive smile on her full lips, she spoke to him as if he were a child.
 
“You make money quickly, right, Oscar? But when you have a scandal behind you, the reputation that scandal has destroyed may be something that no amount of money can repair. can restore.”
 
The uncharacteristically clever remark made Oscar dizzy.
 
The scandal…….
 
True, marrying Marlena was, to some extent, an act of reputational risk.
 
But it was a risk he could afford.
 
Marlena is the daughter of the Marquess of Crestwell. She was the perfect woman for Oscar to choose as a spouse.
 
Even if she went around touching men while unmarried, even if she’d given up her rights as a member of the family,.
 
‘No, after marrying Marlena, my reputation, actually… … .’
 
It got better.
 
The Crestwell daughter had fallen head over heels for Oscar, and her passion was a testament to his charms.
 
After their marriage, Marlena received a letter from the Marquis Crestwell without her knowledge.
 
It was a letter from the Marquess of Crestwell, telling her that she was a pathetic daughter. The Marquis was desperate for Oscar to keep Marlena in check so that there would be no more gossip surrounding the Marquis.
 
Fortunately, after getting married, Marlena looked at Oscar like a sunflower, so there wasn’t much to crack down on. He only had to put up with annoying whining and disgusting, gooey looks.
 
That’s why he’d more or less left Marlena alone.
 
But what if Serwen’s existence is revealed?
 
Then everything will turn for the worse.
 
Everything went dark for a moment.
 
What if he was found to be having an affair with a slave girl while neglecting his wife, who only sees him…….
 
‘No, no. Never!’
 
It was not uncommon for noblemen to have commoners as their mistresses, but Oscar had no intention of becoming one of them.
 
He is a member of the royal family, and he’s a far cry from those ‘common men’.
 
How many beautiful actresses and dancers approached him while he was leading the theater and troupe? 
 
Oscar staunchly rejected them all, maintaining a pure and ascetic image.
 
Despite engaging in a performance business with a less than favorable reputation in the kingdom, his image remained untarnished due to such ‘upright’ conduct.
 
If everything he had worked so hard to build were to crumble all at once…
 
If it were to come crashing down because of his wife, whom he had thoroughly disrespected and secretly mocked.
 
That seemed more than his pride could bear.
 
Oscar’s hands trembled.
 
Marlena asked him softly.
 
“Do you need some time to think?”
 
Even her voice was slightly different than usual. Her voice was a little husky, with a hint of nasality to it.
 
The hairs on the back of Oscar’s neck stood up slightly.
 
Before he could say anything, Marlena stepped back slightly.
 
“Well, then, I’ll give you some time, but not too much. Make your decision by tomorrow morning.”
 
She opened Oscar’s bedroom door herself.
 
It was the first time she left without a word of farewell. She always cried and begged to sleep in the same bed, saying, ‘Tonight, I really want to sleep with you’…
 
Still.
 
Oscar sobered up in an instant.
 
The sudden mention of Serwen’s name sent him into a panic, but he needed to keep things in perspective.
 
There was no way his wife, who until yesterday had been so desperate for affection, could have changed overnight. 
 
Perhaps the divorce was just a way for Oscar to get attention, as he had first thought.
 
She might not have realized that she was holding leverage over Oscar and was warning him to fulfill his marital duties faithfully.
 
If so……. wouldn’t fulfilling his conjugal duties with Marlena appease her to some extent?
 
“Marlena.”
 
Oscar called out to Malena’s retreating figure.
 
The sound of her name on his lips was unfamiliar, and he paused for a moment in an ethereal mood.
 
As if this was an unexpected development, Marlena stopped walking and turned around.
 
Oscar slowly approached her, scowling.
 
“I’ve been too indifferent to you.”
 
Marlena’s cat-like eyes widened.
 
Upon closer inspection, she was quite a decent-looking woman. While not comparable to the innocent and ethereal Serwen, her lush eyelashes and full lips were undeniably enchanting.
 
Oscar leaned toward her. Marlena’s shoulders stiffened slightly, as if nervous.
 
‘She always nags him to kiss her. If I do this much for her today…’
 
Oscar finished the math in his head.
 
“What on earth are you doing?”
 
Marlena asked in a cold voice.
 
Their lips were mere centimeters apart, and Oscar stiffened at the sound of Marlena’s voice.
 
“That’s very unpleasant, Oscar.”
 
Marlena’s words startled him, and he pulled away from her. The next moment, their gazes met, and he felt a humiliation he would never forget.
 
Marlena was looking at him with contempt.
 
It was the kind of look he always gave her.
 
He had never considered that it might come back to him.
 
“Ha…….”
 
Marlena didn’t hide her discomfort, shivering visibly as if she felt disgusted.
 
“I don’t know what kind of delusion you’re under to do this…….”
 
“Delusion……?”
 
Oscar muttered, standing there dumbfounded as if he’d been hit in the back of the head.
 
Marlena furrowed her brow as if to ask the obvious.
 
“Of course you’re mistaken.”
 
They hadn’t even kissed yet, but Malena wiped her lips with the back of her hand as if wiping away the traces of a kiss.
 
“I feel sick.”
 
With that, she left the room, not even bothering to say goodbye to Oscar. Her footsteps echoed down the hallway. As if she wanted to get away from him as quickly as possible.
 
Oscar’s whole body burned with shame.
 
* * *
“No, why would he try to kiss me there?”
 
The more she thought about it, the more ridiculous she felt.
 
He must be an idiot.
 
How could anyone but an asshole think of kissing a woman who was asking for a divorce?
 
I pressed my lips together again, not even touching. Goosebumps break out all over my body as she thinks back to the face that approached me, setting the tone.
 
“What was it about Oscar that Marlena liked so much about that weirdo?”
 
I hurried back to my room and quickly locked the door in case Oscar came to visit.
 
Even though the butler had a master key, I doubted Oscar would bring the butler with him to try to force my door open.
 
Leaning back against the locked door of the room, I slowed my breathing.
 
Suddenly, I remembered Oscar’s face and the way he’d looked at me when I said I was offended. It was kind of funny to think about. I lowered my head and chuckled softly.
 
He always had that asshole-weighing look on his face…….
 
I can’t believe he’s so gullible.
 
I felt a bit embarrassed for reacting so sensitively at that moment when I recoiled from him, but thinking that I had given him a taste of his own medicine made me feel oddly satisfied.
 
“He should’ve said something about divorcing earlier.”
 
Feeling better, I let out a little hum as I shifted the responsibility to him.
 
“I’m surprised, though.”
 
I thought that once I mentioned Serwen’s name, things would escalate rapidly.
 
I hadn’t expected him to try to talk me out of it.
 
“Saying he’s been too indifferent.”
 
Does he really hate being labeled as a divorced man that much?
 
……It’s ridiculous.
 
If he didn’t like it, he shouldn’t have gotten married, or he should have gotten rid of Serwen. What kind of woman puts up with that?
 
But what can he do?
 
Oh, the original Malena was a die-hard when it came to Oscar.
 
‘Dear husband, it must be disconcerting not having your doormat around.’
 
Anyway, I’ll have to brace myself in case Oscar tries to seduce me again.
 
Now that the original storyline is shattered, the card that Oscar is most likely to pull out is… … .