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Translator: uly
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: No Place in Helmunt
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"What?"
"Let's get a divorce."
I gave my answer to Rianna as she put the retrieved ring into her pocket and asked again.
The blowing wind felt unusually colder.
It probably wasn't just my imagination.
I couldn't offer a proper explanation, so I brushed it off as just a feeling.
Perplexity dripped from Rianna's distorted expression.
Even with her flame-like red hair and eyes, her icy, expressionless face had finally cracked.
"You're not going to ask the clichéd 'why,' are you?"
Rianna held her breath and closed her mouth.
Her eyes twitched slightly, confirming I'd hit the mark.
"We're not living a married life that anyone could call a real marriage."
We slept in separate rooms, our conversations had dwindled, and there was no consideration between us.
"I think our feelings have cooled enough that we can let each other go."
Honestly, I was confused at first too.
It didn't make sense that the dead Rianna was still wearing her wedding ring.
Did she still have feelings for me?
Or had she only realized its value after we parted?
All sorts of doubts arose.
But after spending just this one day, I realized none of that mattered.
'Whether Rianna has any lingering attachments or not—that's not important at all.'
What truly mattered was—
'I no longer love you.'
A refreshingly cool smile spread across my face.
The knot that had tied me since my previous life was finally undone.
Rianna's feelings weren't the only ones that counted. Mine mattered too.
Because we were husband and wife.
"Isaac...?"
I took a step closer and whispered softly.
"You've had a hard time living with such a worthless husband all this while."
I hoped she'd shake off any lingering regrets or resentments.
That way, starting a new life wouldn't be encumbered.
'This should be enough, right?'
By calling myself a worthless husband, I'd lowered myself plenty.
Rianna's twisted expression gradually returned to normal.
She let out a short sigh—"Hoo"—then spoke in a thoroughly businesslike tone.
"Father has started saying it's about time we had a child."
"A child?"
The sudden topic left me momentarily stunned.
I'd never heard this in my previous life.
Back then, I'd have lost a leg to the chandelier by now and been at the physician's.
In any case, Rianna continued.
"He never trusted our eldest son Roengreen before, but it seems he's decided to name him the next heir at this Sword Festival."
Eldest son Roengreen.
A man a year older than his eldest sister Rianna, who frequently tormented me.
He was also the reason Rianna and I had no children after four years of marriage.
Because there was a chance that she, the capable eldest daughter, might have to inherit the family instead of the unreliable eldest son.
'Even with a second son, considering passing it to the eldest daughter...'
It spoke to Rianna's competence and the incompetence of the Helmunt men.
"So Father's finally made up his mind?"
"Even if he only judges by ability, Roengreen is still far better than me as successor. If I became family head, it'd politically cement his incompetence."
"So now we should have a child?"
"If he chose me as heir and I got pregnant, there'd be all sorts of restrictions. But it seems he's firmly decided on Roengreen now."
"Ah."
"So we don't need to sleep in separate rooms anymore."
Watching Rianna lay it out so matter-of-factly, a sudden doubt crossed my mind.
"Were you tense all evening just to bring this up?"
"I wasn't tense."
Her expression grew even more rigidly blank as she stared at me.
"No way you weren't. Didn't I tell you before? You look angry when you're nervous."
"..."
At my words, Rianna poked her cheek with a finger.
Her pursed lips affirmed her tension through silence.
"I see. Good for you."
"Good?"
Her blank expression shook again at my response.
"The timing's perfect. Find yourself some other upstanding man instead of me. That's all there is to it."
If she got pregnant, divorce wouldn't be so straightforward.
"Divorce usually blemishes the wife's reputation. But if the husband's at fault, it's not quite the same."
"..."
"Say he has kleptomania, likes blood, or has some perverse tastes. Throw out any excuse, and people will see you as the victim."
"..."
"Plus, you're the eldest daughter of Helmunt. A minor stain like that won't matter."
"Why?"
Rianna, who had kept her mouth shut until now, finally couldn't hold back.
"You want a divorce that badly? What's the reason?"
"I don't want to stay in Helmunt anymore."
There was no hesitation in my answer.
It even felt like I'd been waiting for the question.
"..."
"Rianna. To outsiders, Helmunt is a beautiful rose. But to me, holding it, it's just thorns piercing my hand."
I'd said everything I needed to.
Spotting Alois, the sex maniac, spying on us from below the balcony, I didn't want to stay any longer.
"I had some wine today, so I'm tired. I'll head in and sleep first. We'll tell Father-in-law separately."
I turned and went inside.
Looking at the messy banquet hall prepared for tonight's event, I gave a wry smile.
'The servants will have a tough time cleaning up.'
Sorry about that.
But this was the last time.
"Wait."
Rianna suddenly grabbed my wrist.
I stopped and glanced back at her.
"Yeah? What is it?"
The conversation had ended on a relieving note.
To wrap it up as nicely as possible, I gave her a gentle smile.
In stark contrast to my smile, a rare anxiety showed on Rianna's face.
"Sorry, but divorce is off the table. Father won't allow it."
"He's never liked his commoner son-in-law who can't even wield a sword properly. He'd probably be thrilled."
"It's too sudden. He thinks we're getting along fine."
"No way. The family head has eyes too."
"...Society isn't as simple as you think. Me cleaning up doesn't make you spotless just because you roll in the mud."
"Sigh."
She seemed ready to list reasons all day if I kept listening, so I sighed, and her lips stopped.
"Rianna."
I dropped the smile from my eyes.
My suddenly icy gaze pierced straight through the woman before me.
"Your brothers call me a worm who can't even handle a sword properly. Getting beaten in spars is routine now."
"..."
"To your little sister, I'm just a convenient servant. I've handled all her big and small errands, even the secretive ones."
"..."
"Father-in-law doesn't care about any of it. He has no interest in me to begin with. A live-in son-in-law who can't swing a sword doesn't qualify as Helmunt."
"Isaac."
"And finally, the wife I thought would always be on my side... chose to stand by and watch."
"Isaac, that's—"
A sneer curled my lips.
Disdain mixed into my hollow laugh.
"Making excuses? There were reasons? Rianna, do you know what you should have said here at the very least?"
"..."
"An apology."
Rianna clamped her mouth shut.
An apology now would just be stepping on her own foot to put out a fire—it was too late.
That was what I meant.
"Still don't get it? Rianna, in this great Helmunt family—"
I had no place.
I roughly shook off Rianna's arm.
"And."
A bitter smile formed as I rubbed my wrist.
The next words came out in a tone so cold it surprised even me.
"Husbands and wives don't grab wrists like that. It's creepy."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Rianna lingered on the banquet hall balcony for a long while.
"Sister?"
The voice of her third brother, Alois, came from behind.
Rianna deliberately tried not to turn around.
She didn't know what expression she was making right now.
But she didn't want to show it to anyone.
"Ha, haha. Quite a few incidents today, huh? Especially that chandelier falling out of nowhere—that was startling."
He was right.
The chandelier that had nearly crushed Isaac.
If he hadn't dodged so nimbly, it could've been a disaster.
"Are you heading back now—"
"Alois."
"Yes, Sister? Need any help?"
Alois had always been obedient to her.
Sorry, but it made Rianna strangely uncomfortable.
"Leave me alone."
"Sister? Did something happen with Brother-in-law today—"
Rianna didn't answer.
Her silence warned him not to press further.
"I'll head inside first then, Sister."
Alois left with a polite bow.
Rianna stood there alone for a moment longer.
And then,
Once she'd calmed a bit, she finally made it back to her room.
The room was much tidier than usual.
One of the rose stems in her cherished flowerpot was something Rianna tended to so it never wilted.
She tossed the prepared scented candle and matches from the table into the trash.
She took off the dress she'd carefully chosen for tonight.
Normally, her maid would help, but it was late, and she'd sent everyone away long ago.
No, she'd specifically told her maids not to come near her room tonight.
Her full-length mirror caught her eye.
Beneath the half-torn dress,
black lingerie of a provocative design she never usually glanced at clung to her body.
"..."
Without a word, Rianna headed straight to bed.
There were two pillows laid out.
One was hers.
The other one
sat empty, waiting in vain for its owner who wouldn't come.