“What are you doing?”
Iana shot a glare at Karion, astonished.
“I’m saying that if you have another man, I will kill both of you with my own hands. Why do you think I can’t?”
Karion spoke with a chilling expression.
Memories from a past life overlapped over his face.
“Iana, I’d rather you be dead.”
“Karion, I’ll live as if I’m dead next to you. Please, just don’t divorce me.”
Wasn’t he the husband who shuddered at the sight of her when he was infatuated with Riel?
‘If only you had held me like this back then. When I was so desperate…’
Iana felt a mix of sadness and emptiness at the sight of the jealous Karion.
Of course, his feelings were merely possessiveness wrapped in jealousy, which could change at any moment.
“You never know, do you? Just as you took a friend of mine, who is like a sister to me, as your mistress, I might have a relationship with a friend of yours who you treat like a brother.”
“How dare you, Iana!”
As Iana mocked him, an angry Karion raised his hand high.
“…!”
She instinctively flinched in fear.
At that moment, Ruu, startled by Karion’s loud voice, burrowed into her arms.
In that instant, Iana snapped back to her senses.
‘No. If I get scared and my magic dissipates, Ruu might get hurt.’
There was no one to help her, but there was someone she had to protect.
Iana suppressed the rising anger and fear and spoke coldly.
“Karion, you’re a smart man.”
“Then you should listen to me, Iana.”
Karion seemed to like Iana’s defiance, lowering his hand to caress her cheek.
“Think about why your brother sent me here alone. And if you’re confident, hit me.”
“What?”
Karion gripped Iana’s cheek tightly.
“If you lay a hand on me, it will be a declaration of war from the Dietrian family against the Rachels family…”
“…”
“It will be a declaration of war.”
As Iana pressed him fiercely, Karion’s eyes wavered. He soon lowered his trembling hand and shouted towards the door.
“Don’t give Iana even a drop of water. Got it?”
Karion roughly swept his hair back and left the room.
“Ha…!”
Once Karion left, the tension eased, and Iana finally let out a sigh.
Was she that shocked? She couldn’t feel Ruu’s movements in her arms.
“Ruu!”
Iana hurriedly pulled back her cloak.
Nom nom-.
Ruu was nestled in her arms, sound asleep, smacking his lips.
Seeing Ruu like that, Iana couldn’t help but smile softly.
Eventually, she gazed out at the moon shining through the window and murmured in a small voice.
“Ruu, what will happen to us from now on?”
At the same time, in the tower prison of the Rachels family.
Riel sat upright, gazing at the bright moon beyond the window.
Though anger surged within her, Riel calmly reflected on the events that had transpired in the capital.
‘Surely, Brother Masel was different than usual.’
The heir of the family, always cowed by their father’s reprimands.
If Masel had been bold enough or capable enough to place her in the position of a marchioness, Riel would have seduced him first.
But he was too busy obeying their father and meeting expectations.
‘That Masel mentioned war and even pointed a sword at the Count’s neck.’
Riel knew well.
Every human has their own trajectory, and any behavior that deviates from that trajectory is always intentional.
‘I need to find out. The intention Masel is hiding…’
Creak-.
At that moment, a warm-looking, middle-aged maid named Lema entered.
An emotional person who believed herself to be good.
The type of person Riel despised the most, yet the easiest to manipulate.
‘Let’s use Aunt Lema again this time.’
Lema cursed as she looked at the untouched food.
“Less than a beast.”
“Auntie, how have you been? By the way, I heard Maltie is getting married soon?”
Riel said with a steadfast smile.
“You cursed girl! After the late marquis showed you kindness, how could you do something dirty with the lady’s husband?”
“Don’t bother cursing. I’ve already been punished and lived a life worse than a beast.”
Swack-.
Angry, Lema slapped Riel’s cheek with her thick hand.
“Ugh!”
The blow was so hard that blood welled at the corner of her mouth.
Riel bit her lip, tasting the sharpness of blood, and said.
“If someone else had hit me like this, I would have repaid them in kind. But!”
“…”
“I’m enduring because it’s you, Aunt Lema. When the maids of the Rachels family looked down on me, saying I smelled like a slave, you were the only one who treated me like a person.”
Lema’s expression grew complicated at those words, and she began to hit Riel’s shoulder with a distressed face.
“If you were treated like a person, you should live like one. How could you get caught doing such nonsense?”
“I wanted to live like a person too. I wanted to be loved like a person.”
“…”
Lema’s eyes wavered.
“Because the Count said he loved me.”
Riel shed tears with an utterly pitiful face.
Like an innocent woman with a tragic story.
Lema plopped down in her seat, crying as she spoke.
“You foolish girl! How could you be deceived by the red lies of noblemen?”
Riel crawled over and hugged Lema’s waist, pleading.
“I don’t care if everyone else blames me. But I don’t want to be hated by you. Please.”
People who believe themselves to be good can’t help but turn a blind eye to the suffering of others.
In that moment, just as Riel intended, Lema warmly embraced her.
“What should I do with this poor girl? This naive and foolish one…”
The two of them held each other and cried for a long time.
Thus, a theatrical moment passed.
With her guard down, Lema faithfully answered Riel’s questions.
“So, Iana stayed at the Rachels family for just one day before returning to the Count’s house? And the Marquis also left the marquisate for a few days after that?”
“Yeah. I don’t know more than that.”
‘Iana didn’t return to the marquisate the next day. Where on earth did she go?’
“It’s getting late.”
Lema picked up the food tray and stood to leave, but Riel called out to her back.
“Auntie, just one more thing.”
“…?”
“Who was the coachman who moved with the Marquis?”
The next morning, Iana woke to the clear sound of birds.
Stretching and getting up, she saw Ruu sleeping soundly in the box placed under the bed.
She smiled softly at the sight.
Knock knock.
At that moment, she heard a knock on the door and the voice of the head maid.
“Milady, are you awake?”
“Come in.”
The head maid entered and said.
“Milady, the Count has asked to have lunch together.”
Iana thought for a moment before replying.
“Please tell him I understand.”
The head maid cautiously spoke with a dark expression.
“And Milady, how about you honestly say that you didn’t break the statue? Aren’t you just preventing the employees from being punished by taking the blame for this?”
“I’ll take responsibility for what I agreed to, so I’ll see it through to the end.”
“…Do you really intend to divorce the Count?”
“I will divorce him.”
At Iana’s firm attitude, the head maid said no more and left the room.
After finishing her preparations, Iana entrusted Ruu to Vera and headed to the dining hall at the appointed time.
When the butler opened the dining hall door, she saw Karion sitting at the end of the table.
On the table were roasted deer meat and various dishes laid out.
Just like the scenery from the early days of their marriage when they had a good relationship.
“Are you going to keep standing there?”
At Karion’s words, Iana quietly sat down.
The two began to eat in silence.
After a while, Karion suddenly spoke up.
“Let’s send Riel back to the Rachels family. So you won’t have to worry about it.”
“…”
“And I’ll apologize to the Marquis of Rachels, so you should also go and apologize to our family elders. Let’s wrap this up like this.”
As always, it was a one-sided notification.
Her opinions were crushed as if they had never existed.
So Iana decided to follow his way of speaking, saying her piece.
“Karion, I came here to quietly wrap things up. Before your brother makes a move and things escalate.”
Bang-.
Karion slammed the table with an angry face.
“Do you really want to see this through to the end? If your husband reaches out like this, you should know to accept it!”
“Do you have conditions for the divorce you want?”
“The Riel issue too. It was just one night. I didn’t say I’d take Riel as my official mistress!”
Iana looked at the angry Karion with a sneer.
Karion and Riel’s affair.
It was expected, but hearing it from Karion’s mouth made her bitterly smile.
“Speak your desires. Let’s give and take and end this.”
Finally, Karion exploded, standing up and shouting.
“Iana Dietrian!”
“I said I won’t be Iana Dietrian anymore!”
Iana also stood up and shouted back.
At that moment, when the two glared at each other as if they would kill one another, the butler entered with a troubled expression.
“Master, I’m sorry to interrupt your meal, but I have something urgent to convey.”
“What is it?” Karion shouted at the butler as if venting his anger.
“His Highness Duke Ervin will be arriving soon.”
“What? Duke Ervin?”
“Yes. He’s coming to personally deliver the knight’s reward to the Count.”