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IGF 6
“Shall I teach you what the dignity of a noblewoman is, Roselyn? It is obeying your husband’s every word!”
He held the wine bottle upside down. As the deep red wine, reminiscent of blood, streamed down onto the floor, the color drained from Roselyn’s face. Isaac laughed loudly, seemingly satisfied by her frozen state. He slammed the wine bottle violently onto the marble table. Crash! With a sharp shattering sound, shards of glass scattered across the bedroom floor.
Isaac was panting, his rage boiling over. He desperately wanted to crush her right now and drive himself into her until she begged for mercy. However, if he tamed her that way, she would only ever do the bare minimum to avoid the situation. He intended to break Roselyn and make her obedient to her very core. In many ways, he felt that being shunned from the wedding night would be a more miserable insult. He poked at Roselyn’s gown with his finger as if issuing a threat.
“Up until now, other bastards might have drooled over you even if you acted like that, but I’m not them. A bitch who doesn't know how to be soft and supple is tasteless.”
At his words, the woman’s face flushed red with despair and humiliation. He didn't like how she looked as if she were about to wail, yet didn't shed a single tear. Stubborn bitch. He felt a surge of irritation, thinking she would be more difficult to tame than he had expected.
Feeling foul, he decided to visit a brothel to relieve this lingering sexual frustration. Isaac grabbed the door with a thud and spoke menacingly.
“Don't even think about stepping a foot outside until you've reflected on your behavior. You're nothing but an orphan bitch with nothing to your name. I am Count Bluebell now!”
The moment the door closed, the cool night air lingering in the hallway brushed past her toes. Roselyn, who had been biting her lip to hold back her sobs, began to weep quietly as the sound of the door shutting echoed.
From that night on, a fever began to burn through Roselyn’s entire body. Unable to withstand the excessive stress, she finally collapsed. It was the first time she had suffered such a fever since the previous Count had passed away.
“How pathetic. I heard you were shunned last night. Was it really that shocking?”
Selena, who had come to visit under the pretext of checking on her, seemed determined to upset Roselyn rather than worry about her. Looking strangely pleased, she hummed a tune while carelessly placing a damp towel on Roselyn’s forehead.
“Unable to even capture a man’s heart... I worry greatly about how someone as helpless as you could possibly manage the internal affairs of this Count's estate.”
Water dripped from the poorly wrung towel. The droplets fell over Roselyn’s closed eyes and nose, sliding into her ear. Half-conscious due to the headache caused by the fever, Roselyn tossed and turned, frowning at the damp, cold sensation in her ear. Selena’s cheerful voice pierced through her wet ear.
“I suppose I cannot hand over the household management to you until I am convinced you can handle it. Roselyn. Now, get some rest.”
“Haa, ugh... no...”
Her head throbbed with every movement. She had to snap back, she had to say no, but she simply couldn't bring herself to get up. Exhausted by the slightest struggle, she soon fell into a deep, death-like slumber.
By the time her fever finally broke and she woke up, five full days had passed. Roselyn received no help or care other than from the maids who attended to her out of obligation. She struggled to recover her strength. Even though the cold meals the maids carelessly left for her felt scratchy in her throat, she forced herself to chew and swallow. She took every dose of the medicine said to have been brought by the physician. To shake off her depression, she consciously opened the window and tried to think only positive thoughts while feeling the spring breeze brush through her fingers.
And it seemed Isaac was sincere when he told her on the wedding day that she wouldn't be able to step a foot outside until she reflected. Except for when the maids came and went, the bedroom door remained locked from the outside. However, she actually thought this was for the best. The mere thought of facing his face again and actually spending the night with him made her nauseous. She even thought that her subconscious desire to never encounter him again had triggered the fever. She hated him so much that she would rather be locked in the room forever.
Roselyn decided to calmly enjoy this time of being completely alone, which might be her last. She was so exhausted by everything that she had no strength to lift a finger other than to simply exist.
But perhaps she had let her guard down too much. Not long after, Isaac and Selena arrived, plunging her back into deep despair.
“The Count says he has something to tell you, Roselyn.”
The two of them, who had entered without notice since the morning, sat side by side opposite Roselyn. Sitting with her back straight, Selena brought up the topic and flicked her eyebrow toward Isaac, who looked somewhat sullen.
“The thing is... ahem.”
Isaac cleared his throat, glancing tentatively at Selena. Perhaps frustrated by his hesitation, Selena adjusted her posture and glared at him, urging him on.
“Here. Take it.”
While Roselyn looked on, puzzled as to what was happening, Isaac handed her an envelope. Before Roselyn could even finish reading the document inside, Selena sighed as if she had a splitting headache and spoke in a rapid-fire torrent.
“I tried to stop him, but there was simply nothing I could do! Just how did you behave to make the kind and innocent Count Bluebell personally hand over divorce papers?”
Selena muttered that she couldn't face the late Count and made a gesture of wiping away tears. Roselyn’s hand trembled slightly as she realized the identity of the paper handed to her was a notice of divorce.
In the Chappel Empire, divorce among nobles was—paradoxically—more frowned upon than adultery. Furthermore, it was particularly disadvantageous for noblewomen. Noblemen with titles often remarried even after a divorce.
On the other hand, once a noblewoman was swept up in the scandal of divorce, remarriage was practically impossible, and even if she did remarry, it was difficult to integrate back into high society. Women who received a large alimony settlement or had a significant inheritance fared better, but for those who received nothing, the remaining options were few.
And yet, a divorce less than a month after her wedding. This was equivalent to a sentence of expulsion from high society for Roselyn. Born into noble society, everything had ended before she could even set foot in the world of the nobility.
“If you've read it, sign it quickly.”
Whether he was displeased by something or not, Isaac repeatedly smacked his lips and urged Roselyn on. She seemed not to hear his words, staring blankly at the divorce papers, lost in thought.
The shock that felt like her heart was dropping was only momentary. Her mind was clearer than she expected. Yes. This might actually be better. Rather than living under the same roof and touching skin with Isaac, it seemed better to endure the humiliating gazes of others.
And if she divorced, she could reclaim the title of Count Bluebell. While remarriage might be difficult, there would be no shortage of men who desired the title of Count Bluebell. She just had to leave the house immediately and find someone to buy the title before Selena did. As if she had made a decision, she gripped the quill and signed the divorce papers.
“Since I have signed the divorce papers, please leave this mansion as soon as possible.”
Selena took the documents Roselyn pushed toward her and scrutinized them carefully to ensure the signature was correct. Then, with a satisfied curl of her lips, she handed the papers to Isaac. Isaac, who had been wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, frowned as he took the documents from Selena.
“What are you talking about? Leave my house? Where would I leave to?”
His face was the height of audacity. Thinking that she wanted to slap that smug face just once, Roselyn spoke clearly, putting strength into every single syllable.
“Since we are divorced, the title will be reclaimed. You are no longer Count Bluebell, so I would like you to leave.”
“Hahahaha!”
Isaac cackled as if Roselyn’s words were truly hilarious. Beside him, Selena was also laughing quietly, covering her mouth with a mysterious expression. The sight of the two of them laughing side by side looked eerily similar, and Roselyn quietly rubbed her arm to get rid of the goosebumps.
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