An Incomplete Divorce (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
Johann didn’t particularly want a divorce.
Any suitable marriage partner would do. That was enough.
Thus, even an illegitimate child born from a historic scandal of infidelity was irrelevant.
Because it was sufficient to serve as a shield against the bothersome elders of his house and the matchmakers of the marriage market who kept pressuring him to wed.
Moreover, his marriage to Olivia had granted him many advantages.
After all, the deal with the Crown Prince had been an undeniably profitable transaction.
Of course, his wife’s pathological obsession had been outside his calculations—but it was easily ignored, and Johann had suffered no loss from it.
“Please divorce me…”
At that moment, Olivia had shone more brilliantly than the sunlight itself—unbelievably so.
What had he missed?
Like a splinter lodged beneath his fingernail, an irritating discomfort prickled at his nerves, yet he couldn’t pinpoint its cause.
Johann tugged sharply on the reins. The racehorse, its glossy black mane flowing, broke into a gallop.
Racing across the vast, open meadow, he tried to shake off the lingering thoughts left by the sudden request for divorce.
After completing a lap around the riding grounds, Johann and the Crown Prince dismounted and headed to the Club Royal lounge to rest.
“It’s nice to get out, isn’t it?”
The Crown Prince—Johann’s cousin and exact contemporary—brushed aside his attendant’s hand and poured brandy over ice into a glass himself, then slid it toward Johann. In lieu of an answer, Johann simply emptied the glass.
“Looks like Her Grace the former Duchess has truly left you for good. You really should’ve treated her better, Johann.”
“State your business.”
Johann fixed the Crown Prince with a steady gaze.
“Aren’t you due for a new Duchess of Leopold soon?”
“You madman.”
The Crown Prince, Christian, chuckled softly as he tilted the bottle over his empty glass.
“The world’s gotten so much better these days. Be grateful you were born into such a fine age.”
Christian swirled his glass slowly, the clear ice inside glinting in the sunlight and chiming with a crisp, pure sound.
“Marry the Grand Duchess of Krantz.”
“Why don’t you do it yourself?”
Johann narrowed his eyes, staring directly at the Crown Prince.
“Low Field—I’ll give it to you as a wedding gift. Just marry her.”
Christian was already engaged to the Princess of Agent. At this juncture, signs of the Grand Duchy of Krantz—nominally a vassal of Rhondos—seeking independence had been detected.
From Rhondos’s perspective, they needed the Grand Duchess as a hostage, and among the unmarried royal men of marriageable age, the only available option was Johann, who had just divorced three weeks prior.
“We can’t very well offer Uncle Ethan.”
There was indeed a duke aged fifty, but from the perspective of the Grand Duchess—who was only twenty-two—a twenty-eight-year-old divorcé surely seemed preferable to a fifty-year-old bachelor. It was a remarkably selfish sort of consideration.
“You might as well arrange for Her Majesty the Queen to remarry the Grand Duke.”
“You lunatic. Is that even something you say?”
Christian burst into laughter, cursing as he did so. Once his mirth faded, his eyes shifted toward the portrait of the Queen hanging directly ahead.
“If Father were here to hear that, he’d burst right out of his coffin and shove a revolver straight down the Grand Duke of Krantz’s throat.”
Christian continued his mocking grin.
“I hear the former Duchess is already looking for a second husband. Of all people, Lancelot? Is she deliberately trying to spite you?”
“Shut up.”
A fierce, untamed glare shot briefly toward Christian before vanishing.
“Ahh! How frightening! Truly terrifying.”
Half of his flippant remark was genuine.
Johann was one of the very few people around Christian who never wore a mask.
He never concealed his emotions. Christian preferred Johann’s transparent honesty over those who smiled while stabbing him in the back.
“I’ve invited you to Catherine’s birthday banquet. Just keep quiet and show your face—for the peace of Rhondos!”
With theatrical exaggeration, Christian raised his glass high like a stage actor—then, instantly shifting his expression, murmured quietly,
“It’s an order.”
Ironically, at that very moment, Johann’s mind echoed with his wife’s voice.
“Please grant me a divorce.”
That memory—so utterly dry at its very end—suddenly resurfaced for no reason.
Even if heaven and earth were to split apart, Olivia would never have uttered such words.
The glass in his tensed hand was drained in one swift motion.
Slowly wiping his lips with his thumb, Johann silently gazed at the vivid blue sash crossing the Queen’s chest in the portrait—its hue reminiscent of the eyes of the woman who had once been his wife.
A second husband… was it?
Just before leaving his office, he’d received a photograph.
His former wife, walking beneath flowering avenue trees with a maid, had been smiling.
Had he ever seen her smile like that?
Johann couldn’t recall a single time he’d witnessed such an expression from her.
For the first time since meeting Olivia Blanchet, Johann looked down at the woman in the photograph and thought her beautiful—and wondered what had made his wife smile so brightly.
Among the few possibilities, he ruthlessly eliminated the worst one: Edgar Lancaster Lancelot. As long as it wasn’t Edgar, he couldn’t care less who became her second husband.
[This is the timeline separator]“Miss Blanchet has sent a reply declining the invitation.”
“Oh? What a shame.”
Edgar nodded with a faint smile, as though he’d expected this. The suite’s attendant silently placed a tray on the desk and withdrew.
A pale pink letter lay neatly atop the silver tray.
Since he already knew its contents from the report, he could have tossed it straight into the wastebasket without opening it.
Yet Edgar loosely grasped a letter opener.
Yesterday, watching her on the tennis court, he’d felt an odd sense of anticipation. Her eyes—confident, direct, and unlike before—had subtly led him to hope she might accept.
Had he been mistaken?
The sharp blade slid smoothly through the sunlight. Edgar opened the envelope and withdrew the letter, lowering his eyes to read.
“To wish the Lancelot Hotel endless prosperity—”
Though the stiff, perfunctory phrasing politely declined the invitation, Edgar couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Good heavens—such a charmingly terrible handwriting.
Each character, carefully and earnestly pressed onto the page, radiated an innocent, endearing sweetness.
[This is the timeline separator]“Goodness! Miss, it’s eleven o’clock!”
Anne cried out in alarm.
They should have finished breakfast early and left the hotel by now, but Olivia and Anne had become chronic late risers. Nearly noon, the two awoke and looked at each other from under the covers, giggling softly.
They hurriedly finished preparing to go out. Anne placed a hat on Olivia’s head, picked up a parasol, and opened the door.
As Olivia walked a few steps down the corridor, studying a map of Ritten town, she collided with someone.
“Oh! I’m so sorry.”
“It’s quite alright.”
The man, who had just slightly tipped his hat, knocked on the door of the room adjacent to Olivia’s. He was someone she frequently encountered here.
Olivia headed for the elevator, while the man stepped inside as his door opened, disappearing into his suite.
Outside the building, a sweet spring breeze fluttered the ribbon tied neatly beneath Olivia’s chin. Spring had fully revealed itself—each avenue tree sprouting tender green leaves and clusters of violet petals, scenting the wind with fragrant color.
“It was a good idea to come out today, Anne.”
“Yes. What a shame to spend such weather in a carriage.”
They longed to lose themselves in the season’s charm, but romance couldn’t overcome hunger. Anne climbed into the carriage held by the doorman and told the driver their destination.
“To Le Grand Bleu, please.”
The carriage began to move, soon picking up speed and swiftly leaving Golden Avenue behind.
After riding along the riverside road, it finally reached its destination.
The restaurant, famed for its Mediterranean seafood, had white walls and a vivid blue entrance. Inside, a staff member in a tailcoat with a napkin draped over his arm greeted them warmly.
“You’ll need to wait a moment—is that alright?”
“How long will it take?”
“Ten minutes should be sufficient.”
“Then the Lord must be watching over me.”
Olivia said with a smile. In truth, she was on the verge of fainting from hunger. As she sat at the table the staff led her to, a bartender placed a tall, slender glass before her.
While sipping her aperitif, Olivia turned slightly, taking in the entire bustling dining hall at a glance.
The high-ceilinged space opened fully toward the Vichen River through wide glass panels, and the scenic terrace overlooking the blue sea and river was already full.
Patrons savoring their meals all wore expressions of satisfaction as they conversed.
Expectation made the wait pleasant rather than dull. But the moment Olivia and Anne spotted the group of noblewomen gathered at the terrace’s left corner, their brows furrowed.
“Miss, shall we come back another time? It seems that table is meant for us…”
Anne trailed off awkwardly.
Two staff members were busily clearing a table right in front of the glass partition between the terrace and the main hall—the very spot where they’d be face-to-face with yesterday’s noblewomen through the transparent pane.
“Uncomfortable?”
“I’m fine…”
“So am I.”
Olivia turned her gaze away and playfully flipped open the menu.
“If they try being overly familiar again like yesterday, I’ll have to ask them to pay for our meal.”
Anne smiled softly at that easy confidence. This wasn’t the Miss she once knew.
Had her mistress crossed the threshold of death and somehow swapped souls with someone else? She’d once entertained such an absurd notion, gazing at Olivia as she slept.
“Why?”
Noticing Anne’s stare, Olivia looked up and asked.
“If we’re going to bill them, let’s order something expensive, Miss.”
At Anne’s determined declaration, Olivia burst out laughing.
Olivia and Anne clinked their clear glasses as if toasting. The moment their glasses chimed, commotion erupted near the entrance.
“The new staff at Anglia are absolutely stunning.”
“What a pathetic fool—flirting in broad daylight.”
The men’s raucous laughter drew closer as they entered the dining room. Olivia’s eyes widened slightly—she’d just swallowed a sip of champagne. It was the same group she’d seen on the tennis court.
Unlike yesterday, the gentlemen were now dressed impeccably. The elderly maître d’ gasped in surprise and hurried toward them.
“You’ve arrived, Your Lordship.”
“It’s been a while.”
The tall man in the center responded with an elegant smile. His raven-black hair—striking as the deepest night—immediately identified him as yesterday’s victor.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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This story deserves more hype. People should know more about this.
Sounds like someone is planning to make a misunderstanding between our couple
Here we go again, poor Olivia always getting hurt by men