I Ended Up Living Next Door to My Ex-Husband (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
“I’m definitely divorcing you, you know.”
Rebecca’s demeanor was utterly composed.
Her indifferent expression remained unchanged.
She looked as though not a shred of emotion remained within her—
whether love or obsession.
It was precisely at that moment, when he had been utterly convinced his expectation—that Rebecca would refuse divorce at all costs—had completely missed the mark.
“Oh, but there’s a condition.”
…Of course there was.
A sigh tinged with irritation slipped from Cedric’s lips.
“If it’s some absurd demand like ‘I won’t grant you a divorce until you hand over the entire Grand Ducal fortune,’ spare me. I’m sick of hearing the same thing over and over.”
“Oh, that’s fine. We’re still the Grand Duke Twins household, after all. I’ll just need a mansion to live in and enough allowance for my expenses. You can manage that much, right?”
She wore a refreshingly carefree expression, as if she truly had zero interest in his entire fortune.
Cedric blinked slowly, barely concealing his bewilderment.
“…If that’s really all you want…”
“Yes. We can finalize the alimony later. Let’s discuss the divorce terms first. If you accept my condition, I’ll sign the papers right away.”
“And just what exactly is this ‘grand condition’ of yours?”
Cedric was now genuinely curious.
At his question, the corner of Rebecca’s previously impassive mouth lifted slightly.
“Keep our divorce a secret from everyone—including the servants—for six months after we’re divorced.”
Cedric’s thick brows slowly furrowed.
“Is that really all your condition amounts to?”
“‘All that’? You have no idea whose life depends on it.”
Rebecca murmured softly, like someone consumed by anxiety.
But Cedric didn’t dwell on her words about lives being at stake.
He didn’t even have the luxury to consider them.
He was already overwhelmed just trying to decipher Rebecca’s hidden intentions behind such an inexplicable demand.
‘Is this woman serious?’
His habitual suspicion rose again.
He needed to verify whether her words held any truth.
Just then, a good idea struck him, and Cedric’s lips curved into another relaxed smirk.
“If we’re keeping our divorce secret for half a year, then you’ll have to stay in my manor during that time.”
“I suppose so. Do you dislike that?”
“Not at all. I’ve endured five years—if you’ll finally grant me a divorce, another half-year is nothing.”
That was the honest truth.
“But once we’re divorced, it’ll be difficult for us to live in the same mansion. So… how about this…”
Cedric blinked his blue eyes slowly.
“How about staying in the ‘Mansion of Darkness’ for now?”
“The Mansion of Darkness… you mean the empty mansion right next to this one?”
“Yes.”
Cedric let out a leisurely chuckle.
Her performance, meant to conceal her true intentions, would surely end this time.
Rebecca, who used to be utterly unable to endure even a single minute apart from him if they weren’t under the same roof—
was she really going to live separately in the Mansion of Darkness for half a year?
‘Even extraordinary acting skills wouldn’t be enough to pull that off.’
This time, he’d finally uncover her true feelings.
Just as he watched Rebecca’s slowly furrowing brow and confirmed his suspicions were correct—
“Is it well-prepared over there?”
“…Prepared?”
“You said it’s been empty for a long time.”
“Of course it’s in good order.”
“The fireplace works properly, right?”
“It works.”
“And no rats or bats will come out, right?”
Though Cedric answered diligently—“Probably not”—he was thoroughly confused by the situation.
After Rebecca meticulously inquired even about whether meals would still be served properly as before, she finally nodded.
“I like it. Let’s proceed with the divorce agreement.”
She acted as if she were inspecting a house for rent.
Moreover, she even gave a small, satisfied smile.
Cedric was momentarily speechless.
“…Are you serious right now?”
The words he’d kept bottled up slipped out before he could stop them.
Would this woman really go mad living there?
He was starting to worry about her himself.
But Rebecca, in contrast, remained perfectly composed.
“Of course. It seems more comfortable and better this way.”
“…”
“Can I sign the divorce papers right now? I think it’d be best to move my things first thing tomorrow morning.”
Rebecca asked as she pulled a fountain pen from a small drawer beneath the table,
as if ready to leave for the Mansion of Darkness at once.
Cedric stared blankly at her for a moment before finally regaining his composure.
“…I’ll need time to prepare a separate confidentiality agreement. I’ll prepare it together with the divorce documents, so we should handle everything at once then.”
“Oh, right. Of course.”
Disappointment flickered across Rebecca’s face as she handled the fountain pen.
Cedric found her strangely unfamiliar.
“Let’s sign together at three in the afternoon, two days from now, in the Glass Garden.”
“Alright.”
Her ready compliance made him nearly laugh out loud.
Usually, their conversations began with Rebecca’s obsessive demands, led to Cedric’s refusal and dismissal, and repeated this cycle endlessly.
In those moments, it always felt like fighting an unending battle against sticky marshland dragging relentlessly at his ankles.
Cedric had grown utterly weary of that suffocating repetition.
…Yet now their conversation flowed so smoothly.
Because something he’d expected to be difficult had ended far more easily than anticipated, he felt both hollow and uneasy.
‘There’s no way it’ll end this simply. She’ll surely try to persuade me again or…’
Just as Cedric, lost in thought, lifted his teacup—
“Haaaam.”
Rebecca smiled slightly when their eyes met.
“Oh, sorry. I took a bath, and now I’m so sleepy. Um… by the way, Cedric.”
As expected, Rebecca wouldn’t end the conversation just like that.
‘I should’ve left immediately instead of getting distracted.’
Cedric was having that faint regret when—
“You’re not going yet?”
Rebecca blinked her red eyes and asked.
“I’ve already stated my condition regarding your request. We’ve reached a conclusion, and even set the date to sign the divorce. I think we’ve covered everything worth discussing.”
“…”
“Besides, right now… it’s already past the time I’d normally be asleep.”
She sounded almost displeased, as if her schedule had been disturbed.
This was the first time he’d ever received such a dismissal from Rebecca.
Coupled with her tone and the way she looked at him—as if he were an unwanted guest—
Cedric forced down his flustered feelings and stood up.
“I’ve caused you much inconvenience. Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Yes. Take care, Cedric.”
Rebecca also rose without hesitation and gave him a polite farewell.
‘…Take care?’
She was the one who always begged him not to leave—and once he did, would throw tantrums alone in despair.
Yet now, Rebecca quietly followed behind him as he walked toward the bedroom door, as if seeing him off.
‘Why is she suddenly doing something she never did before…?’
Everything about her behavior felt unnervingly crisp and unnatural.
Just as Cedric, unable to bear the awkwardness, turned his head again—
Rebecca, who had been calmly offering her farewell, suddenly lost her balance and swayed.
“Then I’ll see you on the agreed day… huh? Ahh!”
Apparently, she’d unknowingly stepped on the long sash of her robe.
“Uwah?!”
It was a hair’s breadth from disaster—Rebecca was about to topple straight to the floor.
“Rebecca!”
Cedric unconsciously rushed to her side.
Fortunately, her body landed safely in his arms.
“…Haa.”
Just as he let out a sigh of relief,
something unfamiliar pressed softly against his firm abdomen.
Slowly realizing what it was, his body gradually stiffened.
.
.
.
“…”
Cedric neither ignored nor pushed away my falling form.
We remained pressed tightly together, frozen like that for a few seconds.
Fwip…
To make matters worse, the robe sash dropped to the floor, and I could feel the robe slowly gape open where it had barely been tied.
If I moved now, my bare skin would surely be exposed.
‘Ugh, I’m going to die of embarrassment.’
The cool yet refined scent emanating from Cedric’s body began to fill my nostrils.
I widened my eyes, trying to focus my gradually fading consciousness.
But all I saw was the thick vein pulsing at his throat.
‘…Seriously, I’m going crazy.’
I’d been determined to escape the five-minute standby mode and had painstakingly pretended to be aloof…
But Cedric was simply too perfectly handsome—merely looking at him made my heart race.
He was, after all, the very man I’d always dreamed of while reading the novel.
Maintaining my composure in this situation—pressed so closely against him—was impossibly difficult.
Through the thin robe, his abs felt as solid as rock, and against my ear, his chest echoed a heartbeat similar to my own.
Feeling that, my breath against his neck grew steadily warmer.
“Rebecca.”
A low, captivating voice resonated.
As I slowly raised my head, my eyes met his blue irises.
His raven-black hair shimmered like the night sky, his thick brows framed mysterious blue eyes,
his high nose bridge and sharp jawline were veiled in elegance, down to his faintly flushed lips.
This lethally sexy man gazed solely at me.
My heart felt ready to burst—and my eyes kept helplessly drifting toward his lips until I thought I’d lose my mind.
Just as I stared, spellbound, at his beautiful face—
“So, after making me let my guard down, you intend to tempt me again?”
Cedric, who had been watching me intently, murmured in a low voice.
How could this man have such a handsome face, a perfect body, and a voice this good all at once?
‘Even if this is a novel, it’s downright unfair.’
I was just beginning to understand, without realizing it, why Rebecca had been so obsessively desperate to spend a night with Cedric.
“To resort again to this kind of temptation to prevent our divorce… It’s almost disappointing how utterly unchanged you are.”
His voice, sharp as winter wind, jolted me back to my senses.
Cedric had grown colder the more Rebecca clung to him.
I couldn’t let him misunderstand me like this.
“Don’t misunderstand. I will divorce you as planned.”
At the same time, Cedric’s eyebrows shot up.
He fell into silence, as if deep in thought.
How much time passed like that?
Gradually, the hands holding me began to tighten.
“Ahh… Now I finally understand your scheme. You’re sharper than I thought.”
Cedric twisted the corner of his mouth and muttered something incomprehensible.
“Yes… Even if we divorce, ‘that’ won’t disappear.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“You, of all people, should know better than I do—since that’s exactly what you’re after.”
“…?”
“If we spend the night together even now, then after our divorce, I’ll…”
Cedric slowly continued, gently tilting my chin upward.
The moment our eyes met—his cool blue gaze locking onto mine—I felt my entire body freeze from the chill.
“…I won’t be able to endure even a single day without you.”
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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It had to be something like this, Original Rebecca sounds pittiful
He’s going to be soooo surprised when the new Rebecca comes back
LOL I KNEW IT. LOVE IT. I’M IN LOVE WITH THIS NOVEL!!!