Life After Divorce - Chapter 19

It happened when Rail put down his guard duty for Lilien and visited the northernmost forest.

At that time, the forest was classified as a dangerous area for magical beasts and surrounded by a magical barrier, but due to an error in a magical tool, a princess from the Western Regions who came for a trip accidentally entered near the forest.

The knights who rushed in surprise at the call that worked in the middle of the night hesitated with red faces when they saw a woman in an almost naked outfit.

Just as the princess was about to be devoured by a magical beast that suddenly attacked, Edmond appeared and saved her.

The Western princess was enveloped in a vision of a silver-furred wolf looking back at her, covered in blood.

It was enough to fall in love.

“I, I want to marry you. Let’s go to my homeland together.”

“Not unless I’m crazy.”

Edmond sneered at the heartfelt confession as if he had seen a madwoman.

The first taste of coldness for one raised preciously rather ignited the princess’s desire to conquer.

She did not leave the forest and stayed by Edmond’s side for a fortnight.

She entertained the knights’ boredom with a troupe brought from her homeland, attracted attention by riding a lion with a magnificent mane, and served abundant Western food.

But Edmond did not bat an eye and stayed holed up in his tent without showing his face.

When all kinds of temptations did not work, she thought of using aphrodisiacs and finally, overcoming her shame, sneaked into Edmond’s tent.

Edmond, seeing the woman who had climbed on top of him, said without moving:

“Who are you?”

“What…?”

He grabbed the bewildered princess by the scruff of her neck, dragged her out, and threw her to a knight.

“She’s an assassin. Get rid of her before throwing her as food for magical beasts, it’s annoying.”

He said as much, causing the Western princess to leave in tears of humiliation, spewing all sorts of unspeakable Western curses.

“Sigh, how could he not remember the face of a woman who circled around for a fortnight trying to seduce him?”

Rail, finishing his reminiscence, glanced at his master with narrowed eyes.

The sighting of Edmond had been the talk of the town for days, making headlines that shook the empire.

Rumors spread that the empire’s hero was a handsome man with silver hair like silk threads and deep, captivating eyes.

They say women of marriageable age began rushing in and out of dressmakers’ shops so much that the doors were about to come off their hinges.

All to catch Edmond’s eye. Though the subject of their attention probably couldn’t care less.

“I hope he doesn’t incur Lady Lilien’s wrath.”

Just as Rail was heaving a deep sigh, his head throbbing:

“Stop thinking useless thoughts and deliver this letter.”

Edmond held out the Emperor’s letter from under the documents.

Rail nodded slightly, grasped the letter, and disappeared into the darkness.

Edmond, scanning where Rail had been, looked over the documents without reaction, then inadvertently recalled today’s events.

“I entrust that fragile child to you.”

“Thinking of the innocent and kind Lady Etricia makes my heart ache…”

“Considering the sworn sisters’ matter too, please be a little kinder to her, she’s pitiful-”

Edmond chuckled and ran his elegant hand through his hair.

“This is ridiculous.”

Fragile? Innocent and kind? Who on earth.

Even if Rail’s statement was to persuade him, the rest of the comments made no sense.

Certainly, the betrayal of sworn sisters was theoretically something to be hurt by. But the description of being fragile, innocent, and kind was wrong.

Hadn’t she resolutely decided on divorce and skillfully hired a lawyer?

She was thick-skinned, acting affectionately towards Lilien whom she had tried to kill as if nothing had happened, and cunning in getting what she wanted. She might try to harm someone else if it benefited her.

Such a dangerous person was fragile and kind?

Well, she might appear so on the surface. That’s how it was with the vassals who said they believed in him, including his uncle.

They whispered that they trusted him without doubt, with kind and affectionate faces while hiding their sinister intentions.

But who would have known they would stab him in the back right after?

Ha, breaking into a fierce laugh, he narrowed his eyes and thought. That he must never let his guard down under any circumstances.

In the dim study, a beast-like glint flashed in his eyes.

Lilien, who had been sitting on the sofa in the private fitting room, suddenly stood up, covering her mouth.

“Lady Etricia, it suits you so well!”

As I responded with a dry smile, Lilien tugged on Edmond’s sleeve, saying it was true.

“Isn’t that right, Edmond?”

Edmond, who had been sitting cross-legged on the opposite couch with a bored expression, raised his gaze to look up at me standing on the platform.

I hurriedly put on a harmless eye-smile, but he only met it with a gaze as harsh as the north wind.

“It suits you well.”

I smiled vainly at the compliment extracted by a nudge to his side.

“…Thank you.”

But your expression is sour. I’ll understand since the effort is commendable.

Edmond observed me intently for a moment before carelessly turning his gaze away.

Whew, I let out a shallow sigh.

I had expected him to assign a guard for my outing with Lilien, but I didn’t know he would accompany us directly.

Moreover, today’s Edmond had twice as fierce a gaze, making me flinch repeatedly.

“What did I do?”

Was it because I made an outing appointment with his sister without his consent? Or was it because of Berita?

While I was rolling my eyes, trying to deduce, a commotion passed beyond the curtain hiding the interior.

Lilien tilted her head with a puzzled expression.

“There seem to be more customers than usual today.”

That’s because your younger brother has returned.

I swallowed my words and smiled brightly.

The empire was abuzz with talk of the returned elite knight corps.

It was a good time for gossip before the imperial palace banquet.

Moreover, since the day before, a minstrel’s lyrics praising Edmond’s beauty had been circulating, giving hope to many women.

Edmond neatly tied down his hair, which reached his shoulders, and wore a white shirt and vest that accentuated his sculptured muscles. Thanks to his tidy appearance, the sharp atmosphere that had been close to that of a mercenary disappeared, making him look like a handsome nobleman.

Even now, weren’t the female employees standing by busy stealing glances at Edmond?

“How long are you going to look?”

“Pardon?”

I blinked at the sudden voice.

Edmond turned to me with a slight frown, seemingly displeased.

“Do you have something to say?”

I wasn’t the only one looking.

I said with a fresh smile:

“…If I’ve offended you, I apologize. I was momentarily entranced by the Count’s exquisite beauty.”

Edmond sighed and lowered his eyes.

“Are you saying such things again? Please refrain from making statements that could lead to misunderstandings. It’s troublesome for those who hear them.”

This time, it was a bit unfair. It wasn’t flattery, but sincere.

“It’s true. Not just me, but everyone thinks so.”

“The only one who praises excessively is the Countess.”

“Oh my, even the minstrel did. What did they say…? ‘Three moons shine brightly in the empire, so the stars fell to him and became silver fragments-‘”

“That’s why such words make me uncomfortable-”

Edmond, who was turning to me with a deep frown, hesitated when he noticed Lilien.

Lilien had her hands clasped together with sparkling eyes.

“Edmond, is it true? There’s a song about you?”

“That’s…”

I opened my mouth in place of the troubled Edmond.

“Of course, it’s a song praising the Count’s appearance.”

“Oh my, I’d love to hear it!”

“Shall we go listen when we get the chance?”

“That sounds wonderful, Lady Etricia.”

As Lilien smiled brightly and even clapped her hands, Edmond sighed and pressed his temples.

For a moment, I met his reproachful eyes beyond his large hand, as if asking why I said such things, and I averted my gaze. I almost burst into laughter.

‘Oh dear, was the minstrel too much?’

For someone who gets flushed up to his neck at even a small compliment about his appearance, it must be an incredibly embarrassing thing.

‘I tried to gain favor, but I keep teasing him instead.’

But this is partly Edmond’s fault too. Where did that terrifying ferocity from the original work go? He shows reactions so pure they’re almost pristine. The honest reactions shown by someone whose thoughts are usually impossible to read must be stimulating my mischievous side.

“Eek!”

It was then. The excited Lilien stepped on an employee’s foot with the heel of her shoe.

The startled employee dropped the box containing the pearl brooch and sat down.

“I-I’m so sorry!”

Lilien hurriedly sat down with the employee. The employee, smiling dryly and saying it was fine, was more concerned about the scattered brooch than their own foot.

Lilien said, on the verge of tears:

“Don’t worry, I’ll say it was my mistake. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s alright.”

Despite the employee’s calm response, Lilien was restless.

“W-we should check your foot first. Edmond, I’ll be right back, could you pin the brooch on Lady Etricia for me?”

“…I’ll go.”

“No, I’ll go.”

Edmond tried to get up from the sofa, but Lilien, seemingly flustered, blurted out one last thing to Edmond before disappearing with the employee.

“You haven’t forgotten what I said yesterday, right? I’m counting on you!”

Eventually, Lilien pulled back the curtain and disappeared into the light of the hall, exchanging words with the employee.

Whatever conversation they had, Edmond sighed with a hardened expression.

I glanced at Edmond, who was standing like a statue, and quietly closed the red velvet curtain that had been pulled back on the platform.

Surely he wouldn’t actually think of pinning the brooch.

But at that moment, I heard the sound of something being picked up and footsteps approaching the platform where I was standing.

Swoosh-. The sound grew louder, and then the curtain was boldly pulled aside, revealing Edmond’s face. With the brooch in his hand.

Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)

One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!

Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.

The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.

The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.

Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.

Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.

…

Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.

Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.

After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!

Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”

The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.

It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.

When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…

Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.

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