In the carriage returning home, Arasila’s mind was in turmoil.

She never dreamed she would receive divorce notice from Demian as soon as she saw his face. She hated him for coldly pushing her away. She felt disappointed, hurt, and aggrieved.

However, on the other hand, she also felt guilty about Demian’s words that only bad things had happened since they got married. Because of her, he had fallen out with the Crown Prince, faced life threats, and even been imprisoned.

She had made his life, which already had many enemies, even more difficult.

Arasila sighed as she pressed her throbbing forehead.

Although she had left without agreeing to the divorce, she now felt at a loss about what to do next.

Originally, she thought she would be able to vaguely draw up future plans when she met Demian today. Now she didn’t know what to do.

‘How should I do what’s best for Demian…..’

With a tired expression, she closed her eyes and didn’t move until they arrived at the mansion.

“….What is this.”

However, what greeted Arasila upon her troubled return home was the sight of the mansion in shambles.

While she was away visiting Demian, the Imperial Knights had come and turned the house upside down.

The mansion staff were trying to stop the roughly moving knights with hesitant faces, albeit passively.

Of course, no one was listening to those pleas to be careful.

The butler, who had been lingering near the stairs, spotted Arasila standing frozen at the entrance and hurried over.

“My lady, the Imperial Knights came an hour ago saying they would search the mansion. We asked them to wait until you returned, but they wouldn’t listen.”

The butler reported with a gloomy face. Arasila’s face, which had already been in a bad mood the whole way back, immediately hardened.

How dare they barge in without the homeowner’s permission.

She strode over to Joseph Miller, who was standing in the middle of the main entrance directing the Imperial Knights to rummage through the mansion as they pleased.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“Welcome back, Lady Vandermir. I am Joseph Miller, vice-captain of the Imperial Knights.”

“Yes, Sir Miller. Take your subordinates and get out of my house right now.”

It was natural for her words to be unkind to these rude guests who had barged in without notice. Joseph’s eyebrow twitched before he raised his chin arrogantly and retorted.

“That would be difficult. We are here to conduct a search and seizure to secure additional evidence related to the murder case of young master Oscar Vandermir.”

“Does that mean you can arbitrarily invade a house without the owner present? You should at least ask for permission.”

“Your husband didn’t ask for permission before killing someone either, so you’re demanding too much. We Imperial Knights have been rightfully dispatched based on the law.”

Joseph sneered as he took out a paper from his chest and held it out. It was a search warrant for the Vandermir mansion. Arasila bit her lip hard when she saw the imperial seal stamped at the bottom.

Barely suppressing her boiling insides, Arasila calmly returned the warrant and said.

“I don’t understand what evidence you’re trying to find by ransacking our house.”

“It’s to determine whether Lord Vandermir’s murder was impulsive or premeditated. Of course, the weight of the punishment will be heavy either way.”

Joseph smirked. Arasila couldn’t refute him as he put forth a rather plausible justification.

In the first place, with Demian currently imprisoned as a murderer, there was little she could do. It was frustrating that she couldn’t protest even though his mocking smile was infuriating.

“I hope you won’t interfere any further, my lady. Otherwise, we’ll have no choice but to respond forcefully for obstructing official duties.”

Joseph warned threateningly before passing by Arasila and urging his subordinates to search every nook and cranny without missing even the smallest thing.

Unable to stop him, Arasila quietly clenched her fists. Audrey cautiously approached and grabbed her arm.

“My lady….”

“…Audrey, I’m fine, so tell the people to stand back to one side.”

At this point, there was nothing good to come from blocking the Imperial Knights. Arasila gathered the staff and stood to one side of the central lobby.

Her eyes, as deep as a lake at night, watched the knights busily moving objects.

They carefully searched even the kitchen of the mansion. Though they claimed it was to find additional evidence, it seemed excessive. Hadn’t they already secured decisive evidence like the murder weapon?

Yet Joseph and the Imperial Knights were scraping up all sorts of things.

As if searching for something else.

“My lady, I hear the Imperial Knights are simultaneously searching the Red Hawk Knights building as well.”

Colin, who had quietly joined among the people at some point, whispered softly. Arasila nodded in acknowledgment.

It seemed they had raided both places at once to prevent any important evidence from being taken away.

But the more they did so, the more excessive their actions felt. Watching the knights confiscate anything that looked even slightly suspicious, Arasila thought.

‘I’m really glad I listened to Dad then.’

On the day she returned after hearing her father’s advice, she immediately called Colin and had him select important documents from those kept by Demian and temporarily move them to Duke Hugo’s residence.

Thanks to that, she had stayed up for two straight nights and nearly popped her eyeballs checking the documents one by one. It was fortunate she had moved early.

If she had been even a little late, everything would have been seized now.

It was an especially good decision to have separately set aside even the prenuptial agreement she had kept, just in case.

The knights were thoroughly searching not only Demian’s study but also the bedroom Arasila mainly used.

It was only after about two hours that the Imperial Knights’ search was finally completed.

The place they left behind was in a miserable state. They had trampled, stirred up, and messed everything up as they pleased.

While the staff hurriedly tidied up various parts of the mansion, Arasila sat face to face with Colin in the relatively clean reception room.

“Is the search on the knights’ side over too?”

“Yes, Sir Wind just sent a letter. He said they left after taking the entire commander’s office.”

“I’m not the only one who feels this is excessive, right?”

“I feel the same way. It felt like they were looking for something other than evidence of the murder case.”

Arasila rested her chin on her hand and lowered her eyes. Her slender fingers tapped the wooden armrest of the sofa.

“The things Demian valued were the Vandermir family investigation report and the Dom Guild’s ledger. I wonder which of the two they were so desperately searching for.”

“It seems like they were after the former since they pushed in because of young master Oscar’s case, but something feels off. The commander also found the latter strangely suspicious and classified it separately.”

“Is that so? Then I should take a close look at it.”

The Dom Guild’s ledger had been set aside without careful reading since Demian had designated it as confidential from the beginning.

After spending an unsettling night in the roughly cleaned mansion to check this, Arasila went straight to Duke Hugo’s residence the next day.

Though her purpose was to retrieve what she had entrusted, as soon as she stepped inside, she was confronted with unexpected news.

“Arasila, this arrived early this morning. Is what’s written here really true?”

The duchess held out something with a pale face. Arasila’s expression gradually hardened as she reflexively took it and looked.

Demian had requested a proxy divorce to Duke Hugo’s family. While revealing that his marriage to Arasila was based on a contract.

“I proceeded with the marriage to Arasila Hugo because our interests aligned. There is a prenuptial agreement notarized at the temple, which you can see.

I now judge there is no longer any benefit in maintaining the marriage to Arasila Hugo, so I demanded a divorce, but as she did not accept it, I am requesting a proxy divorce.

I ask that the Hugo ducal family promptly draft divorce papers on behalf of Arasila Hugo.”

Arasila gritted her teeth after reading the politely concluded request.

Demian Vandermir, this guy really.

It was too much that he had sent divorce papers to the Hugo ducal family after just one day, thinking she wouldn’t easily accept the divorce.

But she didn’t have time to curse Demian right now.

“Arasila, why are you silent? Is everything written there really true?”

Because her family who had just learned the truth she had been hiding all this time was right in front of her.

Arasila inwardly sighed as she saw her father and elder sister appear behind her mother. As if her head wasn’t aching enough already, she felt like going crazy with gratitude for her husband who had only increased her workload.

Arasila calmly opened her mouth as she folded the divorce request in half.

“Yes, it’s true.”

“What? You…!”

The duchess staggered, clutching the back of her neck. The duke quickly moved to support his wife whose blood pressure had suddenly spiked.

He gently wrapped his arm around his wife’s shoulders and turned to look at his daughter with a dark expression.

“Arasila, what were you thinking to do such a thing? Did any of us force you to get married?”

“That’s right, no one forced me. It was something I did entirely of my own will.”

“Why? For what reason? What interests could you possibly have had that aligned with Demian’s?”

“That’s….”

Arasila rolled her eyes and glanced at Iris. If she revealed here that it was because of her elder sister, it would be a great shock to Iris.

Not wanting to hurt her unnecessarily, Arasila hid the true reason and made up an excuse.

“I just thought marrying Demian would be good for me at the time. So please ignore the divorce request. I… don’t want to divorce Demian yet.”

She said firmly. Although the words she heard from Demian yesterday were still shocking and confusing, she had decided to prioritize saving him.

She plans to divorce him as he wishes once Demian is out of danger.

The duchess, who had been resting her head on her husband’s shoulder, suddenly straightened up upon hearing those words and wore an expression of shock.

“What nonsense is this child saying? You must divorce immediately!”

“Mom, I’m telling you Demian didn’t kill the young master. I don’t want to divorce right now.”

“Who said to divorce because of that? Tell me honestly, you volunteered for the marriage knowing about the promise between your grandfather and the previous duke, didn’t you?”

Arasila was momentarily at a loss for words at her mother’s interrogation. It was true that she had sacrificed herself knowing that fact through her prophetic dream.

The duchess, who had somewhat grasped the situation after seeing Demian’s divorce request, pressed her daughter further.

“Who told you to do that, huh? Why did you make such a decision alone without telling us and hide it until now?”

“…Because it was something I could handle.”

“That doesn’t mean you should lie and deceive all your family members with a fake marriage. How could you do such a wicked thing? Did I raise you to be so thoughtless, Arasila?”

Arasila, who had been quietly listening to the stern reprimand, suddenly felt choked up.

She had not married Demian with a light heart at all. It was a decision made after intense deliberation with the sole intention of saving Iris.

Her family was more important even if it meant disadvantaging her own life.

“I wasn’t being thoughtless. I made the decision thinking it was rational and good for everyone in my own way.”

“That’s what being thoughtless means! You judged what was good for us on your own!”

The duchess’s sharp rebuke struck like lightning.

She was considerably agitated as her past joy of thinking her daughter had found a good match who would cherish and love each other now felt empty. The duke, who was patting his wife’s shoulder soothingly, added his words.

“Arasila, Dad also thinks this isn’t right. I was proud of you for being independent since childhood, but it’s very disappointing that you proceeded with such a big matter so unilaterally without any consultation. Does our family mean nothing to you?”

“Ah, no, Dad. Don’t say that. You know how precious our family is to me….”

“If we’re so precious, why didn’t you say anything?”

Arasila’s words were blocked again, and she stammered before desperately making excuses.

“I just…. I thought if I married Demian, it would be less troublesome for Mom and Dad because of the political marriage, and it would be good for sis to avoid unnecessary harm.”

“How selfish. In the end, didn’t you act on your own using the excuse that it was for our sake?”

“….”

“Divorce Demian, Arasila. We had no intention of forcing a political marriage on you at all. So take back your arbitrary sacrifice.”

Hearing her father’s stern voice after a long time, Arasila tightly grasped the hem of her dress. She couldn’t refute her parents’ words.

It was true that she had proceeded with the contract marriage without saying a word to her family and had consistently deceived and betrayed them, even if it was to save Iris.

But she couldn’t back down here, so Arasila shook her head and opened her mouth after a long while.

“…I can’t divorce, Dad.”

“What is the reason?”

“If I divorce now, Demian will be left alone. I can’t cowardly escape while leaving him in danger.”

“We will still help Demian even if you divorce.”

When the duke gave an unexpected answer, Arasila’s shoulders jerked greatly.

“Even though it was all a lie, I’ve grown fond of Demian, and I don’t want you to become known as someone who abandoned her husband in danger.”

“Then, isn’t it even more unnecessary to divorce right now?”

“Arasila. It wasn’t a marriage based on love, so do you really think you can overcome such a big crisis as a couple?”

The duke asked in a skeptical voice.

In aristocratic society, political marriages were not strange to break at any time if interests conflicted.

Now that Demian has been arrested for patricide, it can be seen that the calculations of the two are no longer profitable.

No matter how mature she acted, the duke couldn’t let his second daughter, who still seemed like a child in his eyes, continue down the wrong path.

“I’m asking if you’re confident you won’t resent each other later.”

Arasila couldn’t say anything. As her father said, she and Demian were a union based on calculation, not love.

As one side had already expressed regret, she wasn’t confident that she truly wouldn’t resent the other later.

“It would be better for both of you to part ways at this point, Arasila.”

“……”

“I’ll draft the proxy divorce papers with that in mind. You go upstairs and rest now.”

The duke turned away first, supporting his exhausted wife.

Arasila stood there for a long time as if nailed to the spot. It was the first time everything had gone so contrary to her thoughts.