The teacup that slipped from Judith’s hand clattered noisily and rolled across the floor in sharp fragments.
“I-I’m sorry.”
Judith, who had turned pale, muttered softly in a slightly trembling voice and began frantically picking up the pieces of the teacup.
Sinclair stared at Judith silently for a moment before slowly parting his lips.
“Judith. That’s enough, you may leave now.”
“…”
“It doesn’t seem like a conversation to be had leisurely over tea anyway.”
Judith nodded as if she understood and left the drawing room with slightly unsteady steps. Her face was still deathly pale.
And in the drawing room where silence settled, only Sinclair and Duke Will Frederick remained.
“Of course, I am well aware that this is a proposal you did not expect, Your Highness.”
It was Duke Frederick who spoke first.
“But it will not be a great loss for Your Highness either. Rather, it will be to your benefit.”
“…”
“As Your Highness is aware, the families with the most private soldiers in Adenbell are the Hank family, the Connor family, and our Frederick ducal family.”
There was nothing particularly wrong with the duke’s words.
However, Duke Hank had recently become a commoner, so all the soldiers he had were now under the royal palace’s jurisdiction. In other words, it also meant they were now supplementing the forces that Hister, the crown prince, could mobilize.
Fortunately, Eric Connor also had soldiers comparable to the Hank ducal family, but there was no way to outnumber the imperial soldiers, which included the soldiers of the former Hank ducal family.
In such a situation, if the Frederick ducal family, which had the third largest number of soldiers among Adenbell’s noble families, supported them…
It would become a battle with a sufficient chance of winning.
Sinclair was not unaware of that fact.
However…
“You also know that I already have an imperial consort.”
Sinclair’s face was as cold as ice as he brought up the topic of Elaina.
As if asking, “Do you even realize what nonsense you’re spouting right now?” Frederick flinched slightly at Sinclair’s gaze, but he didn’t back down easily either.
“Forgive my impertinence, but the current imperial consort cannot provide any significant assistance to Your Highness.”
“…”
“The Aswald family has already become commoners, and all the assets of former Count Melvin have been returned to the imperial palace. But for Your Highness, who has great things to accomplish…”
“Assistance?”
Frederick’s words did not finish. Sinclair scoffed as if he found it utterly ridiculous and let out a hollow laugh.
“Will Frederick, what kind of assistance do you think I need the most?”
“…Pardon?”
At Sinclair’s question, Frederick couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
In the current Adenbell, what Sinclair Butler needed most was obviously…
“Isn’t it the soldiers to overthrow Crown Prince Hister?”
Sinclair’s golden eyes shone brightly as he stared at Frederick. He glared at Frederick as if mocking him, then spoke again in a low voice.
“A vast army. Enormous wealth that could buy Adenbell and still have leftovers. The power to immediately expel Crown Prince Hister without repercussions.”
“Your Highness…?”
“None of that.”
In the past, now, and in the future that would continue until his death. No, perhaps even in death, there was only one thing Sinclair needed.
A woman named Elaina.
“Do I look desperate enough to be swayed by your petty offer?”
Sinclair laughed.
“You even dare to put the position of the empress on the table as a condition. The duke has more audacity than I thought.”
“Your Highness, I am not suggesting you immediately cast out the imperial consort.”
Frederick hurriedly continued.
“You can keep her as a concubine or a mistress, can’t you? Neither I nor my daughter Beatrice are so narrow-minded that we cannot accept such an arrangement. So…”
“I will have no concubines or mistresses. Only an empress. It will be the same in the future as well.”
“Pardon…?”
“And yet, you bow your head and plead, offering your daughter, whom I’ve never even seen, not for the position of empress but as a concubine…”
…and you bring up Elaina?
Sinclair’s golden eyes blazed.
At that moment, Will Frederick realized.
That he had made a grave mistake.
And also…
The rumor that the “scoundrel Sinclair” truly loved the crippled half-blood of the Aswald family was the truth.
‘Does this even make sense?’
That Sinclair was making such a foolish choice? For none other than an imperial consort who couldn’t even properly fulfill her role. Frederick had an expression of utter disbelief.
“…”
Sinclair stared intently at Frederick for a moment, then stood up from his seat without any hesitation.
“Let me give you some advice, Frederick.”
He then warned Frederick in a voice filled with anger.
“If you’re going to say such things, it’s best you never set foot in the imperial palace again.”
“Your Highness, that’s not what I meant…”
“I don’t care what you meant.”
Sinclair cut off the duke’s muttering.
“Unfortunately, I am an impatient man, so I might cause trouble before even understanding your true intentions.”
“…”
“So be careful. No matter how many soldiers you have, the duke also has only one life, doesn’t he?”
With those words, Sinclair left the drawing room without looking back. He then began walking down the quiet corridor.
…Even if he used the fancy word “proposal” and made a move, now that the highest-ranking Heswin family among the five families had decided to pull Sinclair’s strings, Duke Frederick would have no choice but to make the same choice anyway.
Even if that wasn’t the case and the Frederick family sided with Hister, it didn’t matter. Especially if they were the kind of people who would treat Elaina with such disgusting disrespect while speaking of her.
However, there would continue to be people coveting the position of empress in this manner.
[I won’t be able to lend you any power when you become emperor…]And in that process, Elaina would…
[I might cause you to be pointed at and criticized because of me.]“Damn it…”
A curse slipped out from between Sinclair’s tightly clenched lips. He clenched his fists as if trying to control his anger, then repeatedly let out deep sighs.
* * *
Anelli’s townhouse located in the imperial capital regained its owner after a long time.
“Since the date for the next gathering has been set, send letters to everyone. Don’t forget to deliver one to Her Highness the imperial consort as well.”
“Yes, Lady Anelli. I will make sure to send the letters without missing a single person, so don’t worry.”
Watching the back of the maid leaving as soon as she finished speaking, Anelli smiled with satisfaction.
Anelli slowly looked around the neatly organized hall of the townhouse.
This was one of the things she considered most important before a gathering, and the reason was simpler than one might think.
It was because Anelli herself pursued perfection in all matters.
Well, it wasn’t a story limited to just preparing for gatherings.
“Hmm…”
Not long after, Anelli, who had finished her inspection that wasn’t really an inspection, sat on a chair prepared in advance in the spacious hall. She then briefly lost herself in thought.
‘It seems things are moving faster than expected.’
She could easily guess that the five families of Adenbell would move swiftly, but she didn’t expect them to be divided this quickly.
The most noticeable were the Lundberg grand ducal family and the Rockford ducal family.
‘Hister made a not-so-bad choice.’
Those two families were dissatisfied with the Heswin ducal family, the most powerful among the five families, so it wouldn’t have been too difficult to persuade them.
Especially if Yuria had left behind something to manipulate them.
‘Since Prince Chaz has gone over to Sinclair, the decision of the Walter count family is already set… The Heswin ducal family will be the same.’
Then the only one left would be the Frederick ducal family.
But Duke Frederick was a man with much bigger dreams than others expected.
Of course, at that moment, Anelli was unaware that Frederick had already visited Sinclair, spouted nonsense, and incurred his wrath, but she had a vague idea that he would do something similar.
‘From any perspective, it would be wise to put the daughter of a powerful family on the empress’s throne.’
If he could get the Frederick family on his side like that, Sinclair would have a sufficient chance of winning even if he started a rebellion tomorrow.
However…
‘Can Sinclair really abandon that imperial consort?’
If she hadn’t seen the unfamiliar expression Sinclair always had when he was with Elaina, Anelli would have thought he would naturally accept the proposal.
But strangely, she had doubts.
“Either an obstacle or an opportunity… One of the two.”
Anelli, who had been stroking her chin, muttered softly.
If Anelli also decided to support Sinclair, but Sinclair couldn’t abandon Elaina, she would become an obstacle to Anelli as well.
On the contrary, if Anelli wanted to raise one of the imperial family’s collateral bloodlines as the new emperor, it might take some time, but Elaina would be an opportunity instead.
Sinclair must be aware of all these facts.
It was at that moment when Anelli was deeply lost in thought alone.
“Lady Anelli, you have a visitor.”
“A visitor?”
At the sudden mention of a visitor, Anelli raised her head with a puzzled expression.
Then she saw the person standing behind the maid.
“…I know it is rude of me to visit so suddenly, but I have gathered the courage to do so.”
Anelli, with a subtle expression, stared intently at the person who had spoken, then shifted her gaze to the maid.
“Go and bring some tea.”
“Yes.”
As the maid quickly left, understanding the order, Anelli, who had a meaningful smile, looked at Ryan in front of her and asked,
“Lord Ryan. What do you want to say to me that you have come to see me?”
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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