This Marriage Must End in Tragedy (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
“What did you just say…?”
It wasn’t Rain, nor Larwill—it was Ansi.
At those words, she looked as if all the blood had drained from her body.
If the person appearing here today hadn’t been Orphe, she never would have accepted this meeting in the first place. Though her hair color and style were different from before, if anyone who truly remembered her face had shown up, it would have posed a serious threat.
But precisely because it was Orphe, she had rationalized that this man wouldn’t recognize her—and thus attempted the gamble.
Damion de Orphe had still been a soldier when she’d moved south, and before that, Ansi had never once encountered him. Just as she didn’t know him, he shouldn’t have known her either.
Yet the gamble had failed.
“So it really is you. Ever since that evening at the viscount’s estate, I’d had my suspicions.”
Ansi’s body stiffened under his piercing gaze. Damion reached out and gently touched her hair. The long brown locks shimmered with a reddish hue under the sunlight.
“The original color suited you better.”
“I don’t understand what you’re referring to…”
“I always thought it resembled the night sky.”
He was now certain the woman before him was Ansi de Rubelsa.
Denying it any further would be pointless. No matter how little she’d participated in high society, a few photographs from her days as Ansi still existed—and comparing them would quickly confirm her identity.
So what would he do now? Reveal her true identity to House Jiden? Demand compensation from House Larwill for sending a decoy to deceive Orphe?
In any case, Ansi had to decide her next move.
The thought that she might truly need to kill this man strangely calmed her mind—starting from the fact that she couldn’t possibly overpower this soldier with her own strength, all the way to the realization that he likely knew how to swim.
Thus, this moment—perhaps her final chance—had to be seized.
If she apologized and offered to do anything in exchange for his silence and protection, it might even become a way to get close to Cardian de Orphe.
“I’m sorry for deceiving you. Regardless of my intentions or circumstances, I believe it was wrong…”
“No, that doesn’t matter at all.”
Yet again, the man’s reaction caught her off guard.
“Were you… having a hard time?”
His soft voice left Ansi’s mind blank. Realizing what he meant, her eyes trembled faintly.
Had anyone ever asked her that before?
Not even when she lived without want as Lady Rubelsa. Not even when she’d lost everything and stood on the edge of ruin. Not even now, living under the name Rain.
“I’m… fine. I’ve been fine.”
Struggling to hide her swirling emotions, Ansi forced the words out. The man had already let go of her hair and now silently stared at her.
“A year ago, when you disappeared, I was deeply worried. I feared you might have made a rash decision after being hurt by people’s harsh judgments.”
Genuine concern filled his quiet voice. Worried? Ansi couldn’t comprehend his reaction at all.
“Did you… know me? How?”
“At House Jepp’s charity event.”
“Oh…”
She had attended that event—though she’d merely made an appearance and left immediately, completely unaware this man had been there too.
“You’re wondering how I recognized you when we only briefly crossed paths and never even spoke?”
As if reading her thoughts, Damion asked.
Ansi nodded warily.
Could it be… did he also know what his brother had done to Rubelsa? Was that why he recognized her?
“I didn’t know back then. I only realized later… that I…”
Damion frowned as if struggling to voice something difficult, trailing off at the end. The man who had always exuded confidence now hesitated.
But before the silence stretched too long, he let out a wry laugh and continued.
“That I’d fallen for you at first sight.”
“…What?”
“I liked you. I liked you then—and perhaps… I still do.”
His voice now carried more conviction, as if speaking the vague feeling aloud had solidified it.
Ansi, on the other hand, was utterly speechless.
This situation was utterly absurd.
Him—liking her? Still liking her? How could that even be possible?
How dare someone from Orphe, the very house that had brought such misery upon Rubelsa…
Look at her now—stripped of honor, fallen from grace, pretending to be a lady under another’s name, a pathetic farce—and still say such things…
She found it revolting—this man dressing up pity as affection.
So noble, so magnanimous—she nearly burst into bitter laughter.
It filled her with a filthy feeling, as if she were being toyed with by some petty, meaningless emotion.
Yet at the same time, an opportunity slithered into her thoughts.
If she could use this man to get close to Cardian… perhaps her revenge wouldn’t end in hollow futility after killing that bastard. Maybe something else was possible.
“…Thank you for seeing me in such a kind light.”
A conclusion where she repaid his kindness tenfold.
A conclusion where she dragged the name Orphe into the mud.
“Will you still meet me again after today? Next time… as Ansi de Rubelsa?”
Ansi looked Damion straight in the eyes.
He lifted one of her hands and bowed slightly, his soft lips brushing against her knuckles. Ansi bit down hard on the inside of her lip.
“Then it would be my honor.”
Looking up at her, the man smiled faintly. Beneath the spring sun, his joyful smile was translucent and beautiful.
“Next time, I’ll come to the south. How about the lounge at the Verdi Hotel, one o’clock a week from today?”
“Alright. Then I should be going now.”
“Where are you headed? Let me escort you.”
“No, I have an appointment nearby.”
“What a pity. The week will feel terribly long.”
“…I see.”
She wanted to say she felt the same—but the words wouldn’t come. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to expect an answer.
“Then, please take care on your way home.”
Damion soon turned and walked away. Ansi stood still, watching his retreating figure. When he glanced back at her with what looked like longing, she deliberately offered a gentle smile and raised her hand.
And the moment he disappeared from sight—
“Ugh…!”
Ansi rushed into the bushes and vomited violently. Her whole body ached.
Pretending to feel fluttering joy in front of the brother of the man who’d killed her father…
The mere thought made her gag. Her head spun. With reddened eyes, she glared blankly into the air before setting off somewhere.
[This is the timeline separator]She arrived at her father’s and brother’s graves.
It had been a year since her last visit.
She’d come to the capital many times over the past year for work, but never here. She simply couldn’t bring herself to come.
Seeing their graves made their deaths—deaths she refused to accept—loom overwhelmingly large. She feared acknowledging it. She alone had to stay strong, yet she felt she might collapse at any moment.
But if she’d known the state of the gravesite, she would have come sooner.
“Oh…”
Ansi’s face hardened. A pained sound escaped her lips.
The gravestones of her father and brother were covered in countless crude graffiti.
Ansi staggered toward the graves, her legs giving out as she collapsed to her knees. With trembling hands, she pulled out a handkerchief. Her lower lip quivered, but she pressed her lips tightly together and scrubbed fiercely at the stones.
“Traitor’s grave. May all Rubelsas die.”
The graffiti wouldn’t come off. Instead, it burned vividly into her mind. Eventually, the handkerchief slipped from her grasp, but she couldn’t bring herself to pick it up.
“Why…?”
A sharp pain pierced her chest. Clutching her heart with both hands, she curled inward, lowering her head until her forehead nearly touched the earth—only her eyes stayed fixed on the gravestone.
Within her reddened eyes, the blue irises glinted with fierce resolve.
Yes. Even if she killed Cardian Orphe herself, it wouldn’t restore Rubelsa’s honor, already dragged through the mud.
On the contrary… only the word “murderer” would be added to this gravestone.
“So killing just that bastard would be hollow and unjust, wouldn’t it?”
The ragged question hung in the air.
No answer came—but she already knew the truth.
She would bring Orphe down completely.
She would use that man who approached her to destroy them.
She would bury them in the mire so they could never rise again.
“Your meeting seemed pleasant.”
Renet, the driver, asked lightly. He wasn’t usually the type to strike up conversation. Only then did Damion realize a faint smile lingered on his lips.
“Yes, quite.”
Leaning back in his seat, his violet eyes gleamed with interest.
Ansi de Rubelsa, who had vanished a year ago.
At first, he hadn’t been sure it was truly her.
His only official encounter with Ansi had been at House Jepp’s charity event—and even then, it had been fleeting. By the time he arrived, she was already leaving.
Before that, he’d seen her only once, long ago, when they were both very young.
But there was no need to bring up that memory—it likely didn’t even exist in hers.
When he’d spoken her name today, the woman before him had trembled—as if afraid of something. Seeing her hair dyed brown with reddish undertones reminded him of a stag he’d hunted last autumn.
Cornered and trembling, yet staring straight back with fiercely gleaming eyes.
An arrogant gaze, pure in its conviction—knowing her dire circumstances yet deep down believing herself the noblest being in the world.
But Damion didn’t dislike any of it.
Someone with a bit of stubborn pride was easier to deal with than one who’d sunk too far.
As long as she didn’t try to end her life again, she was worth using this time.
Ansi de Rubelsa.
After all, she was the woman destined to take away his misfortune.
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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Damion is selfish to think Ansi should give up her life span for him. However, considering he saw her almost end herself, he probably thinks if she wants to end things she might as well help him in the process.
Trishi is terrible. I hope she gets put in her place. I also hope this viscount son isn’t a loser, but I don’t have high hopes.