A strange emotion welled up in her chest.
Accepting the fact that a rotting leg can’t be regenerated doesn’t mean one is ready to amputate it.
Similarly, feeling the imbalance of a body mismatched with an empty space where a part used to be is a different matter.
And the time it takes to learn to walk again wouldn’t be easy.
But eventually, she’ll be able to stand on her own again. And one day, she’ll look back at those times and say, “That’s how it was back then,” like a memory.
“Thank you. I’ll try to be strong.”
Louisa consoled herself to remember that man, who even in the smiles of children stood out, as a fond memory.
In the mansion’s living room.
Edward, who had been peeking out and glancing outside restlessly, suddenly got up.
The familiar sound of a car engine stopped, and Paul, the driver, got out of the front seat and opened the back door. As Louisa emerged, Edward hurriedly approached and offered his hand.
Louisa, surprised to see the man before her, asked.
“Ed? What about work?”
“I went. Got off early today.”
Edward quickly took the hand Louisa raised in surprise and escorted her.
But her attire was different from the morning. Behind her was a large case, probably wearing borrowed clothes due to getting dirty.
“Did you have a good trip? Your clothes look different.”
“Ah. Yes. They got a bit wet. I borrowed Karen’s.”
“Aha.”
No doubt she had been helping out with some menial task again. He couldn’t hide his momentarily stiff expression.
In truth, Edward was not pleased with her volunteering.
Every time he saw his wife reaching out to the children at the facility, he felt a certain discomfort. Did he also appear to his wife as someone needing care in the past, constantly comparing himself to them?
But that made it even harder for him to speak out.
It was too petty a reason, too shameful for himself.
Her volunteering, even helping out with menial tasks, was driving him mad.
The reason she became familiar with such tasks, what his wife had learned to do, was like a scar left by his sins.
She is someone of the highest nobility. He wanted her to be treated as such, more than anyone. Even if it was late, he wanted to make it so.
But why can’t he do it?
He swallowed the surge of sorrow welling up within him.
Edward forced a smile and said.
“Right. You must be tired. Let’s go in.”
Louisa looked up at him with an expressionless face she had become accustomed to lately.
Edward, looking at his wife’s unreadable face, thought.
‘Is this what you meant by our unhappiness?’
But still, I love you. Staying by your side, embracing all this unhappiness, is the only way I can live.
He decided to lie.
Louisa went up to her room.
“Is it really okay for him to be out like that?”
She was genuinely surprised to see her husband waiting for her. Not only because he had never greeted her like this before, but more so because she always remembered him as being perpetually tired.
“If only there were more days like today.”
It would have been nice if there were times when he said, ‘You’ve worked hard. Thank you.’ Times when they held hands, looked at each other, and unwound from the day’s fatigue.
Knock, knock.
She heard a knock from behind. Opening the door, she found her husband standing there.
“Ed?”
Edward, meeting her eyes, parted his lips for a moment, taking a deep breath.
“I came to talk about something.”
“Come in.”
Louisa opened the door wide for him. Edward hesitated for a moment between the table and the bed, then pulled out a chair from the table and sat down.
“What is it about?”
“About what you said… I mean, about divorce.”
“Yes.”
Edward clasped his hands together, resting them on his knees, and spoke quietly.
“Sorry, but can we postpone this talk a bit? I didn’t want to go this far.”
“What do you mean?”
“……You know. How I’m being attacked from all sides. Westwood too.”
He bowed his head and began to explain the situation at the company.
“In the current situation, being hit by divorce rumors again is too risky, even for me. So, I hope we can delay it until the company stabilizes. It’s a request.”
He revealed the lie he had prepared.
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
