Thus Began Your Regret (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 4

What awaited at the end of repetition was severance.

He and I could not understand each other. Our mutual incomprehension bred endless arguments, dragging both of our emotions into a bottomless pit.

He alone clung to the memories of past love. In truth, he could no longer even be certain whether what he had believed to be love all this time had ever been real.

Prolonged conflict made him doubt even the time that had passed.

Happiness vanished like foam alongside success, leaving behind only money and time handed over as though repaying a debt.

Perhaps even accepting his proposal had merely been an act of guilt—his inability to refuse in time. From the day he knelt before her, he had mortgaged his life to her.

Inside Louisa, the faith that had upheld those bygone days shattered. Once suspicion took root, it stole even the strength needed to endure this situation.

He had clung on solely through the hope that love might someday return—but what if such a thing had never existed at all?

‘Then what am I?’

What was Louisa Aberitt to him—to Edward Allen?

The answer was obvious.

A burdensome weight crushing his life, the source of guilt he’d carry forever. The target of resentment and anger born from it.

To Edward, he was no more than that. He had no choice but to accept it.

Tears welled up uncontrollably in Louisa’s eyes.

He now acknowledged that holding onto you with this heart was nothing but selfishness.

He admitted that this selfishness had blinded his eyes and shattered his heart.

Therefore, for both their sakes, this must be the right choice.

She made her decision.

We had to part ways.

[This is the timeline separator]

Louisa covered her mouth with her hand and struggled to steady her ragged breath.

Edward, unable to offer any meaningful reply, gazed at her from afar.

“Wait. What did you say?”

After staring blankly at her with parted lips, he finally managed to speak.

“Did I hear you correctly just now? Are you saying we should break up?”

In the silence that settled over the drawing room, only the sound of rain striking the windowpane echoed.

Confused by her unfamiliar demeanor, Edward furrowed his brow briefly before lowering his head and pressing his palm against his eyes.

What on earth is this about all of a sudden? Why are you doing this to me?

He stood there for a long while.

After splashing some water on his face and letting out a deep sigh, Edward picked up the water bottle on the table and poured himself a glass.

He downed it in one gulp, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and spoke.

“What’s all this about all of a sudden?”

“It’s not sudden.”

“Then what is it?”

Tears streaming down her face, Louisa didn’t even attempt to wipe them away as she spoke.

“I’ve only just realized it now… that we should have done this long ago…”

I realized it far too late. She gave a faint, bitter laugh.

At her words, he stared at her in utter shock. He wanted nothing more than to yell at the top of his lungs.

Should have done this long ago? After everything I’ve done for you? You know exactly how hard I’ve tried! Yet to you, I’ll forever be nothing but a sinner…?

He forced words out through his tightly constricted throat.

“Stop saying such nonsense. Let’s talk again tomorrow—just for now, I’ll pretend I never heard this. You’d better go rest.”

Edward decided to postpone the conversation. He needed to leave—for now. Once the sun rose and they both regained a bit more composure, then…

“Alright. Then good night.”

Louisa offered her evening greeting.

Click. The sound of the door closing reached Edward’s ears.

The empty drawing room.

Now, he no longer had any reason to remain.

Yet Edward stayed there for a long while, standing motionless, eyes fixed only on the door through which his wife had departed.

[This is the timeline separator]

The dim light of dawn.

Awakened by a sudden chill enveloping his body, Edward stirred restlessly in the cold bed.

“…What time is it?”

His eyes felt so dry and heavy that opening them properly was difficult.

He buried his face back into the pillow and stretched his hand out to fumble through the nightstand beside the bed.

I definitely left it here yesterday…

After several failed attempts, his fingertips finally brushed against the familiar cold, solid texture of metal. He grabbed his pocket watch and squinted to check the time.

The hands pointed to six o’clock.

“…Hah.”

Edward buried his face into the pillow once more.

I’m exhausted. I just want to sleep.

Letting out a groan, Edward forced himself out of bed.

After pulling the bell cord, servants soon arrived to assist him with his morning preparations.

Another busy day had begun.

Only Louisa was absent.

Noticing Edward’s gaze lingering on the spot where Louisa always stood, Mrs. Johnson spoke.

“My lady mentioned she was feeling rather tired and would rest a bit longer. She didn’t seem unwell, so there’s no need for you to worry.”

“Oh. I see.”

He deliberately turned his head away, feigning nonchalance.

As usual, the servants saw him off, and Edward sat in the damp, humid car and turned the ignition.

It was a morning no different from any other.

Yet the memories swirling in his mind made it unmistakably clear: yesterday and today were worlds apart.

[We… should break up.]

He had thought things would feel better after a night’s sleep—but they hadn’t improved at all.

‘Why on earth?’

He still couldn’t escape the events of the previous night.

‘We should’ve done this long ago… I realized it far too late.’

His grip tightened on the steering wheel.

With what heart did I stay by your side all this time? Did you really not know, or did you say those words to me without understanding at all?

Or perhaps she had spoken in the heat of the moment. Maybe she’d overheard something at the council about him.

It wouldn’t have been surprising—those smooth-tongued councilors were always eager to gossip.

There had been similar incidents before.

Rumors like how she repaid debts with her body instead of money, or how she’d shamelessly married a noble with an unknown bloodline to a common laborer.

Some even claimed her impolite bluntness clearly showed she’d been raised without parents.

Though things had improved slightly now that the Allen Corporation stood behind her, their nature hadn’t changed—this meeting likely hadn’t been any different.

Yet his wife still had no choice but to attend.

‘Come to think of it, Councilor Valeria was there.’

His fingers tapped lightly against the steering wheel.

Not long ago, he’d hinted at signing a mana crystal engine supply contract with Valeria, only to ultimately choose another competitor who offered better terms at the last moment.

He’d since heard that the resentful Councilor Valeria had been spreading word all over town that “Edward Allen is nothing but a scoundrel, a chip off the old block of his swindler of a father.”

Lost in such thoughts, Edward sat motionless at his desk for thirty minutes after arriving at work, wearing a deeply troubled expression—until Jeffrey approached, unable to bear it any longer.

“President. What’s gotten into you today?”

Startled by the sudden question, Edward replied.

“Why ask something so out of the blue?”

“Because you’re acting unusually strange today—more so than usual.”

“I don’t see what’s so strange.”

“There’s too much to list—but if you really want me to, I can go over every detail.”

Jeffrey raised one eyebrow with an air of nonchalance.

Edward remembered how, in their youth, he would’ve smacked him on the back of the head for that—but those days were gone. He merely waved his hand dismissively.

“Never mind. And let me make one thing clear: nothing’s wrong.”

“Oh. Right. Of course.”

Jeffrey snorted and returned to his seat.

“Ugh. Can’t even get rid of this guy for real.”

Edward ran his hands through his hair in frustration.

Jeffrey was his junior from college—though during their school days, they hadn’t had much interaction.

But everything changed when Edward was twenty-two—just before advancing to his final year—when his father, Benjamin Allen, went missing.

In truth, though termed a disappearance, everyone knew what had really happened.

Benjamin Allen, a once-renowned engineer, had fled with enormous research funds the moment he realized his project had failed—a major scandal.

Worse still, just before his escape, he’d demanded an additional massive investment from the Aberitt family, who had trusted and sponsored him.

Benjamin Allen took every last penny and vanished.

The shock of it all caused Philip Aberitt to collapse—and not long after, he passed away. Soon after, Philip’s wife, Scarlett, followed him in death.

When Edward first heard the news, he’d felt utterly lost—as if plummeting into an endless, bottomless void.

But then he saw her—a young girl, who despite suffering even greater despair, showed him unexpected grace.

When he saw that radiant, delicate person, he forgot how to breathe beneath the flood of emotions within him.

Such a dazzling person. Someone he must atone to for the rest of his life.

Edward made a vow.

No matter what, he would ensure this person—this one person—lived a happy life. That would be his purpose.

In retrospect, it had been an absurd first love.

[That looks rather interesting. Would you like to do it with me?]

Then, as if casting everything aside, Jeffrey Curtis appeared before him just as he was throwing himself entirely into his research.

At first, he refused. In a world where even parents abandoned their children, he couldn’t possibly entrust his most vital work—his research—to anyone else, no matter how difficult things became.

But Jeffrey kept coming back.

[What’s your goal, anyway?] [Research, of course.] [You’re mad. Get lost.] [No, let’s just try working together.] [I don’t trust guys like you.] [Trust? Seriously? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! If you’re going to lecture me about trust, at least don’t come knocking as the son of a known swindler!]

Harsh words.

Yet it was precisely that bluntness that made Edward trust him.

Those who intended to deceive always sweetened their tongues—and this was a lesson both from ancient proverbs and his own experience with his father.

Edward agreed to pursue the research together with Jeffrey.

Through great hardship, they finally achieved success. He had believed that now, at last, he could make his wife happy.

‘But then she said we should break up.’

His train of thought drifted back, dazed, to the present. Louisa’s voice echoed in his mind.

Let’s break up. Break up. Break up…

“…Sir! President!”

A loud voice jolted Edward from his reverie. It was Jeffrey.

“What? Why?”

“Did you review the documents I sent for your approval? Should I proceed with the changes as-is?”

“…I’ll check right now. Just give me a moment.”

He picked up the stack of approval documents in front of him.

Seeing his distracted state, Jeffrey—uncharacteristically thoughtful—excused himself to go make coffee.

A few minutes later, Jeffrey set down a lab mug on Edward’s desk without even bothering with a coaster.

“Triple shot.”

“Triple? Is this poison?”

“Drink it. Triple the caffeine so you can finally snap out of it.”

With that, Jeffrey turned and walked back to his seat.

Right. There was work right in front of him.

Yet despite knowing this, Edward couldn’t focus on anything all morning.