Edward sighed as he brushed his bangs aside.

“Hah… Right. There’s no point in talking more, it’ll just lead to a fight.”

He stopped eating midway and stood up from his seat, saying:

“I’m sorry, but I’ll leave first.”

After finishing his words, he strode out of the dining room. Judging by the sound of footsteps going up the stairs, it seemed he was heading to his room.

However, not long after, the sound of footsteps coming down again could be heard.

Louisa, who had been sitting alone at the table, abruptly stood up and opened the door.

In the hallway stood Edward, dressed in his outdoor clothes, ready to go out.

“Ed. Where are you going?”

Hearing her call, Edward turned around. After staring at her for a moment, he turned his head back to the front and answered.

“The lab.”

Leaving that brief answer, Edward opened the front door without hesitation and left.

Thud. The sound of the mansion’s door closing echoed.

Leaning against the doorframe of the dining room, Louisa blankly stared at the entrance where her husband had left.

She hadn’t wished for much. It would have been enough if they could just laugh together.

But the path to that place seemed so far away, as if blocked by a massive wall.

What should she do to overcome this wall? Would there really ever come a day when they would be happy?

She weakly covered her face with her hands.

* * *

The autumn rain started to fall steadily.

“Ah, damn it. It didn’t work this time either. I really can’t get this right.”

Jeffrey irritably pulled out his research journal. Opening the worn-out notebook with its frayed binding, he picked up a pen and began writing down the results of this latest test.

The sound of the pen nib scratching against the paper was fierce. As if about to tear the paper, he scribbled furiously. When he finished his angry journal entry, he threw both the pen and notebook onto the desk and hastily gathered his things.

“I’m leaving now. You should go home too, boss.”

It was late at night, and all the other employees had already gone home. But Edward, still seated, replied without turning around.

“I’m going to do one more calculation before I leave. You go ahead.”

“What?”

Jeffrey’s hands stopped as he was packing his things. He asked in disbelief.

“Boss, didn’t you stay at the lab yesterday too? You’re not going home again today?”

“I’ll go home after I finish this… No, why is that any of your business?”

One of Edward’s eyebrows was fiercely furrowed as he asked back. Observing this, Jeffrey replied with heavy sarcasm.

“Huh, right. It’s none of my business, is it?”

Click. Jeffrey locked his bag and picked up the coat he had carelessly thrown off somewhere in the morning. Roughly putting on the coat, he grabbed his umbrella and said,

“Then I’ll be going first.”

“Alright.”

The sound of footsteps walking out echoed unusually loud in the empty lab.

Bang. As soon as the door closed, Edward let out a deep sigh and lowered his head. He closed his eyes, pressing his forehead with both hands.

It had been a full day since the argument with Louisa.

Thinking he wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway, he had come to the lab to get some work done, which was fine.

But when it actually came time to go home, things changed. He started feeling uneasy again.

‘Maybe I should have left with Jeffrey as he suggested.’

As always, by this time Louisa’s anger would have subsided.

Perhaps if he had returned home from work, she would have greeted him with her usual face, asking if he was just getting back.

Edward made such meaningless assumptions, then suddenly recalled what he had said to Louisa the day before.

“Ha.”

Disgusted by his own words, he let out a small, bitter laugh and muttered to himself.

“Right. What’s the point of dwelling on it now.”

Since he had decided to stay at the lab anyway, everything was just mere speculation.

Edward picked up the notebook in front of him, trying hard to clear his mind.

He had no time to waste. There was a mountain of work piled up right in front of him, and putting off today’s work would only mean doing it tomorrow.

* * *

The sound of raindrops hitting the window began to grow quite loud.

“Damn it.”

Edward leaned back heavily against the chair’s backrest, tilting his head back.

It was another failure. With a feeling of dejection, all strength left his body and he closed his eyes.

His body felt so heavy that he felt he could fall asleep at any moment. He mumbled, half-asleep without realizing it.

“Surely I won’t fail to complete it…”

Then, startled by his own muttering, he jerked his head up. Slapping his own cheek with a loud smack, he said to himself.

“What nonsense. I can’t fail.”

You must succeed. That’s your job. Edward Allen.

He rubbed his stinging cheek. At least he seemed to be wide awake now.

Rumble! Bang!

As he repeated to himself a few more times that he must succeed, he suddenly looked at the window upon hearing the thunder.

Staring blankly at the flashing window, Edward suddenly thought of Louisa.

‘Come to think of it, was she looking out the window like this?’

A few days ago, his wife had stubbornly waited for him until late, and not even in the bedroom but in the reception room.

If she was really that worried, she could have sent a telegram as usual. Even though she knew that waiting like that wouldn’t make him arrive any faster, his wife would still look out for him on his way home.

“Surely she’s not doing that again today.”

Maybe she had done the same yesterday too. After all, she was a woman who never listened to a word he said.

His gaze briefly fell on the desk he hadn’t managed to tidy up. If he slept here, he could probably get about an hour more sleep.

After staring blankly at the desk for a while, he rubbed his head vigorously and slapped his cheeks a couple more times to wake himself up.

“…It’s not like I’ll get proper sleep here anyway.”

He picked up his coat to leave.

* * *

The pouring rain streamed down the car window.

The reddish light of the gas lamps illuminating the darkness rippled along the water.

Normally, in such conditions, he would have folded his arms and closed his eyes, saying it was better to sleep than even attempt to drive.

But now was different. There was something he needed to check.

He calmly pressed the accelerator.

Arriving at the front gate of the mansion, he passed by the garage and stopped right in front of the mansion’s porch.

Ignoring the rain hitting the car, he opened the door and got out. Running straight to the entrance, he firmly grasped the handle.

However, once at the door, Edward stood still, just holding the handle.

Then, with a deep breath, he carefully pushed the door open.

Click.

The soft glow of the gas lamps illuminating the hallway came into view. He looked at it with a momentarily satisfied gaze before stepping inside.

Light was seeping through the crack of the reception room door, which he approached. With a sinking feeling in his heart, he flung the door open.

And there, just as he had worried, was Louisa, sitting in the reception room, staring blankly out the window.

“…Louisa.”

He opened his mouth with a troubled voice.

“What on earth are you doing here?”

At Edward’s question, Louisa finally turned around. Instead of answering, she murmured something unexpected.

“You’re back.”

“Of course I am. This is my house. More importantly, what are you doing here, I asked.”

Edward pressed. But Louisa just stared at him blankly without answering.

“Louisa. I’m very tired right now. So please don’t create situations for me to worry about, and just answer when I ask.”

“I was waiting for you.”

She bit her lower lip gently, then pressed her hand firmly against her chest. After taking a slow, deep breath, Louisa said,

“The weather is so bad, and you went out without any contact… I just couldn’t sleep at all.”

“I’ve told you many times, even just a few days ago. Don’t waste time like this. I’m now—”

He was about to continue speaking, even gesturing with his hand, but then he stopped, shook his head, and changed his words.

“No, never mind. I didn’t expect you to quietly go to bed as I said anyway. Rather, if you’re so worried in the future, just send a telegram.”

“A telegram?”

Louisa looked at him with an expression of incomprehension at his words. Her lips parted slightly as if she had something to say.

But at this moment, Edward truly needed rest desperately. He rubbed his eyes with one hand and spoke first.

“Yes. So please, just go in now. I’ll go in too.”

“Ed.”

A trembling voice called his name pitifully.

But Edward turned his back on her after those words. The continuation was predictable anyway. That she was worried, that she was concerned…

Louisa spoke, unable to hide the moisture in her voice.

“Do you have no intention of talking to me anymore?”

“That’s right. I’m tired of being like this with you. It’s too exhausting.”

“Do you… really mean that?”

“Yes, I mean it. So please, let’s end this here.”

He could feel Louisa’s gaze on his back.

He pretended not to notice. The situation would end once he entered his room.

“Edward.”

However, he couldn’t ignore his wife’s call again. Edward stopped in his tracks and turned around.

Louisa was shedding tears on her fair cheeks. Meeting his eyes, his wife uttered one sentence.

“Let’s… separate.”