Louisa pushed the divorce papers she had prepared onto the table.

“Here. The divorce application and necessary documents.”

Edward followed her gesture with his gaze.

Black letters on white paper. The word “divorce” written large at the top.

“I’ve already prepared my share of the documents. As I said before, we can handle the legal procedures when you think the company situation is a bit more stable.”

“……”

“Once everything is settled, I’ll hire someone to take all the belongings from the study at once.”

His wife continued talking. But in his mind, only the two words “divorce” registered.

It didn’t feel real. Edward blankly stared at the papers on the table, then looked up at his wife.

Two eyes as calm as the deep sea.

While a storm was raging inside him, his wife’s face remained serene.

‘No.’

He couldn’t let his wife go like this.

He remembered his conversation with Guilford earlier that day.

[Shouldn’t you give everything to keep Lady Allen?] [Everything?] [Yes. Everything that makes Edward Allen who he is.]

Edward staggered towards his wife. As he got closer, Louisa gradually raised her head.

Finally, reaching right in front of her, he fell to his knees.

“Louisa.”

“……”

“Please, don’t go.”

“Ed.”

His wife’s voice softly echoed.

But he knew what would follow. He couldn’t bear to hear it. Edward pleaded to her.

“I’ll give you everything I have.”

He looked up at the radiant person before him, just as he had once done at Averitt Manor.

“I’ll give you my research, my company. It’s all I have. I’ll give you my everything, so please stay here.”

At that pitiful sight, ripples appeared on Louisa’s serene face. Like rainfall, tears began to fall from her eyes.

Edward crawled towards his wife, placing his hands on the floor.

“I’ll do anything you ask. You can just sit there and command me with a gesture. I’ll do anything for you by your side.”

He had always lived desperately, and now was no different.

He had to hold onto his wife. Without her, there was no meaning to his life.

So truly, he could throw away everything.

Edward grasped his wife’s hand with trembling fingers.

“Hm? Louisa.”

He called her name anxiously.

But once again, his efforts did not yield the result he desired.

Unable to push away his hand, Louisa spoke as tears fell steadily.

“…If I stay by your side, you’ll eventually burn yourself completely and build a castle with your ashes. To atone to me.”

Louisa shook her head as if unable to bear it.

Edward’s plea, as he clung to her, took her breath away.

Giving her everything he had, letting her command him with just a gesture. That’s not what she wanted at all. That wasn’t what she desired.

A man who set aside a woman he might not truly love, hiding even his own heart, volunteering to be a servant by her side.

Someone who pushed himself into misery solely to atone for his father’s wrongdoings would only bring her misery as well.

“I don’t need any of that. I never asked for such things… Why don’t you understand?”

Edward looked up at her with tear-filled eyes.

Louisa was truly crying pitifully.

Don’t cry.

I didn’t mean to make you cry.

Edward reached out his hand towards Louisa’s tear-stained cheek.

Louisa stepped back from the outstretched hand. Edward’s hand grasped at empty air, unable to reach her now distant form.

He muttered in a voice so small it might break.

“I… just wanted to make you the happiest person in the world.”

“I.”

Louisa cut off his words. Though her eyes were filled with tears as if wounded, her gaze as she looked at him remained unwavering and firm.

“Now, I truly don’t want to receive anything from you anymore.”

At the sincerity spilled out like a confession, Edward could only stare blankly at his wife.

“Don’t shake me. I really want to stop now, but when you act like this, I keep forgetting my resolve to forget and end up digging into my own heart.”

Blue eyes brimming with tears and lips red as if bitten.

What could have pained you so much?

Was I truly such a terrible person to you?

‘…I only wanted to make you happy.’

But why does it always end up like this?

Edward’s face suddenly contorted with the welling sadness.

Everything I have exists only for you.

Louisa seemed to be equally overwhelmed with sorrow. She was taking several deep breaths, as if struggling to calm her emotions.

He saw her turn her head to the opposite side.

Did she not even want to meet his gaze?

Edward just stared at his wife, not even thinking to wipe away his flowing tears.

‘I…’

What should I do?

Faced with a reality he didn’t want to accept, he remained rooted to the spot like a statue, looking only at his wife.

But suddenly, Louisa’s face contorted as she covered her right ear with her hand.

It looked as if she was in pain.

Then she raised her other hand to cover both ears.

Edward stood up, startled by this unfamiliar behavior from his wife.

“What’s wrong? What’s the matter!”

He stumbled as he got up hurriedly. His knees were weak from rising too quickly.

He staggered over and grabbed Louisa.

“What is it? Does your ear hurt? Are you alright?”

But Louisa didn’t give any answer. After maintaining silence for a moment, she spoke.

“…Let’s stop this. Let’s let each other go now, Ed.”

“No, that’s not the issue right now. I’m asking if you’re okay.”

“Let go of me, Ed.”

Louisa shrugged her shoulders slightly. At his wife’s gesture, he hurriedly removed his hands as if burned.

“Give me time to distance myself from your memories. And when we find our own happiness, let’s meet again with smiles.”

Her voice was uneven, as if excited. After delivering her words in a slightly rapid tone, Louisa added a final statement.

“I’m leaving now.”

“Louisa!”

Edward cried out. But Louisa quickly turned her back on him.

Not even taking time to put on her coat, she held her coat in one hand and a travel trunk in the other as she went out the door.

Though it must have been burdensome, she walked with her back deliberately straight.

Edward stood rooted to the spot, unable to stop his wife as she left the mansion, leaving him behind.

Was this truly how he had to part with his wife? Was this meeting truly becoming the last?

He needed to engrave even her retreating figure in his eyes. Yet the rising tears kept blurring even that last image.

Edward wiped his tears with his sleeve over and over.

He wanted to grab his wife’s shoulders right away. He wanted to hold her tight so she couldn’t escape from here.

But as always, Edward couldn’t bring himself to do so, only clutching his clothes tightly with both hands. He imprinted the image of his wife leaving the mansion in his wet eyes.

Louisa was walking out through the mansion’s long garden.

It would take at least ten minutes to reach the main road where she could hail a cab.

Edward thought.

No matter how urgently she wanted to leave him, he couldn’t let her walk that distance on this cold night after the sun had set.

His wife would understand if it was for this reason.

Having found a reason to move, Edward dashed out of the front door.

“Louisa, wait a moment! Louisa!”

But she walked on, looking straight ahead as if she had no intention of ever turning back.

At that, Edward’s heart ached once more.

But he couldn’t help it. Because he loved his wife.

Even if he was rejected again and again, he couldn’t let her go.

Throwing away his pride, he ran in his shoes and grabbed Louisa’s shoulder, shouting.

“Louisa!”

“…!”

But when she turned around, her face showed utter shock. It was as if she hadn’t noticed someone approaching at all.

“…What’s wrong? Why are you so surprised?”

“Ed. Please don’t do this.”

“I know you don’t like it. I know, but I didn’t think you’d walk alone in the middle of the night. Are you going to the train station? At least let me take you there.”

“Let go of me and let me leave.”

“I’ll let you go. But let me take you on your way. At least allow me that.”

“Please, let me go. Ed.”

“I’ll let you go. So please!”

Frustrated by his wife’s continued firm rejection, he shouted.

But immediately realizing he had yelled at his wife, he let go of Louisa’s shoulder and stepped back a couple of paces.

“…I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Louisa. But I’m worried about you—”

But his wife’s expression was strangely calm.

As if the shouting just now had never happened.

“…Because I’m worried. About you. But you know, Louisa.”

Edward had no idea what his own expression looked like.

It shouldn’t be. This one thing, his guess had to be wrong.

“I thought it was strange, but… can you not hear me right now?”

As he asked the question, the tears that had stopped in his eyes began to fall again.

Louisa, who had been looking at him with clear eyes, caressed his cheek and wiped away his flowing tears.

“Don’t cry. And please… let me go now.”

His wife, repeating the same words like a parrot.

As he realized this fact, Edward’s jaw trembled. He shook his head slowly in disbelief.

But when he saw his wife looking up at him with wet eyes, not understanding the situation.

“…Edward?”

And when she called his name in an anxious voice.

He finally broke down sobbing on the spot.

At last, his wife was broken.