Chapter – 26
“May I ask what brings you here?”
Herden, busy with his work, greeted me with a familiar smile.
As always, back then and now, Herden’s the only one who actually welcomes me.
I raised my hand in greeting, turning my head toward Cideron.
Immediately, the smile on my face faded.
And then there’s my husband…
Even though his ears were perfectly functional, Cideron’s gaze remained fixed on the documents in front of him, as if he hadn’t noticed me at all.
Well, that was normal, actually.
We were married by force, bound by power, nothing more. We weren’t a real couple.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’re free.”
So… I absolutely can’t die before that, huh?
I slowly approached Cideron.
I was about to greet him warmly when something caught my eye.
What’s this?
The documents he was looking at were upside down.
…Could it be some kind of code that only shows if you hold it upside down?
I dismissed the thought as trivial and spoke.
“Could you spare me a moment?”
“…….”
“I have something I’d like to say.”
“…….”
Was he wearing earplugs or something? Why isn’t he responding?
But Cideron ignoring me wasn’t unusual at all.
If he thinks I’d give up just like that, he’s wrong.
I decided to be a little more assertive.
Swish.
I snatched the documents from him and made him look at me.
I was confident he wouldn’t kill me over something this small.
Of course, the hand holding the papers was trembling slightly.
“C…could you spare me a moment?”
Cideron’s eyebrows twitched.
“A moment?”
“Ah, yes! A moment!”
Feeling that I might have overreacted, I quietly placed the documents back on the table.
“You don’t have pressing matters today?”
Schedule?
Mine… well, eat, lounge around… ahem!
“Nothing urgent, though it’s not exactly a free day either.”
Ah, he wasn’t asking about my schedule. Feeling embarrassed, I tried to change the subject, but Cideron stood up abruptly.
“A short while should be fine.”
He led me to the guest table set up in a corner of the office.
“This tea is popular in the Petrian Empire.”
Uh…
He pushed the tea that Herden had poured toward me.
Something felt off.
Why was he offering it so willingly? And with a smile?
Could he have poisoned it…?
Looking at the crimson tea, I couldn’t help but wonder.
“Drink.”
Why is he rushing me?
I glanced up and saw Cideron watching me intently.
He was smiling, but it didn’t feel like genuine happiness.
He won’t stab me if I don’t drink, right?
I wasn’t exaggerating.
Countless tales of his exploits on the battlefield made it entirely believable.
But… would he really go that far?
Maybe he was testing me…
“Not drinking?”
“I-I’ll drink!”
I awkwardly smiled and picked up the cup.
As soon as a sip reached my mouth, I noticed something strange.
Why isn’t he drinking?
Why was he just watching?
I hurriedly put the cup down and stared at the red liquid again.
Did he just take half a sip…?
Was this okay?
Feeling frozen as if I had crossed a river with no return, I heard a soft chuckle from in front of me.
“What’s wrong? Thought it was poisoned?”
Gasp!
I almost dropped the cup.
Did the fire-element skill include poison detection too?
“Just kidding. Relax.”
With Cideron, even jokes didn’t feel like jokes.
After he sipped the tea in front of him, I finally drank mine.
The tea was perfectly fine, and I felt a little embarrassed for overthinking.
The subtle aroma helped ease my tension.
Once I relaxed a little, Cideron spoke.
“I heard from Herden. You’re thinking of donating to the temple?”
“W-Well, I am the Grand Duchess… so, naturally.”
Ah, using formal speech is harder than I thought.
I sipped the tea and observed him.
Hmm, not bad…
“Um…”
I cautiously spoke, and a small crease appeared between his brows.
Ah… maybe not?
Was he in a bad mood?
As I lowered my head, I heard him.
“Don’t do that.”
“Excuse me?”
Do what?
“Stop using formal speech. It doesn’t suit you.”
“…Huh?”
What’s that supposed to mean?
Some people suit formal speech, some don’t?
Honestly, I’m not keen on admitting it, but I naturally suit formal speech because of my dignified, slightly arrogant personality.
When I stared at him blankly, he added firmly,
“Don’t use it.”
Seriously. You think I want to use it?
And why should I follow his order?
“Ah, okay.”
I complied meekly, saying nothing of what I thought.
As soon as I switched to casual speech, Cideron’s expression softened immediately, as if nothing had happened.
Wow, he really reacts to emotions.
What’s this act even supposed to be?
Is he trying to pretend to be a happy couple?
As I tried to read his intentions, he asked suddenly.
“So, what did you want to discuss?”
That was fast.
Right, I had a purpose for coming here.
I swallowed and hoped my words would sound sincere.
“I’ve thought a lot over the seven years you were at war… about whether I’m truly suited to be the Grand Duchess.”
Cideron’s eyes narrowed.
Slightly startled, I continued steadily.
“But… I realized I’m not. You came back a war hero, and I… my background isn’t good enough…”
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
Cideron asked.
He smiled faintly, but his eyes weren’t smiling.
Instinctively, I knew I shouldn’t speak, but my mouth kept moving.
“Divorce me.”
“…….”
Silence filled the room.
During that brief pause, my courage wavered and worry crept in.
Should I have said it later?
Then he spoke.
“Is that all you wanted to say?”
“Uh? Y-Yes!”
I quickly nodded.
Cideron, now without his smile, looked at me, then softened his expression.
“Alright. Then go ahead and leave.”
Leave?
Go… where?
“H-Home?”
“This is your home, isn’t it?”
“Oh, right… yeah, of course…”
So that was his answer to my question.
I looked at him, hoping for clarity, but the answer I wanted didn’t come.
I hurriedly added,
“Cideron, you know…”
“Time’s already gotten this late.”
He glanced at the clock on the wall, naturally changing the subject.
“See you at dinner, Lilia.”
Complete dismissal.
What went wrong?
Was it wrong to blurt it out so abruptly?
No, that wasn’t my fault.
I remember saying it when I was little. That I’d get a divorce when I grew up…
“Milady!”
Hearing my name, I turned to see Mary running toward me.
“Mary?”
“You’re here!”
“Who?”
“Oh, come on. You said Mr. Blake was coming!”
Ah, right. I remembered that Blake had said he’d visit recently.
I lowered my voice and asked.
“Where is he now?”
“As usual, he’s in the second reception room.”
I felt relieved.
The Grand Ducal mansion had two reception rooms; the second was a waiting area if more than one guest came.
It was also discreet, since overlapping visitors were rare.
If word got out that the Grand Duchess was calling a young man here…
Of course, any rumors didn’t matter if the divorce went smoothly, but I didn’t need unnecessary gossip.
I gave Mary a thumbs-up for her smart handling.
Besides, Blake was unnecessarily handsome, so caution was even more important.
Everything and more… so annoying.
I don’t like people who have everything.
Mostly because I don’t have everything myself.
“Hey, milady.”
Heading to the reception room with Mary, the first thing that caught my eye was messy silver hair.
But beneath that, his face was undeniably handsome.
Violet eyes peeked through his bangs, meeting mine.
It was Blake.
He sat comfortably, leaning back and waving at me.
His posture made it look like he owned the place.
I shot him a look of disbelief as I walked over, and he grinned.
“Long time no see.”
“Yeah. How’ve you been?”
“Me? Fine. But looks like you haven’t been doing so well.”
I sighed and plopped down across from him.
“Until a few days ago, I was fine, though.”
“Hmm. Well, let’s leave it at that. Anyway, here.”
Blake pulled a document from his pocket and placed it on the table.
“Read it. Ask if anything’s unclear.”
I picked up the papers and read them quickly.
There were two pages with only the essentials, so nothing was hard to understand.
“Just need to stamp it here?”
“Yeah.”
I stamped the document firmly and handed it back to Blake.
“All done for now?”
“For the time being.”
I looked at the papers with satisfaction.
“Good work. I’ll be going then.”
“Ehh? Since it’s been a while, can’t you show me the garden?”
I waved him off carelessly, and Blake looked genuinely disappointed.
This guy is annoyingly spoiled, isn’t he?
