About Becoming My Ex-Husband's Mistress - Chapter 20

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 20. Forced Residence
That afternoon, Luderne Sellen sat in his office.
With an expressionless face, he gazed out the window while his fingers slowly tapped against the desktop.
After some time had passed, his jaw tightened slightly.
Luderne Sellen pressed a small button placed on one side of his desk.
Shortly after, an elderly-looking man entered and bowed respectfully.
“You called for me, sir?”
With his hair neatly combed back, he was Egardt, the mansion’s butler.
“Have all the servants returned?”
“Yes. They have all returned after taking sufficient rest over the past ten days.”
“Sir Jester will arrive tomorrow evening with the laborers. Prepare a dinner.”
“Understood.”
“Give Lesha ten days of vacation and vacation pay.”
“Yes.”
After saying that much, Luderne Sellen’s gaze lingered on the window outside, and silence fell.
Egardt observed Luderne Sellen’s demeanor carefully. Though he couldn’t discern the reason, Luderne Sellen’s eyes seemed melancholic, unlike their usual state.
He recalled the vacation period from ten days prior.
Ten days ago, Luderne Sellen had suddenly given money to roughly ten mansion servants and sent them on vacation.
Everyone except the Mute Maid, Lesha.
Though he didn’t understand the reason, it was a fortunate turn of events for the mansion’s servants.
But after returning from vacation, upon reflection, something seemed odd. With everyone gone from the mansion, only Luderne Sellen and Lesha remained alone together.
‘Surely not….’
Egardt truly wondered if that could be the case.
He needed to verify whether the relationship between Lesha and Luderne Sellen had changed.
However, it was far too delicate a matter to broach directly.
“Lesha must have worked hard maintaining the mansion alone. What amount would you prefer to set for her vacation pay?”
After deliberation, Egardt posed the question in this roundabout way.
If Lesha held special significance to Luderne Sellen, there was a high likelihood he would treat her vacation pay differently.
However, Luderne Sellen’s response was so devoid of emotion it felt utterly bland.
“Follow standard regulations.”
His eyes, which had seemed melancholic moments before, returned to their usual state as if nothing had happened.
Egardt immediately realized his suspicions were incorrect and lowered his head.
“Very well. I shall do so.”
“And send all the lost identification badges we’ve received on behalf of the passengers to the Capital. It won’t be easy for the passengers to visit the Island just to retrieve their badges.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Also, summon all the Ship Owners on the Island immediately. Not a single one is to be absent.”
* * *
The next day, I arrived at Walter’s Tavern right when it opened.
Walter was just unlocking the tavern door.
“Hello, Walter.”
“Hello, Priscilla.”
Though Walter greeted me warmly, something felt off about his demeanor. I wondered if the matter he’d said he’d look into yesterday hadn’t gone well.
That’s when Walter asked.
“Your face is quite flushed, isn’t it? Are you feeling unwell?”
I brushed my cheek with my hand.
“I came in such a hurry that I’m a bit warm. It’s nothing.”
In truth, the curse’s hunger was filling my body, but since my target was already determined, it was more bearable than before.
It was like the difference between a hunger that’s difficult but endurable, and one that’s absolutely impossible to resist.
Even looking at Walter or the men passing by, I felt no pull toward them.
It was a tremendous relief.
But the question of how to resolve this curse remained. The Capital surely had skilled mages, so I intended to investigate whether the curse could be lifted there.
“Are you sure you’re not ill? You seem to have a fever.”
Walter extended his hand.
Sensing he meant to check my forehead, I stepped back.
“I’m truly fine. More importantly… how did it go?”
“Ah.”
Walter’s expression turned sheepish.
He ran his hand through his hair and glanced toward the shop.
“W-well, let’s eat first.”
“Yes.”
“Please, sit here.”
After guiding me to the round table in the center, Walter quickly tied on an apron and brought out food in no time.
It was grain bread, tomatoes topped with basil, cheese and mashed potatoes, roasted fish with string beans, and lime juice.
“Just a moment. There’s a proper way to remove the bones from this fish.”
Saying so, Walter brought my fish plate before him and skillfully removed the bones with knife and fork.
After placing a plate of tender white flesh before me, Walter sat beside me with a bitter smile.
“Once you hear what I have to say, you might cancel the help you promised for today.”
“Why?”
“Well, there’s been a problem. I can’t believe the timing is so peculiar.”
“?”
I cut into the roasted string beans and put them in my mouth, waiting for Walter to continue.
“I went around asking everyone directly whether I could borrow a ship.”
Walter spoke with bread in his mouth, mumbling.
“Apparently, I can’t move a ship arbitrarily.”
“What?”
“He said all the fishing vessels were hired yesterday. By the owner of this Island.”
It was truly unexpected news.
“I know it’s a bewildering answer. That’s why I thought of an alternative, but even that failed. I’m telling you this to let you know I made an effort.”
“I… see.”
I nodded, though I couldn’t hide a bitter smile.
“What was the backup plan?”
“I visited Matthew at the Government Administration early this morning. It’s somewhat risky, but I wanted to borrow a lost identification badge temporarily.”
“Borrowing it is… possible?”
“What works is what works. Everyone here knows how things operate.”
He said he’d intended to purchase two boarding passes—one under his name and one under the name written on the lost identification badge.
“If I can borrow a ship, I figured you could afford to purchase an additional round-trip boarding pass for one person.”
He explained his plan to persuade both Matthew from the Government Administration and Andy, the Harbor Office employee, to board the ship with me.
Even if they noticed the identification badge and the boarding passenger didn’t match, Andy would overlook it once for Walter’s sake and permit boarding.
During disembarkation, there’s no way to verify whether the identification badge and boarding passenger match, so it wouldn’t matter anyway.
“I didn’t want to do anything illegal, but given the circumstances…”
After sending me off that way, Walter planned to return alone to the Island and give the lost identification badge back to Matthew.
Even with that approach, the problem would be solved, and my ears perked up at the prospect.
“It actually sounds like a decent plan?”
I was about to ask why it failed, but I held back, worried it might hurt him. I merely rolled my eyes slightly, wondering if perhaps there was a temperature difference in the relationships Walter had counted on.
Walter scratched his head and answered the question I hadn’t yet asked.
“They’ve sent all the lost identification badges to the Capital to make it easy for the owners to reclaim them. Yesterday, they sealed everything completely so nothing can be removed…”
It was the moment my plan to go directly to the Capital, launder my identity, and start a new life crumbled.
Walter laughed awkwardly and kept his eyes fixed on the food.
“Things get tangled in strange ways, don’t they? I’m not sure how long it will take, but I’ll look for a way out.”
“Ah.”
A small sigh escaped me. It really did feel like I was trapped on this Island.
Walter’s expression became even more uncomfortable at that.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t resolve this right away. It’s not much of a consolation, but…”
He emphasized that this meal was free.
“For now, let’s finish eating. I need to eat well to be able to work.”
With those words, Walter began stuffing the food in front of him into his mouth eagerly.
I nodded slightly and tore off a piece of bread to eat. The result was disappointing, but it wasn’t Walter’s fault, so there was nothing to be done.
“Ah, the success rate is very low, but there’s still one method left.”
As we finished eating, Walter pointed to one side with his fork.
“There’s a Mansion on that hill where the owner of this Island resides. We could go visit them and ask for help.”
So I had no choice but to meet Luderne Sellen after all.
“The Harbor and Village are about ten minutes on foot. So our connection ends here.”
Recalling those words he’d spoken, I couldn’t muster the courage to seek him out again.
“If I don’t know when I’ll leave the Island…”
A more serious problem came to mind.
Another reason I’d need to meet him.
“If I go and ask him to vouch for my identity, and then ask if he can share a bed with me again because of the curse…”
I can’t even imagine what kind of look he’d give me.
I’m giving up before I even start.
I won’t ask for that and will endure as long as I can. If there’s a Library on the Island, I’ll search for information about curse magic as well.
“Sigh…”
A long breath escaped me unbidden.
That’s when Walter rose from his seat.
“The master of this island is quite an extraordinary person, so I’m not sure he’ll even meet someone like us. Still, it’s worth a try. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.”
Walter gathered the empty dishes with a dejected expression, then forced a smile.
“I wish you luck. I should get back to work now.”
There was a weariness in his voice as he bade me farewell.
He’d clearly misunderstood my sigh. He seemed to think I wouldn’t help with the work.
I stood up and rolled up my sleeves.
“Thank you for telling me. I’ll finish today’s work before I leave.”
“Pardon?”
Walter’s eyes widened in surprise.
I spoke as I cleared the dishes in front of me.
“We made a promise, didn’t we? Let me work first, then I’ll go meet the master of the island.”
Having said that, I made Walter a proposal.
“You mentioned needing extra hands during lunch rush. Would you be able to employ me for a while?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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