About Becoming My Ex-Husband's Mistress - Chapter 3

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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 3. The Signature
I settled into my seat and examined the documents laid out on the table.
As I remembered, it was a marriage covenant.
There was also a document stating that upon becoming husband and wife, all rights to my property would be transferred to my husband, Count Veloda Genoma.
Luderne died during the war, and I received both the war reparations and the inheritance he left behind.
If I remained a widow and lived alone, I could keep the inheritance intact.
But if I remarried, the law of the Arde Kingdom dictated that all rights would pass to my legal husband.
After Luderne fell in battle, Matilda pressured me to return to my family home in the Bilsty Viscounty.
“You understand, don’t you? Because of you, your sister’s marriage prospects could be ruined.”
A fortune teller Matilda had brought from somewhere said that because I had become a widow, Melissa found it difficult to marry.
Because I belonged to a family whose woman had consumed her husband.
But if I remarried, fate would be on my side, or so she claimed.
“There are rumors everywhere that you’re a woman who devoured her husband—how could you possibly stay in that house without being shameless?”
Matilda clicked her tongue without hesitation and proposed remarriage to me.
She said that only if I remarried quickly would the family that had proposed to Melissa appear respectable in others’ eyes.
“Is your sister rather pretty? If you just remarry, I’m thinking of introducing Melissa to the Central Social Circle. So forget about him. He’s a bastard, weak besides—he’ll probably die soon anyway.”
A bastard.
That was how Luderne’s status was known at the time.
After hurling such venom at the dead, Matilda soon found what she called an excellent betrothal prospect and introduced me to Veloda Genoma.
“I’ve taken great pains to arrange a match with a fine house. He’s a count, no less. Isn’t he far more impressive than that one?”
The Genoma Family retained only the title.
After repeated decline, they didn’t even possess any notable territories, let alone the power or prestige befitting nobility.
The only wealth they had was this very mansion I now found myself in.
Even that was poorly maintained due to insufficient staff.
Count Genoma desperately needed money, just as Matilda needed the connections his title would bring.
With money, status shines; with status shining, one glimpses opportunities to earn even more money.
“Becoming a countess will improve how people perceive you. And your sister’s future will flourish as well.”
That time came back to me hazily.
I had been deeply sorrowful and had no desire to remarry.
Luderne was taciturn, sharing a bed only out of obligation to produce heirs. Those nights were painful, but I only had to endure that evening and suffer through a day or two of illness afterward.
Yet he had been a precious husband to me.
But worn down by Matilda’s pressure, I ultimately had no choice but to accept remarriage.
In exchange, I set a condition.
Count Genoma would be merely my legal husband and could not share my bed without my consent.
This happened one year after Luderne’s death.
Having recalled this much, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
The promise was never kept.
Two years after the remarriage, I died by Count Genoma’s hand.
Because of the inheritance from Luderne hidden before me.
I gripped the key pendant hanging around my neck tightly.
‘Right now, they only know about the immediate inheritance. They still don’t know about this necklace.’
That was when Matilda urged me forward with a reproachful tone.
“Why aren’t you signing already?”
When I lifted my head, everyone was staring at me—their faces eager for me to simply pick up the pen and complete the signature.
My heart raced with anxiety. I took a long, deliberate breath to calm myself.
‘Stay composed.’
I had lived in another world and returned to this one.
Of course, my fundamental nature hadn’t changed.
But now that I had come back, now that I had lived a modern life on my own terms, I could not repeat that pitiful existence—suffering at the hands of a family inferior to me, only to die.
To prevent that, I absolutely could not sign this document. No matter how forcefully Matilda pressed me.
The moment I signed, I would be consenting to become Count Veloda Genoma’s legal wife, which meant I would have to surrender my seal and identification papers.
After that, I would have to live solely on the pittance Count Veloda Genoma provided as maintenance allowance—an amount so meager I couldn’t even afford a proper dress.
‘No. Absolutely not.’
Summoning my courage, I rose from my seat.
“I-I’m sorry. I cannot sign.”
The expressions on everyone’s faces—Matilda’s, Melissa’s, Count Veloda Genoma’s, and even the Notary Public’s—were worth seeing.
“I need to reconsider the remarriage.”
With that, I tried to leave the Reception Room immediately. It was best to escape before Matilda lost her temper.
But Count Veloda Genoma quickly blocked my path.
“What on earth is the meaning of this? Suddenly reversing your decision is rather bewildering.”
I flinched reflexively. It was only natural—the man who had pushed me into the swamp to die was now standing uncomfortably close.
To hide my trembling hands, I gripped my skirt tightly and hastily fabricated an excuse.
“Even after two years have passed, I still cannot believe that my husband is truly dead. I think it would be better to verify it once more.”
“…What?”
Count Veloda Genoma’s face went blank with bewilderment.
“….”
My anxiety and fear subsided, and looking at him again, Count Veloda Genoma appeared utterly foolish.
I found myself wondering why my past self had lived so timidly around such a man.
Then I heard Matilda’s irritated voice from behind Count Veloda Genoma.
“His death record is right there in the registry—what kind of insane nonsense is this? What are you doing to Melissa’s future?”
“Mother, please calm yourself.”
Melissa took her mother’s hand in hers.
“Good heavens, look at Melissa. She’s so considerate of her mother’s feelings, yet you don’t even appreciate the kindness you’ve been shown.”
Matilda’s lament continued without pause.
“If our Melissa prospers, your future would be bright as well, but you’re too foolish for that. A woman’s happiness isn’t just about money.”
Money wasn’t the issue. If things continued this way, I would die again.
I could not let the murderer steal my late husband’s inheritance from me a second time.
But I lacked the courage to say it. These events hadn’t happened yet from their perspective.
And even if they bore no malice, wasn’t Melissa the one who would benefit most from my death?
Above all, I knew well that Matilda was not someone who would change her mind upon hearing my words.
I’ll have to think this through properly once I safely escape this situation.
“It’s not about the money—my heart aches for her.”
I offered a plausible excuse, and deliberately smiled weakly at Melissa.
“I’m sorry, Melissa. But you understand your older sister’s heart, don’t you?”
“Eh? Eh?”
Melissa’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Tomorrow, as soon as dawn breaks, I’ll go to the public office and request confirmation that Lord Sellen’s death is genuine. Even if it takes time, two days should be enough—can you wait for me?”
At my earnest plea, Melissa could say nothing more and simply nodded.
I returned to my room.
Twilight had already fallen.
Through the window, I could see the Notary Public climbing into his carriage. Matilda was seeing him off.
Leaning against the windowsill, I gazed blankly at the scene, and something struck me as remarkable.
No matter how different a life I’d lived before returning, I had actually spoken my mind completely to Matilda.
It was a first.
The first time I hadn’t been swayed by Matilda and had said everything I needed to say.
‘Perhaps I should live with this kind of courage from now on.’
Just then, the moment the Notary Public’s carriage departed, Matilda’s ominous gaze turned toward me.
In that instant, I snapped back to reality.
I remembered what I’d forgotten.
I shouldn’t linger gazing out the window—I needed to move quickly.
Anxiety made my heart pound again.
“This won’t do. This is a problem.”
I’d grown far too accustomed to the rational conventions of modern life.
I hurriedly locked the door and opened the old wardrobe, pulling out all the clothes hanging inside.
Matilda soon came searching for me in my room.
“How dare you humiliate me? I need to teach you proper manners!”
Along with Matilda’s furious shout, the doorknob rattled.
“Open this door! Open it right now!”
I didn’t answer. I was too busy pushing the empty wardrobe with all my strength toward the door.
In the meantime, I heard Matilda ordering someone to bring the key.
The moment I barely blocked the door with the wardrobe, the lock clicked open.
But it was useless. The door was already blocked by the wardrobe.
I made sure to press my body firmly against the wardrobe as well.
“Have you lost your mind? What’s gotten into you today?”
Matilda’s voice, seething with rage, came through the door.
“Open it! Open it this instant!”
Matilda pounded on the door as if she might smash it down, curses mixed between the blows.
With each strike, the wardrobe shook, and my body trembled with it.
How much time had passed like this?
The sharp sound of a whip cutting through the air and striking the corridor floor reached my ears.

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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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