An Ode to Divorce - Chapter 11

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#11

Perhaps because I had been tense all day, fatigue washed over me.

Originally, I was supposed to discuss divorce with Gert as soon as the banquet ended, but the continuous incidents had given me a throbbing headache.

In this situation, meeting Gert to continue pushing and pulling about divorce was too much. Not wanting to think about anything anymore, I temporarily turned away from my goal.

‘I’ll talk about divorce first thing tomorrow morning when I wake up.’

How long had I been lying face-down on the bed like that?

Berta staggered into the room carrying washing water.

Without even the strength to lift a finger, I simply turned my head slightly to look at Berta. Her already sharp features had become even more haggard in the short time since the banquet ended.

“My lady, what happened at the banquet hall today… Is what I heard really true?”

Berta asked in a tone that couldn’t hide her anxious mood.

To think that Berta, who was always calm, would be so shaken.

‘She must be flustered that Eurich was kicked out.’

Since Berta herself was the one who had a servant put drugs in Eurich’s wine glass, she must be anxious about what would happen if that fact was discovered.

I decided to take responsibility as the one who ordered it.

“Mmm… Don’t worry. If it comes to it, I’ll say I threatened you. Then Gert won’t say anything to you about Eurich being kicked out either.”

But Berta frowned as if asking what I was talking about.

“Not about Lord Eurich, but about you getting divorced, my lady!”

‘Ah, that side.’

My mouth, which had been comforting Berta just moments ago, snapped shut.

While I had more than five hundred things to say about Eurich’s matter, I had nothing particular to say about the divorce. I couldn’t list Gert’s faults the way I could list Eurich’s wrongs. After all, Berta’s employer was Gert!

I buried my face in the bed as if avoiding the topic and mumbled.

“That’s how it turned out.”

“How did it turn out like that! And I’ve told you countless times not to lie on the bed with makeup on! I thought you were following that rule well…! Get up right now and wash your face!”

“Ugh…”

The pouring nagging stuck into my back like arrows. Unable to bear watching me grumble, Berta placed the washing water on the nightstand and forcibly pulled me up.

No matter how weak I was, when someone went this far to set things up, I had to show some sincerity. I gathered all my remaining strength.

But it didn’t seem to satisfy Berta. Her eyes grew increasingly sharp.

“You’re not going to just dab water on like a cat and call that washing your face, are you?”

“N-no, of course not.”

Sometimes, Berta was scarier than Gert.

Feeling conscious of Berta’s gaze, I washed my face a bit more thoroughly instead of just splashing water carelessly.

Only then did Berta’s expression become satisfied.

As Berta was monitoring whether I was washing my face properly, she suddenly let out a sigh.

“Sigh…”

“I-I washed properly.”

When I hastily made excuses, feeling guilty, Berta shook her head and handed me a towel.

“It’s not about washing your face, it’s about His Grace.”

“Why Gert?”

As soon as I finished wiping the water from my face, Berta collected the towel and gently rubbed fragrant oil on my face.

Strangely, when playing the lyre, my fingers could move so dazzlingly fast they were invisible, but when it came to skincare, I didn’t want to lift a finger.

It wasn’t this bad originally.

My habits had gone seriously wrong.

‘If I keep this up, I’ll start not wanting to divorce again…’

Being attended to one by one by high-quality personnel like Berta was probably only possible if you were at least a Grand Duchess.

After the divorce, even if I couldn’t think of anything else, I would probably miss Berta’s massages.

I closed my eyes tightly and enjoyed Berta’s touch. Berta continued to massage my face while speaking.

“Honestly, His Grace wasn’t a good husband. I did think you would divorce him someday, my lady.”

“Even if he wasn’t a good husband, he wasn’t bad enough to deserve divorce…”

“You say that, but you’re the one who asked for divorce, my lady. So in the end, doesn’t that prove I was right that he deserved to be divorced?”

“…”

“Always away hunting, unable to say a single affectionate word… You even use separate bedrooms, so it’s no different from when you lived alone. Is that all? When His Grace is away, Hilias is still the one acting as Grand Duke’s proxy.”

“That’s because it was originally Hilias’s job…”

“What do you mean originally! The situation has changed from before! Being the Grand Duke’s proxy is your natural right, my lady. It’s not like he’s ignoring people!”

For Gert, it was natural to entrust the household to a stable aide who had been handling the work continuously, rather than to a wife who was temporary.

But since Berta didn’t know about Gert and my contract marriage, it was natural for her to misunderstand.

Wouldn’t this be too unfair to Gert? I opened my mouth to defend Gert.

“He probably deliberately avoided troublesome work since I’d be busy until the audition day.”

“If that were the case, he should have nominally given you the authority and had Hilias receive delegation from you, my lady.”

But Berta immediately countered. Listening to logical Berta’s words made Gert seem like the world’s worst trash husband…

I still didn’t think he was that bad, but judging from the conversation so far, every time I said one thing, Berta returned ten.

So I thought it would be better for Gert if I spoke less. Come to think of it, anything I said to help wouldn’t really benefit Gert since I was the one asking for divorce.

‘Hmm. I did my best for you, Gert…!’

After that, Berta badmouthed Gert several more times.

She had never badmouthed Gert in front of me before…

It seemed like Berta wasn’t simply badmouthing Gert to comfort me, but rather that I had become someone she could finally vent her accumulated complaints to.

‘Well, it would be awkward to badmouth a husband to his wife.’

After venting her complaints about Gert to her satisfaction, Berta soon turned off the room’s lights and left.

Unlike when I had collapsed on the bed earlier, I lay down in a much fresher state and blinked slowly.

‘Still, I’m glad Berta understood and accepted my reasons for requesting divorce.’

I hoped tomorrow Gert would accept the divorce even a tenth as easily as Berta had.

Worried about what would happen if Gert changed his mind, I tossed and turned for a while. But unable to resist the approaching drowsiness, I fell asleep without realizing it.

***

Chirp, chirp.

The next day, my eyes snapped open as soon as I heard birds singing.

Since the sun was just beginning to rise, the sky was still dim.

Previously, I would have woken up when the sun was high in the sky.

Before my regression, during the month I was confined to my room.

Eurich used to visit every day when the sun set.

He would scan various parts of my body with a gaze that clearly showed his sordid expectation that I, overcome with fear and anxiety, might throw myself into his arms.

Annoyed by talking to him and disgusted by seeing his face, I deliberately pretended to sleep early.

After a month passed like that, I had somehow become a person who slept early and woke up early.

‘They say it takes at least 3 weeks to form a habit…’

As soon as I woke up, I rang the bell on the nightstand. Berta, who had been up early, immediately came to attend to me.

“Waking up this early, are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

It was certainly unlike me, so a startled Berta hurriedly felt my forehead.

Only after confirming I had no fever did she sigh in relief, but her gaze behind her glasses was still full of worry.

‘I don’t think even my mother looked after me as carefully as Berta does.’

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