An Ode to Divorce - Chapter 27

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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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#27

Gert’s words weren’t entirely wrong. With no reputation or status, if I went alone, I’d surely be torn apart from all sides. That was separate from my abilities.

Knowing this myself, I didn’t charge into the social circle empty-handed but used connections.

“That’s why I went with Linos.”

“Linos? The guy who abandoned you and disappeared without a trace?”

Gert let out an incredulous laugh.

“What kind of person abandons someone attending their first banquet and runs off?”

I didn’t want to take Linos’s side, but since Gert seemed to be misunderstanding something, I defended Linos in his absence.

“Anyway, it wasn’t completely my first banquet, and Linos stayed by my side the whole time… I mean, until you came.”

“He was there and you still ended up in that state? Just letting strange people swarm around you like that.”

“Strange people? I only met expedition members at the banquet.”

“…”

Gert was about to say something but pressed his lips shut.

“Those twins aren’t good people. What you saw in the expedition isn’t all there is to them.”

“I never said the twins were good people either. Well, they might be bad people depending on your perspective. But they don’t have any ill will toward me, so it’s fine. They’re just mischievous.”

Gert wore an expression like he had a lot he wanted to say. Soon he clicked his tongue in displeasure and shook his head.

“Anyway, Linos won’t do. It should be someone like Tamar.”

Gert spoke of the foreign princess as if she were some employee to be ordered around.

This arrogant aspect of Gert as a demigod made Tamar uncomfortable, and Tamar’s attitude as Hecate’s beloved priestess and princess, showing no backing down, also rubbed Gert the wrong way.

After all, here in Petalien, not only Prince Dietrich but even the king had no choice but to watch Gert’s mood.

So regardless of their mutual recognition of each other, the relationship between the two wasn’t very good.

“But Tamar hates banquets and social gatherings. She finds them bothersome. She’d listen if I asked, but I don’t want to make her do something she dislikes.”

“…”

Gert sighed at my rebuttal.

Then he knelt in front of me and lowered his body. Even so, our eye levels were roughly the same with me sitting on the bed. Gert looked straight at me and said,

“If you’re going to social gatherings without Tamar, then come with me instead.”

“With you?”

“Yes. Anyway, I can’t trust that brother of yours at all.”

Gert’s proposal was unexpected.

‘Something’s changed, hasn’t it?’

I was the one trying to follow Gert around, but now Gert was offering to accompany me.

Anyway, as long as I achieved my goal. My purpose was to stay as close to Gert as possible, so his offer to attend social gatherings together was quite positive.

But I remembered how people had whispered about Gert and the twins today.

Though I was shameless, I was at least aware that attending social gatherings escorted by my ex-husband less than a month after divorce was definitely absurd. I mumbled additional excuses.

“But if you go around with me, people will make even more noise.”

“Escorting my ex-wife won’t damage my reputation as a hero.”

“That may be true, but…”

It seemed like it might damage his reputation as a good remarriage prospect, but he didn’t seem to care about that.

Since the topic came up, it might be good to check if Gert had any thoughts of meeting another woman. I might need to adjust my strategy accordingly.

I cautiously probed while watching Gert’s reaction.

“The women who liked you must have been secretly happy to hear you got divorced… What if those women are disappointed when they see you went with me?”

“What does their disappointment have to do with me?”

“Your destined partner might be among those disappointed women.”

“Destined partner?”

Gert raised one eyebrow as if he’d heard something ridiculous. He declared confidently with conviction,

“There’s no such thing as destiny. People just make excuses about fate and such because they find it hard to bear the consequences of their actions alone.”

Gert’s blue eyes glinted coldly with cynicism about fate.

Born a bastard but gifted with demigod powers, cursed after killing his father with that strength, he probably heard stories about destiny until his ears bled.

Moreover, he was skeptical about love too, so I could roughly guess how absurd my current talk about destined partners must sound to him.

When I had nothing left to say and was just fidgeting with my hands on my knees, Gert suddenly grasped both my hands.

“Don’t think useless thoughts. Rather than trivial things like destined partners, ‘what I’ve decided to do’ is more important to me. For example, the promise I made with you.”

‘But you’ll end up going to your death because of that trivial thing…’

I knew Gert was someone who always kept his word once given. But that was the past. Knowing that Gert would change his words as easily as flipping his palm in the future, I half-listened to what he said.

‘Certainly, becoming willing to die for love shortly after recognizing it would be impossible to explain without destiny.’

Perhaps thinking I didn’t trust him, Gert met my eyes and reminded me of the promise we made when we divorced.

“I told you countless times when we divorced. If anything happens, come to me first. I’ll solve anything for you.”

Despite Gert’s earnest entreaties, I still didn’t believe his words about not caring about destined partners. But Gert’s confidence in himself was worth exploiting.

‘Since he said those words, even if feelings for Lairinne sprout, he won’t properly recognize them at first or will deny them.’

That fleeting moment was exactly what I needed to target.

The role I needed to play for one year roughly took shape.

Even if Princess Lairinne said “That woman is interfering with us,” I needed to earn Gert’s trust enough that he’d defend me saying “Orphea isn’t that kind of person”!

Once I secured my position as friend and counselor, when Gert worried about Lairinne, I could appropriately interfere and delay his realization!

At first, I wondered if divorcing had lowered Princess Lairinne’s psychological barriers toward Gert for nothing, but thinking about it, the divorce allowed me to move more actively.

If I had interfered with Princess Lairinne while still married, the situation would have been completely opposite.

For example…

“Princess Lairinne seems to like you, how do you feel? Do you like Princess Lairinne too?”

“What’s the age difference between Princess Lairinne and me… Don’t talk nonsense. And while you may be my wife, interfering in such matters is overstepping your bounds.”

…would be his reaction. Just thinking about it made me feel suffocated.

But with me now?

“Princess Lairinne seems to like you, how do you feel? Do you like Princess Lairinne too?”

“Hmm… If you, who divorced me and has nothing to do with me anymore, say that, it must seem inappropriate to others too?”

…would be about the response I’d get.

In short, through divorce I escaped from his wife position and became someone with an objective perspective!

Of course, I still felt guilty about interfering with Gert’s love.

‘Could it be that I want to tear those two apart out of jealousy?’

After all, the memory of our wedding night wasn’t something easily forgotten.

But I soon shook my head.

‘I’m absolutely not interfering with Gert because of personal feelings. I’m doing this reluctantly because it’s good for me, for Gert, and maybe even for Lairinne!’

If I just endured for one year, the gates to the Underworld would close so Gert wouldn’t die, and the heroic epic would be safely completed and recognized by Mnemiir, so I wouldn’t die either.

I would become a bard chosen by Mnemiir, and Gert could safely propose to his beloved.

In short, everything would be perfect!

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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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