An Ode to Divorce - Chapter 70

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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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#70

“Deceive you? I have never once deceived you, Princess. I have always told you only the truth.”

“Lies! Just look at this incident. You said it was merely a simple prank! You clearly said it wasn’t dangerous…”

“To be precise, I said that even if His Majesty knew about this matter, you wouldn’t get scolded for it, Princess. So, did you hear anything from him?”

Eurich cut through Lairinne’s torrent of accusations and asked. Unlike Lairinne who was excitedly fuming, Eurich remained calm and composed.

“You didn’t, did you?”

Eurich looked down at Lairinne and continued matter-of-factly.

“Besides, I didn’t directly harm Orphea using the net, did I?”

“But because you confined the baby deer…!”

“Exactly.”

Eurich suddenly bent down to meet Lairinne’s eyes. His gaze was gleaming and moist.

Since Gert and Eurich were cousins, they shared many similarities. Their facial features, their eye color, and such.

But even with the same colored eyes, if Gert’s gaze felt like the deep ocean, Eurich’s eyes were like a swamp.

Lairinne’s throat bobbed involuntarily.

Eurich smiled even more deeply, as if mocking such a Lairinne.

“All I did was merely confine a baby deer. I didn’t make the deer attack Orphea. I just made the deer rampage, so should I be responsible for Orphea getting caught up in it?”

At Eurich’s shameless rebuttal, Lairinne’s complexion turned deathly pale.

Eurich snorted. Did the princess really think he would meekly bow his head if she lashed out at him?

‘How naive.’

That’s why she was so flustered just from him revealing a glimpse of his true nature.

The reason he had tried to please Lairinne until now was because he thought he might be able to use her feelings for Gert if things went well.

But this incident made him clearly realize that Lairinne was not only useless but actually hindered his plans.

“If there’s anyone who should question this incident, it’s not you, Princess, but me. To think you would betray me for that woman. So please don’t criticize my attitude as heartless. I too had no idea that the friendship we’ve built over the years was so shallow.”

If there was any gain from this incident, it would be that he could now use Orphea’s influence on divine beasts as leverage to persuade the king.

In any case, Lairinne was no longer needed.

Eurich lifted the corners of his mouth and sneered.

“If you really want to reprimand me, instead of coming to find me like this, why don’t you reveal the truth to the followers of Artume? Oh, but then you’d have to reveal that you lent me the net, so you couldn’t prove your own innocence either.”

“Brother Eurich!”

“Am I really your brother?”

The moment Lairinne cried out accusingly with a reddened face, Eurich immediately pressed her.

“You always called me a good brother, but in the end, Princess, you only kept me by your side because you needed someone to provide a brief escape in this cold Royal Palace, didn’t you?”

Each of Eurich’s words flew like knives and pierced her.

Lairinne’s lower lip trembled finely as she was left speechless. Her already pale complexion became even more ashen.

‘He told me to reveal the truth to the followers of Artume? How, how could brother say such a thing?’

Of course, as Eurich said, she had used the excuse of discord between the Royal Family and Artume as a reason for not being able to report Eurich.

But beneath that, there was certainly concern for Eurich as well.

No matter how much Eurich had deceived her and tried to put Orphea in trouble, she thought there must be some circumstances behind it.

But seeing Eurich criticize her as selfish instead of understanding such feelings made everything feel futile.

Was this person really the Eurich she knew?

Perhaps everything had been just her delusion from the beginning?

Their meeting, friendship, memories, affection… all of those things she thought were pure.

“…What about you, brother?”

Lairinne’s face rippled with betrayal. An emotion like a turbulent storm, incomparable to when she learned that Eurich had deceived her, consumed Lairinne.

Lairinne spoke each word with difficulty through trembling lips.

“Brother, can you say you never had any intention of using me?”

Lairinne’s blue eyes stabbed Eurich like shattered sapphire fragments.

For the first time, the corners of Eurich’s mouth, which had been constantly smirking, turned downward. Soon Eurich clicked his tongue and turned away.

Watching Eurich’s retreating figure without giving any answer, Lairinne’s insides began to boil over and spill out.

Unable to hold back any longer, Lairinne shouted at Eurich’s back.

“Answer me, Eurich!”

Despite her desperate cry, Eurich walked away as if he heard nothing. Lairinne could only glare resentfully at his back.

***

“Gold~ Gold~ What’s the best thing made of gold~ Not a golden crown~ Not a golden sculpture~ Go, go, golden strings~ Golden strings are the best~.”

“…You’re singing absurd lyrics that would give people the courage to think they too could become bards, in a voice that’s unthinkable to attempt.”

Watching me replace the lyre strings with golden ones and sing a joyful song in delight, Berta made a comment that was either a sigh or admiration.

“These simple lyrics are the kind that stick in your ears.”

“That’s true. I think my mind is already contaminated. Oh no, it would be troublesome if I end up humming such songs while dusting.”

At Berta’s uncharacteristically dismayed expression, I giggled.

Berta, who had been the head maid of a ducal house, knew the value of luxury goods better than anyone, but she herself was a person who was strict with money and ascetic.

The thought of such a Berta humming ‘Gold~ Gold~’ while dusting made me laugh involuntarily.

Berta, realizing the song had already stuck in her mouth, added with a sigh of resignation.

“Anyway, if something like this happens twice, my heart will give out. From next time, just call the instrument merchant to the manor.”

“Getting support from Gert for string costs is enough. To call an instrument merchant like that, you’d have to give them travel expenses and reservation fees. I can just make the trip myself.”

Even before marrying Gert, I used to go to the musical instrument shop myself to replace strings. So it didn’t feel particularly troublesome.

“And there’s a special pleasure in going to see for yourself. The lighting, temperature, humidity…”

“But you almost got into big trouble this time.”

“Thanks to that, I got golden strings too.”

I winked. Berta shook her head as if I was hopeless.

“If it helps you feel refreshed, Orphea…”

Though Berta wasn’t convinced, she nodded as if she’d try to understand since I insisted, then left the room.

While I was spending time getting acquainted with the new strings, an unexpected visitor arrived.

It was Gert, who had gone hunting.

“Orphea!”

“…Gert?”

Gert strode into my room like an invasion, unable to suppress his uncharacteristically evident excitement. His momentum was so fierce that the fine hairs on my skin stood on end.

Berta followed a step behind Gert. Since Gert’s momentum was so menacing, she seemed unable to stop him from coming straight to my room.

I waved my hand to dismiss Berta as if it was fine and stood up. But that didn’t make Gert’s appearance any less bewildering.

“…Why did you come back so soon?”

Only after speaking did I realize my mistake. It might sound like I wasn’t welcoming Gert.

But my surprise was natural.

Usually when Gert went hunting, it would take at least several weeks at the fastest. But now…

‘Hasn’t it been less than a week since Gert left? But he’s back this quickly?’

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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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