An Ode to Divorce - Chapter 8

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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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#8

‘What a shock.’

The moment their eyes met, it felt as if Orphea had seen right through his true intentions.

Eurich, who had much to feel guilty about, unconsciously touched his own cheek.

Just then, a servant carrying drinks bumped slightly into Eurich.

“Ah, my apologies.”

Eurich smiled warmly and comforted the servant who was bowing anxiously before him.

“It’s fine. Just give me a drink.”

His throat had been parched anyway. Eurich moistened his lips with the wine the servant offered.

‘…In any case, it’s been a while since I’ve heard Orphea’s performance. Even if it’s unbecoming of an archduchess, it’s not an opportunity that comes easily.’

Just as Eurich settled his mind to enjoy Orphea’s performance with that thought.

Orphea’s performance began.

A slow overture. But that was merely a prelude to the storm that would follow.

The performance that changed in an instant swallowed the banquet hall in the blink of an eye.

***

The lyre is a delicate instrument.

If you don’t tune it every single day, the notes go off.

But I believed that my past self would have surely tuned it perfectly as soon as the morning sun rose.

True to my belief, the perfect melody I desired flowed forth.

A soft and elegant sound that relaxed people’s tension like spring sunshine.

When people began to close their eyes one by one, falling into the sweet sound.

I began to sing.

Under wine cups, under fans

In places where no one can see

Secret desires hidden away tight

I want to hear the song of the Sirens.

When I playfully wrinkled my nose while singing the last verse, everyone in the banquet hall burst into laughter.

“Haha! I had times like that too.”

“Our son has been constantly saying he wants to go to sea to see the Sirens lately… Now I know who he takes after.”

Gauging the atmosphere I could feel on my skin, I smiled with satisfaction.

The beginning didn’t need to give too strong a shock. Rather, I needed to make them let their guard down.

Only then could I burrow into their minds without them knowing when they’d been enchanted.

When I felt I had appropriately lifted the mood, I gradually began to change the song’s tune.

The notes of the song that had started brightly slowly sank, and my voice deepened.

When night comes and body and soul sleep

Desire stealthily awakens and whispers

Come to me

Come to me

“But really… it really sounds like a Siren is singing.”

What rose in the eyes of people that had grown hazy one by one was strange longing and possessiveness.

As if the wishes they desired were flickering just within reach if they stretched out their hands.

‘It seems I’ve stimulated them properly.’

In fact, looking at just the song, it was an ordinary song with nothing particularly strange about it.

But the person singing this song was none other than me, Orphea der Vogelbaide.

My song could draw out power one didn’t even know they had, or stimulate desires hidden away from others.

Just like now.

Intoxicated by beautiful song, step by step

At the end of placing your feet forward

What awaits you is

The sea that accepts everything

People’s bodies leaned forward as if they wanted to rush out immediately.

In their eyes, I would appear as something they desired.

Among the people looking at me as if enchanted by Sirens, I confirmed Eurich standing there blankly in a daze and smiled slightly.

Indeed, what form do I take in your eyes right now?

Treasure piled like mountains? The supreme throne? The most beautiful woman in the world?

Or perhaps…

The form of dead Gert?

Eurich’s true nature was that he wouldn’t be satisfied until he had destroyed everything that belonged to Gert.

“Does a commoner even deserve to be an archduchess? How about you become my mistress instead? Then who knows? I might spare your life.”

“Even if Gert is dead, still, do you think Hilias would just stand by and watch that happen?”

“Hilias? Ha! Do you think that bastard is still alive? I got rid of that loyal dog of Gert long ago!”

Only then did I realize why no one defended me when the Rubenherts family framed me.

Everyone in the manor who might have taken my side had died by Eurich’s hand.

Hilias too, and Berta too.

Eurich had insulted me, tried to kill me, and reached out his hand to those around me.

Because of that, my resentment toward Eurich was incomparably greater than toward other members of the Rubenherts family.

‘I don’t know about others, but I will definitely get my revenge on Eurich.’

But others believed without doubt that Eurich was kind and gentle, and everything he had done disappeared with the regression.

Moreover, he was Gerhardt’s cousin, and as long as Gert had no children, he was first in line to inherit the Duchy of Lübenherts.

So I couldn’t rashly criticize Eurich or attack him without any reason.

‘If there’s no reason, I just need to create one.’

Through this song, I intended to make Eurich reveal the desires and true feelings he had been hiding.

A lover calls from behind

Don’t go to the sea

But the sailor doesn’t look back

Desire within reach consumes him

Making someone’s mind confused enough to confess their true feelings was entirely possible with just my ability.

However, there was a fundamental problem with my ability called song.

The point was that song doesn’t discriminate among its audience.

It would be troublesome if everyone listening to my song ended up revealing their true feelings.

If this banquet hall became a place where everyone confessed their innermost thoughts, then no matter what shocking words Eurich said, they would be buried.

I needed only Eurich to lose his reason.

So I lowered the power of the song to just enough to stir emotions appropriately.

And…

With the milky white medicine I had asked Berta for, I slightly opened the lock on Eurich’s heart alone.

As I had told Berta, this milky white medicine wasn’t poison or anything harmful to the body.

It was just a medicine that made one a little more honest.

In a situation where the deep emotions in their hearts were stirring from my song, that much was enough.

‘Come to think of it… what is Gert thinking right now?’

No matter how much I had lowered the power of my song, the power to touch emotions was real.

But even so, it was still human power.

I couldn’t shake the emotions of someone like Gert, who had divine blood flowing strongly through him.

Rather, that’s why he could listen to my performance completely, but honestly, Gert wasn’t particularly gifted in artistic sensibilities.

‘He was displeased when I first joined the expedition too.’

Though it was from four years ago, it came to mind as if it were yesterday.

“Taking a bard on the ship? What help could someone just banging around with instruments be?”

“You think managing the morale of 50 people on this ship will be easy? Just because you don’t need it doesn’t mean it’s useless, Gert!”

Expedition leader Dietrich insisted that a bard was absolutely necessary, if only to immortalize their expedition in epic poetry.

Faced with Dietrich’s firm insistence, Gert had no choice but to tolerate my boarding the ship.

But that didn’t mean he accepted me right away, so whenever I performed among the others, he would always furrow his brow.

Still, by the time the expedition ended, he acknowledged my contributions and came to recognize me, a bard, as a proper hero too.

Of course, that didn’t mean he came to like music.

‘Anyway, it’s fascinating.’

I had never met a person who disliked music to that extent, so it was bewildering.

Even a passing dog would stop and listen quietly when I started singing!

Was it because of memories from the expedition days?

After we married, I found myself unconsciously avoiding performing in front of him. I would even stop in the middle of playing sometimes.

So this was the first time in a while that I was performing in front of Gert. I glanced toward where Gert was.

‘…Still the same.’

Gert was furrowing his brow with his arms crossed, staring intently at me.

A blazing gaze as if he would devour me.

“Orphea…”

Seeing that gaze, I recalled Gert’s husky voice whispering in my ear as he held me.

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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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