I Will Become the Ex-Wife of the Beast - Chapter 15

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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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“Your Highness, whether one is beautiful or not, appearance can never serve as a measure for judging a person.”
For now, I chose the Count’s grandfatherly route. Flattery probably wouldn’t work on him, but it was still better than bringing up the matter of compensation out of the blue.
“…I see.”
Her voice carried the interest of someone who’d just learned something new, so I cautiously raised my eyes. He was still buried behind the mask, yet somehow the corners of his mouth seemed to twitch.
…Hm? I think I’ve seen something like that somewhere. A sudden sense of déjà vu tilted my head, but I shook it off quickly. No way. If I’d ever seen a Grand Duke like him, there’s no way I’d have forgotten. It isn’t a matter of whether one wants to remember or not. The pressure I’d never felt before, and those red eyes that seemed to pierce straight through me, had been burned so deeply into every corner of my body. If someone could look at such a man and still not remember him, wouldn’t that person be a beast?
“Yes. I don’t mind at all, so Your Highness need not worry either.”
“It is less a matter of worry.”
“….”
“More a matter of regret, I suppose.”
Ugh, I hate it when people leave a sentence hanging like that. Every time he opened his mouth, I froze, then let my breath out again, over and over, until I felt like a fish dried for the winter. Regret, my foot. I’m not regretful in the slightest. I timidly protested inside my own head, but it did no good; the Grand Duke’s black boots stayed fixed on the spot right in front of me.
“….”
Better than drawing a sword the moment he saw me, I suppose, but a silence this suffocating isn’t something a person should have to endure. Tap-tap-tap, the crackling of the fire in the hearth grew louder little by little.
He lifted his chin, and his piercing gaze dropped down on me from slightly above.
“Do you truly think so?”
“Hm? Oh… of course.”
“That is somewhat surprising. Usually, it’s not an easy matter to take so lightly.”
“Not at all. It depends entirely on how one views the world.”
Ugh, my tongue is finally loosening up.
Still, being asked questions like this is a bit easier. I had chosen the Count’s grandfatherly approach, but I took extra care not to make myself seem too affected.
“That’s how I see it. People see others the way they wish to see them.”
“Hmm…”
“My late mother always used to say that.”
This part was true. It was something my poor mother, who passed away right after giving birth to Rose, used to say. Despite her circumstances, she had gone on to bear four children, and in the end she never managed to get back on her feet. Back then I was an utterly good-natured child, but the one time I resented my father, my mother said exactly this to me.
“In the end, I think what matters most is what’s inside a person. Just as a flower sees a flower, and the wind sees the wind.”
“…That’s quite moving. I’ll keep it in mind.”
“Not at all.”
Lost for a moment in sentiment over my mother, I then bent my knees slightly. At last, he seemed ready to take his leave. Haah, I wanted to let out a breath of relief, but it wasn’t time yet. The Grand Duke’s black robes fluttered as he turned at an angle.
“Let us discuss the specifics of the wedding again before long.”
“As you wish.”
I hope you do.
Now that he’d brought it up so readily, I was grateful, and began reassessing him anew. Thanks to that, I could now relax and simply pick out a site for the future Imperial Palace.
“By the way, is there anything inconvenient about your stay here? Anything you need… or perhaps anything else you wish to say.”
“No, nothing at all. As for what I need, well, let me think about it slowly.”
Rather than outright refusing, I left the matter hanging with as much lingering ambiguity as I could manage. Oh my, how considerate of him.
Just as he was about to leave, a genuine smile threatened to return, and the corners of my mouth tickled. Well, he’s not so bad after all, is he? From his polite formal speech to the neatness of his retreat, I had to reconsider the notorious reputation I’d heard of him. Perhaps the rumor of his cruel nature was just some careless writer who…
“But it seems you’ve brought only that one box…”
“Hm?”
Abruptly, his gaze turned toward the box I’d placed in front of the hearth. My smile, which had only just returned, dried up in an instant.
“For a Grand Duchess Consort’s trousseau, it’s rather modest. I’m afraid it seems insufficient.”
“….”
Why did I forget? Just when you feel reassured that nothing much is going on, something happens. That’s the iron law of novels.
“Oh, certainly not. Everything I need is already here, and that stuff is, well… merely trifles.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes. It’s just some things I brought from home, and I’ve already unpacked and arranged everything. It’s only an empty box now, so there’s no need to concern yourself…”
“Then I’ll dispose of it for you.”
“Excuse me?”
What kind of bolt-from-the-blue nonsense is this!
My finger, which had been pointing at the small books on the desk, drifted toward him. I hurriedly clasped both hands together before he could notice, but the Grand Duke was not a man who would wait for anyone. With one hand, he rubbed his chin in a casual swipe and took long, wide strides forward.
“If it’s only this much, is there any need to trouble someone else to fetch it? I’ll carry it out myself.”
“….”
Not a single word he said managed to properly sink into my head. I simply opened my eyes, and before I knew it, he was standing in front of our Rose.
“…Uh.”
I blinked, then quickly dashed toward him as well. Now, what was that expression I’d need to wear, one that looks desperate without appearing suspicious?
“It’s not necessary for someone of your rank to…”
“If it’s empty, there’s no need for you, Grand Duchess Consort, to trouble your hands with it.”
“Ah, no! If we’re going by that logic, there’s no need for Your Highness the Grand Duke to lend his hands either…”
“Then it would be best to dispose of it here, I suppose.”
“……Huh?”
Sorry, but what did you just say?
Before I could even draw a shocked breath, his large hand had already lifted the crate, or rather, our Rose, clean off the floor. The unexpected weight made his jaw tilt slightly, but that was all. The Grand Duke moved with ease, as if he were carrying a cloud of cotton candy.
Straight toward the fireplace, where the flames blazed red.
“W-Your Highness?”
“……Come to think of it, it’s only wood, isn’t it? Since you said it, there’s no need to go all the way out there.”
“Ah… no. There is a need. Please, there really is.”
“Why the fuss? I can simply toss something this small into that inferno myself.”
“Put her down, you beast!”
“…….”
Huff, huff. Now the vast room was filled with nothing but my own ragged breathing. Even the fire in the hearth could not keep pace with my harsh gasps.
For a moment the whole world turned black and spun. Through my blurring vision, I could just make out that he hadn’t thrown or dropped the crate, but set it down carefully.
Creak. The old crate lid swung open, and our Rose poked her head out, fluffy-haired like a chick just hatched from its shell, tilting her head with childlike innocence.
“……Hm? I’m already out?”

◇ ◆ ◇

Bella, wearing Eliya’s guise, spat curses at the Grand Duke. The fear of death was enough to drive her out of her mind. As he stepped toward her with a grin, his blood-red eyes were the last thing she saw before a sharp blade sliced through the air.

“…….”
Why do I feel like I’ve seen a line like that before?
Like the film that’s said to flash before your eyes at the moment of death, black letters suddenly floated in front of me. Is this the room of time and spirit? In the suffocating silence, there was only me and that man…
“Huh? Not yet? Do I have to go inside?”
“Rose!”
My baby! Just as my grip on reason was about to snap, I spotted Rose blinking inside the big crate and pulled her into a tight hug. What a state she’s in, all because she got stuck with a sister like me. I curled around her like a mother bird shielding her chick from a predator.
“Mm-hmm.”
“Rose, sniff.”
I should have just left her at the cottage. Then she might have suffered, but at least she wouldn’t have been in danger of dying. A surge of regret stung the tip of my nose. I should have endured it. Better yet, I should have knelt and clung to him. For a moment my mind went blank at the thought that he might throw our Rose into the flames.
Cursing a beast to his face as a beast… If I’d insulted him outright, at least I could have offered some kind of excuse, but with the future looming before my eyes, my head burned with fever. Whether I like it or not, I’ll probably go down in novel history as the most foolish Supporting Character, Bella. If I’d kept quiet, I could have lived up to two more years, yet I went and threw open the gates of hell by begging him to kill me. Who would have thought that being flayed alive would start to look like the better option?
But that was my life and my karma, not Rose’s. I had to make sure not so much as a fingertip touched her.
“P-please, spare us! Rose hasn’t done anything wrong!”
“…….”
Forgetting all shame, I immediately grabbed the hem of his black robe and clung to it. It wasn’t as if I were trying to look pretty or pitiful. Was there any plan in a situation like this? If they would only spare Rose, I’d crawl across the floor if he asked me to.
“She’s a child! Everything was only because I told her to do it! Haa, please send Rose back!”
“……Hoo.”
“Please! How is it a crime for a child to come to her sister’s wedding?”
I honestly wished I could pull out my own heart to prove Rose’s innocence. How frightened must she have been, to live like this? Even now she couldn’t say a single word, only breathing softly against my chest.
“Haa, it was me who cursed you out, after all!”
“……I’m well aware of that.”
“…….”
Tap-tap. The longer his silence stretched, the more my lifeline burned away. Trembling, I stared at his lips, and this moment was reaching its limit.

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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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