My Contract Husband Demands a Divorce - Chapter 43

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

He didn’t even pretend to listen.
In any case, he was astonishingly good at ignoring my nagging.
As we reached the end of the passage, he put on his mask and covered my eyes once more.
Without bothering to brush his hand away, I asked a question.
“Why wear the mask? Since he apparently told you to divorce me, it sounds like he already knows exactly who you are.”
“If Papilion sees this face, he will throw a fit.”
“…That makes sense.”
Hearing a clicking sound, I figured he was unlocking another passage.
To think he could operate it with just one hand.
For someone who had only been here a few times, he seemed a bit too skilled at this.
Did he practice or something?
With a soft sliding sound, the wall slid open and his hand dropped away.
Scheit moved forward, navigating the path without a moment’s hesitation.
Even though it was a massive mansion, he didn’t get lost for a single second and came to a stop in front of a certain room door.
When he knocked, the door swung open.
The person who appeared was not Papilion, but Grand Commander Tristan Wigras.
“Scheit, I’ve been waiting for you! The Baroness came along as well. A pleasure to meet you. I’m Tristan, so feel free to call me whatever you like.”
For someone dealing with a political rival, his behavior was incredibly warm.
Why was everything so amiable?
Though this was certainly better than a freezing cold atmosphere….
I tilted my head, then smiled.
“I am Amarynthis Rootsild.”
Introducing myself with a smile, I looked over Grand Commander Tristan’s shoulder.
Papilion Cortius was sitting on the sofa, looking right this way.
His posture was defensive, and his eyes were full of hostility.
Unlike Grand Commander Tristan, he clearly carried himself as though he were facing a political rival.
He spoke in a voice that was dripping with blatant displeasure.
“I didn’t think you would actually come.”
“It’s been a long time, Cortius. Meeting like this brings back memories.”
Despite my attempt to break the ice, his expression remained stiff as a board.
Scheit placed a hand on my back and stepped into the room.
“Let’s sit down, my lady. You had a rough journey getting here.”
Papilion rose from his seat and naturally yielded the seat of honor deepest inside the room, near the fireplace.
Was he doing that to make sure I couldn’t escape?
Moving away from the door made me a bit anxious, but I didn’t let it show.
‘I have Scheit with me, so it’ll be fine.’
The moment I sat down on the sofa, Papilion moved to the opposite side and stared at me sharply.
For some reason, he seemed more wary of me than he was of Scheit.
“Never mind Baron Huniswald, what exactly is your angle, Baroness?”
Wait, why does Scheit get a pass while I’m the one suspected of having an angle?
This feels a little unfair.
Scheit—or to be precise, the anonymous man occupying Scheit’s body—looked suspicious no matter who was watching.
He was brazen, reckless, and yet upright in strange ways, making him an incredibly difficult person to read.
But what about me?
I was a kind, gentle, and sweet alumnus who had entered the Imperial Comprehensive University at the youngest age as the top student and later served as the student council president.
To top it off, both my appearance and my reputation were completely flawless.
We used to stay late at the library together until dawn, studying as the only two people left.
Of course, we had just been engrossed in our respective studies in the same space without sharing any private conversations….
Still, I thought we had built some inner familiarity!
“An angle? I only came because I agreed to cooperate. Prince Kildian ordered me to find out the contents of the research.”
“Isn’t there more than enough data back at the mansion? Like in the laboratory, for instance.”
The atmosphere felt somewhat like an interrogation.
I maintained my smile without showing any annoyance.
The more I did, the deeper the crease between Cortius’s brows became.
Soon, I dropped a bit of the smile and stated only the facts.
“There isn’t any. It burned down.”
“Given the timing, it doesn’t seem like a mere accident. Did you commit arson?”
“That’s right. It seemed like Scheit was under pressure due to a lack of research progress. As you know, this man…….”
I trailed off and looked at Scheit.
I started with ‘as you know,’ but did they actually know? That the person sitting inside Scheit’s shell was an anonymous stranger?
When our eyes met, he shook his head slightly.
It seemed to mean either ‘they don’t know’ or ‘don’t tell them.’
So they think he’s just the usual Scheit?
That makes no sense.
Scheit is the actual person who wrote the notebooks.
Facing that very man while whining about not finding someone to decode them means….
Ah! He must have used that excuse.
I quickly picked up the end of my sentence that had momentarily blurred.
“He’s suffering from amnesia, after all.”
“Which is why I am asking if there is a reason you are helping Scheit Huniswald even at the cost of incurring Prince Kildian’s displeasure.”
“Does one need a reason to help the person they love?”
It was an excuse that had worked even on a cold-blooded man like Kildian.
And when people are emotionally entangled, they usually can’t betray each other easily, so it makes it simpler to earn trust.
Contrary to my thoughts, however, Cortius let out a scoff.
“Baroness, people don’t usually use the word ‘cooperate’ when they are helping someone they love.”
…He’s sharp.
I was momentarily at a loss for words.
When I shut my mouth, Scheit stepped in to defend me.
“Don’t push her too hard. She agreed to help in exchange for me not pulling any stunts to get a divorce.”
Grand Commander Tristan, who had just been watching blankly from beside Papilion, also nodded.
“And besides, aren’t those notebooks completely useless without the Baroness anyway? You still haven’t found anyone you can trust with the cipher or the ancient language.”
“How can you just blurt that out!”
“What does it matter? We’re on the same side now. Isn’t that right, Baroness? Hahaha! Hahaha!”
Papilion pressed a hand to his forehead as if he were getting a massive headache.
Regardless of his reaction, Grand Commander Tristan wedged himself right between Scheit and me to take a seat, even resting his elbow on my shoulder.
Did he just use me as an armrest?
Just how incredibly social is this man?
It was my first time encountering someone who crossed boundaries so casually, so I was a bit startled.
As my shoulder flinched, Scheit pulled Grand Commander Tristan back toward his side.
Tristan allowed himself to be dragged over next to Scheit without a fight and spoke up.
“Phil, to my eyes, the Baroness seems like a good person too. Since we’re going to cooperate anyway, why don’t we join forces and try to stop Kildian together?”
I take back what I said about him being oblivious.
To think he recognized that I’m a good person in one single glance.
He’s quick-witted, and his judgment of character is spot on.
Maybe now I can earn some trust and decode the notebooks in peace.
With that inner expectation, I looked over at Papilion, but his expression remained unchanged.
“Lord Tristan rarely dislikes anyone to begin with, so don’t get your hopes up over nothing, Baroness.”
He really is as sharp as a blade.
“Still, wouldn’t using me be safer than using anyone else? You hold the weakness of the inheritance in your hands.”
“Doesn’t that ultimately mean you move for money?”
“Which makes it all the more certain. There are very few people in this world who can give me more money than the inheritance I have to return. Unless such a person appears, I will not betray you.”
“Is your goal truly just avoiding a divorce and helping your husband?”
“And picking up Prince Kildian’s weakness along the way.”
From what I could gather, Papilion was a man driven by faith and loyalty.
But he was also rational.
He might not like my methods, but he wouldn’t be able to deny the fact that it would be difficult for me to betray them when our interests were so entangled.
And the fact that I, too, stood on the opposite side of Prince Kildian.
After appearing to ponder for a moment, he finally nodded.
“Very well.”
That was all. There were no warm greetings.
Instead, he immediately moved from his spot.
Scheit stood up as well, intending to follow Papilion.
Tristan, however, remained seated where he was.
Judging by his reaction, the notebooks seemed to be right inside this room.
Since there was no need for me to stand up, I followed Papilion with my eyes.
Where on earth did he hide the notebooks?
A secret space under the rug? Or inside a desk like Scheit did? Maybe under the bed.
Just then, Papilion came to a stop in front of a bookshelf. When he released a mechanism that looked like a lock attached to the bottom, the bookshelf slid to the side.
Inside the double-layered bookshelf, it was packed tightly with the records left behind by Scheit Huniswald.
“…Are those all Scheit’s notebooks?”
“That is correct. Can you decode all of them?”
“Even if I can’t, I must.”
“Then please finish it as quickly as possible.”
“…….”

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