C4
Leandro remained silent for a moment after hearing my entire story.
His proud face gradually twisted.
"Was the person wearing this dress Liena, not my wife?" he asked.
"That's right," I replied.
"There's no way I'd make such a stupid mistake... Did I really do that?" he muttered in disbelief.
"Are you making a mistake, wife?" he asked with a hint of doubt.
"Am I stupid? Can't I tell the difference between what I'm wearing and what I'm not?" I retorted.
"I can also tell the difference between what my wife is wearing and what she's not," Leandro replied.
Ah. I was so dumbfounded that I couldn't think of anything to say in response.
But Leandro continued speaking, probably because he thought I was silent because I had been hurt.
"Yes... I'm just saying this just in case..."
The hesitation in the man's blue eyes turned into suspicion.
"Aren't you saying things that aren't true to blame me?"
...What?
When people are so absurd, it's not just that you have nothing to say; it makes you laugh.
Now I get it, hahaha.
I asked him again, suppressing a mocking laugh.
"Are you saying that I'm lying? Why would I blame myself for doing something wrong? Even after I say it, he avoids looking at me as if he thinks I'm sorry, but he doesn't change his mind.
"I'm not saying that's necessarily true, but... Honestly, it's hard to believe my wife's claims," he said.
"Why?" I asked.
"Liena and my wife look alike. Things like impressions and atmosphere."
What is he saying now? Who looks like whom? Liena has a cute and eye-catching appearance that makes people look at her hundreds of times as she walks down the street. I've heard that I'm pretty a few times, but in general, my presence is weak. I never thought I looked like her, and in reality, I didn't look like her at all.
"There are other things I don't understand," Leandro continued arbitrarily. "According to what my wife said, isn't that wedding dress the one Liena wore?"
"That's right."
"Then why did you choose this wedding dress without saying anything?"
I understand the logic.
"You wear a dress you haven't tried on and don't like for an important event like a wedding. If that's true... isn't that quite insulting? You wore it well at the time, so why make a fuss now? Isn't it in itself a lie that I made a mistake?"
In short, that's what he meant.
I was surprised again. The fact that I still have feelings for Leandro.
"Why did I do that? Why did I choose that wedding dress?" I said, sighing.
"Leandro. What did I say when I came here today?"
"...What do you mean?"
"Think without the cliché greetings. What kind of words did I say after setting foot in the Cassius mansion?"
He thought about today's events for a moment and then replied thoughtfully.
"You said you had no appetite."
This is what I said when I lost my appetite after seeing his behavior.
"And?"
"And you apologized to the servants who prepared the food."
"And?"
"...You asked if there was any gift and requested a divorce."
"Exactly. There's no need to say anything after that. You have a clear memory."
And yet, he forgot. What dress my future wife is wearing.
"Why is this story happening suddenly?"
"And before that?"
"What?"
"What did I say before I said I had no appetite?"
"That..."
The mouth that had been talking freely until now faltered.
Therefore...
A silence fell after searching persistently through his memories. I guess he had nothing to say.
Since I entered this house, I haven't said a word except for the brief greetings I exchanged with his family when we first met.
"That's my position in this house."
A vivid shock passed through Leandro's face. He realized it too.
No one in this family speaks to me, and I don't even open my mouth first.
It has been like this all along.
"It's like this even after getting married, so how was it before getting married?"
"Wife..."
"Could I have pointed out the misunderstanding of the noble young Duke Cassius? Could I have rejected your offer?"
I resigned myself to seeing that man offering me the dress Liena was wearing so casually. Even if he pointed out the truth, both of them would just blush and progress in their relationship would be difficult.
"Well, let's not rush it. After we get married, you can gradually get closer. Then you will also become interested in me."
Based on that vague hope, I tried to approach her first in the early days of our honeymoon.
But I soon realized that there was a very strong invisible barrier between them and me.
I don't think the Cassius family intentionally excluded me.
It's just that the amount of time and affection shared is significantly different.
This harmonious family has accumulated so many things they want to say to each other in just a few days of not seeing each other.
I wasn't assigned any space while they laughed, joked, and shared affection with each other.
But one of the people who made me realize the barrier seemed to want to make an excuse.
"Since the relationship in our family is unusually close..."
"Then, since we don't have a close relationship, I'll just leave."
"Wife!"
I passed by Leandro and headed for the door. But before I could leave through the door, my shoulder was grabbed.
Was my look so cold when I turned my head slightly? Leandro hesitated.
"If you really doubt my claims about the wedding dress, consult Madame Renoa yourself."
I forcefully pushed away the hand that was on my shoulder, as if it was something very dirty.
"When I chose a dress I had never tried on, not only the lady but also the other employees were very puzzled. They probably remember," I said.
In other words, the future husband misunderstood a fact that even complete strangers knew.
"I will write and send the divorce papers as soon as possible. Just sign."
Now that I had said everything I needed to say, I tried to leave, but Leandro stopped me again.
"Wait a moment, wife. Please listen to me!"
"I've heard enough nonsense," I replied.
His blue eyes widened.
"What did you say?"
I said it without hesitation, saying something a bit different than before.
"Go to hell. Idiot."
I don't know if it was the first time he heard such an insult or if it was because bad words came out of my mouth, where I had previously only used kind words.
Leandro made a strange expression that he had never shown before.
Hmm, it looks good on him.
I walked away, leaving behind his expressionless body.
"Sister-in-law, the conversation with my brother..."
"What did he say...?"
"Ethel Wallace, if you're not satisfied, don't express it like that..."
I left, ignoring the Cassius family that spoke to me and the nervous servants who looked at me.
And so, I left Cassius Mansion.
---------------------------
"Ah! How comfortable!"
I threw myself onto the soft bed in my hotel room.
It's not that my body is comfortable. Anyway, the facilities in this budget hotel are as good as those in the Duke Cassius' house.
But my mind is at peace.
"I'm glad I decided to divorce when I arrived in the capital."
In many ways, it was more convenient to be in the capital when preparing for the divorce and finding a place to stay.
As part of the education as a successor, Duke Cassius left the management of the territory to Leandro and stayed in the capital with his other children.
Thanks to this, I spent most of my time in the Cassius Duchy after getting married.
"Now that I think about it, my luggage..."
My belongings at the Cassius Mansion within the territory were pleasing to the eye.
I brought all my luggage when I arrived in the capital, but there are limits to how long I can stay here.
"But I don't want to go fetch it."
Besides, going to the estate was too much work, and I didn't have very good memories of the Cassius Mansion.
Most of the time, I was alone in the quiet bedroom, waiting for my husband, who never came.
A person who is always busy managing the territory or dealing with central politics.
However, even though Leandro had time to travel back and forth between the capital and the Cassius Duchy to visit his family, he didn't have time to spend with his wife.
"It doesn't matter!"
I stretched to get rid of the unpleasant feeling.
Now, goodbye to that indifferent husband.
I got up from the bed and went to the room's only window.
The bright afternoon sunlight illuminated everything. It was as if the sun itself was encouraging my new beginning.
"I'll think about other little things later. The main thing is the divorce."
------------------------------
Cassius Mansion.
Two men were sitting facing each other in the courtyard of the place where the Duke's daughter-in-law had run away just a few hours ago.
"Brother, are you really going to leave it like this?" Leheim asked, taking a sip of tea.
"What?" Leandro, who was also having tea, responded thoughtfully to Leheim's question.
"What? I'm talking about my sister-in-law! Whether his younger brother hit the tea table or not, his posture didn't break at all.
He looked out the front door and thought, 'Duh, face-to-face? They call me a fool... It was completely different from the lifeless figure that had just murmured, '?'
The Cassius heir, who had returned to his unshakeable attitude, leaned on the teacup.
"Ethel will be back soon."
"What are you talking about? She left with an explosive announcement that she was getting a divorce. Are you so surprised that your memory is confused?"
"My wife is a wise person. She may have been angry at that time, but now her sense of reality is slowly returning," Leheim said with a thoughtful "Hmm" as he rested his chin.
His fine silver hair swayed with the movement.
"Isn't it just an illusion?"
The terrifying look in his eyes returned to the sincere joke he had thrown once before.
"Oh, no, my sister-in-law isn't the kind of person who says things she doesn't mean."
"...This is not a marriage that was concluded thinking only of our hearts from the beginning."
"I see. Does this mean that my sister-in-law will come back because she's thinking about the Count Wallace's family?"
The silence seemed to confirm it.
As a single-family family, the Duke's family held the most power, and the Count's family was collapsing.
Although Cassius had a goal in mind, it was initially a too fragile marriage.
If there really is a divorce as Ethel claimed, it will be the Wallace family that will be at stake immediately.
That's why he was confident that Ethel would return with him.
Leandro's assumption seemed reasonable at first glance. But there was one thing he didn't know.
The "Ethel Wallace" he knew not only did not consider the Wallace family as family but actually hated it.
If Wallace were to fail, she would welcome it with open arms.