Chapter 8
She barely managed to swallow the words she truly wanted to say.
But she might as well have spoken them aloud.
They were written plainly in her eyes, on her lips, and across her expression.
“…”
Sylvien stared at Kanna in silence.
A strange light flickered in his usually dry blue eyes, as though he were witnessing something utterly unexpected.
In a slow, measured voice, he said,
“You told me you expected no treatment as my wife.”
“…”
“Those were your own words, Miss Kanna. Have you forgotten them?”
That’s right.
Kanna clenched her fists tightly.
Before their marriage, Sylvien had made himself perfectly clear.
He would never fulfill the duties of a husband, nor would he ever regard her as his wife.
Even so, Juhwa had begged him to marry her.
That naïve fool had believed something would change once they were married. She had convinced herself that, one way or another, husband and wife would eventually grow attached.
Attached?
During the past seven years of marriage…
They had never even brushed fingertips.
“You’re right. Back then, I was willing to accept that. But not anymore.”
She cut him off firmly, glaring straight into his eyes.
“I don’t know whether you’ve heard, though I’m sure you have.”
“My mother-in-law has thrown me out.”
“So?”
“I’m leaving this place. I’m going back to my family.”
Only then did he finally react.
Sylvien slowly examined her face.
His expression suggested he doubted his own ears, as if trying to determine whether he had truly heard her correctly.
Seeing that reaction gave Kanna a small sense of satisfaction.
That’s right. The old me—Juhwa—would never have said something like this.
She would have wanted to die by your side if she had to die.
But I’m nothing like her.
“You’re leaving?”
Sylvien repeated the words, as though savoring their meaning.
Leaving…
Leaving…
You’re leaving… me?
The next instant, his eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
Something flashed through them.
Interest.
Curiosity.
Perhaps both.
But it lasted only for a heartbeat.
Soon his gaze scattered once more, returning to the same indifferent emptiness as before.
Brushing back his damp silver hair, he answered quietly,
“Then do so.”
“And once I receive Father’s permission…”
“I’ll ask for a divorce.”
“Very well.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
You bastard.
Kanna wanted to punch him.
Sylvien wasn’t taking this conversation seriously at all.
He was merely listening with half an ear, casually brushing her words aside.
Then again… after everything Juhwa has done, it’s no wonder he doesn’t believe me.
Until recently, she’d been clinging to him, crying and begging.
There was no way he believed she would be the one to leave first.
If anything, he probably thought this was just another tantrum—a childish attempt to get his attention.
Kanna held back a sigh.
There was no point talking any further.
He wouldn’t understand.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Very well.”
“You may go.”
You awful man.
You think I’m just throwing a fit?
I’m really going to divorce you!
No matter what!
The next morning, Kanna left the Valentino estate without hesitation.
Only then did a new worry suddenly hit her.
The first step toward divorce was complete.
She had been thrown out by her mother-in-law.
Now she had to return to her family and obtain her father’s permission to divorce.
…Will the Addis family even accept me?
No… will they even open the gate?
A very practical concern crept into her mind.
Being thrown out had been easy.
After all, everyone already hated her.
She only had to give them an excuse.
Everyone.
Everyone in this world hated her.
It’s easy to be cast out…
Much harder to be accepted.
Kanna lowered her gaze with a long sigh.
Long black hair fell around her shoulders.
Black eyes.
The very reason everyone in this world despised her.
Her black coloring.
Because in this world, black is the color of misfortune and disaster.
The greatest reason people hated black…
Was because it resembled the Black Mist.
Long ago, an enormous Black Mist had appeared and swallowed the entire Southern Continent.
The Southern Continent, once known as the Continent of Magic, was destroyed.
Thus ended the Age of Magic.
Only those who barely survived that catastrophe escaped to the Western Continent.
Those survivors became the first settlers of the West.
They built new lives in a new land.
More than a thousand years later, civilization had flourished once again.
But the Western Continent wasn’t completely safe.
Compared to the disaster that had consumed the South, the Black Mist here was much smaller in scale.
Yet it still existed.
And the families guarding the lands where the Black Mist appears… are the Addis and Valentino families.
The Addis family.
The Valentino family.
The founders of both houses had been holy knights who fought against the Black Mist even before the fall of the Southern Continent.
The legendary holy knights of the Age of Magic.
Their descendants continued to defend the Western Continent from the Black Mist to this very day.
That was why they were known as the Two Guardian Houses, families that wielded unrivaled authority.
Because the Black Mist is just that dangerous.
Strange things emerged from it.
Unknown masses.
Mysterious objects.
And…
Monsters.
Hideous creatures that did not belong in this world.
Some were so powerful they couldn’t even be controlled.
Nor was that all.
Anyone infected by the Black Mist would lose their sanity completely.
No—
It was worse than madness.
They transformed into monsters that devoured other human beings.
It was said that those who became severely infected would have both their hair and eyes turn black.
And then there are the Black Apostles.
There were also heretics who worshipped the Black Mist.
Many members of this cult—the Black Apostles—had black hair.
There are countless reasons why people despise black.
Of course they treat anyone with black hair like a demon.
It was a rare color in this world.
Yet back in Korea, it had been the most ordinary thing imaginable.
Kanna sighed.
Regardless…
If she wanted a divorce, she had to obtain her father’s permission.
The mere thought gave her a headache.
Father hates me.
That’s why Juhwa never once returned to the Addis family after her marriage.
But now she had no choice.
She had to return.
Whether by pleading or by forcing the issue, she had to convince her father to allow the divorce.
And then…
…I’ll think about what comes next when the time comes.
The thought of living as Kanna forever was overwhelming.
But for now…
She had to deal with the problem directly in front of her.
The real question is…
Will the Addis family even take me in?
“Please leave.”
“We cannot open the gates.”
Her fears became reality.
“It is the Duke’s order.”
“If Lady Valentino ever comes here, under no circumstances are we to let her inside.”
“But…”
“Please leave.”
The knight firmly shook his head.
Kanna considered trying to persuade him, but closed her mouth instead.
Judging by his expression, nothing she said would make a difference.
I suppose I should have expected this.
She had known she wouldn’t receive a warm welcome.
Still, she hadn’t imagined they would forbid her from entering altogether.
I see.
Father has truly abandoned me.
As meticulous as ever.
Afraid that his daughter might one day return, he had ordered the gates permanently shut against her.
He truly left nothing to chance.
Then again…
He has always hated me.
Kanna realized she had underestimated just how deeply her father despised her.
A man who had hated her all her life was never going to agree to see her so easily.
Just then—
The sound of an approaching carriage echoed from behind.
It bore the crest of House Addis.
“Young Master has returned!”
“Open the gates at once!”
The enormous gates slowly began to open.
Those very gates that had seemed destined to remain forever closed to Kanna.
For a brief moment, an impulse surged through her.
Maybe I should just rush inside.
Should I storm in and grab Father’s pant leg if I have to?
As she wrestled with the thought—
Creak…
The carriage came to a stop directly behind her.
A chilly sensation ran down her spine.
Filled with a sense of foreboding, Kanna slowly turned around.
“…”
Their eyes met.
Through the carriage window…
A young man was quietly watching her.
