Chapter 01
“What do you mean by that?”
As if reflecting the man’s low mood, his deep voice seemed to scrape against the floor.
He was originally a very blunt man, but this was the first time he had ever looked this angry.
Because of that, Pesha carefully watched his expression while pretending not to.
The man had sharp eyes set beneath deeply sunken eye sockets, a high nose, and masculine features. Despite his handsome appearance, which looked like it had been smoothly carved into a statue, his expression was frighteningly grim.
Pesha had been staring blankly at his face when she suddenly came to her senses.
‘No. Why am I worrying about his mood? I’ve done so much for this territory!’
She clenched her fists tightly to gather courage.
Then she brought up the words she had wanted to say ever since they first got married.
“I said we should get a divorce now.”
Divorce was a decision she had made long ago.
Since the day they got married.
No, even before they got married!
Although she had ended up getting married against her will, almost as if she had been sold off, she thought their fake marriage had lasted long enough.
There was no way that man wanted to continue this disgraceful marriage for much longer either.
Ever since their marriage, Pesha had worked tirelessly to rebuild this territory, which had practically nothing.
There were several reasons for it, but first of all, it was because of the alimony she would demand when they divorced.
‘I’ll take the alimony and live comfortably on my own.’
Even now, that thought had not changed.
Of course, they had never discussed it beforehand. However, even when the territory was poor, the man in front of her had never been stingy with his money. And there was no doubt that her contribution had played a significant role in building up their current wealth, so she intended to make her demand without shame.
‘But I never expected to run into trouble before I could even bring it up.’
Her husband, Owen, stared straight at Pesha’s face, which looked as if she had firmly made up her mind, and asked,
“Why?”
“Huh?”
“I asked why you want a divorce.”
Pesha was a little confused.
‘Isn’t it obvious?’
This marriage had been formed against the wishes of both the man and Pesha.
So she thought that by this point, it was only right for them to go their separate ways.
Pesha moved her eyes from side to side before answering.
“You didn’t get married because you wanted to either, did you?”
“……”
“And…”
Was it okay to say this? Pesha hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“And… you have a w-woman.”
“…What?”
“I thought the longer I stayed in your place, the harder it would be for the woman who is actually supposed to become your wife. Am I wrong?”
Owen’s face became completely stiff.
He froze as if he had never expected her to mention that woman.
‘Did that work?’
With a triumphant smile, Pesha began seriously persuading him.
“I’ll explain everything properly to His Majesty and my father. I’ll make sure you don’t suffer any harm. I don’t even want that much alimony from the divorce. Just a small portion of what we earned this time…”
Then—
BANG!
A loud sound came from Owen.
He had thrown the divorce papers Pesha had handed him into the trash can.
Pesha opened her eyes wide in surprise, and Owen spoke with his eyes dark and sunken.
“Since you already know, this should make things easier.”
Know what? Ah, the woman?
As his words finally seemed to suggest that they could have a proper conversation, Pesha’s expression brightened.
“I’ll make sure the new countess suffers as little as possible! I’ll make a proper handover, so don’t worry.”
It was at that exact moment.
“Pesha Namoï.”
Pesha’s shoulders flinched when she heard him call her name.
It was only natural. This was the first time Owen had ever called her by her name like this.
Moreover, it was the first time he had called her by her husband’s family name instead of her maiden name.
Although it was her own name, the unfamiliar sound made Pesha blink in surprise.
Owen’s pitch-black eyes flashed as he met her gaze.
He opened his tightly closed lips.
“From the very beginning, it was you I wanted.”
Pesha looked at him in confusion.
“Uh… what?”
“I did all of this for the sole purpose of making you Pesha Namoï. And now you’re talking about divorce?”
A sinister smile appeared at the corner of Owen’s mouth.
“There’s no way I’m going to divorce you.”
“My lord Namoï. I heard that you solved the dimensional rift that occurred in the east again this time. I can’t help but admire your bravery every time.”
The entire country was in a festive mood.
A hero had appeared, like a ray of light to the empire that had suffered from a long war.
As soon as Count Owen Namoï appeared, he drove away the army of the Kingdom of Clapton, which had long been one of the empire’s biggest problems.
He also wiped out all the foreign tribes scattered near the border who had been plundering small villages. In addition, he defeated groups of monsters in the east, a land that had been considered almost dead because of monster invasions.
He was a symbol of the end of the war and the hope of the empire.
“To gain such a hero during my reign… I cannot put into words how happy I am.”
The emperor sitting on the throne praised Owen and showered him with compliments, but unlike his words, his voice was extremely dry.
The man kneeling on one knee before the throne, still unable to take off his military uniform, was Owen Namoï.
He briefly replied,
“You flatter me.”
“Enough with the modesty after accomplishing so much. As soon as I heard the news of your victory, I kept thinking about what reward I should give you.”
“……”
“Then I remembered that you, who are already past the age for marriage, are still unmarried.”
At the emperor’s words, the atmosphere in the hall where the party was being held became restless.
At the same time, everyone’s eyes turned toward a woman who was standing stiffly.
Regardless, the emperor continued speaking.
“Part of the reason you have remained unmarried is my fault, since I have constantly given you important missions. So I discussed the matter with some trustworthy officials.”
As soon as the news spread that Owen Namoï had reclaimed the eastern lands, a rumor had quietly spread throughout even the lowest levels of high society.
It was a rumor filled with both mockery and pity, saying that some noble young lady would become the wife of Owen Namoï, a commoner by birth.
“After hearing various opinions, the decision I made is… Duke Rydel, come here.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
At the emperor’s call, Duke Rydel stepped beside him.
The emperor patted Duke Rydel’s shoulder and said,
“Duke Rydel here has willingly agreed to give me his daughter.”
At that moment, Pesha, the Duke of Rydel’s daughter, who had been forced to attend the party by her father as if she were being dragged to a slaughterhouse, tightly closed her eyes.
“Therefore, I shall grant Duke Rydel’s daughter, Pesha Rydel, as your wife.”
The emperor’s declaration, which Pesha had desperately hoped would not happen, became reality.
‘Absolutely not!’
Pesha, who had been standing among the crowd at the party, hurried toward the emperor, bowed her head, and shouted,
“Your Majesty! Please take back those words!”
It was an unexpected situation.
The emperor’s eyes widened, and the nobles who had been quietly whispering began talking loudly.
“Pesha!”
The person who was most shocked was Pesha’s father, Duke Rydel.
He grabbed Pesha by the arm and pulled her back as he scolded her.
“What are you doing right now! How dare you refuse His Majesty’s command?”
To defy the emperor.
For her father, the head of the prestigious House of Rydel and a loyal subject of the emperor, this was absolutely unacceptable.
‘But my father is the loyal subject, not me.’
Pesha had an important reason why she could not back down.
“Your Majesty! I don’t want to marry Lord Namoï. I… I will become a nun instead of getting married!”
Furious, Duke Rydel gripped Pesha’s shoulder so tightly that it hurt.
“How much longer are you going to disgrace your father!”
He shouted as if he could not bear any more embarrassment, then immediately apologized to the emperor.
“Your Majesty, I raised my daughter wrongly. I will educate her properly and send her to him, so please do not withdraw your command.”
The emperor seemed briefly surprised to see Pesha refusing the marriage, but after receiving Duke Rydel’s apology, he cleared his throat.
“Ahem. Then, as we discussed beforehand, I shall assume that the House of Rydel has agreed as well.”
It was a one-sided decision that completely ignored Pesha’s pleas as the person directly involved.
She had tried everything she could to cancel the marriage arrangement that had been made without her consent, but it had all been useless.
Pesha desperately turned her gaze away, and then she suddenly noticed Owen Namoï, who was still kneeling on one knee with his head lowered.
Pesha’s shoulders flinched.
Come to think of it, that man had heard everything.
It must have been humiliating enough for him to be dragged to the party immediately after returning from the battlefield, without even having time to change his clothes, like a hunting dog.
And now she had even refused to marry him, so there was no way he could be in a good mood.
Yet despite this humiliating situation, he did not move at all, remaining firmly in place.
His back looked a little pitiful, but in truth, it was like a mouse worrying about the cat.
There was no helping it.
‘Owen Namoï might kill me.’
And not just kill me.
He might kill me horribly and mercilessly.
