Chapter 03

Elsie, who had been suffering from insomnia, had often been warned by her personal physician that she needed to take better care of her health.

But things had been different lately.

For some inexplicable reason, sleep kept overwhelming her, and Elsie found herself dozing off at the most inappropriate times.

“Madam, it’s time to leave.”

“Ah, mm-hmm.”

She had even fallen asleep while the maids were arranging her hair.

When Elsie forced her eyes open and stood up, the people around her giggled.

It was terribly embarrassing. Her ears turned bright red.

She hurriedly made her way forward, but the people following closely behind her still wore mocking smiles.

As she stepped through the main entrance, a pitch-black carriage awaited her.

The sight of the carriage made her nervous, and her body instinctively tensed. Drawing a startled breath, Elsie climbed aboard with Valet’s assistance rather than Kaiden’s.

Inside the carriage sat Kaiden, who didn’t even spare her a glance.

“We’re departing.”

Whether deliberately or not, Kaiden didn’t look in Elsie’s direction at all. He simply stared out of the carriage window.

Watching him cautiously, Elsie moistened her dry lips with her tongue.

She had loved Kaiden.

The Kaiden of the past had smiled gently at her and whispered words of love.

Perhaps it was that version of Kaiden she had loved.

No, she had even loved Kaiden when they were children.

Either way, the Kaiden Gray who had stolen her heart was not the man sitting before her now.

That’s right. That man is someone else.

Whenever she whispered those words to herself, the heart weighed down by sorrow seemed to return, if only slightly, to its normal state.

“…I heard you weren’t going to attend, but here you are.”

At Kaiden’s sudden mutter, Elsie flinched in surprise.

“I was told I had to come. I wasn’t given any details, though.”

She answered as if making an excuse.

Evie had told her that there was an important event scheduled for today. Apparently, Kaiden had received an invitation to some opening ceremony, but Elsie had declined it as usual.

What had Evie said then?

Just before leaving the mansion, Evie had tossed a newspaper down and made a remark.

“I wonder when all this gossip will finally end… If you refuse to attend this time as well, there’ll be an even bigger uproar.”

Unable to ignore those words, Elsie had glanced at the newspaper and ended up reading it.

Several articles in the newspaper discussed the Gray couple’s divorce and the appearance of Eleanor Underwood.

The Hero Who Led the Revolution to Victory, Major General Kaiden Gray—Is Divorce Imminent?

Professor Eleanor Underwood Spotted on a Date! Her Companion Is None Other Than the Famous…

The headlines were incredibly noisy.

In the black-and-white photograph, there was a well-matched man and woman standing together.

The scene she had witnessed before naturally flashed through her mind.

So that woman was a professor.

A professor. A professor…

She knew how remarkable it was for a woman to hold a professorship. Even someone as foolish as herself could easily guess the significance of Eleanor’s position.

Perhaps the reason her insides twisted so painfully was that the two of them suited each other better than she and Kaiden ever had.

At that moment—

Elsie impulsively decided that she had to attend the opening ceremony this time.

“Well, I suppose that’s to be expected. You probably didn’t even bother finding out for yourself.”

There was a hint of laughter in Kaiden’s voice as he replied. It was exactly the same kind of laughter she had heard from the maids when they mocked her.

The embarrassment was so unbearable that Elsie lowered her head.

She could somehow endure it when the maids behaved that way, but Kaiden was different. It felt as though her heart was shrinking until her entire body was being crushed.

And how much time had passed?

Even amid the uncomfortable silence, sleep continued to overwhelm her. Unable to fight her strangely heavy eyelids any longer, she closed her eyes.

“About that divorce you mentioned last time…”

Meanwhile, Kaiden, who had been looking out the window, opened his mouth again.

But his words came to an abrupt halt before he could finish.

Looking at Elsie dozing off, Kaiden let out a disbelieving sigh.

This woman really is selfish. Just as she has always been.

His eyes grew cold.

If she had behaved properly even once, he wouldn’t have been burdened with such pathetic feelings.

But Elsie had always been like this. She left every troublesome task to the servants and behaved however she pleased, regardless of the circumstances.

His icy gaze remained fixed on her until the carriage reached its destination.

What on earth had happened?

The moment Elsie realized that she had disgracefully fallen asleep in the carriage with Kaiden sitting right in front of her, her face turned bright red.

She swore this had never happened before.

It was simply because sleep had been overwhelming her lately, and she still had no idea why.

At this point, she was beginning to wonder whether she had suddenly developed some kind of illness, but that didn’t seem likely.

The nobles who had enjoyed all kinds of privileges in the old Midland had not met pleasant ends.

A very small number had participated in the revolution and earned the reputation of patriots, but most had either lost their lives or been expelled from Midland.

And yet, unlike her father, who had been executed, Elsie Gray was living comfortably as the wife of Major General Kaiden Gray, a national hero.

In other words, she had no reason to be ill.

“Are you not getting down?”

“Ah, yes.”

When the carriage door opened, Kaiden stepped out first. With a businesslike expression, he extended his arm to escort Elsie.

It felt awkward placing her hand on Kaiden’s arm.

Even so, her heart fluttered just a little.

New Midland Federal Republic National Museum.

It was an ambitious institution established with the intention of objectively and thoroughly documenting and preserving the history of recent events.

Since the museum had been extensively promoted, the plaza in front of it was bustling with reporters carrying cameras and curious citizens.

Anticipating the crowds, the museum authorities had requested the deployment of capital police in advance. Thanks to that, the arrival of the carriages and other arrangements proceeded smoothly.

“Take pictures!”

“Both members of the Gray couple came? What on earth is going on?”

“Weren’t they on bad terms?”

“Of course they were! Who would like that woman? We’ve already got our headline! Fallen Noblewoman Visits Museum with War Hero!”

“How about Confronting the Mistakes of the Past?”

As Kaiden and Elsie stepped out of the carriage, reporters swarmed toward them.

She consciously tried not to look at the reporters.

Newspaper headlines that had once poured down upon her now seemed to crawl through her mind like swarms of cockroaches.

Her breathing became uncomfortable.

But Kaiden didn’t stop walking. Therefore, Elsie had no choice but to keep moving diligently as well.

I’m all right.

Repeating those words silently to herself, Elsie tried to face the people with composure.

“It’s been a while, Madam.”

“Yes.”

“You haven’t changed at all.”

Their ordinary greetings had been subtly altered, with remarks such as Your beauty remains unchanged.

Looking at the unpleasant amusement lingering in their eyes and at the corners of their mouths, Elsie forced herself to smile.

That was the extent of the attention directed toward her. The people invited to the museum’s opening ceremony soon turned their attention toward Kaiden instead.

“I heard that you’re also participating in the strategic planning meetings, Major General. It seems your promotion is just around the corner. You might even be transferred to the Strategic Bureau.”

“That’s too much praise.”

“Oh, come now! Surely someone known as the ‘Icy Death’ who commands the Sharpshooter Squad is destined to rise even higher. There’s no need to be modest.”

“How humble of the hero who stormed the royal palace in Aldermain and drove out the king.”

The people formed a circle around Kaiden, showering him with admiration.

While Elsie stood beside him in a daze, she glanced at the artwork displayed beyond the crowd.

She liked the rough strokes depicting the moments of the revolution in Midland and the horrific scenes of various wars.

Each frame seemed to contain countless surging emotions.

Thinking that the works were deeply moving, she continued to keep her eyes fixed on the artwork.

“By the way, Madam, you don’t seem particularly interested in the opening ceremony. Ah, well, I suppose that’s understandable, isn’t it? It couldn’t exactly be a pleasant occasion for you.”

At the sudden remark, Elsie slowly blinked and took her eyes off the artwork.

“N-no, that’s not it.”

“Is that so? Ah, that’s right. Madam, you have quite an appreciation for art, don’t you? Just a moment ago, you were more absorbed in admiring that painting over there than in our conversation…”

The woman quickly continued speaking. At that, everyone’s attention shifted toward Elsie.

The moment she felt their gazes, her entire body tensed. Her shoulders tightened, and heat began rising to her head.

I want to run away.

The attention of so many people was overwhelming. She hadn’t been like this in the past.

“I’m curious to hear the opinion of someone as distinguished as yourself. I’m surely not the only one, am I?”

“Of course not. Come to think of it, didn’t Madam Gray hold a solo exhibition a long time ago?”

“Ah, yes, she did. I also heard that she took private art lessons from an expensive instructor.”

As though they had discovered their prey, they continued making mocking remarks, baring their sharp teeth.

Elsie looked up at Kaiden, who was standing beside her.

Her green eyes desperately sought his, silently pleading with him to calm the intimidating atmosphere, even just a little.

Ah…

But Kaiden’s gaze passed over her indifferently.

Her heart began pounding violently.

These people had gathered here to ridicule her. Kaiden didn’t care in the slightest.

No, perhaps he was actually enjoying the situation as well, looking forward to watching her crumble so pathetically and ruin the event.

If this was how it was going to be, he shouldn’t have brought me along.

No, if this was how things were going to be, he should have simply granted her divorce and sent her far away.

“I-I… In my opinion…”

Tears nearly welled up in her eyes, but she barely managed to hold them back.

Forcing herself to speak, she began clumsily pulling out the scattered words floating around in her disordered mind.

“I think…”

Her stomach began to churn.

What had the painting she had seen a moment ago looked like?

A person dressed in shabby clothes was gazing at an incredibly luxurious mansion and crying out in despair.

Was the reason that cry had pierced her heart so deeply because she had once occupied the position of the mansion’s owner herself?

Elsie moved her lips soundlessly before suddenly covering her mouth with her hand.

“Ugh…”

Feeling that she couldn’t remain there any longer, she quickly turned around and hurried away.

Her stomach was churning so violently that its contents were threatening to come back up.

“Madam?”

“Oh my…”

“What on earth just happened…?”

Watching Elsie’s retreating figure as she fled the scene, everyone was left speechless. They shook their heads at her miserable escape.

Seeing that, Kaiden clicked his tongue.