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Chapter 8
“My Lady. These are the mutual divorce agreement and the document renouncing property claims.”
Early in the morning, Rupert visited Roselyne once again.
“You’re up early—thank you for your hard work, Rupert.”
Though she had just woken up, Roselyne greeted him with a neat and pure appearance.
“The Lord’s signatures are all complete. Once My Lady signs here, I will submit them.”
“Rupert, I have one final request—could you call someone other than a servant of Nurnbern to act as the courier?”
“Understood.”
With those words, Rupert left the room.
After he departed, Roselyne stared blankly down at the documents resting on the table.
“So easily…”
Her eyelashes trembled. She repeatedly braided and unbraided her hair, picking up the pen Rupert had brought, opening and capping it over and over.
Knock, knock.
“Mother.”
At that exact moment while she was lost in thought, Ludiana knocked and entered as if reading her mother’s mind.
Roselyne set down the pen she held in her hand and opened the door herself.
“Come in, Rudy.”
“Did Mr. Rupert stop by?”
Standing in the hallway, Ludiana’s cheeks were flushed red, and her eyes were shining brightly.
“Yes.”
Roselyne offered a faint smile. Stepping into the room, Ludiana’s gaze shifted toward the table. The divorce documents lay there—yet the space where Roselyne’s signature belonged remained blank.
“Mother.”
Her gaze returned to Roselyne’s hand, which still held the pen.
It looks like he just left… Is she still afraid after all?
In truth, Ludiana had been awake even before Rupert arrived. She had been unable to sleep, her heart fluttering at the thought that they were finally buttoning the very first button to change their hellish lives.
“Mother, are you hesitating?”
Ludiana took a large step toward the table and asked.
“No, child…”
Roselyne shook her head with a bitter smile.
“It just feels a little surreal, that’s all.”
At those words, Ludiana wrapped her arms tightly around her mother. Small for her age, Ludiana could not fully encompass Roselyne, but her warmth reached Roselyne completely.
“When did our Rudy grow up so fast?”
With a smile, Roselyne caressed Ludiana’s soft black hair before gently pulling her back from her embrace.
“I’ll finish this right away. Wait here for me.”
Roselyne signed the documents on the table. A process that took less than ten seconds—a brief, concise mutual divorce agreement for a wife without a husband.
“Thank you for your resolve, Mother.”
Sitting across from her, Ludiana smiled brightly. But Roselyne’s smiling eyes soon hardened.
“By the way, Rudy, the external courier you asked for—is it a letter to be sent to Allen?”
“Yes, I intend to ask him to come pick us up today.”
“I see. If it’s Allen, he really…”
Before Roselyne could even finish her sentence, Rupert’s voice came from outside the door.
“My Lady, I have brought the courier.”
A young man in commoner’s attire entered alongside Rupert.
“Please submit these documents to the council. And could you deliver this letter to the House of Duke Pianus as quickly as possible?”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Taking the documents and the envelope, the courier hurriedly departed.
“Are you leaving today…?”
Rupert’s voice trailed off.
“Mr. Rupert is the only one who feels sad for us.”
Roselyne covered her mouth with one hand and smiled faintly.
“Even if it was due to Lady Rhea, I apologize once more as a butler for failing to serve My Lady and the young ladies properly.”
Rupert bowed his head stiffly toward Roselyne and Ludiana.
“Please do not say such things, Mr. Rupert.”
Ludiana comforted him with a bitter yet cheerful voice.
“May the God of the Sun and Moon always bless your path.”
Rupert forced a faint smile for her sake.
After Rupert left, Roselyne and Ludiana woke Irene, who was still groggy with sleep, and began packing their belongings. Jonas had not explicitly ordered them to leave immediately, but neither Roselyne nor Ludiana wanted to stay in Nurnbern for even a single minute longer.
“Mmm, Sister… what about this…?”
Fighting off her sleepiness, Irene brought over her own small bundle of luggage.
Their luggage consisted of a mere three small, shabby bags—an amount utterly unbelievable for three noblewomen.
To think this is all we have.
Looking at them, Ludiana’s expression darkened. Roselyne’s face was not bright either; both were thinking the exact same thing.
The only person in the room with a happy expression was…
“Are we leaving? Will I get to see the festival too?”
Not fully awake yet, Irene kept asking in anticipation of being able to go outside.
“Yes. You don’t have to stay here anymore.”
“Heehee…”
Sitting on the bed, Ludiana affectionately stroked Irene’s hair.
Just then, someone threw the door open and barged in without a trace of courtesy.
Rhea strode down the annex hallway, her gorgeously curled red hair fluttering behind her. It was a lavish outfit that suited her bold features.
“Heehee… Nartas, isn’t the weather exceptionally clear today?”
Beside her, Nartas strutted haughtily, dressed in a suit ill-fitting for his age and overflowing with excessive pride.
“It is, Mother.”
“In the end, those who do not know their place are stepping back to where they belong.”
Rhea curled her rosy lips into a satisfied smile.
Arriving at the door of Roselyne’s shabby room, she signaled the maids following behind her to open it. As the door swung open, the three small bags and the three women came into view.
“Have you packed all your things?”
She had spent much effort dressing up since early morning just to mock Roselyne, who was being stripped of all property and driven out of Nurnbern. Seeing those miserable bags, Rhea’s gloating expression deepened.
“Ha! You have nothing to take. A noble in name only, without a single piece of property. Tsk.”
No longer keeping up appearances, she poured contempt upon the three women.
“Mrs. Werther, please maintain your dignity.”
Ludiana stepped forward, blocking her path while putting deliberate emphasis on the name Werther.
“What did you just say?!”
“Please maintain your dignity, Madam.”
Ludiana bowed her head and spoke with polite yet unyielding firmness.
“You—you insolent little wretch!!”
Rhea exploded. Her hand shot into the air, and Ludiana instinctively closed her eyes. If she openly called Rhea ‘Werther,’ she had to be prepared to take at least a slap to the cheek.
“…?”
However, as time passed, no pain reached Ludiana’s cheek. She carefully opened her eyes.
Rhea’s wrist had been grabbed mid-air by Roselyne, who stood before her.
“Stop this.”
Roselyne glared at Rhea with sharp eyes.
“Ha! A divorced woman without her ribbons—let go of my hand this instant!!”
“My daughter has done nothing wrong.”
Rhea’s shrill, nasal voice pierced the air, but Roselyne’s voice remained cold, firm, and controlled. She roughly flung Rhea’s arm away.
Ludiana’s face froze at this unfamiliar side of her mother.
“Haven’t you always coveted my place? I have no need for it—take it as much as you like.”
“Arrogant to the very end! Ha, I won’t be fooled by such bluster anymore. You are being kicked out empty-handed!”
Rhea shot back with overt ridicule.
Twisting her wrist, she covered her mouth and giggled.
“The Bruno Firm, of all things? Hahaha!! How can a person be so utterly ignorant?!”
Rhea’s laughter echoed through the room.
“Haha, I do hope you manage well with that.”
After laughing for a long while, she surveyed the room with snake-like eyes.
Ludiana wanted to strike back, but she endured for the sake of Roselyne standing before them.
It doesn’t matter if I get hit, but not in front of Mother.
They would clash with Nurnbern countless times in the future, and Ludiana intended to step on Nurnbern piece by piece, just as Carlos had done in her past life. So for this morning, she decided to let Rhea enjoy her brief moment of pleasure. It was no difficult task.
“My Lady. The carriage has arrived.”
Just then, pushing past Rhea’s maids, Rupert entered to announce that the carriage had arrived.
“Very well. Let us go, Mr. Rupert.”
Ludiana took Irene’s hand and stepped out the door behind Roselyne.
“A carriage?”
Rhea snorted, casting a glance toward the terrace. Waiting there was a white carriage bearing the emblem of a black eagle—the crest of the House of Duke Pianus.
“Pianus?!”
Rhea’s voice shrieked upward. Hearing the commotion, Nartas hurriedly ran over to the terrace.
“AAAAHHHH!!”
Rhea had been about to be taken in as the official wife. She was going to shed the hated surname Werther and become a noble-blooded Nurnbern. But as long as Roselyne lived, she would always remain nothing more than a second wife.
How dare she marry another man the moment she gets a divorce… how vulgar! Damn it, damn it, damn it!
As long as Pianus backed Roselyne, Rhea would never dare touch her. Roselyne was no longer the forgotten second wife locked away in an annex.
Her scream ripped from her throat. Cowering in the corner, Nartas covered his ears, his entire body trembling.
