Chapter 14

“Are they definitely coming today?”

“Yes, they are. I’m certain.”

Rayleigh asked Ren once again. There was no longer any reason for her to remain here. She was utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally.

The contemptuous and disdainful looks directed at her had never stopped. There was no reason for her to continue enduring them.

At long last, the outcome had turned in her favor. It had taken quite some time, but proving everything had been a headache. They had constantly demanded additional evidence and further statements, dragging the process out longer than necessary.

Ren had taken care of everything himself, but the sheer volume of work had been considerable. It was hard to believe he had handled it all alone…

Rayleigh pushed her suspicions aside and rose from her seat, unfolding the letter to read its contents.

The documents will be delivered to the ducal residence today. Everything is ready, so you may leave whenever you wish.

The letter was brief, containing only the information she needed. Rayleigh smiled with satisfaction.

“I wonder how he’ll react.”

The divorce petition was airtight. Theo was clearly at fault, and since she had even suffered a miscarriage, there would be little difficulty in obtaining a divorce.

More importantly, the matter had already been made public. It would be nearly impossible for him to refuse the divorce now.

Theo, the supposedly incorruptible man who had eyes for only one woman, had been regarded by everyone as a devoted romantic who remained faithful to his beloved. The scandal was more than enough to shake that reputation to its core.

Of course, the uproar had died down rather quickly the first time because Theo had managed to interfere and suppress the matter before it went too far. He had only succeeded because no concrete evidence had been presented.

But while Rayleigh had been forced to remain here, she had sent every piece of evidence she needed to the court.

That had been another reason she couldn’t leave sooner.

Rayleigh had no intention of packing much. Even the clothes she wore were ones she had purchased herself. She wouldn’t take a single thing from this place that had been tainted by Theo’s touch.

Except for the money that rightfully belonged to her.

The amount was far greater than anyone had expected, but she couldn’t care less.

She was about to leave the estate with her belongings when Theo suddenly rushed out and grabbed her hand.

“I’m leaving.”

You may not know it yet, but everything is over now.

Rayleigh looked at him, struggling to suppress the smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

“…Rayleigh.”

She would erase every miserable memory of the life she had endured in this dreadful place.

“This is absurd.”

Theo yanked her hand roughly. His grip tightened as though he had no intention of letting her go, making Rayleigh’s face contort in pain.

She tried to wrench her hand free, but it was no use.

Even as Rayleigh glared at him with eyes filled with resentment, Theo remained unmoved.

“Is what I suffered in this place supposed to make sense, then?”

Tears finally spilled from her eyes.

Even now, this man was unbearably selfish. Why was he suddenly so determined to keep her from leaving?

She wasn’t crying because she was sad. If anything, her tears were closer to tears of joy—the joy of finally letting him go and leaving this place behind with a light heart.

“Rayleigh, you know I love you.”

“…Did you just say love?”

A hollow laugh escaped Rayleigh at Theo’s words.

What on earth did he mean by love?

Was it love to keep another woman by his side while claiming to love her?

Or was it love to use her solely to bear his child?

“You said you love me? How dare you use that word in front of me?”

You disgusting bastard.

She hated him so much that she could hardly bring herself to regard him as human, let alone tolerate his presence. She despised him so deeply that she couldn’t even bear to hear him claim he had ever loved her.

Rayleigh raised her hand and struck his chest.

Her slender hand was far too weak to hurt him, but Theo merely stood there, watching as she struggled against him.

“Go live happily with Anna, the woman you love so much. I don’t love you anymore.”

“Rayleigh! You know perfectly well that there’s no rule saying a man can love only one person. If there were, do you think all the nobles would keep mistresses?”

Even then, he shamelessly refused to acknowledge his wrongdoing.

Until the very end, Theo continued to make her life miserable.

“I…! I wanted you to love only me. No, I would have been satisfied if you’d simply loved me for who I was…”

But all you ever wanted was the child I could give you.

He had blinded her with his lies about love and kept her by his side as nothing more than a tool. And now he dared to speak of love?

Rayleigh trembled with rage at his words.

“I love you. I truly do, Rayleigh. So—”

“No. Perhaps I was blinded by love from the very beginning.”

Rayleigh finally pulled her hand free and wiped away her tears. Taking a couple of steps back, she clutched her reddened wrist and spoke.

“Divorce me, and I’ll leave this place.”

For the first time, Theo’s expression twisted.

It was only when she mentioned divorce that he finally showed any change in his expression. Rayleigh couldn’t help letting out a scornful laugh.

“No! You can’t do this! Please, don’t!”

Rayleigh stepped backward to avoid Theo as he tried to grab her again. Every time he approached, she retreated by the same number of steps.

“Stop making me feel so wretched.”

She was already at the point where she wanted to throw every good memory they had ever shared into the trash.

Now, she would leave this place and live happily.

For her own sake, and for the sake of the child she had lost because of her own foolishness.

“Let’s never see each other again.”

With that, everything had come to an end—and a new beginning had arrived.

Rayleigh quickly climbed into the carriage. She shut the door firmly before Theo could stop her, and the carriage soon began moving away from the ducal residence.

“Rayleigh!”

Theo shouted as he watched the carriage disappear into the distance.

He had never imagined that the woman who had always been within his grasp would actually leave him.

He couldn’t believe what was happening.

Even so, he convinced himself that Rayleigh would eventually return.

I’m sorry, Rayleigh, but I have no intention of granting you a divorce.

Theo stood motionless, staring at the place where she had disappeared. Rayleigh had left with nothing, yet an inexplicable emptiness settled in a corner of his heart.

It’s not as though you have anywhere else to go. You’ll come back eventually.

He hadn’t made another attempt to grab her hand because, in his eyes, she was no longer worth the effort. And divorce? The fact that she naively believed he would grant it without a fight was almost laughable.

Theo had brought her into his life despite all the criticism and rumors surrounding her, simply because she was the daughter of the Traila family.

What he didn’t know was that Rayleigh had prepared everything before leaving.

Anna approached Theo casually, as though she had been watching the entire scene unfold.

“Your Grace, from now on, I’ll take good care of you.”

She gently took hold of his arm.

Theo had never found her touch unpleasant before.

Yet, for some inexplicable reason, this time it irritated him.

His expression twisted as he struggled to understand the unfamiliar feeling.

“You must be tired, Anna. Go and get some rest.”

Theo slipped his arm free and forced a smile.

“…Your Grace.”

Avoiding Anna’s expectant gaze, he turned his head away.

He knew perfectly well what that look in her eyes meant.

Why is she acting like this all of a sudden?

He had absolutely no intention of making Anna his duchess.

He had made room for Rayleigh at his side because she was Rayleigh. He had married her because she belonged to the Traila family.

“Your Grace!”

A servant came rushing toward Theo, his voice urgent. He was clutching a newspaper in his hand.

“What is all this commotion?”

“T-This! Please, take a look! Hah… hah…!”

The servant held out the newspaper, struggling to catch his breath.

Theo accepted it, and his expression immediately crumpled.

“What is this?!”

[The Truth About Theo Albert, Duke of Prinz!

Who Is the Duke of Prinz’s Hidden Mistress?]

Theo was enraged to see the story about himself plastered across the front page.

Hadn’t he already managed to suppress this scandal once?

Yet here it was again, occupying the most prominent spot on the newspaper. His hands trembled as he read the headline.

And this time, there was no denying it. The evidence attached to the article made that impossible.

Just how meticulously had she prepared all of this?

Had she stayed at the ducal residence for so long for the sole purpose of arranging everything?

Theo stared in the direction Rayleigh’s carriage had gone and ground his teeth.

The reputation he had spent years building—everything he had worked to maintain—was about to crumble because of a single scandal.

Worse still, the thought of the Traila family refusing to sit idly by made his head throb.

Even if she had been cast aside, everyone knew that Rayleigh was still the daughter of the Traila family. Theo had hoped they wouldn’t interfere, but now that the scandal had made the front page, there was no way they would remain silent.

Behind him, Anna glanced at the newspaper, the corners of her lips curling into a faint smile.

Well, well. I knew she might do something, but this woman is impressive.

Anna hadn’t believed Rayleigh when she’d first spoken about it. She had assumed Rayleigh was merely making empty threats.

Yet she had actually gone through with it and left the ducal residence.

Anna had thought this scandal would die down just like the previous one, since Theo had managed to suppress the earlier newspaper article. But after seeing the article, the attached photographs, and the witness statements, she wasn’t so sure anymore.

Hmm. This might not be such a bad thing.

Come to think of it, this was a wonderful opportunity for her.

Now that their relationship had been exposed to the public, she no longer needed to hide.

Who would willingly marry a man who already had a woman he loved?

Especially now that Rayleigh, his existing duchess, had left him.

More importantly, high-ranking nobles placed great importance on pride and honor.

That meant the position belonged to no one else but her.

Anna was neither highborn nor particularly concerned with honor. She had nothing to lose by taking the position.

“Your Grace, now that things have come to this, perhaps we should make our relationship official—”

“Anna. Enough. Don’t say another word, or I’m afraid I’ll be deeply disappointed in you.”

“Your Grace…?”

Theo’s expression darkened even further.

Then, noticing the tears gathering in Anna’s eyes, he sighed and roughly rubbed his face with one hand.

He gently cupped her cheek and spoke in a low voice.

“Anna, you were a woman who was happy simply receiving my love, without coveting anything else. That was why I loved you. I hope you haven’t changed…”

To Anna, his words sounded like a warning: You are not entitled to that position, so don’t get greedy.

“Anna, I have no intention of divorcing Rayleigh.”

“Do you truly mean that?”

Her hands trembled as she clutched the fabric of her dress.

Did he even understand what he was saying to her?

You’re going to abandon me…?

Anna had always believed Rayleigh would be the one discarded. After all, Theo had repeatedly told her that Rayleigh was nothing more than someone he needed for the sake of the Prinz family.

Anna pressed her lips tightly together.

She had never imagined that he would actually abandon her.

“Your Grace, please be honest with me. Are you planning to take another… woman into your life?”

“No. There will only ever be one duchess—the one and only Rayleigh.”

Anna couldn’t believe her ears.

There was a glaring contradiction in his words. Hadn’t he wanted a woman who could produce an heir for his family? Wasn’t that why he had treated Rayleigh the way he did, because he needed her to bear his child?

“Ha!”

Anna let out a disbelieving laugh.

The only reason Rayleigh had been able to occupy the position of duchess was that she was the eldest daughter of the Traila family.

Theo had intended to use the Traila family’s name and influence in the future.

If Duke Veriter died, only Rayleigh and Leta would remain.

Anna had believed Theo would love her forever because he had rescued her from a hellish home.

Yet Rayleigh had left him.

And still, he seemed convinced that she would return.

Anna recalled the things Rayleigh had said to her.

Could it be that she already knew everything when she spoke to me?

Anna stared at Theo, her eyes swirling with betrayal and fury.

Suddenly, her eyes widened.

What is that…?

She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She blinked several times, wondering if her eyes were deceiving her or if she was imagining things.

“Y-Your Grace!”

The emblem remained clearly visible.

In a panic, Anna grabbed Theo by the lapel of his coat and tugged at it.

“Anna. Enough. I don’t want to discuss anything else today. You should go inside and rest—”

“Look behind you!”

At her urgent words, Theo whipped his head around.

A white carriage was approaching the ducal residence.

And emblazoned on its side was the imperial crest.

Theo and Anna stared at the carriage in a daze, unable to comprehend the sudden arrival.

When he finally regained his senses, Theo hurriedly told Anna to go inside.

“B-But…”

Despite Anna’s protests, Theo ushered her into the ducal residence.

He instructed the maids to prepare tea and refreshments before taking a deep breath to steady himself.

Why would the imperial family…? There should be no reason for them to come here without even sending word.

Whether or not the carriage understood his anxiety, it continued forward and soon entered the estate.

Theo swallowed nervously.

A moment later, the carriage door opened, and a man stepped out.

It was none other than the Crown Prince.

Theo immediately bowed his head in a hurried greeting.

“May I pay my respects to His Imperial Highness, the Crown Prince, the light of the Empire?”

“…”

As Theo remained bent at the waist, he caught sight of the crumpled documents in the Crown Prince’s hand.

A familiar name was written in the space reserved for the signature.

Rayleigh Chartia.

A divorce petition…?

Theo’s head snapped up.

…Rayleigh!

The moment he raised his head, he met a pair of golden eyes brimming with murderous intent.

The Crown Prince’s gaze was so sharp that every hair on Theo’s body stood on end.

The Crown Prince looked into Theo’s startled eyes, and his lips curved into a gentle smile.

“I intended to come yesterday, but since I arrived today instead…”

The documents in his hand crumpled further under the force of his grip.

Although the Crown Prince was smiling, the atmosphere around him had grown even more menacing than before. A chill ran through Theo’s entire body.

“You should consider yourself fortunate to have gained one extra day of your life.”

At those words, Theo’s body flinched violently.

Faced with someone who looked as though he might actually kill him, he couldn’t utter a single word.