The Returning Husband Refuses to Divorce – Chapter 19

Author: isuzuuy

“Are you feeling unwell?”

Ines suddenly snapped back to her senses.

“Pardon?”

She had been sitting there for so long, staring blankly while holding a piece of bread in one hand and a butter knife in the other, that she seemed to have worried him.

“No, it’s nothing……”

But the moment she met Zecard’s concerned gaze, the words caught in her throat.

“……It’s nothing. Really.”

She somehow managed to finish her sentence, but she still felt unsettled.

I keep thinking about that dream.

It had been strangely realistic.

The setting, the bitter cold, the scenery of the North she had experienced every year—it had all been exactly the same.

The problem was……

……I’m not the kind of person who would feel that way.

Being accused of attempting to poison the Saintess was certainly plausible enough.

Selena had tried to frame Ines for various things in the past. The injustice in her dream had probably stemmed from similar circumstances.

What Ines couldn’t understand, however, was the emotion she had felt in the dream.

Why was I so heartbroken?

Of course, if she found herself in a similar situation now, she would do everything in her power to prove her innocence.

But that would be because she resented being falsely accused, not because she was sad that Zecard didn’t believe her.

Yes, Zecard.

Ines discreetly lifted her eyes to study the man sitting across from her.

“Ines?”

His face was still full of concern.

It was still astonishing to her that such an impressive man was her husband—even if only under a one-year contract.

“I didn’t sleep well last night, so I’m tired. I think I’ll go lie down for a while afterward.”

Zecard still looked serious, but since Ines had offered to rest of her own accord, he didn’t press her further and changed the subject.

“Several important guests will be attending the victory banquet.”

“Guests?”

“Delegations from the Imperial Family and the temple.”

“Oh, I see.”

Noticing the flicker of unease on Ines’s face, Zecard added, “There won’t be that many people, so you needn’t feel too pressured. This banquet is primarily to celebrate the victory of the Evanhardt Knights.”

He added that the official victory celebration on a national scale would be held separately in the capital a few months later.

But Ines’s thoughts had already wandered elsewhere.

The temple……

Perhaps it was because of the strange dream she’d had the night before.

On impulse, Ines asked, “Will Elise happen to be among the temple’s delegation?”

At her question, Zecard abruptly froze.

Oh.

Ines instinctively flinched.

They had been chatting so naturally throughout the meal that his sudden stillness felt particularly jarring.

“……Do you want to see her?”

“Pardon?”

The question that finally came from Zecard’s lips was somewhat unexpected.

Want to see her? Me? Elise?

Of course not.

It wasn’t as though she still harbored deep resentment toward her younger sister. But neither had she completely put the past behind her to the point where she could comfortably face Elise.

“It’s not that…… I thought I’d heard that you and she were very close during the war.”

Zecard’s eyebrow twitched.

Sensing danger instinctively, Ines hurriedly added, “Of course, I have no right to summon the Saintess or tell her where she should go. I was only asking because if she comes as a guest, we’ll need to receive her properly. There are so many things we’d have to take into consideration.”

It wasn’t as though she was accusing him of having been unfaithful during their marriage. But that didn’t mean the possibility of something happening after their divorce had disappeared.

After Ines left, couldn’t Elise become the next Duchess of Evanhardt?

Ines couldn’t bring herself to say that part aloud, so she swallowed the words.

But Zecard was surely capable of understanding the implication behind what she had said.

A dreadful silence descended.

Zecard’s grip tightened around the knife in his hand until it nearly bent. Then, at last, he smiled pleasantly.

“……I see.”

His face was undoubtedly smiling, yet a chill seemed to radiate from him.

He spoke as though forcing each word through clenched teeth, suppressing something deep inside.

“I didn’t realize that was what you thought.”

Ines’s eyes darted nervously.

……Maybe I shouldn’t have asked.

Come to think of it, Zecard’s expression had also stiffened the last time Elise’s name came up.

It was only natural that he would be upset when some insignificant woman casually mentioned the name of the person he cherished.

If I hadn’t had that dream last night, I never would have asked him about it directly.

Belatedly regretting her question, Ines offered an explanation.

“Now that I think about it, I was being presumptuous. I’m sorry. Please forget I said anything.”

Intending to bring the conversation to a close, Ines reached for the bell to summon a maid.

But before she could move her hand, Zecard spoke.

“That woman will not be coming to this castle.”

His voice was firm.

“Absolutely not.”

Zecard’s blue eyes fixed squarely on Ines.

For a moment, she was overwhelmed.

“Ah…… I see.”

Every now and then, she found herself wondering about something.

Why does he look at me like that?

She couldn’t quite understand what that gaze meant, but the complicated emotions within it seemed to reach her all the same.

Seeing Ines flinch, Zecard sighed.

“……I believe I told you this before, but perhaps I wasn’t clear enough. The Saintess and I have no relationship whatsoever.”

His voice was resolute.

“It’s true that she helped me during the war, but we have absolutely no personal relationship. And I have never had the kind of feelings you seem to be imagining.”

A faint blush spread across Ines’s face.

“That’s not what I meant.”

In truth, it was exactly what she had meant.

Zecard gave a bitter smile before speaking again.

“I’ll send you the detailed list of the delegation members later. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me at any time.”

For some reason, Ines felt guilty.

I really am foolish, believing rumors without question……

Ines was probably the person in this world who had suffered the most misunderstandings because of rumors. And yet, here she was, judging someone else based on nothing but gossip.

“I’m sorry. I won’t make excuses. I was in the wrong.”

But Zecard’s response was not what she expected.

“Don’t apologize.”

“Pardon?”

“No matter what happens, you never need to apologize to me.”

Ines was about to argue, but when she saw his expression, she pressed her lips together.

For some reason, Zecard looked unbearably bitter.

After finishing breakfast with Zecard, Ines returned to her room.

Something’s strange.

Lately, people had been looking at her with increasingly ill intentions.

Things had been quiet for a while after the servants were replaced, but now the atmosphere was almost as bad as before.

Why has the black aura grown so much darker all of a sudden?

The maids she had passed on her way back from breakfast hadn’t even bothered to conceal the malice in their eyes. She barely needed to examine their black auras to recognize it.

Could it be because I reprimanded the maids the other day?

That was certainly possible, but it didn’t seem like a sufficient explanation.

I should stay on my guard for the time being.

Especially after the unsettling dream she’d had the night before. The whole thing left a bad feeling in her stomach.

Just then, May entered Ines’s room.

“His Grace sent these for you.”

What May set down was some medicinal tea and a light snack.

He said he was busy, yet he still made sure to arrange this for me.

Ines was impressed by Zecard’s thoughtfulness.

He was so kind even to a contractual wife he had no feelings for. The woman who received his love must be truly happy.

For a moment, Ines felt envious.

……Someone who cherishes me.