ETVEWHF 3

Chapter 3

I swallowed back the swear word threatening to spill out.

My subtle standoff with Nigel was cut short by the sudden arrival of Kristine Blackwood.

“Ah, you’re all here.”

“Mother?”

“Nigel, aren’t you thrilled? Howard is arriving soon!”

At the thought of seeing the son she had been separated from for over two years, Kristine looked far more excited than usual.

“It is a relief that Brother is returning safe and sound,” Nigel said with a subtle smile.

“He was called off to war so suddenly… Oh, how my heart ached with worry.”

“Still, I believed in Howard. Your father was a soldier too, and he always came back alive.”

“Father didn’t just come back alive—he always brought presents with him, didn’t he?” Nigel’s gaze drifted toward me. “Right, Rowina?”

Just then, the butler stepped into the house, drenched from the rain. “My Lady, Lord Blackwood has returned.”

He stood beside Kristine to hold an umbrella over her head.

My husband. The man who married me. The man who fell in love with another woman. The man who would coldly cast me aside.

He was back.

The moment Kristine spotted her son approaching in the distance, she rushed outside, with the butler hurrying right behind her.

“Understand her, Rowina,” Nigel said offhandedly. “No matter how cold-blooded Mother might seem, she’s still a mother with a son.”

“…I didn’t say anything.”

“Is that so?”

Mindful of the maid standing nearby, I kept my eyes fixed on the distant figure. How many people actually knew about the relationship between Nigel and Rowina?

“Ah.”

The maid was struggling with an umbrella that refused to open, as if jammed on something. Bowing her head in embarrassment, she promised to fetch a new one. Nigel shrugged as if it were no big deal.

“Oh dear, looks like the ribs are broken.”

He then held out his hand to the servant beside him and took an umbrella.

“Here, step under.”

Holding the umbrella over himself just a second ago, Nigel now opened up a spot for me. The silvery-gray eyes gleaming behind his glasses were devoid of that inexplicable desire from yesterday.

“If you don’t even show the courtesy of walking over to welcome your husband, what do you think Mother will say?”

Unwilling as I was, I stepped under his umbrella. I tried my best to keep from brushing against his arm, which drew a quiet chuckle from him.

“There won’t be a repeat of yesterday.”

I had no memory of the past three days. I had no idea how this inappropriate relationship with Nigel even started, or if it was even something Rowina had wanted. But one thing was certain: nothing good would come from this affair being exposed.

“Do you really think I’d do something like that right in front of my brother?”

“Whether Howard is looking or not… I mean don’t ever do it again for the rest of your life.”

Still, with no idea what Nigel was scheming, I couldn’t afford to reveal the blank space in my memory.

“Is that what you want?”

“Yeah.”

“…I shall do as you command, Sister-in-law.”

He accepted that surprisingly easily.

I just walked in silence, keeping my eyes fixed straight ahead to avoid giving Nigel a chance to say anything else crazy.

“Yes, you aren’t hurt anywhere?”

“Of course not, who do you think I am? How about you, Mother?”

The voices of mother and son drifted through the sound of the falling rain.

The moment I realized someone else was approaching, the long umbrella Nigel was holding tilted slightly, revealing a handsome face.

The first thing I noticed was a mouth curved into a playful smile. Beyond that was a good-looking face that easily won people’s favor. His blonde hair, a brighter shade than Nigel’s, was damp from the rain.

The moment his deep blue eyes locked onto mine, his smiling lips twisted strangely.

“Rowina.”

My name—familiar, yet unfamiliar.

The low resonance sent a strange sensation through me, as if someone were tugging at my heartstrings.

“…You’re back?”

I offered the standard greeting expected of a wife welcoming her husband home from war. It felt a bit dry, but considering Rowina’s personality, it seemed appropriate enough.

“Nigel.”

Howard called out to Nigel, who was sharing an umbrella with me.

“Long time no see, Brother. Glad to see you’re looking healthy and unhurt.”

“……”

“Isn’t this a bit too cold for a couple reuniting after several years?”

At that moment, Howard grabbed my arm and gave it a gentle pull.

“Come over here, Rowina.”

The force pulled me right under Howard’s umbrella. Losing my balance from the sudden pull, I bumped against his solid chest.

As the physical contact between us broadened, I suddenly realized the true identity of the emotion that had been stirring in my chest all along.

“What, is there a shortage of umbrellas in the house?”

“The remaining ones broke. Buy me a new one, Brother. You’ve got plenty of money.”

It was… sadness.

Not my sadness, but his.

If Rowina was insensitive to others’ emotions, I was the complete opposite.

“Sister-in-law—no, Rowina. Are you crying?”

I was far better at picking up on other people’s feelings than most, and I easily absorbed them as my own. It was a peculiar trait, but nothing like a grand superpower. Even ordinary people sometimes pick up on hidden emotions or feel like crying when they see someone else in tears, simply because feelings are contagious. My senses were just far more heightened.

As a child, I couldn’t regulate my emotions because of this, which led my worried parents to take me to a doctor. But as I grew older, I naturally learned to control myself, even when other people’s feelings bled into mine.

Still, accidents happened sometimes. Whenever I was in deep physical contact with someone or when their emotions were overwhelming, I would lose my composure.

I wiped away a lone tear falling down my cheek with my sleeve. Through my blurry vision, I saw Kristine Blackwood’s shocked face.

The look on everyone else’s face probably wasn’t much different. After all, Rowina had never been seen crying—or even looking genuinely happy.

I felt a hand gently cup the back of my head, drawing me in.

“It seems my wife missed me dearly.”

Without correcting the misunderstanding, I leaned my forehead against his broad chest and breathed continuously to suppress the surge of emotion.

The man who married me. The man who fell in love with another woman. The man who would coldly cast me aside.

This man… seemed to have missed me.

Kristine sat at the head of the dinner table, glaring at her daughter-in-law.

Sly little thing.

Rowina sat there with her usual calm, upright posture, as if she hadn’t just been crying earlier. There was no way she had been genuinely grieving; it wasn’t as if they had ever been a affectionate couple.

So was she putting on an act with those tears just to win her husband’s heart? Kristine couldn’t even picture Rowina doing such a thing.

What on earth is she up to?

Kristine almost wished Rowina were just a typical woman trying to get the upper hand on her mother-in-law.

That would actually make things so much easier.

She had no idea how to deal with a daughter-in-law whose true motives were completely unreadable. Letting out a sigh, Kristine chewed and swallowed a piece of chicken.

“Ah, Rowina. There is something you need to take care of.”

“What is it, Mother?”

“You see this? All the dishware is mismatched.”

Rowina glanced around at everyone’s plates and cutlery. The edges of the round plates were engraved with floral and vine patterns.

“I tried to match them as best as I could, but the prices and manufacturers are all over the place. The kitchen maids broke a few plates, and when we tried to buy replacements, they had already been discontinued.”

“I see.”

“Honestly, I wanted to replace everything when Howard got married, but several things overlapped and forced me to delay it.”

From her husband’s funeral to the outbreak of war and her son’s enlistment—the worst things a woman could face in her later years had all hit her at once.

“Up until now, gatherings were kept small because of the war, so there weren’t any embarrassing moments. But people will start gathering at the mansion again soon, so it would be best to replace all the tableware. I’d like you to take full charge of this task.”

Serving guests with dishware of varying quality was a breach of social etiquette.

“The knives, forks, spoons, glassware, teacups, teapots, wine glasses, plates, and coffee cups—all of it. Ah, while we’re at it, replacing the kitchen utensils wouldn’t be a bad idea either.”

A massive workload was suddenly dumped onto Rowina. Sitting across from her, Nigel let out a subtle, amused smile.

“Ah, but don’t think this means I’m lifting your house arrest.”

Following her reckless remarks at the funeral and several ‘slips of the tongue’ at social gatherings, Rowina had been put under house arrest. Kristine had proposed it, and Howard had approved it. That was over two years ago.

“I’ll give you exactly two days.”

To contact shops, browse samples, and select appropriate items, she would have to spend her entire days outside.

“Understood, Mother.”

Rowina accepted without a fuss, her face as cool and her eyes as aloof as ever.

Kristine smiled inwardly. It was all an excuse, really. She just wanted to send Rowina out of the house so she could enjoy a relaxing holiday at home with her family, finally whole again after a long time.

Just then, Howard, who had been quietly listening the entire time, finally spoke up.

“Mother, I intend to move out.”

It was a statement that didn’t match his cheerful smile at all.