Chapter 11.

A Wife Trying to Gain Her Husband’s Attention

At the Klaus family swordsmanship training ground, the household soldiers were training in unison to the rhythm of their commands.

Kallian watched them move with perfect coordination.

With every gust of wind, beads of sweat rolled down the soldiers’ necks.

“Your Grace.”

At the knight’s voice, Kallian slightly turned his gaze to the side, then froze.

His eyebrows immediately drew together.

He had spotted a figure approaching from a distance.

“I had a feeling…”

Kallian’s lips moved.

“As expected.”

It had only been a few days since Essika had given him a small shock by simply getting up and leaving as though she had no interest in him.

Who was Essika Klaus?

Wasn’t she the woman who had followed him around until he was sick of seeing her?

She had tried to show up at his office four or five times a day under the excuse of bringing refreshments.

She had also come to the training grounds and constantly tried to talk to him, pretending they were close.

Even when Kallian went out for a walk, Essika would often follow him.

Whenever he became angry with her, she would look at him with that foolish expression, her eyes filling with tears.

“I just… I only need to talk to you, Kallian. We…”

Her hesitant speech had been unbearably frustrating.

“…We’re husband and wife.”

Every time he saw that face, he was simply tired of it.

Talk?

That was something people who could actually communicate with each other did.

As the daughter of a merchant family obsessed with money, she knew nothing about the topics of conversation or etiquette among the nobles of the capital, Torres.

Therefore, Kallian had no desire to speak with Essika.

He couldn’t understand why he should even bother having ordinary conversations with a woman who had bought her position as his wife with money, nor did he have any intention of understanding her pleas.

Yet the other day, she had casually said:

“I think we’re only wasting each other’s time.”

And then she had risen from her seat with cold eyes.

He should have felt relieved.

But strangely, he hadn’t.

Something inside him had twisted in a peculiar way.

An irritating and unpleasant aftertaste had lingered in his chest for a long time.

But at this moment, all Kallian felt was that same irritation rising again.

“……”

Essika stopped in front of Kallian.

She was wearing the red dress she usually wore, but today she wasn’t wearing the inappropriate jewelry she normally adorned herself with.

Her complexion somehow looked clearer, and her gaze seemed colder.

Still, there could only be one reason she had come all the way here.

Kallian opened his mouth.

“I don’t have time to deal with you—”

“I didn’t come here to see Your Grace, so don’t worry.”

Kallian’s eyebrow twitched.

Essika lowered her gaze slightly toward Kallian as if giving him a polite greeting.

Then she walked straight past him.

Kallian stood motionless, replaying what had just happened.

Essika had come to the training grounds.

Obviously, the reason she had come was to talk to him.

But today, Essika had even cut him off before casually walking away.

“…?”

Kallian hurriedly turned in the direction Essika was going.

He could see her back.

She was heading toward the weapons storage building beside the training grounds.

When Essika arrived in front of it, an elderly soldier came out and greeted her.

They appeared to exchange a few words.

Kallian watched Essika’s back.

She didn’t even glance in his direction, as though he didn’t exist.

Just like someone who had genuinely come here to take care of her own business…

That’s impossible.

Kallian shook his head.

What possible reason could the Duchess have to come to a training ground?

Essika was an incompetent woman who could barely manage even the simplest household affairs.

There was no way she would have an interest in the military or household soldiers.

Is she trying to gain my attention by taking a different approach?

There were women like that from time to time.

Women who pretended to be interested in subjects that ordinary women had no interest in because they wanted to stand out to men.

Kallian had thought Essika wasn’t even clever enough to do something like that.

Yet this was an unexpected side of her.

Am I supposed to praise her for it? Ridiculous.

Kallian twisted his lips and turned away.

When someone acted like that, all he had to do was show no interest.

If he ignored her, she would become anxious and eventually give up.

Kallian thought Essika would ultimately remain at the training grounds until he spoke at least one word to her.

“……”

However, after watching the soldiers train for several more minutes, he glanced toward the weapons storage building.

There was no one there.

Kallian’s eyebrows stiffened at yet another failed prediction.

He hurriedly turned his gaze.

Far in the distance, Essika had already become little more than a tiny dot.

Kallian’s lips parted slightly.

She really came here because she had business to attend to?

It was difficult to believe.

Kallian strode toward the weapons storage building.

But the elderly soldier who had spoken with Essika earlier came out and hurriedly bowed.

“Greetings, Your Grace!”

“What did she say?”

The soldier looked slightly surprised by Kallian’s question.

But he soon composed himself and answered.

“Ah… Do you mean the Duchess? She asked about the swords.”

“…Swords?”

“She asked if she could touch them, and she was impressed by their quality. She said the forging techniques seemed excellent… I believe those were her words. Then she asked where we purchased the swords used here. I told her that today was the day new swords were delivered, and she had just inspected them as well. She seemed particularly fond of the rapiers.”

Kallian frowned slightly and asked,

“This wasn’t her first time?”

The soldier nodded.

“No. She first came five days ago.”

Kallian’s fist twitched.

Then was it really true?

Had Essika come to the training grounds not to see him, but because she was interested in swords?

No.

Surely that couldn’t be the case.

Essika was merely a noblewoman who nearly fainted at the sight of blood on a sword.

But the soldier continued speaking as though he found Essika rather impressive.

“Um… The Duchess seemed quite knowledgeable about swords. She asked about things such as the direction of the blade and durability. It wasn’t superficial knowledge.”

Kallian’s eyes wavered for a moment before becoming calm again.

She was from a merchant family, so perhaps she had studied various things.

That might have included weapons.

But what was irritating Kallian now wasn’t that Essika had asked about swords.

“So…”

Kallian turned around, his lips moving slightly.

His violet eyes were trembling rather noticeably.

“…she really didn’t come here to see me?”

A strange mixture of displeasure and indignation appeared on Kallian’s face.

* * *

Yuri changed the cotton cloth wrapped around her leg with a face covered in sweat.

There was blood on the cloth because the wound still hadn’t healed.

The wound had worsened because of the salt water Essika had poured over it.

Yuri ground her teeth.

“Essika… I’ll never let you get away with this.”

Yuri’s eyes gleamed viciously as she thought of Essika.

That stupid woman had suddenly started acting as though she had gone mad.

Yuri would make sure to teach her her place again.

Knock, knock, knock.

A knock sounded at the door.

After a moment, the door opened and Lusa, one of the Head Lady’s three maids, entered.

She was young, timid, and meek by nature.

“Are you all right, Head Maid?”

“Do I look all right to you?”

Yuri needlessly snapped at the maid.

With everything that had been happening to her lately, she couldn’t help but be angry.

“Um… It’s just that the Head Lady…”

Yuri, who had been glaring with raised eyebrows, flinched slightly at those words.

Although the Head Lady was responsible for making her leg look like this, Yuri couldn’t bring herself to hate her.

She was Kallian’s mother, after all.

No matter how much Yuri seduced Kallian, if she failed to win his mother’s favor, taking Essika’s position would be extremely difficult.

“…Did she say she was sorry?”

Yuri asked the maid with a hint of expectation in her eyes.

After all, she had repeatedly stolen Essika’s jewelry and presented it to the Head Lady.

The Head Lady had favored her enough to appoint her as Head Maid.

Perhaps she felt guilty for beating Yuri so severely.

But Yuri’s expectations were immediately crushed.

“No. She said she had looked into suitable marriage prospects for you…”

The maid pulled three crumpled sheets of paper from the folds of her skirt.

Yuri’s eyebrows twisted horribly.

The maid approached and began reading the three crumpled papers.

“First, the candidate is the son of a butcher who is well known in the busy district. If you marry him, you’ll have plenty of work to do, but at least you’ll be able to eat well and live without lacking anything.”

There was envy in the maid’s eyes.

As a commoner, she thought it was quite a good match.

But Yuri, who at least possessed an aristocratic surname, felt as though her mind had gone blank.

“And… the second candidate is a farmer who supplies wheat to the Klaus ducal family. He is fifteen years older than you and has two children. He had a wife, but she died from an epidemic last year. He is rather old, but…”

“…Ha…”

Yuri’s face turned red and pale by turns.

The man she had dreamed of marrying was Duke Klaus.

There was no way commoners could possibly satisfy her.

“The third candidate is an official working for the government. His salary is rather low, so his wife would have to do sewing work for extra income, but…”

“That’s enough!”

Yuri suddenly shouted, making the maid flinch.

The maid stared at Yuri in confusion.

She couldn’t understand why Yuri was angry.

She had no idea how highly Yuri thought of herself.

They’re suggesting men of that level for me? Essika… Even that stupid Essika managed to marry Duke Klaus, and they’re offering me nothing but…

“Get out!”

Yuri screamed at the maid.

Her eyes were filled with anger, malice, and jealousy.