Chapter 20.

A Benevolent Mother and a Terrible Wife

“You mistake me for your slave.”

At Essika’s cold words, Kallian’s eyebrow twitched.

“Or perhaps for an emotionless object.”

He looked like a man whose entire world had collapsed.

His face was pale, and his eyes were filled with anxiety and anger that he could no longer control.

“You were the one who refused to let yourself be bound by me.”

“……”

“And now you’re saying that you want to bind me?”

His behavior was disgraceful, like someone who had neglected a bird for so long that, upon seeing it remember how to fly, hurriedly tried to repair its cage.

“You are the Duchess of Klaus. And a Duchess…”

Kallian’s breathing became heavy.

“…should not behave like this.”

He probably realized it himself.

He must have known that his actions made no logical sense.

Yet Kallian had never once said I’m sorry to Essika.

In House Klaus, only Essika had ever been considered inadequate and a terrible wife.

Only Essika…

Everything had always been her fault.

Essika looked directly into his violet eyes and spoke.

“You were suspicious of why I disguised myself as a maid. But aren’t you curious about why I ended up wearing these clothes?”

“……”

“My only dress was completely soaked when the maids sent by the Duchess Dowager threw water on me. It seems she was quite displeased that I dared to stand up to you during our tea party. So I tried these clothes instead, and I found them quite comfortable.”

Kallian’s eyes trembled.

“That can’t be… Mother wouldn’t go that far.”

During the early days of their marriage, Essika had cried in front of Kallian several times.

Whenever she told him that the Duchess Dowager was bullying her, Kallian had always shown great displeasure.

Of course, it had not been directed at the Duchess Dowager.

It had been directed at Essika.

He had said that the Duchess Dowager was merely disciplining Essika because she had failed to behave wisely.

He had considered every complaint Essika made to be an overreaction.

“The punishment Mother gave you was reasonable. You simply misunderstood it as something else.”

Kallian had not changed at all.

“Call the butler and check for yourself how many daily necessities I am provided with. Is it enough to maintain the dignity and fulfill the duties of the ‘Duchess of Klaus’? Am I really so destitute that a Duchess has to wear a maid’s uniform and go outside to buy the things she needs herself?”

With every word Essika added, Kallian’s eyes trembled.

His gaze seemed to say, Mother couldn’t possibly have treated you that badly.

He hasn’t changed.

Kallian hasn’t changed at all.

“I’ll say this one last time, Your Grace.”

Essika’s lips moved.

“You have no right to treat me like this.”

Those ice-cold words struck deep into Kallian’s chest like a stake being driven through him.

Kallian wanted to argue as he always did.

He wanted to become angry with her as much as he pleased.

But at this moment, knowing that his anger would accomplish nothing, everything suddenly felt meaningless.

Essika would not cry anymore.

It seemed as though no matter what he said, she would not be hurt by it.

That icy gaze had not been an illusion.

It was not a tantrum.

It was not anything like that.

“I want to rest. Would you please leave my room?”

Essika’s voice reached him.

Her tired voice made his heart sink.

**

After forcing him out, Essika slammed the door shut with a cold expression.

Then she reached up and touched the area around her chest.

Her heart was throbbing painfully.

As if proving that the man she had once passionately loved was none other than Kallian Klaus.

I feel disgusted.

If only I had recovered my memories as a spirit sooner.

Essika looked at her reflection in the mirror.

Brilliant silver hair, blue eyes, flawless skin, and red lips…

Everything about her was perfect.

I wouldn’t have married him.

Kallian, that bastard who resembles the Emperor of the Heavenly Spirit Realm.

Repaying others for what they had done to her was one of the rules of life among spirits.

The sins of House Klaus, which had abused Essika, would never be forgiven.

Rather than watch her enemies live comfortably, it was better to go through the trouble of setting fire to their house.

They say revenge only creates more revenge?

They say revenge never makes you feel better?

Those were merely words of self-comfort from people who had never taken revenge themselves.

One day, House Klaus would be torn apart and brought crashing down.

And Essika intended to stand on top of it.

A banquet held over the grave of one’s enemy was always enjoyable.

It’s too late.

I’ll dance while watching all of you cry, House Klaus.

Looking at herself in the mirror, Essika gave a cold smile.

Then, just as she turned around—

Thud.

Something fell to the floor.

Essika narrowed her eyes, bent down, and picked it up.

It was a gold ring set with a green emerald.

It was large enough to fit a man’s finger…

But Essika had never seen Kallian wearing it.

Could it be… the Crown Prince’s ring?

When they had left after drinking tea, the Crown Prince had caught her when she stumbled.

Their bodies had collided, and it seemed the ring had slipped inside her clothes at that moment.

Essika stared at the ring thoughtfully.

Should I return it?

But if she returned it, she would have to meet him again.

Essika shook her head.

Even if she returned it when she happened to get the chance someday, she would not deliberately seek out an opportunity to meet him.

Knock, knock.

After placing the ring inside a drawer, the door opened, and Sella entered the room carrying a large tray.

“Madam, I’ve brought your dinner.”

Judging by the fact that she had not mentioned anything about Kallian, she probably had not run into him.

“It’s the same dinner served to His Grace the Duke and the Duchess Dowager. Oh, and there’s also something called a medicinal tonic.”

The food on the plates was surprisingly excellent.

Sous-vide meat, fresh vegetables, soup, and even dessert.

For the three years since she had married into House Klaus, Essika had never even dreamed of eating food like this.

The Duchess Dowager had constantly criticized Essika’s table manners and had even forbidden her from eating with Kallian.

After Essika had been moved into the tiny room, she had only been given food that was already going bad.

“Not bad.”

Such a meal would have been impossible if she had not won over the head chef, Hemos.

Things were slowly changing.

Of course, the reality was that even now, she still had to watch other people’s eyes just to eat a proper meal.

But Essika was confident.

Before long, they would be the ones worrying about what she thought.

Clatter.

Essika continued eating.

Sella occasionally refilled Essika’s glass with water and attended to her throughout the meal.

Maybe I really was crazy back then…

How could I have failed to recognize how dignified this lady is?

Whenever the Duchess Dowager badmouthed Essika, she always brought up her lowly family background.

Because of that, the maids had felt that there was little difference between themselves, who were lowly servants, and Essika, the Duchess of Klaus.

So they had sided even more readily with the Duchess Dowager’s mistreatment.

They thought it was unfair that both were supposedly lowly people, yet one was a maid while the other was a Duchess.

But as Sella watched Essika eat, she realized just how wrong she had been.

From her gaze to the way she handled her utensils, Essika was a perfect noblewoman.

Perhaps she even seemed more refined than the Duchess Dowager.

The way the meat separated so cleanly with a single cut of the knife…

It was simply astonishing.

**

“Is this everything? The Duchess’s budget expenditure records?”

At Kallian’s stiff voice, Butler Hans broke into a cold sweat.

He truly had not expected this.

Wasn’t it time for Kallian to be having dinner with the Duchess Dowager?

Yet he had suddenly summoned Hans and demanded the Duchess’s expenditure records.

“……”

Kallian’s eyebrows were stiff as he flipped through the thin book.

“One hundred mops, fifty barrels of oil, one thousand burlap sacks… Why are these included in the Duchess’s expenditure records?”

At Kallian’s question, Hans flinched.

“Ah… They must have been filed incorrectly. I’ll correct it.”

Kallian carefully examined the records starting from when Essika had first arrived at the ducal residence.

The Duchess Dowager had always criticized Essika for being extravagant.

Therefore, there had to be records of Essika’s lavish spending in these accounts.

“Call the butler and check for yourself how many daily necessities I am provided with. Is it enough to maintain the dignity and fulfill the duties of the ‘Duchess of Klaus’? Am I really so destitute that a Duchess has to wear a maid’s uniform and go outside to buy the things she needs herself?”

There’s no way that was true.

Kallian’s fierce gaze searched through the records for evidence.

Then his eyes stopped at one particular section.

There were lists of dresses and jewelry.

Robelia Dress Shop.

Attewan Jewelry Shop.

There were countless records of dresses and jewelry purchased from these two places.

Kallian’s eyes flashed.

She lied to me again.

“Hans, bring the owners of these two shops here immediately.”

Hans looked at Kallian in confusion.

Kallian was smiling with sharp, intense eyes.

“The Duchess purchased thirty-seven dresses from Robelia over the past three years and twenty-six pieces of jewelry from Attewan.”

“Ah…”

“So they must remember them. They must remember exactly what dresses the Duchess purchased.”

Then, if he found those dresses in her wardrobe and presented them to Essika, her face would turn pale.

The insolent Essika had been wearing maid’s clothes despite having thirty-seven dresses.

The thought of her finally realizing her mistake and kneeling before him made Kallian feel pleased.

But Hans did not answer.

His expression had darkened.

“Um… Your Grace.”

Kallian’s eyebrow twitched.

“A-Actually… those aren’t the dresses purchased by the Duchess…”

Hans had no choice but to tell him.

Essika probably did not even know the names of Robelia Dress Shop or Attewan Jewelry Shop.

“…They’re the Duchess Dowager’s dresses.”

Kallian’s face hardened.