A Change of Husband - Chapter 104

“If someone catches you, what will you do?”

 

“I’m wondering that myself. I knew I shouldn’t have come, but…”

 

“But?”

 

“I missed you so much. I didn’t think I could wait until the royal ball.”

 

Asilie pouted her lips.

 

She missed him too, of course, but even so, it worried her deeply that her busy lover had risked coming all the way here from the palace.

 

“It was too dangerous, Esperad.”

 

“I know it was foolish. I held back for decades, so I knew I could endure a few more days, but…”

 

Esperad couldn’t finish his sentence.

 

Asilie wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest.

 

“Actually… I missed you too.”

 

Her small voice was full of shyness.

 

Because it was just like her—gentle and heartfelt—Esperad felt truly moved.

 

Even though he knew they were finally reunited, and that the decades he spent alone hadn’t been in vain, each moment like this reminded him all over again: she was really by his side now.

 

This was, truly, a blessing.

 

“You always make it impossible for me to be patient.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Startled by his vague words, Asilie looked up at him. Then, Esperad took her chin and kissed her without hesitation.

 

She wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him as she accepted his kiss—a kiss she had longed for, yet now felt completely natural.

 

Asilie could feel his strong hands supporting her waist as their breaths mingled.

 

When Esperad kissed her with his deep and skillful tongue—sometimes gently, sometimes passionately—Asilie felt all the strength drain from her body.

 

“Not here…”

 

She barely managed to pull away and look up at him pleadingly.

 

Maybe because the kiss was so intense, the words didn’t come Asilie.

 

Esperad gently brushed her hair back and kissed her on the forehead.

 

“I won’t do anything.”

 

Asilie’s eyes widened as she looked up at him.

 

“I long for you so much. Even when I’m with you, I still miss you. I want to have you right here, right now… but I don’t want to be careless with you.”

 

“…You’ve never treated me carelessly. You know that.”

 

“When I officially propose to you, properly.”

 

Esperad smiled as he spoke, then suddenly lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed.

 

“Oh my!”

 

But instead of doing anything further, he simply sat on the edge of the bed and placed Asilie on his lap, as if to prove he meant what he said.

 

“Do you know? There are so many things we haven’t done.”

 

“Things we haven’t done?”

 

“We were always too busy escaping danger. We never even got to talk about the children we might have one day, or imagine what our life would look like growing old together.”

 

“Oh…”

 

Only then did Asilie realize what he meant.

 

It was true. When the topic of children had first come up, they both agreed not to have any—not out of love, but to achieve their goals.

 

And because they were always focused on surviving and protecting each other, they had never imagined a peaceful future growing old together.

 

They truly loved each other, but despite the depth of their feelings, they had barely discussed their future.

 

Just living in the present had been overwhelming.

 

“We’ve missed out on so much, Esperad.”

 

“That’s why I don’t want to miss a single thing anymore. Not even the smallest thing.”

 

He wanted to share love with her more than anything, but Esperad also wanted to propose properly and be worthy of her.

 

Until then, even if it required patience, he could endure it.

 

No—he had to endure it, even if he felt he couldn’t.

 

“…I love you.”

 

“I love you too, Asilie.”

 

Asilie held his broad shoulders and placed a light kiss on his cheek.

 

Then, she suddenly remembered the thing she had been debating whether to mention before coming into the room.

 

“Oh, there’s actually something I meant to tell you.”

 

“Besides that you love me?”

 

“…As fun as it would be to keep talking about how much we love each other, this is serious.”

 

At her words, Esperad straightened up.

 

When he set her down beside the bed, Asilie turned to face him and spoke more seriously.

 

“I met Jonathan a few days ago. He said the lead firearms inventor is looking for him.”

 

“That’s probably to prepare supplies for the upcoming gun trade with Austin. There’s not much to worry about there…”

 

“I don’t think that’s it, Esperad.”

 

At her quick denial, Esperad’s expression hardened.

 

“…Is there another issue?”

 

“It’s not certain, but Jonathan said the inventor mentioned developing stronger weapons. What’s more concerning is that there was an order to stop distributing guns to the public and to increase production instead.”

 

“To stop distribution…?”

 

Although they were planning to sign the gun agreement with Austin, it would still be months before any weapons were actually exported.

 

There was no reason to adjust domestic supplies or increase production this early. It felt too soon to be simple preparation.

 

“To my knowledge, that inventor is funded by the conservative nobles and keeps close ties with them. When the Bonaparte family armed their knights, they went through him too.”

 

That was written in the ledger Asilie had handed to Esperad.

 

He let out a deep sigh. No wonder the nobles at today’s meeting had given in so quickly—perhaps they had backup plans all along.

 

Maybe it wasn’t about rebellion itself but about being prepared. Even so, it was a deeply treasonous act.

 

“They really want to see this through to the end.”

 

“What are you going to do? Do you have a plan?”

 

“First, I think we should summon the weapons dealers to the palace and monitor the situation.”

 

Esperad looked deeply troubled.

 

Learning that people he considered loyal were harboring dangerous thoughts must have been painful.

 

Asilie felt genuinely sorry for him and wanted to share the burden.

 

“Whatever you do, I’ll support you, Esperad.”

 

“……”

 

“And I’ll always be by your side. I won’t ever leave.”

 

It was a promise she could now make with her whole heart.

 

Knowing that, Esperad pulled her into his arms and rested his face on her small shoulder.

 

 

“…Do you really mean it?”

 

“I know this might be an unreasonable request, but it’s something I truly need to do.”

 

“If it becomes known that you’re behind this, it could be dangerous.”

 

“The person who’ll be in danger the most won’t be me, but you, Jonathan. That’s why I’m asking. A request can always be refused, after all.”

 

“You’re a very strange person.”

 

He let out a deep sigh and shook his head for now.

 

“I’ll think about it.”

 

“Yes, please take your time. I don’t want to force you into anything.”

 

As the conversation seemed to be wrapping up, Asilie stood up.

 

It was time to head to the palace ball.

 

She couldn’t afford to delay any longer, especially when she had to be mindful of society’s eyes.

 

“…Please be careful.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“I just mean… if you keep acting so recklessly, you might really end up in danger.”

 

Asilie smiled slightly at Jonathan’s words.

 

Maybe it was because she remembered the young boy he used to be, but his clumsy concern felt endearing.

 

“Thank you. And you too, Jonathan.”

 

If it had been before, she might have patted his head. But now that they were meeting as adults, even that felt inappropriate.

 

It was a bit sad, but since she clearly knew that this Jonathan was not the same as the one she used to know, it wasn’t hard to let go of the attachment.

 

Asilie gave a brief goodbye and turned away.

 

The carriage took her to the royal palace in no time.

 

In truth, the Duke and Duchess of Grandier had hoped to accompany her in the carriage.

 

She knew they were offering their kindness to protect her from the whispers and stares she would face as a divorced woman.

 

But even that was something she had to face on her own. At least, that was what she believed. She didn’t want to hide behind those who supported her.

 

‘Besides, it’s not like I did anything wrong.’

 

It was nerve-wracking, since no other noblewoman had ever appeared so boldly at a social gathering—especially one held at the palace—so soon after a divorce. Still, Asilie did her best to square her shoulders and walked in with confidence.

 

As expected, she could feel countless eyes on her the moment she stepped in.

 

“My goodness, look at that shameless face…”

 

“She must not know what shame is!”

 

“Exactly. It’s shocking how she can act like that without a trace of embarrassment. What’s happening to the world these days?”

 

“No wonder she got divorced. Honestly, deciding on something as serious as divorce so Asilie just shows how little patience she has.”

 

They weren’t even worth listening to, but since they stood right in her path, Asilie had no choice but to hear every word.

 

“Putting up with things is a virtue, you know.”

 

“The funniest part is, I heard she’s the one who asked Prince Bonaparte for a divorce.”

 

“Really? Why? It wasn’t the prince who asked for it?”

 

“That’s the difference between real nobles and fake ones. True nobles know how to endure even when their spouse is lacking. That’s what dignity is all about, honestly…”

 

“Hahaha, we actually think it’s for the best.”

 

The voice was familiar.

 

As much as she wanted to ignore it, Asilie couldn’t help but turn her head toward the sound she knew so well.

 

As expected, it was the Countess Bonaparte and Monica.

 

“She’s strutting around the ballroom like that—are you really okay with it?”

 

“Oh, what’s there to be bothered about? She’s not part of our family anymore. It’s a relief not having to keep an eye on her anymore, worrying when and where she might do something disgraceful and foolish.”

 

“You have no idea how much trouble she caused Mother. I was always on edge, worried I might accidentally act improperly myself, but now that I’ll soon be welcoming a refined and elegant sister-in-law, I feel so much more at ease. Hohoho.”

 

“You’ve really been through a lot, dear.”

 

Asilie knew perfectly well that they weren’t worth responding to. But she had learned something from her past experiences:

 

If you stay quiet and try to avoid conflict, people become even more confident in thinking they’re right and speak even louder.

 

That’s why she walked straight toward them.

 

Everyone, including Countess Bonaparte and Monica, looked at her in shock, clearly not expecting her to confront them head-on.

 

“It’s been a while, Countess.”

 

“…How dare you!”

 

Countess Bonaparte glared at her, fists clenched in anger.

 

Unfortunately for her, Asilie felt nothing toward the woman—not even resentment—just pity.

 

“You look well.”

 

“You’ve got some nerve. How can you talk to us like that, after all that’s happened?”

 

Monica shot back coldly, but Asilie ignored her entirely and spoke only to the Countess.

 

“I thought you might be going through a hard time. You’re the one responsible for managing the household, yet you didn’t seem to know what was happening inside it. I wondered if maybe you were feeling guilt or regret. But…”

 

Asilie gave a faint smile and continued.

 

“…you seem to be doing so well that it’s almost shocking. Maybe things like this happen all the time in noble families. Maybe this is what it means to be a true noble.”

 

Countess Bonaparte knew exactly what Asilie was referring to.

 

The part about not knowing what was going on inside the house clearly pointed to Monica secretly having an affair with Joseph, despite being engaged to Geoffrey.

 

Monica seemed to realize it too—her face turned pale.

 

Come to think of it, Asilie had already revealed the affair between Lady Bourbon and Joseph in front of others once before. There was nothing stopping her from doing it again.

 

‘I should’ve stopped her from coming to this ball!’

 

They had never imagined she’d have the audacity to attend a royal event, so they hadn’t prepared for it at all.

 

Countess Bonaparte and Monica exchanged glances and bit their lips. They were completely cornered.

 

“I could give you plenty of advice on what it means to be a true noble, but since I’m not part of that family anymore, I’ll leave it here. Still, let me just say this—enduring injustice doesn’t make you virtuous. It just makes you a fool.”

 

Asilie looked coldly at the nobles who had claimed that putting up with a flawed spouse was a mark of dignity.

 

Enduring unfair treatment wasn’t a virtue—it was simply foolish.

 

In that rigid, close-minded world, they were brainwashed into thinking that kind of endurance was the right way to live. But all it led to was death.

 

If she hadn’t been given a second chance at life, she might never have realized the truth. She would’ve kept living like that, thinking she was acting with grace and dignity.

 

“I just didn’t want to waste my life anymore. I hope the refined lady joining your family doesn’t waste hers there either.”

 

“What are you…?”

 

“You know, Lady Bourbon. I heard the news. Now that it’s no longer an affair but can be called love, it must be such a joyful, blessed occasion.”

 

Asilie smiled and offered a polite nod.

 

“Congratulations.”