A Change of Husband - Chapter 36

The Count Rufield family, along with the Duke Grandier and Count Gariburn families, were among the prominent neutral noble families of Astel.

And today, the social gathering that Asilie attended on Esperad’s recommendation was an exhibition hosted by the Countess of Rufield.

At first, she thought it was unexpected.

Since Esperad was known as a representative of the progressive nobles, she assumed the gathering would also be aligned with that faction.

But after walking around the exhibition once, she felt like she understood his intention.

Many nobles with different political views were mixed together here.

Because of that, even among the conservatives, no one dared to speak carelessly to Asilie and the progressives also acted cautiously around her, treating her as one of their own—at least in public.

It was a clearly different atmosphere than before.

The exhibition was richer in content, probably because it displayed not only the Countess Rufield’s works but also those of rising artists gaining attention in various fields.

After slowly looking around the exhibition hall, Asilie approached the Countess of Rufield.

“It’s nice to meet you. And thank you for the invitation. I’m Asilie Camédici, Countess.”

“Oh my, Duchess Camédici.”

The Countess widened her eyes in surprise and soon smiled gracefully.

“I was waiting with excitement after receiving your reply that you would attend and honor the event. I heard you weren’t feeling well recently. Are you better now?”

“It was just a minor illness that comes when the seasons change. It’s nothing unusual.”

“I used to get really sick whenever the seasons changed too. But I’ve been feeling fine lately, so I guess proper care really does help. If you’d like, I can introduce you to a good doctor…”

The conversation continued with polite small talk.

Asilie noticed that although the Countess was curious about her, she was careful not to act thoughtlessly since this was an important event she was hosting.

It was a wise decision. It would have been foolish to chase personal, unimportant desires in a place like this.

Asilie politely ended the conversation without being rude, thanked her again for the invitation, and stepped away.

She planned to greet some familiar nobles and, if there were no issues, return to the Camédici mansion.

But she had to adjust her “simple” plan when someone greeted her from behind.

“This is the first time I’ve personally said hello, Duchess Camédici.”

It was a voice she had heard somewhere before—familiar, yet not clearly remembered.

They had never had a long conversation, so she struggled for a moment, but it didn’t take long to recall who it was.

He wasn’t someone she was happy to see. She turned around without showing it.

“You must be Prince Bonaparte.”

“You recognize me?”

“You were once involved in marriage talks with me. I at least remember your face.”

The man who approached Asilie was Geoffrey Bonaparte—her brother-in-law in the previous timeline.

In truth, although she had clashed with Monica many times, she never had direct problems with Geoffrey.

Of course, it wasn’t because he liked her. It was because he didn’t even see her as a person, so there was no chance for conflict.

“That’s surprising. But I can’t say it feels bad to be recognized.”

However, Asilie saw the quick flash of disgust on Geoffrey’s face when she mentioned the word “marriage.”

It seemed that his hatred for her low birth hadn’t changed in this life either.

Strangely, that familiar look gave her a sense of comfort.

“I’m surprised too. I doubt your brother would think the same way.”

“Joseph is…”

She didn’t want to have a long talk with him. So even though she knew it was rude, Asilie cut him off and asked,

“Are you speaking with me because of the noble council?”

Before, she wouldn’t have dared to even speak to him.

But now, there was no need to cling to those faded memories.

And Geoffrey, already thinking she had a strong personality after what happened at the palace banquet, didn’t look surprised or flustered by her boldness.

“That’s right.”

“If that’s the reason, then I don’t think I can give you the answer you want. It’s out of my hands now.”

“I’m curious. What kind of answer do you think I want to hear, Duchess?”

“Of course…”

Asilie stopped for a moment before saying the obvious answer and looked at Geoffrey.

It was the first time she faced him so confidently.

Maybe it was because things had changed so much, but Geoffrey looked very different from how she remembered him.

Even though they had lived under the same roof, he now seemed like a stranger to her.

The old days passed briefly through her mind.

Back then, there had been long discussions about marriage.

But just before the engagement was officially announced, Geoffrey brought a pregnant Monica into the Bonaparte mansion.

Duke Grandier was furious when the marriage was broken off, and Count Bonaparte, who didn’t want to miss a rare chance to form an alliance with a neutral noble, made a different proposal.

So she became Joseph’s wife.

Someone else might have been interested in the man who was supposed to be her husband.

But Asilie was already deeply in love with Joseph, so to avoid any misunderstandings, she stayed away from Geoffrey.

Of course, there were times she had no choice but to run into him.

That was unavoidable since they lived in the same house.

“Ah, I-I’m sorry.”

It happened one day when she fainted in the hallway due to stress and anemia.

When she came to, she was holding onto Geoffrey’s collar in an awkward position.

She quickly let go and tried to stand on her own, but the dizziness was too much.

Then Geoffrey cursed.

“Damn it.”

He looked down at her as if the part of his collar she grabbed was dirty, then brushed it off with an annoyed expression.

At that moment, Asilie felt a deep sense of unfairness.

Even though Countess Bonaparte received help from both her daughters-in-law, she always gave Asilie the hardest physical tasks.

Her health had worsened because she was doing work that should have been shared with Monica.

But she couldn’t say any of this out loud.

So she quietly apologized to Geoffrey.

“I’m really sorry. I was just too dizzy…”

“Looks like my brother can’t be bothered to take care of his poor wife.”

“…What?”

“Or maybe he thinks he’s too noble to care for someone of low birth.”

At that time, Asilie didn’t understand Geoffrey’s sarcasm at all.

“A husband and wife should be equals. Don’t you think so, sister-in-law?”

She couldn’t understand what he meant, but she knew it wasn’t said with good intentions.

Asilie stubbornly stayed quiet, holding on to her last bit of pride, and Geoffrey passed her with a smirk, as if her opinion didn’t matter.

After that, she became even more afraid to face Geoffrey.

Even though he had never directly threatened her.

It was a miserable time.

But perhaps the most miserable thing was that back then, Asilie didn’t even realize how miserable she was.

He was a difficult brother-in-law. So much so that she couldn’t even imagine daring to judge him.

That’s why she had thought of him in a very ordinary, typical way. Since most brothers cared for each other, she had simply assumed that the Bonaparte brothers would be the same.

But looking back on it, she realized that Geoffrey, while pretending not to, had subtly mocked or belittled Joseph.

Asilie looked into Geoffrey’s eyes, which held a dangerous light, and was certain that he hadn’t approached her for an obvious reason.

“…You are quite a unique man, Lord Geoffrey.”

“People are only charming when they have something unexpected about them. I tend to care a lot about how others see me.”

“I wonder if I’ll be able to feel that charm from you today.”

“I suddenly feel a strong sense of duty that I must make that happen. My lady, you seem to have the power to move people.”

Unlike in the past, Geoffrey was now trying to appeal to her charm.

Of course, it wasn’t a romantic seduction. He simply wanted to gain her favor to achieve his goal.

If her guess was right—that Geoffrey disliked Joseph—then the fact that they were heading toward a shared goal made Geoffrey a rather useful horse to ride.

Asilie decided to ease her guard for now.

“Was that a compliment?”

“Of course. Since we’re speaking of compliments, to be honest, I feel more inclined to express respect than just praise.”

“I’m surprised the more I hear. May I ask why?”

“Perhaps because I was impressed by your performance at the royal banquet. No one expected it, and yet you showed it confidently. It may have been natural for me to feel that way.”

“That’s surprising. Because of that ‘performance,’ your brother is probably in trouble right now.”

“Oh dear, have you already forgotten?”

Geoffrey gave a soft laugh.

“Didn’t you say you were curious whether you could feel my charm? I’m just doing my best to live up to that expectation, my lady.”

Asilie thought that if she had been a typical noble lady, she might have felt her heart flutter at Geoffrey’s languid smile, which could only be described as handsome.

“Have you ever done a treasure hunt, Duchess?”

“Are you talking about the game children play?”

She couldn’t hide her confusion at the odd question and asked back.

“Yes. When I was a child, I used to play a modified version with my close friends. We would each hide our own treasure and give it to whoever found it.”

“That’s unusual. If it was each person’s treasure, it must have led to arguments, since the value would be personal.”

“At first, yes. But later, it was quite fun discovering what others thought was valuable. Sometimes, I miss those days. I imagine you also carry the sentiment of missing childhood memories.”

Asilie almost burst into laughter.

Even with sentiment, it was hard to miss the poverty and hunger of her past.

Nobles in the capital truly believed what they had seen, heard, and experienced was the absolute standard.

That’s probably why they didn’t feel the slightest guilt when rejecting provincial nobles.

“I’m not sure. It’s been too long. I’ll have to think about it carefully before bed tonight, to see if I have any similar memories.”

“Don’t you want to find that kind of treasure?”

Asilie didn’t answer but looked at Geoffrey quietly.

He didn’t avoid her gaze but confidently held eye contact and suddenly asked,

“If I approached you with some other motive, would you be disappointed?”

“I think I would. You told me people are attractive when they have something unexpected, didn’t you?”

Geoffrey felt a bit nervous at her reply.

Asilie had just teased him using the capital nobles’ way of speaking.

She had hinted that she wasn’t surprised because his intentions were too obvious.

What unsettled him was that she could use such refined speech so fluently—something not Asilie learned just by studying briefly.

It annoyed him that a country girl was this clever. His plans to manipulate her like a tool already seemed to be falling apart, but Geoffrey forced himself to ignore that thought and replied.

“Well, at least I’m not being rude. To confess with a clear heart, I’ve been waiting for a chance to offer you a treasure-like proposal.”

He meant he wanted to make her an unusual offer.

Since she already knew he had approached her because of the noble council, it wasn’t hard to guess that the “unusual offer” likely had something to do with Joseph.

‘It could be a trick.’

She couldn’t be sure if Geoffrey truly wanted Joseph’s downfall or if he was pretending to gain favor and then stab the Camédici family in the back.

Of course, he had good reason to want Joseph’s downfall.

The Count of Bonaparte had not officially named a successor yet.

If Geoffrey wanted to compete with Joseph for that position, such behavior was understandable.

But if he was acting out of loyalty to the family and had approached her deliberately…

“My lord, do you know what is the essential element in any deal?”

“Essential element… hmm, maybe it’s taking something of value?”

“That’s not wrong, but I see it a bit differently. I think trust in the other person is essential. In that sense, you may indeed be a charming man, but… I’m not sure.”

In uncertain cases, it’s safest to walk away cleanly.

But Geoffrey was a different case. If she could win him over, he’d be an irreplaceable card.

If his goal was truly Joseph’s downfall, he was someone Asilie couldn’t afford to lose in this matter, so she had no choice but to leave room for possibility.

And Geoffrey, looking as if he already knew everything, took the bait she threw at him.

“Hmm, my lady, I’m sorry, but this place doesn’t seem suitable for continuing our conversation. If it’s alright with you, perhaps we should move to another location.”

It was true that Countess Rufield’s exhibition hall wasn’t ideal for serious conversations.

But agreeing to follow him wasn’t so easy. With her life already under threat from conservative nobles, going with Geoffrey could be dangerous.

As she hesitated, a thought suddenly struck Asilie—a way to use Geoffrey’s offer to read his intentions.

Since the Camédici family had never publicly announced the attack, she could try using that fact.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think I can meet you in private.”

The conservative nobles were clearly helping Count Mirk try to eliminate Esperad’s fiancée and assassinate Asilie.

Surely, Geoffrey also knew about that plan.

“Is there a problem?”

“If you want to make a proposal to me and my husband, it’s a problem you should be aware of.”

If he pretended not to know, that would mean he intended to protect the conservative nobles, including the Bonaparte family, and she could give up on him.

Geoffrey caught on to her intent and frowned.

“Damn.”

He had let his guard down, thinking she was low-born.

He should’ve remembered that she had gone head-to-head even with Monica, who was skilled at manipulating people.

She might just be a stepping stone to reach the Duke of Camédici, but it was unexpected for her to be this capable.

‘What an amazing woman. That makes things harder.’

His will to push Joseph aside was clear, but he also wanted to keep a foot in both camps in case things went wrong.

But the Duchess was much sharper than expected.

She likely wouldn’t let him do as he pleased. In the end, he would have to choose one side.

‘Safety or ambition.’

In truth, the moment he approached the Camédici family, the scale had already tipped, so there was no point in hesitating…

“…Of course, I wouldn’t take the Duchess somewhere unsafe. I’ll make thorough preparations.”

At those words, Asilie gave a wide smile for the first time.

Knowing that all her careful thinking wasn’t in vain satisfied her deeply.

“Thank you for being considerate. I believe we’ll have a richer conversation soon. I’m sure the Duke will be there as well.”

“I look forward to having a meaningful time with you both. Today was so enjoyable that it’s sad how fast time flew.”

“Next time, I think time will go by even faster. I enjoyed it too. See you next time.”

After giving a polite farewell, Asilie turned away from Geoffrey.

But even long after she had left, Geoffrey remained in the same spot, deep in thought.

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