A Change of Husband - Chapter 83

The cry she had been holding back burst out.

The moment the carriage passed by him, and so, when Esperad could no longer see her, Asilie lowered her body and buried her face in both hands.

“Ah…”

She had been on her way out of Shop Sophia, where she had been held for a long time.

Then, on a street where she couldn’t even remember the name, she locked eyes with Esperad, who was standing there alone.

The speed of the carriage was so fast that the moment felt like an instant, but to Asilie the moment of getting closer to him felt very slow.

She didn’t even have time to properly check his expression. It was as if she was being sucked into his blue eyes, staring only at them.

Then, she realized that the man behind those eyes was not the one she knew, and the loss she had been holding back suddenly burst out again.

“Huh… Esperad…”

She missed him so much, she longed for him so much.

If it had been her Esperad, if it had been her man, he would have quickly called her name and hugged her, but the Esperad here, though

with the same appearance, was not the man she knew.

That’s why she missed him even more.

Now, she would have to endure living with a man who looked like her lover, yet was a complete stranger. It felt so much more painful.

Would she be okay?

What she had imagined was so different from reality. And the sense of loss was much greater than she had expected. It almost made her

think she might die.

Just from locking eyes, her heart felt like it was being torn apart—how would she bear this going forward? Asilie couldn’t understand.

No, in fact, even if she could understand, she didn’t want to. Not now. Nothing.

What Asilie needed now was simply time to cry.

But even that was not given to her.

The moment she arrived at the Bonaparte estate, the carriage door opened without even asking.

Asilie who had been sobbing with her face buried in her hands, suddenly looked up at the light that poured in.

“Oh my, sister-in-law. We’ve been waiting for so long, but you didn’t get out of the carriage!”

It was Monica who opened the carriage door without asking for permission.

She had a smug smile on her face.

“Why are you crying? Could it be…?”

“….”

“Did you get rejected at Shop Sophia?”

She was asking a question, but deep down, she was already sure. Asilie had been rejected at Shop Sophia.

That’s why she had been waiting all day for this moment.

She had even expected that Asilie would cry in the carriage, unable to bear the humiliation.

Monica was so pleased that her foolish sister-in-law was acting just as she had predicted.

“Don’t be too heartbroken. Designer Sophia is famous for her arrogance. It’s not that you weren’t good enough for her. It’s just that her

pride is sky-high.”

“…Your comfort is enough, sister-in-law. I’m leaving now…”

“No, sister-in-law! I can’t let you go to bed upset. Let’s have some tea. I want to cheer you up.”

“I’m really fine.”

“No, no, I’ve already prepared some warm tea for you. So…”

Normally, Asilie might have accepted Monica’s actions to some extent, but right now, she had no patience for it.

In the end, Asilie had to speak coldly.

“Sister-in-law, I think I need to rest. I’m just too tired.”

“Ah.”

Normally, Monica would have thought Asilie “daring” to speak to her this way, but now, she had become incredibly magnanimous.

She smiled generously, thinking that Asilie must have spent a lot of time searching for a “fancy dress,” and assumed that was why it took

so long.

“I should’ve expected that you would go through all kinds of trouble to find a dress. I’m sorry. Let’s go together next time. It’ll be easier to

pick out the dress then. Hohoho.”

“Thank you for your consideration, sister-in-law. Then, please rest as well.”

“Of course! Hohoho!”

Asilie turned away, leaving behind Monica’s cheerful laughter.

If it were any other day, she might have silently mocked Monica for tripping over herself, but today, she didn’t have the energy for that.

Even thinking felt like too much effort.

Asilie needed time.

After returning from Shop Sophia, Monica thought that Asilie seemed a little different.

‘Did she finally come to understand her place after being rejected by Designer Sophia?’

Since she came back, Asilie no longer tolerated the criticisms and mockery from the Countess Bonaparte, and instead, she coldly returned them.

But after visiting Shop Sophia, she had changed.

Of course, she no longer acted like a fool and just listened. Lately, she didn’t even respond to the Countess Bonaparte’s words, simply

eating her meals in silence.

The Countess Bonaparte grew more and more furious at Asilie’s attitude, which seemed to say that she didn’t even want to deal with her.

However, Monica didn’t care about the stress the Countess was feeling because of Asilie.

Monica, by nature, was someone who considered herself the most important.

While she didn’t have a bad opinion of the Countess Bonaparte, who always respected and took care of her, she certainly didn’t feel deeply

affectionate toward her.

After all, the Countess Bonaparte was a strict mother-in-law.

Still, Monica pretended not to notice the tense atmosphere and just waited, eagerly, for the palace banquet.

It was getting less fun to see Asilie crushed, but it was still enjoyable enough.

Now that her daughter had gone to her family’s house, Monica’s job had become to keep an eye on every move of Asilie’s.

“The dress has arrived?”

“Yes. It came neatly packaged, but it was wrapped in black fabric, so I couldn’t see the design or designer’s label.”

Usually, dress shops used by commoners didn’t send dresses in neat packages.

But since Monica had never used a lower-end shop, she had no idea about that.

Monica chuckled and shook her head.

“So, you found a dress. And I’m sure you selected a maid to properly do your hair and makeup to make it all glamorous, right?”

“Ah, well… Actually, she refused, saying she has someone else to do it for her.”

“She didn’t want to hurt her pride, did she?”

After Shop Sophia started offering hair and makeup services, many designers began copying them.

Of course, they were not as professional or organized as Shop Sophia, so they didn’t get any recognition.

They were just used by wealthy commoners who hired them.

Monica was sure that Asilie had hired someone from that kind of group.

“Anyway, I’m really looking forward to seeing what she’ll look like.”

If Asilie came out wearing a dress covered in cheap jewelry, it would be the perfect moment of amusement for Monica.

Monica had already suggested to the Bonaparte couple that they leave separately, just in case they tried to stop Asilie from going to the

palace banquet.

If they did, Monica wouldn’t be able to carry out the event she had prepared for Asilie.

“Is everything ready?”

Monica, who had been smiling while looking into the mirror in response to Geoffrey’s question, turned her head. He was wearing a neat black suit with a gray tie around his neck.

“Yes, I’m done.”

“It seems like you’re done earlier than usual.”

“I couldn’t be too extravagant on a day like today.”

“That’s true. Well then, let’s go. I heard that Count and Countess Joseph have already left.”

“Really? They finished earlier than I expected. Hmm, okay. Let’s go.”

The fact that Count and Countess Joseph had already left meant that Asilie’s preparations had been completed faster than hers.

However, extravagant attire naturally required more time to prepare.
Monica, who found this odd, thought that the people Asilie had hired must have been terribly incompetent, as she took Geoffrey’s hand.

Monica particularly enjoyed events like these.

Since her days as the Countess of Bellucci, she had loved social gatherings.

Women always looked at her with admiration, praising her beauty and wisdom, while men followed her every step with longing eyes.

Whenever she made an effort to dress up, no one could look away from Monica.

Perhaps because of this experience, even though she couldn’t dress up to her heart’s content at this banquet, Monica still thought she

would be the center of attention.

Her steps entering the banquet hall were unusually filled with excitement for this reason.

“What’s going on?”

But as soon as she stepped inside the banquet hall, Monica froze, confronted with a completely unexpected situation.

Things seemed to be unfolding as she had expected, and as she had subtly guided. At least, that’s what she had believed.

However, the situation was completely different.

“Why are you acting like this?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

Monica hurriedly tried to compose her expression and acted calmly, but her flustered feelings were impossible to hide.

She had expected Asilie to be wearing a flashy, cheap dress.

She had imagined excessive makeup and an overly styled hair, with everyone laughing at her.

And if Countess Bonaparte felt embarrassed by that sight, shaking her head in disbelief, that would have been an added bonus.

But none of that had happened.

Asilie appeared in a completely different way than Monica had imagined!

Asilie was wearing an elegant black dress that reached up to her neck.

The fabric of the dress didn’t look cheap at all; it gleamed every time the light hit it.

Her hair was neatly gathered in a bun, and her makeup was very light. In other words, Asilie looked no different from the other

noblewomen.

Monica, who had briefly exchanged glances with familiar faces, couldn’t hold back her anger and marched straight towards Asilie.

Asilie who had been having formal conversations with the other noblewomen, turned her head when she saw Monica.

“My sister-in-law is here too.”

“Can we talk for a moment, sister-in-law?”

“Of course. Excuse me for a moment.”

Asilie asked for permission and stepped away from the group of noblewomen, and Monica led her to a quiet corner of the banquet hall.

Then, in a harsh voice, she asked,

“I was really worried about this, and as expected, you haven’t disappointed me at all!”

“What are you talking about, sister-in-law?”

“How could you come to the royal banquet wearing such a cheap dress? If you were going to wear this rag, at least you could have put on

some proper jewelry! You’re really lowering the dignity of the Bonaparte family like this!”

Monica knew that her criticism was unjust.

But she couldn’t stand it any longer without venting her frustration.

Thinking that this sly woman had been deceiving her all along and playing with her like a puppet made her blood boil.

This woman—this dirty, vulgar girl, whose origins were unknown—was supposed to be beneath her, living under her thumb, pretending to

die at her every command!

Everything Asilie did irritated Monica.

“Don’t you feel any shame at all?”

“I’m sorry, sister-in-law, but I don’t think my appearance lowers the dignity of the Bonaparte family.”

“That’s just your opinion! Didn’t I clearly tell you? You need to dress up properly!”

“Does the Bellucci family teach you to focus all your attention on appearances, even when there’s trouble in the country?”

“…What did you say?”

“Then, that would be an action that betrays the pride of a noble and drags honor through the mud. So, the one who should be ashamed is

you, sister-in-law.”

Monica, who was greatly agitated, exploded in fury, but Asilie remained completely calm, evaluating her actions coolly.

Monica lowered her voice, speaking quickly, and pressed Asilie.

“Are you a commoner trying to teach me a lesson? Ha, don’t even think you’ll get the upper hand just because you’ve acted a little cleverly

a few times. I—”

“Sister-in-law.”

Asilie interrupted Monica with a soft voice.

Her words were cut off, and Monica glared at her with a fiercely contorted face.

“If this is all you can do, it would be better if you did nothing from now on. If I’ve overlooked it until now because it was a hassle, I won’t

anymore.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“Don’t you know?”

“What?”

Asilie stepped closer to Monica, who was glaring at her like she wanted to kill her.

And without any concern, she met Monica’s gaze and responded in a calm, serene voice.

“I mean, you should stop. I won’t let you behave arrogantly anymore.”

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