A Change of Husband - Chapter 84

A confrontation was the last thing she wanted. In fact, it was quite clear to her that Monica had already made her feelings about her very obvious.

Asilie didn’t want to argue with Monica in a crowded place either. There was no need to act at her level.

Still, her frustration showed because she could no longer suppress what had been building up inside her.

And today, Asilie was especially sensitive.

It couldn’t be helped. It was the day when she would see the one person she least wanted to meet, yet at the same time, the one person she secretly wanted to see.

The royal banquet. The largest event hosted by the royal family, where typically all royals and most nobles attended.

This meant that Esperad would also be at the royal banquet today, and Asilie knew she would inevitably run into him.

After meeting Esperad on the street, Asilie knew that if she saw him, she wouldn’t be able to behave in the usual way people expected.

Just seeing him would almost bring her to tears. She missed him so much—the person she could never see again, the person who was lost forever.

So, she had thought and thought about whether or not to attend the royal banquet.

In the end, though, she decided to face the situation head-on. She had already made a decision not to live like she had before. She was determined to change the worst situation she was in, especially after the lessons she had learned during her special experience in a parallel world.

She couldn’t avoid this. Asilie had decided to think of Esperad as just another person, someone like a stranger, only resembling the man she once knew.

Of course, it wasn’t easy to become this detached, but it was the decision she made.

“What did you just say?”

Monica looked at Asilie with a pale, stunned expression. She genuinely didn’t expect Asilie to speak to her like this.

“I said exactly what you heard. Be reasonable.”

“What?! How dare you speak to me like that?”

Monica scoffed, her face twisted in disbelief.

She thought Asilie’s warning would be ignored, but her reaction was so predictable that Asilie couldn’t help but let out a little laugh.

Monica clenched her fists and muttered in a grim voice, “You’ll regret this arrogance.”

Asilie thought nothing Monica could do would hurt her, but she chose not to respond.

Monica stared at her angrily without saying anything more and then turned abruptly and walked off.

After Monica left, Asilie also walked back into the center of the hall.

While scanning the crowd, Asilie noticed the Duke and Duchess of Grandier entering. Feeling obligated to greet them, Asilie immediately headed in their direction.

“Your Grace, the Duke, and Your Grace, the Duchess.”

At Asilie’s call, the Duke and Duchess of Grandier turned to face her.

Though she expected no particular warmth, they greeted her with pleasant expressions.

The Duke, having quickly finished his conversation with his companion, walked over to Asilie.

“How have you been?”

“Thanks to your concern, I’ve been doing well. You look even better than before. And Your Grace, the Duchess, seems even younger than the last time I saw you. I’m curious about your secret.”

“Oh my, ho ho ho. And Madame Bonaparte shines even more brightly, if I may say so myself.”

“Thank you.”

The Duke and Duchess of Grandier exchanged a few more pleasantries with Asilie. After a moment, the Duke lowered his voice and began speaking seriously.

“Everything has been paid for. Are you aware of that?”

“I didn’t receive any communication, as I thought it would be reckless to exchange messages while staying with the Bonaparte family. But I figured by now, everything must have been set into motion.”

“It’s truly remarkable. And there’s nothing in circulation better than this. How did you manage to find it?”

“It was my greatest weapon in making a deal with Your Grace, so I can’t just share it Asilie.”

The playful response made the Duke of Grandier chuckle.

Asilie had made it possible for the Bonaparte family to return to their former position, securing something priceless in the process.

Getting access to the latest weapon meant making his territory even more powerful.

Thanks to this, Asilie’s father had also somewhat acknowledged the Duke of Grandier. Their old animosity had been softened to some extent, and in many ways, the Duke felt grateful to Asilie.

“I suppose I’ve been rather rude with my questions, haven’t I? Ho ho ho!”

“No, it’s quite alright. I’m just happy that I can be of help to Your Grace, who helped me when I was in a difficult position.”

Asilie smiled and gave a small bow.

Having shown a friendly demeanor, it was time to return to the group of women. But just then, the Duchess of Grandier stopped her.

“Madame Bonaparte, are you very busy today?”

“Pardon?”

“If you don’t have anyone else to talk to, I’d be happy to introduce you to some wonderful people.”

Asilie blinked, surprised. This was an unexpected offer.

Noblewomen had their own circles, and once these circles were formed, they rarely changed. Introducing someone to a noblewoman from such a circle was a significant gesture.

Looking at the Duchess of Grandier with a surprised expression, Asilie quickly smiled and nodded.

“Of course, if you introduce me to some good people, I’m sure I’ll have a more rewarding time.”

“How wonderful! Shall we go then?”

Though the late Duke of Grandier’s power had waned significantly, the Grandier family still served as the central hub for neutral nobles, so the women the Duchess introduced to Asilie were all from prestigious families—flawless and graceful.

Even though Asilie knew the rumors that circulated about her, the Duchess of Grandier’s introductions had a purpose, and the noblewomen chatted with her without a hint of dislike.

Listening to their conversations was more enriching than she had expected.

In the middle of a discussion, Asilie noticed a familiar face.

“Ah, I think I need to go greet someone.”

It was the Countess Bonaparte.

Though talking to her would provide no real benefit to Asilie it would have been strange not to say a word to the Countess at an event like this.

Asilie excused herself and walked toward the Countess.

“Where have you been all this time, showing your face now?”

The sharp tone of her voice already started to grate on Asilie’s nerves.

Asilie tried to force a smile and replied politely, “I’ve been spending time talking with others.”

“You’ve been talking to someone?”

“………”

“I heard you caused quite a scene with your sister-in-law.”

“A scene?”

This was the first Asilie had heard of it. She couldn’t hide her confusion as she asked the Countess.

The Countess stared at her in disbelief.

“You made life miserable for your sister-in-law, didn’t you?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You’re denying it? How shameless of you! Really, the nerve…”

It was a regular occurrence for the Countess Bonaparte to make unfounded criticisms of Asilie. But even though it was common, it was still hard to take lightly, and Asilie’s expression slowly hardened.

“I heard you tormented your sister-in-law.”

“….What?”

“I heard that you treated her badly and tried to grab her, and I was shocked… Where did you learn such wicked behavior?”

Only then did the situation begin to make sense.

After threatening to make her regret her rude actions, the only thing Monica could do was rush to tell her mother-in-law about it.

As the situation unfolded, it seemed childish and absurd, and a hollow laugh escaped.

“Oh, Mother-in-law,”

At that moment, Monica walked up from behind as if she had been waiting.

“Please don’t do this. My sister-in-law didn’t mean to act that way. It’s just… maybe my flaws bothered her, and she wasn’t pleased.”

“I don’t know what flaws you think you have. If anything, it’s…”

Countess Bonaparte shot a cold look.

“The problem is with that daughter-in-law of mine who lacks tolerance as the first wife. Didn’t she cause another scene at such an important event?”

Monica smiled sweetly, almost as though Countess Bonaparte’s criticism of Asilie were the judgment of a judge in their argument.

“Well, it’s not something she can help, since she was born like that. It’s better for people like us, who are more composed, well-educated, and refined, to be more considerate. I’m fine now, so Mother-in-law, don’t worry about it.”

“Sigh… when will you ever improve…?”

“It will get better gradually. Oh, I also think it would be nice to introduce my friends to you properly. Being with well-educated people like them, you can learn a lot.”

“Then go ahead, but I do worry…”

As Countess Bonaparte clicked her tongue, Asilie thought about what Monica was trying to achieve.

“Are you okay, Sister-in-law?”

Although the outcome was predictable, it didn’t seem like a bad idea to go along with it, especially when it was a better option than spending more time with Countess Bonaparte.

Monica led Asilie to a group of young conservative noblewomen. Some were married, but most were unmarried young ladies.

It made sense, given that Asilie and Monica’s age made it unusual for them to not be married in normal circumstances.

“I don’t think I’ve formally introduced you before.”

“…?”

“I hope you’ll be careful with your behavior. I don’t want to be embarrassed.”

Listening to Monica, Asilie was reminded of her position.

The Bonaparte family was a conservative noble family, and Asilie was almost certainly going to be Joseph’s wife, continuing the Bonaparte name.

Yet, she had never been formally introduced to the conservative noblewomen.

It should have been Countess Bonaparte’s job, but she was so embarrassed by Asilie’s presence that she avoided this situation altogether.

As a result, Asilie had only met the noblewomen at social gatherings without any formal introduction.

Although such cases weren’t uncommon, it was very strange that she hadn’t been properly introduced even when two people—Countess Bonaparte and Monica—were in a position to do so.

“This time, I’ll introduce you as a special person since it’s your first time. I’m not sure if you know her or not, but…”

Monica said with a meaningful smile as she led Asilie forward.

They stopped in front of Isabella, the daughter of Count Bourbon.

“Isabella, this is my sister-in-law. And sister-in-law, this is Isabella from the Bourbon family. It’s your first time meeting, right?”

A brief silence followed.

Asilie glanced back and forth between Monica and Isabella.

The two women exchanged looks as if finding Asilie’s silence amusing, then shared a subtle, almost mocking smile.

“Joseph’s affair, and you even knew about his lover?”

It was both interesting and strange.

Asilie knew Joseph had been having an affair with another woman, but what was particularly odd was that when she was pregnant and when she met Isabella, Joseph had tried to kill her.

“Maybe there’s something hidden I still don’t know.”

Asilie decided that she would need to investigate this matter further and turned her gaze back to Isabella.

Isabella was looking at Asilie with a confident smile, as though daring her to do something.

“It’s nice to meet you, Countess Bonaparte. I’m Isabella from the Bourbon family.”

“…That’s strange.”

Asilie smiled back, responding politely.

“I don’t think it’s our first meeting.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I think I saw you in my husband’s bedroom a couple of months ago.”

Asilie’s words caused the surrounding area to go silent.

Even though affairs were public in noble society, most noblewomen were too ashamed to openly speak about their husbands’ infidelities.

But what was even more shameful was the fact that an unmarried lady, like Isabella, had a relationship with a married man.

And despite not being married, Isabella had been involved in an inappropriate relationship with a married man, making the scandal even bigger.

Isabella’s face turned pale, as she clearly hadn’t expected Asilie to respond like this.

However, Asilie didn’t care and continued.

“At the time, I didn’t know who you were, but now I can say for sure. It’s nice to see you again, my lady. Though, of course, not in a pleasant way.”

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