My Husband Picked Up a Woman - Chapter 13

“You see it too, don’t you?”

When Calisten spoke to Cassius, the latter nodded firmly.

“Yes.”

Cassius spoke with total sincerity, and it was Calisten who watched Damian with an expression of absolute amusement.

“Cas, what do you think about mistresses?”

Briseis tried to tell them to stop, but Calisten cut her off by popping a madeleine into her mouth.

“Well, I know many nobles live that way, but I am not in favor of it.”

“And why is that?”

“Because it is a promise. There are many promises in this world that are hard to keep, but I want to keep the one I make at my wedding, if nothing else.”

“I see.”

Calisten smiled, clearly pleased by Cassius’s earnest answer. He removed his hand from Briseis’s mouth and tried to lock eyes with her; she had already finished the madeleine.

“I feel the same way, Cas,” she said.

At their words, Damian and Delilah fell silent. Saturn and Evice waved their hands as if trying to pivot to a different topic.

“Speaking of which, Brie, I saw you got a bonus point in the last Law and Punishment class.”

“That’s right, it was impressive. Have you finished the report?”

“I’m working on it. Want to do it together?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

“I will join as well,” both Calisten and Cassius answered simultaneously before Saturn or Evice could even respond.

“Then let’s all do it together.”

And so, they agreed to tackle the twenty-page assignment as a group. It was clear the task wasn’t meant for a single person anyway.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Where are you going?”

Briseis asked as Calisten suddenly began walking ahead while they were heading down from the roof. He gave a bright smile and offered a nonsensical answer before vanishing into the hallway.

“What was that about?”

Briseis thought that although he was smiling, he seemed strangely angry. Having known him since childhood, she was familiar with his habits when he was upset.

“I wonder. Why would he be angry?” Cassius seemed to notice it too.

“Did we do something wrong at lunch?”

“No, Saturn. We didn’t do anything wrong. Calisten is just strange sometimes.”

Briseis and the others headed down to Class 1 to rest and wait for the afternoon session to begin. Once the group had disappeared, Calisten climbed back up to the roof. Damian and Delilah were just about to leave when they saw him.

“Ah, I left something behind.”

Calisten brushed past them and remarked casually, “It was the Duke who pushed Brie down the stairs, wasn’t it?”

“It was not.”

“Then who did?”

Damian stared at Calisten. He glanced at Delilah, who looked flustered and fingered the ring on her necklace before addressing the Prince.

“It was a stunt Brie staged herself.”

“Brie did?”

Calisten let out a scoff at the absurdity. The Briseis he knew was far too proud to ever pull a stunt like that. If anything, if her husband had hit her, she would have hidden it out of pure embarrassment.

So, had she really just fallen? But Ella was a maid who never lied to him. Or had she fallen as a result of an injury inflicted by the Duke?

“Get a grip, Your Highness. You should know the truth about Briseis’s character.”

“Her character? What character?”

Calisten’s smile widened involuntarily. He had a habit of smiling when his anger reached its peak, a trait born from his dealings with the current Empress. Those who didn’t know him well often failed to realize he was furious.

“While I was at war, Briseis invited lovers into the mansion.”

“Brie did?”

“Yes, and she squandered the Grand Duchy’s fortune.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. She clearly needs discipline. Her husband returns from the battlefield, yet she shows no gratitude.”

Calisten instinctively clenched his fist. “But as far as I know, the Duke has almost no assets. Was there even a fortune for Brie to spend?”

“It’s true. She used the family assets as she pleased and made things difficult for me.”

The expression vanished from Calisten’s face. “I told you, Brie is my family.”

“Even family should be of the same… Ack!”

Calisten kicked Damian squarely in the chest.

“Ugh! Gack! Argh!”

Damian tumbled down the stairs, rolling several times before coming to a stop.

“Eek! Demi!”

Delilah rushed down after him, her face pale with shock as she checked on him. Calisten walked down slowly and looked at Damian. Covered in dust, the Duke’s black uniform looked pitiful.

“What… what is the meaning of this!”

“If you ever lay a hand on Brie again…”

“Argh!” Calisten stepped hard on Damian’s solar plexus. “I won’t just stand by.”

As Calisten ground his heel down, Damian gasped for air and grabbed the Prince’s ankle. When the foot was finally removed, Damian clutched his chest and glared at Calisten.

“How could you do such a thing!”

“You did it first. I warned you.”

With that, Calisten walked away.

“Sniff… Demi… are you okay?”

Delilah stroked the ring on her necklace while pretending to worry. Damian looked at her as if he were just waking up. She gazed at his dull eyes, her own face wet with tears.

“Are you badly hurt?”

“I’m fine now.”

As Delilah threw herself into his arms, Damian sat in a daze for a moment before hugging her back and beginning to comfort her sobs.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Where have you been?”

Briseis asked when Calisten returned just as lunch was ending. He widened his eyes.

“Were you worried about me? My goodness, it hurts so much.”

Briseis frowned as he looked at her with that familiar, maddened gaze. “Come and get your key tomorrow.”

“Wait… just a second.”

He had to struggle just to sit down. The fact that she had worried about him made sitting a difficult task.

“Ha.”

He tried to rest his head on her shoulder, but she quickly pulled back.

“The next class is Ethics. It’ll be important for you, so pay attention.”

“Where is the key? Is it in your room? Near the bed?”

As Calisten spoke with a flushed face, Briseis decided she didn’t want to engage further. She reopened her notes and focused on them.

“I hope it’s near the bed.”

“Why did you give away something so important so recklessly? What if I lose the key?”

“Then you’d have to take responsibility, wouldn’t you?”

“What’s the use of taking responsibility for a man wearing that forever?”

“I don’t mind if I can never ‘use’ it. As long as you take responsibility for me.”

The students behind them watched from a distance, assuming the two were arguing as they whispered back and forth.

“Just… stop.”

Briseis pushed Calisten’s face away. He chuckled as if amused, though his ears were so red that anyone could see he was in some kind of distress.

“I really am in pain.”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

She went back to her notes, and he sat closer. “You used to worry when I said I was hurt back when we were kids.”

“Back then, I didn’t know you were faking it every time.”

“Brie, you’re the one who changed. Changing is the bad part.”

“The one who deceived me consistently is the bad part.”

“A person should be consistent.”

Briseis felt a headache coming on and looked around to see if she could move to a different seat. However, everyone else was quietly chatting, seemingly trying to avoid Calisten’s notice.

Slide.

Damian returned with Delilah, and he was a complete mess.

“Damian? What happened to your face?”

“Why? Does seeing me hurt make you happy?”

Damian had cotton stuffed in his nostrils, likely to stop a nosebleed from hitting his nose during the fall.

“I’ll see you at the mansion later, Brie.”

He sat through the class, receiving Delilah’s devoted attention and care.

❖ ❖ ❖

After classes, the group met at the library to work on the punishment report. However, the books they needed had been checked out, so they had to reschedule for the next day when the books were due. Consequently, Briseis arrived back at the estate early.

“Where have you been until now?”

A voice she could never get used to addressed her. She looked at the uninvited guest with a look of disillusionment. The person was waiting in front of the main entrance as if she had been expecting Briseis.

“It seems you still haven’t taken to heart the lesson that education is useless for a woman.”

It was Damian’s mother, the Dowager Grand Duchess and the matriarch of the house.

“Wearing such a short skirt and stockings. You walk around with the lines of your legs fully visible and feel no shame!”

The matriarch loved her son excessively and, as a result, loathed the House of Philia. She believed her brilliant son had been looked down upon because he married a woman from a family that had nothing but money.

“Mother.”

“You should greet me first. Why are you looking at me like that?”

Briseis nearly sighed but held it in.

“I hear our Demi took a mistress because you failed to fulfill your duties as a woman.”

“…”

“I told you that a woman should bow low and serve, but you wouldn’t listen.”

The older woman clicked her tongue, looking down on Briseis with her usual disdain.

“That is why I intend to get a divorce.”

But Briseis no longer felt the need to endure it.