My husband, Shar Mercure, a man of cold beauty with silvery white hair, confronted me in a corner of the garden.
His red eyes narrowed as he stared at me, his wife. He didnât seem to care about my exchange with his son and simply said,ăThereâs a party coming up. Please attend.ă
I donât know whatâs going on when someone suddenly appears and says something like that.
All I could think was that he was an extremely unkind and unbelievably lousy husband.
I donât even feel like using honorifics anymore.
ăWhatâs the party about? I donât think I remember you ever talking to me about it before.ă
Having been abused in her parentsâ home, Ram had never been out in public until she married, and even after she married, she did not fit in with the social scene.
The fact that she has always tended to be a recluse and have no close friends has also spurred this on.
Throwing a reclusive, withdrawn ex-lady into an aristocratic gathering without assistance, there was no way she could behave wellâŠ
The results were clear as day, and after that, there were no more invitations to parties for her.
But now, what kind of wind was blowing all of a sudden?
Shar noticed my gaze and let out a troubled sigh. What a disgusting man.
ăItâs a gathering at the royal castle. A subjugation commendation ceremony will be held at the castle, and a social gathering will be held as well. In short, an event to honor me.ă
ăHehâŠwhat crapâŠă
Perhaps it was because of her parentsâ acrimonious relationship, Kanon cringed and fidgeted.
And he seemed to dislike Shar as well.
ăIâm sickly, so I wonât be attending the party. Please go and be honored on your own.ă
ăTough work. Iâll just carry you and move you around the hall.
ăWhat?ă
The usual cold-hearted Count has disappeared, and there stands a man with a grin and an irreverent smile on his face.
ăItâs imperative that we attend as a couple. I donât know if youâre sickly or what, but Iâm sure youâll be fine as long as youâre willing to blast me with Illusion Magic.ă
ăYou heard me? Eavesdropping is disgusting. Iâm getting a divorce.ă
ăHey, hey, weâre in front of our kid.ă
Shar gave a deliberate and exaggerated shrug of his shoulders.
He doesnât care about Kanon one bit, but he hoisted him on his tongue skillfully.
ăThereâs no need to be anxious. Iâll make sure youâre well escorted.ă
ăI didnât think you were capable of that. Iâm so surprised that my magic is about to run wild.ă
ăThatâs interestingâŠDonât run away on the day, okay? I can understand why youâd want to avoid it after the mess you made of the social scene when we first got married.ă
He has a comeback ready whatever she says. Whatâs more, Shar knew the fact that Ram had been isolated in social gatherings, yet he had turned a blind eye to it.
I donât want to attend a party as a married couple with a man like him.
But I didnât want him to think that Iâd escape without attending the party.
ăI just have to attend, right? Then Iâll go. In return, I canât guarantee what will happen, all right?ă
ăIâm looking forward to seeing what youâll do.ă
ăYou can laugh about it while you still can! Iâm going to humiliate you!ă
Even though she was declaring war, Shar remained laughing with amusement.
But the look of pure confusion in Kanonâs eyes was painful.
(I hate to admit what Shar said, but itâs true that we canât fight in front of the children. Letâs refrain from going any further.)
I turned around and smiled at my son, saying, ăItâs gonna be okay.ă
I threatened Shar with just my gaze as I cared for Kanon in the garden where the afternoon sunlight was falling through the trees.