Chapter 43……………………………………………
Riena’s reddened eyes, as she promised revenge, shone with certainty.
Certainty that I would accept her offer without question.
If I had truly hated the Wallis family deep in my heart…
If I had suffered humiliation at their hands for far longer than just a month…
If I were the real Idel…
…Then maybe—
‘I might have accepted.’
It was that tempting. That sweet.
Someone who held goodwill toward me offered to carry out my revenge.
And she had the power and influence to do it.
Just look at Tara in the novel.
She became Riena’s subordinate for the sake of revenge.
There were hardships along the way, but Tara ultimately succeeded.
So Riena’s words weren’t lies.
In her own way, it was goodwill.
“Riena.”
But I wasn’t Tara.
And I wasn’t the real Idel either.
I had no intention of accepting that goodwill.
“I have no desire for revenge. I’ll accept only your concern for me, with gratitude.”
With a bit of force, I pulled my hand free from her grasp.
“But if you truly care about me… then instead of this, I’d like you to support the divorce. Or at the very least…”
I stepped back, widening the distance between us.
“Stop using my birth family to shape public opinion in your favor.”
Count Wallis and his family had been contacting the press daily, making statements meant to harm my divorce case.
Saying family unity was everything.
That not only they, but even I deep down didn’t truly want a divorce.
‘They went on and on about what a wonderful husband and son-in-law Leandro had been.’
I nearly spat out my tea when I read the papers.
Riena waved her hands frantically in protest.
“That’s not true! The moment I learned what they did to you, I kicked those awful people out of the estate!”
Her brows drooped, her eyes trembling.
A pitiful little rabbit.
“I’m hurt… that you’d speak as if I ordered them to do that. I—and House Cassius—would never do something so vile.”
If I weren’t the one standing here, I might’ve been fooled.
Her acting was that good.
“The first reporter to interview them was named Alan Oklin. He was a scholarship student sponsored by the Cassius foundation, and now he writes endless favorable articles about House Cassius.”
Riena flinched.
She clearly hadn’t expected me to know even that much.
‘Did she think I just sat around doing nothing at home?’
Even though I hadn’t been granted the authority of a true mistress of the house, I had gathered as much information as possible.
Because someday, I might have become the real lady of that estate.
“It’s just a coincidence! I only found out now that Alan interviewed them. And just because someone was a scholarship student doesn’t mean they take orders from our family.”
That was true.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t Cassius’s orders.
It was Riena’s request.
In the novel too, Alan would do anything if the young lady who had once helped him simply hinted at it.
“Is that so? Fine. Let’s call it coincidence.”
She would never admit it anyway.
Arguing further would only tire my mouth.
“Are you finished? The trial will begin soon, so I should go.”
I turned away—
But then—
“Why don’t you want revenge?”
Her voice stopped me.
“They’re horrible people. They deserve punishment.”
“I don’t know. At least… the me standing here doesn’t want to deliver that punishment with my own hands.”
“If it’s because they’re family, because of morals or attachment… throw that away.”
“It’s not that. I simply don’t want revenge.”
“I don’t understand. If I were you, I wouldn’t let anyone who hurt me go unpunished.”
Thinking of the miserable fates of villains in After Regressing, I’ll Only Walk the Flower Path…
That was a chilling thing for her to say.
“People have different values. I’ll see you in court.”
“…Stop it. This is enough.”
Riena lowered her head and spoke in a quieter tone.
“Leandro has reflected enough. He even spoke with the rest of the family about paying you more attention from now on.”
“So if you would just stop the divorce…”
“Divorce trials aren’t a joke! Even if it doesn’t go through, people will talk about it for the rest of your life!”
For a moment, I couldn’t speak.
Because of the look in her eyes.
“Your actions have clearly crossed the line. Stop now, while I can still soften Father and my younger brother. If you go further… even if you return later, you won’t be able to fill the gap that’s formed.”
A gaze of pity.
A gaze of reproach.
As though I were some foolish child throwing a tantrum.
My mind turned cold.
Putting her words together, it became clear—
Riena had completely misunderstood everything about my divorce.
‘She thinks I’m desperate for their love and attention.’
To her, this trial was nothing but a dramatic protest.
An extreme method of acting out, even though I would lose anyway.
No matter how many times I spoke, she never listened.
She thought only what she wanted.
And tried to force me into her version of things.
Riena Cassius did not see me as an equal human being.
Neither did Leandro.
Neither did any of the Cassius family.
And for two years…
I had wanted to become a true member of that family.
“…You still love my brother, don’t you?”
That question came before the shock of my realization could even fade.
And hearing it, something became clear.
It was something I had quietly wrestled with for a long time.
Had I truly loved Leandro?
“I don’t love him.”
“I have never loved Leandro Cassius. Not even once.”
My answer was no.
I had wanted him to cherish me.
I had wanted a relationship where we shared joy and sorrow.
And I had mistaken that longing for love.
When I first ran away demanding divorce, I thought my love had simply cooled into emptiness.
But every moment I faced Leandro afterward, doubt grew stronger.
When I drew the line between myself and the Wallis family and felt freedom.
When I learned through the head butler that Leandro had never felt romantic affection for me.
And now—being asked again if I loved him.
Looking back…
Even seeing him cling to me pathetically, I felt none of what one should feel toward someone they once loved.
No sympathy.
No bitterness.
Nothing.
At last, I understood.
I had liked Leandro.
Not as a lover.
But as a savior.
Because he had taken me out of the hell that was Wallis.
Because he was the first familiar character I met in this strange world.
‘Because even before possessing this body, I had often wished for someone like him to be my family.’
That was why I was angry, but not heartbroken, when I learned he never loved me.
If I had truly loved him, it wouldn’t have ended there.
In the end…
I had never loved Leandro.
I had only wanted to become family.
“It was a marriage without love from the start.”
Riena replied as if making excuses.
“There are plenty of couples who live without love. Most noble marriages are political!”
“If we had truly become family… that might not have been so bad.”
“But I was always lonely in House Cassius.”
“In that house, I was a complete outsider.”
“That’s a misunderstanding! They’re just bad at expressing themselves. And they said they’ll do better from now on!”
“Bad at expressing themselves?”
“They expressed love toward you perfectly well.”
“They expressed displeasure perfectly well too.”
They were warm only to Riena.
Not to me.
“Riena. There is no ‘from now on.’”
“In this courthouse, I will sever my ties with Cassius.”
“And that includes you.”
“What? Just because you don’t love my brother doesn’t mean you have to stop seeing me!”
“…There’s no reason to see you.”
“We were connected only through marriage to your brother.”
Riena looked even more shaken than when I said I’d never loved Leandro.
“Even without him… we’re friends.”
I couldn’t even begin to understand where that perception came from.
We’d spent time together a few times, but we were never close enough to call it friendship.
“I told you before. I don’t particularly like you.”
“And we’re certainly not friends.”
“Liar!”
“…Enough. I’m leaving.”
“W-wait!”
I had said everything I needed to say.
I didn’t look back, no matter how she tried to stop me.
“Listen to me!”
She reached out to grab me, but Vineta stepped in immediately, blocking her.
“Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law!”
Riena called after me, sounding unlike her usual confident, cute self.
It was pitiful.
Just a little.
Truly, only a little.
To think that I would part ways like this with the protagonist I once adored…
The one who had given me hope.
I had truly loved After Regressing, I’ll Only Walk the Flower Path.
And Riena, and all the characters.
It had been the only light in my previous life of darkness.
Then—
“Idel!”
That strange, unfamiliar way of calling my name stopped my feet.
When I turned around…
Riena wore an expression I had never seen before.
“Why won’t you understand, Idel?!”
Her face twisted with something I couldn’t tell—
Anger?
Betrayal?
“Do you know who I’m doing all this for?!”
“It’s all for you!”
I froze.
I had never seen Riena Cassius scream like that.
Not in reality.
Not even in the novel.
“How are you going to survive in this harsh world after leaving Cassius?”
