Chapter 22 ……………………………………………
“Before coming here, I did my own research on you, Sharon.”
No matter how much of this was based on rumors or hearsay, doing a direct investigation was only basic courtesy.
“The reason you’ve accumulated so much debt… I heard it’s because you’ve taken on multiple divorce cases for women who couldn’t afford legal fees, but desperately needed to leave their marriages.”
As many people as there were letters piled on that desk, that many had been freed thanks to her.
Not only did she provide legal representation, but she even covered additional lawsuit expenses herself. And if someone had nowhere to go right away, she would introduce them to a shelter she paid for out of her own pocket.
“I truly respect you.”
“I-It’s… just self-satisfaction.”
Sharon flinched as if she’d been burned, stepping back away from me.
“Ah. Self-satisfaction, huh. Mm. I see.”
“It’s true!”
“I didn’t say anything, though?”
Why are you suddenly yelling?
“No… it’s just that you keep looking at me like that…”
Sharon stubbornly avoided my sparkling gaze, biting her lip before letting out a long sigh and sinking back into her seat.
Without realizing it, I found myself grinning.
“Fine. Let’s say that’s true.”
“……”
Then, changing my tone slightly, I asked:
“Do you think if you refuse until the end, I’ll just give up on getting divorced? Is that why you’re rejecting me?”
It must have hit the mark, because she didn’t answer right away.
“Like I said earlier, I will get divorced no matter what. If the Empire’s only divorce specialist won’t take my case, then I’ll have no choice but to find someone less qualified. And there’s a high chance I’ll lose the lawsuit.”
Sharon’s face gradually turned pale.
“And then that news will be plastered across the newspapers in huge headlines. People who were considering divorce will shrink back, the divorce rate will plummet, families will collapse, society will collapse—”
“No, no, why are the last two collapsing?! Are you trying to scare me?”
“I’m simply making a reasonable prediction.”
“So… in other words, if I don’t want that outcome, I should cooperate?”
“Correct.”
I raised my index finger right in front of the lawyer.
“This might be dangerous, but it’s also an opportunity. If I win, it’ll become a precedent — a case where someone successfully divorced even the great Cassius.”
That could become hope for someone, somewhere, suffering even now.
“…That’s true.”
Her expression was strange, as if she had considered that possibility. Ninety percent resignation, ten percent hope.
“Does it feel like throwing an egg at a rock?”
“…Yes. Honestly.”
She nodded readily.
“Based on what you told me in our previous consultation, I can’t see any way we could possibly win.”
“What if that wasn’t everything I told you?”
“Hmm…”
Her hesitation didn’t last long.
“If you have a reason strong enough to convince every judge at once, then the chances improve somewhat. But the Duke’s influence will still make it difficult.”
“I do. A reason.”
“It has to be the kind of reason that makes people say, ‘There’s no answer except divorce.’ Something vague like, ‘Well, that’s tolerable,’ or ‘Maybe it can be improved’ won’t work.”
“Listen first, then decide. I’ve already decided on you, Sharon, so I’ll tell you honestly.”
At my confident tone, Sharon swallowed nervously.
“A client’s consultation is protected no matter what.”
Now, I could trust Sharon.
When I glanced sideways, Terrence — who had remained respectfully silent — was now focused on me as well.
After making eye contact with both of them, I declared solemnly:
“My husband, Leandro, has a major problem when it comes to producing an heir!”
A heavy, cautious silence fell.
“P-Producing an heir… are you saying the young Duke Cassius has… that kind of issue?”
“……”
The lawyer looked utterly shocked, confirming the implication, while the Marquis stayed silent.
“If such a serious issue was concealed before marriage, then it becomes a decisive ground for divorce.”
Sharon, ever the capable legal professional, immediately began examining the law.
“Spouses have an obligation to engage in marital relations, and among nobles, producing an heir is considered one of life’s most important duties…”
Her eyes beneath her glasses began to burn with intensity.
“Is it true? Does he truly have a problem?”
Her hands gripped my shoulders and shook me urgently, and my lips twitched.
…As if.
There was no way the author would give such a setting to the heroine’s magnificent eldest brother unless they’d gone insane.
I hadn’t witnessed anything firsthand, but Leandro’s reproductive ability was surely perfectly normal.
Still, my top priority was divorce, so my words were already decided.
“I can’t say for certain since I’ve never experienced anything directly… but something is definitely wrong. Because he has never even once tried to have relations with me.”
“My goodness!”
The conscience I’d already thrown halfway into the trash stung sharply. Truthfully, I had struggled with this.
Was I really going to do something like this?
It wasn’t even about Leandro’s honor anymore — it was about the way I had lived until now.
Was it right? Moral? To use such a sensitive weakness against someone, even if they were my enemy?
After endless deliberation, I came to a conclusion:
‘Yeah. Throw away your conscience.’
He was never an opponent I could deal with while keeping my morals intact.
More than anything, Leandro was the kind of man who would bribe officials just to stop my divorce petition from being accepted.
Why should I be the only one walking the righteous path?
I didn’t want to be a fool.
So I shoved the conscience poking out of my inner trash bin back down.
‘Besides… if he keeps acting like that, it’s not completely wrong to say there’s a problem producing an heir, is it?’
Meanwhile, Sharon was rubbing her chin, solidifying her conviction.
“I see. Just like those rumors back then…”
Exactly the reaction I wanted.
“So you know the rumors too, Sharon.”
When I deliberately sighed and let my shoulders droop, a gaze of subtle sympathy returned.
“…What rumors are you referring to?”
That was Terrence.
He was far removed from high society. He might hear “official” news, but private gossip passed mouth-to-mouth was harder for him to grasp.
And it wasn’t the sort of thing he would care about.
“I only vaguely heard noble students whispering about it when I was in the Academy…”
Sharon, sparing me the discomfort, spoke first.
“At one time, there was a long-standing rumor that the Duke Cassius’s eldest son had… that kind of problem.”
How did such a disgraceful perception ever attach itself to the heroine’s brother?
The story went like this:
The one who spread the rumor was a certain baron — a political enemy of Duke Cassius at the time. He wanted to tarnish the heir, Leandro, and humiliate the Duke.
The problem was…
Leandro Cassius was too perfect.
Skilled in both sword and intellect, handsome, and never once involved in scandal.
Personally, I didn’t agree with that evaluation, but in the novel’s setting — and in everyone’s eyes — Leandro was that kind of man.
The baron dug into all of Leandro’s romantic history, but not a speck of dust came up.
Grinding his teeth in frustration, the baron suddenly felt something strange.
‘Isn’t he too clean?’
Leandro had no affairs, no romances, not even the most common youthful relationship experience.
No one had ever even seen him being close with a woman his age.
The only woman Leandro was ever close to… was his younger sister.
Which, in a way, made perfect sense.
In Regressing and Walking Only the Flower Path, the heroine’s brother and father were exactly that kind of existence.
They looked only at Riena, loved only Riena, lived for Riena.
After the Duchess’s death froze the hearts of the young siblings, Riena melted them again.
To them — and even to the Duke — she was salvation.
With her presence that overwhelming, there was no room for “Idel” to wedge herself in.
Even by the end of the novel, there was never any depiction of Leandro loving his wife.
Only that the couple lived peacefully, respecting one another.
Riena once monologued, ‘Maybe someday he’ll fall in love.’
But to me, it felt like being handed charity. I couldn’t expect anything.
Maybe, with a one-in-ten-million chance, Leandro could someday love me.
But compared to the love he held for Riena…
That love would be pitiful.
Anyway, back to the point.
The baron, sensing opportunity, spread a malicious rumor about Leandro.
And it spread like wildfire.
At the time, countless noble ladies who adored Leandro had confessed and been rejected, so his love life was one of society’s hottest topics.
Many already resented the rapidly rising Cassius family, so the rumor was soon accepted as truth.
‘Of course, it wouldn’t end like that for the protagonist’s family.’
Riena used her wit to uncover the baron as the source of the lie, punished him, and Duke Cassius publicly vowed to hunt down anyone who slandered his family to the ends of hell.
The episode ended there.
The rumor disappeared under the Duke’s terrifying wrath.
Then years later, when Leandro married me, it seemed to fade completely from people’s minds.
But I intended to pour oil back onto the fire.
Even if the flame wasn’t visible, the embers still burned.
Baron, the rumor you created and spread so widely…
I’ll be using it very effectively.
Leandro, you think only you can fight dirty?
‘I held back because I didn’t want to stoop to that level…’
‘But I’ll make you want to give up on this divorce lawsuit yourself.’
