Chapter 7
Grace sat down and examined Benjamin piece by piece.
*If I hadn’t read the original story, I might have really mistaken this for him liking me.*
Benjamin smiled shyly and pushed all the desserts and cookies toward Grace.
“Ah, the refreshments are fine.”
“…Pardon?”
“I’m trying to lose weight.”
Grace said this as she took a sip of the coffee in front of her.
It was so refined that the Americanos she had drunk in her previous life couldn’t even compare.
*They say coffee has only just started becoming popular—so how can it be this good?*
Distracted by the fragrant aroma of the coffee, Grace failed to notice the expression on Benjamin’s face.
“…Is this related to that tailor?”
She also failed to notice how dangerously low his voice had dropped.
Thinking only that coffee cups really did look different from teacups—how interesting—Grace answered casually.
“No, it’s for my health. Being too fat isn’t great, you know? It doesn’t look good either.”
“……”
Benjamin was silent for quite a while at her nonchalant words.
Then warmth returned to his voice.
“Come to think of it, about that tailor I recommended.”
“Oh.”
Grace hurriedly lifted her head, wondering if he was about to question her for having driven the man away, ready to explain.
Benjamin spoke with the warmest smile in the world.
“I heard his property was confiscated and he was permanently exiled abroad.”
“…What?”
“I didn’t know either, but apparently he didn’t just commit tax evasion—he even stole from the imperial family. It’s fortunate he was caught this time.”
“…What?”
“Someone so rude will never again let even his shadow touch your annex, Madam.”
Grace stared at Benjamin with a dazed expression, unable to grasp the situation.
He smiled brightly.
“It’s fortunate, isn’t it? You always say that evildoers must be punished according to the law.”
“W-well… yes?”
“I’m truly glad things turned out according to your wishes.”
His smile was angelically beautiful and lovely.
The new tailor Benjamin brought in was so polite it bordered on strange.
On the day he first met Grace, he couldn’t even properly meet her eyes. He trembled all over, his complexion corpse-like—it made her wonder if he shouldn’t be seeing a priest or a physician instead of making clothes.
*Every tailor Benjamin brings in is abnormal.*
Grace thought about why for a moment, then shrugged it off—well, he was Benjamin Felton, after all.
He spent every day trailing after Aria; why would he properly pay attention to Grace?
Grace failed to realize how much it meant that a duke personally sought out a tailor for his duchess.
Sally beamed as she cleared away the glass beside Grace. Lost in thought, Grace asked Sally, who seemed unusually cheerful today,
“You seem to be in a good mood.”
“It’s about that tailor who was permanently exiled.”
“Mm.”
“They found his body at the border.”
“…What?”
“Turns out he was even shadier than we thought. It’s a day worth celebrating. Since you’re controlling your diet, shall we celebrate with beef?”
“…What exactly are we celebrating?”
When Grace asked hesitantly, Sally replied as if it were obvious.
“Shouldn’t we commemorate the disappearance of an unnecessary drain on energy from the world? The world should be filled only with precious and beautiful things.”
Grace’s expression stiffened awkwardly, and Sally gasped, covering her mouth.
“M-Madam, you don’t like hearing things like that, do you? I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable…”
“No, it’s fine.”
“Are you really okay?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not having nightmares, or losing your appetite because you think of him while eating, or suddenly feeling your heart drop, or thinking of that man whenever you see a dress… right?”
“N-no.”
Grace looked at the overly worried Sally with a sour expression.
*Does she think I’m some kind of sugar sculpture?*
Or maybe a soap bubble. Otherwise, there was no reason to fret this much.
*Is it because she feels sorry for me?*
Ah. That must be it.
Grace finished her thought.
*After all, marrying Benjamin wasn’t my choice either.*
It was a marriage arranged by the imperial family to keep the House of Felton in check. Just as none of Benjamin’s will went into it, Grace hadn’t particularly wanted the marriage either.
But a duchess who had been shut away in the annex ever since the wedding and had never once fulfilled her duties as a wife?
A person with nothing to boast about, aware of that fact and feeling dejected, yet kind to everyone—such a person easily inspired pity.
And Grace had another word for such a person:
“Grace Felton.”
Of course, that was Grace Felton *before* possession.
The current Grace was not as kind as the former one.
“Madam, are you going out again today?”
“Yes. I should at least go for a walk.”
Grace rose, her body lighter than before.
The dress made by the new tailor had noticeably fewer ornaments and lace frills—it was optimized for movement.
*My body still feels heavy, so I can’t exercise yet.*
She didn’t want to strain herself unnecessarily and end up injured. Once a joint went bad, it was easy to get hurt again—Grace knew that well.
So she chose a simple outfit and comfortable shoes. The new tailor had also recommended having shoes made, but didn’t ask why she wanted something so practical.
One might expect a noblewoman’s order to invite questions, yet he asked nothing.
Grace didn’t think much of it—after all, it was comfortable.
There was only one question on her mind now.
“Madam, we meet again today. What a coincidence.”
*Why is Benjamin always out whenever Grace goes for a walk?*
“Oh, are you out for a walk as well, Your Grace?”
“Yes. The weather has been nice lately.”
Grace usually walked at a fixed time.
On the first day, Benjamin wasn’t there. But starting from the second day, he appeared. When they met every day after that, Grace changed the time, feeling uneasy—yet she still ran into him.
Benjamin always smiled brightly and added that it was a coincidence.
Since he insisted it was coincidence, and since Grace judged that the time of a noble, great, and busy duke of the empire wouldn’t be overflowing with leisure, she decided to accept it as coincidence.
More than anything, if it wasn’t coincidence, then *why would he walk with her?* That was Grace’s main thought.
“I’m thinking of planting some new saplings in the garden. You used to like peaches, didn’t you? How about a peach tree?”
“Ah…”
“Oh, do you not care for peaches anymore?”
“No. If you give them to me, I’ll eat them.”
*If you give them to me, I’ll eat them.*
At those words, Benjamin’s expression visibly darkened.
“But peach tarts sound nice.”
His expression brightened.
“Though I can’t eat them since I’m trying to lose weight.”
His expression darkened again.
“Then is there a flower you like?”
“Flowers… I do like them, but I don’t really know the types. Since I don’t know their names, I can’t tell what’s what.”
It didn’t really matter if she knew or not.
Grace had no intention of becoming a gardener.
Nor did she plan to get divorced, move somewhere quiet in the countryside, open a flower shop, and get entangled with some mysterious person whose name was hidden—like the prologue of a novel.
“I see. I hadn’t considered that issue.”
While Grace was busy planning her post-divorce life, she failed to notice Benjamin muttering to himself with a serious expression.
Only the servants watching the two of them felt like their insides were about to burst.
They didn’t know exactly what Grace and Benjamin were thinking, but one thing was clear: the two were thinking about completely different things.
⋆★⋆
“Ah.”
“What is it, Madam?”
“Look at this, Sally. This blouse is something I’ve had for a while—doesn’t it feel a bit looser?”
Grace smiled as she pointed at the blouse she was wearing.
It was definitely looser than before.
“I guess I really did lose some weight. See? Just controlling your diet works.”
Of course, since Grace’s body had carried a lot of weight, dieting alone made the pounds come off easily—but after a certain point, she would need exercise more intense than walking.
Seeing Grace smile more brightly than ever, Sally smiled warmly back.
*Once I lose about seven or eight kilos, I’ll suggest a divorce.*
Unaware of Grace’s inner thoughts, Sally could afford to smile.
“Are you going for a walk again today?”
“If I skip it once, I’ll just keep wanting to skip.”
Doing something every day was hard. If you thought, *I want to rest—should I?* and rested once, it turned into two days, three days… four days, and then you stopped altogether.
*And then suggesting a divorce would get delayed.*
Yeah. That wouldn’t do.
Grace nodded.
Thinking from Benjamin’s perspective—how much he must want to openly, legally flirt with Aria.
There was a time when Benjamin really had been her type, but the moment she learned he used his wife to gain Aria’s favor, all her affection plummeted straight past rock bottom.
*And that wife is me.*
That wife dies of an unknown illness.
*Damn it.*
Once again today, Grace could think of nothing but how quickly she needed to get a divorce.
