Chapter 54
‘Discard what is unnecessary.’
Octavio's words swirled in her mind like a spell.
It was ironic that a tiny Pustule, not the fear of losing Rebecca, had moved him, despite all the days he had held her tightly in his grasp.
Yes, hadn't Rebecca asked him to abandon her yesterday?
Zeppelin called a servant with grim determination.
Even at the slightest sound of his cough, three servants who had been waiting outside the door rushed in.
He ordered the servants to open the wardrobe.
Zeppelin meticulously scanned the long row of clothes.
He clicked his tongue, finding nothing suitable to wear on a day like this.
The servants busily pulled out clothes and showed them to Zeppelin.
Zeppelin shook his head repeatedly until his eyes landed on a tuxedo hanging on one side of the wall.
It was the suit he had worn the day he proposed to Rebecca.
It held symbolic meaning, so he had worn it only once and then kept it carefully, as if on display.
Zeppelin smiled with satisfaction.
It was the perfect outfit to mark the beginning and the end.
* * *
"You've come to see me again today."
"Yes, were you worried about me? How thoughtful of you."
"...tell him that."
Zeppelin, who was about to turn the elegant golden doorknob, paused at Rebecca's soft voice.
Her voice was the same as ever. Still sweet, elegant, and lovely.
Even though he had firmly resolved to abandon her, the remnants of memories stubbornly clung to his feet.
Zeppelin made an effort to trample them down and flung the door open.
"Zeppelin?"
Rebecca looked at him with wide eyes.
Zeppelin tried to approach Rebecca but frowned.
It was partly because the stench emanating from her had worsened in the increasingly hot weather, but also because he had spotted the black cat nestled in her arms.
"Another cat? I'll have to order a more thorough quarantine."
Rebecca quickly sent Leo out the window.
Then, as if nothing had happened, she straightened her clothes and stood up straight.
"You don't have to be so sensitive about a single cat."
A moment of silence passed between them.
Zeppelin's nose tickled, and he covered it with a handkerchief.
He inhaled the scent of perfume from the handkerchief deeply before putting it back in his pocket.
Rebecca watched his every move, smiling faintly.
"Is there something you want to say?"
"Do you remember this suit?"
Zeppelin showed Rebecca the suit he was wearing.
She watched him with a blank expression.
How could she forget?
The day she had walked into her own coffin.
Rebecca remembered even the sound of Zeppelin's breathing that day.
"Of course. Isn't that the suit you wore when you proposed to me? Ah, I miss those days."
Rebecca truly missed them.
If only she could go back to that time, she wouldn't have to do such bizarre things.
She could have rejected his proposal and lived as the carefree eldest daughter of the peaceful Obelia family.
Zeppelin saw the longing in Rebecca's eyes as she reminisced about the past and lowered his head.
The cluster of Pustules covering Rebecca was becoming increasingly grotesque.
He had to admit it now.
His beloved lover was ruined forever.
"Aren't you suffering, Rebecca?"
Rebecca flinched for a moment at Zeppelin's sorrowful blue eyes.
It was almost the first time he had worried about her in this way.
Wasn't she suffering?
She had never had a day in her life that wasn't painful, because of him.
The truth welled up in her throat, but Rebecca said something else.
"If this is my fate, there's nothing I can do."
"Yes. Fate. Let's blame fate, shall we?"
"What do you mean?"
"Become a Saintess, Rebecca."
Instead of answering, Rebecca widened her eyes once and then narrowed them again.
She seemed to be asking what he meant.
Zeppelin frowned for a moment, then sighed and said calmly.
"Get a divorce. I can't bear to watch you deteriorate here any longer."
"You've made up your mind."
Rebecca smiled weakly.
Divorce. He had finally uttered the word himself.
"It's what I asked for, but I can't help but feel a pang of bitterness now that I hear it."
He should hold on to her, at least once.
The original Rebecca would have shown some lingering affection.
Rebecca swallowed her joy and gently took his arm with a distressed expression.
"You don't have any plans to reconsider, do you?"
Zeppelin looked at Rebecca's hand touching his body with a deeply furrowed brow.
He coldly brushed Rebecca's arm away as if he had been burned.
Her arm was covered in Pustules that were swollen to the point of bursting.
Rebecca looked at her hand that he had brushed away with a rather hurt expression.
Zeppelin felt sorry for her, but he had no intention of changing his mind.
No, he was even more certain.
He, Zeppelin Devonshire, did not love the current Rebecca.
Pity was not love.
Zeppelin sat Rebecca in front of the mirror.
"Take a good look, Rebecca. This is what you look like now."
Rebecca said with a smile that would soon disappear.
"I'm hideous."
"Yes, hideous. What husband in the world would welcome such a face? And you're infertile."
"......"
"I don't have the patience to live with a wife who can't produce an heir and has a terrible disease. So you'll have to divorce me, Rebecca."
Rebecca slowly raised her head.
She wanted to get a more definite answer.
"So you're abandoning me, Zeppelin?"
Rebecca's deep blue eyes were clearer and purer than ever, so Zeppelin hesitated.
But soon, the foul odor emanating from her forehead awakened him.
"Yes. You can resent me if you want. But remember this. It's the same as you abandoning me. You fell apart, leaving me behind."
There was nothing he could do. How could there be so many things that couldn't be helped in this family?
Rebecca chuckled at Zeppelin, who blamed everything on her until the end.
Zeppelin turned his back.
He didn't want to see her anymore.
Fearing that his heart might change at any moment, he hurried to open the door.
Rebecca shouted at Zeppelin's broad back.
"You're the one who abandoned me. It's no use regretting it."
Zeppelin stopped walking and said without turning around.
"I won't regret it."
Behind the violently closed door, Rebecca's voice, unable to contain her emotions, could be heard.
Zeppelin thought it was crying, but in reality, it was laughter.
It was a burst of laughter that she couldn't contain her joy.
'I did it. I can finally get out of here.'
But the elation gradually subsided. Rebecca raised her head and let out a sigh mixed with lamentation.
"But why do I feel so dirty?"
It was definitely something she had desperately wanted.
She had even begged him, as if to confirm, when she had accidentally run into him last night, in case Zeppelin might ruin things.
But why did she feel so terrible?
The disgust was greater than the exhilarating sense of liberation.
"Ugh......"
Rebecca gagged. There was nothing to throw up because she hadn't eaten anything.
Smelling the bitter odor of stomach acid, Rebecca sank down in dismay.
Was it because of Zeppelin's eyes, which had shown hesitation unlike the end of her previous life?
Or was it because she had confirmed that he really only liked her body?
Tap- tap-
Leo, who was tapping on the window, caught Rebecca's eye as she was laughing in vain.
"Leo, aren't you gone yet?"
When Rebecca opened the window, Leo came in with a flower in his mouth.
"This is...... a Celebration Flower."
The Celebration Flower was a flower with blue, red, and yellow petals mixed together, resembling fireworks.
The people of the empire would give each other this flower whenever there was something to celebrate.
A smile as bright as the blooming flower spread across Rebecca's lips.
It was hard to find this flower, especially since it wasn't even in season, so she didn't know where he had gotten it.
Meow.
Leo presented the flower to Rebecca once more. It was as if he was praising her.
Rebecca gladly accepted Leo's congratulations.
"You're right. It's definitely something to celebrate."
Rebecca hugged Leo tightly. Leo purred.
The sound was similar to the shallow moans Julian made whenever she stroked him.
* * *
The next morning, two carriages were prepared in front of the Devonshire County Manor.
"Let's go."
Zeppelin said as he got into one of the carriages.
His face showed that he didn't even want to ride in the same carriage as Rebecca.
Wearing a black dress that came up to her neck and a veil that covered her face, Rebecca was dressed as if she were attending a funeral.
No one came to see her off.
Inside the mansion, they were busy disposing of Rebecca's jewelry and clothes.
Only Grace was wistfully watching Rebecca's back through the window.
Rebecca got into her carriage.
Since she had brought nothing with her when she came, it was only right that she left with nothing in her hands.
Zeppelin had offered to give her some alimony, but Rebecca had refused.
She didn't want to have anything that belonged to him.
The road to the Grand Temple was smooth.
The divorce process was simpler than she had thought.
Since the oath was made in the name of the Dephria Goddess, the permission of a priest was required for a divorce.
The rumors that Rebecca was a Saintess and had contracted Divine Affliction had spread widely throughout the empire.
The reason for the divorce was appropriate enough for anyone to nod in agreement.
The priest stamped two documents and handed them to Rebecca and Zeppelin respectively.
After a fifteen-day deliberation period, if they sent the documents to the department in charge of the Imperial Family, they would no longer be husband and wife from that day on.
"It's over."
"It's over."
A long married life came to an end in a short moment.
The two were silent for a moment.
Zeppelin glanced at Rebecca. He couldn't read Rebecca's expression, which was hidden behind a black veil.
"I hope you will be happy."
It was a common greeting. It was also sincere.
Zeppelin waited for Rebecca's reply, but all that came back was her heavy silence.
'Yes. I'm going to be happy. And your misfortune is just beginning.'
Rebecca hid a bitter smile towards him behind the veil.
When it seemed that Rebecca wasn't going to say anything, Zeppelin sighed and said.
"Then, goodbye......"
He left. He left Rebecca alone.
Rebecca blinked, unable to believe the fact.
At that moment, a large die rolled to her feet with a clatter.
"This is......"
Rebecca picked up the die made of solid iron.
It seemed that someone had thrown it in excitement.
Rebecca held the heavy die and stared at Zeppelin's receding head.
