Chapter 20
20
*
Scarlett was quite embarrassed by this situation, but she was concerned about Nikolaus's statement that the thumb of his Prosthetic hand wasn't working properly, so she sat down in front of the table.
Nikolaus, who had inadvertently removed his Prosthetic hand and sat down, said with an awkward expression.
"This... I'm imposing on you, Madam, no, Miss."
"It's no imposition."
Nikolaus was actually extremely nervous and uncomfortable being stuck between a divorced couple, but he couldn't find an opportunity to escape.
Meanwhile, Scarlett took out a toolbox from her bag, which she always carried with her as if it were a part of her.
Scarlett secured the Prosthetic hand with a wooden stick to prevent the Clockwork from unwinding, then removed one of the gears that wasn't moving. She then began to make a silver gear with practiced ease. The way she meticulously crafted the gear made her look like an artisan, regardless of her age.
After a while, Scarlett replaced the gear, carefully moved the Clockwork, and said to Nikolaus.
"Try moving your thumb."
At her words, Nikolaus moved his thumb with a doubtful expression. When his thumb moved much more smoothly than before, Nikolaus's face brightened instantly.
"I-It moves! Oh my goodness, it's so comfortable!"
Nikolaus was so happy that Scarlett, as well as Viktor, who was watching from behind, smiled.
Nikolaus, still amazed, repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fist several times and bowed.
"Thank you, thank you so much. I run an ice cream shop with my wife. If you ever pass by, please let me know! I'll give you free ice cream for life!"
"Not for life, but I'll definitely come by for some soon."
Scarlett also smiled and bowed in return.
Nikolaus bowed repeatedly and left.
With the boisterous man gone, silence filled the office. Viktor took out teacups and set them down, saying.
"I didn't expect him to come on his own."
"You were going to come and get me anyway."
"No, I was thinking of not going, afraid you'd kill me."
Scarlett was taken aback by Viktor's rare joke and let out a hollow laugh. She asked.
"So, what are you going to do?"
"I'll think about that later."
Viktor looked at Scarlett and asked.
"Why do you hate coming back to me so much?"
"Why do you want to get back together with me? Did you realize being divorced is a hindrance now that you're living on your own? Or are you just too lazy to find another woman?"
"Because I love you."
She was speechless at his nonchalant answer.
Scarlett stared at Viktor for a while before asking.
"What?"
"I'm telling you to come back because I love you. Is there any other reason?"
Viktor's casual words became sharp weapons that tore at Scarlett's insides.
She closed her eyes for a moment, then looked up at him and said.
"You've lived your life getting everything you wanted, haven't you?"
"I wonder."
"Were you upset that you got divorced?"
When she asked coldly, Viktor didn't answer.
Scarlett continued.
"You should have been the one to dump me first, but you couldn't, so it hurt your pride, is that it?"
"I don't think so."
"Or is it because you regret fixing me?"
She thought that most people would get angry if she said this much. But Viktor listened to Scarlett's words without changing his expression.
Scarlett muttered.
"If I hadn't loved you, I wouldn't have divorced you."
"Isn't it the opposite?"
"No. It's really like that. If I hadn't loved you, I wouldn't have expected anything from you. Because I loved you, I kept expecting things, and that's why I was disappointed."
She felt drunk.
Scarlett forced herself to calm her breathing.
"So... when you think about it, it's my fault we got divorced. Happy now?"
"......"
"How can I humble myself more than this between divorced couples? I was the only one who loved you madly, I was the only one who felt like I was going to die. I was exhausted from flailing around on my own. Maybe that's why I betrayed you. Because I was sick of you. I... had no reason to be loyal to you."
"That doesn't mean you had to betray me."
Scarlett scoffed at his words.
"Either way... divorce was the only option. You can't forgive me, and I've already done it. It was the perfect choice, divorce."
"You should have just told me the truth. That you were sick of me and betrayed me."
"I told you the truth. I don't remember."
"Are you still on about that?"
Scarlett pressed her fists to her chest, feeling the emotions of that day resurface.
"Yeah. I'm still on about that."
Viktor said.
"Fine, let's go with that. What does it matter now?"
Scarlett knew that anger still lingered in a corner of Viktor's calm face.
Becoming royalty was a lifelong dream for him. Scarlett knew that just because she didn't remember, it didn't mean she could erase what had happened.
Scarlett looked up at Viktor and said.
"I'm sorry, Viktor."
"......"
"When I think about it, I did hate you. Back then."
It seemed that all she had done as an adult was love.
'I wish someone had told me when I was young that if you love someone like a fool, nothing will be left when it's over.'
If her parents had been there, if she had met a friend like Liv sooner, if she had met someone like Andrei earlier, someone who could have told her that the process of finding a four-leaf clover to give to Viktor was ultimately for her own happiness.
If only she could tell the eighteen-year-old Scarlett Crimson that a marriage that starts without love will eventually end without love.
But perhaps the eighteen-year-old Scarlett Crimson would have been in love and wouldn't have even pretended to listen.
Viktor looked at Scarlett and opened his mouth.
"Then come back. Don't live like that."
"......"
"You said you were sorry."
"I'm sorry. But I can't live with you anymore. I expected too much from my marriage with you."
"What exactly did you expect from me?"
His voice gradually sharpened.
Scarlett said in a trembling voice.
"I just... I wanted you to look for me even when you didn't need me. I wanted you to miss me. I wanted you... I wanted you to be happy that I loved you and missed you. To me..."
Scarlett smiled bitterly.
"To me, my love was really precious. It was the best thing I had. At first, it was okay because it was unrequited anyway, right? But gradually... I gradually got tired of you not being happy that I loved you. That's how unrequited love ends, right?"
Viktor, who was listening to her, laughed in disbelief.
Still, Scarlett continued.
"I only realized it when we got divorced. The reason I loved you was because I wanted to receive that kind of love too. I... wanted to be loved. And so did you. Because you... proposed to me, you had a duty to repay me, even if it was just acting."
Viktor, who was listening, smiled wryly and replied.
"Ah, I guess my acting skills weren't good enough."
His answer made her heart sink pathetically.
Scarlett forced a smile and nodded.
"Yeah. Try harder when you remarry."
With those words, Scarlett soon took out a small glass bead from her bag and handed it to Viktor.
"I was going to give it to you anyway. Here."
It was a glass bead containing a four-leaf clover.
Viktor was staring at the bead in her hand, so Scarlett continued.
"I didn't find it for you. I just realized that finding a four-leaf clover around your birthday every year was my joy. It was like a hobby."
"......"
"Oh, I guess you don't even remember receiving a four-leaf clover in the first place... But keep it anyway."
Viktor took the glass bead.
Scarlett watched him put it in the drawer and continued.
"Do you have anything to ask about the plane?"
"Did you draw the blueprints with the intention of building it?"
"Well..."
"It'll only be disadvantageous for you if you plead the fifth on this. Weapon manufacturing could be a violation of military law."
"It's not a weapon. It's just a means of transportation. And in the first place... isn't it strange to just suppress all technology?"
That was...
Of course, it was strange.
It was an issue that Viktor had also found strange for a long time. He hadn't known much about the situation in Salantie while he was at sea, but now he did.
Scarlett continued.
"And the blueprints just... came back to me. It's what my parents were working on."
"You remembered?"
"Yeah."
"Your parents died when you were twelve. How do you remember blueprints you saw before that?"
"I have a good memory."
"......"
"Can I go?"
Viktor judged that there was nothing more to find out right now and soon nodded.
"I'll come find you again soon."
Scarlett nodded.
After she left the office, and the warmth that always emanated from her disappeared, Viktor took out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, lit it, and took a puff.
