I Failed to Divorce My Husband

Not long after finishing the shower, water droplets had formed on her bangs.

Her hair was not neatly arranged, but rather messy, making Aiden look different from usual.

“What? Why are you like this…?”

Was she trying to look cute? Meanwhile, Aiden greeted her with an innocent face, as if he had no idea how he looked…

Erin unconsciously opened her lips and felt her face getting hotter.

Erin realized once again how weak Aiden was as if he only blindly looked at her.

And Erin seriously thought, “It couldn’t have been intentional… right?”

If it was intentional…

It was too accurate.

Erin’s heart was pounding at an incredible speed.

Whatever Aiden’s purpose was, she needed to snap out of it.

She couldn’t just fall for him with wet hair.

Erin forcefully controlled her racing heart and casually opened her mouth.

“I told you to dry your hair properly and go to bed.”

There was no other way to break the atmosphere than to nag.

Erin made a pointless remark towards Aiden who had just spaced out.

“I wasn’t lying down, I was sitting.”

“So it’s okay then?”

“No.”

Aiden narrowed his eyes at Erin’s sharp comment.

It was a natural sight between the two of them, which was different from Aiden’s public appearance.

“Dry your hair quickly.”

Erin urged Aiden to get up from the bed.

When Aiden asked if she could do it for him, she was momentarily speechless.

Of course, she should have said no, but Erin’s efforts had already reached their limit.

“Sit.”

In the end, it was Aiden’s way this time.

Erin personally dried every drop of moisture remaining in Aiden’s hair.

After his hair was completely dry, the two of them chatted for a while before eventually lying down on the bed.

As always, they divided the bed exactly in half, creating an invisible line between them.

However, in truth, Erin couldn’t sleep properly that night.

Her eyes were closed, but her mind was wide awake. So, she noticed every time Aiden looked at her or spoke to her in the early hours of the morning.

“Erin, are you asleep?”

“…”

When Erin didn’t respond, Aiden lightly touched her cheek and played around, but he didn’t really have any intention of waking her up.

His cautious touch quickly stopped, almost as if he had no intention of disturbing her.

“Erin, sleep well.”

Despite Aiden’s lullaby-like whisper, Erin couldn’t sleep.

***

Erin quietly prepared for divorce.

She planned to leave the empire if they divorced.

It would be fine to travel to different countries and settle down wherever she found a place she liked.

Erin was looking through a list of assets she had accumulated, thinking about the leisurely time after the divorce.

“Why are you suddenly organizing these things?” Mona asked cautiously.

“It seems like something you would do before leaving,” Erin replied as she looked back at her.

“…”

Mona seemed sharp-witted when observing quietly, Erin thought.

But she couldn’t tell her right now, so she replied vaguely.

“Just to make sure. It’s good to double-check things once in a while.”

“All of the assets are in cash, except for what’s in overseas banks. There’s nothing else to check,” Mona said.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“But it seems like the money in overseas banks is increasing. It’s cumbersome to deal with overseas banks when you need the money. Why are you doing that?”

“…”

Mona, who knew well about Erin’s asset management, was curious and asked while running errands for her.

That was also sharp.

Keeping a lot of money overseas is generally not a good choice.

The fees are high and it’s cumbersome to access, but that only applies when the money is in the empire.

It’s not applicable to Erin who will soon be traveling abroad.

“Do you have so much money in the empire too?” She evaded the question casually.

It was a statement that could make others feel unlucky, but it was also true that her cash assets were like an inexhaustible well.

“Well, that’s true.” So Moona immediately agreed.

She didn’t forget to be proud of her young lady, saying, “She’s our lady, after all.” Erin scanned the documents.

She had prepared carefully with the thought that she could leave at any time.

As a result, there wasn’t really much preparation for the divorce.

She just needed to create a document that would allow her to use the money in the imperial bank overseas.

It was a trivial matter.

Erin suddenly turned her head and looked at Moona. 

“Do you like living here, Moona?”

“Of course.”

The answer came without hesitation.

Mona was smiling sincerely.

“What do you like about it?”

“I’ve been here for 10 years already. I’ve grown close to the people here, and now it’s comfortable for me.”

Erin nodded her head.

Mona had certainly gotten along well with everyone here.

This place had already become her home.

Then, Mona opened her mouth with an even brighter smile.

“But the biggest reason, of course, is that our young lady is here.”

“….”

“Because I’ve been with our young lady since she was born, I’ve always been happy.”

Mona looked at Erin as she spoke.

Her gaze was filled with affection, making her feel more like a mother than a real mother to Erin.

Erin’s eyes softened.

In fact, there was one thing she hadn’t sorted out yet.

But now, her mind was leaning towards asking Mona as well once she told Aiden about the divorce.

She suggested joining her on her trip.

It would have been nice if only Mona agreed to come with her.

With that thought in mind, Erin checked all the documents.

Afterward, it felt anticlimactic as her preparations were already complete.

All that was left was to tell Aiden.

There was no point in waiting for the right moment anymore.

The next day, while having breakfast, Erin suggested to Aiden that they have tea together in the garden in the afternoon.

Naturally, he happily accepted her proposal.

***

Aiden, who had gone out in the morning, was approaching quickly with a brisk stride as he smiled brightly at Erin.

Erin stared at him intently.

Whenever she saw Aiden approaching her, her heart was always filled with joy.

“Erin, what did you do today?”

“I went for a short walk in the morning. Did you go out and do well with your work?” 

“Yeah, but Erin, I also did well in holding back today.”

Aiden had a face that was asking for praise for holding back from meeting other people and for unwanted contact.

Erin looked at Aiden with expectant eyes.

Aiden’s face looked especially bright under the sunlight.

Is this the end of seeing this face? That’s a little disappointing.

Erin understood why the original protagonist, Erin Jahad, was so obsessed with seeing this face that was growing day by day.

Aiden was about to approach, asking for praise, when Erin stopped him.

“Wait, I have something to say first.”

“Yeah, go ahead.” Aiden smiled sweetly.

Erin smiled lightly in response and handed him an envelope.

“What is this?” Aiden asked as he opened the envelope.

Erin tried to sound as natural as possible.

“Let’s get a divorce.”

“What…?” So Aiden did not understand at first and took a few seconds to comprehend her words.

Aiden, who barely understood the words, furrowed one eyebrow.

The teacup he was holding shook.

Though he seemed shaken, Erin remained composed as she spoke.

“Aiden, you’ll meet someone better than me.”

“What?”

Aiden let out a short laugh mixed with a sigh and twisted his lips. 

His eyes sharpened, and the air around them grew heavy. His eyebrows twitched and rose slightly, and his face gradually turned pale.

“It may feel sudden, but think about it.”

It was a common phrase when breaking up, but Erin meant it sincerely, knowing what would happen in the future. Julia Charte, his destined partner, would soon appear.

“I have no intention of getting a divorce.”

Aiden was firm, and his face grew even colder at her words. 

But Erin remained unfazed. Instead, she whispered gently with a sweet smile.

“Trust me. You’ve never listened to me and suffered because of it.”

“….”

“I’m sure this will be a decision without regrets.”

Soon, when he meets Julia Charte, he will surely think that getting divorced was the right thing to do.

But Aiden’s face, which still doesn’t know this, twisted more and more.

“In fact, we were more friends than a proper couple.”

They had kept their distance for a long time, just in case this moment came and they couldn’t turn back.

“We’ve been doing well so far, but we can’t keep going like this forever.”

Erin knew Aiden was confused, but she continued to speak without stopping.

In the end, she wasn’t the person Aiden really needed.

“From now on, you need a real couple, not just a friend.”

Erin deliberately spoke lightly, as the heavier she spoke, the more her heart would sink. 

She wanted to make it seem like it was nothing.

Aiden, who had been silently watching her, finally opened his mouth slowly.

“Is this the result of putting up with it until now?”

“Huh…?”

Erin blinked her eyes in surprise at Aiden’s very low voice.

His breath was thick as if he were struggling to breathe, making the air around them heavy.

“Well, we’re both twenty years old now and we’ve just been putting up with it, so I guess it could be misunderstood.”

“……”

“Erin.”

Aiden’s voice was painfully sweet.

Even though Erin liked his voice, as soon as she heard that sweet voice, shivers ran through her body, making her tense.

“Unfortunately, that’s not a problem.”