“Come to think of it…”
I’d originally planned to divorce Ian exactly one year later.
At some point, I had completely erased that ambitious plan from my mind.
“……”
Staring blankly at the document for a while, I finally let out an incredulous sigh.
“Wow, talk about timing.”
Why does this have to catch my attention now?
Is someone trying to nudge me into getting a divorce?
Already feeling unsettled, seeing the divorce papers I had shoved away long ago only made me feel worse.
I glared at the innocent document with dissatisfaction before picking it up and tossing it straight into the trash bin.
“Paper or not, at least try to read the room right now.”
Grumbling as if the fallen document had done something wrong, I pressed my lips together. My gaze naturally turned back to the trash bin.
“……”
…Hmm. Maybe throwing it away was a bit much?
Quietly, I retrieved the divorce papers and placed them back on the desk.
The sight of Ian’s and my name written side by side at the top felt oddly unfamiliar.
“You never know how things might turn out…”
In hindsight, it was true.
Even if I had bent the narrative in all sorts of ways, it was only possible because Ian and Diana hadn’t yet reunited.
In the original story, Ian hadn’t paid Diana the slightest bit of attention until they met again.
“Honestly, who’s to say Ian won’t end up liking Diana, just like in the original, after they meet?”
It was a rather pitiful thought to entertain at this point, but it wasn’t something I could entirely rule out either.
“……”
And if I truly had to leave someday, and if my body and Eloise’s were to switch back…
“…Then the two of them would break up.”
That was probably inevitable.
Eloise, who had been so desperate to escape this world, wouldn’t want to maintain this marriage upon her return.
“So, in the end, they’d divorce.”
Even though it was something I had already anticipated, the thought of it happening still made my heart sink.
I glared at the divorce papers with a kind of combative intensity but soon slumped my shoulders before the pen could even touch the paper.
“…Ugh, what am I even doing?”
How pathetic.
When was it that I had so confidently declared I’d reform Ian and hand him over to Diana?
And now here I was, feeling anxious and uncertain.
They say love makes people cowardly, and this was proof enough that I had feelings for Ian.
As I finally set the pen down and buried my face in my hands, I heard a sudden knock at the door.
“My lady?”
“Wha—?!”
Startled by Vivi’s voice outside the door, I fumbled in a panic, hastily shoving the divorce papers under the desk.
“C-Come in!”
“I heard some commotion inside. Are you alright?”
“Oh, uh, yeah. I must’ve dozed off for a bit. What’s the matter?”
Trying my best to sound calm, I responded, and Vivi, looking a little hesitant, replied.
“Well, you see… you have a guest.”
“A guest?”
A guest, at this hour, arriving at the manor unannounced?
I was still puzzling over it when someone brushed past Vivi at the door and strode in confidently.
“Grand Duchess, we need to talk.”
“…Your Highness?”
❖ ❖ ❖
A short while later, Vivi nervously placed tea and refreshments on the office table, stealing glances as she did so.
“Well then… please call if you need anything.”
Her gaze flickered to the princess sitting across from me before quickly darting away.
It seemed the sight of a much younger girl sitting there with her arms crossed and a stern expression was intimidating to her.
The office door clicked shut behind her.
“Um, Your Highness? What brings you here so suddenly, without notice…?”
“Why do you look so serious?”
At my cautious question, the princess kept her lips firmly sealed and stared at me for a while before finally speaking.
What came out was an unexpected question.
“Grand Duchess, you read the Aria Gazette, don’t you?”
“Huh?”
What? Out of nowhere?
“Well, yes… I do, I suppose.”
At my response, the princess let out a heavy sigh and nodded as if she had expected as much.
“Well then, this will be easier to explain. Let’s cut to the chase. Diana Lawrence is coming back.”
Hearing the name spoken with an unusually cold expression, I blinked rapidly. The way she omitted all titles like “Count’s daughter” made it clear how displeased she was.
“So that’s what this is about…”
I nodded calmly.
“Yes, I saw. Including the opinion section.”
“What?”
At my lukewarm reaction, the princess furrowed her brows deeply, then gave me a baffled look as she scanned me from head to toe.
“Grand Duchess, don’t tell me… you don’t know who Diana Lawrence is?”
“Of course I do. Didn’t she recently graduate from Biblos Academy?”
“And you’re not even a little worried? This is a crisis! Don’t you understand how serious this is?”
She practically scolded me, and for some reason, I felt like the person in front of me wasn’t a 15-year-old sister-in-law but an elderly grandmother.
I stared at her blankly for a moment before clearing my throat.
“Hmm. Your Highness, I’m not quite following. Could you explain where exactly I’m supposed to feel this ‘crisis’?”
Her jaw dropped.
“Good heavens, good heavens…”
She let out an exaggerated groan, pressing her forehead as she slumped back against the sofa like an elderly woman well past her prime.
“Oh, Grand Duchess. What am I going to do with your naïveté?”
Of course, I knew perfectly well why she was reacting this way, but there wasn’t much I could say in response. All I could do was smile awkwardly.
“Fine, I’ll explain it to you just this once.”
Reluctantly sitting up straight, the princess whispered in a low voice.
“You may not pay much attention to other people, but Diana Lawrence isn’t just anyone. She’s been chasing after my brother—no, the Grand Duke—relentlessly, even back when he was still a prince! And don’t you know she enrolled at Biblos Academy because she was so devastated by his marriage?”
“Hmm, I see.”
“‘Hmm, I see’? That’s all you have to say?!”
Her shrill voice rang out, making my ears ache.
Jeez, why the lion’s roar?
“Argh! Seriously! No wonder I’m the only one panicking!”
The princess downed the hot tea in front of her in one gulp, slamming the cup down on the table with a loud clink.
“And my sister’s no help either. How could she invite that woman to the imperial banquet, knowing full well about her history with the Grand Duke? Just because, what, it’s been 40 years since someone graduated early from Biblos? So what?!”
Honestly, it was laughable that she was taking Diana’s side in this, but early graduation is pretty impressive.
“Besides, that’s the day the Grand Duke announces his renunciation of succession rights!”
Her sapphire-blue eyes blazed with intensity.
“So Diana will be attending that banquet.”
Now that I thought about it, the timing of her return coincided roughly with that event.
Even putting aside the circumstances at Biblos, there was no way they wouldn’t invite a noblewoman from a distinguished family to an official imperial gathering.
While I didn’t find it particularly noteworthy, the princess seemed genuinely upset about the situation.
“I can’t accept it! Not at all!”
She even started stomping her feet like a child throwing a tantrum.
Watching her antics with mixed emotions, I suddenly froze as a thought crossed my mind.
“Wait a second…”
In the original story, didn’t the two of them reunite at an imperial banquet after Diana returned from the Nomos Empire?
Back then, Ian had felt nothing for Diana while she was away, but at the banquet, he saw her appear radiantly and, for the first time, felt his heart ache.
Ian dismissed the feeling as irritation, but in truth, it was the beginning of love.
Although the timing and purpose of the banquet were slightly different this time…
“Could it be that, despite the details changing, the overall flow remains the same?”
The thought hit me like a thunderclap, and my heart sank.
If that were the case… the two of them might end up quickly growing closer, just like in the original story.
As my expression darkened, the princess suddenly slammed her hand on the armrest with a loud bang.
“I’ve got an idea!”
“Pardon?”
“Let’s come up with a plan.”
• • •
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