Leave the Divorce to a Professional Lawyer

“Case number B-2012517. Let’s begin the trial.”

Bang, bang, bang!

The sound of the gavel marked the opening of the court.

“Now, the Dorothea side, please speak first.”

There were two trials involving Denis and Lydia. One was a lawsuit filed by the Crown Prince accusing Dennis of adultery. The other was Denis accusing Lydia of seduction under the pretense of marriage.

This trial was the latter, and its outcome would significantly influence the former.

“Your Honor, this case is utterly disgraceful. Although Lady Lydia’s behavior of meeting another man while engaged was not ideal, she has deeply reflected on her actions, and His Highness, the Crown Prince, has already forgiven her.”

Lydia quietly watched her lawyer’s verbose argument from the defendant’s seat.

“However, instead of taking responsibility for his own actions, Denis suddenly turned against the woman he once loved. It’s truly regrettable.”

The southern region is known for its scholars and artists. It was unthinkable that the ruling Dorothea family would have a poor defense team.

Their lawyer spoke quite skillfully.

“The plaintiff’s claim that he ‘did not know Lady Lydia was engaged’ is an absurd lie!”

“Attorney Natasha, you may speak.”

“My client, Denis Petrov, spent his childhood at the Mage Tower and only recently returned. Naturally, he was unaware of the current affairs of the empire, including Lady Lydia’s engagement.”

Natasha wasn’t at all intimidated by Dorothea’s defense team.

Not that she had ever feared opposing counsel, but this time, victory seemed to be on her side.

“Moreover, it’s impossible that Lady Lydia herself was unaware. In the letters and crystal recordings exchanged, there is no mention of the ‘fiancé.'”

“She only didn’t answer because she wasn’t asked.”

“When two unmarried people are romantically involved, isn’t it common not to ask if the other has a fiancé? In fact, asking would be impolite.”

Unless it’s explicitly stated, isn’t it normal to assume the other person isn’t engaged?

“It’s difficult to argue that withholding this information constitutes intentional deception….”

The opposing lawyer was trying to latch onto every word.

“Then let’s ask directly.”

Natasha turned toward Lydia.

“The most crucial witness is right here. I request Lady Lydia Dorothea to take the stand.”

“Granted.”

Since this had been prearranged, it didn’t take long for her to take the witness stand.

Lydia was wearing a light burgundy dress that matched her red hair, looking otherworldly.

If a single rose were personified, wouldn’t it look like this?

Despite her usual languid expression, when her eyes flicked around, no one could look away.

“Witness, please state your name and occupation.”

“Lydia Dorothea. My occupation… let’s just say I’m a student.”

She smiled.

Natasha knew for certain that the goddess of victory was with her.

“Witness, did you deliberately hide the existence of your fiancé when you met Dennis Petrov?”

“Objection! The lawyer is asking an excessively biased question…!”

The objection was quickly dismissed.

“Yes.”

Lydia calmly admitted it.

A moment of silence followed. Even the judge was speechless, and before anyone could react, Lydia delivered the final blow.

“I hid it on purpose. I was afraid he’d leave me if he knew I was engaged.”

“Miss…!”

The defense attorney cried out, so flustered that a personal term of address slipped out.

But Natasha’s questions kept coming.

“In the letter submitted as Evidence No. 13, the phrase ‘You may not know, but’—did this imply a secret about your fiancé?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“According to Evidence No. 36, you discussed His Highness, the Crown Prince, yet did not reveal that he was your fiancé. Was this also intentional?”

“Yes, it was deliberate.”

“According to the testimony of the Petrov family servant….”

Lydia answered every question with a simple, “Yes, that’s correct.”

The judge, who had been watching in a daze, finally spoke.

“Ahem. Lady Lydia, are you confessing to all the charges?”

“Yes, I am.”

Dorothea’s lawyer looked like he was about to faint.

Natasha clicked her tongue internally. Assessing your client’s condition is a basic responsibility of a lawyer.

That they only realized she had been swayed by the other side now? Well, no lawyer could have predicted this situation.

“…I see no point in continuing this trial. Do you admit to all charges presented by the plaintiff?”

“Yes, I do.”

Lydia didn’t seem to notice her lawyer shaking his head furiously beside her.

But then again, her lawyer was just an employee of the Dorothea family, so he couldn’t go against his employer’s wishes.

“Very well. This court will now proceed with the verdict.”

The judge, though clearly uneasy, seemed to know there was no point in dragging things out further.

Natasha might ask a few more questions, Lydia would agree, and the Dorothea lawyer would keep getting more flustered.

“Lady Lydia Dorothea, as the fiancée of the Crown Prince, had a responsibility to uphold her duties, yet she disregarded this and associated with other men. Though His Highness may have forgiven her, her actions go against public morals and constitute a severe breach of conduct. Additionally, she has admitted to deliberately hiding her engagement and misleading the plaintiff into believing marriage was an option.”

Lydia’s eyes wavered slightly.

The moment was finally arriving.

“Her actions are gravely inappropriate and show no signs of remorse. Therefore, Lydia Dorothea is found… guilty.”

Guilty!

Bang, bang, bang!

The sound of the gavel echoed throughout the courtroom. Natasha smiled in satisfaction, while Denis still looked dazed.

“The defendant is ordered to pay a fine within the allotted time. As the plaintiff has not requested any compensation, this trial is hereby concluded….”

“Why?”

In the solemn atmosphere, Lydia muttered loudly.

Everyone’s eyes were on her. Unfazed, Lydia kept looking down at her hands, mumbling incessantly.

“Why? Why isn’t the bad ending appearing? I even lost… So why? If even one person’s path had gone awry, I could’ve restarted right away…”

She was still obsessing over that game.

It was time to snap her out of it, or maybe, the curse that had bound her had been broken.

“Miss Lydia.”

Natasha approached her, standing before the confused woman who continued to mutter absentmindedly.

“Congratulations.”

“…”

“You’ve returned to reality, haven’t you?”

Those words seemed to trigger something.

Lydia suddenly collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. Natasha, standing right in front of her, caught her just in time, almost falling herself in the process.

Thud!

“Medical team! Medical team!”

“Young lady! Please, wake up!”

Lydia slowly closed her eyes, oblivious to the commotion around her.

For some reason, she felt like she might finally sleep deeply this time, without dreaming.

Gasp!

Lydia jolted awake, breathing heavily. She instinctively sat up and looked around.

The touch of the white sheets was vivid. That wasn’t a good sign. It was the sensation she felt every time the game “restarted.”

‘So, it happened again…’

A familiar sense of resignation washed over her. Of course. The “Bad Ending” text had just appeared a little late.

There was no way she could have been freed from this endless loop so suddenly.

‘Fine. Let’s do it again. If I can just pinpoint the branching point that changed in the last run and adjust my choices…’

Clenching the sheets tightly, Lydia resolved herself.

‘…Just one more time…’

Damn it. When will this game finally end? No matter how much she corrected her mistakes, the hard mode was relentlessly difficult.

Every attempt at completing it fully ended in failure, and with each failure, Lydia grew more exhausted.

She had repeated the cycle so many times now that her memories of the real world had become blurry. She could no longer remember her original name or what she even looked like.

Lydia had just one wish left.

‘I don’t want to do this anymore…’

Click.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

Lydia snapped her head up.

A young lawyer with a perpetually nonchalant expression had opened the door and entered, just like always. Except for the last run, Lydia had never met her before.

“…Natasha?”

“Why do you look so surprised?”

“…”

A rush of emotion burst forth from deep within her chest, something that had been repressed for so long. It felt as if the dam of emotions she had carefully built up was suddenly breaking apart.

“…Sob…”

“Why, why are you crying? Are you that upset about losing the bet?”

“Huu… huhuuhuh!”

“Ugh, fine. I won’t ask for the 500 gold coins. But honestly, that’s a mere fraction of the Dorothea duchy’s entire budget…”

Natasha’s words barely registered. Lydia suddenly stood up and hugged her tightly.

“Sob… hic…”

“Could you, uh, please let go?”

Natasha sounded flustered, but Lydia only held on tighter.

She couldn’t let go. If she didn’t hold on tight, she was afraid reality would slip away again.

‘It’s finally over…’

The Natasha before her was proof of that. Someone who hadn’t appeared in the game. A real person, not an NPC.

‘Finally…’

It took some time before Lydia finally let go of Natasha.

Or rather, instead of hugging her, Lydia had merely settled for holding her hand.

Natasha, who couldn’t dare lay a hand on a noble lady, had to coax and persuade Lydia until she could finally free her limbs.

“Whew.”

Natasha wiped the sweat from her forehead with her free hand. It had been quite the ordeal.

“Feeling a bit calmer now?”

“Mhm.”

“I still won the bet.”

“I know. Tell me whatever you want, and it’s yours.”

What did it matter, now that she had escaped from that hellish game? Lydia was ready to give Natasha anything she asked for, even if it was the entire Dorothea duchy.

“I’ll tell you what I want later. For now, you should eat this first.”

Natasha pulled out a lunch box and handed it to her.

“The chef from the Dorothea duchy prepared this nutritious porridge just for you. They say you’re too picky to eat just anything…”

“Why do you have it, though?”

“Outsiders aren’t allowed in the court, and technically, outside food isn’t allowed either. I smuggled it in.”

Natasha discreetly showed her a pouch of gold coins. It wasn’t much of a secret that she had bribed someone to get it.

“…Thank you.”

Lydia responded more calmly than before.

She opened the lunch box and was about to take a bite when suddenly…

“Ugh!”

A wave of nausea overtook her.