Chapter 1: My Friend’s Divorce (1)
“Have you heard? Rodielsa is getting divorced and coming back.”
Soft music played in the background.
The clinking of tableware.
Lively conversations in small groups.
Amidst the various sounds filling the space, a voice—neither particularly loud nor distinct—managed to pierce through Aneta’s ears. It wasn’t just because Rodielsa was her childhood friend.
The noblewomen, who had been discussing the upcoming charity bazaar, immediately glanced at Aneta upon hearing the name “Rodielsa.” It wasn’t merely because Rodielsa and Aneta had once been close.
Aneta tightened her grip on the wine glass she was holding, hiding her turmoil.
‘Rodielsa…’
It was a name she hadn’t heard in a long time.
A name she hadn’t thought about for a long time—or rather, a name she had tried not to think about.
Ever since Aneta became Viscountess Schreiber, people had refrained from mentioning Rodielsa’s name in her presence. Perhaps they still spoke of her in Aneta’s absence, but at least for her, hearing that name again after so long felt surreal.
Rodielsa Carbonetti.
Berner Schreiber.
A few years ago, their love had set high society ablaze in Nas, a city often referred to as the second capital. But now, no one talked about it anymore.
***
Rodielsa, as beautiful as a doll, and Berner, as handsome as a sculpture—it was only natural that they fell in love.
The two, who had grown up in the same city, turned from being childhood friends to lovers.
But their love was shattered when Rodielsa’s father, Count Carbonetti, arranged a marriage with Count Royson, a powerful noble from the capital and a major financial figure. At the time, Rodielsa was only nineteen, but she chose to abandon love for the sake of her family and left.
The one who remained by Berner’s side, as he drowned in pain and despair from losing his love in an instant, was another childhood friend—Aneta.
For as long as Rodielsa had been there, Aneta had never once expressed her own feelings. Even after Rodielsa left, she kept her emotions hidden. She simply listened to Berner’s sorrow, shared his pain, and comforted him.
As the once-distant gap between them narrowed, and they eventually walked side by side, their shoulders brushing—
Aneta carefully confessed.
“I like you, Berner.”
Berner smiled bitterly and gave her an unexpected response.
“I know.”
He told her he was sorry and grateful. His gratitude and apology led to a proposal.
“Shall we get married? I feel like I could make it work with you.”
She knew his proposal lacked the same burning love he had once held for Rodielsa.
But she believed that with their friendship and companionship, they could make it work—just as he had said.
And they did.
Until now.
***
Clatter—clatter.
Amid the shaking, Aneta closed her eyes. She couldn’t tell whether it was the carriage that was trembling or the world itself.
‘Rodielsa…’
She had left the party with a smile. Likely, it was the same smile she always wore. But the noblewomen around her must have realized—Aneta was running away.
‘Rodielsa…’
She couldn’t bring herself to continue that conversation as if nothing was wrong. It unsettled her how much that name still affected her. The weight of the gazes upon her felt suffocating. Her trembling fingers felt miserable.
The others were probably already gossiping about why Rodielsa was getting divorced, what had gone wrong in her marriage. Aneta was just as curious.
And yet—
‘Rodielsa…’
Aneta fled.
“We’ve arrived, my lady.”
It was only when the coachman opened the door that she realized—her thoughts had been fixated on a single point. She had been repeating the name of an old friend over and over, avoiding the truth that followed.
‘So, she’s coming back after a divorce.’
To this place.
To this city.
To my husband’s side.
Aneta squeezed her eyes shut and gripped her skirt tightly.
“My lady?”
It was only after the coachman called her again, this time with a hint of urgency, that Aneta took a slow breath and opened her eyes.
The moment she stepped onto the carpet of the mansion, she felt a slight dizziness. Running a hand over her perfectly neat hair for no real reason, she waited for the sensation to pass before moving forward.
Berner wouldn’t be home at this hour.
Aneta first headed to her mother-in-law Christine’s room.
“She was walking around just fine earlier, but the moment she heard your carriage was arriving, she suddenly took to bed,” whispered Angie, the maid walking beside her.
Even when there was nothing wrong with her, Christine constantly complained of various aches and pains. After five years of marriage, Aneta was well accustomed to her mother-in-law’s feigned illnesses. Smiling faintly, she patted Angie’s arm.
“She’s just lonely. This is all she has left to do—it’s quite endearing, isn’t it?”
Back when Aneta first married into the family, Christine had far more ways to express her disapproval of her daughter-in-law.
She had opposed the marriage because Aneta had lost her parents young and been raised by her grandfather. Even after the wedding, Christine had tormented her, forcing her to do chores no viscountess should have to do.
Aneta had to wash clothes and clean the house despite never having done so before. She had to cook for Christine whenever she demanded it. And on more than one occasion, she had even been slapped for being “too insolent.”
Berner had never wanted to get involved in conflicts between his mother and his wife.
“Just endure it a little. She’s just lonely.”
“You’re patient, aren’t you? I already have too many things to worry about—if you start making a fuss too, it’ll be too much for me.”
Every time Aneta brought up her issues with Christine, Berner would frown.
And because the wrinkles forming on his handsome brow stung her heart, because his cold gaze unsettled her—because she was afraid he might come to resent her—Aneta endured.
She endured because she loved him.
She endured because she didn’t want to burden him.
She endured because she didn’t want to make things difficult for him.
But things changed two years ago.
At the time, Aneta was grieving the loss of her grandfather when Berner fell victim to a swindler and lost a significant sum of money.
While Berner and Christine floundered in shock, unaccustomed to dealing with such malice, Aneta stepped up and handled the situation.
She had no time to mourn her grandfather. Instead, she retrieved the money Berner had blindly thrown into reckless investments, liquidated several failing businesses, and used part of her inheritance to save the Schreiber estate from falling into another’s hands.
Christine, who had stubbornly clung to control of the household even after Aneta’s arrival, had no choice but to relinquish it to her. And Berner—he, too, began to rely on her.
Aneta no longer had to do the cleaning or laundry. Christine’s torment became more passive.
Like now.
“So, it’s fine.”
Standing before Christine’s door, Aneta steadied herself. She was an indispensable part of the Schreiber family.
So, it would be fine.
Even if Rodielsa was coming back—there would be no problem.
Reassuring herself with those thoughts, Aneta knocked on Christine’s door.
***
“I haven’t been feeling well.”
Christine’s voice carried no trace of actual illness.
Ever since Berner’s financial blunder two years ago, Christine had avoided going out, embarrassed to show her face in public.
“I must be coming down with something… Anyway, did you enjoy yourself?”
Now that she no longer had control over the household, the only thing left for Christine to do was hurl petty remarks meant to sting Aneta’s heart.
“Here I am, bedridden, while you’re out gallivanting around.”
That was the clear message behind her words.
But they no longer had the same sharp edge they once did.
After the swindling incident, Christine had grown wary of Aneta, who had single-handedly saved the family from ruin. Aneta had endured her blatant hostility before—this half-hearted passive-aggressiveness barely registered.
“The chill is finally fading. It would be nice if you recovered before spring arrives.”
“I don’t know if I’ll get better anytime soon, with how unsettled I feel. My son, my daughter-in-law—both so busy they’ve completely abandoned me. What a pitiful state I’ve been left in, in my twilight years…”
Aneta stood quietly by the bedside, listening to the elderly woman’s lamentations.
In the past, Christine would have added remarks like, “That’s why people without parents are like this,” or, “You didn’t learn any manners because you had no parents to teach you.”
But now, all she did was complain about her misfortunes.
Listening to the grievances of a powerless old woman no longer hurt.
“Get some rest, Mother.”
Aneta cut off Christine’s words at an appropriate moment. She glanced briefly at her mother-in-law, who swallowed back whatever she had wanted to say, then turned away.
She heard the sound of Christine clicking her tongue in irritation, but she pretended not to notice. It wasn’t until she had stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her that she realized—while she had been with Christine, she hadn’t once thought of Rodielsa.
Yes, Rodielsa. You’re coming back after your divorce.
Leaning her back against the closed door, Aneta looked around.
Rodielsa was returning, but nothing had changed.
Aneta was still the Viscountess Schreiber.
Her mother-in-law still disapproved of her.
Angie was still watching her with a mix of anger and concern.
Aneta loved this burdensome yet familiar daily life.
And so, she found comfort in the fact that nothing had changed at all.
With that thought, she made her way to her room.
***
Berner returned home long after the uncomfortable dinner with her mother-in-law had ended.
It wasn’t unusual. He often treated the salon as if it were his own home, so his late returns were nothing out of the ordinary.
Still, as Aneta took his coat, she waited for him to speak first.
“Rodielsa is coming back. I heard she’s getting a divorce.”
He had just come from the salon, the place where every bit of news gathered. Surely, he must have heard about Rodielsa.
Before she was married, before she had ever been his lover, Rodielsa had been the first love of many young men in this city.
“The Goddess of Nas.”
“The Flower of Nas.”
For such a woman to return after a divorce—there was no way the salon wouldn’t be abuzz with gossip.
Divorce was an incredibly scandalous topic for noblewomen of this era.
And Berner always casually shared the stories he heard at the salon with her, as if they were nothing.
She had hoped this time would be no different—that he would bring it up nonchalantly, just like he always did.
But his lips remained firmly shut.
He didn’t mention Rodielsa.
He didn’t even talk about any of the other gossip from the salon.
So, with a feeling that bordered on self-torment, Aneta finally broke the silence.
“I heard Rodielsa is getting a divorce and coming back.”
