The Reason Why She Wanted To Leave

I had to steel myself to keep from stepping back as Ains slowly approached. Seeing him was still so difficult for me.

I had to admit it—I still had feelings for him. It was only natural; you couldn’t just cut off emotions like slicing through a piece of cloth. But it wasn’t just those feelings that kept me standing there. The resentment and anger I felt towards him also had a place in my heart, giving me the strength to hold my ground.

When he was right in front of me, he scanned me up and down with those cold, sharp eyes of his. My heart pounded erratically with each pass of his gaze. I couldn’t just stand there, so I clenched my fists tightly and stared back at him.

“What exactly don’t you understand?” I asked.

“I don’t understand why you’re suddenly trying to get mana stones,” he said.

Suddenly? I let out a small, bitter laugh. Of course. He had never cared why I needed mana stones or when I started needing them. To him, I was less significant than a wildflower growing by the roadside.

“Are you learning magic or something?” he asked.

“And why not? Am I not allowed to learn magic?” I retorted.

“Well, there’s no reason you can’t,” he conceded, seemingly realizing how absurd his question was.

“It’s you I don’t understand,” I said. “Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

“That’s because—”

“How did you even end up at this auction house today?” I interrupted.

Ains immediately grasped the implication of my question and frowned deeply.

“Do you think I had someone following you?” he asked.

“If you didn’t, how could you just show up here and outbid me on something I needed?”

“Our meeting today was a coincidence. I came here for something I needed, and I just happened to see you,” he explained, almost defensively.

I knew he wasn’t the type to lie or make excuses about something like this. It must have been a coincidence. But his actions still seemed suspicious.

“So, was the item you needed the mana stones?” I asked.

He didn’t answer. He seemed to realize that his actions, even if driven by curiosity, didn’t look that way to others.

“Even if the mana stones weren’t what you came for, it doesn’t matter. I hope you’ll think about how your actions came across,” I said.

“I told you, I wasn’t here for the mana stones. Running into you was just a coincidence,” he insisted.

I kept silent, prompting him to run a hand through his hair and let out a frustrated laugh.

“Fine, I get it. It looked strange. But I’m telling you, I saw you and got curious, so I joined the auction you were in.”

“Suddenly interested? You never cared about what I did before,” I said.

“I still don’t. Not in any meaningful way,” he replied flatly.

“Really?”

“Really,” he affirmed, leaving no room for doubt.

I looked at him for a moment, then smiled and nodded.

“That’s right. That’s the kind of person you are,” I said.

“What do you mean by that?” he asked.

“Exactly what it sounds like. You never cared about me. I learned that painfully over the past ten years,” I said.

I had hoped, just once, that he would show some interest in me—not as a wife, but as a friend, or at least as someone who grew up alongside him. Even if he didn’t see me as a woman, I wanted him to pay attention to me. But he never did. He always ignored me and eventually forced me to leave. That was the Ains Graham I knew.

“So please, continue not caring about what I do. Just like you’ve always done. Especially now that we’re no longer together,” I said, smiling more easily than I thought I would in such a situation.

“Well then, I’ll be going,” I said, flashing him a bright smile before turning to leave. But I stopped and looked back at him one last time.

“I’ll take the mana stones. Since you’re giving them up,” I said.

With that, I walked away. I didn’t hear his footsteps behind me. Just as I had asked him to stop caring about me, I needed to stop caring about him too.

Fortunately, I soon spotted an auction staff member. She approached me as soon as our eyes met.

“How can I help you?” she asked with a kind smile.

“I’ve been told that I can collect the mana stones won by guest number 204. How do I go about that?” I asked.

“Ah! Please follow me,” she said.

She led me to a waiting room, separate from where the auction items were usually collected.

“Please have a seat here. We’ll verify everything and bring the items to you,” she said before leaving the room.

I assumed she was confirming things with Ains before handing over the mana stones. Before long, she returned with a box containing twelve high-grade mana stones and another with top-grade mana stones.

“Everything has been verified. The Duke of Graham has already paid, so you just need to sign the receipt,” she said.

I opened the box to check the mana stones. They looked just like the ones I was used to seeing.

After verifying the items and signing the receipt, the staff member bowed politely to me.

“And there’s one more thing I’d like to ask.”

“Of course, go ahead.”

“If the Tieria flower is ever listed for auction here, could you let me know?”

“Are you Viscount Marves? If so, we’ll make sure to send a pamphlet to your residence as soon as it’s registered.”

“Thank you.”

With that, I took the box of mana stones and left the auction house. Outside, a servant who had been waiting for me took the box and led me to the carriage. As the carriage moved away from the auction house, I gazed out the window at the passing streets.

The conversation with Ains had reminded me just how indifferent he had been towards me. I couldn’t believe he hadn’t even known that I regularly received mana stones from the Mage Tower while I was the Duchess of Graham. No wonder our marriage had ended.

In a way, it was for the best. Now everything has returned to its rightful place.

* * *

“Madam! An invitation from the palace has arrived.”

I was enjoying a leisurely tea time, basking in the warm sunlight, when my maid, Rivet, hurried over to me. She held a letter bearing the royal seal. I set my teacup down on its saucer and took the letter from her.

Given the time of year, I had anticipated an invitation to a ball. It was the annual ball celebrating the Emperor’s birthday, always held in the spring. I had attended every year when I was the Duchess of Graham, so it wasn’t unexpected.

But now, I was no longer the Duchess of Graham. I was Viscountess Marves, the head of a minor noble family with no real influence since my divorce from Ains. The imperial ball was usually an event for nobles with considerable sway in the empire, so I hadn’t expected an invitation.

Using the letter opener handed to me by another maid, I opened the invitation. As I had guessed, it was an invitation to the ball celebrating the Emperor’s birthday, urging me to attend unless there were unavoidable circumstances.

“Will you be attending?” Rivet asked cautiously. I understood her concern. Everyone in society knew about my divorce from the Duke of Graham, and they likely gossiped about the story of Viscount Marves who had been divorced. It was obvious what the main topic of conversation would be.

Rivet’s question carried her worry about whether it was necessary for me to go to a place where people would talk about me like that. I remembered the whispers and stares when I attended the Reflen auction last time. People who had once been careful not to offend me had quickly turned and started gossiping.

“Maybe it’s better if I don’t go…”

Remembering that experience, it seemed wiser not to attend the ball. But as long as I lived in the capital, I couldn’t avoid them forever. I couldn’t keep dodging social events. Eventually, I would have to face them. And I didn’t want to run away every time. If it was something I had to confront, I wanted to get it over with quickly.

Besides, in my experience, gossip tends to die down when the subject is present.

“Shall I prepare a gift to apologize for your absence then?”

“No… I’ll attend. Can you help me get ready?”

“Yes, madam.”

I would have liked to enjoy my tea time a bit longer, but if I didn’t start preparing right away, my schedule would be delayed. I got up and quickly got ready to go out. Once I was ready, I got into a hired carriage. It was a luxurious carriage, so the ride was quite comfortable.

Ideally, my estate should have its own carriage, but maintaining a coachman, horses, and a stable was costly, so I hadn’t been able to purchase one yet. Perhaps after I secured the Tieria flower, I could afford one.

“Where to, madam?”

“To Baron Xavier’s atelier.”

“Yes, madam.”

The carriage started moving at a leisurely pace. I closed my eyes for a moment in the slightly rattling carriage. Ains would likely attend the ball too, which meant I would inevitably run into him again.

Oddly enough, the thought of seeing him didn’t make me nervous or scared. Not since our conversation at the Reflen auction. Maybe it was because I had fully come to terms with what we had become. Letting go felt so freeing—why had I clung to my feelings for Ains for so long?