Chapter 52
‘…I don’t want to let him know that I am dying.’
She didn’t want him to guess that her life after the divorce would be miserable. This may be her last remaining pride, a wretched arrogance. But in any case, Chloe didn’t want to show Eric her bottom, and the bottom meant the life of a woman who was dying of an illness…
In the end, she was planning to keep Eric out of her death news forever.
‘I can’t call a doctor.’
Chloe swallowed several tablets of fever reducer in one mouthful and said to herself.
A few days. It would only hurt for a few more days. Usually, if she got sick for a few days, she would usually get better… If it didn’t get better after a few more days, she would go back to the north, go back and see the doctor.
In fact, she had no reason to stay in the Capital any longer.
When she thought about why she came here in the first place, there was an answer. She came to declare her divorce from Eric, and she demanded the divorce twice. He finally agreed, so they were going to get a divorce as soon as Princess Elizabeth got married.
…Yes, divorce.
Now, there would be nothing left between them. There wouldn’t be a single document left.
How could five years go by like this…?
This fact was both bittersweet and saddened, so Chloe blinked her eyes slowly. Still, nothing would change. She would divorce Eric, and she would die… Yes. This would remain unchanged no matter how sad she was.
Chloe glanced out the window. Outside of it, the snow spread out. The heavy snow was making the whole world white.
If the Capital was like this, what would the North be like? She wondered if she could ever return to the North. Should she ask Daniel?
Her worries continued.
At that time, there was a knock on the door. Was it Andrea? Chloe turned her gaze away from the window and looked towards the door.
“Chloe. Are you awake?”
However, to her surprise, the voice belonged to Eric. Chloe quickly tidied her clothes and then told him to come in.
The door opened slowly.
Today’s Eric was a little more disorganized than usual. He had a faint smell of alcohol, and it seemed that there must be a great reason for him to drink, assuming his dislike of alcohol.
She greeted him a little nervously.
“Are you okay for a moment? I have something to say.”
“Yes, I’m okay.”
Chloe nodded, relieved that she had just taken the medicine and she was no longer coughing. Eric dragged a chair towards her bed and sat down. He unbuttoned his shirt and tugged at his tie in frustration.
“How is your body?”
“It has improved a lot.”
“You don’t look good even though you said something like that.”
Eric replied, squinting his eyes.
“Are you taking any medications?”
“As you can see, I just took it.”
“I see.”
Silence fell again. Eric just stared at her, and Chloe just stayed still with her eyes lowered. Cold air passed between them.
“As long as your body gets better, we will move next month as planned.”
“…Move?”
“Yes. Moving the house.”
Eric continued.
“The interior of the mansion has already been completed, and the furniture has been placed. So, it seems like you only need to carry light luggage. Well, you don’t have to pack anything. You didn’t bring anything in the first place.”
Chloe was stunned for a moment.
Of course, she remembered him mentioning moving. However, she thought it was just a passing word…because their relationship had grown cold since then! Moreover, Chloe was thinking of returning to the North, so what was this about moving houses?
This was such a big deal.
Chloe shook her head.
“I was thinking of going back to the North.”
She quickly intercepted Eric’s words before his lips could open.
“You said that if Princess Elizabeth gets married, we will divorce, so I was going to stay in the North until then.”
The moment Chloe mentioned the divorce, Eric could feel the discomfort in the corner of his heart again.
His chest was throbbing and aching. He had not yet figured out what the source of this pain was though he assumed it was simply irritation. In addition to the anger was Chloe’s disobedience. After judging this, Eric answered in a slightly sharp tone.
“When did you not say you wanted to be here? You really do change your mind from time to time.”
Chloe raised her head and met his gaze. As the blue eyes showed a hint of emptiness, Eric came to his senses.
“No, no. I didn’t come here to say this.”
As he had promised, he was ready to fix his bad temper because he wanted to change Chloe’s resolve. And, in order to do so, he had to make her feel good.
“This is a home for you.”
He spoke in a slightly friendly tone.
“I have found a home that is suitable for you, so please come with me and enjoy it together.”
“Why…”
She was rather puzzled. This was the divorce that he also agreed to. However, to move meant he was giving her a more prosperous and affluent life? Did he need to do that? As Chloe mentioned, she could just go back to the North.
Chloe shook her head.
“I can go back to the North. You don’t even need to move. You like this house.”
Eric rubbed his temple.
How stubborn was this woman? He frowned, remembering that Chloe had never bowed before him. Saying no, she always did what she wanted to do. Even though Eric had vowed to be a kind husband, he didn’t want to be a husband who was stupid enough to put up with what she was doing now.
He spoke in a slightly powerful voice.
“Chloe. Didn’t you agree to the move too? But now you’re saying you’re going back. It’s a very frustrating situation for me. Don’t you think so?”
“That…”
Chloe paused for a moment.
“At the time, I had no idea that the relationship between you and me would get this bad. At least, there was hope that things could get better, so I agreed… It seems it’s not the same now. So, it is right for me to go back.”
Saying so, Eric slowly closed his eyes and opened them back up.
“Was I that wrong to you?”
Eric was a little upset… No, he was agitated. Didn’t he do his best for Chloe as much as he could?! Of course, misunderstandings and frictions arose in the process, and his efforts went up in smoke. Still, he could be proud that he did his best for her.
But Chloe always, always blamed him for everything. There seemed to be no end to her greed!
Noticing the bitterness that spread across Eric’s face, Chloe let out a smirk. Right… Eric did his best. It was just that the results of those efforts were not in the direction she had hoped for. This was not actually a blame.
“I’m not saying it’s right or wrong. Just me and you…”
Chloe took a deep breath.
“It’s not right. I can’t even fit in.”
Eric’s brow narrowed. Chloe’s face, speaking as if it had already been confirmed, was covered with utter helplessness.
The moment he saw that, he could feel his heart pounding and aching, and from the pain, he was barely able to contain the rage that had risen from him. Nonetheless, he had to put up with it. If he got angry here again, the conversations they’d had so far would be in vain.
“How…”
He took a deep breath and continued his words.,
“…How would you feel if I put in a little more effort?”
Before Chloe could answer, Eric went on.
“As I said, I can divorce you only if Princess Elizabeth is married. Not before then. I don’t want her getting involved with anything. Do you agree with this?”
“Yes, I agree.”
“Then, before that, if Princess Elizabeth gets married and our relationship gets back on track before we get the divorce papers stamped, if we can become a normal couple, then you might not be thinking about getting a divorce anymore, are you?”
Chloe’s eyes widened. She gazed straight at Eric, clasping her hand that had been placed on her blanket.
“…Are you saying you don’t want to divorce me?”
“I hope so.”
Chloe sighed unknowingly.
“Again, why?”
She said, clenching her chin.
“It’s just a never-ending story. I’ll ask for a divorce, you pretend to listen, then you’re against it again, and I’ll ask, you are against… What is the real reason this time? For what reason are you against it?”
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