Chapter 6

Just then, Batis stood up.
“I was getting hungry anyway. Is the food prepared in the formal dining room?”
“Yes, everything is ready there.”

Still, I thought I should check one more time. There had been trouble once before when a dish wasn’t properly prepared.

I soon said to them,
“Please wait here for a moment. I’ll go check if everything is ready.”

Herder smiled and nodded. I immediately walked to the dining room with the butler. Just like he said, all the food was prepared.

“My lady, shall I bring them here?”
“No, I’ll go myself.”

I didn’t want to be alone here. Especially after yesterday’s birthday, it felt worse.

The butler waited in front of the dining room while I headed straight to the parlor. I was almost there when I heard voices.

“Herder, I told you. She won’t like something like a bath bomb.”
“So what? If they don’t use it together, at least Revril can use it alone.”
“Still, that’s a bit…”
“This must be Revril’s first time seeing a bath bomb. Would someone from that kind of family have used one before?”
“She might’ve used one after coming here.”
“Didn’t you see her face earlier? She looked shocked, like she had never seen one before.”

At that moment, it became clear that what I had always suspected about Herder was true. As a high noble, she did seem to look down on me in subtle ways.

Batis sighed.
“Still, giving a bath bomb as a gift was too much. Their relationship isn’t even good to begin with.”
“Why not? Maybe this will be a chance for them to grow closer.”

Herder smiled. This smile seemed more honest than the one she had shown earlier. I didn’t feel good. I hadn’t realized even Batis knew things weren’t good between me and Cedric.

I had tried my best to hide it.

Then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I flinched and turned around, and the scent of Cedric’s cologne brushed past me as his arm naturally wrapped around my shoulder.

“I’m late.”

Cedric didn’t look at me but at Batis.

Batis flinched and looked up. Herder greeted him with a bright smile, but a cold glint briefly passed through Cedric’s eyes.

Batis tried to smile but it was clearly awkward.
“It’s been a while.”
“Yeah.”

In contrast, Cedric’s smile looked completely natural—like he was genuinely happy to see Batis. But to me, it felt fake. After three years by Cedric’s side, I had learned how to read his expressions.

Batis lightly touched Cedric’s shoulder and left the parlor. Herder glanced at Cedric and me, then followed him out.

Even then, Cedric’s arm was still around my shoulder. My heart was racing. I worried he might hear it.

Just then, Cedric let go and stepped back. When I looked up, I saw his neat hair and perfectly pressed clothes.

“Have you been well?”

Cedric smiled. His usual tone somehow shook my heart. I nodded.

“Those two were talking nonsense earlier.”

I couldn’t bring myself to respond. What Herder said was true, after all.

Cedric looked at me for a moment. Tick, tock. The sound of the clock hand passed briefly. My palms started to sweat. Then he stepped closer.

“Let’s go.”

His low voice was calm and pleasant. When I looked up, he bent down slightly and said,
“They’re probably already waiting in the dining room.”

I walked to the dining room with Cedric. It felt strange walking with him after so long. I was still nervous. The familiar scent that always came from him stirred something in my chest.

‘Why did he do that earlier?’

Especially someone who never approached me first. I couldn’t believe what had happened, so I looked up at Cedric.

His face was expressionless. Bored, indifferent, and subtly cold.

For a moment, I envied the mistress I had seen in the photo. Did he show her different smiles than the one I saw? How did he treat her…?

But I didn’t want to find her. The more I thought about it, the more miserable I would feel.

I was just surprised by what he did earlier.

“Revril.”

At the sound of my name, I looked up. Cedric gestured with his head. We had already arrived at the dining room. Our eyes met, and he smiled. The usual smile. The one that felt emotionless, the one he always gave me.

All the tension I had built up suddenly turned into emptiness. My heart, which had been racing, sank.

I had gotten my hopes up again—despite being ready for a divorce. I forced down my feelings and entered the dining room.

Herder and Batis were already seated. Once Cedric and I sat down, Herder smiled briefly and looked around before speaking.
“I told Revril earlier too, but I came because I had something to say in person.”

Batis smiled and held Herder’s hand. I suddenly wondered what it would feel like to truly connect with someone and smile from the heart.

Herder smiled and looked at Cedric and me.
“I’m pregnant.”

I was speechless for a moment. Though Batis and Herder had married before us, they had struggled to have a child. I was surprised, and also a bit envious. She had a good family, and a husband who truly loved her.

They looked genuinely happy, so I said politely,
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you. I really wanted to say it in person.”
“You must’ve gone through a lot.”

Cedric didn’t sound particularly joyful. Strangely, he didn’t seem pleased. His stiff expression looked even colder than usual.

Batis gave an awkward smile and picked up his fork.

Then Cedric nodded to a servant, who brought a large box to Batis. When Batis looked up at Cedric, he said,
“A gift.”

I hadn’t thought to prepare a gift. While I hesitated in embarrassment, Cedric glanced at me and said,
“Revril helped prepare it too.”
“You already knew?”
“Mother sent me a letter.”

Batis nodded, looking slightly displeased. Herder smiled brightly and accepted the box.
“Thank you. I didn’t expect this at all. I didn’t think even Revril would know. So earlier, you were pretending not to know?”

I really didn’t know, but I nodded. I hadn’t expected Cedric to go so far and prepare a gift. Hiding my surprise, I said,
“I hope your baby is born healthy and soon.”
“Me too.”

Herder glanced at me and Cedric. Her face was full of curiosity. Cedric, meanwhile, swirled his wine glass with a blank expression. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

Then Batis asked,
“By the way, how’s business these days?”
“The same as always.”

Cedric didn’t say more. Batis didn’t push and instead continued talking with Herder. I watched them for a moment. They seemed to be doing their best for each other—full of love in their eyes.

Then a low voice broke the silence.
“Did you like the gift I gave you?”

Startled, I turned my head. Cedric was looking at me. Flustered, I replied quickly,
“What gift?”
“Your birthday present.”

Cedric didn’t say anything else and just looked at me. Then he furrowed his brows slightly.
“Did you lose it again?”
“No! I’ve been keeping it safe.”

Unlike my nervous tone, Cedric calmly looked at my hand. Just his gaze made me tense, and my fingers twitched. Cedric looked up and met my eyes.

“If it’s uncomfortable to wear, I can make it into a brooch for you.”
“No, it’s fine. You don’t have to do that.”

His blue eyes stayed fixed on my hand. The hand without a wedding ring did feel strangely empty. And since he had gone out of his way to get me a birthday gift…

‘I should’ve worn it for this kind of occasion.’

I was regretting it a little when—

“Did you hear? Lately, wolves have been really aggressive. I heard a lot of people are getting attacked.”

Herder looked around as if trying to stir interest. Cedric took his eyes off my hand and looked at her.

Herder smiled and continued,
“Come to think of it, didn’t you go hunting a lot when you were young?”

Batis looked at Herder with a stiff face. In the slightly tense air, Cedric said,
“Yes, I did.”
“How was it? Did you kill a lot of wolves?”
“I didn’t kill them unless I had to.”

Batis whispered something to Herder while holding her shoulder. Herder looked surprised, then glanced at Cedric.

Cedric calmly watched them. After a moment, Herder asked with curious eyes,
“Do you still go hunting these days?”

Batis gently grabbed her arm, but Herder didn’t care. I was curious about that too and looked at Cedric. His office was full of taxidermy. Among them was a wolf.

I had stumbled upon his office shortly after we got married and had been shocked. They looked almost alive. That particular wolf had a knife stuck in it, unlike normal displays.

“No, I’ve been into something else these days.”

Cedric said it like it was nothing, but Batis cleared his throat and couldn’t meet his eyes. Herder looked curious.
“Why? Is there something interesting here?”

Batis grabbed her arm again, but the words were already out. He was clearly watching Cedric’s mood. Even I could tell.

Batis looked tense as he glanced at Cedric. He looked like he had stepped on a landmine.

Cedric gave a small chuckle and looked at Batis.
“Didn’t you tell her?”

Herder tilted her head in confusion at the sudden change of topic and smiled awkwardly. Cedric didn’t care and calmly added,
“You’ve been talking a lot since earlier.”

Batis ran his hand down his forehead and looked at Herder.
“Lately, Cedric’s been focusing on the mining business.”

Batis sounded uncomfortable. Herder gave a small, understanding smile and nodded.
“Then you must be really busy.”

Cedric didn’t answer and picked up his knife to cut the meat.

The mood felt heavy all of a sudden, but it wasn’t something I could step in to fix. I quietly observed Cedric.

The knife in his hand caught my attention—especially the silver wedding ring on his finger.

Unlike me, Cedric always wore his ring.

‘Why does he care about the ring so much when he even has a mistress?’

While I was lost in thought, a quiet voice spoke again.
“By the way, did you know? These days, a lot of people our age are getting divorced.”