I didn’t stay in the banquet hall after the Emperor withdrew and night fell. Without hesitation, I boarded the carriage heading toward the Duke’s residence. Then I called out to the sullen man sitting across from me.

“Yezar, you fool. What guilt do you feel just because Her Majesty the Empress cried? Anyone would think you had harmed her…”

Haa, this fool. How can he be so painfully kind? He automatically assumes everything is his fault. Of course he wouldn’t even consider that Bertisha, furious after being rejected by him, had shouted at him and behaved rudely.

Then Yezar, with a deeply gloomy expression, replied.

“…I’m sorry. I was taught that one must never make a woman cry. It feels as though I’ve disobeyed my father’s teachings.”

Huh? What did he just say? So his guilt wasn’t stemming from hurting Bertisha at all?

“You weren’t sorry toward Her Majesty the Empress?”

Then he looked at me as if I were saying something strange.

“What reason would I have to feel sorry toward her? I am your husband, and it’s only natural to keep a certain distance from any woman other than my wife.”

Right. That was certainly correct.

“Yezar, was it really alright, facing Her Majesty the Empress?”

My husband, who had faced Bertisha, seemed far more composed than I’d expected. This should be a cause for joy. So why did I feel this odd sensation? Was it because the devoted secondary male lead, Yezar, who had once been so devoted to Bertisha in my memory, seemed to have completely vanished?

‘Or could it be because everyone had unanimously said that Yezar collapsed upon hearing of Bertisha’s marriage?’

Ember had even cried while begging me, unable to bear seeing Yezar suffer any longer. The butler, though angry, had spoken with a bitter tone—utterly helpless, overwhelmed by despair at being unable to do anything.

“There’s no way. The moment I saw her, I thought my heart would drop to my feet, just like when her letters kept coming. But strangely, once I found you, I felt fine.”

“You felt fine after finding me?”

Indeed, it seemed being together helped ease emotional unease more than being alone. While lost in such thoughts,

he smiled beautifully, like a star shining in the night sky.

“Yes. Because I felt you would protect me. And I also remembered your warning, so Her Majesty the Empress stopped bothering me.”

“What warning did I give you, Yezar?”

I clearly said something to catch his attention, but I couldn’t quite recall the exact words.

“You said that if I looked at another woman in the banquet hall, you wouldn’t let me off. Every time I met her gaze, that was the only thing I could think of. Then I started worrying—what if you were disappointed in me for conversing with other women and meeting their eyes?”

Ah. The imprinting effect had worked perfectly. To divert his gaze, which had once been filled solely with thoughts of Bertisha.

I should definitely make use of this again in the future. Unaware of my thoughts, he gazed at me with pitiful eyes and asked.

“Are you disappointed in me, wife?”

Disappointed? On the contrary, I wanted to hold him tightly and praise him.

“I’m not disappointed at all. Her Majesty the Empress was the one who pushed familiarity, speaking to you first and acting unreasonably.”

I tightly grasped his hand. Then I slowly, clearly spoke the words I wanted to tell him.

“On the contrary, you did well. You didn’t avoid her, but cleanly drew a line, didn’t you? That couldn’t have been easy.”

Anyone else might not understand, but I, as the reader who had watched his desperate one-sided love, knew how difficult it was for him to push Bertisha away with every word he spoke.

“If I pat your back and say you did well, would you dislike being treated like a child?”

“No. I wouldn’t dislike it.”

He pulled me into his arms. Before I knew it, I was fully embraced by him, and I smiled as I gently patted his back.

“I hope Yezar won’t suffer anymore. I want you to let the past drift away with the wind and only look ahead at the brilliant path laid before you.”

I knew what it felt like when the one you loved refused to look at you. It was painfully lonely, so I deliberately avoided bringing it up. Romantic love, familial love—ultimately, they all existed for the sake of being loved and loving in return.

Why does love have to make people suffer so much?

“As long as my wife is by my side, I won’t collapse, won’t hurt, won’t suffer.”

“Really?”

Did he know our contract was only for two years when he said that? Still, by then, even without me, he would probably manage well on his own.

“Yes. And what man in his right mind would let his eyes wander to another woman in front of his wife? If I had, I would’ve annulled this marriage long ago.”

“Yezar, when we first met, you told me you didn’t believe you could love anyone. On our first night, you honestly told me you’d long loved someone else. Yet it was I who decided to continue this marriage.”

Yes. This marriage was my own choice, not forced by anyone.

“Because you’re kinder and gentler than anyone else. That’s what I liked about you.”

At that moment, his heartbeat seemed to quicken slightly. Was it because I could hear it more clearly, nestled tightly in his arms?

“But still, I don’t want to be a man who looks at other women. Didn’t I tell you from the beginning? I promised to become the ideal husband you wanted. And surely, a man who gazes at other women can’t be part of that ideal husband image, can he…?”

I couldn’t help but smile. Ah, why is my husband so sharp today? It was hard to find any trace of longing for Bertisha in him.

‘Could my special training have worked? I used the idea that physical distance leads to emotional distance.’

I used to envy, without end, the time they had shared—time I could never have. But now, since Yezar no longer sought Bertisha in the past, I no longer felt envious.

“Ah, come to think of it, did you get your foot treated?”

I lowered my gaze to look at the tip of his shoes, and Yezar smiled, saying it was fine.

“Yes. It’s been fully healed. There wasn’t even a visible scratch to begin with.”

Ah. Thank goodness. I’d been worried I might have injured his body again.

I had come to today’s banquet extremely tense, but it hadn’t turned out as bad as I’d thought. As I leaned a little closer into his arms and rested my face against him,

“Rather than that, didn’t Her Majesty the Empress say she’d like to meet you again next time? What happened?”

He asked something I hadn’t expected. Despite my desperate efforts to keep Yezar from meeting her, I’d have to see her face again. What kind of situation was this?

“Um… well…”

I gave him a rough explanation—that she wanted to be friends with me. Of course, that was only her claim. Anyway, sticking strictly to objective facts, he apologized.

“I’m sorry. It seems my presence has caused you trouble. Her Majesty the Empress sometimes has a tendency to expect people to act exactly as she wishes. When that doesn’t happen, she resorts to other methods—approaching those close to the person.”

No wonder she didn’t go looking for Yezar directly, but came to me first. And strangely kept insisting she wanted to become close with me.

Thanks to Yezar’s words, I could understand Bertisha’s odd behavior. But still, since they had spent time together, it was unavoidable. Yet his calm, knowing attitude about Bertisha slightly irritated me.

‘Scratch that—take back what I said about not being envious. I’m dying of envy toward Bertisha.’

“…I understand you’re childhood friends. But you really do know Her Majesty the Empress quite well.”

After I said it, I realized it sounded somewhat jealous. But it was too late—he had already heard everything.

“I don’t know her that well.”

“The moment I mentioned it, you immediately explained how Her Majesty tends to behave that way.”

I tried hard to hold back, but my mouth moved on its own. Then he gently stroked my head.

“There are still things I don’t know. Even if we’ve known each other a long time, we didn’t live together.”

But wasn’t that practically the same? The things you learn while living together are usually mundane… Ah. He wakes up in the morning and…

“Have you never been caught?”

“Wouldn’t it be strange if I were caught?”

This time, I clearly heard his heartbeat quicken. He must have been embarrassed. I had carelessly brought up the topic, making him recall his secret again.

Even if someone claims to have no secrets, can they truly have none? People always find a way to hide what they want to conceal.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—I just got a little spiteful. The Empress speaks so fluently about Yezar, but I, her actual wife, don’t know much at all. I feel like I’m failing as the ideal wife.”

The gap created by this difference in memories felt utterly hopeless. I would never be able to become like her. She had spent time with Yezar, seeing and experiencing firsthand those moments from the past that weren’t recorded in the book.

“They’re just moments from the past. And the memories we’ll create from now on will be with you. I have nothing to hide from you, so you’ll come to know me best.”

“Really?”

“Yes. And I will come to know you better than I ever knew Her Majesty the Empress. After all, we earnestly talk to each other every night.”

That’s right. By sharing our daily lives, we discover unexpected things. I get to hear about his small habits, hobbies, and memories.