The Son-In-Law Of A Prestigious Household Wants A Divorce-Chapter 56: The Sword Dance Festival (3)

‘Milly—!’

‘Millyyyy—!’

He was shouting right in front of her, but his voice sounded muffled in her ears, as if they were a distance away from each other.

The tears in his eyes, reflected in her crimson irises...

Reminded her of the moonlit nights they had spent together.

It was late that night.

Under the moonlit sky, he was sweating profusely, gripping a greatsword where no one could see.

There could be many reasons for someone to struggle by themselves, in a place unseen by others.

But in his case, the reason was a simple one.

He just didn’t want to appear pathetic.

The sight of him being wielded by the greatsword instead of wielding it was a shameful sight to be seen by other family members.

Hence why he swung his sword alone until late at night.

Unfortunately, no matter how much he gripped and swung the greatsword, he couldn’t overcome the limits of his birth.

The weight of talent stemming from the Helmont bloodline was just that overwhelming.

‘Please eat first.’

A cook’s morning starts early.

Milly, who woke up before sunrise to prepare breakfast, naturally became close to Isaac who’d stay up until that exact time.

How so?

As a commoner who came from a slum no less, she needed to show such a level of diligence to survive in Helmont’s kitchen.

That was probably why they somehow felt connected to each other.

They were the same kind of people; struggling from the dawnbreak to overcome something they could never overcome.

[Thanks again today, Milly.]

‘Shouldn’t you rest a bit today? You were up late again yesterday.’

That night, under the moonlit sky, they were having their usual conversation again.

This casual chatter was a small luxury they could barely find in the Helmont Mansion.

[Rest? No, I can’t. I have to keep going. This is the only way for me to make up for my lack of talent.]

‘Talent...’

Milly let out a bitter smile.

As someone who had the talents for cooking, she wondered if having talent really made much difference.

The head chef had recognized her potential and brought her in, but that didn’t mean everyone in the kitchen acknowledged her.

Just as Isaac suffered at the hands of the Helmont’s direct line, Milly was struggling with the fierce competition in the kitchen.

‘What is it about the sword that you like so much, to make you work this hard, Sir Isaac?’

At that point, the two were close enough to share their honest thoughts.

Hearing Milly’s question, Isaac pondered for a moment before dismissing it with an embarrassed laugh.

[I’ve come to admire the sword, so I just want to be good at it. But more than that...]

[I want to stand proudly beside her. I want to be there, by Rianna’s side.]

‘But you’re her husband.’

[I’m her husband, but I’m not qualified to be her husband. I’m Helmont’s son-in-law, but I can’t even handle a greatsword properly.]

Isaac pressed his blistered palms as he said that.

Although, to be frank.

After putting that much effort, he still couldn’t wield a greatsword properly. That should be enough to show how lacking his talent was.

And yet, he looked up at the night sky, with a gaze that held a childlike purity, as if reaching for stars he could never grasp.

‘Aren’t you afraid?’

[Of what?]

Milly asked with a sharp voice that she unconsciously let out.

‘Of failing after all putting in all this effort. There are realms you can’t reach no matter how hard you try.’

[...]

‘Even in my case... I know I have talent, but because of my background, no one is willing to hire me...’

[Honestly...]

After a brief pause, Isaac replied awkwardly.

[I’ve never been afraid of that. After all, I’m just preparing.]

‘Preparing?’

[If, no matter how hard I try, I remain an inadequate man who can’t stand by my wife’s side—]

Though he said his answer in a calm voice...

There was a clear sadness under it.

[I’ll have to leave. For her sake.]

‘...!’

His answer left Milly bewildered.

Because she never expected that he had put in all this effort not for his own sake.

‘But Sir Isaac.’

[Yes?]

Is that really what Lady Rianna wants?

The question touched her tongue, but.

‘No, it’s nothing.’

Milly shook her head and swallowed what she deemed unnecessary words.

Isaac and Rianna...

The conversation happened 6 months into their marriage.

*   *   *A year after their marriage.

At this point in time, rumors spread about how the two of them had entered a period of marital boredom.

Now, Rianna wore a different gaze than before.

Unlike her previous gaze that showed her affection and care even without her uttering it out loud...

Her gaze was cold and calm.

There were even times when she didn’t look at Isaac at all.

Ironically...

‘...You don’t have any wounds lately.’

[Mm...]

Thanks to this, Isaac’s body was often unharmed.

[I guess so.]

But his expression was worse than ever.

Rianna had never been one for displays of affection, but lately, they had disappeared entirely. It was obvious that he was displeased by this.

[Well, I’ll just have to keep trying hard.]

From Milly’s perspective...

She genuinely thought Isaac had grown quite a bit over the year.

The greatsword used only by the direct lines, which he used to struggle even to swing properly.

Now he could at least lift and swing it.

But, just like wearing ill-fitting clothes.

At some point, Isaac had stopped progressing beyond that, and fell into stagnation.

The ferryman who had only been rowing on rivers all his life had finally reached his limit.

‘I’ll bring some snacks.’

Milly went inside to fetch the potatoes she had steamed separately for him.

Unfortunately, when she was wrapping hot potatoes in a towel in the kitchen, tragedy approached her.

‘My Lady?!’

Galenia Helmont discreetly held out a small pouch to Milly.

[Put this in Isaac’s breakfast tomorrow.]

‘This is...’

‘Do not question me,’ that was what the noblewoman’s look suggested.

Milly’s body stiffened and trembled, as she was unable to say anything.

Then, while gently stroking her shoulder, Galenia whispered as if comforting her.

[There’s no need to worry. Think of it as medicine. Medicine to rid the illness from Helmont.]

‘...!’

[He won’t lose his life. That would be troublesome for me too. So trust me.]

She squeezed her eyes shut.

For the first time in her life, Milly tried to gather all her courage, but...

‘B-But—!’

[Milly Marso. Hailing from the filthy back alleys of the city of Volten.]

‘...!’

[Did you really think you could work at Helmont just because a single head chef took a liking to you?]

It bore down on her.

Status.

Bloodline.

Class.

Society.

This woman’s presence was absolute, overwhelmingly superior to her in every way.

Just so casually, this woman trampled her, who had lived like a rat in the back alleys.

[Why do you think we even accepted someone from Volten? It’s for times like this.]

‘Ah...’

[Your conscience doesn’t matter here. After all, yours and your family’s lives are at stake here. You just need to choose between those, and Isaac’s.]

‘Family...?’

[In Volten, people will take up their knives for just a few coins, don’t they?]

‘Why...! Why my family—!’

[Because you’ve learned my secret. Just now, at this moment.]

‘Ah.’

That was how the Lady of Helmont instigated harm against her own son-in-law.

And that was also how Milly’s life was no longer her own.

Before she knew it.

She had taken the purple pouch.

While nodding her head in compliance.

*   *   *Two weeks later.

As Isaac felt his body improved a little, he started swinging his sword again as if it was the natural thing to do.

However, perhaps due to the time spent bedridden, he once again struggled even to lift the greatsword.

[Hah! Hah!]

After finally putting down the greatsword, Isaac looked around, panting heavily.

[Milly?]

But Milly, who would usually have come to Isaac by now, was nowhere to be seen.

[Milly? Hm? Is it her day off today?]

He went to look for her in the kitchen, but she was nowhere to be found.

Eventually, he gave up and went back outside.

‘Hic.’

He didn’t know. Milly was actually hiding under the kitchen storage shelf, swallowing her tears, choking.

Rianna’s cries when Isaac had fallen ill and lost consciousness still hadn’t left her mind.

And more importantly, she couldn’t bear to face Isaac, who never even once suspected her for his sudden illness.

So she avoided him for a while.

As time passed, the guilt in her heart didn’t lessen at all, but...

At the very least, she could hide that guilt and not show it in her actions.

Thud!

Then, several years passed.

Once again, another purple pouch was placed behind her, who was already broken beyond repair no matter how hard she pretended to be okay on the outside.

Just like before, she only had one choice.

*   *   *“Milly—! Please! Please, wake up!”

While everyone else rushed towards Galenia Helmont, who was writhing in agony.

Only Isaac remained by her side.

It was probably a flash of memories.

Milly’s recollections, her old memories, one after another, flashed in her eyes until they had finally reached this moment.

Just like in her memories...

In this grand mansion, there were only the two of them here.

“What’s wrong?! What did you eat?! Milly!”

Tears that he hadn’t shed despite all the oppression and torment now fell drop by drop on Milly’s cheeks.

Desperate to save his friend, Isaac urgently shouted towards his surroundings.

“Doctor! No—! Mage!”

Unfortunately, all the mages and doctors had already flocked to Galenia’s side.

Isaac gritted his teeth and tried to get up, but Milly grasped his wrist.

Her touch, devoid of any strength to a pitiable degree, made a wave of fear enveloped Isaac’s heart.

“Milly, don’t worry. I’ll—!”

“A-Ah, S-Sir Isaac...”

At Milly’s call, which was close to a plea, Isaac suppressed his urge to call for a doctor and held her hand.

“Yes, Milly. I’m here. So—“

“I’m sorry.”

“What are you sorry for?! I’ll—”

“I’m...really sorry.”

The moment he saw the large teardrops falling from Milly’s eyes, Isaac realized something was terribly wrong.

He felt a strange sense of dissonance at how Milly was accepting death so naturally.

“Hic! Finally...”

“Milly, please. Don’t give up. I’ll quickly—“

“I know... I don’t have...the right... S-So...rry...”

Updat𝓮d fr𝙤m ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com.

“Please! Stop! Whatever you want to say! I’ll listen to it all later! So please don’t give up!”

Milly could feel her vision blurred.

While Isaac’s crying voice, full of anguish, entered her ears.

“S-So...rry.”

“I-I have something to show you! N-Now, I’m not bound by Helmont anymore! My proud self... I-I want to show you...! I’ve overcome everything and moved forward!”

Milly’s hand touched Isaac’s cheek.

Her trembling hand seemed as precarious as her life, which seemed about to extinguish at any moment.

Isaac placed his hand over hers.

“I’ll forgive you, okay? Milly. Please. Whatever you did wrong, it doesn’t matter. So—!”

Slowly...

Milly’s eyelids closed.

And her hand fell like a wilting flower.

“Ah...”

Yet...

With a small smile on her lips, Milly was still...

“I’m...glad...”

Satisfied. That Isaac said that he’d forgive her.

“...Milly? Milly—!”

Only Milly’s name echoed through the vast banquet hall.

In the grand mansion.

At dawn, when only starlight reached.

They had different dreams, but they put their efforts all the same.

They leaned, comforted, encouraged, and scolded each other as they moved forward together.

They had only one wish for each other.

Someday in the distant future...

When they faced each other...

They wouldn’t cry.

They wouldn’t worry.

They’d smile.

They’d see each other smile.

And that was all.

*   *   *The next day.

By the time the sun rose, Milly’s room was already empty.

Isaac unconsciously went there to look for her, but there wasn’t even a trace of her left.

It showed how swiftly such an unsavory incident at the Sword Dance Festival was handled.

As for Galenia, she was safe.

She had only suffered a little at first.

Unlike Milly, she had no other problems.

She even announced that she wouldn’t hold Milly responsible for trying to assassinate her, so that the Sword Dance Festival could continue without hindrance.

Many nobles praised her magnanimity.

Some called her a saint.

While others hailed her as the noblest of nobles.

The only thing...

Left in Isaac’s hand...

Was the portrait of Milly he had drawn long ago.

The portrait was in Isaac’s room.

It seemed Milly had left it there before coming to the banquet.

“...”

Behind the frame.

There was a letter that he had already read.

In there, she mentioned how Galenia had tried to harm him.

How her family and her own life had been held hostage.

How her family had disappeared, swept up in the Volten revolution.

Even the part where she apologized for not being able to apologize properly.

“...”

The medicine Galenia had given her was also enclosed with the letter.

Apparently, Milly had tried to kill Galenia somehow.

Judging by the fact that she had used a different drug, not the one Galenia gave her...

It meant that she had always been prepared for such a time that might come.

But Milly’s death ended up elevating Galenia’s status instead.

Thud.

Isaac gently placed the portrait on his desk and let out a soft smile.

He stepped out of the room and...

Immediately sought out Clarisse.

He quickly found her in the rose-filled garden.

Having heard reports of how devastated Isaac had been last night, she gave him a worried look.

“Are you al—“

“Galenia Helmont.”

However, there were no traces of tears left in Isaac’s eyes.

“The Lady of Helmont is the mole and—“

With the help of his friend, he had reached the truth.

“I’m certain she has already become a Transcendent.”

“Do you have proof?”

In the mere 1-2 minutes it took for Milly to die.

Despite ingesting such a potent poison, Galenia was fine, even though she hadn’t received any special treatment.

And as far as Isaac knew...

Only a certain monstrous being would have a strong enough body to achieve that.

The Transcendent Race.

“That...sounds quite convincing.”

“Milly left me a letter...”

Even if others point fingers at you.

You’ve done so much for me.

So don’t worry.

I hope you’ll watch over me.

My precious friend...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Milly