I Wish My Husband Were Dead - Chapter 10



Only Krnovel

Teacher and Student
2023.11.10.

“It’s so quiet and nice without that woman.”

After two days, Leonard was very satisfied with his peaceful daily life.

However, after three days, then four days, everything suddenly started to bother him.

“Close the curtains. It’s dazzling.”

“Huh? But the room was gloomy just now, so I told you to close the curtains… .”

“Don’t you hear me telling you to close the curtains?”

“… Yes, master.”

Leonard acted like a grumpy old man and often changed his orders.

Thanks to that, only the servants died.

“Four days should be enough.”

“Huh?”

“How long do I have to wait?”

He grumbled to the air. He

thought he would feel relieved because the person who had been annoying him every day was gone, but instead, he felt annoyed.

At the end, Cordelia’s face, who had forced a smile, came to mind, and Leonard kicked the blanket hard.

“Hey, you. Come here and help me out. I ’ll go out to the garden to get some air.”

“Yes, my lord.” Leonard went out, supported by his servant, to cool his head. Compared to the garden at Attila’s main house, Abrams’ garden was more like a cute vegetable patch(?), but it was still worth seeing. The sun was warm enough to walk leisurely, but a maid standing far away stiffened when she saw Leonard. When Leonard arrived in front of her, the maid blocked his path with a very troubled expression. “What? Get out of the way.” “Excuse me, my lord. The grand duchess and Countess Dahlia are having tea time up ahead.” Normally, he would have just avoided them, but he felt a chill. “So? How dare you block my path unless you’re crazy?” At the chilling order, the maid eventually got out of the way. As he walked a little further, a surprising sight unfolded in the small patio. The moment he saw it, he realized why the maid’s face had turned pale. “What are you doing?” “Oh, Craig. Is it okay for me to wander around like this?” “I don’t think you answered my question yet.” He looked at Cordelia, who was standing there with wine poured over her head. Cordelia was surprised to see Leonard and avoided his gaze. “What, I’m teaching manners.” Helena answered surprisingly calmly. “Manners? Do they teach people in this family by pouring wine on their heads?” “Craig. Don’t worry about it. He’s still a brat. You should have seen how he behaves towards his mother. By the way, I’m still angry.” “Ha.” “Instead, let’s go hunting together later. Then I’ll forgive you.” Lily linked arms with Leonard and smiled coquettishly, not seeing his cold, frozen face. “Oh, Lily. What are you hunting when the weather is not even nice? What if you catch a cold?” “It’s okay. Just put on your new fur coat and go.” The mother and daughter laughed as they talked politely. Even Cordelia wasn’t even a topic of conversation for them. The maids standing nearby didn’t show any surprise, as if they were used to this situation. They knew that Cordelia was being ignored in this house, but they didn’t know it was to this extent. In an instant, their heads went cold. Leonard roughly pulled Lily’s arm away from his side and said, “I guess you can’t fool a low-born.” “What? Who are you talking to?” “Who do you think you are, a low-born person here?” He glared at Helena and Lily alternately with eyes mixed with contempt. Helena’s face quickly turned red. “I’ll let your rudeness slide for now. Go away, Craig.” “Rude? Who are you ordering? This family with no hierarchy, is it?” As the situation became more and more tense, Cordelia, who had been standing on one side, quickly intervened. He was already known to be an idiot, so his position was bad, and there was no benefit in provoking Helena here. Cordelia grabbed Leonard’s sleeve and shook it weakly. “Craig. Come in.” “Why are you acting like that? Oh, enough. I’ll talk to you later.” “Madam. Craig hasn’t been out of bed for long and is feeling very unwell. Please forgive him.” “It’s her who should be asking for forgiveness, not me.” “Her? Craig! I’m your mother and the mistress of the Abrams family. Where did you get such a spoiled brat… ?” However, Leonard paid no attention to Cordelia’s mediation. Instead, he sent Cordelia behind him and stepped forward.

“Mistress? How dare you call yourself the mistress of the Abrams Castle?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The former Count, right after my father died, you embezzled the castle’s funds behind the scenes.”

“W-what?”

“And you shamelessly invite young servants to your bed, and what do you mean by a mistress? Oh, is that the qualification of a mistress in this castle?”

“You, t-what the hell are you talking about?”

Helena’s face turned as white as milk. Cordelia was startled, looking back and forth between Helena and Leonard.

Lily stuttered in great surprise.

“Huh, Craig! What the hell are you talking about? Your mother, your mother wouldn’t do that.”

“Haven’t you understood yet? This woman embezzled Abrams’s fortune behind the scenes and did dirty things with her servants. Your mother.”

Leonard pointed his finger at Helena and blatantly laughed.

The servants around her whispered and became agitated. Helena, who noticed it, quickly changed her expression and ordered a servant nearby.

“Where did you spread such a ridiculous rumor! You must have lost your mind after coming back from the dead. James. Take Craig to the bedroom right now. Hurry up!”

The young servant named James walked awkwardly to Craig’s side.

“I’ll take you to the bedroom.”

“Ken, Leonard, Charles, Edward.”

“… … .”

“The men who slept with you… … . Call me more?”

Helena’s lips trembled. Leonard, on the other hand, was extremely relaxed.

She took a deep breath and gritted her teeth.

“You still seem to be out of your mind. It’s amazing how you can tell such ridiculous lies.”

“Well. Why would I lie about something that would be exposed right away? I’ve found all the servants who had affairs with you and put them in the dungeon. If you want, I can call you here. If I see your face again, will you remember that time?”

“Nonsense! They’ve already left this country… … .”

Helena hurriedly refuted and then paused. She seemed to realize belatedly what she had said. The surroundings froze.

“No. No! What am I, this is all Craig’s plot! It’s a ridiculous lie to drive me out!”

“When you get old, just stay in the back room. If you ever get in my way again, I’ll send you to the wasteland.”

“You, you, how, how… … .”

“James.”

Leonard spoke coldly to the servant who had come to arrest him.

“My mother seems to be unwell, so take her to the bedroom. Hurry.”

“… … Yes, master.”

His voice was surprisingly majestic.

The servant did not dare to disobey Leonard.

The two servants turned and approached Helena. Then they grabbed her arms without hesitation.

“Let go of this! How dare you! Can’t you let go of this?”

“I’m sorry. Madam.”

The subordinates were sensitive to the shift in power. They instinctively knew who would gain power in this family.

“I am the mistress of this house! Not that prodigal son! I built this family!”

Helena resisted fiercely, but she could not withstand the power of a grown man.

Lily stared blankly at Helena’s back as she was dragged away, then quickly followed her.

Everything passed like a storm.

Even the maids nearby retreated, and now only Leonard and Cordelia remained. Cordelia looked in the direction where Helena had disappeared and said,

“Is this okay? The lady won’t stay still… …”

“Why are you spilling your wine?”

“It’s nothing. She’s just venting her anger on me like usual.”

“What kind of venting?”

“I think Lily told the lady after she was kicked out of your room that day. She’s picking on that.”

She said casually. That was Cordelia’s way of protecting herself.

All this bullying was nothing. So there was nothing to be hurt about.

“I’m okay.”

Cordelia smiled to reassure him.

He was the one who protected her in his own way. I don’t know what he meant by that, but I was quite grateful that Leonard listened to my backstory.

However, the moment their eyes met, Cordelia automatically shrugged.

Anyone could tell that Leonard was very angry.

‘Why are you angry…?’

“Are you stupid? Don’t you have any pride?”

“Huh?”

Cordelia was taken aback by his cold sarcasm that followed. Leonard looked at her wet hair and said.

“Do you really think those people will give you more money when you leave just because you’re bowing and pleasing them like this?”

“… … .”

“Wake up, Cordelia Vasquez. Nothing’s going to change no matter how much you struggle.”

Wrestling.

The words were like a dagger. She felt as if all the moments she had endured with a forced smile in this house were being belittled.

‘It’s okay. It’s okay.’

However, she tried to endure the uncomfortable situation by smiling as usual.

“What you’re saying… … is a little harsh.”

“You’re a Vasquez. You’re one of the eight sacred families. Do you really need to bow so servilely?”

“… … .”

“So don’t bow like an idiot… … .”

“What do you, what do you know about me to say that?”

At that moment, Cordelia’s patience that she had been holding back burst out.

She had been able to endure it when Helena hurled insults at her, but for some reason, every word Leonard spat out pierced her heart like a sharp sword.

“Wrestling? Yes, that’s how it looks to you. Why do you live so meanly? Don’t you have any pride?”

“… … Wait. I just…”

“What do you know about my life that you can say such things?”

Cordelia opened her eyes wide and looked at Leonard. She was so angry that her head became cold.

Leonard couldn’t answer and just moved her lips.

“My real father sold me to this hell for a few pennies! He told me not to come back even if I became a corpse. What can I do? Do you know how you live and die when you’re born into a ruined family? Don’t you know!”

She cursed at him for the first time. All sorts of emotions were mixed together, and even she herself couldn’t tell what form they were taking.

“There’s no way you would know. You were born with everything from the beginning. You were born with dazzling blessings and lived without ever lacking anything.”

“… … .”

“Do you know why I bow my head so meanly and smile even as I pour wine over myself?”

The end of her voice trembled unintentionally. I tried not to cry, but I couldn’t completely control my surging emotions.

Eventually, a tear rolled down my cheek.