Byletta’s face flushed red with embarrassment. Even though she was still a beginner, Arnald still did whatever he pleased in the bedroom. She didn’t know what he’d done once she’d passed out from pure exhaustion, but it felt like he’d toyed with her body all night long. Although Byletta didn’t know the normal amount of lovemaking that went on between a man and his wife, she had to assume from her body’s complaints that what she’d experienced was excessive.
“Maybe it’s your fault for being so attractive,” Arnald suggested.
“Maybe you should rethink your reasoning before blaming others…”
“It’s very strange. I’m not the kind of person to have such strong urges. For me to have such trouble suppressing myself, you must be quite talented in the art of seduction.”
“What about me is so seductive?”
Byletta threw a suspicious glance at Arnald, who was smiling like he wasn’t, in fact, troubled at all.
It was rare to find someone who displayed such a large gap between what they said and how they acted. Watching her husband feign innocence, she felt a strong impulse to break his nose, but she pushed it back down.
“It’s terrifying that you are so unaware of your allure. But I think the more we sleep together, the more I’ll be able to calm myself—why don’t you just submit and play along for now? Especially as our wager still stands.”
Have we not had sex enough already? Byletta silently wondered. How many more times would it take to satisfy the man?
She had a lot of questions, but, unable to bring herself to tell her husband to do as he liked, Byletta ended up swallowing them all.
It seemed as if he planned on taking her as much as he liked every night for the rest of the month, only to throw her away once he became sick of her. He really is the worst kind of man.
Byletta tried gently pushing Arnald’s arm away, but he didn’t budge. If anything, he tightened his grip around her waist.
“Could you please unhand me?”
“Oh, my apologies. I was just admiring you. You look lovely in that dress. The light purple complements you perfectly…but I think you’ve been lucky thus far, looking as defenseless as you do.”
What did he mean, “lucky”? The only one to leave her with memories of being defenseless was him.
A bitter memory entered Byletta’s head for a split second, but she quickly reminded herself that it didn’t hold a candle to her husband’s actions.
“I wish I could pour water on your head and make you come to your senses!”
“Ha-ha, that sounds like fun, but we’re currently making the carriage outside wait for us. It’s a shame, but let’s go.”
What’s a shame? Byletta wondered.
Perhaps she should douse him with water after all.
Given what was happening, she couldn’t help but sincerely wish for the return of the cold-blooded, apathetic husband she’d known before.
Arnald had been acting strangely ever since they’d gotten back from the countryside estate. Even at night, he would gaze at her with an oddly sweet look in his eyes. Byletta had never seen such an emotion in him before. It almost felt like he was trying to show her affection. It was probably just her imagination as someone who was still naive on the subject of love, but it made her feel uncomfortable nevertheless.
Shaking off the tingling feeling budding inside her, Byletta exited the front door to find a carriage waiting, just like her husband said there would be. Once the vehicle had begun to sway its way to one of the most luxurious shopping districts in the city, Arnald cheerfully asked her a question.
“Where are we headed today?”
“Well, let’s see…”
Byletta had ordered a dress for the victory celebration before she left for the Swangan country estate. She’d asked for it to be delivered to her boutique, but if they went there, she knew she would be interrogated by her staff, who knew her circumstances. She couldn’t face that. And besides, she didn’t want to show Arnald her world. Tamping down the words she’d been about to say, Byletta desperately set her mind to work.
If possible, she wanted to make it so that Arnald never wanted to go shopping with a woman again in his life. But what shop would bore him the most? Byletta couldn’t think of anywhere to go at all. No matter how long and hard she pondered, as someone with little courting experience, she had no expertise to draw upon.
As she searched for an answer, she happened to look out of the carriage window.
Once upon a time, she had come to town with her father-in-law on some business and shown him to her boutique. He’d been deeply uncomfortable and ill-tempered at finding himself so surrounded by dresses and jewels.
Arnald and his father weren’t that close, but they shared the same blood. Surely, her husband would hate the experience just as much. Coupled with the fact that this was his first time shopping with a woman, she figured he would probably tire of things quite quickly upon experiencing what they were like for real.
Byletta couldn’t exactly enter other clothing boutiques with ease, as they were her competitors, so she decided to go to a jewelry store instead. She had just ordered some items that had seemed perfect for the fast-approaching victory celebration. Arnald probably looked down on people who spent money frivolously, so perhaps she could put on enough of a show to make him start to hate her. If she kept it up, the chances of her getting the divorce she craved would grow in her favor.
Steeling her resolve, Byletta smiled.
“Could you take us to Biamonte Jewels?” she asked the carriage driver.
But as soon as she arrived in front of the store, she instantly regretted her decision.
“Why, Lady Byletta, you came at just the right time!”
The moment that Arnald opened the stylish door for Byletta, the owner of Biamonte Jewels came running over, rubbing his hands together. He was the third-generation manager of the store and approximately the same age as Byletta’s uncle, but his excitability suddenly made that doubtful.