The Broken Ring: This Marriage Will Fail Anyway Chapter 46

Chapter 46

Chapter 5. Once Newlyweds

"I've always thought a day like today would come eventually, but that it would be today..."

Ines glanced once at the Duchess of Valeztena, who burst into tears so fiercely at the thought of putting a piece of bread in her mouth, and once at Cárcel, who was silently chewing his food beside her.

The uncontrollable mood swings of the duchess were already familiar to the family, but they would be quite strange to outsiders like Cárcel. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Of course, considering the various dramas that unfolded in this very place a week ago…

‘Not exactly newfound...’

The Duchess, who displayed various psychiatric symptoms such as severe mood swings, anxiety, alcoholism, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder each season, never forgot her dignity in front of others, no matter what. Among them, showing emotional weakness was considered highly shameful and foolish, as it seemed like handing over her life and death rights to others.

Being the most exclusive personality, the duchess found it impossible to regard Cárcel as family already. Perhaps a week ago, under the influence of alcohol, it could be excused, but now, at seven in the morning by the window, with birds chirping, she had to be completely sober.

"Yesterday felt so unreal, like a dream all day long, but seeing the two of you sitting here side by side today, it feels like this is really happening. It feels like a hundred years of pent-up frustration is finally melting away... I wondered what sin I committed to endure such misfortune, but today, finally...”

So, Ines's marriage made her more intoxicated than alcohol. The Duchess of Valeztena blinked her tear-filled eyes incessantly as she alternated between looking at Ines and Cárcel.

"Truly, this is all I ever wanted, Ines..."

"I know, Mother.”

Ines responded with a sigh. If the Duchess of Valeztena had been like any other mother, and Ines like any other daughter, this scene would have been a moving moment impossible to get through without tears.

In that case, there would have been no breakfast atmosphere like this, where the Duchess, despite starting to sob, chewed on smoked beef alone since morning, or where the newlywed wife's mother cried with emotion at her daughter's wedding while the son-in-law just stared down and mechanically chewed on his food.

"You've finally become a woman, and I still can't believe it. Wouldn't anyone feel the same? Living all your life in those drab clothes, just waiting to be divorced by Escalante like everyone was saying—."

"—Enough, Olga."

"—As the whole town was gossiping. Being left alone like some deserted island without a suitable match... Just like food goes bad if left untouched, so does a woman without marriage. But could Valeztena's daughter marry just anyone from Grandes de Ortega? Would just anyone dare to marry her? Give it three more years, and they might settle for a widower, but even that's doubtful...”

On this clear morning, the Duchess, sober despite not having touched a drop of alcohol, poured out her harmless gossip to Ines, as she always did. The expression on the Duke of Valeztena's face grew serious.

Perhaps he was contemplating. Whether it would be better to drag his wife out from before their newlywed daughter and son-in-law like a criminal, and shut her mouth once and for all, or whether he could somehow resolve this without resorting to such a final indignity…

"That kind of vulgar marriage, sullying the name of Valeztena and inviting ridicule from society, I would have been better off spending my life confined to a convent. At least then I could have sold my soul to God."

The Duchess, unaware of her husband's feelings, poured out her sentiments. Ines swallowed a few roasted beans, as if it were just another mundane story she always heard. Meanwhile, Cárcel's expression hardened intermittently, almost as if in stark contrast.

"Well, given your previous attire resembling that of a crow, it's not surprising. Isn't that so, Lord Escalante?"

"Olga!"

"—Seems like the Duchess is seeking approval for something, but I'm not sure what.”

Cárcel elegantly wiped his mouth with a napkin, leaving behind a plate barely touched. Ines sighed softly, sensing unfavorable signs.

"Oh, are you worried Ines might take offense to my words? How delicate of you. But my daughter is as tough as nails and as indifferent as a stone, so she won't bat an eye no matter what her mother says. Therefore—"

"—If most of your remarks are like this, I'll follow suit and not hear them, Duchess."

"'Remarks like this,' what do you mean by that? Are you implying concerns about my husband?"

"Concerns are based on affection. If your love for your daughter is genuine, her indifference would be more frightening than a few disregarded words."

There was a brief moment of complete silence, with not even the slightest sound of cutlery moving.

Ines rolled her tired eyes in the uncomfortable silence of her new ‘family.’ Was it the unfamiliar shape of this new ‘family’ that made her uneasy, or was it the eerie silence itself?

In a distant memory, she once despised her mother with a passion, and her husband, who now merely brushed off her mother's slander with a dull ear... Husband, a strangely unfamiliar and embarrassing form. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Ines felt even more alienated by Cárcel's strangeness as a ‘husband’ overnight, replacing the venomous insults of her mother, now devoid of any impact.

She felt a sense of being lost, as he, who had once looked down on her with half-childlike innocence, now seemed to protect her like family. Just two hours ago, he had tormented her with an even stranger demeanor…….

Cárcel was barely sitting up by the time the first light of late summer crept into the bathroom. The reason she hadn’t been able to sleep was extremely vulgar, but not in an aristocratic way: she’d fallen into a deep sleep only to be woken by insistent caresses, and then fallen into a deep sleep again, and… It was as if someone were determined to torment her.

Somehow, she was barely sitting up by the time the first light of late summer crept into the bathroom.

The reason she hadn’t been able to sleep was extremely vulgar, but not in an aristocratic way: she’d fallen into a deep sleep only to be woken by insistent caresses, and then fallen into a deep sleep again, and… It was as if someone were determined to torment her.

With both families remarking that ‘the couple’s love was excessive’, and the faces of the handmaidens gathered before the bridal chamber still vivid in her mind, she wondered if she had the strength to handle this situation with her weary mind. Her body was out of the question. She could barely move the heavy silverware as if it were a large lump of lead.

The Duchess's ups and downs and spiteful remarks weren't always directed solely at Ines. As each turn came around, this moment, too, would soon pass, thought to be the best course of action was to simply listen with earlobes tacitly agreed upon, and the best course of action was actually not to encounter mother or wife.

Living as far apart from each other as possible, enduring the saints' feast and unpretentious meals together, and maintaining the boundaries of family.

The Duke of Valeztena spent most of the year at the Mendoza Manor, while the Duchess resided mostly at the Perez Manor. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Unlike Mendoza Manor, Perez Manor was excessively vast, and Luciano and Ines could exist there as if they didn't exist at all, if they wished.

If it hadn't been for Ines's marriage, the whole family wouldn't have had to endure such suffocating moments one after another.

It felt like reliving childhood. Like an insignificant nightmare.

"Duke, did you hear that? Your son-in-law just gave me a lesson. It was about how we should treat our daughter."

"...Lord Escalante's words are absolutely right. It's our last meal at Valeztena Manor. So, maintain your dignity."

"That trash from Escalante dared to teach me. Me, untruthful. That I dare not love Ines—"

"—Olga."

"The husband of our girl who you called trash. And yet, you only—!"

"—My wife has ears, she'll hear whatever you say. Even if the Duchess doesn’t have to swallow her pride.”

Cárcel, who had risen from his seat, reached out a hand to Inés as he finished speaking. Inés stared at it blankly for a moment before glancing at Duke of Valeztena.

He nodded, as if to say that he would be grateful if they would just disappear.

As if he had been waiting for that permission, Cárcel gently lifted Inés to her feet, supporting her entire forearm beneath her wrist as she reached for his hand.

It was perfect etiquette, but excessive. As if he knew in advance how difficult it would be for her to stand. When Inés stepped out of the chair and stood beside him, Cárcel bowed his head deeply towards the Duke.

“I hope you will forgive us for not being able to stay longer, as the journey to Calstera is long.”

‘…Calstera?’

“Inés?”

Cárcel called her name softly, as if to say that she should add a few words as well. [ʏᴜʟʜᴇʏᴜɴ] Inés spoke, sounding as if she were being half-pushed.

“……Please forgive us for leaving in such a hurry. Mother, Father. I will visit Mendoza again soon.”

“I can’t believe you’ve already been gossiping about mother to my husband... Lord Escalante, it’s incredibly rude to address the bride’s mother in such a haphazard manner right after the evening—”

“I understand, but it’s alright.”

“……..”

“Your Excellency, then please excuse me.”

As they walked out the door, it felt a slight tremor of unease.