I Am Trying to Divorce My Villain Husband, But We Had a Child - chapter 50

Episode 50

#7. Elisa Roengreen

The hunting festival was just a few days away.

Noblewomen exerted themselves to dress up whenever there were royal events such as hunting festivals or national celebrations.

How expensive their clothes were and how precious the jewelry they adorned themselves with were direct symbols of their wealth. Moreover, it also signified how much a wife was loved by her husband.

For these reasons, dress designers and jewelers were tirelessly busy in the lead-up to royal events.

Many nobles even signed contracts for several years in advance to secure their preferred renowned designers and jewelers.

Elisa hadn’t reserved any designers or jewelers as it had been years since she last attended such an event, and she had initially intended to divorce.

Fortunately, Richard had already paid in advance to reserve designers and jewelers.

“I will pay any amount, so bring me the widest variety of products they can make.”

Richard had declared that he would buy all the products made by the designers and jewelers.

The designers and jewelers worked tirelessly to create various dresses and jewelry.

Among them, there must be at least one that the Duke and Duchess would like. With that in mind, today was the day to showcase them.

Among the six dresses made by the designers and assistants, a sky-blue dress and a pink dress were selected as the dresses to be worn on the day of the hunt.

“Hmm.”

Elisa, contemplating which dress to wear while looking at the two dresses of different colors and designs, called out to Richard.

“Richard, which one suits me better?”

Richard, who had been quietly observing her, finally spoke up.

“They’re both beautiful.”

That was his honest opinion.

Whatever she wore would look lovely in his eyes.

However, Elisa seemed dissatisfied with that answer and lowered her head.

“Well, both dresses are indeed pretty. What I mean is, which one suits me better?”

The designer, who had been watching Elisa struggle to make a decision, cautiously suggested.

“If you’re having trouble deciding, why don’t you try wearing both? It feels different to just look at them and to actually wear them.”

“Oh, that sounds good.”

Agreeing with the designer’s suggestion, Elisa decided to try on each dress.

As Elisa went into the dressing room with her assistants, Richard, who remained in the bedroom, browsed through the catalog in front of him.

“It’ll be too late to order when the time comes.”

But there was no catalog for maternity dresses, no matter how much he searched.

Just as Richard was about to ask the designer next to him, Elisa emerged from the dressing room wearing the sky-blue dress.

The sky-blue dress, complementing Elisa’s dazzling blonde hair and sparkling green eyes, exuded a cool and refreshing atmosphere. It was perfect for a spring outing.

“How does it look?”

“Beautiful.”

Satisfied with Richard’s answer, Elisa went back into the dressing room.

In the meantime, Richard asked the designer, “Are there any maternity dresses?”

“Oh, you’re looking for maternity dresses. Please wait a moment; I believe they should be in the catalog…”

The designer instructed the assistant to bring all the catalogs they had prepared.

The Duke and Duchess of Rubellin were affluent to the point where they could be considered the wealthiest in the empire.

This was an opportunity to boost sales.

However, no matter how hard he looked, Richard couldn’t find the catalog for maternity dresses.

“I apologize, Your Grace. It seems that the catalog was left at the shop. I’ll send someone to fetch it immediately.”

“No, there’s no need.”

As the designer inwardly panicked, Richard spoke up.

“Send all the maternity dresses available at the shop. Focus on lightweight and comfortable ones.”

“Pardon?”

“Purchase all of them.”

The designer, still dumbfounded, finally understood his intention a beat late and showed relief.

“Oh, yes! I’ll send them right away! Thank you.”

As the designer finished their conversation, Elisa emerged from the dressing room wearing the pink dress.

Richard’s gaze instinctively stopped as he looked in that direction.

The off-shoulder design of the pink dress revealed her slender shoulders.

The sheer sleeves revealed her straight arms and fair skin, creating a delicate image.

Elisa turned slightly in front of Richard and asked, “How is it?”

To Elisa’s eyes, the pink dress seemed to suit her better.

And she also thought she would choose the pink dress.

However, Richard gave an unexpected answer.

“Let’s go with the dress from before.”

“Huh? I think this one looks prettier…”

“Wear that one only at home.”

His voice, refusing to listen to any counter arguments, was firm.

‘Is it really that bad?’

Elisa wondered at his reaction, tilting her head slightly, but she decided to heed his opinion, especially considering Richard’s somewhat chilly demeanor.

The final items were the custom-made jewelry they had ordered in advance.

Necklaces and earrings made from high-purity diamonds from the mines of Rubellin completed the ensemble.

Anne and the maids, seeing the necklaces and earrings adorned with dozens of diamonds, expressed their admiration.

But to Richard’s eyes, Elisa shone brighter than those jewels.

As Richard silently watched Elisa, he asked, “Is there anything else you need?”

“No, this is enough.”

After all, the one attracting attention at the hunting festival would be Princess Rose, not Elisa.

Elisa pondered ways to draw people’s attention other than dresses and jewelry.

At that moment, she noticed Anne and the maids standing nearby. A good idea struck her when she saw them.

“Anne, could you come here for a moment?”

On the eve of the hunting festival, Elisa brought Richard to his bedroom.

Usually, Richard slept with Elisa, so his bedroom was only used as an extension of the dressing room.

Elisa brought him to his bedroom to dress him up.

“This hunting festival is the first official event Richard is attending since returning from war.”

All the nobles would take an interest in him, whether for good or bad reasons.

“So, I should dress him up as the center of attention.”

Elisa took out a few outfits from Richard’s dressing room. They were the clothes she had seen when she briefly visited his room before running away.

“Richard, try this first.”

Richard accepted the turquoise jacket Elisa handed him and casually tried to take off his nightshirt.

Elisa was startled and quickly grabbed his tunic.

“What, what are you doing?”

“You’re supposed to go to the dressing room and change! You can’t just take it off anywhere!”

“It’s not just anywhere.”

Richard tilted his head in confusion, then continued taking off his tunic.

“This is my room, and you’re my wife.”

The word ‘wife,’ which was so natural, suddenly made her heart race.

His ruby eyes, the word ‘wife’ uttered in a soft voice, felt like they were binding her.

“Um, well…but…”

There wasn’t necessarily anything wrong with undressing in front of his wife. After all, they had seen each other’s bodies many times before. But…

But why did it feel so awkward?

As Elisa stared blankly at Richard, she blinked and lowered her gaze.

That’s when she saw the clear scar on his waist, among the strong muscles.

It was quite a deep scar, one she hadn’t noticed before.

Unconsciously, Elisa reached out to touch the scar.

Surprised by her touch, Richard flinched but didn’t pull away.

“Doesn’t it hurt?”

“…I don’t remember.”

There were times when he had been seriously injured in battle and in danger, but all he remembered clearly was his determination to return to Elisa alive.

Since he had safely returned to her, the scars were now just memories he didn’t really care about.

But it seemed different for Elisa.

With tender fingers, Elisa suddenly gripped his side where the scar was.

When her fingers didn’t catch well on his muscular side, she lightly slapped it with her palm.

“Be more careful from now on.”

It hurt.

It hurt every time she saw the scars of war scattered across his body, every time she saw him indifferent to those scars.

It hurt to see him unaffected by those scars.

If these big and small wounds were to be forgotten, it meant unimaginable things had happened there.

“Now you’re a father. You have a daughter to take care of.”

“……”

“If you’re going through a tough time, don’t bear it alone, and if you’re in pain, don’t keep it to yourself. Okay?”

“I will.”

Richard appreciated Elisa’s concern, but he couldn’t help but lie in response.

He felt sorry for it, but he couldn’t tell Elisa about the pain in his back. He knew she would worry about it.

“I’m all dressed.”

Richard stood in front of Elisa wearing the clothes she had chosen for him.

Elisa looked him over with satisfaction.

“As expected, the finishing touch of fashion is the face.”

His handsome face was undeniable, but something felt missing.

As Elisa stared intently at his face, she sat Richard down on the bed and began to run her fingers through his hair.

“It’s so soft….”

The feeling of his fine black hair tickling between her fingers, the unique scent of his hair when it ruffled, it all felt good.

Elisa continued to run her fingers through his hair, brushing aside the bangs that slightly covered his eyebrows.

Then, his thick eyebrows and well-defined forehead were revealed.

Below them, his straight nose accentuated his masculinity.

As Elisa admired his unrealistic face, Richard lifted his gaze to look at her.

Elisa’s heart pounded as their eyes met.

“Elisa, it seems quite late….”

Unaware of what was going on in her mind, Richard worried that Elisa might be tired tomorrow, but she didn’t hear his voice in her ears.

Elisa just stared blankly at his face.

With a face that looked calm and serene, as if there were no blood or tears, his gentle face leaning towards her chest made her heart flutter.

“So cute, yet so handsome… Handsome, yet cute…”

As Elisa remained silent for a while, Richard asked with a puzzled look.

“Should I keep my hair like this tomorrow?”

Elisa, who had just snapped out of her daze at Richard’s voice, found herself getting lost in his face again unintentionally.

Then, she finally regained her composure and brushed his bangs aside.

“No, it doesn’t seem right.”

It feels very wrong in my heart…