Chapter 5

The magical potion business had to withdraw because it could no longer secure the supply of potions. However, for the contracted portion, there was no choice but to pay a penalty. The amount was far more enormous than I had imagined, and our family's finances became strained all at once. The withdrawal from the magical potion business also affected other businesses. Rumors spread that we were in a situation where we had to pay the penalty, and it seemed that transactions with our family were now considered risky.

After this, I told my father to retire completely and spend his days quietly in the territory. My father, who had been exhausted by the issues with my mother, accepted it smoothly and now lives quietly in a villa in the territory.

And then, my mother divorced my father.

I had thought something was off after reading Selena's letter, but I never imagined she would divorce him. After deciding to divorce, I met with my mother, and she told me the reason.

"Actually, it took me three years to conceive you. Before I had you, I was criticized by my mother-in-law in various ways. I was even called barren. I still remember how painful it was back then. Yet, he never protected me. The resentment from that time never faded, and it lingered in my heart even after you were born."

I never knew that my mother had endured such pain before giving birth to me. From my perspective, my parents seemed to be a happy couple.

"Then, there was the matter with Selena, right? I was shocked after reading Selena's letter. I didn't mean to hurt her, but my words had become thorns that eroded her heart. I realized I was doing the same thing my mother-in-law did. It was a huge shock. When I learned that she was making potions from morning till night, I immediately thought of him. I suspected that he was the one pushing the work onto Selena. So, I confronted him. Do you know what he said? 'Since she doesn't plan to have children, it would be a waste of her magic to not work for the family.' He only saw Selena as a means to have children and magic. Even though he knew that Cyrius strongly desired Selena, he didn't try to reason with him. He just used Selena for the family. When I realized this, I couldn't bear to live with him anymore. So, I decided to leave him... No, that's not quite right. My heart had already given up on him long ago, which is why I could make the decision so quickly."

She smiled calmly, and there was no trace of regret on her face. My father, on the other hand, was so devastated that he fell ill. Still, I couldn't feel sympathy for him.

Moreover, I couldn't say anything, but I also couldn't forgive my father for this. As my mother said, he should have known about my feelings for Selena.

However, since I was the cause of everything, I couldn't complain to my father.

After that, I continued to search for Selena amidst my busy days, but I couldn't find her. Three years after Selena left, I was told that Heinrich had something to discuss with me. I wondered what it could be and was shocked by what I heard.

"He found Selena."

It seemed that Heinrich had been secretly searching for her out of concern for me.

And he found her.

According to the information, Selena is now a teacher in the country of Ares. Her name has changed to Selena Starling, and her hair color has changed from gold to platinum blonde. She is also engaged to the third prince of Ares. I was happy to know she was found, but the fact that she was engaged was hard to accept. Our marriage was annulled, but I still love Selena. However, I don't have the right to love her. I understand this intellectually, but my heart ached.

Later, Heinrich told me that Selena would attend the upcoming Founding Day party with the third prince. After that, they would get married, and this would likely be the last chance to speak to her directly.

(Heinrich is right. If I miss this opportunity, I might never see her again. It hurts to know that Selena has found someone to love. ...But I made a decision back then. I promised to apologize to her someday.)

I had made a promise to myself back then. Can I break that promise just because my heart isn't ready to accept it?

That's not acceptable.

I will end up making the same mistake again. If that happens, I might never recover.

"Lord Heinrich! I have a request!"

◇◇◇

"Selena..."

And now, Selena is standing right in front of me. I realize that I had always seen her in profile, never from the front. How foolish of me not to have noticed this before.

The Selena in front of me has platinum blonde hair instead of golden, clear blue eyes, and is wearing an elegant deep green dress, the color of the prince.

Selena and the prince are sitting on the sofa in front of me. Seeing them together, I can't help but think they look well-suited, even though it pains me. After all, the person who should be sitting next to Selena is me.

My heart ached at this realization.