I Supported My Fiancé for 10 Years After He Said, 'Let's Get Married When I Succeed,' but When He Finally Did, He Dumped Me. By the Way, I'm a Witch and Turning 30 Next Year!! - Episode 23
“W-What are you doing!?”
“It’s because you said something terrible, isn’t it?”
“It wasn’t terrible! I saw it with Sui’s holy magic! The night I broke off our engagement, I saw you bringing that man into your shop!!”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
Apparently, the saint Sui was worried that I might do something drastic after our engagement was broken off. She even thought I might have thrown myself into a river or something.
“I told her I was sure you were fine. Rei, you’re not the type to get shaken easily.”
But Sui insisted on confirming my safety. So, she used a holy spell that allowed her to see the person she focused on through a basin filled with holy water.
“At that time, you were definitely bringing that man into your shop!”
“Don’t say it like that! He was just helping carry a heavy stew that someone forced on me!”
“Who would believe that!? You must have spent a passionate night together!”
“He’s just a regular customer at the pharmacy! We have no special relationship!”
“You can say whatever you want, but don’t act tough. Even so, it’s pathetic that you could only attract such a lowly man.”
“What are you saying!? Ie is an honorable man!”
Say whatever you want about me. But I won’t let you insult Ie.
I tried to drive him away, but Rymer walked past me and approached Ie.
“Hey, brother, how was Rei? You might not believe this, but in the ten years I was with her, I never touched her.”
That’s right. Even though Rymer and I lived together, we always had separate rooms. Not even once did we share a bed.
I had believed his words: “Our first night will be after marriage.” I thought he treasured me. But in reality, it was different.
“If I slept with her even once, she’d insist on marriage, so I avoided it. Instead, I used the money she earned to play around with other women.”
“W-What!?”
I had no idea. I had given him a large sum of money every month, yet he always claimed it wasn’t enough. Now I knew why.
From the start, he never intended to marry me. He planned to use me until I was no longer useful and then move on to someone new.
What a complete scumbag.
“Dealing with a woman who doesn’t know men must have been a hassle. Were you gentle with her?”
Rymer sneered as he looked at Ie’s face, but what happened next was unexpected.
Ie swiftly removed Rymer’s gauntlet, grabbed his wrist, and twisted it.
“Gah—!?”
The normally gentle Ie was silent with rage.
But it was understandable. Rymer had said something truly despicable.
“Ow, ow, ow, ow!!!!”
Rymer wailed dramatically, and Ie let go of his hand.
Losing balance, Rymer fell backward and flailed on the ground like an overturned beetle.
He somehow got back on his feet, then suddenly pulled out a letter and threw it onto the ground.
“Sui gave me this letter for you! Read it well!”
I had wondered why he even came here, but apparently, he had a job as a messenger.
“I heard you stole Sui’s soap business and are doing whatever you want.”
“Stole it? I was making soap first, and you benefited plenty from the money I earned with it.”
“Shut up!!”
Despite making such a pathetic scene, he still had the energy to be arrogant.
When Ie cracked his knuckles, Rymer yelped, “Hiiiii!!” and ran away, yelling, “You’ll regret this!!!!” like a cartoon villain.
“Haaahhh…”
My head hurt. Why did Sui and Rymer keep coming one after the other to cause trouble?
The night my engagement was broken off, I swore I would never have anything to do with them again.
That aside, Rymer had said some rude things to Ie.
“Ie, I’m sorry about Rymer.”
“No, I should apologize too. I did something that could cause a misunderstanding. I shouldn’t have gone up to the pharmacy that night in the first place.”
“That’s not true. That night, you listened to me and spoke kind words. Thanks to you, I was able to keep working with a positive spirit. If we hadn’t met that night, I might still be depressed. Rymer was just saying nonsense, so please don’t worry about it.”
“Thank you…”
Even though I reassured him that he had done nothing wrong, Ie still looked downcast.
“Rymer is the one at fault.”
“But because of my shabby appearance, I ended up damaging the shopkeeper’s reputation.”
“I don’t have a reputation that can be damaged.”
So really, don’t worry about it.
Even though I repeated myself, Ie just gave a vague nod and said, “See you later,” before walking away.
His retreating figure looked lonely, making my chest tighten.
Later, the lunch menu sold out completely.
Apparently, the innkeeper’s wife had recommended it to the customers.
Everyone said it was delicious, which helped heal my exhausted heart after the trouble with Rymer.
After closing the pharmacy and cleaning up, I suddenly remembered the letter that had been sitting in my robe pocket all day.
“Oh, right, Sui sent me a letter.”
I searched for a paper cutter, but Melv Maple handed me a leaf.
It was shaped into a knife, with one edge sharpened like a blade.
“Thanks, I’ll borrow this.”
When I opened the letter, I found a sheet of paper and a card inside.
The card was an invitation to an engagement ceremony.
And the letter contained something shocking.
“She wants to have a competition at her engagement ceremony to see whose soap is better!?”
The winner would be allowed to supply the Holy Ministry with soap.
“How does she even come up with these things!?”
I couldn’t believe it.
『Will you accept the challenge?』
“Ughhh…”
I didn’t want anything more to do with them. But if I ignored this, they would keep coming after me.
I remembered the ‘Silk Foam Soap’ Sui had left behind.
“Ugh, fine!”
If they wanted a fight, I’d give them one.
I immediately wrote back, accepting the challenge.