The Stand-In Villainess's Contract Marriage: I Was Divorced After a Year, But For Some Reason, My Ex-Husband Seems to Be Looking for Me - Chapter 30

Ordinary people don’t usually throw wine glasses at someone, no matter how much they are provoked.

By doing something like that, Valentina was clearly at fault.

Most likely, Valentina’s father, Marquis Madariaga, tried to place all the blame on Liana in an attempt to mitigate his daughter’s bad reputation.

The fact that she was sent to the convent was likely a temporary measure, and he would probably call her back once the rumors died down.

However, the incident didn’t end there.

The third princess, Rosita, was the king’s most cherished daughter, and the king was furious when her face was injured.

Furthermore, Princess Rosita testified that Valentina had cruelly insulted Liana. She had found it unpleasant and stopped to watch, only to be struck by the wine glass.

The truth, very different from the rumors circulating, came to light, and Marquis Madariaga’s plan to protect his daughter by spreading false rumors completely backfired.

Marquis Madariaga and Valentina were charged with injuring Princess Rosita and attempting to cover up the truth, leading to their banishment to the countryside.

This outcome surprised even Kararize.

While the Madariaga family was allowed to survive, the title was passed on to Valentina’s brother, Celedonio.

With so many scandals and challenges, those who had previously supported Marquis Madariaga all recognized Kararize as the rightful heir to the Kirina ducal house.

For Kararize, who had planned to divorce Liana soon and hand over the title, this was an unexpected turn of events.

With no one left to inherit the title, he had no choice but to remain the head of the Kirina family even after divorcing Liana.

As Kararize spent time dealing with the aftermath of the incident and supporting Celedonio, who had suddenly inherited the title, time flew by quickly.

Although Liana was involved in the incident, she was merely ordered to remain in seclusion as a formality. Since Princess Rosita had declared Liana a victim, it did not become a major issue.

Thus, Kararize left the matter of Liana to his butler, Felice, and focused on his work.

One autumn night…

Kararize had been in his study since the morning and finally felt a bit tired. He decided to leave his office to take a nap.

Although he had never intended to inherit the Kilina family, the constant work kept his mind busy, allowing him to forget the tiresome parts of his life.

(So, it’s autumn already…)

Though he planned to rest, the moonlight lured him to take a walk in the garden.

That’s when he heard a voice.

“!”

At first, he thought it was an intruder, but it was a young woman’s voice.

And it wasn’t coming from outside; it seemed to be from a room. He considered that it might be the maids chattering, but there was only one voice.

For some reason, Kararize walked in the direction of the voice.

“Father… Mother…”

It sounded like someone was talking to themselves while looking at the sky through an open window.

That area was the guest room.

He hadn’t expected any visitors, so he soon realized that the voice belonged to his wife on paper, Liana.

Though he couldn’t see her face in the darkness, her voice was much younger than he had imagined, almost childlike in its innocence.

Was she really the notorious “Lady Lana”?

As he listened quietly, her voice came again.

“The Karota family will be inherited by my sister and her fiancé, Sir Naje. The two of them will surely protect the land and the people.”

Her high-pitched voice seemed to be addressing her long-deceased parents.

“There’s no need to worry about my sister. The medicine is working well, and she’s living almost as healthily as anyone else. Please, continue to watch over her.”

So, Liana’s sister was ill?

It seemed she was speaking her true thoughts, believing no one was listening. Feeling guilty for eavesdropping, Kararize hid himself.

“Please, forget about me. For my sister’s sake, I’ve brought shame to the Karota family name. I’m sure Sir Naje was right; you must be so disappointed in me.”

Her voice trembled.

Perhaps she was crying.

“Please, let my sister live happily. And may happiness also come to Lord Kararize, who has given my sister the means to recover…”

Kararize’s eyes widened, shocked to hear his own name.

(For me?)

Because she believed no one could hear her, her prayer was so pure and sincere.

Kararize had never heard such a gentle, heartfelt prayer before.

Afraid to hear more, he hurried back to his study.

He knew that even if he went to his bedroom now, he wouldn’t be able to sleep. So, he decided to work through the night.

(I saved her sister? Was that because of the payment I made during the contract? Did Liana accept this marriage to help her sister?)

The image of “Lady Lana” that the rumors painted seemed so far removed from this Liana.

But if this was the real Liana, he could understand why Count Tweed had taken an interest in her and entrusted her with his care.

Her sister’s illness…

Liana said she was able to save her sister thanks to the reward from the contract marriage. Who exactly had she paid such a large sum to?

If he asked Felice, the butler who handled the payments, he might be able to find out.

But even though Kararize had intended to, he soon became too busy to follow through.

The winter that year was particularly harsh, with many snow-related damages across the region.

Kararize spent his days inspecting the affected areas and reporting the damage to the kingdom, leaving him little time to return to the estate.

By the time things finally settled down, spring was just around the corner.