To Those Who Regretted After I Died - Chapter 41

“There’s no point in talking with you anymore. We’ll discuss everything at the next meeting! I’m leaving.”

A male relative clicked his tongue and walked away from Alec.
–
“I’m leaving too. Alec and Emily’s story was quite entertaining… I never expected to hear about your dirty laundry at your wife’s funeral.”

“…”

“We’re heading out as well. Think it over before the meeting.”

“Alec… why didn’t you free Lady Sophia sooner?”

“You’re the worst!”

“Good grief…”

“…”

One by one, Alec’s relatives passed him by, most of them casting cold glances as they left the room.

As they left, the Parlis family members passed by Emily and her parents, along with her uncle and aunt from the Lemoir family. Many cast cold, harsh looks at Emily.

Emily noticed their stares but was bewildered by the lack of smiles from the Parlis family.

“We won’t accept your marriage to Alec, so be prepared for that!”

“W-what!?”

“You’ve got a pretty face, but it’s shocking how you did whatever you pleased inside the mansion.”

“Eh…”

“What kind of upbringing lets you steal your sister’s husband?”

One of the relatives raised their voice at her parents.

“… W-we sincerely apologize…”

Emily’s father and mother bowed their heads to the Parlis family relatives.

“Hmph!”

One man shot them a look of contempt as he left the room.

A woman, seeing Emily’s parents bowing, spoke to Emily.

“Alec’s having a rough time being blamed by everyone today, so you should comfort him later. Hehehe.”

“Huh? Alec is!?”

The heavily made-up woman smiled at Emily as she spoke about Alec.

“Oh…”

Emily glanced over at Alec, who was still kneeling. She saw him surrounded by relatives, their faces still harsh as they continued to berate him. Emily quickly looked away.

“What’s this? Aren’t you going to go to Alec’s side? You are his wife, aren’t you?”

The woman smiled at Emily, suggesting that she should join Alec in apologizing.

“I’m… I’m not married to Alec yet…”

“You shouldn’t run away~! A woman who marries into the Parlis family has to support her husband. Your sister always supported hers, even when he betrayed her. Alec has caused trouble for the family, so you share the responsibility too.”

“W-well… I’m not feeling well at the moment… I wouldn’t want to affect the baby, so…”

Emily touched her belly, refusing the woman’s suggestion to go to Alec’s side.

“Well, if you’re not feeling well, then it’s better not to go.”

Emily smiled in relief at the woman’s understanding.

“I’m looking forward to you joining the family.”

“Oh… yes.”

Emily gave the woman a smile, and the heavily made-up woman left the room, chuckling to herself as she stood outside.

“I need to think of a wedding gift for Alec and Emily… Maybe before the baby is born? Oh! But I wonder if Alec will even marry her… He might lose his marquess title, but that won’t matter since they’re in love. Even if they’re a bit poor, Emily won’t complain, right? As for the gift… Oh yes, maybe I’ll send Alec a mistress to keep him company while she’s pregnant. He must be feeling lonely… hehehe. And for Emily, after she gives birth, she’ll need a job… Maybe I’ll hire her as a maid. Hehe, I’m so kind, aren’t I? Well… whether they marry or not is up to Alec.”

The woman laughed quietly to herself as she left.

Alec continued to endure his relatives’ harsh words, while his aunt, along with the doctor, left his side.

“… Are you alright with what they said to you?”

“… It’s fine… He’s my brother’s child, so I granted him the title and observed how things went. Even when my brother was alive, Alec was always learning the work, studying hard. He never showed any interest in alcohol or women; he was a serious, family-oriented boy.”

“… Yes, I remember.”

“When my brother passed, I let Alec inherit the title of marquess. I thought it would be difficult for him alone, so I encouraged him to marry. I introduced several educated young noblewomen to Alec, including Lady Sophia.”

“…”

“At the time, Alec said it didn’t matter who he married, as long as they could work together. He was so focused on his work. The relatives laughed, wondering who he took after. Alec chose Lady Sophia… She was serious, with no rumors or scandals. When we first met her, she answered our questions without hesitation… I thought she would be a great support for Alec. I planned to tell my brother, ‘Alec has a wonderful partner by his side.’ But then… I never expected him to betray his wife, Lady Sophia…”

“…”

The aunt wiped her tears with a handkerchief as she passed by Emily and her parents from the Lemoir family, who looked exhausted. She noticed Emily rubbing her belly with a smile.

Alec’s aunt, together with the doctor, stood before Sophia’s parents and exchanged greetings.

“… I know I’m late, but please accept my deepest condolences…”

Sophia’s parents, recognizing Alec’s aunt standing before them, returned her greeting in kind.

“… Thank you for attending our daughter’s funeral…”

“… I haven’t seen Sophia since the wedding… She was such a wonderful young woman, supporting the Parlis family in place of her husband…”

“If you say that, I’m sure it would make our daughter happy…”

As they wiped away their tears, Sophia’s parents bowed to Alec’s aunt, who conveyed to them that many of the Parlis family members deeply missed Sophia, who had supported Alec until the very end.

“As for the funeral expenses, would it be possible to leave those arrangements to us? Alec mentioned it to me…”

“Oh…”

“As his aunt, I couldn’t do much, but at least let us handle the funeral…”

Seeing his aunt wipe her tears, Sophia’s father also wiped his own, feeling that his daughter had been cherished. Both parents nodded to each other and bowed their heads to Alec’s aunt, entrusting her with the arrangements.

“… Understood. We would greatly appreciate it…”

“Thank you… As for the burial… We were considering the Parlis family, but… I heard Alec has already finalized the divorce proceedings…”

“W-we’re very sorry… it was our daughter Emily who brought up the idea of divorce with him, so Sophia completed the paperwork before she passed…”

“F-Father!?”

Emily was shocked and panicked as her father mentioned her involvement.

“… I see… Alec bears responsibility as well… However, I can’t imagine it’s appropriate for an unmarried woman to live in the same house with a newlywed couple for nearly half a year… Why didn’t you go pick up Emily sooner?”

“T-that’s because… our daughter insisted on staying with her sister, and we thought it would be fine since they were together…”

Her father spoke awkwardly, trying to explain to Alec’s aunt.

“I’m not blaming you any more than I blame myself… I trusted Alec’s story… Every year we would visit the estate to see Alec. After six months of marriage, I brought up visiting Alec at the estate, but he said he was too busy with work, and that Sophia wasn’t feeling well, so he asked me to refrain that year… I trusted him. I never imagined that you, Emily, would have an affair with Alec…”

“… Ah… ah…”

Alec’s aunt scolded Emily, whose face turned pale as she trembled. Her parents, bowing their heads, could only offer apologies.

“… Please don’t get too worked up…”

The doctor spoke to Alec’s aunt out of concern for her.

“I’m fine. I’ve been wanting to talk to Emily… I would like you and your parents to visit Alec’s estate later to discuss future matters.”

Alec’s aunt informed Emily and her parents that she expected them to come to the estate soon. After Alec’s aunt and the doctor left the room, Sophia’s father staggered over to a nearby chair and sat down.

“… Father…”

“Hah…”

“I… I’ll go to Alec.”

Emily hurriedly left her parents’ side and rushed over to Alec, who remained kneeling motionless.

“… Completely oblivious… What should we do, Husband? It seems the Parlis family isn’t aware of Emily’s engagement yet. I thought he would have told them by now…”

“… He probably hasn’t had the chance… It sounds like he’s been under constant pressure from the family. We’ll have to go to the Colbert family tomorrow…”

Her father slumped his shoulders, wondering how to explain things to the Colbert family. He regretted encouraging Emily’s engagement, questioning whether it was the right decision. He also felt guilt for leaving Emily to do as she pleased, trusting that everything would be fine with her sister Sophia around, just as Alec’s aunt had said…