When I started Suspecting my Wife of Cheating, I Somehow Ended up Living in the Middle of Nowhere - Episode 2

At the law office, I was thinking. The lawyer asked me, “What do you want to do from here?” and I thought hard about it.

I used to love my wife. I truly loved her, from the bottom of my heart.

Just like my name, Zenpuku Kumagorō, I’m a big guy. Big like a bear. I’m 178 cm tall and just under 100 kg. My arms are thick, and so is the hair on them.

When I stood next to my wife, who was only 156 cm tall, we looked like an adult and a child. Even though I’m all hairy, she used to hug me and say, “My teddy bear.”

I had once vowed to protect this woman for the rest of my life.

We were blessed with children—two of them. Both of them are as adorable as angels. The older one is calm and feels like a collection of all my wife’s healing energy.

The younger one is more responsible and has a personality that feels like a distilled version of my wife’s sly charm.

I don’t want to lose any of them. They’re precious to me. It’s a weird comparison, but if any one of them got sick and needed bl00d or organs, I’d give them mine. My arm, my liver, even my heart… That’s how much they mean to me.

Maybe she left me because we’re barely scraping by financially…? What does my wife want? And more importantly, what do I want!?

Life’s been so hectic, I can’t even remember the last time I saw her smile. When was the last time she smiled…?

“Mr. Zenpuku,” the lawyer said, “In my past experience, when a husband finds out about his wife’s affair and initiates divorce, about 70 to 80% of wives end up wanting to reconcile. Only about 20 to 30% double down and go to the person they were having the affair with. And even then, it’s common that the other man doesn’t want marriage, and once the wife realizes that, she often wants to come back. So the number of wives who actually leave for good is quite low.”

“…”

He said a lot, but I couldn’t follow it all. I’m probably not the brightest.

Seeing my confusion, the lawyer rephrased it for me.

“In other words, if you file for divorce, there’s a high chance your wife will want to come back. What we want to decide now is how you’ll respond when that happens.”

Ah, I see. As expected of a lawyer—he put it in a way even I could understand.

“If she wants to come back… maybe I want to try again… I think?”

To be honest, I still can’t make up my mind. No, it’s more like… I just can’t catch up with how I’m feeling about all this.

“Do you want to take action against the man she had an affair with?”

“Yes! I want him to take responsibility!”

“Understood. Would you prefer a verbal apology? Or money? The thing is, with a verbal apology, it’s hard to tell how sincere someone really is. Depending on his financial status, it’s common to demand compensation.”

I had imagined the guy kneeling on the ground, and my wife crying and begging me for forgiveness, so honestly, I didn’t care much about the money.

What matters to me is my wife and my family.

But… after seeing what I saw, can I really forgive her?

“Let’s focus on the apology… please.”

“Understood. In that case, let’s write down your feelings and send them to your wife and her affair partner as a certified letter.”

Certified letter…? What’s that? I must’ve had a puzzled look, because the lawyer explained it to me.

“A certified letter is something that formally states your feelings—that you were hurt by your wife’s affair, and that you’re demanding compensation.”

“I see…”

But what’s the point of sending a letter like that? Still, this lawyer really knows his stuff. He keeps everything moving forward efficiently.

Meanwhile, I still haven’t even fully processed that my wife cheated on me.

“Committing adultery while married is a civil offense. This letter will be a warning that says, ‘We have evidence of your wrongdoing. If you don’t respond, we’ll take it to court.’”

Wait, a lawyer can write a threatening letter? Is that okay…? Well, he’s the expert. I’m just a regular guy who doesn’t know this stuff. I should leave it to him.

“But what if they ignore the letter?”

“In that case, the threat becomes reality.”

The lawyer gave a big smile. Terrifying! That smile made it even scarier! I realized at that moment—never make a lawyer your enemy. But as an ally, they’re incredibly reassuring. I felt like I could count on him.

Apparently, there’s a template for this “certified letter,” so it didn’t take long to put together. Including prep, the letters would reach my wife and the guy in about a week.

I hope this snaps her out of it…

That week, waiting for the certified letter to be delivered, I was a nervous wreck. The lawyer had told me not to mention anything about the letter, or even that I had a lawyer or proof of the affair. I guess he had a strategy in mind.

Even though that was all I had to do, I was still incredibly tense. I was nervous every single day. Still, since I wasn’t seeing my wife much these days, I managed to get through it.

I’ve got to make sure the kids don’t find out what’s going on. This is a good opportunity—I should take time to talk to each of them.

★★★ Kiyomi Zenpuku’s Complaint

I’m Kiyomi Zenpuku. How old am I? That’s none of your business. I’m 34. My husband—ex-husband, actually—is 42. I’m already planning to divorce him. As far as I’m concerned, we’re done.

He’s just an old man! I’m way younger!

He’s a junior high school dropout! Can you believe it? A dropout! Even I finished high school! He barely makes any money, and he’s never home.

He was the worst husband ever. And cleaning? That’s like the bottom of the social ladder. He earned so little that I made him quit and switch to sales, but then he stopped coming home! What, is he married to his job now!?

I’m done with that guy—divorce, 100%!