When My Contract with the Misanthropic Duke Ended, I Filed For Divorce, But My Husband's Obsession and Doting Became Unbearable - Chapter 12
“I–I’m sorry! We never meant to go against the royal family! We only wanted to act for the duke’s sake! I admit our feelings went too far, but we truly regret what we did! Please, forgive us! I’ll accept any punishment, just spare our lives!”
The servant’s voice trembled as he spoke, desperate, as if stopping now would seal his death sentence. It was clear he was clinging to life with all his strength. I could understand that—anyone would be terrified in his place. But still, using the duke as a shield to save himself was disgusting. He was the one who acted on his own, after all.
Even if people say the duke dislikes others, I know he’s not the kind of person who’d look down on someone or bully them because of their rank. He might seem annoyed, but he listens when people speak.
Even in this situation—if they had really cared about the duke—they should have spoken up earlier instead of keeping silent. I believe the duke would have done something, even before showing the kindness he does to me now. But because they ignored that, because I underestimated everything and thought I could handle it myself, both the duke and Reed ended up being dragged into this mess. I know I should reflect on that too.
Still, the ones who started this whole thing were people who acted out of jealousy. And hearing them use the duke’s name like a shield now, pretending to repent, only made it sound like a joke. I didn’t want to harm anyone, but for the first time, I could feel anger burning inside me.
“Prince Reed, please… grant me permission to speak.”
“Sharon…? Hmm. Well, you’re the victim here, so all right. If there’s something you want to say, I’ll allow it.”
Reed looked surprised that I spoke up so suddenly, but after seeing my serious expression, he thought for a moment and nodded, giving me permission. Maybe my anger had finally reached its limit. At this point, I felt like I might as well let out everything I’d held back over the past three years.
Because these people—grown adults—were nothing but selfish children who only cared about themselves. It’s not wrong to value yourself, but when you think only about yourself, never understanding others’ pain, it’s no wonder you can’t even grasp what it means to truly regret something.
And with that thought, I acted on my anger—and for the first time in my life, I hit someone.
“W–What are you doing!? How dare a baron’s son strike me—me of all people!?”
See? People who’ve never known pain always reveal their true colors this easily. They don’t understand remorse—just empty words and fear. I could tell he was thinking, “If only Reed forgives me…” with that pale, trembling face of his. I ignored his protests and struck the servant again, then kicked him, continuing to beat him—just to make him feel what pain is.
If someone had stopped me midway, that would’ve been fine. But no one did. So I kept going until the servant began to cry. I’m not very strong, so it took a while, but pain grows with every blow. By the time I stopped, he was a broken mess.
I couldn’t help but think—how dare he hurt me before, when he’s this weak?
“Does it hurt?”
“Y–Yes! It hurts! I’m sorry…! Please, forgive me…!”
“Yeah, it hurts, doesn’t it? But you did the same thing, didn’t you? I held back my tears, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. Didn’t anyone ever teach you not to do to others what you wouldn’t want done to yourself?”
“I–I won’t do it again…! Please…”
“Why are you crying now? You make it look like I’m bullying you. And besides, I didn’t say you could apologize yet.”
“F–Forgive me…”
“Hmm, but can you forgive? A moment ago, you were so loud, saying things like, ‘He’s just a baron’s son!’ You were so eager to defend the duke, weren’t you? Didn’t you say you’d beg for mercy if it was for the duke’s sake? Then you should endure a little pain for him, right?”
“Ugh… uhh…”
Pathetic. Once they feel pain, they drop their pride and crumble like this. And the others—just shaking in fear, wondering if they’re next—were no better. I almost wanted to deal with them too. I knew this wasn’t a healthy thought, but all the emotions I’d kept locked away were spilling out uncontrollably.
“I’m not even hitting you anymore, so why are you still crying? Oh, right. You, the tutor—you used to say something like, ‘If someone’s too stupid to understand words, it’s fine to hurt them,’ didn’t you?”
“N–No, that was just…”
“For a teacher, you seem to know nothing about what pain feels like. So I’ll teach you today.”
“W–Wait! I understand already!”
The tutor trembled before I’d even touched him. He’d always looked down on me, saying whatever he wanted, but now he was terrified of being treated the same way. It was pathetic. I never learned anything from him anyway—he only mocked me and wasted my time.
“All right then, here’s a question. If you can answer it, I’ll believe you understand.”
“O–Okay, I’ll answer!”
“Does it hurt when you’re hit? Or does it not?”
“I–It hurts!”
“Then let’s test that!”
“T–That’s not fair!”
“You never gave me the answers either, remember?”
“S–Sorry! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
His immediate surrender before I even hit him made my anger flare again. If he could apologize this easily, why did he ever do something so cruel to me? Maybe seeing the servant’s state scared him, but still—it was pathetic. So, this is what people who’ve never known pain are really like?
It made everything I’d endured feel meaningless. Why did I have to be the one hurt all this time? What was it for?
And then—something warm surrounded me.
“Sharon, don’t cry.”
“Lord… Koch?”
It was the duke—holding me from behind. And it was only when he spoke that I realized—I was crying.