IMPEHB | Chapter 1.1

One day, my husband brought a woman home.

 

If I counted up to the time before the regression, it had been two weeks since the affair began.

 

The moment I opened the door, I saw him, holding her in his arms.

 

She had glossy blonde hair, blue eyes, and a deer-like gaze.

 

“Oh, you must be the lady of the house.”

 

The woman, who had been lying in bed, rose with a bright smile.

 

Perhaps embarrassed, she pulled the blanket up to her chin, making me let out a hollow laugh.

 

Shamelessness, it seemed, knew no gender.

 

She, who looked like a white lily in bloom, blushed and greeted me, beaming as if she were the true mistress of this house.

 

“Get out.”

 

The moment he got up, he gave the order.

 

Was I interrupting their little romp? After locking the door and making love, he now had the nerve.

 

“I have something to say.”

 

“I won’t say it twice. Get out.”

 

His voice was sharp with annoyance.

 

He no longer even saw me as someone he once loved.

 

Humiliating me in front of another woman, how far he had fallen.

 

“It’s important. Please, hear me out.”

 

“Ha.”

 

He immediately stood up.

 

Step. Step. The sound of his shoes echoed harshly in my ears.

 

“I hope, for once, it’s not that damn talk about love again.”

 

His face was twisted in disgust.

 

It felt like a massive awl pierced deep into my heart.

 

“This time, it’ll be something fresh, Your Excellency.”

 

“Your Excellency?”

 

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

 

His face, towering above me, twisted as if he had misheard.

 

Though he had used me as nothing more than a tool, could he possibly feel slighted?

 

“From now on, I won’t care who you meet.”

 

“…What?”

 

A wrinkle appeared once more on his pale face. A dry laugh escaped from his long, cracked lips.

 

“I mean it. Go ahead. Whether they’re blonde, silver-haired, or stark naked. Anyone.”

 

The woman still lying in bed smiled. For a moment, I felt like I’d become the villainess in this story.

 

Even though the one truly at fault stood before me.

 

“This is absurd.”

 

“But I have one condition.”

 

He laughed incredulously, like he’d just heard the most ridiculous thing.

 

“I’ll do the same.”

 

My voice was steady without the slightest tremor.

 

His always-straight, dark eyebrows furrowed like a crumpled paper.

 

“What the hell does that mean?”

 

“I’m going to have an affair too.”

 

Ha. A short sigh dropped to the floor.

 

He yanked at his tie like it was strangling him.

 

“Did I hear that right? What?”

 

“…”

 

“An affair? Are you out of your mind?”

 

A sneer burst out of him.

 

Clearly, he still felt no remorse. That expression on his face said it all.

 

“Why not? Am I not allowed?”

 

“Come here. We need to talk.”

 

He reeked of alcohol, so strong it felt like one sip would get me drunk.

 

I wanted to ask what had hurt him so much that he’d become like this. So consumed by women and drink.

 

“Don’t touch me.”

 

Smack!

 

I slapped away the hand gripping my shoulder. His arm hung awkwardly in the air.

 

He looked utterly lost.

 

His red eyes trembled like fallen leaves, nervous and anxious.

 

And yet, strangely enough, for the first time… it felt like we were having a real conversation.

 

In the middle of this complete disaster.

 

“You should give me a chance to smear your name too, Your Excellency.”

 

“…”

 

“It’s only fair, don’t you think?”

 

A sharp smile played across my lips.

 

“From now on, let’s focus only on our respective lovers.”

 

“…”

 

“It’s a waste of time to love just one person, isn’t it?”

 

Without hesitation, I turned my back to him.

 

Click. Click.

 

The sharp sound of my heels rang out like ice cracking underfoot.

 

Creak. I pulled open the thick door and stepped into the hallway.

 

The cool air cleared my suffocating lungs.

 

“Well then, have a passionate love, Your Excellency.”

 

I had regressed.

 

After jumping to my death in front of my husband Calion and I woke in bed.

 

Thinking it was just a dream, I rushed out, only to find Calion again… with a woman.

 

And everything was exactly the same as the first time.

 

The woman repeated the same words, confirming my suspicion: I had gone back.

 

At first, I couldn’t believe any of it. But I decided to stay calm.

 

There was no way I would fall into his trap again.

 

At some point, he had changed.

 

Once utterly devoted to me, he suddenly became obsessed with his business, like a madman.

 

I thought it was just because he was busy.

 

For his family’s sake, for his own future, I consoled myself every day.

 

But the result of all that patience… was infidelity.

 

 

[If you’ve stopped loving me, then say it, Calion.]

 

[…]

 

[Stop making me feel so wretched!]

 

 

From what used to be their shared bedroom, laughter from another woman echoed every day.

 

She would hide in the small room next door, stifling her sobs. The thought of him tangled in bed with that woman made her heart feel like it would explode.

 

 

[We loved each other. I was your first love, and you were mine. So why? Why are you doing this to me?!]

 

 

He was the one cheating, yet she was the one on her knees.

 

That’s how desperate she was. Because to her, he was the one person she loved more than anyone else in the world.

 

And yet, his reply was…

 

 

[I’m sick of you.]

 

 

It was the worst thing he could have said.

 

 

[Your bare face, your shabby clothes…]

 

[…]

 

[I’m sick of it all.]

 

 

He fired bullets with his mouth. Sharp words pierced her delicate heart over and over.

 

She cried. How could a person change so suddenly?

 

He, who once whispered love to her every night, had become a complete stranger in the blink of an eye.

 

He felt unfamiliar now.

 

 

[You’re sick of me…?]

 

[Yes.]

 

 

She saw herself reflected in the long mirror.

 

Light brown hair cascading to her shoulders. A soft cream-colored dress. No makeup, Simple clothes.

 

Everything she wore, everything about her was what he once claimed to love.

 

 

[You said you liked me like this…]

 

 

Her large, round eyes quickly filled with tears.

 

He didn’t move an inch. The man who once would have reached for a handkerchief to wipe her tears now just stood there.

 

 

[Do you not love me anymore?]

 

 

Her once-steady voice trembled helplessly. She didn’t even know why she was asking. She already knew the answer.

 

Still, she wanted to hear it from his lips. To hear him deny it, say it wasn’t true, that this was all some horrible mistake.

 

 

[I can forgive the affair. Anyone can make a mistake, just once. So please… stop this now.]

 

[…]

 

[I’m really at my limit.]

 

 

He remained silent.

 

His ruby-red eyes stared at her without a flicker.

 

Her heart pounded wildly. Her lips trembled with unspoken fear.

 

 

[Well.]

 

 

He curled his lips into a sharp, cruel smirk.

 

 

[I enjoy spending time with her more than with you.]

 

 

A lifeless scoff slipped from her throat.

 

He didn’t look like her Calion anymore. He looked like any filthy man you’d find on the streets, nothing like the person she had loved so fiercely.

 

He continued in a flat, heartless voice.

 

 

[The divorce papers will arrive in a few days. You won’t feel wronged…I’ll make sure the settlement is more than enough for you to live comfortably for the rest of your life.]

 

 

Her gaze pierced through him with contempt. The fact that he could say something so vile so casually, it terrified her.

 

 

[No.]

 

 

She forced the words out, grinding her teeth.

 

Tears welled up and threatened to fall from her lashes, but she held them back.

 

 

[I won’t give you a divorce.]

 

 

She steadied her ragged breathing and met his eyes.

 

She couldn’t bear to watch him walk away after destroying her life, only to live happily with another woman. And yet, deep down, she still held onto the pathetic hope that he might reconsider just once.

 

 

[I’ll take it to court if I have to.]

 

[Then do it. You think I don’t have lawyers of my own? My family has been in the legal field for generations…!]

 

[How childish.]

 

 

A derisive snort split the silence.

 

 

[The Marquis and Marchioness of Veroce have been dead for what…months? Years? And you still haven’t woken up from your little dream?]

 

[What…?]

 

 

His mocking tone took her breath away.

 

In their lifetime, her parents had treated him like their own son. They adored him, calling him the perfect son-in-law.

 

 

[The entire Veroce estate was transferred to our family.]

 

[What did you say…?]

 

[So stop being stupid and give up. We’re getting divorced, whether you like it or not.]

 

 

Her heart pounded as if she were in a sprint.

 

None of it made sense. How could her parents’ inheritance have been transferred to him? How?