#4. The Wife Changes
December 5, 2023
The next morning, Selah entered with a knock.
On the tray she carried were the freshest vegetables, bread, and a drink.
Unlike before, Selah bowed politely to Eshika and said,
“I’m sorry, Madam. My skills are lacking, and this is all I could prepare.”
Eshika knew that the Matron had ordered her to be fed with nothing more than stale bread.
So this must have been Selah’s own doing—stealing food by her own initiative and bringing it here.
When Eshika gave a slight nod, Selah placed the tray on the table.
As she turned to leave, Eshika threw something in her direction.
Startled, Selah caught it and opened her palm.
A single small, glittering pearl lay there.
It was probably worth at least three months’ wages for a maid like her.
“It’s bait for the head chef.”
Selah’s eyes flickered at that.
If she gave this pearl to the head chef, he’d gladly sneak her some good food.
“Bring me the paper on the table. It’s a kind of recipe. Just ask him to cook according to it.”
Of course, it was also possible to customize the dish to suit the Duchess’s tastes.
Selah bowed respectfully.
“Understood, Madam.”
In the past, she might have secretly sold the pearl instead of giving it to the chef—but now she knew better.
The Duchess could see right through everyone’s intentions, including Selah’s. She could tell whether something was poisoned or not just by looking at it. There was no way such a woman wouldn’t notice her petty tricks.
“Why didn’t I realize she was like this before?”
After last night, it felt like her eyes had finally been opened.
The treatment of maids depended on the status of the mistress they served, and because Selah served Eshika—who had always been looked down upon—she herself was also ignored.
But the Duchess now… she might even be able to stand up to the Matron eventually. If so, Selah’s position could…
“…No. That could never happen.”
As the idle thought crossed her mind, Selah quickly dismissed it.
After Selah left, Eshika twisted the corner of her lips.
There was a reason she decided to keep Selah around.
As Duchess, she needed eyes and ears in the household. Until now, she’d left everything to Yuri, but she couldn’t trust her anymore.
Selah was greedy, yes—but once her place was made clear, she knew to stay in line.
She also had surprisingly wide connections and could gather information if needed.
So she would be quite useful while Eshika remained in the ducal estate.
“Good thing I kept that pearl, at least.”
Once a month, her brothers sent jewels from her family home. Yuri was supposed to deliver them to her.
Eshika had complained in the past, unaware that Yuri was secretly keeping the best ones for herself.
And whenever Yuri soothed her by saying, “I’ll sell the rest of the jewels and get you some necessities,” Eshika foolishly gave the rest away.
The “necessities” she received were nothing but old blankets, poor food, and worn-out items.
Yuri claimed she used the jewels to bribe the Matron’s maids, but their gazes were always cold.
Clearly, they had received nothing.
Thankfully, the pouch of pearls Eshika had received from her father the day before her wedding was hidden well. Even Yuri didn’t know about it.
“First priority… is whether the chef can prepare the tonic.”
In the martial world, warriors consumed elixirs to speed up their cultivation.
The same applied to spiritual practitioners like herself. Eshika knew the components of a basic elixir well, so it wasn’t difficult to think of this era’s equivalent ingredients.
She asked the chef to prepare what looked like a juice—but was actually a tonic to increase internal energy, called “Il-yeong Yak”.
If it could be successfully made and she drank it daily, her inner power would grow much faster.
That afternoon, as she steadily built up her energy through breathing exercises, Eshika was summoned by Kalian.
She dressed in a red gown she’d brought from her family home. Despite its age, it made her figure stand out like a captivating rose.
“You’re truly beautiful… Somehow, you seem to be getting prettier,” Selah had said admiringly while adjusting her lace.
And it was no wonder—circulating her energy had flushed out impurities from her skin, leaving it visibly clearer and brighter.
“Did you call for me, Your Grace?”
Standing behind Kalian, who waited at the tea table, Eshika spoke quietly.
She would rather continue her training than drink tea with someone she disliked—but in unprepared situations, it was best not to stand out too much.
“They’ll all be dealt with soon enough, so no need to rush.”
Kalian slowly turned to look at her.
And for a long moment, he stared.
This was indeed Eshika Klaus, yet something about her—her gaze, her presence—felt subtly different.
Her silver hair fluttered in the gentle breeze, her skin had a healthy glow, and her blue eyes beneath long lashes shimmered like jewels in the sunlight.
“Sit.”
At Kalian’s command, Eshika took the seat across from him.
She did not lift her teacup, simply looking at him.
The silence stretched.
Kalian felt a strange discomfort as he looked at her.
“She used to whine that I drank tea only with my friends… said she always wanted to be by my side.”
Her wide, overly dramatic eyes, the nasal, pouty voice. The little missteps that always went against etiquette.
Tea time with her was exhausting—hearing her ramble about things he didn’t care about was torture.
But now, Eshika just stared at him silently, not even offering a greeting. The atmosphere was oddly stiff.
Her indifferent gaze seemed to ask:
“So what do you want?”
That couldn’t be right, Kalian thought, and finally opened his mouth.
“How is your health?”
“Considerably better—but I still require much rest,” she said, placing emphasis on the word rest, as if to say:
“I hope you don’t call for me again anytime soon.”
Kalian took it as a harmless comment and continued.
“The reason I asked you for tea today is to give you a warning.”
Truthfully, he didn’t even want to speak with her.
But last night, he’d seen Yuri crying, claiming Eshika had been tormenting her. That had left him uneasy.
There was no guarantee Eshika wouldn’t slap her again.
“A warning?” she asked calmly.
Kalian, suppressing rising irritation, went on.
“Please refrain from making any remarks or actions that might stain the Klaus family name.”
“Jealousy does not become you, dear Duchess.”
Eshika stared at him with a cold gaze, but Kalian didn’t meet her eyes.
He spoke bluntly:
“Suspicion only brings pain upon yourself.”
“My relationship with those women is purely political.”
Then he drained his now-cold tea in one gulp.
“You need only fulfill your duties as Duchess.”
Eshika just stared at him, her expression unchanged.
He had expected her to beg for his love again, or rant about Yuri. But she did neither.
Instead—
“Pfft.”
A short, amused laugh escaped her lips.
Then she chuckled quietly, as if she had just heard a funny joke.
Kalian’s brow twitched as he watched her.
“You’re not taking my words seriously.”
He frowned, thinking he was wasting his time.
He assumed the laugh was just another way to get his attention—surely she would soon start throwing a fit, demanding he explain his relationship with Yuri.
She would flush red, her eyes fill with tears…
She was nothing like his friend.
But Eshika continued to smile slightly, unfazed.
And the longer she smiled, the more Kalian felt something was off.
Finally, she spoke again.
“You really are consistent, Your Grace.”
To Eshika, Kalian was stubborn—unyielding even if it meant breaking.
Because of that pride, he had always looked down on her—a wife bought with money.
Yuri had deliberately worn Kalian’s family ring to provoke her. But that too was calculated.
Yuri knew how Kalian would view a wife who tried to confirm the truth herself.
A man’s desire only intensifies when he faces resistance.
“As you say, I shall focus solely on my duties as Duchess,” she said with a calm voice.
Then, with her next words, Kalian’s eyebrow twitched again.
“If that’s all, may I be excused now?”
“……!”
A completely unexpected reply.
She was saying the conversation was over?
Kalian stared at her, suddenly feeling an inexplicable pressure in his chest.
In her cool blue eyes, there was a composure he’d never seen before.
“Considering our current relationship… I feel even this kind of conversation is a waste of time.”
Her lips moved with a cold clarity.
And the feeling only grew stronger—today, Eshika seemed like someone else.
As if she harbored a completely different heart.
She picked up her teacup with a serene smile and slowly took a sip.
Kalian couldn’t understand her demeanor.
“Still… I did enjoy the tea’s aroma, at least.”
Clink—the sound of her setting down the cup.
“Then, I’ll take my leave. I still need rest from the previous injury.”
Eshika Klaus—this woman had never once gotten up before him.
She had always begged for love, pathetically trailed behind, and remained even after he left.
But now, as she stood, there was none of that old, unpleasant clinginess in her gaze.
Her eyes—eyes that once looked at him like he was the most precious gem—now saw him like a common, worthless pebble. Her thick lashes, glinting in the sunlight, gently veiled that indifference.
