My Husband Caught Me Having an Affair - Chapter 54

“Yes, that’s what I thought… Could it have been a misunderstanding?” I lowered my eyes with a sad expression.

Audrey quickly waved her hands. “No, of course not. I’m honored… no, I’m grateful. Truly, I’m happy.”

“Good. Audrey, ah, may I call you Audrey?”

“Of course, Duchess.”

Audrey looked genuinely excited.

Just as I expected. No matter how modest and gentle her character was, there was no way she wouldn’t be pleased to show off her connection to the Duchess of Dumont at an event like this.

‘Great. Now, if I quietly step away…’

“Excuse me for a moment. I haven’t eaten dinner, and I’m feeling a bit hungry.”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

I nodded to Audrey and stepped away from the crowd. Immediately, the ladies who had been quietly observing from a distance all swarmed around her.

“Viscountess Grandbert! Since when were you so close with the Duchess of Dumont?”

“I don’t think we’ve ever seen you two interact before. Did something happen while we weren’t looking?”

The impatient ones couldn’t help but raise their voices, and I could hear their questions behind me as I walked away.

The next part was predictable. They’d all badger Audrey to introduce them to me.

‘Still, with this status, this face… Camille had it so easy, so why did she throw it all away?’

It was a mystery. Even if she had many complaints about her husband, why would she deliberately damage her reputation like that?

I was lost in thought, walking with my head tilted slightly, when someone bumped into my shoulder.

I gasped and stumbled, and the man quickly grabbed me by the waist to steady me.

“I’m so sorry. Are you alright?”

Even though I was startled, I quickly regained my balance and gently pushed the man away.

“I’m fine.”

“Truly, I apologize. I didn’t see you coming and acted rudely.”

“No, it’s alright. I didn’t even fall. Excuse me.” I smiled and began to walk past him, but he followed behind me.

“Are you sure you’re alright? Just to be safe, shouldn’t we check if you’re hurt?”

“I told you I’m fine. As you can see, I’m walking perfectly well. I’m not hurt anywhere.”

“In some cases, injuries don’t cause pain right away. It’s better to sit somewhere and rest for a moment.”

At this point, I was starting to get irritated. His intentions were obvious, and he was being persistent.

Considering the commotion, there was no way he didn’t know I was the Duchess of Dumont. How shameless was this man to act this way toward me?

I finally turned to properly look at him for the first time.

He had reddish-brown hair and a mustache.

He was quite handsome. Not that it made much of an impression, given how accustomed I had become to Ethan’s face, but I’d rate him higher than Liam Bernard.

‘In any case, it’s irrelevant.’

I stared directly at the man and spoke, “I already told you I’m fine.”

“But if, by any chance, you were injured because of me…”

“Even if I were, it wouldn’t be your fault. It was an accident, not intentional, right? Or did you bump into me on purpose?”

The man’s eyes flickered with discomfort at my words. “Of course not. But still…”

“Then it’s fine. The real offense here is you ignoring my refusals and continuing to insist on your own perspective. Isn’t that a greater insult?”

“……”

The man fell silent, looking a bit at a loss for words. I nodded slightly and walked away from him.

I headed toward the food table on one side of the banquet hall. Most of the offerings were finger foods.

“Shall I bring you a drink?”

At the sound of that voice, I realized that the man had followed me all this time.

I frowned slightly and turned to face him. “Excuse me.”

He bowed his head as he spoke, “No, as you said, Miss, I won’t impose my will any further. If I upset you, I’m truly sorry. I just wanted to apologize.”

‘…Miss?’

I furrowed my brows. I had assumed he approached me knowing I was the Duchess of Dumont.

‘Or maybe this is part of his act. If I correct him, he’ll probably act surprised, say he didn’t realize because I’m too young and beautiful to be anyone’s wife. Typical.’

Debating whether I should correct him or not, the man continued speaking.

“My name is Clements Kaunis. I’m from Oslant. I’m in Alveni for business.”

Oslant is a country bordering Alveni to the southeast. Now that he mentioned it, his accent did seem a bit unfamiliar.

‘…Wait, Clements Kaunis?’

It was a name I had heard before. I furrowed my brow as I tried to recall where.

‘Was it on Viscount Rochefort’s guest list? No, I memorized that list thoroughly. It was from much earlier than that. Where was it? I’ve definitely heard it somewhere…’

I glanced at the man’s face, trying to jog my memory.

Then my eyes caught his.

His irises were a dark hazel color.

Suddenly, a lightning bolt of realization struck my mind.

‘…Clements Kaunis. That’s right. There’s no doubt.’

It was one of the aliases used by Nicolas Sadun in the original story.

Sadun was his mother’s family name. His real last name was Girard.

Nicolas was a secondary male lead in the original, the illegitimate son of Duke Marlon Girard.

Very few people knew that Nicolas was Marlon’s son.

His mother had secretly given birth to him and fled abroad, much like a typical female protagonist of a regretful story. But unfortunately, Marlon felt no regret.

After finding them, Marlon orchestrated an accident that killed Nicolas’s mother and brought the boy to Alveni.

Marlon placed Nicolas in the Girard family’s intelligence agency, where he was trained as a secret agent over many years.

Driven by a desire to gain his father’s approval, Nicolas excelled in espionage and assassination, carrying out all manner of covert operations.

‘There’s no doubt it’s him. The name, the unique eye color, pretending to be a foreigner… But why? Why has he appeared already?’

In the original, he wasn’t introduced until seven years from now.

‘Wait, the original said he was 27 at his first appearance, so that would make him… what, 20 now?’

Perhaps it was because of his mustache, but he didn’t look that young. He seemed at least in his mid-twenties.

‘He’s a master of disguise, after all…’

Noticing my silence, Nicolas spoke with a puzzled expression, “Is something wrong?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

I lowered my gaze, pretending to examine the food. But my mind was racing.

‘Why is Nicolas appearing now? This should still be the period when he’s in training.’

I was certain. In the original, it was mentioned that Nicolas had only been working as an official agent for two years but was already among the top operatives in the intelligence agency.

‘Is Nicolas acting on his own? Or… did Marlon send him?’

Either way, it was clear that I had altered the storyline.

Unlike the original, Girard had failed to silence Liam.

The Girard side must have been convinced that Ethan was behind Liam’s rescue. Naturally, they would have considered the possibility that Liam had revealed the truth.

That much I had expected. But I hadn’t anticipated Girard to act so quickly and overtly.

In the original, Marlon prioritized secrecy to the point of paranoia. He would sacrifice even his closest aides without hesitation to keep his operations hidden.

‘…This is probably Nicolas acting independently. He’s still in training, after all. He likely moved on his own, eager to prove himself.’

That fit with Nicolas’s character. In the original, he was impulsive and driven by a need for his father’s recognition. At this younger age, it made sense he would act recklessly.