Reasons for Contract Marriage - Chapter 163

Lucius asked sarcastically what more needed to be said, but instead of leaving the room, he simply stared at Brianna. It meant he was willing to talk.

Brianna released the hem of his clothes she was holding and stepped back. Then, clasping her hands together in front of her, she began to say what she had been thinking about the whole way here.

“First of all, I’m sorry.”

His brow twitched, as if he hadn’t expected her to begin with an apology.

“Leaving only a letter and disappearing without a word was entirely my fault. No matter the circumstances, I should have discussed it with you first, but I was too hasty.”

Looking back now, it might have been better to just be honest from the start. She had found out she couldn’t get pregnant, and thus couldn’t fulfill the original terms of their contract, so she wanted a divorce.

“It’s very late, but I’ll explain now. Why I did what I did back then.”

Of course, she hadn’t expected that he would readily agree to a divorce. But maybe some progress could have been made. At least it would have been better than this. As he said, they hadn’t lacked for conversation before. Maybe through compromise and persuasion, he would have realized that divorce was the better option.

“The reason I left you back then was because I could no longer fulfill our contract.”

“Contract…”

He, who had only been listening, muttered the word like chewing something bitter.

“The contract again?”

At his voice, full of sarcasm, Brianna clenched her joined hands tightly.

“Actually, after the attack, I overheard the conversation between you and the doctor.”

At that, Lucius’s expression changed in an instant. His face hardened as he asked again.

“…Conversation?”

“The doctor said I could no longer get pregnant.”

With a bitter heart, Brianna lowered her head. If not for that, she wouldn’t have left him. Even if this marriage had started from guilt and responsibility toward a dead friend, she had wanted to stay by his side.

But once she learned she couldn’t have children, she could no longer shamelessly stay in that place. From the start, the only condition he had set for this marriage was to have an heir.

“The only thing you wanted from me was an heir.”

Now that he was inheriting the family, he needed an heir, but he didn’t want to go through the tedious process of marriage. So he needed a woman who could skip those steps and marry him immediately.

That was what he had said when he proposed marriage.

“Since that’s no longer possible, I thought it made sense to end this marriage. But you’re a good person… I didn’t think you’d agree to a divorce easily, out of pity for me. So I used that method…”

He suddenly took a step toward her. Brianna instinctively backed away, then widened her eyes at the sight of his face. Unlike before, Lucius’s face had gone completely pale.

Lucius didn’t come any closer. He stopped a step away and closely examined her face.

“…Then, you knew everything? About your condition?”

Brianna nodded. “Yes, I knew. That I had miscarried, and that it would be difficult to conceive again.”

He inhaled deeply and then exhaled roughly.

“If you knew, then why…”

“If you’re asking why I didn’t tell you right away, then it was probably for the same reason as you. You didn’t want me to get hurt, so you hid the truth. I felt the same. I didn’t want to weigh down your heart by telling you I already knew. Besides, you had many other responsibilities at the time.”

Lucius pressed his lips together and stared at Brianna with an intense gaze. From his expression, it was hard to tell whether he was angry or deep in thought.

“Let’s get back to the main point. It’s true that it was wrong of me to run away without saying anything. But I still believe we need to get divorced. Lucius, I’m asking you formally now. Please divorce me.”

She had finally said what she wanted to say. Brianna added with a trembling voice, “Even if we divorce, you don’t need to worry about me. As you saw for yourself, I made good neighbors in that short time. I promise I’ll live well on my own. So you too… meet a woman who can bear your child before it’s too late.”

If they got divorced, would he meet the daughter of Count Kirchner again?

Just imagining it made her want to cry right away, but she must not cry here.

Suppressing the emotions that kept welling up, Brianna waited for Lucius’s answer. Even if he said he couldn’t divorce her out of pity, she had no intention of giving up. She would say it again and again until he changed his mind. That would be better than continuing a marriage that was of no benefit to either of them.

“…So what you mean is, you’re requesting the termination of the contract due to inability to fulfill it?”

The words that came from him after a long pause were quite different from what Brianna had expected. She cautiously observed his somewhat expressionless face.

It was unexpected. Now that he knew everything, she thought the first thing he would do was offer belated comfort about the miscarriage or infertility. She hadn’t expected him to bring up something so businesslike.

Brianna nodded again. “That’s right. If the contract had gone well, it would have been good for both of us, but now I don’t have the ability, so it’s better to end it here.”

“Brianna, I never thought our relationship was just a simple contract.”

At those words, Brianna quietly bit her lip.

Certainly, there had been more than just a contract between them.

The pull of passionate bodies, and the burdensome sense of responsibility toward a dead friend.

“…Passion isn’t everything.”

Unable to mention the latter, Brianna summed it all up in a single sentence. Now it was truly time to hear Lucius’s answer.

“Luce, if you need time to think…”

“No, I already have an answer. Brianna.”

He swiftly approached and wrapped his arms around Brianna’s waist.

“Since you brought up the contract first, I’ll respond accordingly. Right now, the first thing to check is whether you still have the intention to faithfully fulfill the contract. Termination comes after that.”

Held tightly by the waist, Brianna looked up at him with confused eyes. She had explained over and over that she couldn’t fulfill the contract anymore due to infertility. She didn’t understand why he was suddenly saying this.

“Luce, I can’t have children anyway…”

“The doctor said it might be difficult, not impossible.”

Brianna drew in a small breath. Indeed, the doctor hadn’t declared it completely impossible.

“B-But even so, we can’t cling to such slim chances forever.”

“That’s for me to decide. Not you.”

He brushed her lips with his thumb.

“Termination of a contract isn’t a one-sided decision. It requires mutual agreement. And I have no intention of agreeing.”

As his lips came down, Brianna quickly turned her head to avoid his face. She struggled to break free from his grip.

“Don’t do this. I wanted to talk, not end up like this with you.”

“Brianna, I told you earlier. If you want a divorce, show your sincerity first. Do I need to spell it out like this for you to understand?”

At his sharp words, like a whip, Brianna flinched and shrank.

“What do you mean by sincerity…”

“Either be pinned under me countless times to prove whether you’re truly infertile, or miraculously bear a child and complete the contract before you leave. One or the other. That’s what a contract is, Brianna.”

Her lips began to tremble slightly. Even after hearing it with her own ears, she couldn’t believe those words had come from him.

“Luce…”

“This is why you shouldn’t sign contracts so carelessly. Didn’t Madam Linares teach you even that much?”