Past lunchtime, a servant came to inform Anette of a visitation request.
“Madam, a gentleman has requested a meeting. He says he is an old acquaintance of yours….”
“An acquaintance of mine?”
Did she have any acquaintance who would come looking for her? The moment Anette wondered this, a familiar name reached her ears.
“Yes. He said you would know if he said Ansgar.”
Having mulled over the name once, Anette’s eyes gradually widened. She muttered blankly.
“Ansgar…?”
Ansgar Stetter.
He was the second son of Count Stetter’s family, which had now fallen into ruin, and a friend of Anette’s.
In the past, Ansgar had courted Anette, but it had not come to fruition. When Anette married, he had gone abroad to study in Waitris, and after the Revolution, she had heard no news of him.
“Um, Madam? What should we do?”
“…Ah. Well….”
Anette hesitated, unable to answer readily. It was not that she could not trust Ansgar, or that he made her uncomfortable. It was just….
It was miserable to show herself in such a state.
The Stetters had been close allies of the Rosenbergs. That was why Anette and Ansgar had grown up close since childhood.
With the fall of the Rosenbergs, the Stetters had naturally collapsed as well. Ansgar had fortunately been able to avoid disaster because he had been abroad at the time of the Revolution.
However, Anette and Ansgar’s circumstances were different. It was not merely a matter of being inside or outside the country. Her situation was different not only from Ansgar’s but also from any other fallen nobles.
After the Revolution, the revolutionary army had used public opinion to justify the bloodshed and consolidate the unstable political situation. The one used for that propaganda had been Anette.
She had been quite suitable for this. She was of royal blood, a symbol of ‘nobility,’ and the daughter of the military’s supreme commander.
The press had torn into her mercilessly, fanning anti-aristocratic sentiment. Currently, in Padania, Anette’s image was virtually that of the greatest villainess of the age.
After worrying, Anette eventually conveyed her assent.
“…To the reception room… Let him into the reception room first. Tell him to wait just a moment….”
“Understood.”
The servant bowed and left. Anette sat at her dressing table and looked in the mirror. The woman with the melancholy impression looked as if she might collapse at any moment.
She applied light makeup. When she painted her lips with red lipstick and rubbed a little onto her cheeks, she looked somewhat more alive.
When she went down to the reception room, a servant was waiting in front of it.
“The guest is…?”
“He is inside. I have served him tea.”
Anette took a slow, deep breath, then opened the reception room door. The hand turning the knob was shaking slightly.
A subtle tea fragrance wafted inside the reception room. A man in a brown suit sat neatly on the sofa. When Anette entered, Ansgar removed his hat and rose from his seat.
“Anette.”
“…It’s been a while.”
Anette responded calmly, wearing a light smile. In contrast, Ansgar’s face bore an unmistakable mixture of joy and sorrow.
Ansgar strode over and embraced her. Anette suppressed her surge of emotion and placed her hand on his back.
They separated after a brief hug. Ansgar never took his eyes off Anette’s face as he sat back down.
“You’ve lost a lot of weight.”
“Do I look it?”
“Still beautiful.”
Anette smiled without answering. She had wondered if Ansgar might still have feelings for her, but she soon cast the thought aside. Whether he did or not, it no longer mattered.
“I sent you a letter first, but there was no reply. So I had no choice but to come find you directly.”
“I suppose it’s because I told them to filter out letters from unknown addresses first. You didn’t make a wasted trip to the old mansion, did you?”
Anette spoke as if joking, but Ansgar’s expression was not bright.
“…Of course not. I looked for the residence first. You are the Commander-in-Chief’s wife, after all.”
“How have you been? Have you returned to Padania for good?”
“Not exactly. I came briefly to settle a few matters. I had to come at least once… and I had to see you, too. I’m currently working as an ambassador in Franche.”
“Franche? Not Waitris?”
“I went straight to Franche after graduating. I have many acquaintances there, after all.”
Most of Padania’s nobles who had fled to avoid the aftermath of the Revolution had sought asylum in Franche. He was probably referring to them.
“An ambassador. You’ve done well for yourself, Ansgar.”
“Done well, how. If I had lived as I was meant to, I might have had a better life.”
‘As I was meant to.’ Anette felt a strange sense of dissonance at those words.
Her original life. Life before the Revolution. Or a life that would never happen now. Had that life truly been a better form? Perhaps it had. Perhaps….
“How have you been, Anette?”
Anette snapped back to her senses. Ansgar, with his gentle face, was tilting his head. She vaguely brushed it off.
“…Mm. Well. Just living.”
Ansgar’s peculiar gaze seemed to say that he knew exactly how Anette had been faring. Indeed, there was no way he wouldn’t know. Especially if he was working as an ambassador.
Ansgar took a sip of tea and quietly opened his mouth.
“I was married.”
“Ah, really? Congratulations. What kind of woman…?”
“We divorced last year.”
Seeing Anette’s slightly flustered expression, Ansgar let out a short laugh.
“It was a marriage of necessity anyway. I needed citizenship.”
“I… see.”
“What about you?”
“Me?”
“Are you going to continue this marriage?”
At the blunt words, Anette was at a loss for words. It was not simply because she couldn’t choose what to say. A servant was standing by inside the reception room. Every servant in the residence answered to Heiner.
In other words, every conversation held here was relayed to Heiner.
“…For now.”
“Are you continuing it because you want to? You know what your husband did to our people, don’t you?”
“I’m not that stupid, Ansgar.”
“I… didn’t mean to belittle you.”
“I know. And I want a divorce, too. It’s just that right now.”
Anette hesitated in answering for a moment.
What should she say? That her husband would not consent to a divorce? That she couldn’t guarantee the success rate of a divorce trial, and if she kept insisting, he might have her committed to a mental hospital?
Whichever she chose, it seemed the explanation would be long. Anette gauged the presence of the servant standing like a shadow behind her and gave a vague answer.
“…Getting a divorce right now is rather difficult.”
“You wouldn’t have anywhere to go even if you divorced. Right?”
“Did you come here to make me aware of my situation?”
“Don’t take it so sensitively, Anette. I’m genuinely worried about you. I just don’t want to beat around the bush.”
Ansgar raised both hands as if to proclaim his innocence and let out a short breath. He clenched both fists tightly, then lowered them again. Soon, a resolute confession flowed out.
“Come with me to Franche.”
“…What?”
“I still have feelings for you. I’ve been thinking all along that I would bring you to me as soon as I settled down. If you marry me, you’ll be able to obtain Franche citizenship.”
“….”
“I know what the atmosphere inside Padania is like. You’ve been used by the republican faction until now. Your husband might condone it, but he won’t help you. Right now, I’m your only choice.”
“….”
“Take my hand, Anette.”
Ansgar softened the line of his mouth as if to reassure her.
“You can be happier.”
“I will make you happy for the rest of your life.”
Anette gazed quietly at that gentle face. Ansgar waited for her reaction with patience. Anette, who had been thinking of something, replied feebly.
“My husband… will not permit it.”
“Once you’re divorced, he’s a stranger. What’s the point of permission?”
“He is the Commander-in-Chief. He won’t tolerate any act that goes against his will.”
“Anette, could it be…?”
A faint shock flashed across Ansgar’s face. Anette vaguely guessed what he was about to say.
Whether her husband had locked her in this place, whether she was suffering mental and physical abuse—it would be something like that.
It couldn’t be said that he was entirely wrong. But Anette did not want to be pitied. Even now, that remained true.
“Whatever you’re thinking, Ansgar, I’m fine. You don’t need to worry so much.”
“…Even apart from the divorce issue, the overall situation is too much for you.”
“It’s been three years.”
Anette quietly cut him off.
“I’ve endured for three years. There’s no reason I can’t endure more.”
Ansgar’s expression became somewhat strange. The mood had instantly subsided. Anette closed her eyes for a long moment, then opened them and smiled calmly.
“I want to sort out my thoughts first. It was too sudden. Don’t you think?”
“Ah, yes. Of course. I jumped straight to the main point, didn’t I? I’m sorry. I… I’ve been waiting for today all along, but from your perspective, it must have been sudden.”
Ansgar scratched his cheek awkwardly. His neck and earlobes were slightly red. Anette shook her head.
“No. I should have received your letter. Um, how should I get in touch with you? I’ll contact you again later.”
“Ah, right! I need to give you my contact information. Here, my business card… Ah, I’ll write the address on the back, too. Just a moment. I’m staying at a hotel temporarily right now. You can give my name at the front desk, or just come straight to my room.”
Ansgar hurriedly pulled a pen from inside his coat and wrote the address on the back of his business card. That figure reminded her of the boy she used to play with in the past.
Until just now, he had somehow felt unfamiliar.
“Here. Please do contact me again. If you need help, tell me anytime.”
“I will. Thank you.”
Only after entreating her several times did Ansgar rise regretfully from his seat. Anette saw him off to the front gate. She did so despite Ansgar’s attempts to stop her.
He was an old friend. A friend who had come to find her again. Whatever the situation, she was deeply glad.
Anette returned inside, closed the front door, and leaned against it for a moment. Once Ansgar had left, the silence surrounding her felt especially thick.
Anette stared blankly at the business card she had been holding the whole time.
Ansgar Stetter
House of Stetter. Ambassador to Franche. Acquaintances. Exiled nobles. Marriage. Republican faction…. As Anette slowly retraced his words, she muttered in a low voice.
“…Restoration of the monarchy?”