All I Wanted Was the Alimony - Chapter 27

Turning her head, Lucienne saw Paello staring at her with a shocked expression.

His pupils were shaking as if an earthquake had hit.

“Ah, it’s not that…”

Lucienne, flustered and about to deny it, waved both hands. Then she suddenly came to her senses.

‘Wait, what if I give off the impression that I’m crossing a line here?’

They didn’t love each other anyway. They were only legally bound.

Still, since Paello held a noble status, seeing his wife looking at another man would hurt his pride. It would be reasonable for him to feel offended by Lucienne.

She also recalled that fault didn’t matter in divorce law.

In other words, this was her chance.

“Is there a law that says a married woman can’t look at another man and say he’s handsome?”

“……”

“As far as I know, there isn’t, but if there is, I’ll follow it.”

“…There is no such law.”

He acknowledged it but said nothing more. His eyes, which had been shifting side to side, now fell to the ground.

Seeing him looking so dejected, Lucienne was inwardly flustered.

‘No, if his pride’s hurt, he should just get angry. Why does he look like a poor puppy drenched in rain after losing its owner?’

Though she had answered that way on purpose, she felt a twinge of guilt.

“…Whether you capture or kill the beast using the weapon you are given, the one who catches the most wins. If the numbers are the same, the winner is determined by the total weight. After team hunting, one person can step forward as the representative.”

At that moment, Emilion’s concluding explanation suddenly reached her ears.

“If you hunt a beast so large that it’s difficult to carry, fire the signal flare you’ve been given in your designated color. Now, we’ll proceed with the roulette from the temple.”

Soon, temple priests brought up a roulette divided into many tight sections.

As Emilion examined the roulette, he pointed to a very small black section. “This part is the divine sword of the hero, said to be capable of slaying even the Demon King. It rivals Wibroton’s divine sword, and while it’s the grand prize of this hunting competition offered by the imperial family, if selected by the roulette, it can be used firsthand.”

At those words, the crowd stirred greatly.

“Then let’s see if the will of the gods is with me.”

Emilion spun the roulette.

“A dagger.”

He raised the dagger in his hand to show everyone.

“Using only the given weapon is the main rule of this hunting competition. You may use a weapon handed over to you. However, if you use a transferred weapon, the prize you win must be split in ownership with the donor.”

One by one, people stepped up and spun the roulette. Various weapons such as longswords, bows, axes, slings, crossbows, and maces were distributed.

Lucienne became bewildered.

‘In the original story, there was no roulette draw. And that’s not even the prize!’

Emilion had used a well-forged greatsword and a bow in the hunt. As a swordmaster, he had sliced through the rampaging gray bear’s head in one stroke with a greatsword emanating aura.

‘Is he going to hunt the gray bear with a dagger now? Why has the original changed? Is it because the Grand Duke and I are participating in the hunting competition?’

Just then, women watching the roulette process began to stir.

“Oh my, isn’t the weapon very important in a hunt?”

“Then we should join and get weapons too. If someone we like receives a bad weapon, we can switch it out. The better the weapon, the higher the chances of victory.”

“Come to think of it, Her Highness said recently that it’s better for both men and women to participate this time.”

“Right. I heard that too. Though she mentioned the prize was amazing, I think it was probably because of that rule.”

“Still, it’ll be hard to beat the men who are seasoned in hunting.”

“They say the Grand Duke of Ronatere’s combat ability is incredible.”

It seemed Verdi had changed the hunting rules.

‘What is Verdi thinking?’

Just then, Emilion asked, “Grand Duke Ronatere and his wife, would you also like to spin the roulette?”

Paello silently nodded and offered his arm to Lucienne. The two of them stepped onto the platform together.

The roulette spun, and weapons were handed to Paello and Lucienne in turn.

They received a thin wooden stick about 50 centimeters long and a switch.

Seeing their undeniably terrible luck, the surroundings began to buzz.

“Ah. I’m unlucky too.”

Joad, who had rushed up to spin the roulette, sighed. He had received a small Y-shaped slingshot.

Inspired by the sight of Paello and Lucienne’s weapons, some of the women rushed toward the roulette.

“I want to spin the roulette too.”

The women also received weapons. In truth, most of them didn’t know how to use them, so they handed them over to the companions they came with.

However, some went off to change clothes, saying they wanted to try using the weapons.

The last one to spin the roulette was Verdi. The moment the spinning roulette came to a stop and the weapon was given to Verdi, cheers erupted across the hunting ground.

The men began buzzing with excitement.

“To think the hero’s divine sword was really chosen?”

“I heard that centuries ago, a legendary craftsman made it using very special divine materials.”

“One of the previous emperors supposedly massacred demons with it. Apparently, the Demon King’s line was nearly wiped out.”

“Wow, maybe that’s why. Even after all these centuries, it’s still radiant.”

“And now Her Highness the Princess gets it.”

“She spun it right in front of everyone, and it was distributed perfectly. Must be the will of the gods.”

“But will Her Highness the Princess participate in the hunting competition herself?”

Then Verdi smiled softly. “I’ll give up the weapon. I think it would be much better if someone who has a chance of winning uses it instead of me.”

At her declaration, the noblemen cheered enthusiastically.

The last to spin the roulette was the Emperor, Sidell. He received a bow and red-feathered arrows. A perfect set for hunting.

Emilion said, “The hunt is scheduled to begin in 20 minutes, so please check if your preparations are in order.”

After also announcing the hunt’s end time, he stepped down from the platform, hoping everyone would have a wonderful hunting experience.

The excited crowd began inspecting their weapons, all while keeping their eyes on the princess’s every move.

It was because the one chosen by the princess seemed highly likely to win, and they wanted to figure out who that person would be.

Names of potential candidates thought to be chosen by the princess were mentioned.

They were all unmarried men, and Emilion was among them.

Verdi stepped down from the platform with a confident expression.

To Lucienne, it seemed obvious who she would give the sword to.

‘It’s Emilion. He’s the male lead.’

But Lucienne soon realized her prediction was completely wrong.

“Though he barely managed to join, and though he has the ability to protect the empire, Grand Duke Ronatere, who ended up with such a lacking weapon, caught my eye.”

Verdi handed the sword to Paello.

“I’m not good with swords. Grand Duke, would you win the hunt with this divine sword and share the joy and honor with me?”

The surroundings stirred greatly.

Paello and Joad both looked baffled. So did Lucienne.

This wasn’t just any weapon; it was the divine sword said to be able to slay the Demon King.

Giving such a sword to Paello, who was already a top-tier swordmaster, meant bolstering his power enough to take down even the Demon King.

What’s more, if Paello won, the ownership rights would be split in half.

In other words, as long as the sword was in his possession, the two of them would be bound for life.

‘But still, Paello is a married man.’

That was why the other nobles only mentioned unmarried men as candidates.

Then Paello looked at Lucienne. “Madam, would it be alright for me to use this sword?”

Perhaps conscious of the others’ eyes, he asked for his spouse’s permission as if it were a mere formality.

In this situation, it was hard for anyone to say no.

Sure enough, Lucienne saw Joad standing behind Paello, clasping his hands together in earnest.

Your Grace, please please please.

Please be generous and grant permission.

Though only mouthing the words, Joad’s plea seemed to echo directly into Lucienne’s mind.

Lucienne quickly ran calculations in her head.

‘If I give Paello, who’s already in a tough spot for hunting, a proper weapon?’

For someone used to the harsh northern mountain terrain, the capital’s forest would be like flat ground.

In other words, he would surely win.

Once he won, he would be grateful to the wife who had willingly helped transfer the weapon.

‘And if he becomes grateful to me?’

Even if Paello didn’t immediately grow closer to Verdi, it was clear that the impulse for divorce would be pushed away.

On the other hand, if she blocked his path, Paello would grow deeply resentful of Lucienne.

This sword was like divine reinforcements to someone protecting the border.

‘But he’ll end up as Verdi’s husband anyway, won’t he? Then he’ll still get to use the sword later.’

In the original story, Paello didn’t even participate in this hunting competition.

Having reached this conclusion, Lucienne crossed her arms and lifted her chin.

“No. You can’t.”