The Divorcée’s Dessert Cafe
Chapter 1

Erin de Brisia was a villainess.

She’d never tormented or killed anyone on purpose. She’d never committed any crime, let alone harassed her husband’s mistress in a fit of jealousy. She was not arrogant or extravagant like a typical villainess. In fact, she wore plain dresses with no decoration all through the year.

Being a duchess, Erin was currently the highest-ranked woman in the imperial palace. However, she’d never had the freedom to do what she wanted. She’d never spent money freely and had tried to be a frugal, soft-spoken, and modest wife while repressing her every desire. That would mean slightly less criticism thrown at her, at least.

Her life had been like that for the past nine years, but all that had left her with was the misplaced reputation of an evil woman. She was merely the daughter of a ruined house, but she’d had the gall to become the duchess and set herself up as the greatest noblewoman in the empire. The vulgar woman that she was, she’d bedeviled a poor young lady who loved the duke and committed adultery while wearing the shameless mask of a good wife and wise mother.

This was how most nobles in the empire saw Erin. Her husband, Duke Raymond von Lebensberg, agreed with them.

“I am divorcing you.”

With eyes full of disdain, the duke tossed down a document. The paper settled onto the table. It was a divorce document.

Erin gazed at her husband, Raymond. The most noticeable thing about him was his silver hair, which seemed as though it had been spun from real silver. Under his hair were the sharp, delicate features common to the people of the empire. His beautiful blue-gray eyes gleamed coldly. Meanwhile, his nose and chin seemed to have been shaped by a master carver. Lastly, his lips looked capable of a sophisticated smile. All of them formed a neat, beautiful harmony.

There was nothing about his appearance anyone could find fault with. There was even natural elegance and dignity in the way he sat in his extravagant navy military uniform. However, his eyes contained intense rage and disgust as they gazed at Erin.

Erin read the document, which summarized the past nine years of her life in a single page.

—As such, the marriage between Raymond von Lebensberg and Erin de Brisia shall be rendered null under agreement from both parties. Henceforth, the two will...

Her name jumped out at her from the long-winded script.

Erin de Brisia. It was her maiden name, one that she hadn’t had occasion to use at all since she married.

Erin was the only daughter of House Brisia. While the house was old and prestigious, two generations’ worth of squandering left it essentially broke, with nothing but debt to their name. The only complete asset Erin’s father had inherited was the mansion, but it had been used as a guarantee for multiple loans, making it impossible to sell.

Though she was a marquess’s daughter, her life had been a difficult one. Her family were nobles in name, but they did not have a single servant in the house. They’d been worse off than commoners with money. It was thanks to her grandfather, a man she’d never even met, that she’d become a duchess. The year she came of age, an attendant from the imperial palace came to her.

“His Majesty wishes Lady Erin de Brisia to marry Duke Lebensberg.”

Erin doubted her ears as it was such a shocking statement. Duke Lebensberg was the son of the dead crown prince. He was the first grandson of the current emperor and the most likely successor. He was known to be a smart and capable young duke who was also skilled with the sword. His looks were to die for as well. It seemed like he’d walked straight out of a painting.

Erin and her parents couldn’t believe their luck.

“Why would His Majesty want my daughter to...?”

The attendant explained, “She left a very favorable impression on His Majesty at the last victory memorial celebration.”

The entire nobility took part in this commemorative event. Erin was so poor that she couldn’t join high society events as often as the other young ladies. However, that day had been a rare occasion for her, and she’d met the emperor for the first time as a marquess’s daughter.

“His Majesty heard about the difficulties this house has been facing and was saddened, recalling the previous marquess’s loyalty to him.”

The previous marquess the attendant was talking about was Erin’s grandfather, who was said to have been a trusted vassal of the current emperor. Following his death, however, an uncle and older cousin who’d received the title of marquess had squandered the house’s wealth before dying, leaving the family in debt. Erin’s father, being the second son, had inherited the family title and the debt that came with it.

“And to tell you the truth...” The attendant added secretively, “There is no other young lady who is suitable for the duke at the moment. The daughters of prestigious houses are not of proper age, while those who are come from less distinguished families.”

Erin’s parents were not able to attend high society gatherings because of their debts. Naturally, they were in the dark about the rumors circulating among the nobility. That was why they lapped up every lie the attendant told them.

The marriage proposal even brought with it a sweet offer.

“If you accept, His Majesty has promised to support your house financially.”

Her father was conflicted, but Erin made up her mind immediately.

“Yes. I’ll marry him.”

Her parents questioned her repeatedly, looking anxious.

“Are you sure you won’t regret it?”

“I’m sure. I won’t regret it.”

Through this marriage, she could restore her house’s finances and allow her parents to live a comfortable life. There was no way she would regret this.

She immediately moved into the imperial palace and began studying to prepare herself for the role of a future empress. When she was not studying, she took dance and etiquette lessons until her feet blistered. It was an arduous, punishing journey, but Erin did not give up. Her efforts turned out to be worth it.

On the day she put on a luxurious dress from the emperor and carefully walked into the palace garden, the silver-haired duke took her hand and kissed it politely.

“I’m honored to marry such a beautiful and dignified lady as you.”

He then politely asked after her family and led the conversation. Erin was happy. He was far more affectionate and kind than she’d expected. In only a few encounters, she naturally fell in love with her fiancé.

I think I could be happy with a man like this.

People gushed about how she was living a fairy tale. A girl from a ruined family had overcome her indigence and married a prince. It was a perfect happy ending. Even Erin herself had felt this way.

But happy endings seldom exist in the real world.

Her dream-like state lasted only until their wedding day. As her heart swelled with hopes and dreams, the wedding came to an end, and the kind duke changed as soon as they entered the bedroom for their first night together.

“I’m sure you were aware, but this wedding is a farce. I refuse to sleep with you,” her new husband said in a frosty voice before leaving the room.

Erin sat on the bed, staring blankly into space. She only learned the truth after she was married. Since his teenage years, the duke had kept a secret mistress who was a low-ranked noble. The high-ranked nobility spoke in hushed voices about how he’d apparently sworn to make her the empress. The emperor, having caught wind of this, had taken Erin from a prestigious house on the verge of bankruptcy and forced the duke to marry her. But by the time Erin realized, she had already become his duchess, sitting alone in the empty bedroom on their wedding night.

Erin, recalling those old memories, put down the document and raised her head. Raymond was gazing at her with a cold, indifferent look in his eyes, not so different from the one he gave her on their wedding night. He sighed as if flabbergasted.

“Ha! To think I married you believing you were a modest, wise woman.”

Erin blinked without saying a word. Did he have any idea how much effort I put in to become that very thing—a modest, wise woman?

Erin had been the duchess for nine years beside a cold, uninterested husband, but all she’d gotten in return was disdain and apathy, as well as the accusation that she’d cheated on him with her childhood friend.

The duke—refusing to listen every time Erin explained she had done no such thing—ran his hand through his hair irritably. “I put up with this marriage against my will, but this is as far as I can go. Plead with the emperor as much as you want. I can take this no longer.”

“Yes. I see. So, do I sign here?”

“So no matter how pitiful you try to seem, like last time, I’ll never— What?”

The duke hesitated, taken aback by her reaction. Erin ignored him, however, and signed her name.

—Erin von Lebensberg.

Today would be the last time she would ever write this name. The thought had flitted past in her mind as soon as she’d picked up the pen. In the past, she’d believed her life would fall apart if she ever lost the name Lebensberg.

It was all I had. She’d believed her position as the duke’s wife had been the only valuable thing remaining in her life, and thus, she’d been eager to hold on to it. Now that she’d scrawled her signature and put down her pen, the only emotion she felt was the catharsis of freedom. She waved the document in the air indifferently.

“There. I signed it. Can I leave now?”

The duke remained silent.

“By the way, if you’re going to marry that mistress of yours right away, my quarters will need a bit of attention first since they’re a bit empty now. You told me I could do whatever I liked, so I sold off everything that had any value.”

“You... sold them?” the duke asked, seeming nonplussed.

“Yes. I assumed that woman would sell off all the furnishings anyway. So, I went ahead and peddled them off second-hand.”

It was a grave crime to sell the imperial palace’s property without permission, but this did not apply in this case. On the day of their wedding—or rather, the wedding night—the duke had told her, “I don’t care what you do with this place. Do as you please with it.”

And he really hadn’t paid the slightest bit of attention, not even visiting her room again. Erin had managed the palace and its housekeeping on her own, struggling to be as frugal as humanly possible, fearing that others might criticize her for being wasteful. Despite all her efforts, she’d never received even the smallest compensation. So, she’d decided to sell off her things and keep the money since they belonged to her anyway.

The duke seemed shocked, but Erin had nothing to be ashamed of.

“Why do you seem so surprised? You said I could do as I please. I only followed your words.” She stood up and spoke to the man, who looked at her in amazement. “By the way, since there’s supposedly infidelity on both sides, there’s no need to mention any alimony. You’re going to return my dowry, right?”

“What are you going to do with such a small sum?”

The husband who hadn’t given a fig about anything she did for the past nine years had just asked her his first question.

Such a small sum. It was all the money Erin had in the world and the last of House Brisia’s wealth.

On the table was a small cream cheese muffin and a blueberry tart. They had been brought out merely as a formality, but a sweet smell wafted up from the sugary cream and glistening fruit. Erin belatedly spotted these adorable desserts. The white cream would melt in the mouth, and the tart would break with the most satisfying crunch as the fruit juices and cream cheese oozed out from the crust.

How did I not see them when they were right in front of me?

She couldn’t take her eyes off the desserts. They represented a dream she’d harbored for the longest time, an old goal she’d kept buried deep in her heart during the nine pointless years she’d spent in the palace. She’d been deprived of everything, but she still had one last thing to strive for. For the first time since coming to the palace, she gave a confident smile.

“I’m going to open a dessert cafe.”

The time had come to achieve her dream.