Chapter 78

Roses had thorns. Expensive bouquets were fragile and required careful handling. She said she wanted the moment she looked at a flower to be one where she could feel at ease, not having to worry about ruining it.

So that was why, on their wedding day, Maxim had prepared a hand-tied bouquet of Shasta daisies instead of an elaborate bouquet.

Lately, she had been going to bed much earlier than usual.

Most likely because facing him had become awkward after that night. He had tried to hold himself back, but his restraint had faltered, and he ended up driving her all the way into a corner.

No matter how much he told himself to be patient, his anxiety kept getting the better of him. He kept feeling like he had to say something meaningful, push her buttons, draw out a reaction, just to prove he existed in her world.

Maxim knew he was acting like a child. Throwing a tantrum at a woman who had no idea what was going on, selfishly demanding attention. And yet, even knowing this, he couldn’t stop himself.

Even when she was right in front of him, he feared she might slip away. That one day, she would simply disappear, as if she had never existed at all. Everything about that woman made him restless.

“Tell me.”

Please, Izzy, just tell me.

What do you love? What are you thinking about right now? I want to know everything about you. Every last thing.

How much time do I have to spend with you before I can be sure you won’t leave?

“What on earth were you doing before you showed up this time?”

The woman inside the portrait never answered, but Maxim had been asking her that same question, over and over, for many years.

Izzy. Just who are you?

“Love letters, huh…”

What should I write?

What should I write? It had to be something small. Nothing grand, nothing dramatic. Maxim pulled out a sheet of stationery and picked up his pen.

༺♰༻

She needed a quick divorce and an even quicker escape. Nothing else mattered.

That was Daisy’s one and only conclusion after that night.

Forget the mission. If she kept dragging this out, she might not live long enough to regret it.

The relationship between the Grand Duke of Waldeck and his wife had already fallen apart.

Daisy von Waldeck thought back to the colorful string of profanities she had screamed at her husband.

“Just fuck me already. Put it in, thrust, cum, and be done with it! Fuck!”

“You horny bastard!”

“You perverted freak!”

Who in their right mind would speak that way to a national hero— no, toward their own husband? There wasn’t even a shred of basic respect between them. Hell, even a house pet deserved better treatment than that.

And it wasn’t just the cursing.

Daisy von Waldeck had headbutted her husband, split his lip, tied him up, and even climbed on top of him. She had the audacity to point a gun at him and nearly blew that annoyingly handsome face of his to pieces. She was, by every measure, the worst possible wife.

No matter how she looked at it, this marriage was already beyond saving.

Ever since that night, she and Maxim had grown distant.

Actually, not distant. Practically nonexistent. Daisy made sure to fall asleep before her husband returned home, so she barely even saw his face. And honestly, that was the only thing keeping her sane.

The date of the final showdown was set. The royal family’s grand homecoming celebration. It might not be the night she officially ended things, but it would be the beginning of the end of this marriage.

To pull it off, she needed an extremely thorough plan.

Daisy was sharing the list of “potential mistresses” she had obtained from the boutique’s staff with his aunt.

“Are you sure this information is reliable?”

“Yes. The boutique’s staff heard it themselves while on a business trip, so it’s probably not just some baseless rumor.”

“Hm…”

The former Grand Duchess adjusted her thick magnifying spectacles and carefully examined the list once more.

Daisy, silently praying, read through each name on the list one by one.

‘Please… let just one of them be the one. Just one…’

Every single woman on that list wanted Maxim. All she needed was for one, just one, to capture his interest.

Daisy felt no guilt whatsoever at the thought of handing off the worst husband to someone else.

This wasn’t just some game of hot potato.

This was, in fact, an act of charity.

Considering the circumstances, any woman who wanted Maxim would see him as the perfect groom. He was handsome, wealthy, and even bore the honor of being a war hero who had saved the country.

And that wasn’t even the half of it. He oozed raw sex appeal, was packing a massive dick, and had the strength to match. If he could just shut that filthy, slutty mouth of his, he’d be the perfect stud to pass down golden genes. A dream of a man.

Besides, she was letting him go after nothing more than a few kisses, without ever having sex with him.

She wouldn’t even curse them with something like, “May your whole family go bald for generations!” She would just send them off with a smile and a blessing.

Honestly, where else in the world would anyone find such a generous ex-wife?

“So, Aunt, what do you think?”