I Give Up on Conquering the Heroines

33 – Episode 33. Cologne (3)

Hildegard’s prodigy.

When I was young, I used to be called by that nickname.

It wasn’t that he was a prodigy in a particular field.

I stand out in everything I touch.

There were many things I wanted to do, and the options were wide.

In the meantime, my father asked me to learn theology.

I didn’t like it at first, but I quickly started enjoying it.

It was from then on that I admired the Inquisitor and dreamed of becoming an Inquisitor.

When I turned 18.

He double majored in theology and law and graduated at the top of his class in both.

There were many roads.

He could have become a priest or a civil servant like this.

I could have continued my law studies and entered the legal field.

From now on, it seemed like only a solid road would unfold in my life.

Until the price declines sharply.

There was news that the mines purchased with a large amount of money were depleted one by one.

At almost the same time, one business after another went bankrupt.

Debts piled up quickly, and soon they far exceeded Hildegard’s ability to pay.

At that time, a helping hand arrived.

“Cornelia. I think you should marry me. The Briam family says they will pay off your debt on the condition that you…”

It was a proposal from the Briam family.

Briam is from a pagan family, and recently became a naturalized member of the Holy Kingdom, receiving the title of earl.

He was successful in building his own foundation, but he would have needed the help of a faithful family to survive the future political battle.

“The other person said it was Lawrence Brigham.”

“This is a person I’ve never heard of before? I have some connection with that person, so they’re singling out me?”

“I guess it’s because you’re famous. I’ll try to convince my father. After all, what’s important is the union between families, not who you marry…”

I had just started on the road to success and I couldn’t stop.

Marriage is not allowed.

It will never happen.

To begin with, I had several older sisters who were fully married, and two younger cousins who were over 16.

There was no need for me to get married.

At least I believed so.

“Cornelia. There is no debt repayment without you…”

“Yes?”

It was like a thunderbolt.

It has to be me.

What does that mean?

“Are you sure I persuaded you correctly? I shouldn’t get married now. I just graduated, and there are a lot of things I want to do. If I keep this up, I could become the youngest judge. If I get married now, everything will be in vain.”

“I explained everything… I even begged her to please. Please pick someone other than Cornelia. But it was no use. They just kept saying that if it wasn’t you, there would have been no marriage talks… ····. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry about your father, Cornelia.”

I was shocked.

I noticed it early that day.

The man named Lawrence is pure crazy.

He’s a pervert who gets pleasure from blocking and trampling on other people’s dreams.

“Hello. My name is Cornelia Hildegard. This time…”

“Uh. Are you here? Sit next to me.”

“······.”

And my expectations were not at all wrong.

A man named Lawrence Brigham was a frivolous barbarian.

Is it because Hildegard knows that her marriage cannot be canceled?

He treated me like an object from the first time we met.

Even though I look at my father in bewilderment, all I get in return is silence.

It was only then that I realized it.

Now that I have no allies here.

“Cornelia. I’m so sorry. You’re having a hard time because of this poor father…”

“It’s okay. I don’t want to hear it.”

“If that guy is being too harsh, tell me at any time.”

“What changes if I tell you?”

“After time passes and we have accumulated assets again, I will propose a divorce. Even if we have to pay several times the amount of money we borrowed as alimony, I will make sure that we can divorce. And you never know. It may be rough on the outside. In fact, he might be kind…”

“Ha. Shut up, please.”

Is that guy kind?

The man who maliciously destroyed my dream?

It was a funny sound.

I could no longer trust my father’s words.

“Wash up. As thoroughly as possible.”

“I have something to tell you, honey.”

“What is it?”

“I’m only going to say this once, so listen carefully. I think sleeping together will be difficult. Our relationship as a couple is still not possible. So, at least give me some time…”

First day of honeymoon.

I organized my demands clearly and laid them out to my husband.

I don’t love you.

It is uncomfortable to even touch one’s skin, so it is uncomfortable not only to have s*x but also to sleep in the same bed.

Of course, I said it in a different way so as not to offend.

“I don’t like it.”

“Yes?”

“Still don’t understand the topic? What are you boldly asking for on a topic that has been sold?”

I was rejected.

I didn’t expect this at all.

I’m not saying it’s impossible forever, I’m just asking for time.

Nevertheless, Lawrence ignored even the smallest request.

I don’t know how scared I was of the man approaching me with his clothes loose.

“I hate it! I hate it!”

“Ah…”

In the process of resisting, I accidentally cut Lawrence’s cheek.

Lawrence’s face became cold in an instant.

I got goosebumps as if I had encountered a monster.

Lawrence stood up with a straight expression on her face, and she no longer tried to attack me.

Instead, he just put his hand up and grabbed my hair.

Wow!

“Ah! Honey! Please, ah! Stop…”

“Stop? Do you still have the energy to talk?”

“Ah! Ah, it hurts! It hurts! Ugh!”

At the time, I really thought I was going to die.

It was my first time being hit so mercilessly by someone, so it had to be that way.

I had bruises on my stomach and a couple of cracked ribs.

The next morning, I realized that Lawrence was more cunning than I imagined.

When I put on the clothes, I couldn’t see any wounds or bruises.

It was so creepy that even such a cruel act was done under infinitely rational calculation.

From that day on, lethargy was imprinted on my body.

I couldn’t dare to go against Lawrence anymore.

I couldn’t say anything that would make him uncomfortable.

Whenever I made eye contact with him, my stomach started to tingle and my eyes automatically rolled down.

My ribs, which had already healed, were throbbing and I couldn’t breathe well.

“You can’t go outside without my permission. You can’t meet other people without my permission.”

“······.”

I felt like a bird trapped in a cage.

There was no freedom for me.

Even the books sent from home were torn to pieces, asking what the woman was studying.

I couldn’t say anything.

Because I didn’t want to get hit again.

“What is this? To me, it looks like a letter criticizing my heavenly husband.”

“Ah…”

The letter sent to the original family was clearly in Lawrence’s hand.

It was a letter informing me of my treatment.

It seems that all letters I send are censored.

It was completely my mistake to think that the minimum freedom was guaranteed.

“This is real. Ha······. When I looked at it, I didn’t know he was sharpening his knife behind the scenes like this.”

“I was wrong, honey. I won’t do it again. Please. Please, big…!”

That day, I realized.

The fact that what I got on the first day was really nothing.

I learned what happens when a cruel monster loses its temper.

This time, I was truly beaten to death.

Lawrence hit me regardless of whether it was my cheek or my arm.

Even though he vomited and fainted briefly, he did not stop assaulting him.

When I didn’t even have the stamina left to scream anymore.

Lawrence left me with blood dripping from his hands.

I think I was banned from going out for about two weeks.

I wouldn’t have been able to show my face outside with so much swelling and torn skin.

I have thought about asking for help countless times.

But is there anyone in this world who can help me?

Well, that’s right. My father will worry about me and blame Lawrence, but he won’t be able to save me.

Hildegard, who was said to be making her fortune quickly, is still struggling with financial difficulties, so she can’t even dream of divorce.

Even if you report it to the police, it is meaningless.

Because the police will not intervene in marital discord.

It is very common for a wife to be beaten by her husband.

I only received a little sympathy, but there was no one who could save me from this hell.

“Smile, Cornelia. Don’t be so mean. I’m like a husband beating his wife.”

“Yes…”

I had to smile no matter what party or social gathering I went to.

Being by Lawrence’s side, she had to pretend to love him.

Of course, it was unimaginable to ask for help from someone I met there.

Because Lawrence was always watching from my side.

If I ever get caught, I will be beaten until I die.

You’ll be strangled until you run out of breath by a monster that’s completely lost its mind.

Because I was afraid, I couldn’t do anything.

“The mayor of Cologne died suddenly, so I took over as mayor for a while. I’m moving to Cologne.”

“Yes…”

The situation suddenly changed when Lawrence became the temporary mayor of the capital of the Holy Kingdom.

The work was too heavy.

Tasks that exceeded Lorraine’s capabilities were passed on to me.

I was afraid that I would be beaten if I didn’t do it right, so I ended up showing off my abilities needlessly.

Lorraine, who referenced my ideas, carried out reforms by overhauling several systems.

All of these were successful, and Lorraine was elected mayor of Cologne in the next election.

I saw hope.

What the Briam family gained through marriage with me was a strong foundation.

But now Briam has a stronger foundation.

Because the entire city of Cologne became his support base.

Now no one can criticize Lawrence for being of pagan origin.

So there was no need for us to continue our marriage any longer.

Lawrence must have also been very dissatisfied with me for not allowing him to have a marital relationship.

So I thought it wouldn’t be difficult…

“Divorce? You want to leave such a stain on my life? Don’t ever say something like that again.”

I was rejected outright.

Lawrence had no intention of letting me go.

Then what happens to me?

What happens to the annoying wife who is no longer useful or necessary?

The answer came soon after.

“Drink. It’s warm water.”

“Honey…?”

“Drink it.”

The day I caught a cold.

Lawrence suddenly brought me some warm water.

It was colorless, odorless, nothing strange.

The next day and the day after that.

Even after my cold got better, Lawrence brought me warm water every day.

Has Lawrence finally come to his senses?

Have you decided to be nice to me now?

“Well, my throat is really sore right now, so I’ll just wait a little while…”

“Drink now while I watch!”

Of course it couldn’t have been that way.

If you don’t drink water in front of Lawrence, he gets very angry.

And I started to get thinner and thinner.

Even though I ate, I didn’t gain weight, I couldn’t sleep well, and I always felt dizzy and dizzy.

My fever rose and fell as if I had a mild cold, and my coughing became more frequent.

However, the disease showed no signs of getting better, the symptoms gradually worsened, and an unusual aura appeared.

‘That water. ‘It’s not just water.’

I am not a stupid woman who has not learned anything.

No, even a woman like that would have been able to deduce it right away.

There is something in the water Lawrence gave me.

And the water is slowly killing me.

It’s probably a poison with a reduced concentration.

‘Crazy bastard…’

I was wondering what to do with my wife who was no longer useful or needed.

Lawrence had no intention of letting me go alive because he knew his secret.

Divorce leaves a stain on the life of the mayor of Cologne, but bereavement is different.

If you show that you miss your dead wife after death, you will receive sympathy votes.

After such calculations, Lawrence decided to slowly kill me.

But knowing the cause didn’t mean there was anything I could do.

Lawrence still beat me mercilessly if I didn’t drink water.

I watched until the end to see if I drank it without spilling it.

Afterwards, she had her servant force me to spit out the water I drank and even watched over me.

There was no exit in sight.

Even though I knew I was going to die, there was nothing I could do.

If it were me in the past, I might have exposed Lawrence’s atrocities in the middle of the party, saying, “You die, I die.”

But that poisonous heart has long since been castrated from me.

After being beaten countless times by Lawrence, her heart was broken.

The fear of being beaten by him was much greater than the fear of her death.

I lost the will to resist and the courage to rebel.

I half-accepted death.

He drank poison himself and died slowly.

Nevertheless, a part of my heart could not let go of hope.

I hope that someone will come to save me.

I couldn’t give up the hope that he would notice the darkness in my bright expression and come.

“Drink. You keep coughing.”

“Yes, honey…”

It was a day like any other day.

Today, a mercenary came to my house for dinner.

There was no significant difference.

Lawrence proudly held up the cup in front of the mercenary.

I take the cup and bring it to my mouth.

My hands are shaking, but I can’t help it.

You must drink it.

“Ah!”

“Oh my. I’m sorry.”

Wajangchang.

The table shook violently and the glass cup fell to the floor and broke.

Across the table, where I looked in surprise, a mercenary was kicking the table and sliding his foot down.

“It was a mistake.”

It was clearly intentional.

I deliberately kicked the table, causing me to spill my cup.

‘No way.’

Not paying attention to Lawrence’s crumpled expression.

The mercenary just stared at me with surprised rabbit eyes.

His heart is pounding.