After divorcing Sheila, each day passed as though the color had drained from my life.
No matter what I ate, it had no taste.
No matter what I saw, it stirred nothing in me.
Every time I returned home and opened the door, half expecting Sheila’s gentle smile, all that greeted me was silence.
I told myself it was just returning to how things had been before meeting her.
But once you have known Sheila, there is no going back.
Even when I close my eyes, her calm smile rises before me, her softly falling hair, her easy, gentle voice.
I remember how I used to hug her from behind while she cooked, telling her it was dangerous, even as she laughed happily.
Standing alone in the kitchen now, reaching out to embrace her, I find nothing but empty air.
Only the unused pot she once favored sits quietly where it always did.
Her dishes are gone too.
Each time I realize what is missing, my chest feels as though another hole has opened inside it.
Even without Sheila, daily life continues.
A month after the divorce, Captain Zain gathered the knights during morning assembly and made a formal announcement.
The crowd buzzed with confusion, but I kept my head lowered.
“I hereby notify all members of the knight order.
We will be revising expedition assignments.
There are individuals among us who have engaged in inappropriate conduct. As a result, a large-scale investigation will be carried out.”
As the captain spoke, the area fell silent, so still it felt like I could hear someone swallow.
“Anyone with reason to believe they are involved should step forward.
Additionally… for the time being, the distribution of recovery potions supplied through the guild will be suspended.”
At those words, the knights erupted in uproar.
Shouts, cries, and murmurs filled the space as the captain and vice-captain shouted for silence.
Amid the chaos, I clenched my fists and stared at the ground, holding my breath.
—Sheila, can you hear this?
This roar of outrage?
Is this the fate you wished for the knight order?
No.
Sheila would never be the kind of woman who could ignore something like this.
“Be silent! From today onward, the removal of recovery potions is forbidden. Daily usage limits will also be imposed.”
“Wait, Captain! Why? This makes no sense!”
“That’s right! Without recovery potions, fighting monsters will be hell!”
“Are you telling us to die out there!?”
Voices flew from every direction.
This was inevitable.
Sheila’s recovery potions were essential to the knights. Taking them away was bound to provoke backlash.
“Due to various circumstances, the creator of the recovery potions informed us that prices would be returned to their proper rate.
Until now, the purchase price was extraordinarily low due to her goodwill. With royal approval, the surplus in the potion budget was diverted to expedition expenses.”
The area fell deathly quiet.
“That situation… caused discomfort for the potion’s creator. As a result, the price has been restored to its proper value.”
The knights’ unease did not fade.
They had relied on those potions to push themselves beyond reasonable limits.
Some had fought recklessly, trusting their wounds would heal over time.
“Then… does that mean we won’t have potions anymore…?”
“No way…”
Several knights rummaged through the pouches on their sword belts, checking their remaining stock.
—You knew this would happen, didn’t you?
“Leon, hey… why did Sheila pull the potions?”
“Leon, please. We’re in trouble without them.”
All eyes turned toward me.
I stepped back in fear, only to realize I was already surrounded.
“I don’t know what you expect me to say…”
“Come on, seriously. I gave mine to my mother. She’s always in pain, but one potion would make her feel better.”
The one speaking was pale.
We had fought side by side many times, saving each other’s lives.
“I’m struggling too! I could sell them in town for extra money. That’s how I was supporting my younger siblings!”
Reselling was forbidden, but that hardly mattered to him now.
Stares stabbed into me from all sides.
Accusatory. Pitying.
I shook off the hand gripping me and glared back.
“Don’t dump your problems on me.
And to begin with, are you allowed to use supplies issued to the knight order for personal reasons?”
They fell silent, eyes turning away.
Looking around, most of them lowered their gaze, clearly ashamed.
Still, the pleading looks were unbearable.
As I opened my mouth to speak, a voice cut through the stillness.
“Probably got exposed for having a hidden kid.”
“H-hey!”
The muttered words echoed far too loudly, followed by hurried attempts to silence them.
“A hidden child…? So it wasn’t Sheila’s?”
“Wait—did she divorce him?”
“Wow… that’s messed up.”
Whispers spread freely.
Some people, likely with their own skeletons in the closet, stared at the ground and waited for the storm to pass.
“Enough! Be quiet!
That concludes the announcement. Dismissed. Return to your posts.”
“Leon, report to the captain’s office.”
Even as the assembly broke up, murmurs lingered.
Unable to bear the atmosphere, I headed straight for the captain’s office.
When I knocked, a voice called out, “Enter.”
Inside were Captain Zain—and, for some reason, Captain Dagart of Marseilles.
“Sit.”
I lowered myself onto the sofa and was handed a stack of documents.
They were repayment demands for fraudulent benefits received in Marseilles.
“So you were living as a family with Chiara there,” Zain said quietly.
My heart jolted.
Family. That word felt off.
She was more like a lover.
I would visit, hold Lilia, spend time together as three. Once Lilia fell asleep, Chiara and I would share sweet moments.
That was all I wanted.
No complications. No responsibility.
She never complained, never demanded anything. She simply waited for me, smiling happily when I returned. I thought that was cute.
“You’re moving out of that house.”
“What about Chiara?”
I signed the documents in silence.
How much savings did I have left?
Three years’ worth of benefits added up to a substantial sum.
“I’ll tell her to move somewhere safe.”
“And you?” Zain asked. “Why not live together?”
What was Dagart even saying?
“I have to find Sheila. The knights want the recovery potions. I need to bring her back and have her make them again.”
I even smiled as I said it.
If I did that, everyone would benefit again, wouldn’t they?
Both captains stared at me in shock.
I hadn’t said anything strange.
After all—
Sheila is my wife.
