Chapter 39: Because normal couples can’t.

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Translator: Soafp

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Unable to fully control my emotions, I returned home.

Maya was waiting for me, sitting formally in a demure position.

I wanted to say, “That attitude pisses me off. If you’re going to act like that, why didn’t you eagerly agree to help punish Naoki?” But I knew it would lead to a fruitless argument, so I held back.

Not sure how to release the bit of pent-up stress, I stood silently in front of Maya. She hesitantly spoke up.

“I’ve been thinking…”

I was somewhat impressed, thinking she was reflecting on herself, but I quickly realized she wasn’t that admirable.

“I was thinking about how we could be a normal couple, even if just for a month…”

She truly didn’t understand, and her naivety frustrated me. To avoid her making things more complicated, I decided to give her a light jab.

“It is impossible. Trust between us is not just nonexistent; it’s in the negatives.”

“…”

She fell silent. Of course, I had told her this before. To avoid any misunderstandings, I continued.

“Can you cultivate love with someone you can’t trust?”

Love is built on trust. A marriage is supposed to be between two people who trust and love each other. Marrying with one-sided love is just as foolish as a marriage scam.

Whether she understood with her limited intellect or not, Maya stopped saying unnecessary things.

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That evening, because I had allowed us to live as a couple, I had no choice but to eat dinner at home. However, it was Maya’s cooking.

“…Sorry for the wait. Please, eat.”

Without saying a word, I took a bite of the white stew.

“…Ugh!”

As expected, nausea overcame me, and I rushed to the bathroom, only to dry heave since my stomach was empty.

It was inevitable.

When I returned to the dining table, the stew was already cold. Maya seemed to be holding back tears, her eyes glistening, and she was gritting her teeth.

Her pathetic stance irritated me, and I coldly spoke.

“…We’re a couple, so we should at least eat dinner together. But as you can see.”

I couldn’t eat food made by hands that had pleased another man. Even if I didn’t say it, she should understand by now.

“Ah, ah, ah…”

Maya choked back sobs, which only irritated me more.

So, I blurted out,

“…But I said we'd continue as a couple for the next month. I’ll take responsibility for that. We’ll eat dinner together again tomorrow.”

“Ahhh…”

She refrained from apologizing, which was a relief. But she seemed to understand the underlying meaning of my words.

──Every time I get sick, remember your sins. Understand that they are beyond atonement.

……

Well, I’ll suffer too. It’s a double-edged sword.

But why white stew, of all things? Couldn’t she have chosen a dish that didn’t evoke such disturbing associations?