Chapter 3

Then, Ivy finished, "As for him… If you even hurt him once and I find out, I'll make you pay!"

There was a stinging sensation in my heart just then.

So in her mind, I was always a villainous husband, jealous of her other man!

Still, I leveled a defiant glare at her pretty face and dissed, "So you're not just having problems with your hearing, but with your brain too? Would I bother breaking up with you if he's my target?

"Also, I'm not interested in having a fight. All I want is to tell you that I'll have this divorce—don't worry, I'll explain myself to your grandfather. Just think about it."

With those words, I knocked her hand out of the way and went upstairs without cleaning the table.

I soon heard the door banging soon enough as well—it was most likely Ivy leaving.

I breathed a long sigh.

Even though I was given a second life, I could not help feeling stung by her words.

Fortunately, that was all there was to it—in the last life, those same words would have ripped me apart.

As I lay in bed, ready for some proper sleep, my phone rang.

I held it up to see that it was my father-in-law.

My thumb hesitated over the button to answer for a long while, but I ultimately answered, "Hello."

The man's vigorous voice promptly spoke, "Hey, Isaac. My wife is asking if you kids are taking the prescription punctually…"

I glanced at the unopened boxes of medicine stacking by the wall and chuckled. "We're both taking it as per the doctors' orders."

Hal Jenner was naturally pleased about that.

Ivy was his only daughter, and while they had successes in business, it would be the end of their lineage if she did not have children soon.

It was also a point of exasperation for me—who knew how many times the Jenners had been nagging me to have a kid with Ivy in the year since we married.

But now that I was divorcing Ivy, I did not want more problems, let alone play to his tune. "Even with meds, luck matters when it comes to making kids. Can't push our luck if ours is bad."

I did my best to be reasonable so that I could hang up sooner, only for Hal to snap, "Luck?! Bullshit! You knew I picked you because you're an upstanding man with somewhat good looks and a sound mind!

"You'll therefore be able to pass good genes to the future heirs of the Jenner family. But I'm warning you—if the meds don't work, you should just step back. There are plenty of men willing to have a child with her!"

The way Hal ran his mouth left me absolutely furious.

I listened to and did the bidding of my in-laws, always playing the role of the good son-in-law. While I had never once gone against their will, I did not think that encouraged them so much that they would tell me to my face that I was impotent!

I had been taking in the abuse without fighting back over the years, only to earn their endless insults.

But since I was divorcing Ivy anyway, what would I care about my in-laws?

Laughing, I snapped at Hal right then, "Do you think that having children is up to me? Honestly, aren't you old enough to use your brain properly? Why do you think that I'm the problem here?

"You've seen my medical report. Do you think I'm the issue here, or that perhaps I'm at fault for everything? Hell, I'll get some other woman pregnant right now—are you going to claim the child as an heir?"

Hal was left stunned.

He clearly did not expect me to argue that he could barely make sense. "Y-You're… blaming my daughter because you can't do it?! And you're talking back… insolence!"

"Get your head out of the clouds already."

I laughed coolly at the stubborn father-in-law. "Like I said, your daughter is the problem. If you have the strength to blame me, why don't you discipline her instead?"

And with those words, I quickly hung up and even turned off my phone.

It felt delightful even as I threw myself on the bed and rolled around gleefully.

That felt so good!

The divorce simply felt that good—I fear nothing now that I had given up on everything.

Whichever loser wanted my place, so be it. Either way, it would not be me!

Still, it was a long and exhausting day, so I soon fell asleep.

I woke up at 10pm and headed downstairs.

The mansion was still pitch-black—Ivy clearly had no intention of returning, just as she did not in my past life.

I sneered—I was used to it anyway.

I cooked myself an exquisite dinner, as I had decided not to starve myself for anyone now.

Once my stomach was full, I packed my bags and left the mansion that I had decorated elaborately without hesitation, lodging at a hotel for the time being.

After all, I had something very important to do tomorrow, aside from my own divorce.

And I could not afford to fail!

-

Early next morning, I was woken up by Ivy's call.

"Isaac York!" She was growling through her teeth. "What did you tell my father?!"

I rubbed my still groggy head, but as I recalled the conversation between myself and her father last night, I almost laughed out loud.

"You knew full well what I said. So when are your parents taking you for that checkup?"

Ivy did not speak for a long while, but I could almost see the dark look on her face, barely withholding her rage.

To no surprise, when she spoke again, there was a hint of that in her voice. "Reverse psychology doesn't work on me, Isaac. I have no intention of sleeping with you—get it?"

I stretched my limbs nonchalantly, flipping around and staying in bed. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm not interested in sleeping with you."

Ivy simply snorted haughtily. "That's not what you said before, and where's breakfast?"

I opened my eyes, unable to stop myself from gnashing my teeth.

That wench… Not only did she abuse me however she could, but she was really used to ordering me around.

I did not mean to brag, but I was a pretty good cook. After all, I had always worried about Ivy, since breakfast was not a part of her routine. That was why I did my best to learn, only for myself to be the one ending up sick.

Luck really favored her back then, it seemed.

In the first year of our marriage, things were cold between us, but she really liked my cooking.

I was very pleased with myself, hoping—even presuming—that she liked me a little.

But now, I finally saw the truth: The bitch simply saw me as a slave!

And that was why I would never cook for her for the rest of my life.

Meanwhile, Ivy had not received a response from me for a while and clearly became impatient, so she snapped, "Where are you?"

Not about to tolerate her brattish attitude, I told her shortly, "Second floor. There's something on the table."

Soon, I heard her walking up the stairs while still lecturing me with her heiress attitude.

"Getting tempestuous, aren't you? Nowadays it's all about what you want! I've always had breakfast on the first floor, and now you're telling me it's on the second—"

Ivy's footsteps and her complaints stopped abruptly, as if she had vanished into thin air in an instant.

It took quite a while for her to recover and snap over the phone, "A divorce agreement? What's the meaning of this?!"

Before I left last night, I had quickly printed two divorce agreements—I simply could not wait.

And now, I could imagine the look on her pretty face right now and the gloominess that shrouded it.

Still, I remained calm while feeling ever slightly gleeful. "It's exactly what you think it means.

"I've already signed it. And don't worry… Since I want a clean break, I'd never demand a cent from you. From now on, we'll go our separate ways and live our own lives—"