Chapter 70

Back in camp, Carissa composed herself. Despite her promotion to regiment commander, she still shared a small tent with Cynthia and the others. The only difference was the addition of two new blankets sent from Tower City. Since Bun and Travis were men, a curtain divided the tent for privacy while they undressed to tend to their wounds.

Everyone had suffered minor injuries, nothing serious. The cold weather intensified the pain.

Carissa offered medicine, but it was refused. Everyone going to battle brought their own supplies, and each guild had its own healing remedies. Carissa put the medicine away. "Never mind," she said.

"Carissa," Cynthia began, cleaning powdered medicine from the floor, "I heard your ex-husband and his new wife are coming to support us. Won't that be awkward?"

Violet snorted, her face as cold as frost. "Awkward? Not at all. Just treat them like the pigs and dogs they are! We don't need to waste our time on such scum."

Bun lifted the curtain. "By the way, why did your mother marry you off to that scoundrel?"

Carissa lay down, aching from head to toe, feeling as if she'd been run over by a cart. "He promised never to take a concubine," she explained. "Mom probably thought that after all these years in the Pathfinders Guild, I was least suited for domestic disputes and worried I'd be at a disadvantage in the fight over wives and concubines."

Cynthia, her delicate face smeared with dried blood, said, "I don't understand domestic affairs well, but your mother was right. Unfortunately, you ended up with an ungrateful bastard."

Bun lowered the curtain and continued bandaging his wound. "I guess your mother must be regretting her decision, huh? If it were me, I'd have brought servants and caused a ruckus at the Valor Estate. You were so fierce in the Pathfinders Guild. Why didn't you give him a few lashes yourself?"

Carissa closed her eyes. "The noble circles in the capital are different from the martial world. After my divorce, people already look down on me. If I beat my ex-husband, people will criticize my family even if he's no longer my husband. It would also bring trouble to my unmarried relatives."

"How could it affect your relatives? It's your own business," Bun said, baffled.

Violet said flatly, "No, she's right. If someone finds out that a divorced woman from her family is beating her ex-husband, who would dare to marry into her family? It would be even worse if she has younger relatives who are still unmarried." Violet, from a prestigious southern family, had heard many such stories. For instance, her own family had a distant aunt who caused trouble and damaged their reputation by eloping with a scholar and becoming a concubine. This made it difficult for other family members seeking advantageous marriages, as high-status families shunned such scandals, and lower-status families were also deterred. The bottom line was that there were a lot of rules.

Violet grimaced, thinking about how such matters always caused her headaches.

Bonus 15

"That's not a problem. After we win the battle and return, you don't need to deal with him. We'll handle it for you," Cynthia said.

Carissa opened her eyes and smiled at Cynthia. "No need to wait for victory. They'll be coming to the Southern Frontier soon. He's the main general of the reinforcements. I'm thinking whether I should inform the marshal about my past with him."

Violet pulled out a leather wine pouch and took a swig. "You haven't done anything wrong, so there's no need to explain. They can come and handle it themselves."

"Vivi, you have wine? That's unfair! Why didn't you share it?" Catching the scent of alcohol, Travis yanked aside the curtain and tried to grab the pouch.

Violet tossed the pouch to Carissa, who grabbed it and leaped out of the tent.

With a loud thud, Carissa hit the ground, dropping the pouch. She clutched her nose, wincing in pain. "Ouch… That hurt!" She had bumped into something—a wall of iron and copper? Her nose felt broken.