The smile wouldn’t leave her face.

Because searching through this body’s memories, she’d found that Grand Duke Cassian Lorentz had been among the men who’d recently sent a marriage proposal.

And in the latter half of the novel, he was widely known as a devoted and loving husband.

It seemed she’d have a chance to meet him again as a matchmaking partner.

‘I need to get back to the capital!’

She had to see her father and talk about the matchmaking as soon as possible.

* * *

The room was enormous. A chandelier blazed brilliantly overhead, and the table was carved from marble.

A man sat in an elegant chair, lifting a teacup. The middle-aged man had short red hair and blue eyes, his face cleanly shaved. Whether by preference or habit, he wore ornate clothing even in private, and today was no different, his shirt fastened with jeweled buttons.

A breeze drifted in through the slightly open window.

Spring had just arrived, and the air was fresh and warm.

In contrast, the man’s eyes as they rested on the woman across from him were utterly blank. Not cold, exactly, because cold at least implied feeling.

‘He had no affection for her. He weighed her like a commodity for a political match, looking only at what she was worth. Not the kind of father I’d choose, but useful enough.’

The man seated across from her was Raelia’s birth father, Viloten Lateran. Marquis Lateran.

Raelia lifted her teacup when Viloten lifted his.

Raelia had grown up without love.

Lonely. Isolated.

That was why a man like Juan had swept in and taken her heart so easily.

Until she’d opened her eyes to reality and resolved to break free, she’d clung to old memories and loved him with everything she had, foolishly and sincerely.

But that was over now.

She had no more intention of defying her father’s wish to marry her off through arrangement. It was the only way to see him again.

“About that marriage proposal that came in before. The one from Grand Duke Lorentz.”

Raelia opened gently, and Viloten’s eyebrow twitched. He clearly hadn’t expected her to bring this up herself.

“That’s right. I told you to go and you refused.”

“You haven’t turned it down yet, have you?”

Raelia asked carefully.

“……”

“I’ll go.”

Raelia smiled.

“What’s gotten into you? You always changed the subject whenever a proposal came up. And didn’t you say you especially disliked this one because His Grace already has a child?”

Viloten gave her a puzzled look.

“I changed my mind.”

Raelia followed up with exactly what Viloten would want to hear.

“I want a marriage that benefits the family.”

Viloten was a nobleman of the old school. He’d devoted his life to the family’s prosperity and held the family’s honor as sacred as his own life.

Winning his favor was simple enough. She just had to do what he wanted and marry well for the family’s sake.

“You’ve finally grown up.”

Viloten’s expression softened. Satisfaction settled into his smile.

“I’ll arrange it shortly.”

For the first time, Viloten looked at Raelia without coldness.

Raelia bowed to him and left.

The truth was, if she’d only wanted to get rid of Juan, she could have had him reassigned somewhere else without going through the trouble of an arranged marriage. But she didn’t know what Juan might do if he pushed back.

She had to handle things before he could make his move.

And……!

‘I get to see him again too.’

Her mood lifted.

* * *

Cassian, or rather Grand Duke Lorentz of the South, had once been very popular in social circles. Then, abruptly, at twenty-four, he’d dropped a bombshell by announcing he had a two-year-old son, sending shockwaves through society.

The ladies realized that marrying him meant they could never be the birth mother of his heir, and they stopped pursuing him. Naturally, Grand Duke Lorentz stopped appearing in society and began sending marriage proposals to suitable families.

He was twenty-six at the time.

Raelia recalled the face she’d seen at the teahouse.

‘He was a perfect northern grand duke.’

So what if he was a southern grand duke! She’d just think of him as a different version of a northern grand duke.

She waited quietly over her tea, and three minutes before the appointed time, a man entered the room.

Raelia rose without a word and bowed her head.

“I greet Your Grace.”

“Your face is familiar, my lady.”

Cassian slowly searched his memory, reaching back to a few days ago.

“So you were the Lateran lady.”

‘He remembered.’

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Grand Duke Lorentz!”

Cassian’s gaze drifted to the cup in front of Raelia. He noticed her tea was still warm, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

“Likewise. My son enjoyed the sweets very much.”

The stiffness in his expression eased a little.

“I hope the journey wasn’t too taxing for Your Grace, coming all this way.”

“A trip like this hardly warrants the word taxing.”

Raelia studied his appearance and the way he was dressed.

His short black hair had a clean, crisp movement to it. His dark eyes caught the light in a way that was almost mysterious. His restrained style of dress was exactly what a cool, composed northern grand duke would wear.

‘My eyes are so happy right now!’

All those illustrations of northern grand dukes she’d collected so diligently felt like a waste now.

Raelia kept her feelings hidden and smiled as she poured his tea.

“The tea has a lovely fragrance.”

The tea she’d ordered was Corlan tea, grown in the grand ducal territory. She’d chosen it deliberately to make a good impression on him. It seemed to work, because Cassian smiled quietly.

‘First impressions matter.’

“Corlan tea. It’s what I usually drink.”

“It’s a specialty of the southern grand duchy. I’ve been wanting to try it.”

Her words seemed to please him, and Cassian’s tone warmed. He moved to the point.

“As you may know, I already have an heir.”

“I know.”

“I want a marriage built on responsibility, not love.”

“What do you mean by that?”

It didn’t quite land for her. Raelia blinked and asked again, and Cassian explained in an even tone.

“Exactly what it sounds like. I want someone who will help raise my child responsibly, and who will manage the grand duchy in my absence when I go out to hunt monsters in winter.”

“You’re asking for trust and responsibility, not love.”

“That’s correct.”

Raelia nodded at his firm tone. It was far better than someone claiming to have fallen in love at first sight and proposing on that basis. At least this was honest.

She hesitated briefly, then asked.

“You don’t want love at all?”

“Of course not.”

“Understood.”

‘That’s a little sad.’

Living in warm closeness with a husband would be lovely! But Raelia had been hurt by love in her previous life too, so she wasn’t without understanding.

Society already knew the story. Cassian was the second son. He’d become grand duke only because his older brother, the original heir, had run away for love, been abandoned by the woman, and died.

So even though she liked him, she said nothing and quietly decided to fangirl over him in silence. Hadn’t she done exactly that in her previous life, fangirling without anyone around her ever knowing? That was her specialty.

“My heir is my brother’s child, whom I’ve taken in as my own. We may have children of our own, but they won’t become the heir.”

Cassian emphasized this once more. Raelia smiled.

“I came to this meeting knowing that much.”

“Then I’d like us to draw up a contract before the wedding.”

He was thorough.

In this world, the south was the cold region. True to his nature as the ruler of a cool, frigid land, his manner was composed and he let no emotion show throughout. The fact that he wanted a written contract suggested he handled things with precision.

‘That’s my grand duke.’

Better to be clear and definitive than to leave things vague. He was even giving her fangirl material without knowing it.

Not that he’d ever know.

Raelia thought that and waited for him to continue.

A brief silence, then Cassian spoke first.

“The specific terms are as follows. First, once you marry me, you won’t be able to leave the grand duchy for an extended period until the child is grown. Second, in my absence, you will act as my representative. I’ll handle the actual governance, but I’ll respect your input. Third, give the child your heart.”

Raelia listened and replied at ease.

“Then I’ll set my own terms as well. Never treat me with contempt. I don’t need love, but I do need to be treated properly as your wife. What I’m asking for is respect. And if we have children of our own, please be the best father you can be to them. The heir will inherit everything, but please leave at least some trace of a father for my children.”

She might develop feelings on her side eventually, but if he didn’t return them, there was nothing to be done. Still, a relationship grounded in trust and mutual respect would be enough.

“A trace of a father. What do you mean by that?”