Chapter 3 – Exploration (Part 2)

Come to think of it, Elysia and Tobias hadn’t had time to discuss the contents of the marriage contract together. While they could exchange letters, it was difficult to discuss every clause of the contract in writing, and there was no guarantee that the Ducal estate wouldn’t censor the correspondence. Even if not for the contract, they could have arrived earlier to allow a father and daughter, suddenly separated and reuniting after a while, some time together.

“I hadn’t considered that. If you had informed me in advance that such time was needed, I would have arranged it.”

Cassius was merely stating a fact, but to Tobias, it sounded like he was picking a fight. It seemed as if Cassius was reproaching him for blaming him without having given prior notice.

Tobias thought that Cassius had prevented Elysia from meeting her family to gain an advantageous position in the negotiation. This was based on the reputation of Duke Grendel, known for his meticulous work as the Minister of Administration.

However, from Cassius’s perspective, arriving on time with Elysia was an act of consideration as her fiancé. The Grendel Ducal estate and the Administrative Palace were on opposite sides relative to this location. Therefore, it would have been much more efficient to come directly from the Administrative Palace without stopping by the estate. However, thinking it would be impolite to make his future spouse travel alone, he deliberately returned to the Ducal estate to accompany Elysia in the carriage. To the Duke, Tobias’s words sounded like an attempt to dominate the negotiation from the start.

As their gazes met, seeming ready to spark, Elysia quickly moved towards Tobias.

“Father, we have a lot to discuss. Where should we start?”

Elysia signaled Tobias to take it easy, thinking there was no need to waste energy early on. As he stepped back and took a seat, Tobias quickly scanned his daughter’s appearance.

Though she was pretending to be fine, her slightly gaunt appearance was due to irregular living and habitual light meals. Moreover, having hurriedly dressed, she didn’t look as polished as she did at the Serenze house. Her hair and skin seemed a bit rough, and above all, the clothes she wore were not new dresses but ones she had brought from the Serenze house, and her hairstyle was overly simple.

‘It seems to be true that there are no servants who have served women in the duke’s house for a long time. My daughter has become an old-fashioned country bumpkin in an instant. Did he not even buy his fiancé a new set of clothes? It seems he has no intention of showing off how he treats his fiancée lavishly at the first meeting after their engagement.’

Of course, Elysia wasn’t really dressed like a rustic, but everything seemed unsatisfactory and lacking in Tobias’s eyes, who intended to find fault from the beginning.

Meanwhile, Cassius and Aaron were also belatedly observing Elysia. Cassius wondered if the maids weren’t providing proper meals, seeing Elysia’s cheeks and wrists, while Aaron blamed himself for not having taken care of the Madam’s grooming, now noticing it was lacking.

On the other hand, Elysia was sweating bullets, fearing her father’s sharp eyes would see through her lazy lifestyle since leaving home.

The quiet standoff showed no signs of ending. Eventually, Elysia spoke up to break the tense silence and hasten the negotiation.

“There are many items to review. Where shall we start?”

A marriage contract, drawn up through negotiation before the wedding, was something anyone with a certain amount of wealth or nobility would use. The two getting married usually brought along a parent or an older family member to the negotiation. Cassius had brought Aaron as his companion.

‘He must not have any relatives to bring.’

Elysia realized belatedly. The purpose of accompanying a relative was to have a witness, but if there were no immediate family, a distant relative could be seated formally. For someone like Duke Grendel, who would lead the negotiation anyway, he could have brought a distant relative. Yet, the secretary’s presence indicated that the Duke had no remaining relatives.

Elysia, who had never paid much attention to the Grendel Ducal family’s collateral lines, had no idea how extensive they were. Now, realizing he couldn’t invite a single relative, even including those from his maternal side, she felt oddly melancholic.

‘He has no one to lean on in his family.’

His face, as straight as a marble statue yet seemingly without even a needle’s worth of room, seemed a little, just a little, pitiable to her.

Since Elysia didn’t know the clear reason why the Duke wanted to marry her, she thought she might find out during this negotiation. Although unlikely, it could be that he needed money or required information from Tobias’s business connections.

During the time when the royal power of Brunchia was strengthening, many nobles residing in the provinces donated their territories and private armies to the state in exchange for noble titles and entry into the capital. Since culture, economy, and politics were all concentrated in the capital, there was no need to remain in the provinces and confront the royal family.

At that time, the Grendel Ducal family, among the noble families, took the lead and donated most of their territories and private armies to the state, except for their mansion in the capital. This further solidified their image of loyalty to the royal family.

Of course, aside from those donated to the state, the Grendel family had ample jewels, gold bars, tangible assets, financial assets, and real estate. However, their family tradition was not to flaunt their financial soundness externally. Therefore, outsiders of the Ducal family could not know the actual scale of the wealth, and Elysia was no exception, which led her to wonder if they might need money.

No matter how prestigious the Grendel family was, Elysia thought they might surprisingly be an empty shell.

“A dowry is not necessary. Since this marriage was accomplished through my unilateral request, there is no need for the Serenze family to provide anything to the Ducal family.”

And Elysia soon learned that her guess was off the mark.

‘That’s a relief. Since there’s nothing we need to transfer, it seems money or information isn’t the issue. The negotiation will end quickly… Oh, Father?’

She thought the negotiation would end easily without the need for repeated back-and-forth since he declared they wanted nothing. But she heard a grinding sound from Tobias’s direction. Looking over, his face was filled with anger.

“Do you think our family is so insignificant that we have nothing to offer when our eldest daughter is getting married, even if we are far inferior compared to the Ducal family?”

Elysia took Cassius’s words to mean that there was simply no need for the Serenze family to pay anything. However, it seemed Cassius had firmly earned Tobias’s disfavor, as Tobias interpreted the brief words differently.

Aaron hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over.

“The Duke didn’t mean it that way…”

“Are you the Duke’s parent or sibling?! A third party should stay quiet.”

When Tobias sternly retorted, the Duke spoke again.

“Though not blood-related, he is here to fulfill that role. It seems there was a slight misunderstanding, but the Ducal family does not need to marry for benefits such as wealth.”

There was not a hint of fluctuation in the Duke’s face as he spoke calmly. Because of that indifferent demeanor, Tobias’s anger only grew. Elysia had similar thoughts. She believed that if Cassius showed even a slightly more human reaction, her father wouldn’t be this angry. Letting out an internal sigh, Elysia opened her mouth to try to resolve the situation.

“Father, it’s exactly as the Duke said. In fact, anyone can see there’s no reason for the Grendel Ducal family to demand anything from us. How about the dowry you prepared being given to me as my property instead of going to the Ducal family? Of course, only if the Duke is okay with me having personal assets.”

“I don’t care how the Serenze family’s assets are distributed. Let it be as proposed, with them belonging to you.”

Only then did Tobias’s expression ease, as if he had suppressed his anger a bit.

“In that case, I want to add a clause stating that everything given by the Serenze family will belong solely to Elysia during the marriage and even if there is a divorce later, with no involvement from the Ducal family.”

When the Duke gestured his approval, the legal representative sitting on one side added the clause to the document.

Conversely, Cassius demanded a clause stating that any relics of the Ducal family received in the capacity of the Duchess must be returned in the event of a divorce.

Tobias agreed to the clause, adding that if it came to a divorce, there would be no need to take anything from the Ducal family, including relics or even personal items purchased while living there.