I Thought It Was An Arranged Marriage - Chapter 20

Most recently, Bianca, who had gone to the estate to recuperate due to poor health, had been the subject of a ridiculous rumor that she had actually been pregnant but fortunately miscarried and returned. If her recuperation had lasted a bit longer, it might have become a widely accepted fact.

Regardless of the fact that she had never even held hands with her fiancé and was pure. Rumors were just like that. So, they didn’t believe the rumors about Kallen.

“But really, why was she crying? Did she really think she would be welcomed by the Marquis family after causing such a scandal?”

“Did she think everything would be fine just because she got pregnant?”

“Surely not…”

Everyone fell silent as if they had made an unspoken agreement. Rosaline was the perfect young lady, praised for being a perfect hostess. If Amelia thought she could completely replace Rosaline’s position just by having a child, she was naive and short-sighted.

Even so, the thought that Amelia might have really believed that crossed everyone’s mind, but they didn’t say it out loud. It seemed too rude.

Rosaline felt the same. She didn’t know the exact reason for her broken engagement. She only heard that it was Kallen’s mistake and for political reasons, so she also misunderstood the sequence of events. She thought Amelia became his bride because she was pregnant. She hadn’t considered that the pregnancy might have been forced after the marriage was decided.

Even knowing that Kallen was a piece of trash, it was hard to imagine he had been dumped because he frequented brothels and, to avoid becoming a laughingstock, had impregnated his intended bride.

“Still, seeing her cry… I was so startled I didn’t know what to do. She didn’t see me, so I thought about just walking past her, but then I wondered if I should at least give her a handkerchief. But she’s the one who tormented our Rosie.”

Returning to the topic, Caroline hesitated as she spoke, and Rosaline felt her heart warm. Essentially, her close friends were gentle and kind-hearted people. If they found a pregnant woman, who seemed to have a bad relationship with her husband, crying alone in a corner, they would have felt sorry for her and tried to help in any way they could.

But because that woman was Amelia Addis, Kallen’s wife, they hesitated to help and were trying to coldly cut her off. All for Rosaline’s sake, because they cared about her.

Even after a year had passed, and good memories had covered old ones, past wounds didn’t heal easily. She still felt betrayed, angry, and disgusted when she thought of Kallen. And thinking of Amelia made her hands tremble, brought back terrible pain, and scared her.

Even so, she felt she could endure a bit more because she had friends who prioritized her and worried about her. Of course, that didn’t mean she intended to include Amelia in this gathering. Even if someone with a soft heart suggested it, she would oppose it to the end. Fortunately, it didn’t seem like anyone would make such a suggestion.

“While I was hesitating, her crying subsided, and I heard the sound of footsteps. I don’t know why, but I instinctively thought I should hide.”

It was a sudden twist. Those who had been trying to harden their hearts swallowed nervously and focused on Caroline’s story. And indeed, the people who appeared were the ones worth worrying about.

“It was Lady Lawson and Lady Brooks. I don’t remember the others well, but there were five or six of them? Anyway, they came in a group and took the Young Marchioness with them. She was still crying until then.”

“Lady Lawson is…”

“Lady the noble faction…”

“Lady Brooks is also considered neutral, but she leans toward the noble faction…”

While everyone added their comments, Rosaline remained silent. Diana Lawson and Helen Brooks were young ladies she knew. Wherever they went, they would settle in the loudest spot and gossip excitedly. Even Rosaline and her friends, who usually had no interest in others’ stories, found them annoying. ‘Ah, those people really love gossip,’ they thought.

In reality, they were the kind of people who would talk about, spread, and even fabricate other people’s flaws for fun, but Rosaline’s group didn’t know that much. They weren’t interested, and they didn’t think anyone would go that far.

And they were currently suffering retaliation from Lucas for talking recklessly about Rosaline’s broken engagement. Lucas was thoroughly hiding it, though.

“Come to think of it… the Young Marquis stayed until late. But the carriage was still there, which was strange.”

“Yes, the Young Marchioness left in Miss Lawson’s carriage. That seemed a bit…”

“Hmm…”

Rosaline and her friends made uncomfortable sounds and fell silent. While they felt sorry for Amelia, they also felt a chill down their spines from a bad premonition.

Why did she leave with those people? They were not the kind of people who would help Amelia. They were the kind of women who could stab her in the back and push her to ruin. Even though she was a country noble, she had been in the capital for nearly two years. How could she be so poor at judging people? Could she not see how insignificant and naive a prey she was in the social scene?

And Rosaline’s friends glanced at her. If Amelia fell into ruin, it was clear that Rosaline would be dragged into it too. To them, Rosaline was a friend who made them realize that where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Because she was so beautiful and outstanding, strange people often spread ridiculous slanders about her.

Whether it was young ladies jealous of the young men who fell for Rosaline, young men who were rejected without any chance and bore grudges, or lowly people who wanted to bring down a high and mighty woman, strangely, crazy people often clung to Rosaline. And those young ladies belonged exactly to that crazy group. It was clear they would incite Amelia to bring Rosaline down.

“The Marchioness Addis…”

“It seems she doesn’t like her daughter-in-law. At the last book club meeting, she came alone and… she hinted in dozens of ways that she was displeased.”

“No matter how much she dislikes her, to say so outside…”

“It’s unfortunate. But isn’t it inevitable? Originally, she must have thought of Rosie as her daughter-in-law.”

“Compared to Rosie, no one, not even the Young Marchioness…”

The atmosphere became somber. Everyone was holding back their words in various ways. Rosaline also fell into thought. In her heart, she didn’t want to see either Amelia or Kallen. They left fatal wounds on her body and mind, making it hard for her to trust others, and she really hated them.

She didn’t even want to think about the people who made her unable to fully open her heart to a husband who was so devoted to her. But she was no longer Lady Marte; she was the Grand Duchess of Bryant.

The Addis Marquis family was one of the main pillars of the Emperor’s faction. Originally a family of scholars, the marquis family had produced high-ranking officials for generations and led the political scene as the Emperor’s brains. Their territory wasn’t fertile, and their business acumen wasn’t as developed as their political minds, so they weren’t exceptionally wealthy, but they excelled in politics and administration.

Even though Kallen was a crazy bastard, he had a good political brain and was making a mark. Lady Marte might not care if the Addis Marquis family fell, rather, she might even feel relieved, but as the Grand Duchess of Bryant, she couldn’t overlook it.

Of course, the marquis family wouldn’t collapse just because the Young Marchioness was involved in a scandal. High-ranking nobles always carried one or two scandals, and they wouldn’t fall over something like that. In the worst case, they could divorce her and keep the child. Or they might find an excuse to get rid of the child too. It would be easier for Kallen to remarry without a child.