Chapter 7 (Part 3)

Bill, who was deeply in love with Sandra, wanted to marry her at all costs, but Baron Berkshire naturally opposed their relationship.

Even Baron Berkshire was eager to marry her off to a nobleman quickly, fearing she might be pregnant with Bill’s child.

The problem was that the men her father wanted her to marry were all from insignificant families and were of no consequence.

It was useless to say she didn’t want to. The baron tried to pair her with noblemen whom noblewomen wouldn’t even look at, just to prevent her from marrying a commoner knight.

It’s better to wait until Bill succeeds!

Her father might not see it, but Sandra had no doubt that Bill would succeed one day and receive a noble title. She was sure she would regret it if she married the man her father had chosen now.

So Sandra had no choice but to ask Bill to find a way to prevent her from marrying those men.

‘If you just trust me, I can stop the marriage with another nobleman right now.’

‘How?’

‘Thankfully, my closest friend offered to help.’

Bill made a tempting proposal to Sandra, which she thought was impossible.

He suggested a temporary engagement with his friend.

It was an absurd plan, but since it would prevent her from marrying another nobleman right away, Sandra accepted Bill’s proposal. All she could do was wait for their plan to succeed.

That was five years ago.

When Bill introduced Patrick Marionus as a trustworthy friend, Sandra was so surprised that her mouth dropped open.

Most knights she had seen were muscular and rugged like Bill, but Patrick was entirely different.

Tall, seemingly lean but well-balanced with solid muscles. Honestly, his appearance was Sandra’s type.

But since he wasn’t interested in women, it was regrettable that he was just an empty shell.

After that, Bill’s plan proceeded smoothly. When she announced her engagement to Patrick, Baron Berkshire welcomed him enthusiastically and even respected Patrick’s opinion that he wasn’t planning to marry immediately.

Since the Berkshire family was in a lower position compared to the Marionus family, Baron Berkshire seemed pleased just with Sandra’s engagement to Patrick.

Foolishly, without realizing it was a fake engagement.

But the real fool was Sandra herself.

Patrick’s polite demeanor, restrained actions…. Maybe because he was a noble, his elegant and sophisticated gestures made Bill look crude in comparison. Naturally, Bill seemed inferior when compared to Patrick.

As a result, she found herself comparing the two more frequently.

If she had never known about Patrick from the beginning, it wouldn’t have mattered, but having such a capable and handsome temporary fiancé made her greedy.

One was of noble birth, the other a commoner. From the start, there was a difference, and even in terms of ability, Patrick was slightly ahead.

One was the commander of the Royal Third Knights, the other the deputy commander of the Second Knights.

Perhaps because of this, Patrick’s sophisticated appearance and noble demeanor made him seem much more attractive than Bill.

It was natural for her heart to lean toward the handsome royal knight commander who always treated her with respect and manners.

Of course, Bill was a decent man when seen alone, so she hadn’t initially thought of desiring Patrick this much. She thought it would be fine once Bill received a noble title.

But her sudden change of heart was because the title Bill received was far from what she had expected.

Maybe because he was a commoner, the title he received was nominal, and after Bill became a noble, her affection for him gradually waned.

It felt like the past five years waiting for him had been wasted.

So Sandra tried to reduce her meetings with Bill and increase her time with Patrick, but he rarely gave her the chance.

He always made excuses and rejected her attempts to set up dates, saying he was busy.

A man who had never shown interest in other women.

Just when her desire to conquer him was rising, he said something shocking. He wanted to break off the engagement as soon as possible because he had found someone he loved.

Suddenly finding someone to love? 

Hearing that felt like a huge blow to the back of her head.

He didn’t reveal who it was, but she managed to find out by insisting. She argued that she would find out soon anyway, so what was the point of keeping it a secret? She promised not to spread any rumors.

That promise was sincere. Who would benefit from spreading rumors? She was just curious about the sudden competitor.

But the person turned out to be unexpected.

The lady of the Lennox family?

Even more, it was the tomboyish Reina Lennox? Who would like such a tomboyish lady?

She knew Reina was a unique lady who wielded a sword. She had been training for quite a while, and her femininity was severely lacking.

So Sandra didn’t believe that the relationship between Reina and Patrick was genuine. She thought they were just mistaking their long-time companionship for love.

It didn’t make sense that they suddenly became lovers after not being anything for the past five years.

The more she thought about it, the more it didn’t make sense that Patrick, who had shown no interest in other women, especially her, would easily give his heart to Reina.

There must be another reason.

If I had known this would happen, I would have acted sooner….

Given the situation, Sandra regretted not seducing Patrick earlier. So she decided to act now.

Sandra was confident she could win against Reina. That’s why she had been frequently visiting Patrick lately.

It was also to keep her rival in check. To warn her not to mess with an engaged man.

* * *

Sandra visited Patrick early in the morning. Since he was busy commuting between the Lennox training ground and the royal palace, the only time she could meet him was right after his early morning training.

Although she could only meet him for 30 minutes, it was the time when Patrick could spare the most time.

“It feels like Bill’s heart has left me. What should I do?”

“That can’t be. There must be some misunderstanding between you two.”

“It’s not a misunderstanding. Bill has changed.”

Sandra deliberately grabbed Patrick’s arm, making sure her chest touched him.

“Bill might feel uncomfortable if he sees this, so it would be better to be careful.”

Patrick gently removed Sandra’s arm with a polite demeanor.

Even trying to seduce him physically, his actions were too resolute. Flirting and batting her eyes elicited no reaction. He was as impenetrable as Sandra had always known him to be.

Are they really lovers?

As their conversation continued, Sandra became increasingly doubtful about the authenticity of Patrick and Reina’s relationship.

Usually, when a man falls for a woman, doesn’t he soften up? How could he remain so stiff even after finding someone?

She thought there would be a crack in his heart, but nothing had changed.

“What do you like about Lady Lennox?”

Sandra asked with a puzzled look, and Patrick showed a troubled expression as if he found it difficult to answer.

“Is there a reason you can’t answer?”

“No, it’s just that everything about her is lovable, but it’s my first time saying such things to someone else, so it’s a bit embarrassing.”

His face didn’t change as he said these cheesy words, making her doubt the sincerity of his statement.

“Is it because she’s from the Lennox family?”

“Of course not. If that were the case, I would have broken off our fake engagement long ago and gotten engaged to her. But now it’s time to end this fake engagement, so I hope we can break it off as soon as possible.”

Emphasizing the term “fake engagement,” it seemed he had already made up his mind to break it off.

This can’t be happening….

Patrick’s impenetrable demeanor left Sandra with no room to wedge herself into his heart. This only made her more suspicious about the authenticity of his relationship with Reina.

If she couldn’t break through that wall, it seemed even more impossible for Reina to do so.

Does he show the same attitude towards Lady Lennox?

Sandra’s continued suspicion of their relationship stemmed mainly from the fact that the knights greeted her as Patrick’s fiancée when she visited him.

They seemed completely unaware of any relationship between Patrick and Reina.

Usually, if two people are in love, it shows in their eyes or actions, and those around them would notice. The fact that no one knew suggested the possibility that their relationship was fake.

Sandra suddenly had a thought.

Is Reina using the Lennox family’s power to pressure Commander Marionus? Could she be threatening that if he doesn’t accept her feelings, there would be consequences?

Is Reina pushing her family’s power unfairly? Trying to seduce an engaged man—wasn’t that against the code of conduct?

I have to meet Duchess Lennox.

Duke Lennox was too far out of reach for Sandra. Although the duchess was also a difficult figure to meet, she was relatively more accessible than the duke.

So, she had to request a meeting, using Reina’s name as a pretext. Then she planned to speak with her.

She just needed to say that Lady Lennox was trying to seduce her fiancé under the guise of friendship. Of course, she would add that she couldn’t understand why someone would set their sights on another’s fiancé.

How would Duchess Lennox react?

Sandra knew well that the Duke and Duchess of Lennox highly valued principles and morality. If they were as principled as rumored, they would surely stop their daughter’s actions, which deserved criticism.

If they knew their daughter’s conduct, they would certainly prevent her from being with Commander Marionus.

Of course, Sandra had no intention of revealing that Commander Marionus and Lady Lennox were lovers. That would only backfire on her.