“…Phew.”

She inadvertently thought about her family and let out a bitter smile.

Her father, who had racked up debts while creating trouble, her lavish stepmother, and her half-brother who had inherited only their flaws.

Sometimes, she just wanted to turn a blind eye to them and run away.

“…”

Giselle stopped in her tracks. She had already reached the vicinity of her house.

Home. It should be a place that brings happiness just by thinking about it, but she had never felt that way.

“…I’m not a child anymore.”

She stepped forward again, having initially tried to retreat. Then, she took a deep breath and headed towards her house.

Since she hadn’t brought an umbrella, her body was soaked in the rain and felt chilly.

“Alright. First, I’ll ask the nanny for a warm glass of milk. Then, I’ll read the book I left off yesterday all night long. I’ve taken care of all the important matters, so it’s fine if I doze off a bit at the office tomorrow, right?”

Sniffling, Giselle chattered cheerfully, but her cheerful act didn’t last long.

It was because of the old man she encountered right in front of her house.

“Ah, I thought it was a beautiful young lady, but it’s the young Lady Anticia.”

“…Good evening, Count Maurice.”

Count Maurice Herbert, who had come out with her father, recognized her.

Giselle’s expression automatically hardened. Whether he noticed or not, the Count looked at her with a sinister gaze and continued speaking.

“Are you returning home at this late hour?”

“Yes, I was finishing up work…”

“Working as a woman, and a noble lady at that, surrounded by men… Hmph.”

Count Maurice cleared his throat disapprovingly. Seeing this, Giselle’s father, Baron Anticia, quickly intervened.

“I apologize, Count. My daughter is still young and foolish, and she insists on earning money despite my attempts to make her listen. Our Anticia family is not shaken by a mere pittance.”

“Well, that’s the privilege of the young. Reckless thoughts and actions. Once she matures a little more, she won’t behave so carelessly… just as when she becomes a man’s wife.”

The Count responded to the Baron’s words, adding a strange smile.

As Giselle furrowed her brow, feeling uneasy, the Baron also chimed in.

“Of course! A woman must become a man’s wife to truly mature. Especially Giselle, this child needs to receive a lot of guidance from her husband. She is quite immature, after all.”

“Haha! You shouldn’t say that in front of the lady, Baron. Even if she’s your daughter, she’s now a grown-up lady. I hope you don’t take your father’s words too much to heart, my dear.”

“…Yes, Count.”

Why was that?

She couldn’t understand the unpleasant feeling that arose. It was as if a slimy, slithering snake was crawling up her legs.

Giselle tightly clenched her fists and barely responded. She couldn’t act out of propriety in front of her father’s guest. Even though he looked at her with sinister eyes every time he visited this house.

After all, he was the creditor who had lent the largest amount of money to her father. A significant portion of her monthly salary was going towards the interest on the money they borrowed from this old nobleman. She should be grateful that he wasn’t immediately demanding the principal repayment.

So she had to endure most things.

The repulsive gaze that scanned my body.

The musty scent of his breath as he leaned in close.

“Well then, I shall take my leave for today. It seems the young lady has matters to discuss with her father.”

The Count looked at Giselle with a greedy gaze and then straightened up.

‘…Matters to discuss?’

She didn’t even have time to take a breath before a perplexed expression crossed her face.

But the old Count seemed to have no further intention to talk and simply left. Baron Anticia hurried to see him off.

And the carriage the Count rode in departed.

* * *

“Young lady.”

While standing there in a daze, a voice calling her reached her from nearby. The nanny had approached without her noticing.

“Cough… Nanny.”

“Have you been out in the rain? Please come inside, young lady. I’ll prepare some warm water for you to wash up.”

The nanny’s complexion was unusually troubled. Furrowing her brow, Giselle opened her mouth.

“Nanny, is something wrong…”

“Giselle. You haven’t gone inside yet.”

But her words were cut short by the return of her father, who had seen off the Count. He was wearing a broad smile, unlike his usual irritable self due to their ever-increasing debts.

“…Father?”

“This isn’t something to be discussed out here, but… well, it doesn’t matter whether we talk here or go inside.”

The Baron chuckled giddily, unable to contain his excitement. But Giselle’s expression only grew more somber.

Somehow, she felt that unpleasant news was about to come. The nanny’s expression and her own intuition told her as much.

At that moment, the sound of someone coming out from inside was heard. It was her stepmother, Ireina, and her half-brother, William.

The Baron smiled again as his wife and child gathered, then turned to Giselle.

“Marry Count Maurice.”

“…What, what did you say?”

Giselle doubted her own ears. She must have misheard something. But her father continued, as if mocking her reaction.

“The Count has agreed to forgive the debt I owed him, on the condition that you become his second wife.”

“…!”

“Isn’t this such a fortunate turn of events? It’s good for you too, isn’t it, Giselle? To become the Countess, given your circumstances.”

“Fa…ther…”

Giselle stammered, her mouth agape, and tried to speak. But her stepmother interjected first.

“To be honest, this is an opportunity beyond your worth. What man would accept someone who just goes to an office full of men for a pittance? Giselle, you can’t miss this chance. Do you think another such match will come your way?”

“Mo…ther. But…”

“There’s no need to hesitate! This is good for not only you, but all of us. Isn’t that right, Giselle? Just think about it. We’ll be in-laws with the Count’s family.”

Her half-brother William cut off Giselle’s words. Giselle looked at the faces of her father, stepmother, and brother in turn, her face growing pale.

They were all urging her to get married, without even considering the possibility of her refusal.

“…Haa.”

A sigh, almost like a bitter laugh, escaped her lips. As the temperature dropped with the rain, Giselle’s exhaled breath turned white and dissipated into the air.

“Young lady…”

The nanny called out, unsure of what to do. Giselle looked back at the nanny. Somehow, the pitiful gaze the nanny gave her made her vision blur.

“Ahem.”

At that moment, the sound of the Baron’s throat clearing was heard. He averted his gaze, uncomfortable, and continued.

“Anyway, keep that in mind. The Count will be visiting again soon, and you should personally greet him then…”

“Is this the ‘honor’ you’ve been seeking, Father?”

Giselle looked the Baron straight in the eye and asked. His brow furrowed in response.

“Talking about the esteemed Anticia family and honor, and now you’re selling your daughter off to an old nobleman as his second wife…”

Slap!

She couldn’t finish her words. He raised his hand and struck her cheek.

“Oh dear, My Lord! Young lady!”

The nanny, turned pale, tried to support the fallen Giselle. But Giselle rejected the nanny’s help and stood up on her own.

She saw her father glaring at her with a reddish-purple face. She could see the shame underlying his anger.

It was an undeniable fact.

Trying to marry her off to Count Maurice as a condition for forgiving the debt was nothing more than selling her off.

No matter how they tried to sugarcoat it, that was the essence of it.

“How dare you, Giselle, how dare you!”

That’s why he was trembling with rage, yet unable to even make an excuse.

Giselle swallowed a mirthless laugh, her cheek still stinging with pain.

It felt as if a huge hole had been punched in the center of her chest. She felt utterly disillusioned, wondering what she had been living for all this time.

They were demanding sacrifice from her in the name of family. And yet, they were justifying their cowardice by claiming it was also good for her.

In the name of ‘family’.

Because they were ‘family’.

That’s what hurt the most. Wounds from family hurt more than wounds from strangers.

“I absolutely can’t marry him. No, I won’t.”

“Giselle!”

The Baron twisted his face in anger at his daughter’s firm refusal. With his wife, son, and even the servants present, his daughter was defying his words, and his temper flared.

“How dare you go against your father’s words! Who gave you the right to behave this way!”

“Father.”

“You must get married! Do you have any idea how fortunate it is for you to become the Countess? I’m not asking you to marry just for the sake of forgiving the debt! This is an honorable position for you!”

“I never wanted that kind of ‘honor’.”

She had never once wished for the ‘honor’ of being sold off to an old nobleman for money.

Although her father was struggling to pay off his debts, this way of living was still much better.