Chapter 93

As he thought about it, Meryl seemed like an utterly foolish woman. She hadn’t even properly read the documents before signing them.

“Alright, Thomas. Where is Lady Meryl?”

“She has returned to the Duke’s residence, Father.”

“She took longer than expected.”

“Well, we were… having a conversation of the body.”

Thomas smirked slyly as he poured wine into the glass sitting on the table.

“Just make sure she doesn’t end up with a child.”

“Don’t worry.”

Thomas handed the magically notarized documents signed by Meryl to Earl Kurundal.

“What a fool. Now, no matter what happens, the Hatzbellua family won’t be able to protect her.”

Terronet, the Earl of Kurundal, laughed, revealing his yellow teeth.

“Lady Meryl won’t be able to handle this amount of money, tsk tsk.”

“The Hatzbellua family will take responsibility, Father.”

“The average cost of a ship is usually 10 million gold, but the ones we’re buying are for wine trade, so they’re exceptionally expensive, heh.”

The contents of the documents stated that Meryl of the Hatzbellua family would purchase five wine trade ships in the name of her family from the Earl of Kurundal. The price of each ship was 50 million gold.

If, by any chance, Meryl couldn’t provide the funds to purchase the ships, the Hatzbellua family would have to pay in her stead. Since she signed in the family’s name, the responsibility also fell on the family.

If, by any chance, she hadn’t yet come of age, the signature would have been invalid, but Meryl had already completed her coming-of-age ceremony, so there was no issue. If the family refused to take responsibility, the matter could proceed to trial according to procedure. With one rash signature, Meryl had incurred a debt of 250 million gold.

After taking a sip of wine, Thomas spoke.

“I’ll postpone the marriage for now.”

“What? Postpone the marriage? What excuse will you use?”

“There’s a rumor that Lady Meryl and Lady Cesar pulled each other’s hair at Concubine Luruna’s tea party. I’ll say we should wait until the gossip dies down.”

At Thomas’s words, Earl Terronet laughed loudly.

“You really are my son! Hahaha.”

“Calling a swan an ugly duckling fits perfectly right now, doesn’t it? Haha.”

If it was the Hatzbellua family, they could easily provide 200 million or 300 million gold.

But what if he didn’t marry Lady Cesar and married Meryl instead?

“Father.”

“Yes, Thomas.”

“I think marrying Lady Meryl and becoming a son-in-law wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”

“But you’re the heir to the Earl of Kurundal. Becoming a son-in-law is out of the question.”

“Yes, yes. Anyway, I’ll take my leave now to rest my body after serving Lady Meryl.”

Although the Earl of Kurundal flatly rejected the idea of becoming a son-in-law, in Thomas’s imagination, he was already the Duke of Hatzbellua. After all, being a Duke was obviously better than being an Earl!

‘Rather than siphoning money bit by bit, becoming a son-in-law and a Duke would be a better choice for me.’

The person who had always taught him to betray others was none other than his father, Earl Terronet Kurundal.

So, he thought, he would simply follow what he had been taught. A crooked smile appeared on Thomas’s lips.

***

Meryl grabbed Lady Cesar’s hair and struck her, causing Concubine Luruna, the host of the tea party, to faint.

In an instant, the tea party descended into chaos. Suddenly, Crown Prince Patzraelli appeared at the scene, lifting the collapsed Lady Cesar in his arms and shouting furiously at Meryl.

The people present began to speculate about what had happened.

“Oh my goodness! So, he picked up Lady Cesar in his arms?”

“Yes, that’s right. He shouted at Lady Meryl, raising his voice. My daughter, who attended the tea party, witnessed it all.”

“My daughter said it was the first time she had ever seen His Majesty the Crown Prince so angry.”

“When did this all start between Lady Cesar and him?”

“No matter how wicked the fiancée may be, His Majesty the Crown Prince shouldn’t have acted that way. But this incident… hmm, it’s rather telling.”

Patzraelli carried Cesar out of the tea party. And Meryl, who had slapped Cesar.

Seeing this, Patzraelli became enraged at Meryl. Meanwhile, Cesar, in tears, left the tea party in Patzraelli’s arms.

Why they fought didn’t matter to the onlookers.

Why?

What mattered was the fact that Crown Prince Patzraelli had cared more for Lady Cesar than for Meryl.

When the Emperor learned of this, he was furious and summoned Patzraelli.

The Emperor harshly reprimanded Patzraelli for prioritizing Lady Cesar over his fiancée, Meryl.

His voice trembled with anger.

“Patzraelli, have you completely lost your sense of reason?”

The Emperor was usually the type to investigate the cause and reason behind any situation before reprimanding someone.

But this time, there was none of that.

Even Patzraelli was taken aback by the unfamiliar demeanor of the Emperor and lowered his head.

“No, Your Majesty.”

“People are saying that you and Lady Cesar are having an affair, and that’s why Meryl pulled her hair.”

“That’s absolutely untrue.”

“If that’s not the case, then explain it to me so I can understand!”

Patzraelli simply didn’t want to care for Meryl. But if he were to reveal this truth, the already furious Emperor might become even angrier. So, Patzraelli lowered his gaze with a dark expression and spoke.

“Lady Cesar was unilaterally attacked by Lady Meryl. That’s why I attended to her first.”

Though his actions caused all sorts of rumors, even if the same situation arose again, he would undoubtedly act the same way.

“If you were aware of your position as the Crown Prince, you should have cared for Lady Meryl, not the injured Lady Cesar.”

“But Lady Cesar was being hit.”

“Lady Meia is the fiancée I chose, but Lady Meryl is the fiancée chosen by you and the Empress. Shouldn’t you take responsibility for her until the end?”

The Emperor’s sharp words made Patzraelli’s chest tighten.

“I apologize.”

The Emperor, his voice still filled with anger, said to Patzraelli:

“If you can’t even protect one fiancée, how do you intend to protect this kingdom?”

Patzraelli could only bow his head, unable to respond.

After the conversation with the Emperor, Patzraelli immediately went to see Empress Ellermin and said:

“I want to break off my engagement with Lady Meryl.”

Ellermin responded as if she had expected this.

“After securing your position as Crown Prince, you can discard Lady Meryl.”

But before she could finish speaking, Patzraelli interrupted.

“I want to start over with Lady Meia.”

Thud!

Ellermin slammed her palm onto the table and said:

“Crown Prince!”

In a trembling voice, Patzraelli said:

“I thought flowers could bloom anywhere and were common. But I didn’t realize how precious that flower was until it withered and disappeared.”

Meia Hatzbellua. She was the most precious flower in the world to him.

<I’m fine. It’s only natural to have concubines.>

She always smiled kindly, spoke softly, and was gentle.

Patzraelli had assumed Lady Meryl would be the same as Meia. But that was a mistake.

“Mother, I regret it. I want to win back Lady Meia.”

She had always cared for him, quietly supporting him from behind so he could move forward.

“I want to plant the seed again and grow a beautiful flower.”

Patzraelli stubbornly insisted on reuniting with Meia.

“But Crown Prince, do you think Duke Hatzbellua will agree to this? Changing the fiancée from niece to daughter, and then from daughter back to niece—do you think he’ll allow such a thing with a smile?”

“If Lady Meryl steps down, it will resolve everything. Duke Hatzbellua cherishes his daughter. If Lady Meryl says she wants to break off the engagement, it will happen.”

To protect his position as Crown Prince, Patzraelli chose Meryl over Meia when Luman said, ‘I’ll marry my daughter Meryl to Prince Demian.’”

It was a hasty decision.

“I only want Lady Meia.”

Even if Meia were to take me back, would it truly be fortunate? Would Meia even accept me?

“Then capture Lady Meia’s heart first, before Demian does.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Patzraelli clenched his fists tightly.

“I’ll visit the Mage Tower.”

At the Mage Tower, Luman met Meia, who was waiting in the reception room.

“I’m curious about the contents of your letter…”

“It’s exactly as written. I’ve found a man I want to marry.”

Luman, too shocked to speak, stared blankly at Meia, his eyes wide. The only word that registered in his mind was ‘marriage.’

Could it be that she had met with Demian and resolved things? Surely not?

Even so, he cautiously asked, his anxiety evident.

“Meia… Did you meet with Prince Demian?”

Meia shook her head.

“I’ll never marry Prince Demian. Don’t worry. I’ll never marry a man from the Carpen Empire. The man I want to marry is…”

She smiled and began to speak about Theodore. Luman couldn’t help but be astonished.

“Th-that means… Me-Meia, you’ll become the Grand Duchess of Florence?”

Seeing Luman’s obvious panic, Meia smiled gently and said:

“Yes, that’s how it’s turned out. Would you seal the engagement contract?”

For Meia to become the Grand Duchess of Florence was truly an extraordinary matter.

If Meryl found out, there would certainly be an uproar.

“When I gave up the position of fiancée and left, didn’t you promise me? That as long as it wasn’t a man from the Carpen Empire, you’d allow me to marry whoever I wanted.”

“Don’t you think you’re being too hasty?”

As he considered the reality of Meia becoming the Grand Duchess of Florence, Luman’s face twisted in disbelief.

‘Where on earth did she manage to catch such a big fish…!’

If Meia became the Grand Duchess of Florence, Meryl would undoubtedly cause a scene.

Luman clenched his fists tightly.

He had indeed promised Meia a ‘Free Marriage Contract.’ And since the agreement was notarized by the temple, he couldn’t go back on his word.

Still, forming a connection with the Grand Duchy of Florence wouldn’t be a bad move. The Sirius Empire, surrounded on three sides by the sea, excelled in trade. If he managed to stay on Meia’s good side, securing a port wouldn’t be difficult…

While Luman was lost in thought, Theodore pulled the engagement contract from his pocket and handed it to him.