It was certain that “neat appearance” was listed as a requirement in the promotion review criteria.

Yelodia imagined the Naval Marshal’s office all sitting around with serious faces, giving Baron Adrian a perfect score for his looks, and she barely managed to hold back a laugh.

Then it happened.

“Haa…”

A sigh came from behind her.

Her heart pounded, even though it wasn’t as if someone had caught her with an odd thought.

“Yedi?”

At Kias’s question, Yelodia quickly lowered her gaze and hastened her steps. She listened closely, but the sigh did not come again.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Did they come together?”

“We met in the hallway.”

Despite Duke Xavier’s somewhat cold response, the Emperor nodded with a pleased smile and made a comment that no one else would agree with.

“It seems the two are destined for each other.”

The Emperor appeared unusually excited, though, unfortunately, the others couldn’t share in his sentiment. Not that the Emperor would care about that.

“As you must be hungry, let’s sit down.”

As the Emperor leisurely took his seat at the head of the table, Duke Xavier sat on his right, followed by Kias, Edward, and lastly Yelodia.

At that moment, the servants became busy.

On the white-linen-covered table, appetizers of cod, cheese, grilled eggplant, and tomatoes were laid out along with lemon water, wine, and champagne.

The Emperor washed his hands in a bowl of water with floating lemon slices, and the others followed suit.

It was an awkward dinner, to say the least.

As this was a gathering akin to a family meeting, it was customary for the Empress to attend as the hostess to lighten the atmosphere, but the Emperor never invited the Empress to such private affairs.

If he had, Empress Vivian would have felt unbearably uncomfortable.

For these reasons, most of the guests invited to the dinner didn’t look pleased. Yelodia, in particular, had noticeably stiffened since she had heard Edward’s sigh.

“Yedi, you don’t look well. Are you feeling unwell? Shall I prepare a bed for you?”

“I’m fine, Your Majesty. I’m more concerned about Your Majesty since you’re sensitive to heat.”

The Emperor’s golden eyes softened at Yelodia’s endearing response.

“In this Empire, you may be the only one who truly worries for me, Yedi.”

“Please don’t say that. The lands and seas, the mountains and fields of the Empire are all surely concerned for Your Majesty.”

At Yelodia’s reply, Edward let out a faint cough. Noticing all eyes turn toward him, he pressed his lips to his napkin to hide his embarrassment.

The Emperor chuckled with amusement and raised his wine glass.

“Now, don’t all sit so stiffly—let’s each have a drink. Isn’t this a happy and joyful day?”

At the Emperor’s suggestion, the men, excluding Yelodia, lifted their intricately crafted golden goblets and tasted the wine.

The richly fragrant drink seemed to relax their tense expressions little by little.

The Emperor, with a look of curiosity, directed a question at Edward.

“When will you begin reporting to the Vice Admiral’s office?”

“Formally, I have been instructed to start on the first of next month, but I am going in daily to acclimate myself to the atmosphere.”

The Emperor nodded approvingly and continued.

“Two months should be enough to settle into your duties. How about setting the engagement date for the last day of May?”

“…”

Edward glanced briefly at Duke Xavier, whose expression had hardened, and finally held in a sigh.

“Your Majesty, perhaps it would be best to reconsider this marriage?”

“What are you saying? Do you find Yedi unappealing?”

At the Emperor’s words, Yelodia’s knife clattered to the floor. She bit her lower lip so hard that it turned pale. The others looked similarly shocked.

Seeing their unexpectedly intense reactions, Edward hastily spoke.

“It’s not that… Lady Xavier is exceedingly beautiful and noble. Many noblewomen marry around twenty-two or twenty-three, so wouldn’t it be better if she took her time getting to know other suitors and chose one she truly favors?”

“I’ve always promised myself I’d be the one to choose Yedi’s husband. Are you saying that my judgment is poor and worthless?”

“No, that’s not…”

Edward, glancing at Yelodia, whose cheeks were flushed red, fell silent. Her hands were clenched so tightly that her veal steak was thoroughly crushed.

This time, Duke Xavier glared at Edward, wearing an unusually overt expression for someone typically quiet and composed.

“Are you saying you don’t like my daughter?”

“N-No, Your Grace.”

“My daughter is far from lacking, so how could you make such an appalling remark in her presence? I know you may be unfamiliar with noble manners, but if it weren’t for that, I’d have challenged you to a duel!”

Edward was left speechless at Duke Xavier’s sharp rebuke.

In Edward’s eyes, Yelodia was as fresh and lovely as a spring blossom in bud, and as she matured, she would undoubtedly attract suitors from among all the noble sons of Feorn.

For someone like her, he was nothing more than a rough and unsophisticated soldier with uncertain lineage.

Above all, the fact that Yelodia was six years younger than him stuck in his throat like a thorn.

At that moment, Yelodia looked at him with a determined expression and asked,

“Do you have another woman you care about, or a lover?”

“…I don’t.”

Edward admitted with a sigh. When he returned after serving five years in the war, his former fiancée had already married another man.

Although their engagement had only involved a single meeting, Edward still felt a lingering sadness and heartache over the broken engagement. It was the last match his late father had arranged for him.

During the war, survival was a daily struggle, and when he returned to the capital after the war, he was too occupied with postwar duties to have any time for romantic pursuits.

He hadn’t had time for relationships, and to be honest, he wasn’t interested.

In the midst of it all, the Emperor’s matchmaking hit him like a bolt from the blue.

The Emperor let out a faint cough and set his wine glass down.

“The engagement will proceed as I said. Duke Xavier will handle the preparations, and I will take care of the baron’s wedding gift.”

“Your Majesty.”

“Don’t be too grateful; you’ll be paying it all back eventually.”

Edward lowered his head, realizing he couldn’t persuade the Emperor with words alone.

‘Just what is going on here?’

Kias, Duke Xavier’s eldest son, stared blankly at Edward, momentarily forgetting the anger smoldering within him. The atmosphere of the dinner was unfolding in a completely unexpected direction.

Baron Adrian, whom he thought was leveraging the Duke’s family for career advancement, seemed acutely uncomfortable with the dinner and was actually met with a sullen expression from Yelodia.

Who exactly was Edward Kieri Adrian?

Was he not the extraordinary hero who had ended the five-year-long, grueling Feorn-Iota War in victory?

Not only had Edward preserved the pride of the Empire, but he was also the benefactor who had saved the Emperor’s authority, which was on the verge of being trampled by the nobility.

Even if Edward had wanted Duke Xavier’s daughter as his prize, the Emperor wouldn’t have easily refused. Over the past five years, no one had been more distressed by the relentless criticisms from the nobles than the Emperor.

However, Edward’s attitude defied all of Kias’s expectations, as though he wanted nothing to do with the “prize” that was bound to come his way.

‘Surely, he can’t possibly, under any circumstances, dislike our Yedi, right?’

The mere thought of that irritated Kias, and his displeasure showed on his face.

But this time, the Emperor expressed his discontent even faster than Kias.

“Edward, are you not enjoying the meal? Perhaps I should speak directly with the palace chef.”

“No, Your Majesty. This meal is more than I deserve.”

Edward began moving his knife again. Though he seemed somewhat unfamiliar with dining etiquette, his food disappeared faster than anyone else’s.

The Emperor finally looked pleased.

Kias decided to abandon his complicated thoughts.

The only winner of that night’s dinner was the Emperor.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Ah, you’re here, Vice Admiral.”

“Beyhern.”

When Beyhern saluted formally, Edward gave a curt nod.

Then, with a weary sigh, Edward sank onto the sofa.

‘Telling him not to call me Vice Admiral would probably be useless.’

Though his official appointment as Vice Admiral was still a fortnight away, he didn’t even have the energy to point it out to his adjutant, who took pleasure in teasing his superior.

“Did you have trouble sleeping last night?”

“Does it look like it?”

Edward’s flat question made Beyhern smirk.

“The whole of Feorn is buzzing about your engagement. They say you’re about to be linked with a truly extraordinary person.”

“Is that so?”

“And the engagement date is exactly May 31st, right?”

“That’s how it seems.”

Edward replied with a sense of resignation. He still felt like he was half-awake from a shallow sleep.

Marriage.

Until now, Edward had vaguely thought that once the Emperor granted him a fief, he would return there and marry one of his vassals’ daughters.

He had secretly longed for a peaceful life, meeting a modest and cheerful woman, having children, and building a home together.

However, reality had defied his expectations entirely.

In two months and a fortnight, Baron Edward Adrian would be holding his engagement ceremony with Lady Yelodia Xavier, under the Emperor’s blessing.

“What on earth is going on…?”

“Wasn’t this the victory the entire Empire wanted? His Majesty must have wanted to give a fitting reward to the hero of that victory.”

“Even if the hero doesn’t want it?”