“Both His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress bless this marriage. Also, His Highness Leodinas, the Grand Duke, was extremely pleased to hear the news of the arranged marriage, so you need not hesitate or decline any further.”
Listening to the messenger’s practiced words, Jacone cursed inwardly. He knew exactly what he had written in the letter, and unless the Grand Duke had lost his mind, there was no way he would happily accept this marriage.
‘This Emperor tells lies without even bothering to make them convincing!’
“Hmm…”
After glancing around briefly, the messenger cleared his throat and asked:
“Is Lady Sodel ill again today?”
“I apologize. She, she suddenly developed a fever last night…”
Flustered, Jacone was startlingly surprised—anyone could see it was suspicious. His voice was so pathetic that all his words were swallowed at the end, effectively announcing that he was lying.
“I truly apologize! I was determined to bring her out this time… But she must have fallen into a deep sleep after taking her medicine. No matter how much I shook her to wake her, she couldn’t get up.”
While saying this, Jacone casually pulled up his loose shirt sleeve, making it seem entirely unintentional.
His exposed arm was covered in red and purple marks. Jacone’s skin clearly showed long fingernail scratches and dark blue bite marks.
The messenger flinched upon discovering these savage wounds.
‘Ugh, that’s creepy.’
It seems the rumors about Lady Sodel being as violent as a beast were all true.
That explained why Jacone was so fidgety.
A young lady who couldn’t even recognize her own brother and bit his forearm—she was truly the family’s disgrace. If he were in Jacone’s position, he’d want to hide it by any excuse necessary.
“When Esteller wakes up, I’ll inform her that His Majesty the Emperor has bestowed many rewards. I’ll also remind her again about the marriage to His Highness the Grand Duke.”
The answer the messenger wanted to hear came from Jacone’s lips.
‘At least he’s not completely clueless.’
He felt relieved that he wouldn’t have to probe further or carry another letter refusing the arranged marriage.
Originally, he had been feeling bitter about the generous rewards bestowed upon the Sodel viscounty.
Raising their rank, giving them a mansion in the capital, and even gifting jewelry in the Empress’s name. Why were these people so lucky?
He had returned to the viscounty determined to catch them making a mistake that he could use against them.
But when he encountered Jacone trembling nervously with arms scratched and bitten as if he trained wild animals for a living, his jealousy melted away like snow, leaving only sympathy.
The messenger spoke encouragingly, as if he completely understood:
“Keep your chin up. Doesn’t suffering lead to happiness in the end?”
“……”
“The wedding isn’t far off.”
Once the ceremony was over, the problematic wild animal could be handed over to Grand Duke Leodinas. Since Dante was more accustomed to demonic beasts than humans, he would surely handle it well even if Lady Sodel came at him with claws extended.
Then this pitiful young man, Jacone, could live freely without worry. The messenger felt pleased as if it were his own affair.
“…Thank you.”
After a long pause, Jacone responded with an unnatural smile.
⁕⁕⁕
Shortly after, Robert and Winneka left the reception room to see the messenger off.
Jacone took a breath and opened the jewelry box lid.
“Gasp.”
A complete set of jewelry arranged on soft black satin greeted him.
The gemstones used in the necklace and earrings were all impressively large. Cut in teardrop shapes, the yellow sapphires emitted brilliant rainbow-colored light.
However, Jacone’s gasp wasn’t due to the jewelry’s splendor.
Of course, it looked extremely expensive, and the Sodel viscounty certainly didn’t possess treasures of such grandeur, but…
What was far more surprising was:
‘It’s exactly as Essie predicted.’
Jacone closed the jewelry box again. His eyes trembled intensely.
‘Everything.’
Back when they were writing that letter to the Emperor—filled with flattery so excessive it was painful to look at—Esteller had said that upon receiving it, the Emperor would bestow three rewards.
“Marrying the empire’s only Grand Duke to a rural viscount family doesn’t look good to others. For appearance’s sake, he’ll raise us to count at least.”
“Does he grant titles so easily?”
“There were times when the number of nobles was strictly limited, but that doesn’t apply to Emperor Gheorghe. He’s already handed out titles left and right to curry favor. Raising our existing rank by one level is something he wouldn’t even think twice about.”
People commonly consider marquis and above to be high nobility.
Increasing the number of high nobles would be burdensome for an emperor, so he was highly likely to give them the rank just below marquis to maintain appearances.
“And since we’ve mentioned our poverty until our mouths are dry and worn out, he’ll probably choose between a lakeside villa or an unused mansion in the capital to give us. Personally, I’d prefer the capital mansion. Once I enter the grand ducal household, I won’t have time for leisurely vacations anyway.”
Esteller had added dispassionately.
She felt neither particularly happy nor grateful. While she would gratefully accept even a roadside stone if given by her family, she felt absolutely nothing about receiving even vast riches from the Emperor.
Taking what should be taken from an enemy.
That was the extent of her sentiment.
“The Empress will give jewelry. The gems themselves will be precious, but the overall style will be outdated. The type of gemstone will be either amber, yellow sapphire, or tourmaline.”
Jacone was certain he must have looked incredibly foolish at that moment.
No matter how intelligent Esteller was, how could she possibly guess what type of gemstone would be given?
Esteller didn’t scold him for his dumbfounded expression. Instead, she calmly explained the cause and effect:
“Princess Sabrina hates yellow gemstones. Her reason is that yellow particularly doesn’t suit her, but she didn’t just think it—she proclaimed it everywhere. She said yellow gemstones look tacky and she can’t stand the sight of them. Since the princess openly rejected them, naturally others began to avoid yellow gems too. However, just a few generations ago, jewelry featuring predominantly yellow stones like amber, yellow sapphire, and tourmaline was fashionable in the imperial family. These valuable imperial possessions are just gathering dust since no one touches them, so the Empress will naturally choose my gift from among them.”
Logically, it all made perfect sense.
But some predictions are so astonishing that vague doubts remain until confirmed with one’s own eyes.
Jacone was both surprised and impressed as the messenger spoke exactly as Esteller had predicted.
Knock knock.
Lost in thought, Jacone looked up at the sound of knocking on the reception room door.
“Come in.”
“Master Jacone, an aide from the Leodinas grand ducal family has arrived.”
The old butler’s face showed considerable tension.
Jacone thought it wasn’t strange at all.
The butler had only served the modest Sodel viscounty people for many years. How could he have any experience dealing with powerhouse families like the Leodinas?
‘A direct aide must be a retainer of the grand ducal household.’
That would make him a figure much closer to the center of power than the Sodel viscounty.
Jacone straightened his clothes and adjusted his glasses.
“Bring him here.”
The aide must have been waiting nearby, as he arrived shortly.
His face was neat, but his eyes were sharp. He certainly didn’t look like someone to be trifled with.
“I am Rupert Cole, aide to His Highness the Grand Duke.”
After briefly introducing himself, he placed the items he had brought before Jacone.
“His Highness has sent a pledge gift.”
It was a long-standing custom in the Helion Empire for prospective brides and grooms to exchange pledge gifts before marriage. They didn’t necessarily need to be expensive items. The essence of this custom was to show that one was paying attention to the other.
“Also, His Highness plans to use the tiara and family rings that have been passed down through generations of the grand ducal family at the wedding, so he asks to be informed of the future Grand Duchess’s ring size. Additionally, if there are difficulties in fitting a dress due to the tight schedule, you may entrust it to the tailor employed by the grand ducal household, so please feel free to let us know.”
Rupert’s manner of speaking was respectful and gentle, naturally making the listener feel respected. He showed no signs of arrogance from the grand ducal family’s prestige, nor did he display any displeasure despite surely knowing the circumstances of how this marriage came about.
Esteller had said that the Grand Duke’s direct aide was an extremely loyal person who adopted the Grand Duke’s attitude as his own.
If her words were true, the Grand Duke was certainly showing respect to the Sodel family.
