🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 08
“So you said you’d get married first. As a preemptive move.”
“That’s correct.”
Now that she knew the truth, Kaiden looked different.
‘So he’s not just a crazy man—he’s a crazy man with wounds.’
A faint sense of kinship rose in her, even beyond sympathy. Kaiden’s situation was quite similar to hers.
No—perhaps she had it better. At least she wouldn’t have to fight her own blood over inheritance rights or a title.
“But I don’t think it’s a very good method.”
Still, Chloe thought rationally.
It wasn’t even as if they were crashing the wedding. All they were doing was getting married earlier than them. It might rattle the ex-fiancée’s emotions, but it wasn’t exactly a clean or decisive form of revenge. At best, they might be dismissed as childish.
However, Kaiden didn’t seem to agree.
“Harn is a greedy man. Whatever it is, he needs to have the titles of ‘first’ and ‘best’ to feel satisfied.”
The first wedding held at the empire’s most prestigious hotel—Harn Verder wanted that.
“Visual impact and symbolism leave many interpretations for people. For example, that Duke Verder has chosen his eldest son as heir.”
Harn’s marriage into a noble house with full family support—and that house possessing a mana stone mine—would lead people to assume one thing.
“That Harn Verder will inherit the Verder Duchy’s core industry: shipbuilding.”
Shipbuilding and mana stones were inseparable.
People would naturally think Harn was the future head of the Verder family. That was exactly what Harn wanted.
“But what if we take ‘best’ and ‘first’ right in front of them?”
“They’d lose their minds, I suppose.”
And it wouldn’t just be Harn. Rosetta Crimson, full of vanity, would be equally infuriated.
It would also send another message: the power structure of the Verder family was not yet settled. The Duke of Verder had allowed his legitimate heir to claim “first” and “best.”
“That’s why I took you to the Cent Hotel that day. I wanted everything I did to reach Harn’s ears.”
“So the reason you pretended to be lovers and walked around Berington Street was because of that.”
“Correct. I know quite a lot of people in Berington.”
Kaiden nodded casually. Chloe brushed her bangs back roughly.
“You should’ve told me that in advance. If you drag me around like ‘performance pay,’ how am I supposed to understand the situation?”
“If I told you in advance, I figured you wouldn’t come.”
That was true. She hated getting involved in other people’s affairs.
But if Kaiden had explained everything, she might have followed him out of sympathy—and a strange sense of kinship. Of course, she didn’t say that out loud. Instead, her tone softened slightly.
“But the wedding date is already set. It won’t be easy to use the venue before them.”
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
Kaiden had already made arrangements. The loyal vassal, Viscount Cent, had promised him something: if Kaiden ever needed the date, the venue would be vacated for him. It was the only support he could offer.
A verbal promise was still a promise. Kaiden intended to use that opportunity to its fullest.
“Alright, I understand why you’re in such a rush to get married. But still…”
“But still?”
“Why me?”
It took considerable effort to say the word “why.” No one liked diminishing their own worth.
Still, Chloe had to admit reality.
“Our family can’t offer you any benefit. I’m older than you, and I’ve already been married once…”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
“To overturn the board Harn Verder has set up, I need you.”
“Me?”
Confused, Chloe blinked slowly. Kaiden looked at her questioning crimson eyes and began explaining what he knew.
“Chloe Garrett. You’re a researcher in the Geology Department at Dembert International University, aren’t you? You were recognized by Department Chair Professor Lexon Door and almost became the youngest professor, but it fell through because of marriage.”
“How do you—”
“But Professor Door has no intention of leaving someone like you as just a researcher. The reason he keeps sending you on field surveys is because of that.”
Chloe was an elite among elites, a graduate of Dembert International University—the empire’s greatest institution of knowledge.
Professor Lexon Door had recognized her talent and supported her path to becoming a professor.
But in the end, she never became one. Not only because she was the only woman in the research lab, but for another reason.
‘Because my marriage to Duur overlapped.’
Marriage preparations and the professorship exam. Between the two, she chose marriage.
At Duur’s request, she quit research to become a proper, dutiful wife.
After the divorce, she returned to the lab, but the gap was already too wide. No matter how talented she was, closing over a year of absence was not easy.
So Professor Door suggested field surveys.
The world was vast, and there were still undeveloped resources. If Chloe discovered a new mineral deposit and wrote a strong thesis, she could regain her academic standing—and even qualify as a professor.
“That’s what this has to do with me?”
She didn’t need to ask how he knew. This was Kaiden Verder.
If he wanted to know something, there was little he couldn’t find out.
“I’m currently searching for a mineral. If my assumption is correct, it should be buried somewhere along the empire’s coastline.”
“So the ‘thing that will change the board’ is a mineral… Are you saying it’s mana stone?”
“As expected, you’re sharp.”
Kaiden smiled faintly, like praising a child.
“Harn Verder and Rosetta Crimson’s power is built on mana stones. If a better mana stone appears, the Crimson family will lose its dominance—and Verder shipbuilding will also shift direction.”
“Sorry, but I can’t disclose findings from field training.”
“But spouses aren’t strangers.”
Kaiden intended to exploit exactly that.
“So that’s why you need me.”
“Correct. I have information about a new mana stone, but I’m not an expert. My ability to locate it is limited.”
If they discovered a new mana stone, Chloe would pass the information to him discreetly. And she would help him acquire the land where it was located.
“Sorry, but even as spouses, I can’t do that. That would be internal misconduct.”
If it were revealed that research data had leaked, it would be disastrous. Chloe had no intention of stepping into such danger.
“More importantly, I’m an academic. I can’t violate research ethics.”
“How honest.”
Kaiden murmured while looking into her firm eyes, then adjusted his posture.
“Then I’ll change the approach. Just connect me to the head of your research.”
“That much… should be fine.”
It wasn’t impossible. She nearly said it unconsciously, but quickly caught herself. Just listening had almost pulled her into his pace again.
She changed the subject.
“By the way, are you sure it’s okay to tell me all this?”
He had just revealed his family affairs and future plans. If she reported it to Harn Verder, his plan would collapse.
But Kaiden only smiled lightly, unconcerned.
“It’s fine.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re getting married.”
“Pffft!”
Chloe spat out her tea for the second time.
