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Chapter : 37
“Of course the marquisate will assign a few servants to handle the engagement preparations, but the person I trust most is you, Greta. As my closest aide, I want you to take the lead and prepare everything well.”
“Of course! Since I support you more than anyone else, I’ll do my very best to prepare everything.”
“Thank you.”
Having always been by her side since childhood, Greta knew Frea better than even the marquis and marchioness, her parents. They were that close in heart, and she was someone Frea could trust completely.
If it weren’t for Greta, there wouldn’t be anyone in this house I could truly open my heart to.
She was always the kind one who worried about her and thought of her first. Because Greta was there, Frea could smile at least a little more comfortably in this house.
“My lady, it’s time for your bath. I’ll go prepare the water right away.”
“Alright. I’m a bit tired today. I should relax in some warm water…”
“Big sister!”
“…Allen?”
Just as she was coming down to the second floor and about to enter her room, Allen came running over with a tearful voice.
“Big sister…”
“What’s wrong, Allen? Why are you about to cry…?”
“Please don’t leave home! Don’t go away!”
“Huh?”
Frea was flustered at the sudden appearance of the child, shouting while tears streamed down his face.
“I heard you’re going to marry Duke Bethelheim. Then you’ll leave the house, right? I don’t want that…!”
“W-wait a moment, Allen. I’m not leaving the house.”
“But everyone says you’re getting married soon…”
“No, that’s not it.”
It seemed Allen had overheard what the servants were saying. Frea bent her knees to meet his eyes and gently wiped away the tears running down his face.
“I’m just getting engaged to Duke Bethelheim. I’m not getting married yet.”
“Really? Then you’re not leaving the house?”
“That’s right. I’ll stay here, so stop crying now.”
“Yes…”
When she softly comforted him, Allen finally stopped crying. Frea stood up and patted his sniffing head.
It must’ve been shocking to hear it all of a sudden.
Though he’d grown tall, he was still only sixteen, and since he followed her so well, the news of her engagement must have been even more of a shock.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you first.”
“…You’re really just getting engaged, right? You’re not getting married?”
“Of course. There’s just a temporary situation with the duke.”
“A situation? Is it because Father keeps telling you to get married?”
At the sharp guess, Frea flinched. Allen knew she and Marquis Balche had been arguing over marriage, so he couldn’t help but notice.
“That’s right. This is the only way to make Father and Mother give up. Once the problem is resolved, the engagement will be broken, so don’t worry—and keep it a secret for me, Allen.”
“…Alright.”
“Thank you.”
Frea smiled at Allen as he nodded. Seeing her smile, his expression brightened, but then he stiffened again and asked,
“Is the duke protecting you?”
“Hm? Well, I suppose you could say that…”
Since the engagement with Raiden would block any matchmaking, that was true enough.
At her vague but affirmative answer, Allen frowned and muttered,
“I thought it would be me who…”
“Allen? What did you say?”
“N-nothing, big sister. You’re going back to your room now, right?”
“Yes, I should. You go rest too, Allen.”
“Yes, big sister.”
Allen quietly watched Frea going down the stairs with Greta, then spoke under his breath.
“…So big sister is getting engaged.”
He knew that even before she came of age, Father had been pressuring her to marry. For noble daughters, it was normal to marry early and leave the household. In the Empire, the marriageable age was considered from seventeen to twenty, when one became an adult.
His sister was already twenty-three, so it was true that she was well past that age. But Allen couldn’t understand why she had to marry, and he didn’t want to send her away.
Father said it was the duty of a noble daughter and the greatest happiness a woman could have… but big sister looks happiest when she’s doing her own work.
She had always said, even in front of him, that she wanted to remain independent and keep working. When he asked why she couldn’t just do that while living at home, she had answered with a bitter face:
“Here, I can’t properly do what I want to do, and more than anything, Father won’t tolerate me continuing to work.”
“Why? You’re working hard and enjoying yourself as the head of the administration right now. I don’t understand why Father would stop you from doing what you love.”
“That’s because, Allen, before I’m your sister, I’m the eldest daughter of this family. Father thinks that a daughter who can’t become the heir should be married into a good family to raise the family’s honor.”
“But you don’t have to get married to raise the family’s honor. You’re achieving so much as head of the administration—wouldn’t that be enough?”
“The results I create aren’t as visible as you’d think, to Father’s eyes or to others’. And given the current trends of this era, a noblewoman’s achievements in work still aren’t fully accepted. It’s better than a few years ago, but still… that’s the kind of world we live in, Allen.”
“So you said you’d have to become independent to escape Father’s pressure to marry—that it was the only way.”
At that time, her face had looked as though she’d given up on everything, yet was filled with determination. The image of her saying she would never marry and would leave home to live her own life remained vividly in Allen’s memory.
And yet, Father was still trying to marry her off in the end. The other day, Mother had come back from a party at the Delice marquisate in high spirits—it was obvious she had arranged a matchmaking with another family.
It was always like that whenever she went there.
So that’s why big sister rushed into a fake engagement. So Father and Mother can’t pressure her to marry anymore.
He had run over in shock after hearing from the servants that she was getting married, but now that he knew it was only an engagement, it was actually a relief. At least she wouldn’t have to suffer anymore.
Bethelheim… the duke.
The head of one of the most prestigious noble families in the Empire, and a man of outstanding ability as chancellor. If his sister were engaged to someone like that, no pointless marriage proposals would come anymore.
Still, that didn’t mean he felt no anxiety.
I need to see with my own eyes whether he’s someone I can trust.
No matter how powerful or capable he was, what kind of person he was mattered most. Even if it was just a temporary engagement, he couldn’t allow just anyone to stand by his sister’s side.
If there’s even a little something off, or if he doesn’t meet my standards, I’ll never tolerate it.
Allen’s eyes shone firmly as he clenched both fists.
“Shall we depart?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Two days later, Frea moved together with Raiden from the morning to inspect the supplementary security forces. The carriage carrying the two slowly entered the bustling streets of the capital after leaving the imperial palace.
“When is the new building for the supplementary security forces scheduled to be completed?”
“They say it will take about two months. The dormitories for the soldiers to be assigned should be completed around the same time.”
“That’s faster than I expected. I thought it would take longer.”
“His Highness the Crown Prince increased the number of workers and the support funds.”
“Ah, I see the changes noted here in the documents. It seems I haven’t checked this part yet.”
Raiden smiled awkwardly as he looked over the papers. The workforce and funds initially allocated had been increased to more than double.
“With this much, the construction period will be greatly shortened. As expected, His Highness is paying a lot of attention to this matter.”
“He has to handle this perfectly if he wants to make up for his past failure.”
The Crown Prince, who had fallen out of favor with the Emperor, had limited things he could do. He wasn’t particularly trusted even in his daily conduct.
Even Jeyros, who loves to play around, seems serious about this one.
Jeyros was known for constantly attending social gatherings, enjoying parties, and flirting with young ladies. Whether due to his sly personality or his natural disposition, his womanizing was famous even throughout the Empire.
But if this matter wasn’t properly resolved, his already rock-bottom reputation could sink even further. So no matter that he was the Crown Prince, he couldn’t just let it pass.
