Contract Marriage Interrupted

Episode 11. Beware of the past

 

Apparently, the last time Odette had checked, Louis was in the Count Clovis townhouse because of his health.

Odette still clearly remember Ellie shook her head as she went to visit Louis once again the day Odette went to the tea party.

– I don’t think so, they still don’t receive visitors at all, and I doubt if His Highness would open the door even if he did. I’ve heard that Count Clovis has given orders not to let anyone in.

Yes, that’s what Ellie said at the time.

That was not so long ago.

And now he’s at the Academy?

Anne Sophie had been a constant companion since school.

That honest personality has only grown since she entered the lab, never changing.

So when she says this is his first visit to Louis’ academy, it really is his first.

“And do you know why he came to see her?”

“He said he needed to discuss something. I don’t know what, but he didn’t look too well, and he’s a handsome sick man.”

A handsome sick man, Anne Sophie said, pushing her glasses up.

“Was he really that bad?”

 

“Yes. I don’t know what it is, but I’m wondering if he’s cursed by some sort of misbehavior, because I’ve had people come to the professor asking if there’s anything they can do about it.”

She don’t know if it was in exchange for his face, or if he was incurring resentment, but Anne Sophie’s argument was that there is nothing good about being involved with him. 

This added effect significantly unsettled Odette, who had been contemplating her connection with Louis.

“Curses? What do you mean…….”

The suddenness of his illness is somewhat understandable.

It wasn’t an illness at all.

It’s just more troublesome than being sick.

“Your Highness, do you know him? I honestly don’t know the nobles very well.”

“You have to know. Count Clovis is also a graduate here.”

And that was also the reason why Odette came to Belfort Academy.

The only connection between Walter and Louis was that they attended Belfort Academy together.

‘If there is a relationship, it must be here.’

And it turns out that Louis and Walter briefly overlapped with Odette during their school years.

Attending a private academy was nothing short of proof that one had a certain level of sophistication as well as forming a network, so attending a private academy before entering the social world was an unspoken rule for the upper class.

‘If you didn’t go to a private academy that you can get into as long as you have the money, it means you’re an idiot who can’t even pass the entrance exam.’

 

Whether you liked it or not, you had to attend for at least a year or two before you could be considered a socialite.

And the Belfort Academy was the most prestigious of them all, the kind of place that high-ranking nobles would wear their banners to get into.

So there were two types of people who attended.

Either you were of high status, like Odette or Louis.

Someone of lesser status, like Anne Sophie, but a brilliant mind.

Of course, Odette was a Princess, which meant she was automatically enrolled in the Belfort Academy for imperial prestige, whether she liked it or not.

‘Fortunately, I managed to keep a low profile at the academy.’

Not much was known about her in the first place.

Living on the bare minimum of dignity, no one would have guessed that the inconspicuously dressed girl could be the Fourth Princess.

Well, if I were to say that I didn’t get caught at all…….

– What? Your Highness the First Prince…… Odette……? Why are you two…….

– ……Say hello, Anne. This is my brother, Cedric. Brother, this is…… Anne Sophie, she’s taking a class with me.

……It wasn’t exactly a complete secret.

Anyway, the two years of private school were uneventful because the person who found out was Anne Sophie, who was not interested in socializing at all.

It was a good thing, because she ended up with a good friend.

But it also yielded an unexpected harvest.

‘I don’t know if Count Clovis is really cursed or what, but…….’

If there was a chance to meet, I had to meet.

 

“Anne, the professor said he was meeting with Count Clovis?”

“Yes. She left the lab, so she must have gone to Epona Hall.”

Epona Hall was a common room not far from here.

It contained a library and a place to sit and chat over tea, so it was a common place to meet outsiders.

“Thank you for letting me know. I enjoyed the tea.”

“Your Highness? You want to go?”

“Yes. I have an urgent message to deliver.”

With that, Odette hurried out, saying that she would be coming back to the Academy often for a while, as she had some business to attend to.

Perhaps it was truly urgent business, but her movements were unlike her.

After Odette left.

“……Hmm. Will it be okay?”

Anne Sophie, who scratched her head a couple of times with a questionable expression, headed to the study.

She’d been accepted into the Belfort Academy because she excelled in magic and became a research student.

One of her specialties was Future Foretelling.

It was often hinted at in fragments, especially in the strong and near future.

‘As expected, the reason there was a hint to prepare tea was because Her Highness Odette was coming.’

She thought that’s how it goes up to this point.

The problem was in the second hint.

Hmm.

A voice came out slowly from Anne Sophie’s mouth as she crossed her arms and rested her chin.

“Beware of the past, what do you mean……?”

Anne Sophie was preoccupied with the upcoming academic festival, so she had no idea what rumors were currently circulating in social circles centered around Odette.

As a result, she couldn’t imagine anything.

About what’s going to happen around Odette.

* * *

 

At that time, Epona Hall.

“It is unfortunate, but I think it is difficult for me to guess the cause of what the Count is suffering from.”

“……As expected, is that so?”

“Yes. I’ve seen a lot of times when things in the past are brought back to be nightmares by being cursed, but to have someone who is not related at all…… There’s no case at all.”

Zantipe, a magic professor at Belfort Academy, shook her head.

At that sight, the platinum-haired man sitting across from her, Louis Clovis, smiled coldly.

“But if this isn’t a curse, what could it be? I was fine, but suddenly I collapsed, and I was suffering from hallucinations for several days.”

“Of course, I also think that what the Count is suffering from would be a curse. Otherwise, there will be no way to explain.”

“But why can’t you break the curse?”

“I must guess the cause to lift the curse, but as of now, I cannot guess the cause of the curse on the Count at all.”

If the cause of the curse cannot be guessed, the curse is weakened by alleviating the unclean magic residing in the cursed person’s body.

“Currently, I can’t feel the slightest hint of unclean magical power in the Count’s body. So it can’t be resolved.”

“…….”

When the smile disappeared from Louis’ face, Zantipe sighed lightly.

“Or could you tell me a little more about the content of the hallucination? The hallucinations caused by the curse are based on the person’s usual fears. Maybe we can find out if we talk about it.”

Zantipe’s voice took on a very worried tone.

‘Why is this happening at such a young age? Tsk tsk.’

The young man in front of her, Louis, was once a student of Zantipe’s.

Of course, only the theory of magic was taught briefly in liberal arts.

Still, she knew what kind of student Louis was when he was a student.

His striking platinum hair, blue eyes, and gentle good looks.

And a sociable personality that drew people to him.

He was a standout wherever he went.

 

– It’s a pity that I don’t have any talent for magic. There aren’t many opportunities to make your name known without borrowing Clovis’ name.

And above all, what caught Zantipe’s attention was that he was more ambitious than he seemed.

Louis, on the surface, was sociable in good words, and profligate in bad words.

He seemed intent on hanging out with his aristocratic friends or meeting women.

However, Louis’ blue eyes looked quite serious as he said that he regretted not having a talent for magic.

‘Perhaps…… what I see isn’t everything.’

To the point of sudden thought that comes.

She thought that maybe it would be a good idea to look forward to the future, but She can’t believe such a young man has become so emaciated by an unpredictable curse.

It didn’t take away from his intrinsic beauty, but it did arouse sympathy.

“If you tell us about the hallucinations you are seeing, we can do a little more research. Of course, it is difficult to say right now because the academic festival is just around the corner, but-.”

Zantipe’s concern was genuine. Louis could feel it too.

But he could only shake his head.

“……No, thank you for your time.”

“Count. Are you serious?”

“Of course. Professor, don’t you think I’m seeing hallucinations wrong? The fear in my memory appeared before my eyes, but I was mistaking it for something else.”

 

“……Don’t be offended. In fact, It’s actually happened to me quite a few times.”

Zantipe, was stabbed to the core, looked embarrassed. Louis smiled faintly at the sight.

“Offended, how could I be?”

It’s just that he isn’t afraid of seeing things wrong or hallucinating.

Even now, Louis was able to clearly recite the hallucinations he had been suffering from.

The reason why it couldn’t be done was simple.

Because what he saw, it was a story that he couldn’t really tell.

– Louis, why didn’t you come to the banquet that night? You said you’d come with me. It was your godmother’s birthday banquet, not anyone else’s.

– I had work. I told you.

– I didn’t get it. It was only after I had already left that it arrived…….

– I got the fastest person I could find and sent it to you, and you know it was out of my control that it was late. I did my best.

– So why don’t you just keep your promise and go to the banquet once?…… that’s what I asked you to do…….

In the vision, Louis was married.

That wasn’t surprising, since he was supposed to be looking for a suitable marriage partner anyway.

What was surprising was who he was talking to.

– Odette! What’s wrong with you? I had to do it for business!

Odette Benoit Celestine.

In the vision, she appeared as Louis’s wife.