Contract Marriage Interrupted

Episode 45. Against Marriage

 

Due to the aftermath of being caught in a moment just before a kiss by Ellie, Walter and Odette refrained from displaying such overt affectionate gestures in front of Ellie.

Originally, Odette was someone quite distant from such things.

But Walter was the problem.

‘Come to think of it, the Duke always stared at your Highness like that……!’

It wasn’t just eye contact.

His gaze roamed over every inch of Odette’s body, as if constantly confirming her existence.

‘Every inch of her body’!

Sometimes it even contained complex emotions, and sometimes it revealed outright possessiveness.

‘He must have been having rotten delusions inside!’

Looking at Her Highness with such impure eyes!

Ellie could recall passages from popular romance novels she enjoyed reading.

The male protagonists in those stories were undeniably charming, yet at the same time, dangerously passionate creatures fueled by desire.

It cannot be denied that the recent novel she enjoyed reading was <In the Cage of a Beautiful Tyrant>, which had a lot to do with this idea.

Popular romance novels usually boast a high level of sensuality, that book’s also full of such content, with half of the book filled with such explicit content.

And Ellie recalled one passage that stuck in her mind.

[She was the only one who could touch the Emperor’s base desires. Everything about her, from the seemingly translucent skin revealing a hint of veins, moist eyes that shine innocently, even a delicate voice that makes you want to do bad things…….

 

And thus, she found herself in the deepest cage among the possessions of the Emperor. Only when her delicate voice grew hoarse and her beautiful appearance faded, losing all its value, the thick doors of the cage finally opened.]

It was a narrative that came from the part where the male protagonist plans to ruin the heroine with his obsession. 

Of course, Ellie got a little carried away reading this part and enjoyed it immensely.

‘…… In reality, it’s trash!’

In these kinds of situations, Ellie knew how to thoroughly distinguish between reality and fantasy.

And she could definitely cut it out.

This means that none of the male protagonists in popular romance novels are really good.

‘The problem is…… Duke Ertmann might be one of them.’

From the beginning, Ellie had been suspicious of the ‘numerous items for women in Ertmann’s residence’ that Odette had ignored.

She thought that Walter might have indecent tastes, or that he might be seeing another woman behind her back.

But Odette didn’t make a big deal out of it, so Ellie trusted her.

– Our Highness is not an easy person. No matter what tricks Duke Ertmann tries, I won’t let him go easily!

It was a naive assumption.

Ellie only realized this after seeing Odette, who had gone to a banquet at the imperial palace, return to the palace and almost kiss Walter.

– ……E- Ellie?!

Blushing, Odette was truly in a state of disarmament.

 

The caution  Odette usually displayed towards Walter was nowhere to be found, she had completely opened the firmly locked gates.

‘Still, if it was okay with Her Highness, I didn’t intend to intervene, but…….’

Now that she had overheard Lizaina’s conversation, the option of not intervening no longer existed.

So, Ellie had come all the way to Ertmann today.

‘There’s no need to cause unnecessary distress to Her Highness by telling an uncertain things’

She planned to confirm the situation herself first and inform Odette once she was sure.

Unfortunately, the call from the Wellington Hotel came before she could do any more spying.

Nevertheless, her determination to persevere remained strong.

‘I must protect Her Highness too!’

No matter how Duke Ertmann tries to lower my guard with some coaxing and extravagant treatment, I will never go easy on him.

Because there is no one who can protect Her Highness except me!

Ellie’s ambitions were certainly admirable.

“Anyway, I’m actually a little uncomfortable with this marriage, and I know it’s unavoidable due to the circumstances…… but Your Highness shouldn’t relax either, especially with the way the Duke looks at you.”

“How does the Duke look at me?”

“He’s looking at you…… like you’re some kind of tasty prey!”

“……?”

 

The problem was that to Odette, who was completely unaware of these details, Ellie’s attitude seemed simply confusing.

‘Have I…… speaking that badly about the Duke to her?’

Is that why Ellie has such a strong dislike for him……?

Odette’s gaze wavered with a hint of unease.

Although it was a little late, Odette felt responsible for this situation and decided to defend Walter even now.

“Well, Ellie. It is true that I had a bad opinion of the Duke at first, but no, I don’t think he is a very good person…… Still, he’s definitely not a bad person. He helped me a lot at Xavier’s banquet.”

“That’s something you might not know,Your Highness. A man who has something to gain is always kind. The bait in a trap always looks sweet!”

“…… You’re unusually saying the right things today, Ellie.”

It had the opposite effect.

Fortunately, this topic did not last long.

The sound of flapping wings and a bird flying by the window quickly diverted attention.

“Oh! Isn’t that the Crown Prince bird’s? Wasn’t it originally whiter?”

“It’s disenchanted. My brother must have had some urgent news to deliver.”

As Ellie said, the bird had a somewhat strange appearance, with its color fading towards gray.

Cedric sometimes used Odette’s bird when he needed to make urgent messages, so it wasn’t an entirely new occurrence.

Odette returned the bird to its perch, untied the letter attached to its leg, and read it.

 

As Ellie moved around, preparing to write a reply to the letter, Odette glanced over her shoulder and smiled faintly at the letter.

“The letter seems quite urgent.”

“Because he’s always so meticulous about these things.”

Odette smiled and swept the letter with her fingertips.

Regardless of what Ellie said, letters written in Cedric’s neat handwriting never seemed to end quickly.

Although it was a correspondence through a courier bird, and it would be sufficient to write briefly about the matter at hand, it seemed that the deeply ingrained etiquette he learned since childhood was still present.

And every letter from Cedric always started like this.

[Dear Odette].

It was a simple call, but somehow Cedric’s voice was echoing in her mind.

The two or three longer paragraphs below were also strikingly similar.

From how his hands were slippery from waxing the paper to wrap the letter in, to asking Odette for her regards.

If anyone were to read it, they’d think it was a letter from a friendly brother and sister.

‘My brother is such a long-winded greeter.’

Of course, Odette was not delusional about this.

She already knew that Cedric wrote these things mechanically and without meaning.

– If my letters are long, you don’t have to write long letters. It’s all just meaningless greetings.

The fleeting sense of excitement she had, became sank completely with that single remark.

Thinking back on how she felt at that time, there was a slightly bittersweet sensation, but Odette quickly shook it off.

She wasn’t the type to dwell on such things.

“…… Hmm?”

There was something a bit peculiar about the content beneath the verbose greetings.

 

[I planned to return to the capital within a month. We should be able to see each other soon.

As for some joyful news, I can’t help but feel regretful at the thought of not being able to witness my sister’s wedding announcement together.

Marriage is a serious matter, so instead of announcing it right away, how about taking some time to reconsider?]

In summary…… he plans to return within a month and suggests postponing the wedding announcement until then.

[Also, I believe I can recommend a better partner than Ertmann. If you have any concerns about this, please let me know without hesitation as I will help you.

I don’t really enjoy judging people directly, but I don’t think Duke Ertmann is a great man worth recommending as a marriage partner.

We all know that even if the outer surface is good, the inside is not truly considered great too.

He is excessively arrogant, selfish, and lacks any consideration for others. He tends to calculate every relationship based on gains and losses. These qualities might be suitable for a family’s leader, but they don’t make for a good match in marriage.

I realize this is not an easy decision for you to make, and this advice may sound harsh, but I write it with difficulty as one who has known him a little more than you. Please do not take my words lightly.]

And then there was a whole bunch of stuff about Walter not being a good marriage material.

Cedric would not normally do this, a direct evaluation of Walter and even explicit dissuasion.

Cedric is genuinely disapproving of Odette and Walther’s marriage.

As soon as she hears from Ellie that he doesn’t like the idea, receive such a detailed letter of opposition from Cedric.

With a puzzled expression, Odette held the letter in her hands and pondered.

‘……Duke Ertman, is your reputation really that bad?’

* * *

 

And that time.

“I’m against this marriage.”

Walter was in a similar position to Odette.

Of course, the difference with Odette was that Walter was ready to hear those words with his ears.

“I already know that Grandfather wouldn’t like an Imperial woman, but the decision has been made and there’s no going back.”

“No, the Fourth Princess is not a problem. She’s a very nice young lady. Considering the circumstances, she has grown up very well. If only I had one more grandson, I’d have paired her with him.”

When Odette came up as a topic, Arnold’s stiff expression immediately softened.

And Walter looked at that with an expression of astonishment.

“Can’t you see that you have a grandson here? If it’s not a problem on her side, then what is it?”

“You don’t know that, you’re the problem, you bastard!”

Arnold erupted in frustration, his anger bursting forth.

“If you have a conscience, you shouldn’t even talk about marrying a woman like her! Know your place, know your place!”

“I don’t think you understood, but I’ve never developed anything like a conscience. So please step aside and hand over your elder seal.”

“You- this brat thinks he can surpass his father just because his head has grown a bit! Do you think I wouldn’t know? Fine, let me ask you this since it’s come to this.”

Arnold spoke irritably and placed his clasped hands on his legs.

“Walter, why are you looking after Montoire all this time?”