Frederick tried every possible way to persuade Eleanor. He was passionate about getting her out into society like all the other noble ladies, and finding a suitable groom for her to marry, as if it was his life’s mission. But Eleanor’s will was firm.
“I wish Your Grace would not bother about me, who is not even of his blood. I do not want my name to be linked with You Grace’s and be on the lips of many people, nor do I want to cause any inconvenience. I want to be forgotten in people’s memories, unnoticed as I am now.”
At first glance, it seemed like she knew her place and was stepping back, but in effect, it only made Frederick more obsessed with her, which was counterproductive.
If she really didn’t want to cause more trouble, it would be best to find a suitable marriage partner somewhere and get married as soon as possible. But what Eleanor was insisting on now exactly matched what she wrote in her vow, ‘I will not respond to any assistance proposed by the Duke in the future’. From Daryl’s point of view, he couldn’t say ‘it’s okay now, just do as you’re told’ at this point.
And six years passed and this happened. Eleanor’s refusal to enter society left a big debt in Frederick’s heart, which ultimately led him to write such an absurd will.
“Did she foresee this far?”
If Eleanor’s goal from the beginning was to enter the Duke’s house, it could not but be called a perfect achievement.
“No matter what, it can’t be. How could she foresee such a result unless she lives twice.”
Daryl furrowed his smooth forehead creating a few faint wrinkles. The carriage had been jolting heavily for some time now. It had entered an unpaved road on the outskirts.
Eleanor’s house was located in Loud, about an hour’s carriage ride from the capital. It was the house they moved to after the death of the Lord of Dashwood. Originally, the Dashwood estate had become the property of another heir along with the title. But for Eleanor, it was the house she was born in and had grown up in all her life. By Daryl’s standards, it was a small and humble mansion that could hardly be considered a place to stay overnight, but its appearance was not bad.
‘Surprisingly well-maintained.’
After getting off the carriage and passing through the entrance, the scenery of the mansion was almost no different from his memory six years ago. There was no room for prejudice that a young lady was managing the house alone.
“Lord Grayson.”
When he turned around at the voice from his memory, there stood Eleanor Townsend, who looked quite different from his memory.
The sixteen-year-old girl had become a twenty-two-year-old woman. He had somewhat imagined in advance that she would have changed dramatically, either brilliantly or modestly. But Eleanor in front of him was completely different from what Daryl had thought. Of course, she had grown into an outstanding beauty, but that wasn’t all. More precisely, it was not how Eleanor was, but how Daryl himself felt that was distinctly different.
When they had first met, Eleanor had been neither a thorn nor a comfort to Daryl. However, the current Eleanor had a strange feeling that stimulated something deep in his heart. Her calm gaze, her smile that was not expressionless but drawn with exquisite lines, her straight and upright posture that could be included in an etiquette book, all of it was somehow inexplicable.
“Miss Townsend. It’s been a long time.”
Daryl extended his hand to Eleanor. There was a brief moment when Eleanor’s eyes showed a hint of surprise, but it was extremely fleeting. Eleanor extended her hand as if she had been expecting it all along. Daryl kissed the back of her hand.
“I offer my condolences. Please forgive me for not being able to attend the funeral in person.”
Daryl hesitated for a moment to answer. He himself was the one who made her ‘unable to attend the funeral in person’ by not inviting Eleanor. However, there was no sign of criticism or sarcasm in Eleanor’s expression
“Thank you very much. I appreciate it.”
“Please sit down, Your Lordship. Or… should I call you Duke Griffith now?”
“Not yet.”
Regrettably, that is. He swallowed those words.
“Actually, the reason I wanted to see you today is because of that.”
Eleanor’s eyebrows tilted slightly in surprise.
“I checked the will yesterday. According to it, my father would ‘conditionally’ bequeath the title of Duke Griffith to me.”
“Conditionally?”
“Yes. On the premise that I marry you.”
Eleanor had no reaction for a few seconds. There was no noticeable change in her expression either. She just blinked her eyes once, in surprise.
‘Ah, this is her version of a “surprised reaction”.’
Daryl intuitively understood.
“Marry? With me?”
“Yes.”
Daryl pulled out a thin bundle of papers from his briefcase and handed it to her.
“What is this?”
“It’s a contract.”
Eleanor picked up the bundle of papers. Watching her eyes roll from side to side, Daryl held his tongue.
“A marriage in name would be enough. Just maintain a marital relationship with me for one year. After that, we can proceed with the divorce immediately. I will take care of all the procedures and paperwork. All you need to do is sign.”
After reading the contract, Eleanor read it again from the beginning. Then she sighed.
“I don’t quite understand.”
“Ask me anything. I’ll explain until you understand.”
“Why do I have to marry Your Lordship?”
“Because otherwise, I can’t become a Duke.”
“What does that have to do with me?”
There was still no hint of criticism or aggression in Eleanor’s eyes. Although her choice of words was raw, the meaning was strictly business-like. Daryl accepted it as such.
“If you’re asking what’s in it for you, I was about to talk about that part. It’s written in item 7 of the contract. The blank space is left intentionally. So it can be adjusted according to Miss Townsend’s wishes.”
Item 7 of the contract read as follows:
‘Party 2 pays Party 1 ( ) as consideration for this contract. 20% of the total amount is paid at the time of contract establishment, and the remaining 80% is paid when the marriage period expires.’
“My wishes?”
“Yes. You can fill in any amount you want.”
“Really? Any amount?”
“Yes.”
After all, your imagination and generosity won’t leave a scratch on the Duke’s property anyway. That was the meaning behind Daryl’s words.
Eleanor sighed once again.
“I refuse.”
“Do you mean you don’t need a reward?”
“No, I mean I refuse to marry you.”
There was a moment of silence.
“You really don’t seem to understand.”
Daryl clasped his hands on his abdomen.
“You’ll become a duchess. Even if it’s in name only, you can enjoy all the rights of a duchess for a year. You can also receive as much compensation as you want. There’s no reason for you to refuse.”
“I don’t understand why you’re deciding why I should refuse.”
“I’m just stating an obvious fact.”
“It’s not obvious to me at all.”
“Then tell me. Why do you refuse?”
“Because I don’t want to marry Your Lordship.”
Eleanor had an expression as if she was stating something very obvious.
“To be precise, I have no intention of marrying anyone. As I told you a long time ago, I’ve made up my mind to remain a daughter of Townsend all my life. I’m also satisfied with my current life.”
“This life.”
Daryl looked around. More precisely, he made a gesture of looking around.
“It seems like a life far from abundance to use the word ‘satisfaction’.”
“People have their own standards. Even if it seems inadequate to Your Lordship, it may not be so for me.”
‘I do understand. Fully.’
Greed is the most primal nature of humans. Whether they want to hide it or not, that’s the only difference. To Daryl’s eyes, Eleanor belonged to the former.
There’s no way Eleanor wouldn’t want more money, a better life. The reason she’s stepping back now is simply because she’s not satisfied with the conditions he has proposed. He has seen such examples several times in his dealings so far. Bargaining is the basics of trade.
“Even non-monetary aspects are fine. If there’s something you want, please tell me.”
“Lord Grayson.”
“What could it be? The return of the title of Lord of Dashwood? If it’s about the manor, I can retrieve it right away. If it’s about the title, it might require a bit complicated procedure, but it’s not impossible. At least I can assure you here and now that it can be returned to Miss Townsend’s future offspring.”
“…Your Lordship.”
I can’t wait for this man to beg 😏😌