It was the first time that the Marquis Blanche had visited the girl since the mother and daughter came to live in this mansion.
It was also a chaotic time, with only a week to go before the marriage between Archduke Acliffe and Marquis Blanche, promoted by the imperial family, was scheduled to take place.
Erica Blanche’s health, who had not been seriously ill for a while, suddenly deteriorated.
The girl’s mother was also unable to return almost every day to take care of Erica Blanche.
The condition was so serious that Erica Blanche could not even leave her room.
“Marquis, eh… … .”
Erica, who was about to give her real name without thinking, received a harsh look from the Marquis and closed her mouth.
She swallowed dryly and, in an awkward, trembling voice, managed to reveal the name used within the mansion.
“lee… … “This is Lee.”
“okay.”
Erica bowed towards him.
“I came because I heard you were looking for it.”
“I need you to help me.”
Erica took a breath.
Meanwhile, the Marquis was sighing deeply and repeatedly stroking his subordinate with an impatient hand.
His already sharp expression had become even sharper.
It seemed that the reason was that he was not very pleased with his situation of having to ask such a favor from the nanny’s daughter.
Erica held her breath and became even more nervous.
“Am I the Marquis?”
“okay.”
He is a person who lacks nothing. He is even a magnate who is considered one of the most powerful figures in the empire.
‘I can help someone like that?’
I couldn’t believe it, and I couldn’t understand it.
Meanwhile, the Marquis Blanche looked at Erica with very keen eyes. As if torn to pieces.
Feeling as if she would be cut by that gaze, Erica shrugged her shoulders and lowered her gaze.
After a while, the search came to an end.
“Your body type and height are roughly similar to Erica.”
Until then, I didn’t understand what he meant.
But I didn’t ask.
Because as a girl, such things were not allowed.
After waiting a moment more, the voice of the young Marquis Blanche, full of disapproval, continued.
“I don’t know if you know, but my daughter is in very bad condition.”
“Yes, you are very heartbroken because of that…” … .”
“But because of that, we cannot delay marrying the Archduke Acliffe. “She might use the fact that my daughter is sick to find fault with our family.”
So, what the girl was offered by the Marquis was to act as Erica Blanche’s stand-in.
Same age as Erica Blanche.
And a trustworthy person whom the Marquis has seen for a long time.
No, no.
A person who knows certain weaknesses and can correct them.
That was Erica, the nanny’s daughter.
“How dare I… … .”
“If you want to save your mother’s life, you will have to do as I tell you.”
It was a point where a request suddenly turned into a threat.
Erica’s golden eyes trembled strongly.
The Marquis of Blanche knew very well how much Erica and Julia were attached to each other.
So it wasn’t that difficult to choose the most appropriate noose to tie around the girl’s ankles.
“What do you mean…” … ?”
Only then did Erica realize that Julia, whom she had not seen for several days, was not being nursed in Erica Blanche’s room, but was imprisoned somewhere in this mansion.
“My mother… … ! “Is my mother okay?”
“It depends on your answer. What shall we do? Will you do what I tell you?”
Erica had no choice.
“I will do what the Marquis tells me to do. So my mother… … Help me.”
From that day on, the nanny’s daughter Erica made countless efforts to become the daughter of the Marquis Erica Blanche.
Her silver hair, which used to sparkle like snow in the sunlight, was dyed red, the symbol of the Blanche family.
Of course, from that day on, I couldn’t even see my mother.
If the two of them got together and secretly ran away, everything would have been in vain, so that was what the Marquis Blanche ordered.
Erica clenched her fists. Her hard nails pressed painfully against the delicate skin of her palms.
‘Just 10 years, no. I said it was only until the coming-of-age ceremony, so let’s just endure it for 9 years. Then you can take her mother and run away.’
* * *
“Tsk.”
A small sound of clicking one’s tongue was heard from behind. At that moment, Erica’s small shoulders trembled and her consciousness returned to reality.
Erica wanted to look back and see for herself how angry Bonpije was, but Erica held back.
That would also not be appropriate behavior for the daughter of a noble marquis.
Even though we have entered March, there have been particularly cold days like winter this year.
The cold wind blew strong again, stealing the warmth from Erica’s cheeks. Now my cheeks were starting to tingle.
‘Too cold… … .’
In the end, Erica flinched slightly.
I was quite anxious, but I didn’t hear Bonpiju’s reprimand.
‘thank god. There are many eyes to see, so I don’t think they scold me.’
After getting off the carriage, Erica stood like this in front of the main shrine.
‘I think it’s been about an hour.’
However, since no one from the Archduke Acliffe family, the family of the groom-to-be, had arrived yet, they had no choice but to wait like this in front of the temple.
Normally, I would have gone straight inside without having to stand outside like this.
But today was a wedding.
The two parties who promised to marry must bow to the goddess together, and it was a long-standing custom in the Angelica Empire that neither of them could enter first.
There was even a superstition that if only one person entered the chapel first, not only would they not be able to receive the goddess’ blessings, but their future relationship would not be good either.
‘I think it’s already pretty bad… … .’
Erica knew better than anyone else that for both Arcliffe and Blanche, today’s wedding was just a transaction.
‘I don’t know what we decided to exchange… … .’
Erica sighed and lowered her gaze slightly.
At that time, something swooped in front of her.
It was a car with white steam rising.
“Please eat.”
A young priest with a youthful appearance was holding out an old teacup to her with one hand and smiling.
Judging from the fact that he was holding a tray with several cups in his other free hand, it seemed like the Marquis Blanche was serving tea to the people at the temple.
Gold hair and green eyes. The boy wearing the white priest’s uniform seemed to be made entirely of soft lines melted by the spring sunlight.
‘I don’t think he’s a trainee priest… … .’
Although he looked older than Erica, he was still not an adult.
Although he was still young, he seemed to have considerable sexual power, as he was wearing the attire of a formal priest rather than an apprentice.
Erica, embarrassed by the sudden appearance of the boy priest, did not take the teacup and just stared at it.
Then the boy priest whispered so softly that only she could hear.
“I took honey. “It won’t taste bad.”
The boy priest offered the teacup once more.
Erica looked at him for a moment, nodded briefly, and then said hello in a voice barely audible.
“thank you.”
But I didn’t feel like drinking anything, so I just held the teacup tightly with both hands. I felt like my stiff body was loosening up a little from the warmth of her fingertips.
The boy priest smiled slightly at Erica and then walked away to distribute tea to others.
Then, as if he had been waiting, another person approached the girl.
It was the old priest who had decided to officiate at Erica’s ceremony today.
He held an important position in the Holy Kingdom when he was young, but returned to his hometown, the capital of the Angelica Empire, when he retired.
The reason he was able to receive the officiating ceremony from such a big man was purely thanks to the power of the two families.
“Grand Duke Acliffe is a little late. “Aren’t you having a hard time waiting?”
Erica answered with a nervous face.
“I’m OK. However, I don’t know if the people of the Archduke’s family had an accident on the way.”
As I muttered softly, the old priest, who saw the thoughtfulness in his words, put a kind smile on his lips.
“You have a very kind heart.”
“Oh, no.”
Erica’s face, who was not used to being praised, instantly heated up.
Unable to find a place to place her eyes, she lowered her gaze slightly, and the old priest’s laughter fell gently on Erica’s head.
“Don’t worry though. Isn’t it the Archduke Aclif’s family and not any other family? “If you were to be harmed by someone, something like that would never happen even after you die.”
“… … “If that’s the case, I’m glad.”
That was when Erica mumbled quietly and answered.
“Priest, no matter how much I think about it, I think this is really too much.”
It was Bonpiju.
Her patience was completely worn out and she raised her voice without hiding her dissatisfaction.
Considering her status, this should never have happened to priests who were treated higher than great nobles.
However, Bonpiju had now come to the temple on behalf of the Marquis of Blanche.
So, she thought that she was fully given the right to speak, and it seems that the temple was thinking the same thing, so she did not bother to point out Bonpiju’s rudeness.
In any case, it was because the Marquis of Blanche was right that he was waiting without an appointment, well past the agreed upon time.
“How long do we have to wait?”
