Chapter 61 - < Three People And Their Respective Mailboxes >
Sister, I'm The Queen In This Life
Ariadne apparently approached Alfonso intentionally at first. She saw it as the golden key that would solve all of her troubles, including the troubles of the Cesare family and the de Mare family, all at once. Marriage to Prince Alfonso could definitely solve all her problems.
Of course, the event of Cesare's treason remained, but she knew a lot of Cesare's skills at the time when he was plotting the treason. As long as her history continued as it was, she would be able to prevent that rebellion. So she thought this was her perfect arrangement. She was both a benefit to Alfonso and a benefit to her.
There were no obstacles that could stand in their way if only Alfonso would agree to marry her. Thus, without even a trace of guilt, Ariadne deliberately set a trap to capture the heart of the 17-year-old boy both when they first met in the Rambouillet Center and the second time in the Queen's garden. The guilt of having lured Alfonso in her previous life into a trap with her own hands gradually faded.
This time, it was through her marriage to Alfonso that she would put him on the throne. And she never worried or worried about his reaction. If he didn't fall for it, she could set the next trap, and if he didn't love her, she could become his political bride and win the seat next to him.
Whatever the method, the result would be just. If only she could get her hands on Alfonso's marriage vow, Ariadne would be very close to the freedom she had dreamed of. As a bonus, Alfonso will also receive the throne, which is his rightful inheritance. But at some point, this bright boy who was her brother-in-law from her previous life seemed to have absorbed into her.
Ariadne missed him when she didn't see him, and she was curious about his well-being. The desire for him to be curious about her, for him to want to see her too, coiled in her heart. She wanted Alfonso's heart, his sincerity, not a relationship of political exploitation or a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship. She wanted to save him from misfortune and help him not to be overtaken by worries.
'Come to your senses.'
Ariadne shook her head left and right.
Ariadne was not yet completely safe. It was true that she had some breathing room at home now that she had been granted permission to audit Lucrezia's ledgers, but she had no idea how the dynamics in the house would change when the eldest son, Polito, who was studying abroad, returned. As time passes, one day, Cardinal de Mare will die of old age, and Ippolito, Lucrezia's son, and Isabella's older brother will inherit the de Mare family. She had to leave home through marriage before then.
'I'm like a sea anemone when I'm in love with a man.'
Plus, her track record when she fell in love was disastrous. Even in her past life, when Ariadne was wary of him, Cesare was just as gentle, cheerful, and joyful as the spring breeze as he is now. But after he realized that she had fallen for him and was a prisoner of his love, that she was blindly devoted only to him, her fiancé, without the support of her family, relatives, and friends, he became a completely different person.
"The lily of the valley that blooms in the mountains and fields is like you."
Ariadne was a free flower that bloomed in the fields. He picked it when he wanted to, and when he got tired of it, he threw it back into the field.
Ariadne's love, like a bulb that had overwintered all winter and bloomed again into a brilliant lily of the valley in May, turned again towards Cesare even if she was left alone as time passed. At the slightest hint of warmth, say, a smile that spread across its carved marble face in response to her actions, the lily-bell bulbs thought spring had come and burst into bud with all their might.
When she devoted herself to Cesare in her fields without repaying her, Isabella became a beautiful rose that he carefully cultivated in the greenhouse, nourished by Cesare's attention and love. Isabella is the only one who is expensive and precious; Countess Bartolini, who is just a friend; and Baroness Santa Rosa, who was talented in instrumental music and was Cesare'sv'artistic muse' (Cesare did not engage in any particularly productive musical activities such as composing or playing music, other than listening). The list of people who are more important to Cesarebthan Ariadne can be found in the capital, including the voluptuous Madame Gentilini, who told Cesare not to interfere in his interactions with her because she was his 'soul's best friend' even though she was a commoner and could not be considered cultured by anyone's standards.
There were a lot of them. When she wasn't around, she had friends. The legion of bastards, led by the bastard Ottavio de Contarini, always left their wives and fiancées at home and went about playing games, hunting, and playing games among themselves.
Ariadne, in love with her, lacked her charm. At least she believed so herself.
'I will never, ever repeat this again.'
Ariadne, who was horrified by the Zanobi incident, decided to devalue not only Cesare but also Alfonso's letter.
She can't trust all men. Of course, it's Count Cesare, and Prince Alfonso probably doesn't mean it either. She must not fall for it even if it is her true intention. Let's not be shaken. She will win the place next to the Prince and become Queen without falling in love with him or anyone else.
For my freedom and safety.
***
Contrary to Ariadne's disparagement, Alfonso put a lot of thought and discussion into writing this letter with his secretary, Bernardino
"Can I invite Ari?"
"Absolutely not, my Prince."
It was Secretary Bernardino's firm answer to the question of whether it would be possible to send an invitation to Lady Ariadne de Mare in the name of the Prince's Palace to go to the southern villa with him.
"What on earth are you going to say and invite your old wife in the name of the Prince's palace?"
Alfonso also had nothing to say to that question.
"The Prince can invite any ceremony. If the Prince had been a Princess, you would have been able to invite the Lady de Mare. But right now, especially in this condition, I can't have any female customers."
Bernardino stopped Alfonso by pointing out the current situation where negotiations regarding an arranged marriage were taking place. Alfonso briefly imagined Ariadne masquerading as an unknown spirit, dressing in men's clothes, and running around with him in the southern palace. They go for a walk in the morning, splash around in the fountain in the middle of the day, take a nap in a hammock in the afternoon, and then share grapes...
A day is like a dream, like walking on clouds. Alfonso was not very imaginative. He was an exemplary student who learned as he was taught and faithfully carried out what he learned. However, he had a crazy imagination only when it came to Ariadne's affairs.
He lived a life where everything was predetermined and decided. He was a Prince by birth, and it was his destiny to study and master the art of Kings diligently and become a royal Prince. His mother worked hard to pave the way for him, and his father also removed all obstacles in his con's way.
When the time was right, he would meet the monarch's wife, marry her who gave birth to his children, maintain a respectful, sacred but dull marriage, wait for the right time, and then take over the throne when his father passed away.
All Alfonso had to gather was the people, and there was nothing else but the people. He couldn't help but believe that he would live that kind of life.
'Couldn't I be with Ari?'
Clever Ariadne gives him advice, and he leads the government.
"Prince?"
Alfonso suddenly woke up from his thoughts. He thought about asking Secretary Bernardino, 'What do you think of my idea?', but shook his head in just a second. If Alfonso broke the marriage agreement at will and was unable to secure other allies through his marriage, it would not be strange to say that the Kingdom of Gallico would lead troops to the border at that time.
Even if he breaks off the marriage talks, it might somehow pass. If the marriage contract is confirmed and the marriage contract is broken, then Gallico's heavily armored knights and artillery units will indeed appear on the border. And before the marriage talks or the marriage contract is broken, if this story comes out of Alfonso's mouth, Bernardino will scream.
"No. Let's continue as scheduled for the afternoon."
Alfonso eventually sent a letter with only the sentence, 'I really want to show you the villa in Taranto'.
It was sincere, and at the same time, it was a promise that even he could keep.
***
Count Cesare de Como's mailbox was bursting with letters. The letters he sent to Ariadne continued to be chewed on, but recently he succeeded in receiving her first reply, and since then he has received a reply every once in three.
Limited to Ariadne, the success rate of receiving a reply was not good. However, in most cases, Cesare did not write letters to others, and others wrote to Cesare first. For that reason, Count Cesare's mailbox was filled with letters that exceeded the height of the box. Two-thirds of them belonged to women who admired Cesare.
"Dear Count Cesare, it has already been over a month since I saw you, whom I adore. At that time, your passion for standing under my window sill all night, bathed in the morning dew, disappeared everywhere and I stood here alone and miserable..."
"Oh, I'm bored."
Cesare roughly crumpled the letter from Viscount Vanedetto and threw it on the floor. Ottavio de Contarini, who was next to him, picked up the letter out of curiosity and looked at it. Cesare did not particularly restrain Ottavio.
"Isn't this the Lady I met last month? Are you sick of her already?"
"What did you meet? I just played once. Why on earth are you so clueless? If you don't get a letter for a month, isn't that just saying we should stop seeing each other?"
"When you die, you will definitely be stabbed in the back by a woman."
Ottavio saw a large pile of letters on Cesare's desk. He picked one of them up and read it out loud.
"I waited for you in front of the mill in the suburbs where I had promised, but you never showed up. Ah, a mean person."
Ottavio clicked his tongue as he read the lines of the letter exaggeratedly, filled with emotion and heavy emphasis.
"Gristmill? Is it possible that you lured a woman to the mill to do that and then didn't show up at the last minute?"
"I forgot. I have something to focus on these days,"
Cesare added.
"But still, forget what? Wow, this girl will be scarred for the rest of her life."
"She's not a virgin. She's married. She should be thankful that I forgot."
Isn't it thanks to his change of heart that she has maintained a peaceful family? Since he didn't show up, he guessed she had a heated discussion with her husband instead.
"Isn't this a good thing for everyone?"
It was Cesare, the enemy leader. Ottavio clicked his tongue and searched Cesare's desk until he found a letter in the corner. Unlike other letters that were roughly opened, the red wax was carefully torn off and then carefully reattached while maintaining its original shape. It was the coat of arms of the de Mare family.
"Why is this thing set up like a reliquary?"
When Ottavio stretched out his hand toward the letter from the de Mare family, Cesare 'slammed' Ottavio's wrist with his right hand.
"Get your hands off me."
"Why are you hiding it from me?"
"I don't know.""
Ottavio laughed at Cesare's resistance.
"See this? Give it to me! What is it?"
"But!"
Ottavio struggles with Cesare and tries to take the letter from him. Cesare shooed Ottavio away with a swing of his splinted left arm. He was so hasty that his face turned red and his breathing became heavy.
He was not always like the elegant Count Cesare. He managed to pick up Ariadne's letter before Ottavio, put it in his drawer, and locked the top drawer with a key. He also took the reply he had written and hid it in a drawer.
"I said there was nothing to know!"
"Why are you trying to open a gambling den? If that's the case, why don't you show me? Are you going to go gambling without me?"
"No!"
"Could it be a woman?"
"Noisy!"
Alfonso's letter ended with 'I want to see the villa in Taranto with you!' It did not contain any content such as 'I will invite you to the villa'. It was a letter that simply stated the truth and contained only promises he could keep. In Cesare's reply to Ariadne, it was written.
"You are the girl I will marry by luring her with a pretty face. If you take responsibility for me, I will even offer my kingdom to you. These were overly sweet words that, at the moment, were hard to believe were sincere, let alone capable of carrying out promises, whether marriage or kingdom. It would only be possible to know what the woman's heart would choose, or whether she would end up as frozen as ice, only when the situation occurred. And a masquerade ball was approaching where they could meet each other while hiding their identities.
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