“Come.”
As usual, Ines and Joseph met in the back of the mansion’s backyard. The weather was extremely clear because it had just rained. The flowers and trees around them were softly colored, and the wind was moderately cool, and refreshing.
However, Ines’s smiling heart felt like it was being stabbed by a hot iron skewer. She was overcome by the urge to grab anything she could get her hands on and poke his body.
“I missed you.”
As if performing a ritual, Ines deliberately found and put on the clothes she had worn that day 12 years ago.
As the sun began to set, a red sunset colored the sky behind him.
Ines barely managed to raise the corners of her mouth and smile at his sincere expression of missing her. The smile that did not match her young face made him feel uncomfortable, but Joseph did not have the sense to notice it.
Ines sat down on the chair provided and motioned for Joseph to sit down as well.
He sat down and began to rummage through his arms. Ines snorted at his actions without showing it. She knew what he was trying to say.
“I’ve written a letter.”
“...To read it in front of me?”
Joseph’s face briefly looked puzzled at the inevitable sarcasm, but he soon smiled back at her smile.
“Yes, I have no way to fully convey my feelings.”
Naturally, Ines had memorized the entire letter he was about to read.
It contained stories of how excited he had been the day he met Ines and how he had come to love her.
It was a text she had held in her hand and memorized like the Bible whenever he had accepted his proposal and received harsh words from her father. While she was lost in thought, his long and rambling confession of love was coming to an end.
“So, to this beautiful and noble Lady Ines Swenden, I dare to say that I, the poor and humble Joseph Benoit, am now...”
He jumped up from his seat. Then he knelt down in front of Ines. He reached into the pocket opposite where Joseph had kept the letter, took out a small box, and thrust it in. The moment she saw it, Ines felt a surge of revulsion.
It was a small, crude ring with a bead. It was too shabby to swear eternal love, but the man holding it looked so proud.
Ines was wearing this ring even at the moment of her death.
“I would like to propose to you.”
A gentle breeze blew from somewhere, and she closed her eyes for a moment. Then she covered her face with both hands to hide the corners of her mouth that kept turning up. To him, it must have seemed like the actions of a woman overwhelmed with emotion.
Joseph, too, gave Ines time to collect her thoughts with an expression of overwhelming emotion. His face was confident, without the slightest worry about rejection.
Ines got up from her seat just like that day. Her ivory dress swayed in the wind once, reflecting the red sunset.
If she reached out and received this ring, the war between him and her would begin. She could have received the surname of Joseph Benois, heard his death, and been dragged to Romfield. If not, she would hear his real death, not a lie, this time.
Seeing him smile brightly, confident that she would accept, Ines slowly approached. Ines faced him and smiled brighter than ever.
Then she reached out and closed the lid of the ring case with a clank.
What was more surprised by her behavior was not Joseph, but Susan, who was standing by.
“Get up, Joseph.”
He looked flustered and couldn’t even get up from his seat, just looking at Ines’ face.
“Come on.”
When she urged him gently, he took his embarrassed hand away and barely sat down in front of Ines.
“Are you... Reject?”
“No way.”
“But why...?”
“Joseph, I got a marriage proposal today.”
When she said marriage proposal, Joseph really looked like a man hurt by love.
“Marriage proposal...?”
“Yes. A family of the same class as ours proposed to me.”
It might sound unpleasant, but she was not in the mood to make such a judgment right now. Ines reached out and lightly placed her hand over the back of the man’s hand that was holding the ring case.
Then she felt him flinch.
“But don’t worry.”
Joseph looked at the hands that Ines was placing over them and looked up.
“I intend to decline the marriage proposal. However...”
“However...?”
“It takes some time. As you know, my father will never allow us to get married. Do you understand that...?”
Ines avoided eye contact and lowered her head. If it had been the old Ines, she would have cried for three days and nights because she felt sorry for him.
“Do you understand?”
He reluctantly nodded at her subtle urging. However, he soon came to his senses and looked a little disappointed.
“How long do I have to wait?”
“Well...”
Ines took her hand off him without any regrets, straightened her back, and straightened her body.
“Joseph has already entered the earldom, so you should make a great contribution there. Even though you are a commoner, you could be given the title of Baron.”
“...”
“You are not planning to let me live as a commoner’s wife, are you?”
Joseph said nothing and just rolled his big eyes.
“If you really want to marry me, you have to make an effort too.”
If he had decided to approach her from the beginning because he wanted something from her, there was no way he would give up on her just because his pride was hurt to this extent.
If there was any connection between Joseph’s acquisition of the title of House Swenden and the incorporation of Landhill into Lesonia, Joseph would surely find another way.
“It’s not wartime, so how...”
Then the one who benefited the most from this.
“If you love me so much, why are you already saying it’s impossible?”
A man powerful enough to make a mere commoner knight a knight of the Count’s house.
“I doubt if you’re the same person who wrote the letter you just read for me.”
A man who could manipulate the courts of the stern Keynesian Empire as he pleased.
“If that’s the case, I should reconsider.”
That was Count Graham.
“No, absolutely not.”
“Yes, of course you are. You really like me, don’t you?”
“Oh, of course.”
“We don’t have much time, Joseph. I’ll do my best to postpone the marriage, but I can’t wait for you forever. I beg you, please, don’t put my love to the test.”
“...”
“Go back. It’s time for the gardener to make his rounds.”
He was speechless and couldn’t answer. Ines stared at him for a moment and then stood up. Then she looked at the ring he had brought.
“I don’t know when I’ll be able to give you a definite nod, but I’ll keep this. Is that okay?”
As usual, Ines and Joseph met in the back of the mansion’s backyard. The weather was extremely clear because it had just rained. The flowers and trees around them were softly colored, and the wind was moderately cool, and refreshing.
However, Ines’s smiling heart felt like it was being stabbed by a hot iron skewer. She was overcome by the urge to grab anything she could get her hands on and poke his body.
“I missed you.”
As if performing a ritual, Ines deliberately found and put on the clothes she had worn that day 12 years ago.
As the sun began to set, a red sunset colored the sky behind him.
Ines barely managed to raise the corners of her mouth and smile at his sincere expression of missing her. The smile that did not match her young face made him feel uncomfortable, but Joseph did not have the sense to notice it.
Ines sat down on the chair provided and motioned for Joseph to sit down as well.
He sat down and began to rummage through his arms. Ines snorted at his actions without showing it. She knew what he was trying to say.
“I’ve written a letter.”
“...To read it in front of me?”
Joseph’s face briefly looked puzzled at the inevitable sarcasm, but he soon smiled back at her smile.
“Yes, I have no way to fully convey my feelings.”
Naturally, Ines had memorized the entire letter he was about to read.
It contained stories of how excited he had been the day he met Ines and how he had come to love her.
It was a text she had held in her hand and memorized like the Bible whenever he had accepted his proposal and received harsh words from her father. While she was lost in thought, his long and rambling confession of love was coming to an end.
“So, to this beautiful and noble Lady Ines Swenden, I dare to say that I, the poor and humble Joseph Benoit, am now...”
He jumped up from his seat. Then he knelt down in front of Ines. He reached into the pocket opposite where Joseph had kept the letter, took out a small box, and thrust it in. The moment she saw it, Ines felt a surge of revulsion.
It was a small, crude ring with a bead. It was too shabby to swear eternal love, but the man holding it looked so proud.
Ines was wearing this ring even at the moment of her death.
“I would like to propose to you.”
A gentle breeze blew from somewhere, and she closed her eyes for a moment. Then she covered her face with both hands to hide the corners of her mouth that kept turning up. To him, it must have seemed like the actions of a woman overwhelmed with emotion.
Joseph, too, gave Ines time to collect her thoughts with an expression of overwhelming emotion. His face was confident, without the slightest worry about rejection.
Ines got up from her seat just like that day. Her ivory dress swayed in the wind once, reflecting the red sunset.
If she reached out and received this ring, the war between him and her would begin. She could have received the surname of Joseph Benois, heard his death, and been dragged to Romfield. If not, she would hear his real death, not a lie, this time.
Seeing him smile brightly, confident that she would accept, Ines slowly approached. Ines faced him and smiled brighter than ever.
Then she reached out and closed the lid of the ring case with a clank.
What was more surprised by her behavior was not Joseph, but Susan, who was standing by.
“Get up, Joseph.”
He looked flustered and couldn’t even get up from his seat, just looking at Ines’ face.
“Come on.”
When she urged him gently, he took his embarrassed hand away and barely sat down in front of Ines.
“Are you... Reject?”
“No way.”
“But why...?”
“Joseph, I got a marriage proposal today.”
When she said marriage proposal, Joseph really looked like a man hurt by love.
“Marriage proposal...?”
“Yes. A family of the same class as ours proposed to me.”
It might sound unpleasant, but she was not in the mood to make such a judgment right now. Ines reached out and lightly placed her hand over the back of the man’s hand that was holding the ring case.
Then she felt him flinch.
“But don’t worry.”
Joseph looked at the hands that Ines was placing over them and looked up.
“I intend to decline the marriage proposal. However...”
“However...?”
“It takes some time. As you know, my father will never allow us to get married. Do you understand that...?”
Ines avoided eye contact and lowered her head. If it had been the old Ines, she would have cried for three days and nights because she felt sorry for him.
“Do you understand?”
He reluctantly nodded at her subtle urging. However, he soon came to his senses and looked a little disappointed.
“How long do I have to wait?”
“Well...”
Ines took her hand off him without any regrets, straightened her back, and straightened her body.
“Joseph has already entered the earldom, so you should make a great contribution there. Even though you are a commoner, you could be given the title of Baron.”
“...”
“You are not planning to let me live as a commoner’s wife, are you?”
Joseph said nothing and just rolled his big eyes.
“If you really want to marry me, you have to make an effort too.”
If he had decided to approach her from the beginning because he wanted something from her, there was no way he would give up on her just because his pride was hurt to this extent.
If there was any connection between Joseph’s acquisition of the title of House Swenden and the incorporation of Landhill into Lesonia, Joseph would surely find another way.
“It’s not wartime, so how...”
Then the one who benefited the most from this.
“If you love me so much, why are you already saying it’s impossible?”
A man powerful enough to make a mere commoner knight a knight of the Count’s house.
“I doubt if you’re the same person who wrote the letter you just read for me.”
A man who could manipulate the courts of the stern Keynesian Empire as he pleased.
“If that’s the case, I should reconsider.”
That was Count Graham.
“No, absolutely not.”
“Yes, of course you are. You really like me, don’t you?”
“Oh, of course.”
“We don’t have much time, Joseph. I’ll do my best to postpone the marriage, but I can’t wait for you forever. I beg you, please, don’t put my love to the test.”
“...”
“Go back. It’s time for the gardener to make his rounds.”
He was speechless and couldn’t answer. Ines stared at him for a moment and then stood up. Then she looked at the ring he had brought.
“I don’t know when I’ll be able to give you a definite nod, but I’ll keep this. Is that okay?”
As she spoke coldly, standing still with her eyes downcast, he carefully held out the box to her as if he were offering his hand to a lynx. Ines snatched the ring from him as if a robber had snatched it away.
When the time came, this ring would become her trophy of victory.
“Well, that’s it.”
Ines turned away from him without any hesitation. Then she stopped in her tracks as if she had remembered something.
“Oh, but Joseph.”
When she turned back to him, Joseph’s tense face was visible.
“Do you really think you’re... lowly?”
“Yes?”
Ines stared at him for a moment and then turned away. She couldn’t be sure whether the stinging feeling behind her was the setting sunlight or Joseph’s gaze.
Three days later, Ines was standing in the square where Carson von Raymond was supposed to appear. This morning, her father had told her a story that confirmed Ines’s suspicions.
“The Viscount Damian family wants to cancel the marriage proposal.”
“Why...?”
“The Viscount’s son is said to be so unwell that he will need to recuperate for several years.”
Ines laughed in disbelief. The Viscount’s son, who had been healthy enough to think about marriage until recently, suddenly became unwell...
So there must be someone behind this who has enough power to move the Viscount’s family. The Viscount Damian family had long supported the Graham family. All the circumstances surrounding her pointed to the Lord of Lesonia. It was still unclear what he was after, but it was certain that Ines had to deal with Count Graham, not Joseph.
Ines snapped out of her thoughts as she watched the square fill with people. She had been standing in the square of Lesonia since dawn, anxious that she might not see him.
She guessed that he would appear in the square soon as she watched people lined up on both sides, guided by the knights. Ines's heart began to beat rapidly.
Although it was a short meeting, she clearly remembered his appearance.
After being saved from him, Ines stayed at Carson's mansion for a night. And the next day, she met him. His shiny black hair and deep eyes were beautiful as if they were not of this world.
Carson was a man who was overwhelmed just by his presence. She instinctively trembled and waited for the terrible beating that was about to come. But he looked at Ines and said one word.
“Let her sleep longer, and let her out when the sun comes up.”
When the time came, this ring would become her trophy of victory.
“Well, that’s it.”
Ines turned away from him without any hesitation. Then she stopped in her tracks as if she had remembered something.
“Oh, but Joseph.”
When she turned back to him, Joseph’s tense face was visible.
“Do you really think you’re... lowly?”
“Yes?”
Ines stared at him for a moment and then turned away. She couldn’t be sure whether the stinging feeling behind her was the setting sunlight or Joseph’s gaze.
***
Three days later, Ines was standing in the square where Carson von Raymond was supposed to appear. This morning, her father had told her a story that confirmed Ines’s suspicions.
“The Viscount Damian family wants to cancel the marriage proposal.”
“Why...?”
“The Viscount’s son is said to be so unwell that he will need to recuperate for several years.”
Ines laughed in disbelief. The Viscount’s son, who had been healthy enough to think about marriage until recently, suddenly became unwell...
So there must be someone behind this who has enough power to move the Viscount’s family. The Viscount Damian family had long supported the Graham family. All the circumstances surrounding her pointed to the Lord of Lesonia. It was still unclear what he was after, but it was certain that Ines had to deal with Count Graham, not Joseph.
Ines snapped out of her thoughts as she watched the square fill with people. She had been standing in the square of Lesonia since dawn, anxious that she might not see him.
She guessed that he would appear in the square soon as she watched people lined up on both sides, guided by the knights. Ines's heart began to beat rapidly.
Although it was a short meeting, she clearly remembered his appearance.
After being saved from him, Ines stayed at Carson's mansion for a night. And the next day, she met him. His shiny black hair and deep eyes were beautiful as if they were not of this world.
Carson was a man who was overwhelmed just by his presence. She instinctively trembled and waited for the terrible beating that was about to come. But he looked at Ines and said one word.
“Let her sleep longer, and let her out when the sun comes up.”
It sounded cold at first, but he didn’t just throw her out. He gave her a warm meal until she was full, and he washed the green dress she had worn when she was released, and he gave her a new one. He gave her thick outerwear and treated her wounds. He even gave her some money.
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