"I told her to get ready and come down, so let's wait a moment."
Jeremiah spoke to the Marquis sitting across from him. It was a good choice to inform Karina right away of the Marquis' visit. The Marquis, who met him in the drawing room, insisted that Karina should come and listen to the message that His Majesty the Emperor had given to the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess.
"The sun is high in the sky and she still hasn't come out of her room?"
The Marquis spoke in a pitiful tone. Jeremiah's eyebrows twitched at his words.
"Isn't it the Marquis who has come to visit so suddenly without any prior notice? Normally, you wouldn't have anything to say if you didn't come to visit, right?"
Then the Marquis cleared his throat as if he was displeased.
"Why do you say that? When I come to my daughter and son-in-law's house, do you really have to be so strict about etiquette and manners?"
"Isn't there a saying that the closer you are to someone, the more polite you have to be?"
The Marquis frowned in displeasure when Jeremiah refused to say a word.
"I have come with a message from His Majesty the Emperor. I have come on His Majesty's behalf!"
"That's why I brought you into the reception room."
Jeremiah responded indifferently to the Marquis's words, which were mixed with emotion. It was true, but the Marquis' face turned red with anger at the words that Implied that he would have refused the visit if it had not been for the Emperor's message.
"I am your father-in-law too!"
"I know. That's why I'm treating you well now."
"...!"
The Marquis twitched his cheeks in anger, feeling that he had been ignored. Then, as if remembering something, his expression changed.
"Yes. Well said. Then let me say something as a messenger."
The Marquis regained his composure and smiled with the corners of his lips stretched out.
"You. How bad must you be for my daughter to say the word divorce?"
"..."
"Surely not. The one who is held up as the strongest sword in the empire can't even do a proper manly job at night, right?"
The Marquis laughed openly. It was an obvious mockery and personal attack.
Jeremiah found it ridiculous and ridiculous that the Marquis said such things. It was also pathetic that he threw such a low-level provocation and smiled as if he had won. Jeremiah felt depressed as he faced the Marquis, feeling as if he had fallen to his level.
"Don't worry. I will send you plenty of stamina-boosting foods for my son-in-law. You will definitely need them to carry out His Majesty the Emperor's orders."
The Marquis chuckled as if he found it amusing.
"His Majesty the Emperor has ordered the Grand Duke and his wife to have sex together every day for three months."
"...?"
Jeremiah furrowed one eyebrow and made a face as if asking what was going on.
"When your bodies become closer, your hearts will also become closer. If you think about the future, it would be better to have children sooner rather than later."
"..."
Jeremiah's eyebrows furrowed as he listened to the Marquis's words. He felt strong discomfort because the Emperor and the Marquis were trying to interfere with such a private matter. However, the words that followed went beyond the level of discomfort.
"Once a week, I will send servants from the palace to check whether His Majesty's orders are being followed properly."
"...!"
"It's not a difficult task. After the annexation is complete, you just need to confirm to the palace attendants that the operation has been carried out."
This time Jeremiah's face hardened so much that it was visibly scary.
'You want Karina to show her naked body on the bed to the servants and have them confirm it?'
Just the thought of it made Jeremiah's temples bloodshot. He couldn't let Karina suffer such a humiliation. If even one person saw Karina like that, he would pluck out both of their eyes and cut off both of their ears that heard her voice. He absolutely could not tolerate it.
"I cannot follow such an order."
Jeremiah refused with a cold air and a tone of extreme displeasure.
"Are you now going to disobey His Majesty the Emperor's orders?"
The Marquis slyly sneered. He was very happy at this moment. He really liked the plan he had come up with. He didn't care whether Jeremiah accepted this order or not. If he didn't accept it, it meant he wouldn't make the effort as a couple that the Emperor had mentioned, so he could save the Emperor's prestige and make the divorce seem like nothing happened. Then he could buy himself some more time. If he accepted it, he could make the Archduke of the Colesbergs suffer the Emperor's confirmation of his bed, thereby damaging the Archduke's family's reputation and prestige and turning them into a mere laughingstock. Either way, it wouldn't be bad for the Marquis.
***
Meanwhile. A few minutes ago, in Karina's room. After sending the crow away, Karina began to eat. But before she could finish eating, Jen brought her some unpleasant news.
"Your Highness, Marquis Millainer has arrived with a message from His Majesty the Emperor. I think you should get ready and go out right away."
"Like this all of a sudden?"
When Karina heard the news of the Marquis' visit, she asked back in a disgruntled voice.
"Yes."
'They must have just barged in without any warning.'
Karina was pretty accurate about the situation. If someone were to ask her who she hates seeing right now, she would definitely say Marquis Milliner and Jeremiah.
'I didn't want to see Jeremiah's face, so I ate in my room.'
Just thinking about having to see them all at the same time was stressful. But she had to go.
'If it's a message from the Emperor, he must have come to tell us what to do about that damned effort as a married couple or something?'
Karina didn't know what the Emperor wanted, but she had to show him that she could do exactly what he wanted. And she had to make it clear that even after doing that, it was impossible to continue the marriage. So that she could get a divorce without any trouble.
.Karina gathered her courage and left the room.
"The Marquis is currently conversing with His Highness the Grand Duke in the reception room."
Karina followed Steven's instructions to the reception room. She arrived at the reception room door and was about to knock.
"His Majesty the Emperor has ordered the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess to merge every day for three months."
"...!"
There was a word that stuck in Karina's ears as she heard the Marquis' words.
'... What? Merger?'
At the word "merger," Karina froze in place as if she were about to knock. As soon as she heard it, a feeling of rejection washed over her.
"Once a week, I will send servants from the palace to check whether His Majesty's orders are being followed properly."
They even sent a servant to check.
'Are you crazy?'
Karina opened her mouth in shock.
"I cannot follow such an order."
Jeremiah immediately replied with a refusal. But a refusal is a refusal. She felt bad when she heard his voice say it with a serious expression as if he was extremely displeased.
'You know who's good? I hate them more!'
Karina was about to go in and say that she absolutely couldn't do it either.
'For a moment...!!'
But she soon came to her senses. Just a moment ago, before she came down from the room, hadn't she resolved to carry out the Emperor's orders perfectly?
'That's right. I want a divorce. That means I have to follow those orders.'
Karina, who realized that fact, fell into a state of distress.
Refusing that order would be tantamount to not making the three-month effort the Emperor had proposed. Having a servant check their bed was an extremely humiliating and degrading order for both spouses. The Emperor knew that and might have deliberately given such an order, thinking that they would not accept it.
'Then what about my divorce?"
If she made a mistake, it might have been forgotten as if it had never happened.
'That's absolutely not possible!'
Karina racked her brain. She had to think of a good way to quickly overcome this situation. And then she suddenly realized something.
'No! Jeremiah probably has no intention of merging with me anyway!'
Just the voice she had just heard was full of unpleasantness and rejection. If only the palace attendants could come and they fooled them into thinking they had joined!
In fact, if only Jeremiah had cooperated, it wasn't completely impossible.
'You avoided all responsibility for the divorce by saying you don't want a divorce in front of the Emperor, so if you have any conscience left, you should cooperate this time.'
Even if she said she couldn't do it, she was going to make him do it. Karina opened the door with a determined expression and rushed into the living room.
"Great!"
Karina entered the reception room and shouted confidently.
"...!?"
Jeremiah looked surprised at the sudden situation and turned toward the direction where the voice came from.
"I will! Merge."
Jeremiah was unusually flustered by Karina's completely unexpected answer. But that only lasted for a moment.
"What are you talking about? Absolutely not."
Jeremiah's expression was stiff as he immediately strongly opposed the idea. It was very satisfying to see him rejecting with his whole body the idea of a merger. Karina was able to relax more because of this.
"Why not?"
"Of course...!"
Jeremiah couldn't continue speaking at Karina's question. Jeremiah's neck was bloodshot and his expression grew fierce as if he was terrified of the mere thought of a merger. Meanwhile, Karina turned to the Marquis and continued speaking.
"I will unite for three months as Your Majesty commands. However, if after three months I still want a divorce, Your Majesty will allow us to divorce. Do you remember?"
Karina looked back at Marquis Milliner with certainty.
"You! You...!"
The Marquis seemed about to explode and get angry at Karina but then glanced at Jeremiah, controlled his expression, and cleared his throat. For a moment, he put on a gentle expression, as if he was trying to calm a child.
"Karina. Now that you're an adult, you need to learn to accept things you don't like and take responsibility for your actions."
Karina had to hold back the laughter that was about to burst out. That was something she wanted to say back to the Marquis. It was obvious that he was intentionally trying to change the subject, but it didn't matter. Many people heard the Emperor's words besides the Marquis. There were more than enough people to testify anyway.
"I will go to the Emperor and give him the answer myself."
Jeremiah interrupted again, his expression clearly indicating that he would refuse the order. Karina realized that this was an issue she had to discuss with Jeremiah first. She glared at Jeremiah with a serious expression, and the Marquis shrugged.
"Karina says she likes it, so what else is there to worry about?"
And then he looked at Karina and opened his mouth again.
"Yes. Since it's been a while since you came up to the capital, shouldn't you come home at least once?"
The Marquis, not even tired of it, brought up the same thing again.
"I thought we already talked about that last time."
Karina cut him off firmly without giving him any room to move.
"His Majesty the Emperor's message has been received, so please, Father, return now."
Karina openly gave an order to Marquis Milliner to leave.
"What...?"
Marquis Milliner looked at Karina with a bewildered expression, as if to say, "Are you chasing me out now?" But...
"It won't go far. Go carefully."
"...!"
As soon as Jeremiah spoke, the Marquis could no longer remain in the Archduke's mansion.
"Stephen."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Stephen came running at Jeremiah's call.
"The guest is leaving now. I will see him off."
"Yes, I understand. Let's go."
Stephen gestured toward the exit door in a polite but businesslike manner. The Marquis blushed, but he could not resist going out.
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