At that moment, Chloe was relieved that her marriage to Callius had been confirmed.
At Callius's rented mansion, his subordinates gathered in the dining room, pouring out their worries and complaints.
“Marriage all of a sudden? To a woman from Arrental, and to the Princess of Arrental at that?”
“What on earth are you thinking, my lord?”
“The Arrental hate us, whether we are commoners or nobles...”
"The Idelian royal family is clearly up to something. They could never have planned anything good for us. Could it be that our lord has been threatened without our knowledge?"
The men did not believe that Callius had courted Chloe first.
That's understandable, for to the people of Ronheim, Arrental was an invader, and the Idelian royal family was Ronheim's enemy.
No one would have thought that Callius would have gone to such a madman to choose a bride from the family of such an enemy.
There must be something the lord cannot tell them.
“For whatever reason, the Idelian royal family must have forced, coerced, or threatened the lord into marrying the Princess for some absolutely evil purpose.”
“Aren’t all three of them saying the same thing?”
“I want to say that there is no other possibility.”
Callius's subordinates suspected that Callius, who would do anything for Ronheim, was once again willing to make a great sacrifice alone.
Another subordinate intervened between the two people who were leading the conversation.
“The Empress of Kavala may have bewitched the lord with sorcery.”
When the story of Kavala came up, the expressions of the subordinates all turned grim.
They shuddered as if the mere thought of Kavala made them feel ill.
"Have you seen her? She looks younger than her son. I thought she was close to 60, but she only looks like she's in her 20s."
“I heard that she maintains youth through sorcery. Doesn’t that sound a little creepy?”
“Rumor has it that even the Emperor was possessed by sorcery.”
“The former Empress’s mental state began to deteriorate after the Empress appeared, right?”
The subordinates, who had been muttering for a while, soon shook their heads and denied the hypothesis that Callius might have been under a spell.
“But sorcery is the enemy of the lord, so even if the Empress had used sorcery, it would not have worked.”
“That’s true.”
Callius was a person who inherited the special blood of the Saintess of Ronheim.
He had the blood of healing and purification that he inherited from his mother.
Although weak, it was still resistant to most poisons and sorcery.
“It must be a threat.”
Everyone nodded in agreement at someone's muttering.
The Idelian royal family has been making unreasonable demands on Callius ever since Ronheim was subjugated to Arrental.
Because of this, the damage to Ronheim was not insignificant.
It had been over a decade since the financial crisis was caused by excessive taxation on Ronheim, which was already poor in terms of food and material due to its harsh environment.
The people of Ronheim were struggling to survive by hunting and digging through the frozen ground to dig up tree roots to eat.
If it weren't for the Ronheim people, who have the vitality of weeds that take root in rocks and survive, they wouldn't have been able to survive.
Moreover, the Idelian royal family would often send troops from Ronheim whenever there was a border dispute.
Ronheim, which had been unable to raise an army due to long-term financial difficulties, had no troops to offer.
So, his subordinates, including Callius, had to be deployed directly to the battlefield.
This time, they came to the capital to report on the results of the battle after completing their mission to defend the border by order of the Emperor.
Given these circumstances, it was no surprise that his subordinates were antipathetic to the marriage between Callius and the Emperor's daughter, Chloe.
But what can they do?
Ronheim was powerless to resist the tyranny of the Idelian royal family.
"Shit."
Can't stop it.
They have no choice but to comply.
It is a sad law for the people of a powerless country.
The expressions of the subordinates who were muttering curses became gloomy.
At that moment, a man with close-cropped red hair entered the restaurant where they were gathered, grumbling.
“Everyone was here!”
He was a very fierce-looking man who had a small ring-shaped ornament pierced through the tip of his left eyebrow.
“Did you know that? A Princess named Claire or Chloe threw away the gift our lord sent!”
The subordinates all looked at him.
“What, Alex? Who said that?”
Alex followed Callius and Brentian to the palace to discuss the final details of their engagement and rudely told them about what had happened.
“The Princess’s maids were making a lot of noise and laughing at us!”
He gritted his teeth as he recalled the mocking stares he had received at the palace today.
“This is why I didn’t want to go!”
Knowing that going to the palace would not bring good results, Callius's men avoided going there.
So, except for his aide, Brentian, whenever they had to go to the palace, they would draw lots to choose who would accompany Callius, and today, Alex was chosen.
“I heard that the Princess threw the gift the lord sent her to the ground, saying, ‘Are you making a fool of me with this gift?’ Even if she didn’t like it, isn’t it too much to ignore our lord?”
Alex stamped his feet on the wooden floor as if he were having a hard time containing his anger.
At his words, everyone in the restaurant's faces hardened.
The subordinates thought that Chloe had deliberately ordered the maids to insult Callius.
They had no idea that the maids, who neither respected nor feared the master they were serving, would have the nerve to spread rumors distorting Chloe's intentions.
How could they possibly guess that a Princess of the Idelian royal family would be treated so poorly?
“Damn it, she dares to insult our lord?”
“Next time I go to the palace, I’ll go. Let me see that pretty Princess’s face.”
“I want to go too.”
“Me too, me too!”
That day, among Callius's men, resentment against Chloe grew as much as resentment against Empress Kavala.
"Ha..."
I looked at my reflection in the mirror and sighed softly.
The me in the mirror had an awkward and stiff expression.
It was because the jewelry hanging all over my body, the flashy and heavy dress, and the thick makeup that made me look like I was wearing a mask were extremely uncomfortable.
Today was the engagement day, when the couple met face-to-face and promised to get married in front of witnesses.
When two people express their consent to marriage with their own mouths, the marriage is finalized.
This means that if even one of the two parties does not agree, the marriage may fall apart immediately.
'Of course, for the grandson, the engagement ceremony is just a formality, so it won't happen.'
The grandson of the Emperor, who marries a person chosen by the Emperor according to political interests, has no right to refuse in the first place.
Still, to carry out the procedure, I had to become the 'beloved Princess of the imperial family' and meet Callius.
'Because Kavala wants to make it seem like they cherish me like their own daughter.'
So, for the first time in my life, I was acting so extravagantly and awkwardly.
I looked at my unfamiliar self in the mirror and steeled my resolve.
"It's just a formality. All you have to do is declare your consent to the marriage in front of the Emperor. Then, you can say goodbye to this damned palace forever."
It was a simple task, but standing in front of people was burdensome.
For me, who had been confined to my home, attending such an official event was unfamiliar and difficult.
The day I went to the party to meet Callius was an exception.
That day, I was so anxious and pressed for time that I didn't have time to feel pressured.
'Besides, I just wanted to look like a crazy person, so there was nothing to be afraid of.'
But today things are different.
'I want to look good to Callius and his people.'
I hoped this marriage wouldn't be as painful and lonely as my last one.
I wanted to go to Ronheim and have a good time.
To do that, it would be best to show a good side to Callius's group.
I trembled like a girl about to go on a debutante dance.
At that moment, a welcome voice was heard.
“Are you nervous?”
"Karl!"
Outside the window, Karl was looking at me with a playful expression, his arm resting on the windowsill.
“I came because I thought it might be like this.”
I approached Karl with a smile.
“Please do something about me. My legs are about to give out.”
Karl chuckled.
“Do you want to look good to Marquis Rodrian that much?”
“Rather than that...”
I just hope this marriage isn't so bad.
As I swallowed those words and smiled bitterly, Kar suddenly came closer and touched my forehead.
“Don’t be so nervous. The snowstorm will eventually stop.”
It was a blessing that difficult times would pass and good things would fill their place.
"Yes."
His small warmth seeped deeply into my heart.
At Callius's rented mansion, his subordinates gathered in the dining room, pouring out their worries and complaints.
“Marriage all of a sudden? To a woman from Arrental, and to the Princess of Arrental at that?”
“What on earth are you thinking, my lord?”
“The Arrental hate us, whether we are commoners or nobles...”
"The Idelian royal family is clearly up to something. They could never have planned anything good for us. Could it be that our lord has been threatened without our knowledge?"
The men did not believe that Callius had courted Chloe first.
That's understandable, for to the people of Ronheim, Arrental was an invader, and the Idelian royal family was Ronheim's enemy.
No one would have thought that Callius would have gone to such a madman to choose a bride from the family of such an enemy.
There must be something the lord cannot tell them.
“For whatever reason, the Idelian royal family must have forced, coerced, or threatened the lord into marrying the Princess for some absolutely evil purpose.”
“Aren’t all three of them saying the same thing?”
“I want to say that there is no other possibility.”
Callius's subordinates suspected that Callius, who would do anything for Ronheim, was once again willing to make a great sacrifice alone.
Another subordinate intervened between the two people who were leading the conversation.
“The Empress of Kavala may have bewitched the lord with sorcery.”
When the story of Kavala came up, the expressions of the subordinates all turned grim.
They shuddered as if the mere thought of Kavala made them feel ill.
"Have you seen her? She looks younger than her son. I thought she was close to 60, but she only looks like she's in her 20s."
“I heard that she maintains youth through sorcery. Doesn’t that sound a little creepy?”
“Rumor has it that even the Emperor was possessed by sorcery.”
“The former Empress’s mental state began to deteriorate after the Empress appeared, right?”
The subordinates, who had been muttering for a while, soon shook their heads and denied the hypothesis that Callius might have been under a spell.
“But sorcery is the enemy of the lord, so even if the Empress had used sorcery, it would not have worked.”
“That’s true.”
Callius was a person who inherited the special blood of the Saintess of Ronheim.
He had the blood of healing and purification that he inherited from his mother.
Although weak, it was still resistant to most poisons and sorcery.
“It must be a threat.”
Everyone nodded in agreement at someone's muttering.
The Idelian royal family has been making unreasonable demands on Callius ever since Ronheim was subjugated to Arrental.
Because of this, the damage to Ronheim was not insignificant.
It had been over a decade since the financial crisis was caused by excessive taxation on Ronheim, which was already poor in terms of food and material due to its harsh environment.
The people of Ronheim were struggling to survive by hunting and digging through the frozen ground to dig up tree roots to eat.
If it weren't for the Ronheim people, who have the vitality of weeds that take root in rocks and survive, they wouldn't have been able to survive.
Moreover, the Idelian royal family would often send troops from Ronheim whenever there was a border dispute.
Ronheim, which had been unable to raise an army due to long-term financial difficulties, had no troops to offer.
So, his subordinates, including Callius, had to be deployed directly to the battlefield.
This time, they came to the capital to report on the results of the battle after completing their mission to defend the border by order of the Emperor.
Given these circumstances, it was no surprise that his subordinates were antipathetic to the marriage between Callius and the Emperor's daughter, Chloe.
But what can they do?
Ronheim was powerless to resist the tyranny of the Idelian royal family.
"Shit."
Can't stop it.
They have no choice but to comply.
It is a sad law for the people of a powerless country.
The expressions of the subordinates who were muttering curses became gloomy.
At that moment, a man with close-cropped red hair entered the restaurant where they were gathered, grumbling.
“Everyone was here!”
He was a very fierce-looking man who had a small ring-shaped ornament pierced through the tip of his left eyebrow.
“Did you know that? A Princess named Claire or Chloe threw away the gift our lord sent!”
The subordinates all looked at him.
“What, Alex? Who said that?”
Alex followed Callius and Brentian to the palace to discuss the final details of their engagement and rudely told them about what had happened.
“The Princess’s maids were making a lot of noise and laughing at us!”
He gritted his teeth as he recalled the mocking stares he had received at the palace today.
“This is why I didn’t want to go!”
Knowing that going to the palace would not bring good results, Callius's men avoided going there.
So, except for his aide, Brentian, whenever they had to go to the palace, they would draw lots to choose who would accompany Callius, and today, Alex was chosen.
“I heard that the Princess threw the gift the lord sent her to the ground, saying, ‘Are you making a fool of me with this gift?’ Even if she didn’t like it, isn’t it too much to ignore our lord?”
Alex stamped his feet on the wooden floor as if he were having a hard time containing his anger.
At his words, everyone in the restaurant's faces hardened.
The subordinates thought that Chloe had deliberately ordered the maids to insult Callius.
They had no idea that the maids, who neither respected nor feared the master they were serving, would have the nerve to spread rumors distorting Chloe's intentions.
How could they possibly guess that a Princess of the Idelian royal family would be treated so poorly?
“Damn it, she dares to insult our lord?”
“Next time I go to the palace, I’ll go. Let me see that pretty Princess’s face.”
“I want to go too.”
“Me too, me too!”
That day, among Callius's men, resentment against Chloe grew as much as resentment against Empress Kavala.
***
"Ha..."
I looked at my reflection in the mirror and sighed softly.
The me in the mirror had an awkward and stiff expression.
It was because the jewelry hanging all over my body, the flashy and heavy dress, and the thick makeup that made me look like I was wearing a mask were extremely uncomfortable.
Today was the engagement day, when the couple met face-to-face and promised to get married in front of witnesses.
When two people express their consent to marriage with their own mouths, the marriage is finalized.
This means that if even one of the two parties does not agree, the marriage may fall apart immediately.
'Of course, for the grandson, the engagement ceremony is just a formality, so it won't happen.'
The grandson of the Emperor, who marries a person chosen by the Emperor according to political interests, has no right to refuse in the first place.
Still, to carry out the procedure, I had to become the 'beloved Princess of the imperial family' and meet Callius.
'Because Kavala wants to make it seem like they cherish me like their own daughter.'
So, for the first time in my life, I was acting so extravagantly and awkwardly.
I looked at my unfamiliar self in the mirror and steeled my resolve.
"It's just a formality. All you have to do is declare your consent to the marriage in front of the Emperor. Then, you can say goodbye to this damned palace forever."
It was a simple task, but standing in front of people was burdensome.
For me, who had been confined to my home, attending such an official event was unfamiliar and difficult.
The day I went to the party to meet Callius was an exception.
That day, I was so anxious and pressed for time that I didn't have time to feel pressured.
'Besides, I just wanted to look like a crazy person, so there was nothing to be afraid of.'
But today things are different.
'I want to look good to Callius and his people.'
I hoped this marriage wouldn't be as painful and lonely as my last one.
I wanted to go to Ronheim and have a good time.
To do that, it would be best to show a good side to Callius's group.
I trembled like a girl about to go on a debutante dance.
At that moment, a welcome voice was heard.
“Are you nervous?”
"Karl!"
Outside the window, Karl was looking at me with a playful expression, his arm resting on the windowsill.
“I came because I thought it might be like this.”
I approached Karl with a smile.
“Please do something about me. My legs are about to give out.”
Karl chuckled.
“Do you want to look good to Marquis Rodrian that much?”
“Rather than that...”
I just hope this marriage isn't so bad.
As I swallowed those words and smiled bitterly, Kar suddenly came closer and touched my forehead.
“Don’t be so nervous. The snowstorm will eventually stop.”
It was a blessing that difficult times would pass and good things would fill their place.
"Yes."
His small warmth seeped deeply into my heart.
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