Ch 28. Jealous Belle

Our home was finally completely furnished, and rather lavishly I may add. At least compared to anything I had ever had for myself before. 

Our excessively large living room was no longer empty aside from our bed. 

Off to the side of the room we put down a leather-made sofa, placing a small reading table just in front of it. 

On the opposite section sat a desk and a cushioned leather chair, like the one's I had seen from Cal's study. 

Given that this was a farmhouse there was no kitchen area, with most cooking being expected to be done over the fireplace using iron castware. Seeing that our bed was too close to the fire for this, we moved it back a little bit to add some room for activities, placing a dining table along one of the exterior walls, the nearest vacant area next to the fireplace. Finally, we had layed down rugs and furs over any extra space we had which did wonders to keep our feet off the cold wood. 

The only curious item was a sturdy iron post, fixed to the floor, and in the center of the living room. Something that Ameliah had proxured for me and I had the furniture craftsmen install. The post extended from the floor about a foot up, and the metal was fashioned into a loop on the end, seeming as if it was designed to tie something to it. Belle had no idea what it was for, but would soon find out. As soon as the rest of the 'special order' from Ameliah was finished, that is. 

Belle was too preoccupied with trying to solidify her position in the household to pay it much attention. Seeing as she was getting increasingly agitated at the prospect of my new fiancee, who was neither a slave nor a beastkin like herself.

As soon as the craftsmen had left, she tried to make her move, enticing me with her feminine wills. Making seductive poses on the bed while she stripped nude... all the while I ignored her advances, content to sit at my desk, reading some new purchases I had acquired. 

Books were fairly rare in a frontier town like Tromwell, but I was at least literate thanks to my privileged upbringing. Doing some reflecting about the system I was fairly sure that I could acquire new classes from directed reading. Given that how I had earned the alchemist class was essentially by browsing through Cal's collection of tomes, there was a very good chance I could do the same for professions like medicine, stewardship, navigation, and any other technical study that I could think of. 

Passing my time while Belle meowled at me from the bed, frustrated by her failure to catch my attention. 

The days went by much the same. I brought Belle over to the lord's mansion, giving her every opportunity to see my new and beautiful fiancee Marcella as I tried my best to appeal to her. Inquiring about her hobbies, likes and dislikes, and making small talk when possible. It was clear she was unhappy about her parent's sudden declaration that she was to be in an arranged marriage with me, but I was determined to play the part of a dutiful suitor. Treating her as sweetly as I could muster, somewhat clumsy at first given how oppositr the role was to my usual personality. But for seem reason I seemed to take to it naturally, almost as if drawing from experience... 

Marcella was very standoff-ish to begin with, making her attitude towards me clear, but for some reason her presence was very calming to me. her smile, even a feigned one, inspired me to win her affection. We took long walks around the estate, even with the weather as it was, we dressed for the cold and spent as much time together as possible, something my new father-in-law greatly appreciated. Belle trailed behind us from a distance as we walked, like a cat stalking its prey.

"Why did you decide to become an adventurer? I'm sure there is quite the story." I asked to her, showing genuine interest. 

Marcella paused for a moment, looking back at the mansion.

"Mother was an adventurer before she settled down. That's actually how she met Dad. "

"Your father was an adventurer?"

She smiled a bit trying to picture her father.

"No. Dad was a general in the army, he served for a long time on the western front fighting the beastkin. He made quite a name for himself there. "

I was still trying to put together the two pieces, not quite clear on how the two met. 

"Mom was a mage, she's from a noble house too. The Ocel family, they're bigger on the west of the kingdom. There aren't as many monsters over there so she was fighting against the beastkin attacks. Dad was helping coordinate the defenses, and because she was a mage she got to spend a lot of time in the backlines with the officers. That's where she met him. Father was rewarded with a title after the war, and he asked Mom's family for her hand in marriage... that's why I wanted to be an adventurer, I guess I wanted something like that. " She looked down.

It made my stomach clench, hearing that I had basically ruined her dreams. 

"I... Marcella, you may not believe me but I do care for you... I don't want to tie you down. I'm not going to ask you to quit being an adventurer, as I'm not going to quit being one either. I think that love will take time between us, but as your fiance I want to do everything I can to make you happy. Our marriage date hasn't been decided yet, I love you now, and I will wait until you love me back."

Taking the back of her hand and kissing it. From what I could tell, she seemed like a woman that very much wanted me to earn her love rather than giving it freely. I had no qualms about playing it that way. 

"Thank you Keaton, that is very sweet of you." Marcella smiling at me genuinely for the first time. 

A ways behind us, Belle stood solemnly. Her eyes red as she tried her best to stifle back tears.