Chapter 33

12. Personally (1)

Translated by alyalia

12. Personally

“What are you thinking about when you come all the way here?”

“Take a guess.”

“I don’t know. I’m not good at guessing other people’s minds.”

It’s been a few weeks since I spoke this arrogant way.

The two of us, the main characters of today carefully climbed up in front of the podium. Aloken then put one hand behind my back and reached out the other to help me lightly.

When I looked around, there were already necessary figures filling the seats. Priests who will grant the engagement in the name of holy god, elders of both families, vassals of Duke and Count. However, there were many nobles who I didn’t know there, so I thought they were probably from the North.

“Then, let the ceremony begin. Remember the request to keep it as short as possible. My fiancée doesn’t like being bored.”

‘When did I ever say that?’

With all the necessary guests present, all that remains is to proceed with the ceremony.

The venue was decorated splendidly, and the process was surprisingly simple. First, the priest raises the guests who will witness the engagement ceremony and offers a simple prayer. After that, everyone sat down again, and the priests recited the baptismal speech for the fiancée. Then, the vassals of the two families stand up and exchange the pre-written engagement document. Of course, the documents had to be stamped with each other’s family seals.

“…The two of you, please put the token of your promise into each other’s hands.”

And the last, the exchange of engagement rings.

‘This is the ring I borrowed from now on.’

I could see at a glance the engagement ring that Aloken prepared arbitrarily looked so luxurious.

I thought for a moment if he was spending too much money on this fake engagement. However, since it would be retrieved after our contract is done, it won’t be a big loss to him.

‘Let’s be careful not to lose it. I can’t bury this in my body like Io.’

When Aloken grabbed my hand and put the engagement ring on my ring finger, I did the same to him. As the engagement process came to an end, the priest made the guests stand again and recited a long prayer.

“By this, I declare that the engagement of the two has been promised by God’s permission.”

This was the end of it all.

An engagement ceremony is a simple event with no special reception. The related parties signed the document under the priest’s certification. At the end of the ceremony, the witness went back one by one. Some of them approached the related parties and talked to them.

“Little Duke, as joining the Celcius family in the future—”

“Lord, you’re so dignified today. With Lord as the successor of the family, the future of Duke Jalier will be—”

“Lord, I have the medicine that will help the Duke’s recovery—!”

As soon as Aloken Jalier came out from the high priest’s room, he was surrounded by people. But the problem is, I was also surrounded by a crowd.

“Hello, Lady Celcius! I’m Emiliara, the eldest daughter of Viscount Barsen. Congratulations on your engagement today. Lady’s engagement ceremony is so grand as if the whole Kingdom blessing your engagement.”

“Lady Vanora, I heard that you’ve been out of the social world due to your weak body, but I’m glad you’ve improved. Are you okay now?”

“If Lady doesn’t have any plans afterward, how about we go to our house party…”

I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, but it was funny. They’re so desperate to make a connection with me just because I’m engaged to Aloken Jalier.

‘Well, I’m not much different from them.’

It was what I had hoped for anyway. Because I also chose this engagement for power. There will be no one who will carelessly touch the person who will become the Duke’s companion. If someone’s jealousy makes things worse, now I have the power to punish them.

“Thank you for treating me kindly as I’m not yet familiar here. Even though northern people’s hands are cold, you have warm hearts.”

“Oh my, how can Lady speak so beautifully like a poem?”

“But… I’m sorry, I haven’t gotten used to the Northern climate yet, so it will be difficult for me to accept the invitation…”

“Lady Vanora, I will send fresh gentian to the Celcius mansion right away! I hope Lady is always healthy.”

“Yes, then, goodbye.”

I managed to get out of the crowd of nobles, who would hardly let me go, using the excuse of my health. Then, it was the perfect time to go back to the room where Cecil was waiting for me, change into casual clothes, and prepare to go home.

“Hey, wait!”

Step. Step. Step. 

However, I turned my head when I heard someone following me at a fast pace. I clenched my fists tight and didn’t forget to search for the vital points of the mysterious person, thinking it might be someone with malicious intent. 

“Who are you?”

However, the person who appeared in front of me was a young master from a noble family.

“Huh, don’t you recognize the man’s younger brother you were going to marry?”

“Aha.”

With such a story, I only now realized that he looked like Duke Jalier. His hair was so close to brown that I couldn’t recognize him at first. If he had black hair, I would have recognized him right away.

“Greetings, Rose Jalier. It’s my first time seeing you.”

He is the second son of Duke Jalier. In the future I remember he was the person who inherited the Duke instead of his older brother. Still, he died suddenly in an unfortunate accident.

Even though I greeted him with courtesy, he suddenly got angry.

“I’ve known since the time you didn’t even show your face to my family while preparing for the engagement, but I can’t find any feeling of guilt coming from you. “

I know not helping in preparation for the engagement ceremony is enough for me to be blamed, but why would this boy get mad?

I looked puzzled.

“It’s you who didn’t show your face. I even prayed beside the Duke when he was sick. “

“But isn’t this your first time in the North? You didn’t even recognize me until just now. “

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“It’s because I had a health issue…  I said my greetings to the Duke in advance, so I was going to introduce myself to you after the engagement ceremony as we become a real family. I’m sorry if I offended you by introducing myself late.”

I didn’t show any emotion and behaved as a noble should do. But inside, I thought about him, who was getting mad at me.

‘What’s wrong with this brat? Shall I check if he really had the Jailer’s blood?’

Still, I think it’s not a good thing for him to give tantrums from time to time. As I stood still and took a deep breath, Aloken’s brother continued the conversation at his will.

“Huh, your family didn’t have any fertile land, and the head of your family didn’t have good skills for business…”

“…?”

“I wonder if the engagement between the Count family and Duke family was something really necessary to do in the first place.”

Is he intimidating me by saying, ‘How dare someone like you to get engaged with the Duke’s family?’

I felt something different as my fiancé’s family, which I had only known from the book, unfolded in front of my eyes.

“Did he prepare quickly while I was away? In addition, when I heard about the engagement, I found out that you have no reputation in the social world. Just like a ghost. Besides, there’s a rumor saying that you’re born out of wedlock…”

“Wait, why are you bringing up this topic now? And why should I be listening?”

This has gone too far. Even the most prominent nobles had no right to make a fuss about an unspeakable scandal. The boy named Rose frowned and lowered his voice as I showed I felt uncomfortable with his words.

“I mean, why would that arrogant Aloken Jalier make you, who is an insignificant human being, as his fiancée?”

“Are you gossiping about me?”

“Don’t you feel strange to yourself? I don’t know how Aloken deceives you, but you have no idea what kind of person he is.”

And at this time, I noticed a figure walking silently behind him and shifted my gaze to that figure. 

“I’m saying this for you. I don’t know what you want from the Duke’s family, but do it in moderation and break up your engagement…”

Rose Jalier kept talking without noticing the figure, but it wasn’t long before he found out who that figure was.

“Anyway, isn’t it too much to try to steal your brother’s fiancée?”

“…Aloken!?”

In the meantime, Aloken had already changed his formal attire into his usual dull navy coat.

I reflexively bowed my head to greet Aloken. However, Aloken wasn’t in a good mood to say greetings at all.

“I don’t know why you two talked about breaking up the engagement, but I’m sorry, I don’t want to be called a broken-hearted man right now. Ignore what he said, Vanora.”

“Cut the crap! Lady Vanora, I definitely warned you. If you get married to him later, you’ll regret it. It will be like that! Then…”

Is this really a conversation between brothers who share blood?

Aloken is eager to ignore his younger brother, and his younger brother has uttered all of his words to slander him. Of course, Rose had to pay the price of what he said.

“Ugh!”

“!”

Pow!

With a punching sound, Rose fell back. Aloken punched him in the chest before he could further open his mouth.

“If you talk about me like this… don’t blame me for being cruel. We need to clarify our causal relationship.”

“Ugh, keheug.”

Maybe it was because he hit him so hard that his younger brother grabbed his chest and couldn’t breathe. I stood firm as I saw the fight between the brothers.

“How long do you think your act will work? I will tell all of this to father! There are so many witnesses!”

“You urge my beloved fiancée to break up with me. Is there anyone who won’t be angry when in the same position as me?”

What follows is, of course, a romantic statement. It wasn’t something I wanted to hear from a person who beat his relatives with a cold expression.

“Lady Vanora, you still haven’t changed your mind? Even after seeing what he’s doing right now?”

“…”

“It would be a thorny road waiting for you to become Aloken’s wife.”

I didn’t respond to the ensuing threats from Rose. Then Rose groaned and backed away. He looked back at his brother, then quickly disappeared from the hallway.

“Aloken Jalier.”

When the disturbing brother disappeared, Aloken approached me with a relaxed look. However, I felt that it was necessary to say these words, so I opened my mouth while refusing his escort.

“I didn’t know that I would suffer from your family even before getting married.”

“Just like the good astrology said, I can’t predict the way ahead.”

* * *

“But what are you doing here? Aren’t you busy?”

Step. Step.

Although I am wearing shiny clothes as if they had been polished like jewels, only my shoes are in a frugal appearance, so the stepping sound rang out from the low heels. After walking in the hallway for a long time, I wondered why Aloken had come all the way here.

Aloken gently answered me, “I already knew what Rose would do when he found out about our engagement. When he was busy with other things, I had a hard time secretly preparing for the engagement ceremony.”

“Did you just come here to stop your brother?”

“Yes, but I was late because I was caught by the elders.”

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Aloken checked his sleeves over and over again to see if any spots got dirty from his previous fight, even though there was not a single speck of dust. I unconsciously checked Aloken’s clothes and thought briefly.

‘Aloken’s younger brother… At first, I thought he was arrogant and picking a fight with me, but now that I think about what he said, it seems that he hates Aloken more than he hates me.’

There are many picturesquely harmonious noble families in the society, but the relationship in this family seemed severe.