CH 6

“I heard that he’s not on good terms with the count family, and he is currently living almost completely estranged.”

“Still, if they were brothers, they’d look alike.”

Katya snapped back.

The thought of a man who looked like Ivan made her feel nauseous.

I was still kicking myself for not beating him harder then.

“They look so different that you wouldn’t even recognize that they are brothers. This time, it will definitely catch your eye. Your ideal type is a handsome man who is good at martial arts.”

“Why did you leave out personality?”

“That’s right. He’s very good and quiet, just like your ideal man.”

Handsome, a good fighter, good and quiet, and a soldier and jousting champion, I knew he’d be in good shape.

If her father, a man of great taste, was any indication, he would not be out of this world.

Imagining the young man’s face, Katya couldn’t stop her heart from swaying like a reed.

Suddenly, she remembered the face of a man who resembled a temple mural she had seen in the market.

‘Well, if he looks like that…….’

The Duke smiled at his daughter’s brightening expression and began to write a reply.

“Then I will send a response accepting the invitation.”

“Father, I haven’t answered yet?”

“Your face already says yes.”

Startled by those words, Katya, who had been admiring her idol, lowered the jester who had been aspiring to reach the sky with the thought of meeting that person.

For Katya, this was no longer a blind date.

It was a fan meeting.

***

The day of the long-awaited blind date arrived. The carriage carrying Katya arrived at the villa of Count Petrozsky around noon.

“Welcome, Princess.”

Stepping out of the carriage, Katya was escorted to the parlour by the butler who managed the estate.

It was a vast and ornate building, far too large for a villa.

After consecutive business failures, it seemed that the fortunes had turned, as there appeared to be enough money to maintain a mansion like this.

Katya clicked her tongue inwardly.

‘Who knows if he’ll even open his hand to his eldest son, who was rumored to have cut ties due to his extravagant spending?’

She had made up her mind before she came here.

She would not accept his proposal. No matter how much of a prodigal son he may be, it was obvious that once the Count passes away, he would have no choice but to return to the count’s family.

Since the second son was a bastard named Ivan, it was safe to say that there was almost no second best solution.

If that happened, it meant that she had no choice but to see Ivan.

Imagining his grinning face calling out to his sister-in-law, she felt an intense urge to kick him away.

‘Such a thing should never happen! Not even in my dreams!’

The reason she came here today was simply for the purpose of a fan meeting. She was thinking of politely rejecting him after having a friendly conversation.

She was curious about his favourite swords and firearms. She was excited about the prospect of chatting about new weapons, swordsmanship, and shooting.

Soon there was a knock at the door.

“May I come in?”

It was a very low, calm voice, as if echoing from a cave.

The image of a polite, reticent, handsome man formed in her mind.

“Come in.”

The image that filled her head was shattered as soon as the door opened.

Ivan, imitating his brother’s voice, chuckled and stepped inside.

“Did you expect it to be my brother? Katya, that kind of polite tone really doesn’t suit you.”

“Where is your brother?”

“Up north, of course. He’s cut ties with our family, so why would he come if I called him?”

“And the marriage proposal?”

“I can easily steal the family seal, and as for my brother’s handwriting, an expert imitated it perfectly for me.”

Both her father and herself had been fooled by Ivan’s trick.

While pondering how to deal with this troublesome guy who shattered the peace, Katya clenched her teeth tightly.

This was literally crossing a line that shouldn’t have been crossed.

Fooling around with a marriage proposal in the name of the family, even if the Duchy brought him before the court, there was nothing she could say.

“What do you think?”

“I’m trying to decide whether to beat you privately or take you to court.”

“The latter is probably out of the question, isn’t it? It’s a bit ridiculous for a wife to accuse her husband, isn’t it?”

“Ha, husband, you must not be sober.”

“There will be a letter from the Duke to me in the evening, in your handwriting.”

“My handwriting?”

“It wasn’t too difficult to obtain, I found the shop by searching for the unusual sword you were carrying that day.”

Katya didn’t need to hear more. She had filled out the paperwork for the deposit, and he had stolen it.

“Instead of my brother, who was too busy to come out, Ivan came out and met with me. He had grown up and was polite. As we talked, we cleared up all the misunderstandings, and our eyes met, and our hearts met.”

“…….”

“Anyway, since it’s a letter from a daughter to her father, it felt awkward to mention that I even got physically punished, so I left it out.”

“You have a knack for putting a different spin on wanting to die, don’t you?”

She rose to her feet and tried to punch him in the cheek, but Ivan caught her.

“Don’t you see, you’re stuck here until the day before the wedding.”

“What?”

“The carriage you came in was sent back immediately, and officially, you are resting at the prospective groom’s house due to catching a cold during a night stroll. In the meantime, it will be written in the letter that instead of your mother, who passed before you, you will receive assistance with bridal training and wedding preparations from the Countess.”

Katya struggled in anger, and Ivan obediently released her wrists, which were white from lack of blood.

She began throwing whatever she could get her hands on at him, a teacup and vase shattering against the wall as it caught his cheek.

“It would be best to fast today. The butler will show you to your bedroom and you can rest.”

“You think I’m going to marry a bastard like you after this?”

“Otherwise, I’m going to reveal a secret you’ve been hiding all this time, is that okay?”

Ivan said nonchalantly, rubbing his raw cheeks with the back of his hand.

“What do you mean, a secret……?”

He whispered something into Katya’s ear. Katya’s hand dropped to the floor at the words that came out of Ivan’s mouth.

“How did you……?”

“Do you think I would have jumped at the chance to marry you without doing my homework?”

As expected, Ivan’s blackmail was working. A fatal weakness that must not be known to anyone.

“Do you see now why you should marry me? Of course, if you marry me, I’ll take your secret to the grave with me.”

Shocked, Katya was speechless and said nothing more.

For now, she had no choice but to accept the marriage.

***

As Ivan had predicted, the Duke of Smirnov was overjoyed at his daughter’s marriage.

Even though Ivan himself wasn’t particularly likable, if his daughter loved him so much, there was a part of him that was willing to accept him as part of the family.

After a few days of smashing everything in her path and slapping him every time she saw him, Katya got tired of it after a week and gave up.

Ivan began to tame the tomboy. He would subdue her with force when she was unruly, and one day he locked her in her room and starved her all day.

He was unkind to Katya throughout the wedding preparations.

The men of Padovangrad rejoiced at the news of Katya’s marriage. Rumours quickly spread to neighbouring cities in the south.

In celebration of his daughter’s engagement, the delighted Duke Smirnov had generously provided financial support to various cities. As a result, the southern region was immersed in a festive atmosphere for several days.

Even the people of the Duke’s household, unaware of Katya’s imprisonment, rejoiced, and Katya was the only one in Padovangrad who was unhappy.

“Did you burn it? We should just get rid of the chef right now, it’s no good. Our noble lady wouldn’t tolerate such humble food in her mouth.”

Ivan would always mock her, snatching the plate away from her when she touched the food out of hunger.

When Katya complies with the wedding arrangements, he becomes unhappy and even meaner, thinking she can sneak out of the villa.

When the son, whom he didn’t have much expectation for, unexpectedly proposed to marry the daughter of Duke Smirnov, Count Petrozsky sent a renowned tailor from the capital.

When Katya was choosing her wedding dress, Ivan tore it apart and scornfully remarked, ‘Would the noble lady have such vulgar taste?’ frightening the tailor.

“You seem to be unfamiliar with Northern men, but I am considered quite affectionate compared to most.”

Sometimes when Ivan said such nonsense, Katya would listen in one ear and out the other, feigning acceptance.

“Northern men are generally gruff and blunt. Just look at the Grand Duke. It doesn’t matter if he’s handsome, the mere mention of his name stirs up trouble.”

“…….”

“Ah, perhaps you’re unaware of the new Grand Duke who has just ascended to the throne? Well, it’s a hush-hush affair even in the North. He haven’t married yet. To be precise, he couldn’t.”

“I see.”

Katya replied mechanically and soullessly.

“All the northern families with daughters of marriageable age are anxious to marry them off as soon as possible, and those who have daughters who have not yet come of age are nervous that they will hear from the Grand Duke later.”

“I see.”

“Haven’t you heard of the Bloody Duke? Upon his ascension to the throne, he murdered the tutor who taught him, a retired professor at the academy in the capital. There was a lot of backlash in the academic community, and he sent many of those he disliked to their deaths.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“Do you know how the Grand Duke kills people? Rumour has it he calls them in and serves them tea.”

“Tea?”

Katya, who had been answering similarly, asked a question for the first time.

“In the East, when they execute a criminal, they give them a drink that will kill them. The black tea given by the Grand Duke is a kind of poison, but strangely enough, when they do an autopsy, they don’t find any poison in it, so it’s called the tea of death.”

“…….”

“If you set foot in the Grand Duke’s mansion, you won’t find a body.”

“Why can’t they find the body?”

“In case they decide to perform a post-mortem examination, the Grand Duke will surely intervene and dismiss it. The disposal of the body is entirely at the discretion of the husband. After all, a wife is the possession of her husband. Does that fact change just because she dies?”

A wife is her husband’s property.

That’s what they used to say in the West. It’s not an exaggeration to say that family laws were built on it.

There were men like Katya’s father who loved their wives and treated them as equals regardless, but they were rare.

It was better than the Eastern Continent, where polygamy was rampant, but Katya found the idea of a world where such sentiments prevailed horrifying.

She looked down at the black tea in her teacup, wincing unnecessarily.

Ivan smiled at her reaction.

“I don’t even know how to make that poison, and why would I want to kill you when you’re just a lump of flesh that crawled into a vine.”

I hate this. Katya muttered to herself, a shiver running down her spine at the perceived remark.

“You’re lucky it’s me and not the Grand Duke you’re marrying.”