Chapter 03

“So getting married has made you bold. How dare you look down on the House of Rydel?”

“The House of Rydel abandoned me first, so I’m saying that I don’t care about this family anymore. You don’t have to

worry about me taking your position anymore, so shouldn’t you be happy?”

Pesha spoke casually as she walked past Jeremy.

She was already forbidden from going outside, and she did not want to bicker with Jeremy any longer and end up

angering her father for no reason.

From behind her, she heard Jeremy huffing and knocking on the door of their father’s study.

“Jeremy. Did you attend your lessons properly?”

And then, as if he had never shouted at her before, her father’s voice could be heard welcoming his son, though it was

not as warm as it used to be.

It would be a lie to say that Pesha was not hurt by it.

But right now, finding a way to survive was more important.

The marriage between Count Owen Namoï and Lady Pesha Rydel briefly became the hottest topic in high society.

Because of Pesha’s unexpected behavior, people gossiped about it for a little longer than usual, but that was all.

In the end, their marriage did not get canceled.

Duke Rydel, who had been humiliated at the party attended by the emperor, changed the wedding into a private

ceremony attended only by close relatives. On top of that, almost nothing was known about Count Namoï’s private

life, since he had started out as a commoner and spent more than a decade of his youth on the battlefield.

There was nothing to speculate about because no one knew much about Owen Namoï.

At most, people expressed some regret that Pesha, who possessed one of the most beautiful appearances in high

society, was getting married so easily.

That was all.

Interest quickly died down, and during that time, a month passed.

The day of the wedding arrived.

The bridal waiting room attached directly to the chapel where the ceremony was to be held had the gloomy atmosphere of a funeral hall.

Sitting in front of the vanity and looking into the mirror, Pesha was having her hair brushed by Mini, the maid who had taken care of her since childhood.

Mini spoke with an almost tearful expression.

“My lady, you look so beautiful today. Sob… How could someone as beautiful as you be……”

“Stop it, Mini. Do you want to get scolded by Father too?”

Pesha scolded her maid as she wore her shining silver hair in one thick braid that fell down her back.

Her light violet eyes, like violets, were just as gloomy as Mini’s, but she tried her best to comfort the maids.

“Girls, I’m not being sold off somewhere. I’m just getting married……”

In truth, she was being sold off.

As Count Namoï’s reputation grew higher, public opinion increasingly demanded that he be granted a ducal title.

It was the will of the people. No matter how powerful the emperor was, there was no way he could ignore the

overwhelming support of his people.

But the emperor’s pride was hurt by the idea of simply granting a ducal title to a young man from a mercenar

background who was not even thirty years old.

So the emperor came up with a clever plan.

Instead of giving Owen a ducal title, he arranged for him to marry into a ducal family.

That way, he could publicly play the role of a generous monarch who had provided Owen with a powerful maternal family, while secretly preventing Owen Namoï’s influence from growing even further.

If it had been Io, she would somehow have managed to get through this marriage.

But Pesha was different.

‘If only I had that stupid purification power too. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about all this.’

Pesha secretly let out a deep sigh.

Even though she tried her best not to worry, her concerns kept flooding in.

What if Owen became angry because she had embarrassed him and made a huge fuss about not liking her?

Actually, it would not be strange if he did.

But when she knew that she would obviously die after getting married, how could she have obediently said that she wanted to marry him?

I really lived a good life.

I didn’t do anything bad!

As long as his territory remained polluted and Io possessed the power of purification, those two would inevitably need each other.

‘Now there’s only one way left. I’ll make a fortune as quickly as possible, hand Owen over to Io, and get out of there as fast as I can.’

Meanwhile, the time for the wedding procession drew near.

A servant standing outside the bridal waiting room knocked on the door.

“My lady. Are you ready?”

The maids all turned their eyes toward Pesha.

Pesha had been calming her nerves while looking at herself in the mirror. She slowly nodded and stood up.

“Yes. I’ll go out now.”

The maids, who had been making funeral-like expressions, quickly composed themselves one by one and lifted the hem of Pesha’s wedding dress.

“Open the door.”

At Pesha’s command, the maids opened the door to the bridal waiting room.

Pesha tightened her stomach as if gathering her courage and walked out with stiff steps.

The chapel right beside the bridal waiting room had its doors wide open, as if a terrifying beast had opened its jaws to swallow its prey.

Feeling as though she were walking into a tiger’s den of her own accord, Pesha stepped inside.

The first thing she saw was her relatives sitting in the chapel seats.

The relatives of the House of Rydel were seated on the left, and on the right……

‘Huh?’

Pesha’s footsteps suddenly stopped as she was about to walk down the virgin road.

There were only four or five people in the guest seats on the right.

They were wearing ordinary formal suits, but their perfectly straight posture made it obvious that they were soldiers.

Judging by their appearance, they were probably Owen’s aides.

‘Oh my goodness. They had no one else to seat, so they actually put his aides there.’

It was understandable.

Owen was an orphan.

Since he did not know his parents, there was no way he could invite any relatives.

But still!

The relatives of the House of Rydel were obviously whispering while pretending not to notice the completely empty guest seats on the right.

Pesha felt a little bothered by it and glanced at Owen, who was standing at the end of the virgin road.

Whether he knew Pesha had arrived or not, he was only looking at the High Priest who had been chosen to officiate the ceremony.

Pesha stared at his broad back, which was so wide that the fabric covering his body was pulled taut.

She swallowed hard and walked toward him almost as if she were charging.

When she arrived beside the groom with surprisingly brave steps for a new bride, the officiating priest, who looked

just as flustered as the guests on the bride’s side, cleared his throat.

“Ahem. Then, we shall begin with the declaration of marriage.”

“……”

“The bride and groom have vowed to become husband and wife and share all the joys and hardships of life at this

glorious gathering, surrounded by their family and relatives who have come to bless them. Is that correct?”

“……”

“Is that correct?”

The officiant asked again, but no answer came from Owen.

So Pesha belatedly answered in a small voice.

“Y-Yes……”

She glanced sideways at him.

Owen’s face was stiff as he simply glared at the High Priest officiating the ceremony.

‘Does he hate this marriage so much that he’s even glaring at the innocent officiant?’

Thinking that made Pesha dislike this marriage even more, even though she had not wanted it in the first place.

‘I’m not getting married because I like it either.’

She pouted inwardly as the officiant continued his wedding speech.

She remembered that even at weddings she had attended as a guest in the past, the officiant’s speeches had been painfully long.

But perhaps because this frightened High Priest wanted to get away from Owen’s intimidating glare as quickly as

possible, he hurried through his words and finished.

“Then, please exchange rings.”

At that moment, Owen turned toward Pesha for the first time that day.

It was almost the first time she had been able to properly look at his face.

For the brief moment when he put the ring on her finger, Pesha stared closely at Owen’s face.

She had been so consumed by the fear that this man would kill her that she had never really noticed it, but Owen was

an incredibly handsome man, the kind of man whose face was so striking that once you saw it, you could not look away.

Under his slightly disheveled caramel-colored hair were thick eyebrows following the strong lines of his face, while

his dark eyes, slightly raised at the corners, were so fierce that anyone looking into them would instinctively shrink back.

Then there was his sharply defined nose and tightly pressed lips.

If not for his social status, his strong masculine charm would have been enough to make marriage proposals line up one after another.

While Pesha was staring blankly at him, the ring was placed on her ring finger.

Now it was Pesha’s turn to put the ring on him.

With slightly trembling hands, Pesha slipped the ring onto Owen’s thick finger.

The matching rings sparkled in the sunlight, but seeing them made her heart feel unbearably heavy.

As she looked at the ring and sighed inwardly, the officiant continued.

“Now, you shall seal your vows with a kiss.”