Chapter 8: CHP 8

"What is going on?

Why does Deborah keep going to father’s office?"

'Even her confinement was released.'

When the aide heard him,he bowed his head and answered.

"The duke's servants won’t say anything,they are very secretive about it,I can't keep asking them, otherwise I will seem suspicious."

"What about Deborah’s servants?"

"There was nothing special to tell,the only thing she did was to buy a some  romance novels that are popular among young ladies."

No one  knew that Deborah found something in the garden because she took care of it discreetly.

They simply thought that Deborah, who was always hot-tempered, was in trouble because she could not control her temperament.

'It’s frustrating.'

Belreck crossed his arms with a irritated expression on his face.

For him,who judges people based on their skills,Deborah was a black stain on the name of the Seymour family.

All his younger sister knew to do,was to take advantage of the fact that she was part of the Seymour family.

And for him that stain had to be removed as quickly as possible.

'For a damn jewel she even destroyed mother's garden.'

When he heard what she did he was convinced that their father would punish her severely.

But to his complete surprise, she escaped unpunished, instead,from then on, Deborah started having tea  with their father, not only once but several times.

'It's simply ridiculous, what can the two of them even discuss when they never spent time alone except for those moments when she was scolded for the stupid things she’s done and got punished.'

That day when he saw her coming out of their father's office, with a haughty look on her face, he felt his tension rising.

'Why did my damn sister escape unpunished?'

Belreck noticed that their father was beginning to be generous with her.

'Why?'

'A person so shameless and insensible but especially untalented does not deserve so much attention.'

He understood if Rosad who was one of the most talented persons he knew,was getting attention,but Deborah, she didn't have any good attributes.

'So why is she getting even more attention than Rosad or me?'

I can’t understand my father.

If I was the head of the family,someone as foolish and incompetent as her,wouldn’t even set foot in this mansion…'

Belreck who was lost in thought suddenly smiled sinisterly.

'Well,she won’t be here for much longer.'

The daughters of the Azutea Empire had to marry after reaching adulthood  with no exception.

Deborah could get married this fall if she has her debut,so,Belreck had already started planning an engagement for her to send her off to a faraway place.

Even though he did not like Rosad,their mindset and behavior were horribly similar.

Rosad also wanted to get rid of her as soon as possible,the swift-handed Rosad had even picked a suitable candidate for Deborah’s husband.

'Louis Gargell?.. I think.

I’m going to cooperate with that jerk Rosad this time.'

Once she is married, her surname will change,and the prestige of the Seymour will no longer be tarnished by her,in addition to that, they won’t have to see each other.

'That is what it meant's to catch two birds with one stone.'

.....................

'This bastard!

What’s wrong with this guy again?!'

After the morning classes ended I was headed to my living quarters so that I could finish up my romance novels,when, Belreck suddenly blocked my way.

"What is your problem?"

"Problem?"

I looked nervously in Belreck’s grey eyes.

In that moment goosebumps automatically appeared on my arms,

'Deborah seems to hate Belreck’s condescending grin the most.'

"So funny,we are not even on the same level.

What problem should I have with you?

I was on my way to see Father because of work.I am not as free as you are."

"Then you should go on your way instead of arguing with me.

I’ll go my way to.”

I spoke in the calmest tone possible,suppressing my displeasure.

'Deborah lost her composure every time Belreck looked down on her or taunted her.

She dug her own grave by venting her anger on her innocent subordinates.

But I’m not her.

It’s really a waste of energy,so let’s ignore him.'

I quickly tried to get past Belreck but he grabbed my arm.

"Because you are my younger sister, I will give you a piece of advice."

"I refuse."

"If you don't want to receive advice, you should’ve behaved yourself.

Even if I want to forget that I have a sister and ignore you completely, I can't,because you caused to many problems."

He squeezed my arm with his hand, narrowing his sharp grey eyes.

"I heard you are throwing a fit these days over a piece of jewelry.

Don't you know that your older brother worries about you?

Who will take you? You who are so stubborn and greedy."

"You don’t need to worry about that, so let go."

"I'm disappointed that you talk like that, I'm just taking care of you.

Y

ou don’t have any magical talent or intelligence,you only have your youth and look.

So I want to introduce you to a good guy, because I am a good brother and I worry about your future.

Don't you think you should thank me my dear sister?"

"What are you talking about?"

'Don’t tell me he is trying to arrange a date?!'

"Louis Gargell. You’ll be meeting him soon,don’t forget."

'Louis Gargell?

That name sounds familiar.

......NO!Nooooo!NOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Crazy bastard!!'

I suddenly remembered something from the novel.

That cringy guy who used to annoy the female protagonist.

A supporting character, but a memorable character,because of his perverse behavior.

I brushed his hand harshly and looked at him fiercely.

He shrugged lightly, looking at me with a sneering grin.

"You have to receive proper etiquette training again.

Don’t worry I will help you personally, so you won’t disgrace yourself."

The more I listened to him, the more ridiculous it was.

'But if I lose my composure and get angry,I would only get laughed at by Belreck.'

How can a lady from a noble family not control her feelings?

With my fists clenched tightly, I remembered the way my sister spoke to defend against nit-picking attacks from relatives in my past life.

"My dear Brother you are very impolite in any word you choose to speak.

If you want to get married, you will have to receive basic language education again.

So how can you teach me?"

When he received the same treatment back, his eyes darkened with anger.

"How dare you,you a mere Princess?!

Y

ou seem to think we are in the same position, but keep in mind that I am the future heir.

In your current position you should be thankful to me that I wasted my time to find you a man from a good family to marry."

"I never asked you to find one.

This is a stretch of authority."

"Deborah,if you had done a better job at taking care of yourself at least for once,I wouldn’t have to take action. Don’t you think,my dear sister?"

"I will take good care of myself from now on, so don’t interfere anymore.

If you are so worried about my life, give me money instead."

"Seriously?

And how will you take care of your life from now on when you couldn't in the past.

Do not make me laugh!

Or....Don't tell me that you still have illusions about that Philap Montez?  He will never accept you!"

'Unbelievable, he is really evil'

I was in shock.He even dragged his younger sister’s unrequited love in this argument.

Belreck’s mockery and verbal abuse didn’t stop there

"Wake up!Philap Montez has a girl that he’s been really into these days, haven’t you heard the news?"

'Of course I know,the woman he is into,she is Mia Vinoche the female protagonist,Idiot!'

"I have not interest  in your news."

"Oooo....Pretending to be strong.

Or,maybe,are you in denial?"

He clicked his tongue.

"If we're being realistic, because of your behavior, I can't find you a suitor from a prestigious family like ours,Montez, Orgo, Visconti, all of them won’t...."

"I am not going to get married."

His nagging stopped at my words.

And his perfect face,cracked.

"What, what did you just say?"

Looking at his face,I repeated again.

"I am not going to marry."

"What......?"

Belreck,was taken aback first but then he concluded that my words were a joke and laughed sarcastically.

"Your skills for making me angry are improving as time goes by.

By the way this joke is not funny at all."

"It is not a joke."

"Deborah, don’t speak nonsense.

Are you out of your mind...are you declaring that you are forsaking the duty of a noble lady.

Or do you really want to enter a monastery?"

"…":-O

When the monastery ending, which I want  to avoid unconditionally, came out of his mouth,my heart pounded really fast.(ToT)

"Mind your manners and words.

And by that it means to stop humiliating your family."

When the vassals approached Belreck, who was growling furiously, he clicked his tongue and stopped his moral lesson.

"Let’s talk again later."

"No,thank you."

I replied, with trembling hands.

"Even if you don’t want to,you will.

And as an older brother,I sincerely advise you to give up on Philap Montez.

Louis Gargell is good enough.

He is from a rich family,you will definitely appreciate it later."

Belreck gently pated my shoulder.

"You have reached an age where you can understand that you don't get everything you want from life.

You have to make sacrifices."

He said what he wanted  and then left quickly.

'Monastery.'！Σ(×_×;)!

I stood there in the hallway for a while,absent mindedly, pushing my hand against my temple that was

throbbing with pain

After that discussion with Belreck, I was in a state of panic.

'I have never imagined that Belreck would push Deborah to get married!'

It is a serious prpblem because Belreck’s influence in the family could not even be compared to mine  a mere princess.

'I am going to go crazy.

Deborah is 19 years old this year.

If she makes her debut this fall, she can marry, so if everything goes on like this, she will have to marry that man.'

"I am completely  doomed.”

In the novel Deborah was such a proud woman,there was no way some random Gargell from a count’s family would catch her eye.....

'AAAAAaaaaaa!!!!!!!

I’m so angry!

I can’t believe I am forced to get married to a pervert.

This is simply absurd.'｡･ﾟ･(ﾉ∀')･ﾟ･｡

Feeling frustrated and resentful,I hit the soft pillow like it was a sandbag.

Everything went too smoothly to be true, something had to happen, just like always

I naively thought that I could avoid the monastery if I didn’t do anything bad to the heroine,and I would be able to continue living my life.

"Wait a moment."

I, who had been lying with my face in a pillow with messy hair,jumped up and called the servant.

"Yes. Princess."

The maid bowed with a pale,terrified face.

"What happens when the daughter of a noble family doesn’t want to get married?

I suddenly got curious and I’m going crazy."

The maid’s complexion became paler as I tore my hair apart.

Naturally, the crazy person is scarier than anyone.

"IIII...I'm sorry, but that never happened."

"Use your imagination!"

"IfIfIfIf...If you don’t get married, you... won’t be able to take on the family name so...you will be deprived of your title, expelled from the aristocracy, and sent to the monastery.

I think."

Her words brought me even more despair.

'How is this different from the original ending?!'( ＞Д＜；)

Is this really my destiny, to go to the monastery?

Now I understand why Belreck looked at me like I was stupid.'

So,I pressed the maid again, in my desperation for an answer.

"That’s weird.

Why has no one refused to marry?

Can you can force a member of your family to marry even if he doesn't want to?"

"Isn’t there an exceptional case?

I am curious. I cannot sleep if I am curious!

Will you be responsible if I can’t sleep?!"

I threatened to make her talk.

Thanks to the novel, I knew exactly how knowledgeable the maids were about the news in high society.

The nobles’ servants was nothing less than a nest of gossip.

It was one of their hobbies, to gather during their breaks and talk about all kinds of high society gossip.

"Think hard about it,maybe, something will come to your mind."

I stared at her fiercely, not letting her go until she answered.

The maid, sweated profusely, worked her brain out and,hurriedly opened her mouth.

"There was a noble lady who fell in love with a commoner mercenary and eloped."

"And?"

"Well,the problem was solved when she received a title of nobility.

She was a six-class sorceress,I heard that in the war, she made a big contribution with her husband, the leader of the mercenaries....and took over the territory of another country."

"So what your saying is that a person can receive a title by distinguishing himself in war?"

"Yes."

'I see soooo......... If I want to live my own way, I must go to war and take over the territory....

Easy to say hard to do,I can’t handle mana, let alone a war…'

As I was drowning in despair a fragment of memory related to noble titles came to her mind.

There was a family that Deborah despised for having no noble roots, and that was because the previous head of that family bought the title of nobility from a bankrupt family.

'Even if you don’t go to war, you can buy a title with money!'(((o(*ﾟ∀ﾟ*)o)))

'What if I buy myself a noble title?

I won’t have to marry anyone.

If I am the head of the family, who will dare to say that I should get married?'(*^▽^)/★*☆♪

"But what If I buy a title,I won’t be bound by customs,Isn’t that right?"

The maid hesitated to answer.

"Yes,that’s right, but even so, the price of the lowest baron title is astronomical huge,Princess."

No matter how expensive it is, it’s far better than going to war.

"How much is it?"

"I don’t know.. I’m really sorry."

Well, it is not common to buy a title so she can’t know the details.

"Alright,get out. I’m sleepy."

I let the frightened maid go.

Then, I jumped out of the bed instantly.

'Let’s first tke a look into the situation of my possessions.'

"Wow!!

There are so many!"

Seeing Deborah’s numerous jewel boxes and the amount of jewelry inside them,I had no choice but to feel astonished.

Deborah owned so much jewelry,as many noble families combined.

'Deborah How extravagant have you been? '

Thanks to this pile of jewelry in my hands,I can regain my stability, at least.

‘There are also a many jewelry's on the dresses.'

It may be possible to buy a title by making a secret fund while milking of the Seymour’s as much as possible.

But the problem is time.

'Wouldn’t it be possible to delay marriage for at least two to three years?'

On average, noble ladies here married between the ages of nineteen and twenty-two.

It is fortunate that the age for marriage was delayed by 2 years than when the country was first founded,the reason was because of the increasing number of noble ladies completing advanced courses at the Academy.

'It’s good that I am also attending the Academy.'

If will postpone the marriage and save enough money to buy the title, in theory, there is no problem….but

'No that won’t happen,the head of the family won’t change to Belreck before I buy the title......right?'

I shook my head quickly.

Duke Seymour is the only seventh-class wizard in the empire and exerted great influence on the Wizardry Association.

Besides, the youngest, Enrique Seymour,is so young that he won’t be able to hand over the position that quickly.

'I need to get enough money as quickly as possible.

In the end, money is everything.'

While I was in deep thoughts a knocking sound woke me up.

Duke Seymour was standing outside of my study.

"Father?"

I quickly put my notebook into the drawer and got up.

"Deborah don’t tell me you’re studying?Did I interrupt you?"

Duke Seymour looked at me very strange as he spoke.

Deborah rarely used the study, so his reaction was understandable.

"It is alright father.I will tell servants to prepare tea and refreshments."

"Alright."

We went the living room next to the study, and sat down facing each other.

He was silent and I didn’t know what say, so a heavy silence fell  upon us.

'It’s suffocating.'

After the tea was served, I opened my mouth first.

"I will give you a letter when you go back."

At my words,Duke Seymour let out a small sigh.

"I am not here today to receive a letter ."

'Soooo, are you going to tell me to get married?'

I waited patiently for his next words.

"Deborah,that poem you recited,can you recite it again sometime?"

'Well that's not what I expected you to say....'

"I will read it to you every time the white roses are in full bloom and when it snows."

I hinted at my intention of wanting to stay in the Seymour house for a long time.

However,Duke Seymour was just sipping tea with indifferent eyes.

'Of course, it is not that easy.'

'The author was a prolific poet so it must have been difficult to find the poem written in the letter, but you managed to find it,it must’ve been hard.

The letter didn’t even contain the title of the poem."

It did not take as long as Duke Seymour thought.

In Korea,students practice their ability to figure out the main points of poems for the college entrance examinations.

'There is no way I explain this.'

"I was lucky."

"Luck,you are trying to be careful with your manners recently, but excessive modesty is not good, Deborah.

It is the same as refusing to accept your achievements"

"I really mean it when I sad that I want to give you what you wish.

I felt the sincerity behind your words that you want to be the link between me and Marien.

I am not trying to test you, so feel free to ask for anything."

He is telling me ,to say what I wish, so earnestly,that I felt foolish to keep refusing.

'I never asked for anything in my life,I’m nervous.'

I wetted my dry lips.

"In that case I want....."

..................

When I asked what she wanted, Deborah took a long time to answer.

'Why is she  pretending to think about it?'

Duke of Seymour was very curious.

Deborah, who was struggling to say something but soon opened her mouth.

"........for you to please invest in my business."

"WHAT?"