TGLWM 08

Chapter 08 

 Take Responsibility

The seal of the Sinclair merchant company’s owner was stamped right beside the Emperor’s seal. With things like this, it was ambiguous whether the “eldest daughter of House Sinclair” referred to Florence or Marianne.

‘This is a problem.’

The overall head of the Sinclair merchant company was her father and head of the family, Count Niels, but he was already overwhelmed just managing the company’s main branch in the capital. Naturally, he had neither the time nor the energy to concern himself with the southern branch operated by his younger brother, Viscount Raoul. Besides, exchanging approval documents one by one with a place that took ten days to reach each way would have been terribly inefficient.

In the end, Niels and Raoul had each made twin seals like their own and begun operating the main branch and southern branch independently.

The seal stamped on the marriage document was precisely that twin seal.

Since it was the official seal of the head of the Sinclair merchant company, used under the family name, it naturally carried sufficient legal validity even on a marriage document.

In other words, there was technically nothing wrong with the marriage between the Grand Duke and Florence as far as the paperwork was concerned.

And putting the documents aside, the biggest problem of all was that the Grand Duke, one of the people actually involved in the marriage, was stubbornly insisting that “there is nothing wrong with this marriage.”

But how could there be nothing wrong?

The person who was supposed to marry him was someone else.

Suppressing her bewilderment, Florence began explaining everything step by step.

“As Your Grace knows, House Sinclair is currently divided into two branches. One is the head family that operates the main Sinclair branch in the capital, and the other is the branch viscount family that operates the southern branch. Of course, I am indeed the eldest daughter of House Sinclair, but……”

“That is precisely the point. Therefore, you and I are indeed legitimately married.”

The conversation kept going around in circles without getting anywhere, so Florence finally let out a small sigh and sat down on the sofa. At this rate, she felt as though she might collapse again.

Noticing the dark expression on Florence’s face, Edelston quickly poured her a red-colored drink and held it out.

“Let us drink something first and talk slowly.”

“……Thank you.”

Her throat was dry from the frustration boiling inside her, so when something to drink was offered, her irritation toward him quietly subsided.

The drink even suited her taste surprisingly well, with a refreshing sweetness that caught her off guard. In the end, she forgot what she had been about to say and simply drank every drop he poured for her.

“What is this?”

“Woodberry juice, a specialty of the Ricca Duchy. It seems you like it.”

Florence politely declined when the Grand Duke tried to pour her more and thought for a moment before deciding to take an indirect approach.

If she kept arguing back and forth with this man about whether their marriage was valid, they would probably never get anywhere.

“Your Grace. Didn’t you notice that something was strange about the wedding ceremony?”

“I was worried that the bride might not come. Do you know how late you were to the wedding?”

He briefly stiffened and looked out the window before turning his gaze back and scolding her in a cheerful voice.

When Florence could not answer and merely stammered, he quietly chuckled, saying that he had thought he was going to become a groom abandoned at the altar on his wedding day.

‘Could Uncle be an accomplice, too?’

She remembered Viscount Raoul’s arm trembling with tension.

He was not the sort of audacious person who could plan to switch brides against the Grand Duke.

The way he had been drenched in cold sweat and gone deathly pale could never have been an act.

‘All he could possibly have done in that situation, as a mere provincial viscount, was persuade the niece who had come in place of his daughter.’

It seemed increasingly likely that Marianne had taken the initiative and arranged all of this to avoid the marriage.

‘If that’s the case, I can’t be the one to report her.’

Would anyone else care about the hidden circumstances?

In the end, people would judge everything based solely on the result they could see from the outside.

Florence was only twenty, but having debuted in high society at an early age and maintained a position of moderation had sharpened her instincts remarkably. She knew very well what would happen if she made a huge fuss and spilled the entire truth.

It was obvious that she would be branded as the jealous woman who had volunteered to switch brides because she could not stand the thought of the branch family’s Marianne marrying the Grand Duke.

The truth would not matter.

It was simply more entertaining that way.

More sensational.

Moreover, the wedding had been attended not only by the Empire’s high priests but even members of the imperial family. If she spoke carelessly, the very survival of Count Sinclair’s family could be at stake.

After moving her lips uncertainly, she finally decided to set aside the complicated details and simply state the conclusion.

“Regardless, the real bride is Marianne. My being here was the result of an unexpected accident. I would like to apply for an annulment.”

Edelston stared for a moment at her beautiful, full lips as she clearly stated what she wanted.

The image of her once telling him that she loved him overlapped with the Florence who was now asking to annul their marriage, and his heart turned cold.

“……Your Grace?”

Ah, yes.

If she wanted the marriage annulled, there was only one answer he could give her.

He could give her anything she wanted.

Even if she said she wanted the Empire itself, he could cut off the Emperor’s head and hand it to her immediately.

But he could not let her leave.

“A marriage established under the protection of the Grand Temple and bearing the Emperor’s seal cannot be annulled.”

At the word “cannot,” Florence’s hopes came crashing down.

Life was truly a battlefield. An easy path was only granted to the fortunate.

After suppressing her emotions for a long while, she finally offered the last solution she could think of.

“Then we will have to go through divorce proceedings.”

She had been unmarried that morning, suddenly married in the afternoon, and was now talking about divorce at night.

It felt as though fate had dealt her an absurdly harsh hand all in a single day.

“I would appreciate it if you could handle it as quietly and quickly as possible. It would be better for both Your Grace and me if we settled this before news of our marriage spreads throughout society.”

Having calmed herself, she patiently waited for his answer.

Desperately hoping that he would agree to the divorce.

But as always, things rarely went according to plan.

“……Our marriage will be printed on the front page of the Imperial Gazette tomorrow. Since it is already past midnight, there are only a few hours left.”

‘What?’

Florence grabbed the armrest of the sofa in shock.

The merchant company would not necessarily be affected immediately by the marriage announcement, so perhaps she could worry about that later.

But the thought of her parents learning of their daughter’s marriage through a newspaper article was simply unbelievable.

“My, my parents……”

Her voice trembled helplessly.

Edelston suddenly turned around and strode toward her before kneeling on one knee in front of her.

Perhaps realizing how deeply she had been shocked, he saw the blood draining from Florence’s pale face, and guilt pricked painfully at his heart.

‘But now that I’ve decided to become a bastard, I have no choice but to see this through to the end.’

He gently wrapped his large hand around her small one and continued in a soft, soothing voice.

“I sent a message to Count Sinclair’s household using a scroll, so they should already know about the marriage. I promise to make arrangements quickly so that your parents and brother-in-law can come here as comfortably as possible.”

“……Thank you……”

At his words, she finally managed to calm down.

They would certainly be shocked, but at least they would not be ambushed by the news through a newspaper article.

Then she remembered that a single scroll cost as much as several mansions, and the thought suddenly became rather burdensome.

‘Is this what it feels like to borrow money from someone you barely know?’

In any case, the fact that her parents were coming was good news.

They would surely help her deal with this situation and return to the capital. No matter how much of a member of the imperial family the Grand Duke was, if the head of the family personally stepped forward and opposed the marriage, he could not stubbornly insist on maintaining such an unreasonable marriage.

But perhaps sensing what she was thinking, the Grand Duke curved his eyes into a smile and delivered a bolt from the blue.

“Ah. I am a very conservative man, so there will absolutely never be a divorce in my lifetime. I am not so bold as to break the marriage I swore before the Main God.”

Conservative……

Florence stared blankly for a moment before letting out a hollow laugh inwardly.

‘He openly showered me with flirtation, asking if he could see me again. And his eyes were incredibly intense, too. I almost fell for it.’

It was absurd to hear a man whose eyes practically dripped with suggestiveness, as though he would never turn away any woman who approached him, claim that he was conservative.

She would sooner believe that a demon had taken up volunteer work.

But the Grand Duke’s next words shocked Florence even more.

“Besides, didn’t you take my first kiss? You have to take responsibility.”