It Turned Out to be a Useful Fraudulent Marriage - Chapter 11
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- It Turned Out to be a Useful Fraudulent Marriage
- Chapter 11 - Episode 2: Cinderella Who Loses Her Mother at a Young Age, Her Stepmother, and Her New Older Brothers
Ella and Eric met when they were both teenagers.
At the age of fourteen, Eric was already renowned for his swordsmanship skills.
The royal knights, upon hearing the rumors, had recommended him to take the official entrance exam early on.
Usually, a noble family especially a duke family would use various tricks to prevent their only son from taking the exam.
This is because serving as a royal knight was not something a high-ranking noble’s eldest son would do. Even though there are cases when they might have deliberately sabotaged the exam on purpose, Eric took the test seriously and became a royal knight.
Thanks to that, Eric ended up being assigned to escort Ella when she visited the Northern Grand Duchy. Midway through their journey, Ella’s carriage overturned.
Ella, being the first in line for succession, had faced numerous assassination attempts due to her position since childhood, and thus, she rarely lost her composure in most situations.
She was the same at that moment.
‘If you’re going to kill me, do it cleanly and leave. If you were bribed by my brother or His Majesty the King, just say so.’
‘What nonsense are you talking about?’
Hanging precariously on the edge of the cliff, Ella couldn’t forget Eric’s indifferent voice as he reached out to her.
What nonsense are you talking about, he said.
Uttering words devoid of any emotion, Eric lifted Ella up.
Ellar later found out that her carriage accident was planned by the Grand Duke of the North.
Eric, who had become her escort, was said to have also received the Grand Duke’s offer but easily turned it down.
‘Why? If you had accepted the Grand Duke’s offer, it would have been quite beneficial for the Orleans Duchy, wouldn’t it?’
‘I swore to protect the princess.’
‘What if the Grand Duke approached you first?’
‘I would still honor my loyalty.’
‘… Is that what you’re going to say in front of me?’
“Ugh… What a boring guy.”
Ella shivered as she looked at Eric across from her.
Of course, it was because of his dullness that she chose to stay with him.
“You too. It’s time for you to open your eyes to things like romance between men and women. Even if you had to take a vow of chastity for religious reasons while in the royal order, you should have stopped it by now.”
As the princess spoke, she lightly stepped on the floor of the dimly lit chamber, emitting a mysterious atmosphere.
Then, along with the sticky singing voice of an opera singer, nobles were seen doing something that could not be determined whether it was dancing or movement. Eric trembled and looked away.
Ella shook her head as she watched Eric make a small sign of the cross.
“Ugh… That old man….”
Despite the princess’s scolding, Eric remained unfazed and took something from his pocket.
It was a document. The princess’s eyes narrowed when she saw that.
“You really brought it.”
The princess looked alternately between Eric and Lily, who stood next to him, as if surprised. Taking the document, the princess asked Eric.
“The heir to Orleans Duchy stole the documents of Duke Orleans? How should I interpret this?”
Eric responded briefly to the princess’s words.
“I merely received orders as a pledge of loyalty to the princess.”
For several months now, Princess Ella had instructed Eric to collect documents related to the nobility’s assets.
This was due to rumors circulating that Ella’s brother, Robert, had conspired with an aristocratic family to set up businesses, even embezzling royal funds.
Among the suspected noble families was Duke Orleans.
However, Ella didn’t exempt Eric from investigating the Duke. Instead, she instructed him to infiltrate the duchy under the guise of leaving the knighthood to inherit the duke’s title.
To anyone, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to betray the princess. Yet, the reason Ella entrusted Eric with this task was simple.
“So, have you opened it?”
As Eric was about to bring the teacup to his lips, he paused at the princess’s question.
Eric was drinking tea alone in a dark ballroom.
The princess gazed intently at the change in Eric’s expression.
“I haven’t opened it.”
“What do you think it contains?”
Eric hesitated briefly at the princess’s question. It was because he remembered Emeline’s words.
Ignorance is also a sin…
Could there really be something he doesn’t know?
But distrust was as much a sin as ignorance.
And as far as Eric knew, Duke Orleans, his father, was not one to keep secrets from him.
Eric replied calmly. “My father also swore allegiance to the princess.”
Orleans was one of the few central nobles in the Council who supported the idea of a woman succeeding the throne.
The princess chuckled. “Not everyone is like you, though.”
The princess opened the envelope.
It was when the princess’s eyes slightly changed as she carefully examined the paper inside the envelope that Eric noticed a woman standing behind her.
Her red hair, yellow dress —
Eric’s brow furrowed.
“Hmm… There’s nothing special. Duke Orleans… There’s hardly anything remarkable about the owner of such vast estates.”
The princess disappointedly set the documents aside. Eric, who had been distracted by the gaze outside, finally turned to accept the documents.
“Is that so?”
Eric scanned through the documents.
There really was nothing.
Having served as a knight commander, Eric was familiar with reviewing financial records. Even after a thorough examination, there seemed to be no major issues with the duchy’s accounting documents.
Eric spoke with a visibly relieved expression, “There really is nothing here.”
“Well, that’s too bad,” the princess said nonchalantly.
“Did you expect there to be something?”
Eric asked incredulously. In response, the princess nodded as if it were obvious.
“Of course. Duke Orleans is a big deal, even a small secret could be used to gain the Duke’s loyalty. And if things go well, we could even make use of it to make you mine, considering you’re still unmarried and don’t have a fiancé.”
Lily coughed awkwardly at the princess’s blunt words. However, knowing that the princess had no ulterior motives behind her words, Eric frowned and stepped back, as if afraid even a single strand of hair might touch him.
“Marriage is sacred. It can only happen if two people trust and genuinely love each other.”
The princess chuckled at Eric’s words.
She clicked her tongue as she tilted her head towards the tea cup in front of him and playfully teased Eric.
“You’re so old-fashioned. What will you do when you’re eventually arranged to marry some lady chosen by your family? There’s no guarantee that she won’t be gallivanting around at events like this. It would be more comforting for your heart to be mine. Even if I have many concubines, I’ll cherish you the most.”
As the princess spoke, she believed that Eric Orleane, just like any other potential strategic marriage candidate, would genuinely trust and love her.
Even though the princess said that she believed that Eric Orleans would genuinely trust and love his potential strategic marriage candidate.
Just like the duke.
‘A boring rich man.’
To the princess, Eric was merely a dull figure, but most of society’s young ladies would consider such Eric to be “romantic.”
‘He’ll make a good husband. It might be a boring married life, though.’
While the princess entertained such thoughts, Eric didn’t seem to hear her words as he put the documents back into his possession.
However, just as he was about to leave his seat, Eric paused and turned back to the princess, asking, “What… What exactly are all these people here for?”
Eric’s voice faltered mid-way. Although he had roughly guessed from the behavior of some nobles he encountered when he entered this place, he still harbored some expectation that there might be some kind of boundary.
‘Emeline Wedgwood.’
With only three days left until her mother’s wedding, what on earth was that strange woman trying to do here?
The princess couldn’t help but laugh at Eric’s serious, almost solemn question.
“Does the young master have no idea what’s on the upper floors of this grand building?”
Eric frowned as he looked up at the ceiling pointed out by the princess.
“What… What could be…”
Their eyes met, both wearing expressions of confusion.
Suddenly feeling like a wicked aunt tormenting an innocent boy, Ella cleared her throat and turned her head away.
“Uh… It’s blocked on all sides… A place with a soft bed, perhaps? It seems like a place you’d never visit in your life, but…”
The moment he heard those words, Eric’s face distorted. But it was only momentary, and he soon concealed his expression and left the chamber.
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t protect your innocence…’
That’s what Ella thought.
As soon as Eric left the chamber, Ella gestured to Lily.
“Can I really trust that document just now?”
Lily nodded in response to the princess’s question.
“Yes. I confirmed that the young master retrieved it from the duke’s office’s secret storage.”
Lily chuckled at her own words and nodded her head.
“That’s true… Then is there a possibility that the duke is deceiving even his own son?”
Lily shook her head at the princess’s question.
“The relationship between the father and son seems quite good.”
“You never know from the outside. Keep monitoring.”
The princess pursed her lips at Lily’s words. Lily bowed her head, saying, “Yes, Your Highness.”
He’s such a boring rich guy… Is he really his father’s son? Or is there some interesting twist?
The princess thought carefully, then she gestured to Lily.
“You should go too. I should enjoy the night a bit”
It seemed that the curiosity that couldn’t be resolved with just one document wasn’t the only thing bothering her, after all.
Storyteller Amourtentia's Words
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