Chapter 37

In fact, Leroy arrived in front of the terrace earlier than Iona expected.

Even while dancing with Erich's sister, he was following Iona with his eyes, so he didn't have to search for her again.

As soon as the song ended, Leroy quietly followed Iona and stood in front of the terrace entrance.

He might come unexpectedly and disturb the two of them, but more than that, He wondered what that cocky subordinate knight would talk about.

Just in time, a topic that would attract Leroy's attention was flowing from inside.

“...Let's be honest. What do you want to get by leaving the job you gave your life to?”

'He's asking a question I've been curious about.' Leroy thought calmly as he put the glass of champagne to his lips.

“A happy married life.”

And he almost heard an unbelievable answer right away.

"Romantic relationship."

And before he could even process her response, Iona added, as if driving a wedge, without Leroy ever doubting his ears.

The words that followed didn't sound right.

He was too busy digesting Iona's earlier remarks, so he had no time to worry about anything else.

Because of that, Leroy couldn't control the reddening of his face and held back a cough until Erich ran out of the terrace.

Erich noticed Leroy in that condition and hesitated, then said this in a suspicious voice.

"You guys... I can't believe it's not a forced marriage, but each other... …”

Erich gritted his teeth without being able to properly finish his words. Then, he passed Leroy and left the ballroom.

It seemed like there was an unintentional misunderstanding, but there was no room for excuses.

No, when Leroy thought about it, it didn’t seem like he was the one who needed an excuse.

Erich was the man with light buttocks who wanted to pursue a woman who was about to get married. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to shake off this misunderstanding?

'Maybe it won't be a misunderstanding.'

Thinking so, Leroy slowly gazed at Iona's reddened ears, puzzled expression, and hand holding the hem of her skirt.

In the meantime, she seemed to have retraced all the conversations she had with Erich, and she replied firmly.

“I don’t know how far you’ve heard it, but I was just saying it in order to send him quickly. Really. There was no such thing as selfishness.”

It was an acceptable explanation.

However, Leroy's ensuing question lightly shattered the logic that Iona used as a shield.

“Then answer me just one thing. If I cheat even after getting married, are you okay with that? A happy marriage isn't the goal, is it?”

There had never been a more cowardly attack on Iona.

Iona expected him to have had another woman in her past life and took it for granted, but that didn't mean she wanted to live like that in this life.

The agitation that couldn't be hidden was visible on her face, which was always expressionless.

Iona impulsively refuted before she could organize all the thoughts that popped into her head.

“That's a different story. Will marital fidelity be taken lightly? No matter how good the marriage is, you have to keep the minimum amount of duty to your spouse. I can't believe the former duke... … .”

Iona stopped talking like a rapid-fire cannon because Leroy's laughter suddenly spilled over her head.

Iona stiffened with embarrassment at his incomprehensible reaction.

And at that, Leroy spoke to her with a more relaxed attitude than before.

“I thought I had no idea what you were thinking, but now I think I know.”

Leroy slowly retraced each of the many aspects of her he had discovered.

The count family was busy taking care of her rather than becoming a family even though they saw her ability and brought her into the household.

Even though he said he loved her, that prince tried to drag her into a messy extramarital affair.

And as soon as the talk of marriage came, she even showed her unexplained favor to him.

When the clues that could not be guessed were gathered together, the conclusion was clearly pointing in one direction.

Leroy thought with a smile on his lips.

'Did she want to create an ideal family even through marriage?'

'Since she couldn't marry the person she liked, did she decide to like the person she was about to marry?'

It was stupid. And at the same time, it was more like her.

If this thought was correct, she probably would have done her best for her husband-to-be, no matter who he was. Even if that was Leroy wasn't himself.

There could be nothing more stupid than giving meaning to a place like that.

But now the man she would marry was none other than him.

So in the midst of numerous possibilities that they could not have met each other, unfortunately, stopped in front of the same road.

What an incredible coincidence and how strong the temptation to get caught up in the cheap delusion of destiny just was.

Leroy stopped trying to correct him and closed his eyes.

“You are right. Fidelity between husband and wife is never to be taken lightly.”

Leroy spread his right hand, looked down at the empty palm, and folded all his fingers except for his thumb and little finger.

As he extended his hand to Iona, Iona looked at him with a curious look.

Even though he knew it was something a child would do, Leroy did not stop doing this childish thing.

“Shall I make a promise? If you and I really get married, we will only be faithful to each other.” He said.

In the meantime, she was reluctant to respond, perhaps thinking that Leroy had made this proposal after seeing her unusual reaction.

She hesitated and slurred her words.

“I didn't say that to burden you… …”

“It’s a promise that applies to both of us, so why burden only me?”

Leroy asked again and in a slow voice recited the problematic parts one by one.

“There is no place for any wind. Even if an old lover flirts with you, you should never let it go, and he shouldn't ask to break up with me because he suddenly changed his mind.”

“… … .”

“Let’s work together so that we won’t be unhappy in this marriage.”

Leroy put his hand on the tip of her little finger as if to hug Iona.

He felt her flinch at the sudden touch. She seemed to hesitate for a moment, but eventually, she mustered up the courage to point a finger at him.

The tips of the two thumb knuckles were carefully touched. It was a weak oath. However, only the parties felt that each other was sincere.

Even after the short appointment, Leroy did not let go of her hand.

The two looked at the same place for a while with their hands hanging down.

In the meantime, a thin melody began to resonate from beyond the curtain, as if the musicians had finished their break.

Leroy blurted out.

“Looks like it’s about time we head out to the ballroom.”

There was nothing better than dancing to show off the good looks of a man and a woman. Considering the original purpose of attending this ball, they had to go outside at this point.

Iona agreed with him, but there was one thing that bothered her.

Iona said while hiding her unfamiliar feeling.

“I have something to tell you in advance. I am not good at dancing.”

“Have you never learned it?”

“It’s not that I don’t know at all, but I’m not used to it. I can even step on your feet.”

“Good. Actually, I don't like dancing too much. I'm sick.”

Leroy answered without hesitation. Iona knew it was a lie.

However, Iona did not bother to ask him about it. Leroy also did not urge her to go out again.

They stood side by side for a long time until the long performance was over, as they were terribly worried about their dancing skills, which would be embarrassing to put on display.

***

“I called you that time, but why did you come only now?”

The woman in the black veil said annoyedly.

The man in front was the crown prince of the Lehman Empire, and no one dare to show such a disrespectful attitude toward him, but no one around him found this situation strange.

That was because the woman was the birth mother of the crown prince himself and was the empress of this country.

“I was busy with a lot of things to do.”

“You have no sincerity in your excuses. I know you always use work as an excuse whenever you are in trouble.”

There was affection for his son in her voice.

Richard unconsciously raised his eyes to examine the other person's expression, but he couldn't see anything through the thick veil.

Richard often wondered what expression she was really making under that veil.

'Already 14 years... … No, it's been about 15 years.'

Yes, it was just around that time.

After being caught in a big fire in the palace at the time and being burned, she no longer showed her face in front of others.

The same was true for her children, her husband, and even the ladies-in-waiting.

She put on a veil to hide her ugly figure and shut herself up in the palace.

It was easy to avoid meeting the opponent who had been living in seclusion. It was just a matter of refraining from stepping near the empress' palace.

As the empress thought, whenever Richard had an annoying premonition, he would refuse her call, making an excuse that he was busy.

Of course, he had no intention of telling her about this frankly.

“I’m sorry you misunderstood me so much. As you can see, didn't I come to see my mother as soon as my busyness was settled?”

“A wicked thing.”

The empress, who had been stinging, lowered her gaze over the tea water and said.

“You decided to marry that child.”

She was talking about Iona.

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