Chapter 07
The Duke And Time-Limited Wedding(4)
Humans are truly selfish creatures.
Mercian found it the easiest thing in the world to read Lucianne’s thoughts.
Maybe because she had been treated badly by her since childhood, she learned to sense things instinctively without even realising it.
Supported by Penelope’s unending love and trust, Luciane had horribly tortured Mercian.
She had always been tormented by Lucianne, who hid behind Penelope’s unending love and trust.
Outside, she was the perfect noble lady—graceful, kind, and the pride of the Beanom family—refined, kind, and gentle—but the moment she stepped inside the house, she would take off her mask and release all the stress from outside onto Mercian.
Especially when she had a bad day or heard unpleasant things from others, Lucianne would break Mercian’s precious belongings or wound her with harsh words.
Having suffered this for a long time, Mercian immediately guessed what Luciane was planning the moment she smiled and looked at the soup.
Even though she knew it, she might have overlooked it if this had happened at the Viscount’s house.
It was easier to put up with Luciane’s behaviour than to deal with the fallout from stopping her, and Mercian believed she would have to do it by herself.
However, today was different.
She couldn’t cause trouble for the many people at the Duke’s house who had worked hard to prepare her from dawn.
More than anything, today might be her only wedding day in her life.
Mercian suddenly stood up, caught Luciane’s wrist as she reached for the soup, and smiled brightly.
“Sis? What are you trying to do right now?”
Startled by Mercian’s unexpected action, Luciane stared for a moment, then frowned in pain and shouted,
“What? Mer, let go of my hand! It hurts!”
“Sis, you’re not seriously trying to spill soup on my wedding dress, are you?”
“What nonsense! I just thought the soup looked delicious.”
What a joke.
Where is the lie…
Blushing, Luciane glared and struggled to pull her hand free from Mercian’s grip.
But Mercian didn’t care and held on tighter, pulling a cord with her other hand.
At that moment, Charles and Clea both opened the door and came in.
“Young lady, what’s going on?”
“Clea? This is my sister. She said the soup I was given looked delicious. Sorry, but can you take it away from her?”
“Soup?”
Unlike Charles, who didn’t understand the situation, Clea, who had worked long in noble households, looked at Mercian, holding tightly to Lucianne’s hand with an awkward smile.
Among noble sisters, many had poor relationships despite appearances, and their jealousy sometimes went beyond expectations.
So Clea thought it was best to remove the soup quickly anyway.
“Understood, young lady. Charles, please take the soup away. Why would you bring soup here if it might spill on the wedding dress? Bring some water instead.”
“Oh my, I didn’t think of that. The soup was so delicious today. I’m sorry, young lady. I’ll clean it up right away.”
Charles hurriedly took the soup plate away, and Clea looked at Luciane and said—
“Young lady, I’m sorry, but you need to leave now.”
“Leave? How dare you tell me, her own older sister who will soon become the duchess, to leave? You’re just a servant?”
With a frown, Luciane gripped the aching wrist and struggled to free it from Mercian’s hold.
Muttering in protest at Clea’s words, Clea bowed her head slightly and said,
“If my words made you uncomfortable, I apologise. Of course, it’s customary for the bride’s family to be together before the wedding, but as you said, the lady-to-be feels uncomfortable with your presence. Our master, the head servant, ordered me not to disturb Lady Mercian’s mood today, even if the person is her sister.”
What, lady?
She is already referred to as “Lady” before the wedding has even taken place.
Sigh.
These people…
Luciane stared coldly at Clea, who politely told her to leave, but soon smiled and said,
“You say you’re a servant? You’re a very loyal servant. As the master’s words say, please take good care of my sister. She will soon be your lady. Just so you know, she can’t do anything except eat. When she was at the viscount’s house, no matter how much I told her to stop eating so much, she didn’t listen. And she wasn’t properly taught noble etiquette either…”
“Miss, that’s not something you need to worry about.”
“What?”
Clea cut off Luciane’s attempt to badmouth Mercian and replied,
“Whether our lady sleeps all day or eats with her hands, who could say a word to the duchess? I don’t know what you’re worried about, but we will follow our lady’s wishes no matter what, so please don’t worry and return to the banquet hall now.”
“You—how dare you interrupt a noble like me? You’re just a servant!”
Luciane raised her hand as if to slap Clea, but Clea bowed politely and said,
“Do I need to repeat what I said? Our master ordered us to focus only on our lady’s mood. Today, all other actions will be overlooked.”
“Fine! Just leave already! Mer, you’re in trouble now. With such a smart head servant, you’ll be tossed around a lot, unlike a foolish child like you. Tsk tsk!”
Luciane, frustrated that she couldn’t spill the soup, attempted to humiliate Mercian by using Clea, but she was taken aback by Clea’s entirely different reaction.
She spat harsh words at Mercian and left the room.
“Clea, I’m sorry.”
“Miss—now, Lady—I mean Lady Mercian, please forget what that viscount’s daughter just said. Today is your day. And this is a secret, but honestly, you’re much more beautiful than any noblewoman or young lady here, even more than that viscount’s daughter, your sister.”
Clea smiled warmly at Mercian, comforting her, then took her leave.
More beautiful than Lucy?
For the first time, someone praised my looks…
But why?
Mercian found Clea’s support so unfamiliar and awkward that she couldn’t even thank her as she left.
Just hearing she was prettier than Lucy made Mercian’s heart feel soft and her nose sting suddenly.
Ah, I mustn’t cry.
My makeup will be ruined…
Mercian grabbed a tissue to wipe her tears.
Knock, knock.
“C-come in.”
“Miss, I need to speak with you briefly before the wedding. Why are you crying suddenly? Is something wrong?”
Startled, Cassel looked at Mercian as she hurriedly wiped her tears and said, “No, it’s nothing.”
Cassel glanced around, then sat in front of her.
“I believe that before the wedding, we should finalise the contract.”
“Contract?”
“The one I mentioned at the viscount’s house.”
“Oh, yes.”
Cassel took out a document and placed it in front of her.
“As I said before, the marriage lasts six months. Publicly, it is said the duke is ill, but actually, he was poisoned during the war.”
“Poisoned?”
“Yes. You should hear the details from the duke himself.”
“Isn’t there an antidote?”
There is, but since the duke has no emotions, treatment is impossible.
“There isn’t one. That’s what we know now. Here, it states you agree to a six-month marriage, with a dowry of 250 gold coins, plus 100 gold coins monthly to the viscount’s house for six months, and 250 gold coins as compensation. However, Lady Mercian asked to receive the dowry and compensation together, so 500 gold coins were paid upfront.”
What? She got both the dowry and compensation at once?
Mercian looked shocked at Cassel’s words.
“Didn’t you know this?”
“No, I just found out.”
“If you want to get the dowry back, I can go to the viscount’s house and get the rest of the money.”
Get the money back?
Why did I cause such trouble for no reason?
In what way should I handle the fallout?
Mercian waved her hand and replied,
“No, it’s fine. Whether I get the money now or later, it’s not mine anyway.”
“Huh?”
“This has been confirmed, so let’s move on.”
“Okay.”
“And during the six months of marriage, if you become pregnant, you will raise the child in the duke’s house until they become an adult and inherit the duke’s title. The child’s gender doesn’t matter. If no child is born, then as per the contract, you leave the duke’s house after six months.”
“Yes, I already knew that.”
“There’s also a clause that you must be with the duke at least four times a week to conceive a child.”
“Oh… what? Did you say four times a week?”
Cassel repeated the clause, seeing Mercian’s surprise:
“It’s a condition to have a child within six months. I already told the lady about this. Could it be that she didn’t tell you?”
So this condition existed…
Penelope must have hidden this from me because she knew I would never marry the duke if I knew.
Having to spend six months with the duke four times a week, if I stay away from him, I won’t become pregnant, and I’ll be able to leave the duke’s home without any problems.
But since I’ve already received all the money and today is the wedding, I can’t just back out now…
Then again, maybe the duke will be disappointed and avoid me?
“Lady?”
Lost in thought, Mercian smiled and answered Cassel,
“Oh, sorry. Please continue.”
“There’s one more condition added by your suggestion.”
“An addition? Oh, if no child is born.”
“Yes, the last time you asked for that condition. You requested that you be given enough money to last the rest of your life when the time comes, but this is just one more requirement set by the Duke.
“Oh, no. The money I’ve already been given is sufficient. I don’t need more.”
Just for being the duchess for six months, I believe I have already received too much money.
Even though it’s not directly my money, the payment for the six-month marriage is enough.
I won’t have to worry about living later if I acquire good cooking skills while I’m staying at the duke’s house.
Mercian declined Cassel’s offer by shaking her hand.
“Please accept this as a personal gift from the Duke to the woman who will guard his last days. Please have a thorough discussion and handle it appropriately with the Duke.
Mercian said nothing for a moment but quietly nodded.
“Yes, I’ll talk to the duke as Sir Cassel said.”
She appears to have less of a desire for wealth than the viscount’s wife and eldest daughter.
Mercian’s response surprised Cassel because he assumed she would be thrilled with the duke’s offer.
“All right, after reading the final contract, kindly sign this.”
“Is the duke very ill?” Mercian asked, taking the pen Cassel gave her and signing it before looking up as Cassel put the papers away.
He is poisoned, but his symptoms are minimal. He simply lost a lot of weight and is now weak, which makes it difficult for him to move.
Weak and having lost a lot of weight? Isn’t that serious enough?
“Well, the contract is all settled. See you at the wedding, young lady.”
So, it’s happening…
Watching Cassel leave with the contract, Mercian truly felt that she was about to be married.
