Chapter〈005〉
I couldn’t quite grasp what Lord Winchester had just said. From the beginning, his letter and summons had confused me.
I had come to the Camellia estate assuming he had confirmed my identity and perhaps wanted to apologize for his rudeness that day.
And maybe—just maybe—I might get to see Daniel again.
“Marriage?”
But now he was suddenly talking about marriage?
“Who’s marrying whom, exactly?”
Surely, Lord Winchester hadn’t called me here simply to talk about someone else’s engagement or wedding.
Still, I asked, thinking, No way. No way. No way!
“It’s a marriage proposal from Baron Pomoz.”
Instead of replying, he pulled a paper from a drawer and handed it to me. I quickly snatched it up.
It was a formal letter from Baron Pomoz, my father, expressing his wish for his second daughter, Naeri de Pomoz, to marry Count Lorinus de Winchester.
There was also a subtle reproach, stating that if Lorinus was truly a man, he should take responsibility. As a knight, shirking that duty would make him a coward.
“I don’t understand what this whole ‘taking responsibility like a real man’ is about.”
“Exactly. There must be some kind of misunderstanding…”
And then it hit me. The fuss Sophia made a few days ago. My mother’s pale face. I remembered how, during dinner, my father had told my mother that a reply would come soon, that she shouldn’t worry so much—and that perhaps this was a good thing.
Like puzzle pieces locking into place, all those moments finally came together in my mind to form a full picture.
Their outrageous and completely misguided misunderstanding!
“I’m sorry, Lord Winchester. There’s been a huge misunderstanding. I’ll take care of it, so please don’t worry.”
I quickly crumpled the proposal and forced a smile at him. He simply stared back with a stiff expression, unfazed by my panic or smile, as if none of this had anything to do with him.
Right. It has nothing to do with him.
Just as I felt a wave of resentment rise toward his indifference, I calmed myself. Of course, this was a bolt out of the blue for him.
He was young, handsome, wealthy—a count. True, he had a child, but he was officially single. As my mother said, he was the best marriage prospect in the Empire.
A man like that wouldn’t give a second glance to someone like me, a plain baron’s daughter. Especially if I was some strange girl sneaking around his mansion. A fool who came to the Camellia estate smiling like an idiot, hoping to see Daniel, without even knowing why she was summoned.
“Where did this misunderstanding come from?”
“Well…”
I couldn’t answer. How could I tell him that my sister mistook the bandage on my neck—placed there by him—as a hickey?
And there was no way I could say my family believed I’d had a one-night stand at the ball. That would make them look like they’d raised me poorly—and worse, it would be an admission that my parents thought Lord Winchester was that kind of dishonorable man.
And what if this rumor spread? It would be a disgrace to the Pomoz family.
I can’t let that happen. They’ve all been so good to me.
I thought of everything the Pomoz family had done for me. My mother, who cried with joy when I woke up. My father, comforting her even while he teared up too.
My older brother, who kept thanking me for staying alive. My sister-in-law, who held my hand tightly. My little niece, who looked up at me with bright eyes and asked, “Auntie, Auntie, no more ouchies?”
My sister, who nursed me with devotion, and her husband, who bought every remedy he could find. Even my younger brother had silently placed flowers at my bedside.
Their love and concern meant so much to me that I couldn’t bring myself to tell them I wasn’t really their daughter. Even this misunderstanding came from how much they worried about me and cared for my future.
I couldn’t cause them shame. I couldn’t bring them disgrace.
“…The truth is, I’ve been in love with you, Lord Winchester.”
And so I confessed my love to the man in front of me.
“……”
He didn’t even blink at the unexpected confession. Did he not believe me?
“I couldn’t sleep or eat, and I cried all the time thinking about you. My father got so worried that he sent the proposal himself.”
Screw it!
I added more emotion to my confession.
“You barely saw me.”
“When I saw you at the ball… I fell for you at first sight. My heart started racing the moment I saw you.”
“If someone points a sword at your throat, anyone’s heart would race. Maybe you just misunderstood that feeling?”
“It wasn’t just then. Even after I got home, I couldn’t stop thinking about your face. My heart kept pounding. Just the thought of not seeing you again made me cry myself to sleep!”
Thinking he didn’t believe me, I desperately listed every possible side effect of unrequited love. I needed him to believe me. That way, it would make sense that my father sent the proposal out of concern for his love-struck daughter.
After all, not every proposal had to be accepted. It wasn’t a duel, it was a proposal.
So if Lord Winchester rejected me, it would just become a minor anecdote—about a baron’s daughter who dared to love a count beyond her station.
He frowned slightly. A crease formed between his brows, and his eyes narrowed in suspicion. For a moment, an emotion flickered in those seemingly cold blue eyes.
“…Very well.”
Thank goodness!
I let out a sigh of relief as Lord Winchester finally responded. Now I just had to ask him to write a polite rejection letter. I’d take it home, explain everything to my parents, and this whole mess would be over—with no public disgrace for the Pomoz family.
“Let’s get married.”
“…Sorry?”
His next words made me suck that sigh right back in.
“I said, let’s get married, Miss Naeri.”
As I stared at him in shock, he repeated himself.
“W-Wait!”
Stop. Stop. FULL STOP.
Faced with this sudden proposal—no, acceptance—no, this complete disaster, I slammed on the brakes.
“Marriage? With me? You and I?”
“Yes. Let’s marry.”
There was no trace of romance on his face as he said it. He looked more like he was informing a maid she was being dismissed than proposing marriage.
“Why?”
“What do you mean, why?”
“Why do you want to marry me?”
“You proposed first, didn’t you?”
“Well, yes, but…”
That was a misunderstanding…
“Didn’t you say you loved me?”
“Well, yes, but…”
That was a bold-faced lie…
“Then what’s the problem?”
Everything is the problem!
“But wouldn’t this marriage be a huge loss for you? My family is just a poor barony. We’re no match for the Winchester house.”
“Marriage isn’t a business transaction. So there’s no ‘loss.’”
He was too upright. I had no counterargument.
“Also, I’m not particularly pretty. I’m very plain. People sometimes forget I’m even there.”
“Looks aren’t everything.”
No! He was saying all the morally correct things! Couldn’t he reject me with a bit more vanity and snobbery?
“There’s one crucial issue. While I may have been madly in love with you, you don’t love me!”
“……”
Yes! Finally, that righteous mouth shuts up!
But… why did I feel slightly insulted?
No. Forget it. My pride doesn’t matter right now.
“I…”
Lord Winchester’s mouth opened again.
