Episode 8
After her private meeting with the Crown Prince, Laria came out feeling completely drained.
It felt like her soul had been ripped out.
She didn’t even know where to start fixing the situation.
She just wandered out in a daze.
This was way too big for her to handle alone.
She needed to talk to Zenox.
As she left the main palace, she ran into Zenox, who was walking toward her.
“Lady Rohan.”
Zenox didn’t look too happy either.
Laria quickly glanced around.
A few people were pretending not to look, but were clearly watching them.
“Let’s change locations,” she whispered.
“There’s a quiet garden nearby,” Zenox replied smoothly.
He guided her to a garden far from the palace.
It was so silent, not even birdsong could be heard.
It looked like the gardeners had forgotten about the place — overgrown trees and seasonal flowers filled the space.
Once she was sure they were alone, Laria stopped walking.
Zenox stopped too and looked down at her.
“Your Grace,”
“My Lady,”
They both spoke at the same time.
“You go first,” Laria said.
She didn’t hesitate and quickly explained what had happened with the Crown Prince.
“His Highness thinks we’re getting married.”
Feeling like pulling her hair out, Laria added quickly,
“The Emperor even sent handwritten letters to each noble house to congratulate us.”
Even though it was shocking news, Zenox didn’t look surprised.
He calmly said,
“I’m just coming back from hearing the same thing.”
“…”
“I told His Majesty we weren’t like that… but he didn’t believe me.”
Laria could imagine exactly how that went.
Just like the Crown Prince earlier — no time to explain, no room to object.
First they forced a blind date on them, now they were pushing for marriage without even asking their opinion?
No wonder Herdin tried to rebel.
“Maybe they thought we liked each other… so they rushed into this,” Zenox muttered, sounding sorry.
Even though the royal family was clearly to blame, Zenox acted like it was all his fault.
It reminded Laria of the past — how he used to blame himself whenever she got hurt playing alone.
“Why are you apologizing?” she said. “It’s the Crown Prince’s fault for pushing this on us without even asking.”
“But still…”
“Let’s focus on how to fix this first.”
Zenox nodded reluctantly and said,
“The situation’s gotten too big. It won’t be easy to undo.”
“That’s true,” Laria agreed.
The Emperor himself was involved now.
If they suddenly announced, “We’re not together; the royal family misunderstood,” it would damage the royal family’s image.
And they didn’t want to go against the royals.
“I don’t understand why they’re doing this,” Laria said.
Zenox bit his lower lip and spoke quietly.
“There are probably political reasons behind it.”
Laria widened her eyes.
“His Majesty both favors me… and fears me.”
Zenox’s family — the Crassiums — held the only Grand Duke title in the empire.
They controlled most of the northern lands, had a powerful army, and were incredibly wealthy.
On top of that, Zenox’s mother was a royal princess — meaning he had royal blood.
He would be a powerful ally… or a dangerous enemy.
“So that’s why they picked me?”
Laria’s family, the Rohan Earldom, had no real power or money.
If she married into Zenox’s family, her side would be useless — not a threat at all.
“And the Crown Prince is very interested in harmony between beast-men tribes,” Zenox added.
“…”
“He might be hoping that our marriage could end the long-standing conflict between the fox tribe and the wolf tribe.”
If the Emperor wanted to keep Zenox in check, and the Crown Prince wanted to unite tribes — then this crazy plan suddenly made sense.
“So all that sweet talk from the Crown Prince wasn’t just for Zenox’s sake…”
Now that she knew the truth, the friendly Crown Prince just seemed like a sneaky schemer.
If what Zenox said was true, then no matter how much they insisted they weren’t a couple, it wouldn’t matter.
The palace would silence anyone who disagreed, and force the marriage through.
“At this rate, I’ll be married off in no time…”
Should I just help Herdin start that rebellion after all…?
But then Zenox suddenly said,
“Actually… how about we just get engaged for now?”
His unexpected suggestion snapped Laria out of her dramatic thoughts.
“Engaged?”
“Yes. We can’t jump straight to marriage without an engagement ceremony.”
In noble society, engagement ceremonies were formal and always held before a wedding.
“We can use the engagement to buy some time. Later, we’ll say we broke it off due to personality differences.”
Was he seriously suggesting this?
Sure, it was better than getting married, but still…
Laria didn’t respond right away, and Zenox looked downcast.
“You’re only involved because of me… I’ll make sure to repay you.”
Still, getting engaged was a lot.
“I’ll give you any jewel you want, once a month.”
Okay, maybe it wasn’t that bad.
Laria’s eyes sparkled.
“Any jewel? No size limit or type?”
Zenox nodded.
Laria’s heart skipped a beat.
“And when we finally break off the engagement…”
Zenox looked sorry, like he wished he could do more.
“…I’ll give you a diamond mine.”
“…Can we get engaged twice?”
Her honest thoughts slipped out before she could stop them.
She coughed awkwardly, but her heart was pounding with excitement.
“Well… it’s not like I have a better idea.”
This might actually be a good opportunity.
If she was engaged to Zenox, she could freely visit the Crassium mansion and investigate that intruder incident herself.
“And no one would ever guess I could fully transform into an animal…”
Her secret was still safe.
Especially since she hadn’t been able to turn into a fox since that day.
Laria imagined her future self — rich, powerful, and owning a diamond mine.
What a dream.
No more money worries. She could use magic freely.
She almost started laughing but held it in.
“Well, I don’t have a better plan. Let’s get engaged… and break it off later.”
Zenox smiled faintly, relieved.
“Let me escort you home.”
And so, Laria got into Zenox’s carriage and headed home.
“My brother’s probably still at work, so the house should be empty.”
As she leaned against the window, she suddenly remembered something.
“What do I tell my parents?”
Her parents, who ran a medicine shop, were still on a trip.
They didn’t even know she had gone on a blind date — let alone gotten “engaged.”
“If they find out, they might faint.”
The carriage sped away from the palace toward the Rohan estate.
As their familiar house came into view, fatigue suddenly hit Laria.
She just wanted to sleep for a week.
Finally, the carriage stopped.
While Zenox spoke with the driver, Laria opened the door and got out on her own — too tired to wait for help.
“LARIA!!”
She froze when she heard a familiar voice.
Her parents — the middle-aged couple — were running toward her.
“You went on a blind date?! With the Grand Duke Crassium?!”
Apparently, her parents had already returned from their trip.
Not only them — even the butler and other workers came rushing over.
“Young Lady, are you hurt?”
“If there’s been a problem, we’ll take legal action!”
“For the honor of House Rohan!”
As her parents and servants surrounded her in a frenzy…
Another man arrived, holding up a gold envelope.
“Is the Earl of Rohan here?”
Everyone turned to look.
Only royals were allowed to use gold envelopes.
Laria’s father raised his hand.
“I’m the Earl of Rohan.”
“This is a letter from His Majesty the Emperor.”
Laria, knowing what was in the letter, just put her hand over her face.
And as her father read it, his face went pale.
“M-my daughter… is marrying Zenox Crassium?!”
