Chapter 4
“That bastard Kersha…”
Violette bit her lip and muttered under her breath, low enough that Argon wouldn’t hear. Seeing Violette’s dark expression, Argon raised an eyebrow and asked,
“Violette… you’re not still harboring feelings for the Fourth Prince, are you?”
“Absolutely not!”
The Fourth Prince Argon mentioned was Tereso Ortie, the protagonist of this world. Before the body swap, Violette had spent so much effort trying to correct the way her past self had pestered him relentlessly.
After the possession, Violette had barely seen Tereso’s handsome face and didn’t even care about him, let alone harbor feelings.
Hearing her strong denial, Argon relaxed and smiled with a satisfied look, clearly relieved.
“Hmm, good. Do you realize how much you’ve suffered because of that prince? And how much it hurt me to watch you go through that?”
“Father…”
At his words, Violette felt a pang in her chest. Although distancing herself from Tereso had been unavoidable, Argon must have felt a similar pain watching his daughter slowly deteriorate before his eyes.
She felt a slight twinge of guilt for not considering his feelings.
“Now it’s time for you, Violette, to settle down and build a happy home that others will envy. By the way, the Kegrainner Ducal House invited us for a dinner tomorrow. Prepare accordingly.”
“But Father! I don’t want this marriage! I’ll stay by your side until I die, guarding your wealth—no, your presence! How can you send me off like this? This lovely baby tulip!”
Violette clenched her eyes shut and shouted desperately. “Marriage,” as it were, felt more like being thrown out of the Marquis’ house.
And the Kegrainner Ducal House! Sure, Argon had warned her countless times, but she had always dismissed them as mere scare tactics.
Her father loved her too much.
Lowering her mouth in despair, Violette blinked like a drenched puppy as she looked up at Argon.
“My baby tulip is not a gambling addict who goes in and out of casinos and racetracks every day.”
“But—!”
“You’re not beating people up with martial arts or combat skills you were taught to defend yourself. And you don’t squander your father’s money like water.”
“Ugh.”
“You’re not a reckless brat who lazes about every day with no interest in marriage, employment, or taking over the family business. Want me to go on?”
Her father’s firm tone made Violette even more anxious. Every word he spoke was true, and there were still countless things he hadn’t even mentioned.
Sighing deeply while staring at her sulking face, Argon said,
“Of course, it doesn’t exactly thrill me to push you into marriage like this. I just want you, Violette, to fulfill your role properly. If you really don’t want this marriage, I can consider breaking it off.”
“Really?”
“However, if you don’t marry, you’ll have to get a job. There happens to be a vacancy in the Imperial Knights…”
“AAAH! I’ll do it! I’ll marry him!”
The word “breaking off the engagement” had briefly lit up Violette’s face with hope, but hearing about the Imperial Knights made her freeze in terror.
The Imperial Knights were known throughout the empire as a harsh and demanding organization.
And it was also the shortest path to hell, bringing her close to Tereso. Better to bite her tongue and die than work there.
Upon hearing Violette’s decision to marry, Argon immediately smiled warmly.
“Good. Tomorrow is your first meeting with your fiancé, so prepare well. If you need anything, just ask.”
“Yes…”
In the end, Violette left Argon’s office, dazed and unable to do anything else, her steps heavy.
The Marquis Raskal residence, Kersha Raskal’s study. A sunny afternoon.
Seated at a table rather than a desk for the first time in a while, Kersha enjoyed a peaceful day sipping rich black tea brewed by his attendant.
The second son of the Raskal family and Violette’s immediate elder brother, Kersha bore the closest resemblance to her.
The only difference was that while Violette had sharp, piercing eyes, Kersha’s were soft and puppy-like. His glasses glinted in the sunlight, perched on the bridge of his nose.
“Hey! Kersha!”
At the booming voice of Violette from the hallway, Kersha froze mid-sip.
He didn’t even need to look at her to sense her anger. When the door slammed open, his attendant stepped back several paces, anticipating trouble.
“D-don’t run…”
“Where do you think you’re going? Are you crazy?”
Kersha tried to get up belatedly, but Violette had already reached him and pressed him back into his seat.
“‘Oh, oh, brother…’ How can you say that?”
“What are you talking about? I’m restraining myself from hitting you right now.”
Startled by her threatening tone, Kersha shrank back. He had spent his entire life indoors reading books, never wielding a sword, and was genuinely terrified of his younger sister when she got angry.
“Engagement? Marriage? You scammer! You said it was a bet! Life reversal! Social climb! Why lie to your only little sister like that? Do you want to die?”
Violette, her face twisted in rage, grabbed his collar and shook him violently.
As his glasses slipped down his nose, Kersha quickly defended himself.
“I didn’t lie!”
“What?”
“I-it’s still a bet… though it’s not about money, it’s about life. And if you marry the young Duke Narsia, eventually you’ll become the duchess. What could be a bigger life reversal than that? And obviously, only one person can marry, so first come, first served…”
“Damn it!”
“Ugh!”
Violette, enraged to the tips of her hair, restrained herself from smacking her brother’s head hard.
Annoyingly, Kersha wasn’t wrong. In the end, she ruffled her own hair and shouted in a high voice,
“Argh! I’ll never drink again!”
In the end, everything was her own fault for getting so drunk.
“…Sigh. Did Father make you do this? Who else knows?”
With a deep sigh, Violette collapsed in defeat opposite Kersha and, without asking his permission, snatched the teacup in front of him and drank.
After a moment, Kersha answered slowly.
“Well… the Kegrainner Ducal House, me, Father, you, Roland, Sihna, Teri, Daisy, Rosa… and…”
When Violette realized he wasn’t stopping, she furrowed her brow in disbelief and asked,
“Wait a second, doesn’t that mean everyone in this house knows, except Hurain and me?”
“And Hurain…”
“Damn it!”
Violette slammed the table hard when she heard Hurain’s name. Even Hurain had been in on it with Father!
“How could they do this without even telling me, the one it concerns? How does that make sense? They should’ve given me a warning at least!”
“But your reaction was obvious. You’ve turned down every match before, haven’t you? Unless it was the Prince, you didn’t need it. And after you got into the casino, it completely stopped…”
Kersha added quickly, seeing her eye him suspiciously.
“Actually, Father sent out over thirty proposals recently. Only the Kegrainner Ducal House accepted. So Father couldn’t let this chance slip away…”
Violette’s eyebrows twitched.
“What? Over thirty proposals? I’m not sending a resume! People will think I’m obsessed with marriage! And only one accepted it—the Kegrainner Ducal House? That hurts my pride!”
“Honestly, it’s more surprising that a ducal house accepted. I didn’t think they would. Father just tried anyway. When we heard they accepted, we were shocked. What’s wrong with Narsia being engaged to someone like you? Of course, I think it’s such a waste that someone like you is being offered to them.”
Kersha had been talking without thinking, but seeing Violette’s glare, he quickly changed the subject.
But Violette still couldn’t understand. She touched her chin, bewildered.
“Why me? I’m pretty, wealthy, skilled in swordsmanship, smart, charming, talented…”
“Yeah, yeah. And you gamble, you drink, you fight, your personality’s rough, your speech is harsh. I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to marry you.”
“This is crazy. But I’m really popular! At a ball, men would line up just to go on a date with me!”
“They want to date you, but they don’t want to marry you, apparently.”
“Damn it…”
