TTPD 10

Chapter 10

The Reason for Marriage (10)

Every moment, her mother’s final image resurfaced.

She could still vividly see the way her mother had lain beneath the temple spire, sprawled carelessly, slowly being buried under falling snow.

‘And the way you all looked down at her so coldly.’

Edith politely moved her fork and glanced at Wyatt Reynolds, the marquess, and Mateo—both of whom had been there that day.

She wished Lillian were here too, but now the Countess of Tidore, she rarely visited the estate.

“Well then, did you have a pleasant time with the Duke of Myers?”

Ever since her marriage to Grayson had been settled, the marquess had been smiling constantly.

Edith had resolved to humor him until the day she finally left this house, so she returned his smile smoothly as she answered.

“Yes, we had a perfectly pleasant time.”

Sitting beside the marquess, Julia muttered with a sulky expression.

“Sure, you probably had a great time. His Grace must’ve had a miserable one.”

Julia Seymour was around Edith’s age, but she had married Wyatt Reynolds—a man old enough to be her father—for a reason.

‘The Seymour family’s gold mine is drying up.’

As Julia cast her unpleasant gaze at Edith, she remembered those very words written in her mother’s diary.

Julia had concealed the fact that her family’s gold mine was running empty, while the marquess—unaware—was busy devising various business plans relying on the Seymour mines.

Now that Edith understood their relationship was built on deception, concealment, and mutual exploitation, she found it somewhat entertaining to watch.

‘You must envy me, Julia. Unlike you, who had to marry an old man for your family’s sake, I at least get to marry the Duke of Myers.’

Four years ago, Count Seymour had brought his daughter Julia directly to the Marquess of Reynolds.

He claimed he wished for his daughter to enter the capital’s social circle and hoped the marquess’s household could guide her.

‘The box Count Seymour brought was filled with gold bars of the highest purity.’

The massive dowry instantly secured Julia’s position in the Reynolds household.

The marquess cherished her so much that—even while Eliana was still alive—he brought Julia into his own bed chamber.

Reynolds Marquis’ favorite, Julia, strutted through the household as if she were already the marchioness.

She even treated Eliana—the real marchioness—as though she were her own personal maid.

Neither the marquis nor his children pretended to notice Julia’s misconduct.

Unlike Eliana, who had nothing, Julia was useful to them.

When Edith discovered, through her mother’s journal, the secret Julia had been hiding, she briefly considered telling the marquis immediately. But in the end, she decided, ‘Not yet.’

‘There must be a reason Mother couldn’t use all the secrets she knew.’

Living in the Reynolds household without her mother, Edith came to understand that reason all too well.

Reynolds’ eyes were everywhere, and Edith—who had no power—could never be free from those watchful gazes.

Her testimony had even less weight than a third-rate tabloid article; she doubted she could even ruffle the marquis’ collar.

And so, despite knowing many secrets, Eliana hadn’t been able to act on anything—and up until now, neither had Edith.

“Edith.”

At Mateo’s voice, she snapped out of her thoughts.

He looked at her with his usual serious expression.

“Even if the wedding date has been set, if you don’t behave prudently, they may break off the engagement. So don’t do anything that gives them an excuse. Behave obediently.”

“Yes, Brother. I’ll be careful.”

When Edith replied meekly, Matteo’s wife, Yullie, glanced at her.

Her expression seemed to ask, ‘Why is she suddenly acting so docile?’ Edith simply smiled back before moving her fork again.

“You’re definitely going to be dumped.”

Frederick’s voice, coming from beside her, was easy enough to ignore.

“Grayson would never let a woman like you into the ducal estate. Right now he’s only pretending to accept the engagement, but he’ll definitely look for a chance to break it. You’re not stupid enough to think he couldn’t do that, right?”

“Stop talking nonsense, Frederick! Your sister is getting married into a good family—that’s what you have to say to her?”

The marquis, who was more delighted about this engagement than anyone else, yelled in Edith’s defense.

Frederick curled his lips into a nasty smirk.

“Sister? She’s never been my sister, not even once. And Father, do you really think Grayson accepted this marriage? If so, you should change your mind. That b*stard is not someone who’s easy to handle.”

“Frederick!”

Frederick slammed his fork on the table, stood up, and said,

“I’ve lost my appetite.”

“How dare you behave like this in front of your father? Sit.”

Matteo scolded him sharply, but as usual, Frederick didn’t listen and stormed out of the dining room.

After an awkward silence, the marquis finally spoke.

“Edith. You’re meeting Duke Myers again, yes?”

“Yes.”

The marquis let out a groan.

He rubbed the space between his brows as if troubled.

“You didn’t say anything unnecessary to him, did you?”

“What do you mean by unnecessary…?”

Edith knew exactly what he meant, but she pretended not to.

The marquis opened his mouth, then shut it again, apparently thinking it inappropriate to speak further in front of Yullie.

“It’s nothing.”

Edith smiled inwardly.

The marquis, trusting the promises exchanged with the king, was certain this marriage could never be broken.

He must have realized only after hearing Frederick’s words.

That if Duke Myers wished to, he could break this marriage by whatever means he chose.

Just who was Grayson Riley Myers?

He graduated at the top of his class from the royal academy of the scholarly Marei Kingdom in just five years, resolved a major conflict with Edess before he even reached adulthood, and now ran the most famous department store on the continent.

A man like that would never proceed with an unwanted marriage just because the king commanded it—a thought that had finally occurred to Marquis Reynolds.

Edith quietly enjoyed watching the marquis’ face turn red and pale in cycles.

After a long moment of thought, he suddenly raised his head and glared at her.

“You didn’t behave rudely in front of the duke, did you?”

“What do you mean by rude…?”

“Answer me!”

Marquis Reynolds slammed both hands on the table.

It seemed he had given up trying to pretend he was a good father.

Mateo glanced at Yullie and whispered something to her; Yullie responded with a cold smile before rising and leaving the dining room first.

Edith watched her walk away with an air of indifference, then turned back to the marquis and answered calmly.

“As I said earlier, I spent a perfectly pleasant time. Nothing happened.”

“The problem is that you had a pleasant time! What about Duke Myers? Did he seem to have any affection for you?”

Well. For that man, usefulness mattered far more than human affection.

Edith tilted her head slightly.

“Maybe a little.”

“…Right. Your face is decent enough, so even a man pretending to be aloof might be momentarily tempted. But Edith, just having a pretty face isn’t enough to win a man’s heart.”

“Of course not. I’m well aware of that.”

As she answered, Edith cast a sidelong glance at Julia.

Julia shot up from her seat, face flushed.

“Why are you looking at me?”

Julia, who had always felt inferior about her looks compared to Eliana—who was in her forties—reacted exactly the way Edith intended.

The marquis glared sharply at Julia.

“Can’t you stay quiet?”

“But she—”

“I said stay quiet!”

For the marquis, nothing mattered more than Edith’s marriage to Grayson.

Julia’s feelings didn’t concern him in the slightest.

Red-faced, Julia alternated between glaring at the marquis and Edith before storming out of the dining room.

The marquis ignored Julia entirely and continued staring straight at Edith.

“Edith. Think carefully. This marriage benefits you far more than it benefits me. Under no circumstances should this marriage be broken.”

“Of course. I know Father brought me a very good match.”

“Good. The wedding must be completed without any incident. Understood?”

“Naturally. But Father… what happens after the wedding?”

“What?”

“After the wedding, if His Grace grows tired of me and decides to divorce me, what should we do then?”

At that moment, Edith clearly saw the marquis’s eyes tremble.