A Marriage Alliance for Revenge - Chapter 41

The moonlit winter night, concealing its form, was silent and lengthy.

 

Yet, beneath the small flickering light, stories of Briella flowed incessantly from the gathered people’s lips.

 

In the words of the knights who had fought, moments of Briella’s bravery were recounted.

 

Her actions, never letting go of Lady Eve until the end, inspired the watching knights to summon forth another kind of courage.

 

“So after all that, that night. She was there, directing all of it?”

 

A woman sewing looked up.

 

Winter night.

 

The tasks that women could undertake were exceedingly few.

 

Especially if it was a village not far from a rebellion and battle with insurgents, then it was even more so.

 

“I thought being a duchess would be scary and difficult.”

 

The woman, pausing her sewing, sighed softly and gazed out into the dark window.

 

Having settled for a meager supper of thin soup, her stomach felt hollow.

 

Even after finishing work and taking care of her husband and child, there was scarcely anything left for her own share.

 

“Still no word from the inn?”

 

The woman clutching her stomach asked Emma cautiously.

 

Emma stopped sewing and nodded slowly.

 

“Do you think the Duchess will be here tomorrow?”

 

“I don’t know.”

 

At Emma’s words, everyone looked at each other with anxious expressions.

 

While the peasants of Perta spent their night in hunger and unease, Eve’s night was tranquil and leisurely.

 

“Tomorrow, I will bake bread to distribute to the peasants myself, so please prepare for that.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

In surprise at Eve’s words, Lady Lawrence stared at her.

 

The day had been spent in a flurry, identifying the items brought from the palace.

 

If the usage was not clear, then upon returning to the palace, there would surely be inquiries.

 

Eve Ferena would be provided immunity, so it wouldn’t be a significant issue. But what about herself?

 

Countess Lawrence swallowed dryly at the cold sweat trickling down her back.

 

“‥‥‥My lady.”

 

Countess Lawrence called softly to Eve.

 

Eve, who had been rolling around on the bed with nothing to do, turned at her call.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

“There’s something wrong with the ledger that lists the items.”

 

“Oh, well, we’ll have to make a new one.”

 

In response to Eve’s reply, Lady Lawrence closed her eyes tightly.

 

If things continued like this, all responsibility would fall back on her.

 

Furthermore, in Perta, one could never predict when the rain might come again.

 

If the grains brought were to get wet, it would be a disaster.

 

“It would be wise to summon Duchess Viterpan.”

 

At Lady Lawrence’s words, Eve, who had been fluffing the pillow, set it down and looked at her.

 

“…Is it truly necessary to summon Lady Viterpan?”

 

An unknown emotion surfaced on Eve’s face as she tilted her head inquisitively.

 

Eve gazed down at her own hands in silence.

 

On the night of the landslide, it was Briella who had held her hand.

 

And it wasn’t just that.

 

Even when descending to the village with Hessel’s help, Briella had embraced her as she rolled down the hill.

 

Eve had owed her life to Briella twice.

 

“Did she truly save me?”

 

“What?”

 

In response to Eve’s murmuring, Lady Lawrence, harbored doubts.

 

“Do you think she will really help me?”

 

As Eve’s clear question met Lawrence, the Countess’s visage became tinged with contemplation.
 

 

“Would you believe me if I told you the time had come?”

 

 

 

In an instant, Countess Lawrence’s mind flashed back to her private conversation with Briella.

 

As she waited, her voice echoed in her ears, telling her to make one if she didn’t come.

 

“I see. The Duchess Viterpan will be of much help to Lady Eve.”

 

Eve’s eyes fluttered at the high-minded Lady Lawrence’s words.

 

“…Yes. Duchess Viterpan will surely offer much aid to Lady Eve.”

 

In the evenly spoken words of Lady Lawrence, Eve’s pupils trembled.

 

“Do you truly think she will help me?”

 

Eve’s large eyes dimmed slightly to the side.

 

In response to Eve’s doubtful gaze, Lady Lawrence, inclined her head slightly and lowered her eyes.

 

As discreetly as possible.

 

“…Yes. Isn’t she walking a path akin to Lady Eve’s?”

 

At Lady Lawrence’s words, Eve’s eyes widened.

 

A fleeting hint of anger flashed in her eyes, which had raised like a cat’s.

 

“Is she walking a path similar to mine?”

 

In a sharp voice, Lady Lawrence tightly closed her eyes.

 

Her tightly hunched shoulders trembled slightly.

 

With a cautious voice, Lady Lawrence, her nerves taut, opened her mouth.

 

“From a northern village girl to a Countess. Among the nobles, Duchess Viterpan is a subject of ridicule, but among the common folk, she is a topic of fascination.”

 

“What?”

 

In a voice that was now more relaxed than before, Lady Lawrence exhaled somewhat comfortably.

 

“To them, Duchess Viterpan is simply a woman who has won love.”

 

 

 

“Do not wait for the world to change, but rather change the world.”

 

 

 

Briella’s voice echoed in her ears.

 

 

 

“Gain the trust of the imperial citizens, not just the nobility. Become an Empress whom the imperial citizens embrace.”

 

 

 

It was a conversation shared between the two during their private time.

 

“…If we must delve into it, a woman who was once in the common-folk’s position became a Duchess overnight. She became an object of admiration, not of jealousy.”

 

At Lady Lawrence’s composed voice, Eve, who was sitting on the bed, descended.

 

Wearing pink fur-lined slippers, Eve approached the darkened window.

 

The faint light seeping through the window and the murmuring noise seemed to flow incessantly from somewhere.

 

“I shall go first.”

 

“What?”

 

“The one who should occupy that position should be me, not Duchess Viterpan.”

 

Eve’s voice, ringing pure and clear, carried within it a deep-seated ambition.

 

The desires pressing in from all sides were suffocating, on the verge of stealing one’s breath

 

“If you must, use the Duchess Viterpan as a shield.”

 

Countess Lawrence’s words caused Eve’s gaze from the window to turn to her.

 

“‥‥‥So we’re talking on the same page.”

 

Eve’s lips, red like crimson velvet, curved into a subtle smile as she spoke.

 

Brushing aside hair that seemed to carry the scent of roses, Eve turned to Lady Lawrence.

 

“Where might Duchess Viterpan be?”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

It was a dawn faintly breaking, casting its gentle light.

 

Eve, clad in a robe turned inside out, walked alongside Lady Lawrence, followed by knights from the palace, their path cutting through the morning mist.

 

Their destination was clear.

 

“Duchess Viterpan truly is a peculiar one,” remarked Eve, stifling a yawn as they strode forward.

 

It was Eve who insisted on seeking out rather than sending for assistance.

 

She still harbored suspicions regarding Briella and Lucas.

 

“There it is.”

 

As they quickened their pace, the sun was already rising by the time they reached the farm where Briella and Lucas resided.

 

Upon spotting the farmhouse, Eve stepped forward.

 

“What are those?”

 

Without hesitation, Eve flung open the door, eyeing the baskets sporadically placed in the garden.

 

“Lady Eve!”

 

Ignoring Lady Lawrence’s cry from behind, Eve disappeared into the farmhouse.

 

Lady Lawrence hurriedly followed Eve inside.

 

As Eve stepped decisively into the room, her hand on the door latch, the door swung open.

 

“Eek!”

 

Unexpectedly, someone had opened the door before her, prompting Eve to let out a light scream before composing herself.

 

“What is it?”

 

Lucas, half-awake, gazed down at Eve with his upper body revealed.

 

“I’ve come to see Duchess Viterpan.”

 

Eve’s voice, strained to suppress her nerves, sounded awkward.

 

Only then did Lucas seem to recognize the figure before him, furrowing his brows slightly.

 

“Quite a rude visit, Lady Eve.”

 

“Urgent matters, you see. Where is Duchess Viterpan?”

 

Watching Eve’s restless movements and wide eyes scanning the room, Lucas chuckled softly.

 

“Shall you disturb the newlyweds’ honeymoon?”

 

Before Lucas could finish speaking, a rustling sound emerged from the room, as if signaling a response.

 

Turning slightly, Lucas, standing before the door, revealed Briella, her bare shoulders visible as she gazed at Eve from the bed, arranging the covers.

 

“Ah, it seems I have transgressed.”

 

In Eve’s seemingly nonchalant turn of her body, jealousy blazed fiercely in her eyes.

 

The look in Eve’s eyes was so different from Briella’s usual one.

 

Blushing like one who had just watered roses, her cheeks aglow, and her long eyelashes quivered slightly above her eyes, lowered to avoid Eve’s gaze.

 

It was a clear display of embarrassment.

 

A woman smitten with love.

 

Strangely, that sight seemed to irk Eve’s eyes.

 

“Are you going to keep watching?”

 

“I’ll wait outside.”

 

At Eve’s stubborn words, Lucas let out a hollow laugh.

 

As Eve turned to leave, Lucas’s laughter made her pause in her steps.

 

“Lord Viterpan. What is the meaning behind that laughter?”

 

At the bold inquiry, Lucas gave Eve a piercing look.

 

“I am contemplating how far I should tolerate Lady Eve, who intrudes without permission into the domain where the Duke of Rhone Empire resides.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“I wonder how the people of the Rhone Empire view a woman, even if she is the Emperor’s only lady, who disregards etiquette and makes such arrogant demands.”

 

A gulp.

 

Upon Lucas’s words, Eve swallowed dryly.

 

A silence so heavy that it felt like you could hear a pin drop pressed down on the aged farmhouse.

 

“That, that is…”

 

“Is it curiosity? Jealousy? Or perhaps admiration for something unattainable?”

 

As Lucas leisurely closed the door where Briella was, Eve bit her lip.

 

Eve felt a sense of desolation in Lucas’s actions, always considerate of Briella to the end.

 

Though she held the Rose Palace of the Ron Empire from the squalid alleyways, it was a consideration she had never once received from Gusto.

 

“The Duchess has just risen. It seems Lady Eve’s abrupt intrusion has startled her.”

 

“…”

 

“It would be best to return to the inn.”

 

“But didn’t you say it was urgent?”

 

In vain was her offense. Eve knew all too well that it was mere vanity.

 

Yet, whether vanity or arrogance, she did not wish to retreat from this place now.

 

“Lady Eve… You seem to be under a misapprehension, but this is not a request. As the Duke of Rhone Empire, I am issuing you a command.”

 

At Lucas’s words, Eve’s face paled.

 

A command.

 

Apart from Gusto, there was no one else who could command Eve.

 

Gusto had never directly used the word “command” towards Eve.

 

Her golden eyes trembled with anger.

 

“What is this? Not paying respects to a lady.”

 

Lucas did not look at Eve.

 

There was no sign of Eve in his dark eyes.

 

He merely frowned in annoyance at the situation and looked at Countess Lawrence.

 

As if urging to quickly resolve it.

 

“Duke Viterpan. You will soon regret this.”

 

“For what? Ah, you do not intend to handle this alone again.”

 

Eve gritted her teeth at the downward gaze and the sly smile on Lucas’s lips.

 

“…”

 

As Eve remained silent, Lucas, who had been observing her for a moment, slowly spoke.

 

The cool morning air crept in stealthily through a window left ajar somewhere.

 

The cold air that enveloped from below made it feel like sinking into a dense swamp.

 

Memories of a desperate and miserable time whirled in Eve’s mind.

 

A step back felt like falling into that abyss of terror.

 

‘Never. I will become the Empress.’

 

Eve clenched her fist and looked up at Lucas.

 

“I seem to have committed a grave offense against Duke Viterpan. Please forgive this ignorant person’s mistake with grace.”

 

‘Just wait. You too will kneel at my feet.’

 

Bowing before Lucas, Eve suppressed the anger within her.

 

Eve’s anger became another driving force that moved her.

 

When she thought about the future of becoming a queen, she could endure the current humiliation indefinitely.

 

“…”

 

The face of Eve, now lifted up again, was suddenly as usual.

 

“I will properly apologize to Lady Viterpan later. Then.”

 

Eve turned away.

 

But Lucas clearly saw that the hem of the well-dressed dress had been crumpled in Eve’s hand.

 

As the door closed, the sound of footsteps from the people faded away from the farmhouse where they stayed.

 

“Sigh… It’s over.”

 

Lucas opened the door where Briella was.

 

Briella, who was now fully dressed, stood in front of the door.

 

“If Emma hadn’t informed me beforehand, it could have been a disaster.”

 

Briella cast her eyes down.

 

The knights of Sir Sergel were monitoring the surroundings of the farmhouse, but they could not prevent Eve’s visit.

 

Their task was to protect Lucas and Briella from assassins.

 

“Do you know Lady Eve very well?”

 

“Well…”

 

Briella approached the open window.

 

She caught sight of Eve’s procession returning to the inn in the distance.

 

Do you know Eve well?

 

At Lucas’s question, Briella pondered.

 

Since the moment she mocked and ridiculed herself in Gusto’s arms, she had neither said nor done anything.

 

She ignored and turned away from all those nonsensical actions, relying on the dignity and discretion of a queen.

 

Externally, she appeared so, but internally, she could not.

 

It was Briella who had the reins of the imperial household in her hands.

 

She was the one who meticulously handled the expenses of the Rose Palace more than anyone else.

 

“Regardless of what has happened, one thing is certain: we have become a pair of deceivers.”

 

At Lucas’s words coming from behind, Briella’s shoulders flinched.