I, Reincarnate as the Leader of the Villainous Knight Order - Chapter 161: Engagement Formalized

Chapter 161: Engagement Formalized 

On the final day of my leave. The meeting between the Vandière Marquis family and the Charette Count family was somehow arranged to take place at the royal castle. 

It seemed this was to allow His Majesty to sign off on the engagement immediately upon its confirmation. 

For the royal family, this essentially meant gaining control of a vassal who had contracts with two dragons. 

It was a way of ensuring that I—or rather, this power—would not end up in another country’s hands. 

As for me, I had no intention of leaving this country unless it was dictated by divine will. 

But given that such a divine decree had been issued, it must mean I am needed outside the kingdom. 

Though I hope it’s not a situation where I have to vanquish some world-destroying Evil God… again. 

When I arrived at the royal castle, one of the king’s attendants approached and said: 

“Commander of the Vandière Knights, your parents have already arrived.” 

I was then escorted to a reception room near His Majesty’s office. It was where my parents were already seated. 

“Father, Mother, thank you for coming all the way to the capital.” 

Although I was independent as a count, I hadn’t severed ties with my family. And their presence was still necessary for matters of marriage. 

“You’ve done well defeating that Evil God. Were you hurt?” 

“No. I wasn’t completely unscathed, but my injuries were minor and healed quickly.” 

Though our exchange was somewhat formal, it seemed my parents were genuinely concerned for me. It was natural given the opponent was an Evil God. 

As we spoke, a maid placed a teacup for me beside my mother. 

It was only natural for me to sit there, given the occasion. But I’d never sat next to her before. Which made it incredibly awkward. 

The sofa was a three-seater, spacious enough. But I sat stiffly beside her and took a sip of tea to calm my nerves. 

Seeing this, my father smiled as he looked at the two of us. 

“When I see you like this, it’s clear how much you resemble each other. I thought the same when you returned to the territory recently. But your expression has softened quite a bit, Justin. Is it thanks to the Charette family’s young lady?” 

“…!” 

I almost spat out my tea. 

If my expression had softened, it was likely due to the influence of my memories from a previous life. 

But if my father wanted to think it was due to Annabella, I had no reason to correct him. 

“That might be true,” 

I replied with a polite smile. 

Just then, the reception room door opened. And in walked the Charette Count couple, along with a bashful Annabella who was avoiding eye contact. 

Wait, could they have overheard what we just said!? 

“Excuse us; the Charette family has arrived.”

Shouldn’t that have been said *before* opening the door? 

Was this deliberate? He looked like he was suppressing a laugh. 

“It’s been a while, Marquis Vandière, Lady Caroline.” 

“Ah, Count Charette, it’s good to see you in good health… Lady Leticia.” 

Huh? Something in my father’s tone felt off. 

The reason became clear almost immediately. 

“It’s been ages, Leti. Was it since the tea party for the Saintess’ debut?” 

“Indeed! All thanks to someone dragging Caroline off to a territory far from the capital. Oh, by the way, let me introduce my daughter, Annabella.” 

“This is our first meeting. I am Annabella. Please call me Annabella.” 

“???” 

Though the greetings proceeded smoothly, I was utterly confused. 

What’s going on? Do our parents know each other? 

“Um, it seems you didn’t know, Justin. I only learned recently myself, but my mother and Marchioness Vandière were friends from their academy days.” 

“I see….…” 

Annabella noticed my confusion and explained the situation. 

It seemed that my mother and Lady Charette had been close friends. But because my father took my mother away from the capital, Lady Charette held a grudge against him. 

Meanwhile, my father felt awkward around Lady Charette because of this animosity. 

Well, this engagement was already shaping up to be more complicated than I expected. 

“No, no, I can’t be called a marchioness! You can just call me ‘mother-in-law,’ you know? Thanks to you, I’ll be able to become a relative of Leticia.” 

“I’m so happy to become a relative of Caroline too! When the Commander of the Vandière Knights came to greet us, he looked so much like you that I almost couldn’t stop smiling. But Stefan insisted we keep it a secret. He was saying that if I told you that I welcomed you as your mother from the start, it would make things awkward.” 

Indeed, if her mother had said she accepted me just because we were close, it might have made things feel a bit complicated. 

In fact, with such a warm welcome, I couldn’t help but wonder if things would become difficult if I ever called off the engagement. 

“Um… Mother-in-law, please, just call me Justin.” 

“Oh, my! Thank you! From now on, I’ll call you Justin. Hehe, I’m so happy to have such a wonderful son!” 

“Ahem. It seems there are no objections from either side. Now let’s sign the approval form for both families.”

It seemed my father was left behind by the happy chattering of the women. He cleared his throat and signed the document. 

Count Charette, Annabella, and I also signed. And once His Majesty’s signature was added, the engagement was officially confirmed. 

A maid who had been waiting quickly summoned an attendant. She came back with the signed document, confirming the engagement with His Majesty’s signature. 

“Annabella, I’ll do my best to ensure you won’t regret this.” 

“I’ll do my best too. Thank you.” 

“Yes, I intend to give it my all.” 

Perhaps, it wasn’t such a bad idea to go through with the marriage. 

Maybe it was because Annabella was the one I was marrying. 

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Next: Leaving the Country Soon!