My New Love That Isn’t Fated - Episode 3

The wardrobe room in the townhouse is filled with clothes that belonged to the women of the Griez family throughout history. For nobility, clothing is the most important thing. In high society, wearing the same dress twice is seen as something to be mocked. My father was especially cautious about this.

Lilia’s mother was the daughter of a duke, but her stepmother came from a commoner’s family. In high society, people are judged by their titles. In the past, marriages between nobility and commoners were not allowed. Even today, traces of that remain, and no matter how wealthy the Tillys family is, her stepmother is still looked down on because she came from a common background and, on top of that, was a second wife in a marriage considered to be one of usurpation.

To prevent her from being looked down upon, my father paid close attention to her clothing and accessories. Although my father was cold toward me, he had love for his wife.

In simple terms, it was like this: he loved his stepmother and didn’t love my mother.

(My father’s destiny was his stepmother. And my mother’s destiny was an unknown man.)

That was all there was to it.

(So, my destiny is…?)

It would probably be Elad.

Lately, Elad has been in a good mood. This is because Lilia has cleaned up their debts and now secretly gives him his daily allowance through the butler. She’s also done her research about horses, making sure Elad could place safe bets on races. The butler, casually mentioning it in conversation, had also helped Elad pick the right horses.

Elad probably dislikes it when Lilia tries to act too clever. So, she tries to avoid being too forward. She doesn’t necessarily expect to be loved by him, but she wants to maintain a good relationship with him.

“I should tidy up a bit more.”

The reason she was able to pay off the debts was because there were numerous expensive artworks, furniture, and jewels in the Griez family’s collection. After their marriage, Elad inherited the title of Marquis from the Griez family. This means that all the buying and selling of family assets is now under his control.

The previous members of the Griez family apparently didn’t touch these things. Even so, they had enough wealth to keep the household running smoothly because, in the past, the power of the nobility was stronger than it is now. Particularly, the Marquis family had a powerful military force. The past Marquises all had stern expressions in their portraits, often wearing armor.

The Kingdom of Rafal and the Kingdom of Everden share the island. Their constant disputes meant that nobility could gain more land and rewards from the king by achieving military victories. But that era is long gone. Peace has been made with the Kingdom of Everden, and the two countries even cooperated on developing railways.

The Griez family still holds on to the glory of those past days. It’s not a bad thing, but no one wears the outdated, ancient dresses anymore. They’re no longer of use. Elad had said she could sell them if she wanted.

Lilia sold the unnecessary items and kept the valuable furniture and artwork, using them to decorate and organize the house. Elad seemed to be satisfied with the beautiful, well-kept home.

She could feel he trusted her a little. Each time she sensed that, her heart warmed. Her efforts would surely be rewarded, she believed.

“The fabric of these old dresses is actually really good. Some of these fabrics aren’t even made anymore. They’re all very valuable. If I re-sew them, they could sell for a good price.”

Many of the dresses even had jewels sewn into them. There were probably some that could be sold for enough to buy a house.

“First, I’ll have them appraised… and if needed, it might be a good idea to sell them to a museum.”

It wouldn’t be wise to simply tear them apart and use the fabric. If they have value as antiques, they should be sold to the proper places and stored properly.

For now, Lilia wasn’t struggling with living expenses. There was income from taxes, and the debts were gone. She could take her time with the dresses. Gently, she ran her hand over the old wedding dress, which had small diamonds sewn into it.

“Lilia, you were here?”

Lilia was startled when she heard a voice behind her. She turned around to see Elad standing there. It was rare for him to return home while it was still light out.

Lately, when he came home early, it was mostly after Lilia had already gone to sleep. On nights when he came home late, it was sometimes after midnight, or even near dawn. And, as usual, he was sober tonight.

“Welcome back, husband.”

“Ah, I’m back.”

“Your horse’s name is Spica, right? A pure white horse with a black stripe on its forehead. It’s a beautiful horse. Congratulations.”

“You know a lot, Lilia.”

“I asked one of the maids. There’s so much I don’t know, so I’ve been learning from everyone.”

“I see… You’re working hard as my wife.”

Elad said this somewhat bashfully, then took something out from behind his back. It gave off a soft, sweet fragrance.

“It’s not much, but this is for you.”

“Wow… Thank you, husband. They’re so beautiful. I’m so happy.”

When he handed her the bouquet of red roses, Lilia’s heart filled with joy. She put the notebook she had been writing the dress types in on the shelf and took the roses.

The language of red roses is “I love you,” but maybe there was no such meaning behind it. Even so, it was the first time someone had given her such a wonderful gift.

“I’m so happy… Elad, I really…”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she blushed, and Elad gently pulled her waist toward him. He kissed her lips with passion, hiding himself between the folds of her dress.

Caught up in the passionate kiss, Lilia grabbed his clothes.

It’s okay. I won’t turn out like my mother.

She was certain that her fate was with him—Elad.