Chapter : 14
Of course, Charlotte had not liked Alfonso from the very beginning.
If anything, it had been closer to dislike.
Considering that their marriage itself had not begun smoothly, it was perhaps only natural.
Above all, Alfonso was exactly the kind of person Charlotte hated the most.
A man who was so upright and honest that it was almost frustrating.
A man who always treated with courtesy the wife he detested— the one who had framed him with a scandal and forced him into a marriage he never wanted.
It was enough that even Quincy once said this:
“Apparently the Duke of Eduart is very affectionate toward you, Charle. I’ve even heard rumors in Noha that the two of you have a harmonious marriage.”
Charlotte scoffed at that.
“Choose your words carefully, Quincy. It’s not that our marriage is harmonious. The story going around is about how devoted the Duke of Eduart is to his wife.”
“That’s not entirely wrong, is it? The whole social circle is buzzing that he bought several bolts of silk that just arrived from overseas for you. If you make new clothes from them, be sure to show me.”
“Unfortunately, I can’t show you. I burned them all.”
The silks Alfonso had bought were indeed delivered to Charlotte.
Not by his own hand, but through a servant.
In truth, receiving things from him wasn’t a first.
Every time the calendar was about to be turned to a new month, Alfonso would always send someone with various fine gifts for Charlotte.
Who would believe that this was the behavior of a man who found it so dreadful to even face his wife that he never set foot in her bedroom?
It wasn’t hard to guess what Alfonso was thinking.
He probably believed that this was the minimum duty he had to fulfill as a husband.
Even while he himself never once appeared before her.
So Charlotte threw that “duty” straight into the fireplace.
“I don’t need that filthy hypocrisy.”
“The Duke of Eduart must have been heartbroken.”
“Heartbroken? Please.”
He knew perfectly well that every single gift he sent had been burned.
Yet he never said a single word about it.
A hypocritical pretender.
Just recalling it made her stomach churn again, so Charlotte said with contempt,
“That man simply knows what’s most beneficial in the way he treats me.”
Even looking back now, Charlotte’s judgment at the time hadn’t been wrong.
Alfonso had simply been doing the best he could for Charlotte.
Regardless of whether she burned his gifts or not, every time a new month came around he would obtain the finest items he could and send them to her.
He probably doesn’t want the reputation of Eduart to be stained just because he hates me so much.
Because the marriage between Alfonso and Charlotte had been so scandalous, people were always paying attention to the Duke and Duchess of Eduart.
Charlotte herself didn’t care if rumors spread that their marriage was terrible, but Alfonso—being the Duke of Eduart—surely couldn’t allow that.
That was probably why he worked so diligently at it.
Even if problems arose, he would at least be able to say he had done his best.
Of course, Charlotte didn’t think the act itself was bad.
If it had been anyone other than Alfonso, she would probably have been grateful for that kindness and effort.
If only the other person hadn’t been Alfonso—the one who hated me so terribly.
Alfonso was someone who couldn’t help but hate her, someone whose entire being declared that he disliked her.
The unwanted marriage.
The stiff expression on his face whenever they occasionally met.
The way he deliberately avoided her gaze.
His disgust and contempt were so blatant it was almost laughable.
And yet, despite that, he extended kindness in the name of “duty.”
It’s not like he’s mocking me.
If she accepted those hypocritical gifts, he would surely look down on her.
Who would willingly make themselves that pitiful?
“Anyway, he’ll stop before long. That kind of hypocrisy.”
Once people lost interest in the Duke and Duchess of Eduart, and once Alfonso himself thought he had done enough, this half-hearted performance would come to an end.
And then Alfonso would be able to comfortably justify his hatred.
Convincing himself that he had done his best even for such a dreadful villainess.
When that happens, will he finally frown at me openly?
If that happened, she would smile brightly at him.
And tell him she had been curious how long he intended to keep pretending to be kind.
Then this suffocating feeling will probably disappear too.
Even the strange heaviness in her chest that hadn’t vanished after burning all those silks.
Even the discomfort she felt whenever she saw Alfonso.
It would all disappear as if it had never existed in the first place.
Charlotte had been certain that day would come before even a single season had passed.
But even after a season went by…
After the newly sprouted leaves had withered and dried…
Until the very moment before Alfonso died, whenever the calendar turned, gifts continued to pile up in Charlotte’s room.
Only one thing had changed.
Charlotte no longer doubted Alfonso’s sincerity.
It had happened before even a full season had passed after their marriage.
* * *
I suddenly started thinking about the past.
It was late at night, and the banquet was in full swing.
Standing by the railing, Charlotte quietly gazed toward the interior of the ballroom.
A hint of regret lingered in her eyes as she looked at it.
Perhaps it was because she knew that after this outing, she wouldn’t be attending events like this for quite some time.
Or maybe it’s because the time I’ve come back to is too boring.
Until recently she had been busy moving around, trying to interfere with Alfonso’s broken engagement.
There had been no time to feel bored.
Now there was nothing left to do but avoid Alfonso and repeat the same moments from the past.
Perhaps it was only natural.
For example… a situation like this.
The place Charlotte was currently standing was the Alois family estate.
Attending the banquet held here was her only schedule for the day.
It seemed simple, but for Noha, it was an extremely important event.
Because Father has been coveting one of the old lady’s prized possessions here for a long time.
The Alois family wasn’t particularly high in status, but they were enormously wealthy, and rumors circulated quietly that the list of artifacts in their possession was staggering.
However, only a very small number of people—including the old lady, the Alois family’s only direct descendant, and her grandson—were allowed to see those collections.
And Dominic had long been working behind the scenes to obtain those treasures.
Of course, I’m the one actually doing the work.
Charlotte’s role in Noha generally fell into two categories.
Creating public opinion by dragging scandals along with her.
Or approaching a target using her eloquence and beauty.
In simple terms, bait.
Either way, it was a structure that could never produce a good reputation.
The infamous title of “Noha’s villainess” had been created in exactly that way.
And Noha had actively used Charlotte like that—just as they were doing now.
—Information has come in that Alois possesses a relic of the fallen Laberhne Dynasty.
—Laberhne… you mean the dynasty from several hundred years ago?
—Yes. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that every nation on this continent originated from that dynasty. At present, the Temple holds greater power than any country… but even it cannot surpass Laberhne.
As it happened, the current emperor, Benoit III, already held rapidly strengthening imperial authority.
If the relic of Laberhne were to fall into his hands, granting him even greater legitimacy…
Then it would be inevitable that the Temple would lose its current overwhelming authority.
And Noha, which stood behind the Temple, would also fall swiftly.
—The relic of Laberhne must absolutely fall into the Temple’s hands. Therefore, approach Alois, Charlotte.
For that reason, Charlotte had been following Dominic’s orders and had spent the past several months building a relationship with the Alois family.
Though since returning to the past, her enthusiasm had waned because of Alfonso.
Still, I can’t ignore a banquet at the Alois estate.
If she missed an event of this scale, it would certainly reach Dominic’s ears.
She still hadn’t fulfilled her resolve to make Alfonso happy, so she couldn’t afford to fall out with her family yet.
As a result, Charlotte had no choice but to come out tonight.
At least one good thing is that Alfonso definitely won’t come to this banquet today.
He was supposed to attend the banquet of the Laberuze family tonight and meet Adeline there.
It had been the same in the past, and even before coming here she had confirmed it several times through Sylvia.
Thanks to that, Charlotte had been able to come to the Alois estate with peace of mind.
Though that didn’t change the fact that she had to spend an unbearably boring time.
In fact, most of the reason for her boredom was the man standing right next to her—Rohan Alois, the grandson of the Alois matriarch.
He was trying so hard to impress Charlotte that he refused to leave her side.
“…So then I fired the gun, and it hit the marten right in the eye. Because it struck its eye, I used the creature for my grandmother’s scarf—… Are you listening, Lady Noha?”
“Of course. It’s absolutely thrilling.”
She felt like she might die of boredom.
I already know all these exaggerated stories…
But then—
“…?”
At some point, the entrance of the ballroom became noisy.
The banquet was already in full swing, so everyone who was supposed to arrive had already come.
What’s going on?
Curious, Charlotte turned her gaze toward the entrance.
And her body suddenly stiffened.
Because she saw the cause of the commotion.
A silver-haired man, at least a head taller than most others.
Alfonso?
Why on earth was he here?
