Chapter: 14
Whether he was aware of Renia’s feelings or not, Kallius’s voice ringing in her ears was surprisingly gentle.
“Close your eyes, ma’am. You don’t need to be that nervous.”
“W-wait a moment. I’m not mentally prepared yet.”
“It’ll be fine. It’ll be over quickly.”
“Ah….”
Soon after, a much softer and longer kiss than yesterday followed.
Renia shuddered at the sweet sensation that sent a tingling shock down her spine and tightly shut her eyes.
“By the authority of the gods, I hereby solemnly declare that the marriage between these two has been fulfilled. Congratulations!”
Clap, clap, clap.
Applause poured from the people inside the temple, but Renia still couldn’t quite regain her senses.
“I’ll be counting on you from now on, my wife.”
“Huh? Y-yes…. Me too.”
What an absent-minded reply that was.
Consumed by self-loathing, Renia hung her head low.
‘Get a grip. How long are you going to stay dazed like this!’
She had survived alone in the underworld all this time, going through countless hardships.
Wasn’t she someone who remained calm and composed even in extreme danger?
Yet she felt strangely disoriented only in front of Kallius, unfamiliar even to herself—but she couldn’t keep going on like this, completely out of sorts.
“…To be honest, let me ask you something. Kallius, are you maybe in the same line of work as me? Or some Casanova from around here?”
“As I said before, I’m a mercenary. I mostly participated in conflicts or worked as private soldiers for nobles. I haven’t been back to the Empire for long.”
“‘Back,’ huh.”
Then it seems certain he was originally from the Empire.
“Then I suppose it’s about time we leave. Now that we’ve got the marriage certificate, there’s no need to stay in this city any longer.”
“We can’t leave today. We still need to erase traces of our stay in this city, and handle the aftermath of the arranged meeting.”
“Aftermath?”
“I need to meet the madam and silence her about the fact that I requested the arrangement. I also need to destroy related documents.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. I already took care of it.”
What exactly had he done?
When Renia looked at him in confusion, Kallius simply shrugged as if it were nothing.
“How do you think I was able to find you by knowing the exact time and place of the arrangement? The madam was very cooperative.”
So that’s why things felt off.
She should have noticed when every man sent as her “match” was of such low caliber.
It meant Kallius and the madam were in cahoots.
“More precisely, I used the madam. Anyway, you won’t be seeing that matchmaking agency again in this city. Ah, and the madam as well.”
“What? What did you do to her….”
“Shh. Don’t ask in detail. I don’t want to say anything unpleasant in front of my lovely wife.”
At that moment, a dangerous smile appeared on Kallius’s face.
Feeling cold sweat run down her neck, Renia let out a small groan.
‘Poor madam… If only she had kept her credibility with me, she wouldn’t have ended up like that.’
Even Renia, despite being a professional, did not destroy the livelihoods of ordinary people.
In the end, the madam had simply paid the price for deceiving her clients and accepting overlapping contracts.
Returning to the townhouse, the two packed their belongings and soon departed for the next city.
Renia, Kallius, and Rakan.
The strangely entangled journey of the three of them was just beginning.
* * *
Renia’s destination, the capital, was located inland far from the sea.
In truth, it would take about half a month by horse, but with the child Rakan and their increased luggage, they had to use a carriage.
Estimating about a month for the trip, Renia decided they would avoid camping whenever possible and stay overnight in villages or towns along the way.
And today, they had just arrived at a small village on the road to the capital.
“It’s still before sunset, but we should stop the horses here. The village is small, but it should be enough to obtain necessary supplies.”
“I already checked the location of the market on the way. Besides food, is there anything else we need to buy?”
“It would be better to get some clothes for you in advance. If we shop after arriving in the capital and draw unnecessary suspicion from the duke, it’ll be troublesome.”
“Suspicion?”
Kallius tilted his head as if he didn’t understand.
“I’ve been observing you for days—you basically wear the same outfit all the time. If you suddenly start dressing head to toe in fine clothes the moment we arrive, you’ll definitely fall under the duke’s scrutiny.”
“You mean I might be exposed as a fraud before even stepping into the duke’s household?”
“The duke is probably using various methods to filter out those trying to deceive him. There’s no need to act like you’re disguising yourself with a new identity.”
There would be many others besides Renia trying to become the duke’s heir and strike it rich.
In cases like this, con artists usually dressed either like destitute beggars or fallen nobles to create dramatic effect.
Their goal was to manipulate emotions through sympathy.
Of course, Renia had no intention of behaving so amateurishly.
The fact that she had prepared excellent outfits not only for herself but also for Rakan came from her professional confidence.
Her thoroughness—even down to such small details—was the foundation of that confidence.
‘It’s not like there are CCTV cameras or digital records like in modern times, but being careful never hurts.’
After paying for a clean inn, she strictly told Rakan to stay in the room, then headed toward the busy streets with Kallius.
Kallius looked disgusted at the noble men’s outfits displayed in the shop window, but after Renia’s insistence, he reluctantly tried on a few pieces.
“This is too tight. Is there really a need for such flashy clothing?”
“If you’re going to play the role of my husband, you need at least this much appearance. If you hate it that much, say so. I’ll prepare divorce papers immediately.”
“…The design is not bad. I suppose dressing up occasionally wouldn’t be so bad.”
Pretending not to hear, Renia watched Kallius turn away and inwardly gasped in admiration.
His back in formal attire was extraordinary.
“I’ve been in this business for nearly 30 years, but you are the first client whose clothes fit this well. Truly amazing!”
“Hah, haha… my husband is quite impressive, yes.”
“Not only is he incredibly handsome, but his build is perfect! And look at this flawless proportions! Madam, you must have been blessed by the gods to have such a spouse. It’s not easy to obtain someone like this!”
The tailor stroked his beard repeatedly, visibly excited.
‘Well, it’s not surprising.’
With such a well-built figure right in front of her, even a man would be impressed…
Wait, what am I thinking.
“Let’s go now that shopping is done, ma’am. There’s still a lot to do before sunset. We need to stop by the grocery store, and buy a new pot as well. The one we had was badly burned—and now even has a hole in it.”
“Oh my, so domestically capable as well! Truly, you have an absolutely perfect husband, madam.”
