Chapter 1

On that day, Nathan Berling, my fiancé, did not show up even at breakfast time. He had been invited to our Villiers household the day before under the pretext of celebrating his twentieth birthday.

"Hey, go wake him up already, you lazybones."

"…Yes, Father."

"Really, you’re so inconsiderate. You’re useless no matter what."

"I’m sorry, Mother."

I hurriedly stood up at my parents' urging. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my brother sigh.

I walked out of the dining room, trudging along.

It had been almost eight years since our engagement was arranged by our parents.

Since then, I have always been the one to handle all the troublesome matters related to Nathan, but I was not in the mood for it. It wasn’t the first time he had stayed over, and I was well aware of his poor morning habits.

Would I get hit again?

Recently, he had started to hold back less, saying I had become less responsive.

I hoped he wouldn’t leave any marks.

With a heavy heart, I knocked and opened the door to the guest room.

But Nathan was not there.

The bed was perfectly made, without a single wrinkle.

I had a hunch and changed my direction, not returning to the dining room.

It wasn’t just Nathan who hadn’t shown up.

I stopped in front of my sister Nicole’s room.

I opened the door without knocking, grabbing the doorknob.

But I doubt it would have made a difference if I had knocked.

"…Oh, big sister. You came to fetch me?"

Her cute voice was bright.

Nicole was sitting on the bed, holding the blanket to her chest. Her exposed shoulder was bare, clearly indicating she wasn’t wearing any clothes.

I wasn’t surprised; I had seen this scene before.

She was promiscuous and often brought different servants to her bed.

When I entered her room for some reason, it was common to find a naked servant lying next to her, who had just started working.

But that day was different.

The person lying next to her was Nathan Berling, my fiancé.

"Can you explain what’s going on…?"

"There’s nothing to explain. Can’t you see for yourself?"

Nicole said in a sarcastic tone as I held my head in my hands.

"Mmm… Nicole… my beloved. Let’s stay in bed a little longer…"

Nathan, still half-asleep, reached out to Nicole’s body with his eyes closed. His voice was unusually sweet.

But I wasn’t shocked by this.

Ah, so that’s how it is.

That’s all I thought.

"Hehe, we’ve been caught. I’m sorry, big sister. But we’re not officially engaged yet, so it’s fine, right?"

Nicole, who didn’t seem the least bit guilty, tilted her head and shook her pink blonde hair. Her charming gesture even looked cute to me, her older sister.

But despite her innocent appearance, Nicole had become a wicked girl at sixteen.

I was certain this situation was orchestrated by her.

She must have lured him into bed, saying something like, "One last memory," knowing I would come to fetch him if he didn’t wake up.

She deliberately made sure I would witness it, just to see my shocked face and laugh.

"But Nathan seems to like me. He wouldn’t let me go all night."

Her voice, which seemed apologetic, had a triumphant and mocking tone behind it.

"Nicole…? Who have you been talking to…?"

Nathan finally seemed to wake up, slowly sitting up and looking at me.

"F-Freya…"

Seeing his wide-eyed shock, I almost laughed.

I had never seen him make such a face. He always maintained a disdainful and arrogant attitude in front of me.

"Th-this is, well…"

"Last night, you loved me so much. I cried from happiness."

Nicole leaned against Nathan’s chest as he tried to explain.

He looked flustered and embarrassed, then quickly regained his composure, putting his arm around Nicole’s shoulder and glaring at me.

"Right. I love Nicole. Do you understand what that means?"

"…Yes, of course. I will ask Father to cancel the engagement."

"Huh?"

Nicole’s voice was surprised, as if she couldn’t believe my calm acceptance.

"Then I will ask for a new engagement with Nicole. Is that acceptable?"

"Your understanding is your only redeeming quality."

Nathan’s face twisted in an ugly, satisfied smile.

I had always preemptively fulfilled his wishes to avoid being yelled at or scolded.

So I immediately understood what he was getting at.

He wanted to marry Nicole but didn’t want to be the bad guy.

"But is that okay? After all, you two are in love, right?"

Nicole, confused by our calm conversation, spoke up.

It seemed she believed Nathan’s lie that we had a strong bond.

He was exceptionally good at putting on a facade and was trusted by everyone.

But in private, he would insult, belittle, and sometimes even hit me.

When I complained to my parents, they dismissed my words as meaningless, prioritizing the connection with the Berling family.

Realizing it was futile, I decided to go along with Nathan’s lies to avoid upsetting him.

We must have seemed like a happy couple to others.

That’s why Nicole tried to steal Nathan.

She saw her older sister, who was supposed to be beneath her, on the path to a happy life.

Inheriting the worst traits of our parents, she knew exactly how to cause the most damage.

That’s why she chose to act on this particular day.

But inside my sad face, I was secretly grateful to my sister.

There was no love between Nathan and me, and I had been destined to spend my life as his slave.

When I suspected she would make a move on him, my heart soared.

And when I actually witnessed the infidelity, I was so happy I wanted to dance, confirming that Nathan’s heart belonged to Nicole.

Because I would be free from Nathan.

And no one else would be hurt in the process.

My parents might be upset at first, but they would soon be pleased that their beloved Nicole was marrying into a reputable earl’s family with good bloodlines.

They might even be happy that their daughter, who could be treated poorly, was now free and could be matched with an older, high-ranking nobleman as a second wife.

Nathan would get to marry the woman he truly loved, and Nicole had taken the initiative, so there would be no objections.

No one would be unhappy.

No one would be troubled.

For me, marrying an unknown old man would be much better than marrying Nathan.

But I kept these feelings hidden, leaving Nicole’s room with a sad face.

Nicole hated my happiness and smile more than anything.

If I showed any joy, it would surely cause more trouble.

As expected, my parents, after their initial displeasure, were pleased with Nicole and Nathan.

If their favorite daughter married into a manageable poor noble family, their future would be secure.

The nearly bankrupt Berling family was completely dependent on our Villiers family’s money.

When my father praised Nicole for "doing a good job" as she and Nathan entered the dining room, the celebration shifted from Nathan and me to Nicole and Nathan.

What a wonderful move, stealing her sister’s fiancé.

Tearing apart a loving couple like that.

Nicole, you’re truly something.

At this rate, you might even be able to crush rival trading companies in the future.

They praised Nicole in such a way.

I kept a sad face, looking down the whole time.

Nicole, who had initially looked dissatisfied at how easily she had succeeded, gradually smiled, seemingly satisfied by my sad expression.

With this, I would be free from my engagement to Nathan.

Unaware of my relief, they continued to celebrate.