Chapter 2.5

“Then what else did you want to talk about?”

Roman asked without worrying about Prillance’s condition.

“…I’m here to ask for an engagement.”

There were still slight tremors in Prillance’s voice as she spit out her words. Roman liked this frightened appearance of Prillance. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread[1]. It wasn’t pleasant for him when she was chasing him around.

“You are? Lady Weiand, I don’t get engaged to just anyone.”

Roman laughed as if he heard something funny. Roman knew it would be most advantageous for him to marry Prillance, daughter of Marquis Weiand, the most influential family in the empire.

However, Roman didn’t like Prillance’s terrible temperament and obsession towards him.

One of the things he hated the most was her behaviour of trying to control others. Hence, he ruled out Lady Weiand altogether. As a result, he was now engaged in a deal with Viscount Royne.

For him, marriage meant just that.

“I know I am lacking. So I came to make an offer.”

“An offer…”

In fact, he wasn’t really interested. Roman pretended to think and touched his chin.

“You don’t have to accept it.”

She added quickly.

“Then I’ll listen and decide.”

When Roman’s permission fell, Prillance slightly shook her head to shake off her fears at the moment.

“If you get engaged to me, you can use the Marquis’ power to help the kingdom of Barua.”

“That help… I am not very interested.”

Roman cut her off. It wasn’t that he couldn’t calculate it. There was definitely a lot to gain from marrying Lady Weiand. Nonetheless, Roman decided to give up those gains because he hated Prillance.

“Since the Marquis estate is around a border, we have the privilege of having security based on that. It can’t be bought with money, and it will definitely help the kingdom of Barua.”

“…You’re talking about the Weiand family’s First Order of Knights.”

Prillance nodded at Roman’s words. It was an unexpected answer. He thought that Prillance would, of course, only talk about money, honor, and dowry.

“Also, I will no longer bother Duke in the future. This is another offer I give.”

“That’s the most attractive offer so far.”

Roman grinned sincerely. However, it was also too good to be true, as he never knew when it would change again.

“If you want, I will write a memorandum. No touch, no interference.”

Prillance was familiar with Roman’s thoughts. In the novel, Prillance was the only reason Roman excluded the house of Marquis Weiand in his list of marriage candidates.

So if that reason disappears, he might consider being engaged to the house of Marquis Weiand.

“You don’t have to make a decision right now. Just delay your engagement with the Royne family while you think about it. Also, while you are trying to decide, I won’t bother you at all. Doesn’t that give you room to think about my proposal?”

Her offer wasn’t as bad as he thought, but he knew he shouldn’t answer hastily.

“Then I’ll think about it.”

“And until you make that decision, I would like to have dates everyday with the Duke like Lady Royne.”

“Lady. I guess you haven’t received this information yet, but we don’t go on dates every day.”

At the talk of his involvement with Cecia, Roman’s voice became dangerous once again.

“Then…let’s meet every time you meet with Lady Royne.”

Prillance replied, trying to stretch out as much as possible.

“What if I don’t intend to meet with her?”

“It doesn’t matter. If you don’t meet with Lady Royne, I also won’t come. Even if you are writing a letter or writing a note to Lady Royne in front of me, go ahead. As long as you don’t meet with her, my conditions remain the same.”

Clearly, Prillance was still trembling, terrified of him. Nonetheless, she was able to speak what was on her mind. Roman shook his head. In a sense, she was a great woman.

Roman looked directly into Prillance’s eye to try and figure out her intentions. As she tightly clutched the hem of her dress, she didn’t try to avoid his gaze either.

“For now, let’s settle on that.”

She wasn’t a woman who could make such a proposal without having hidden motives.

“Then I will wait for your invitation.”

Pretending to be calm till the end, she left the lounge. However, she plopped down as soon as the door closed. Her arms and legs were still trembling.

His anger seemed to still envelop her body.

She tried to get back on her feet. But she felt dizzy, so she leaned against the wall for a while. It was a feeling she never wanted to experience again.

After Prillance left, Roman called James. She said she didn’t attach anyone, but it was difficult to get specific information like this. Besides, it couldn’t have been a coincidence that she was able to meet him at this place secretly.

“Find out how Lady Weiand found out about Lady Royne. And check if she attached anyone at the mansion immediately.”

“Yes.”

If many people were attached to watch him, there was no choice but to remove them. Duke Tonz didn’t need such people.

“Also, I want to know about what Lady Weiand has been up to recently.”

Prillance, in Roman’s perspective, was a woman who only cared about looking like a queen in social circles.

At the outset, he concluded that she was a woman who had no interest other than honor, power, and favor of men. However, the woman he saw today had a keen eye on the political landscape.

The Kingdom of Barua was a country where local commerce was bound to develop. There were only three countries in contact with the kingdom of Barua. That was the number of countries excluding the Arceo Empire.

As it was adjacent to many countries, commerce developed naturally. However, it was also a country that needed to strengthen its borders.

And the family of the Marquis of the Arceo Empire, as Prillance said, would be able to provide that border security. In addition, these soldiers were quite elite, so they would be reliable.

So, as Prillance said, Marquis Weiand was a family that Roman needed. On the other hand, he hated her so much that he overcame that need.

Roman recalled Prillance, who was trembling under his pressure but still spoke out until the end. He usually treated her with indifference, so it was her first time to receive his energy head-on. However, it was worth seeing how she was able to endure.

Moreover, the proposal she gave was appealing to him. Prillance knew what he needed most.

“Through and through, you’re still a Marquis’ daughter after all.”

Roman thought she must have learned from the Marquis. Hence, from then on, Roman no longer thought of Prillance as a foolish woman.

[1]An idiom. People without good sense of judgement will have no hesitation in tackling a situation that even the wisest would avoid