Chapter 16 Part 4: Triumphal Banquet

The music changed at regular intervals.

It was after the paired nobles had danced three times.

The ball was gradually nearing its end.

The deep twilight seeped through the palace windows.

By now, even the dance with Caron had become quite familiar, and Rosa felt that this time was enjoyable, even if only slightly.

And the moment the grand finale came. The soft music of the orchestra subsided.

The ladies gracefully bowed to their partners, and the gentlemen gladly kissed the small hands held out to them.

It was the same for Caron and Rosa.

As they were practically the protagonists of this banquet, the surrounding gazes were focused on them.

“It was a pleasure, my lady.”

Feeling the touch of his lips on her hand, Rosa remembered something she had forgotten.

“Wait. Let’s talk. Just the two of us.”

Caron hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

As the two left the banquet hall, the surrounding nobles whispered.

But whatever misunderstanding there might be, it didn’t matter, because Rosa had something to say to Caron now.

There were several doors in the wide hallway. Most of them were spaces for nobles to rest during the banquet.

Rosa, who was about to enter one of the rooms, hesitated for a moment.

“Le, let’s go somewhere else.”

“Follow me. There’s a secluded place.”

Caron seemed to know why Rosa was flustered, so he quickly took her hand and led her away.

As if it were a familiar path, he soon found an empty room.

A spacious and tidy room with a terrace connected to the garden.

A dark curtain fluttered on the terrace, bathed in the sunset.

“It’s quite common in social gatherings.”

Caron said, almost mockingly.

Rather, these secluded places were often empty. As heated couples tended to quickly relieve their desires.

“Could it be..”

Were they also misunderstood like that? Rosa worried, recalling the whispers she had heard earlier.

“So. What did you want to talk about?”

Caron didn’t give her time to think.

Facing that dry expression, Rosa opened her mouth.

“..Are you going to pretend you don’t know?”

It wasn’t something that happened long ago, it was just last night.

[Friends don’t do this.]

“What did you mean?”

At Rosa’s question, Caron remained silent for a moment before answering.

“Practice.”

“..Practice?”

“After the triumphal procession tomorrow, there’s the wedding. After that, you and I will be officially husband and wife.”

Rosa hesitated before asking.

“So.. it was practice for a married couple..?”

“Yes.”

At first, she couldn’t understand what he meant at all.

That sudden kiss. And that strange remark.

‘Practice? What on earth does he mean?’

But if she forced herself to understand, there was a way to make sense of it.

Yes.

They were no longer friends.

They were, after all, husband and wife. Starting tomorrow morning, no less.

And of course, they would have to kiss at the wedding. If he said it was practice for that, she could somehow understand.

“Ah.. it was practice for the wedding.”

It felt like she was glossing over it, but judging by Caron’s expression, it seemed to be true.

He was that serious.

Caron quietly observed Rosa, who was lost in thought.

Rosa was so pure that even such a crude excuse worked on her.

She never even considered the possibility that he might like her.

As expected, Rosa’s protest was only this.

“Then you should have told me in advance. If you do it so suddenly…”

“If I don’t do it suddenly.”

Caron cut her off and said.

“Then, can I keep doing it?”

“..Huh?”

For a moment, Rosa doubted her ears.

The terrace bathed in the twilight. Two people standing.

Ash-gray hair with red eyes.

A handsome young man with a cool demeanor approached the woman.

“You’re saying I just need to tell you in advance.”

Rosa was flustered.

“No, wait a minute.”

Why did it turn out like this?

“You said it was practice.”

“I did.”

Was there more practice left to do?

As Caron’s body drew closer, Rosa questioned him as if making an excuse.

“Why do we even need to practice in the first place?”

At first, she thought it was a joke.

But looking at Caron’s serious expression, it didn’t seem like it at all.

She didn’t know how to react.

Caron, who was much taller than her, looked down at her diagonally and said.

“What do you think marriage is?”

“..What do I think it is.”

For a moment, Rosa was at a loss for words.

“..It was a contract.”

Just that.

But Caron spoke to her in a low voice, as if mocking her.

“A contract to avoid me..?”

Rosa felt a prick of conscience.

Now a meaningless contract.

A contract to avoid the Second Prince, but the other party to the contract was the Second Prince himself.

But one thing Rosa had greatly overlooked was.

Marriage involved not only the parties involved but also many surrounding people and situations.

Caron pointed out that fact.

“If it doesn’t look like you and I are on good terms, what will your family think?”

Their only daughter, their sister, was in an unhappy marriage. Just that would easily predict the Count and Roadl’s reactions.

More than anything, the two believed that Rosa and Caron were marrying because they truly loved each other.

Of course, that was half true and half false.

“And that’s not all.”

Marriage was not just a simple ceremony.

It was one of the most efficient ways for a noble to expand their influence.

That was why the Empress had tried to keep Caron in check in advance, and if that failed, it was impossible to know what her reaction would be.

She had deliberately chosen candidates for his political marriage who had weak power bases but were renowned for their beauty.

It was quite surprising that Rosa, who had never debuted in the social circle, was included, but it showed the Empress’s meticulousness.

The Empress’s thoughts were simple.

Usually, if a man truly loved his wife, he wouldn’t take concubines.

“Even if she doesn’t expect that, the Empress will want you to be a stumbling block to me.”

So, if it seemed like the two were on bad terms from an early stage. It was obvious where the Empress’s animosity would be directed.

“That’s..”

After hearing all the circumstances, Rosa was speechless.

It wasn’t that she had thought of it lightly.

But she had never experienced it before, and she had never taken marriage that seriously in the first place.

‘I overlooked it.’

Rosa’s expression was filled with dismay.

Seeing her expression, Caron felt a prick of conscience.

In truth, it was all just an excuse.

‘You, and your family.’

He was confident he could protect them. Fully.

He only had to be wary of the Empress a few years ago.

But this was almost the only way he could approach Rosa.

If he confessed his feelings outright, Rosa would run away from him.

Having watched her for years and knowing her well, Caron buried the truth deep down.

“So, what you’re saying.”

Rosa, having organized her thoughts, opened her mouth.

“In short, we need to look like we’re on good terms? So that everyone is fooled.”

“Yes.”

Caron nodded.

“Then the contract?”

It was a meaningless contract anyway, but. There was still something to address.

As if expecting it, Caron answered.

“The contract stays. But.”

“But..?”

“First, give me the contract.”

Rosa handed the contract, which she had been carrying in her bosom, to Caron.

“This, we need to amend this.”

Caron pointed to the last clause in the contract.

[Third. The two shall not interfere in each other’s private lives.]

He took out a quill pen from his formal suit pocket and rewrote the sentence.

[Third, the two shall faithfully fulfill their duties to each other during the marriage.]

“I will fulfill my duties as a husband, and you as a wife. For one year.”

Rosa tilted her head for a moment but soon nodded in agreement.

For one year. This contract was only valid for one year.

‘The rest is just formality.’

Once she thought of it that way, everything became clear.

“Alright. Let’s do that then.”

“Sign it.”

Caron placed the contract and quill pen back in her hands.

Taking them, Rosa wrote her name in small letters next to the name Cayron Winslet.

“Done.”

And so, the contract was sealed.

“Then shall we try? The practice.”

At Caron’s subsequent words, Rosa was once again flustered.

“Uh.. you weren’t joking..?”

She had thought it was just something people said to add weight before a serious conversation.

“No. I wasn’t joking.”

Caron said firmly.

The First Prince, Leon Winslet, had been feeling a tightness in his chest since earlier.

To be precise, it was since he saw the woman named Rosa Anencia.

It was shocking.

That a person could be so beautiful.

An unknown irritation and longing filled him.

The banquet was nearing its end, and he roughly closed the door as soon as he entered the lounge.

“What is the meaning of this, Mother?”

Empress Savina was waiting for him.

As always, she looked elegant, but at this moment, it didn’t please him.

Leon sat down roughly on the sofa and expressed his frustration.

“She’s not a fitting woman for him.”

“And which part is that?”

The Empress asked in a calm tone.

Unable to say it was because of her appearance, Leon stammered and then closed his mouth.

“Foolish boy.”

Empress Savina clicked her tongue.

“Have you been captivated by a woman you just met today?”

Her tone was as if she found it pathetic.

But Leon retorted with a snort.

“Do you think I’m the only one? The rumors have already spread. That guy. He disappeared with his woman as soon as he danced.”

“The answer is in your words.”

The Empress said.

“There will be a wedding ceremony for the two tomorrow morning. Don’t even think about it.”

Although he was her son, she sighed. Her son, Leon, already had a wife.

“You have Marlene, don’t you?”

“That block of wood? Honestly, if it weren’t for Mother’s request, I wouldn’t have married her.”

Leon’s wife, Marlene Duprèn, was the eldest daughter of a Duke. Naturally, in terms of status and family power, she was incomparable to Rosa Anencia.

“But she’s so boring. And her face is quite plain.”

“You know one, but not the other.”

Empress Savina said.

It wasn’t that she didn’t understand her son at all.

“Men of your age tend to give everything for a woman’s appearance.”

So, discovering Rosa Anencia was purely her luck.

Although it was a considerable distance from the capital, the Empress’s information network was vast.

She had sent her own handmaiden to confirm the rumors of Rosa Anencia’s beauty that were spreading in the area.

The Anencia family met her criteria. Although it was a family that had been pushed to the fringes, there was a time in the past when it was truly glorious.

So, there was no objection to her as a marriage partner for the Imperial Family, and the only remaining question was how useful the most important component would be.

Just how much that the rumors were spreading even though she hadn’t debuted in the social circle.

And the handmaiden who had seen Rosa Anencia in person praised her to the high heavens.

A beauty that could topple a nation (傾國之色). Her beauty was truly enough to shake a nation.

Even those who were rumored to be the most beautiful in the current social circle were not comparable to her.

“Cayron is also a man, so there is a high probability that he will fall in love with such a woman. But if he falls in love like that, then. What will be left for Cayron?”

“..Nothing.”

Fortunately, her son did not betray even her minimum expectations.

“Keep this in mind, Leon. A man in love tends to mistake one crucial fact.”

In fact, he may think that he is the one controlling the woman, but in reality, it is the woman who holds sway over the man.

“After this, Cayron will not be able to take any concubines.”

It is a woman’s nature to want to monopolize her man.

“That is the price of love, and he will lose everything in exchange for one woman.”

He had squandered a marriage, which was an opportunity to expand his power, in this way.

“I understand.”

Only then did her son sigh and agree.

“Still. Couldn’t I have taken her as my concubine?”

If not the second or even the third. At least around the fourth.

Leon was planning to take another wife early next year. The other party was the second daughter of a Marquis.

The Empress said simply.

“After you have achieved everything. Only then can you take a woman.”

Leon had a somewhat perverted tendency.

He preferred virgins, but there was also a certain thrill in handling women who were not.

‘Especially a woman who already had a husband…’

“I won’t be able to break her in at first, but that’s not so bad either.”

The Empress clicked her tongue but didn’t nag any further.

After that short conversation.

The Empress returned to the banquet hall, and Leon took a walk in the hallway to clear his head.

While doing so, Leon saw two figures approaching from the opposite side and a smirk formed on his lips.

‘Oh, my.’

They must have just met today. When did they become so close.

Two handsome people were walking hand in hand.

Leon felt a surge of anger inside, but he soon controlled it and approached the two.

“Cayron. Out for some air?”

“Yes.”

As if he didn’t understand why Leon was even talking to him, Cayron looked at Leon.

‘That arrogant bastard.’

Leon’s eyebrows twitched.

But at the sound of a voice, his displeasure vanished.

“Greetings to the First Prince. I am Rosa Anencia.”

Her voice was so clear. Leon responded with a natural smile.

“It’s getting late, shouldn’t you two be heading back?”

“We were just doing so.”

Cayron answered instead, and the gazes of the First Prince and Caron clashed sharply in the air for a moment.

But.

When Rosa squeezed his hand slightly, Caron withdrew his aggression.

“Then.”

The two started walking again. Rosa bowed her head in greeting.

Watching her retreating figure, Leon vowed to make her his.

Meanwhile, Caron thought to himself.

‘..Should I just eliminate him?’

He could tolerate the usual childish provocations, but he couldn’t forgive him for looking at Rosa like that.

“Hey.. you don’t seem to be on good terms? With the First Prince.”

But the small hand holding his was quite satisfying.

Even in a situation where she might be upset because they were holding hands, her gaze looking up at him with concern was quite affectionate.

“Not really.”

Caron managed to control his emotions.

Tomorrow was the triumphal procession.

And the wedding.