After Claisey left, strutting as if she were the protagonist of a fairy tale, Merran felt so nauseated that she drank three glasses of cold water in a row.
“You’ll upset your stomach, Miss.”
Karen hovered nearby, stamping her feet in concern.
“My heart is already upset.”
Merran whispered in a low voice so that Anna wouldn’t hear.
Karen agreed, looking downcast. “It really is a strange thing. Where on earth did the Marchioness of Gosville see anything worthy in Miss Claisey, based on what you told her?”
Merran tried to recall her conversation with the Marchioness, and a sudden wave of anxiety hit her. “Do you think the Marchioness couldn’t understand me because I was being too indirect?”
“That might be it. After all, you did tell her that Miss Claisey was the only one in that family who looked after you. Besides, you hammered the point home at the end by saying she was a good person. The Marchioness might be a simple person who takes things at face value, despite appearances.”
Swayed by Karen’s words, Merran repeatedly thumped her forehead against a pillar. “Nanny is right. That must be it. Ah… why did I assume the Marchioness of Gosville was clever enough to understand me even if I spoke in riddles?”
Karen slipped her hand between the pillar and Merran’s forehead to soothe her. “Don’t worry. Regardless, if things work out, it will be helpful for you and Sir Dernic as well.”
Only then did Merran’s distressed and absurd feelings subside a little, and she nodded dejectedly. However, her mood didn’t fully recover.
“Sir Dernic stuck to me like glue in Greengold City, yet now that we’re back in the Capital, he hasn’t even reached out. Even a cold person like Sir Kishin sends letters every day.”
“He must be busy finishing up his work. Or perhaps you should write to him first. You know where he lives now.”
As they discussed how many days it had been since they heard from Dernic, the two checked the date and realized that Merran’s birthday was only a few days away.
Merran jumped for joy. Wasn’t that the perfect excuse to reach out?
* * *
Inside the carriage heading to the Marquis’s estate, Claisey couldn’t keep her hands still.
“Why are you so nervous?”
Unable to watch any longer, Kishin teased her, but Claisey continued to tap her knees, then pressed them, and clenched and unclenched her fists.
“What if the Marchioness hates me?”
When the carriage was halfway down Valowal Road, Claisey couldn’t bear it and honestly voiced her worry.
“That won’t happen.”
“But I have a reputation…”
“You already know about the rumors. And even if she doesn’t like you, what does it matter? You only need their parents’ permission. It is the two of us who will be living together.”
Kishin was truly carefree about it.
Claisey pinched Kishin’s trousers slightly. “You’re hateful. Your parents shouldn’t have liked you the moment they saw you, either.”
“Did your mother and father like me?”
“Yes. They can’t help but smile whenever they hear the name Sir Kishin.”
He claimed they only needed their parents’ permission and that being loved didn’t matter, yet Kishin raised the corners of his mouth, clearly wanting to make a good impression on Claisey’s parents as well.
Claisey found that look even more hateful, so she took off her glove and swatted the back of his hand. “You’re hateful. It’s a duel.”
Amidst their bickering, the tension fortunately began to fade away bit by bit.
When the carriage finally stopped, Claisey took a deep breath and took Kishin’s hand to step outside.
Fortunately, the building was smaller than the Omal Marquisate, so her tension eased significantly.
The butler, who was waiting in front of the main entrance, approached and greeted them first. “I am Arthur, the butler of the Gosville family, Miss Claisey. We shall be seeing a lot of each other from now on.”
Entering the house, to her surprise, the Marquis and Marchioness of Gosville were waiting for her near the central staircase. The only family member missing was Kishin’s younger brother.
“Welcome.”
Before Claisey could even offer her greetings, the Marchioness quickly approached and greeted her warmly with a hug. There was not the slightest hint that she cared about Claisey’s reputation.
‘Just how well did Merran speak of me?’
Claisey, feeling even more delighted, hugged the Marchioness back.
* * *
Claisey had thought today was just an opportunity for the Marquis and Marchioness to get to know her.
Since Kishin had often visited and spent time with her during the month her parents stayed at the house in the Capital, Claisey assumed this was a similar occasion.
But unexpectedly, the conversation turned directly to wedding preparations. They discussed practical matters: where she wanted to live after marriage, whether she wanted to go back to her hometown since Kishin, being a Palace Guard, had to stay in the Capital, whether she wanted to have the wedding somewhere other than a temple, what date she wanted, who would be the bridesmaids, and which designer she would entrust with the dress.
In an ordinary political marriage, these were things that the parents of both families would coordinate, and Claisey would have only needed to choose the dress design. However, since all her guardians were far away, it seemed they were asking her about everything personally.
Claisey answered in a daze at first, but then asked, shocked, “Sir Kishin, are we actually getting married?”
“Yes. Do you want me to tell you who the bride is?”
As Kishin joked, Claisey pushed his arm, feeling shy.
The Marquis and Marchioness of Gosville burst into laughter.
By the time they finished dinner and had dessert, the wedding plan was roughly laid out.
Claisey decided to stay in the Capital. Her hometown was nice, but her precious people were no longer there. Her parents traveled abroad, her eldest sister had passed away, and her best friend had moved to the Capital.
There was no need to take Kishin away from his thriving career here to return to her hometown. Since the house Claisey had leased had a five-year contract with plenty of time remaining, they decided on that house as their newlywed home.
Claisey insisted strongly that she wanted the wedding as soon as possible, so they decided to hold it in September or October. They would align the exact date with the Kalasi couple, who couldn’t stay for long due to their travels.
They decided to ask Merran and Dernic to be the bridesmaids and groomsmen, and they would entrust the dress to the Marchioness of Gosville’s regular designer, who also specialized in the Empress’s dresses.
After the conversation concluded, they went to Kishin’s room for the first time.
“Wow.”
Entering the room, Claisey was sincerely impressed by the atmosphere.
Kishin’s room looked as if his office had been moved exactly as it was. If you added a bed and another sofa to his office, it was a bedroom.
Claisey looked around the room, which was decorated in black and white, and worried, “Sir Kishin’s taste is clearly visible. What should we do?”
“Is my taste so bad that it requires worry?”
“No, Sir Kishin’s room is cool. But it’s just so different from my taste.”
Because Kishin had been to Claisey’s room a few times, he understood immediately and sighed. “I see.”
Claisey linked her arm with Kishin’s and looked up at him with affection. “We decided to live in my house after we get married, didn’t we? Then shouldn’t Sir Kishin adjust to my taste?”
“…….”
“Do you dislike it? The exterior of the house is pink, anyway.”
“Since the exterior is pink, wouldn’t it be neat to make the interior black?”
“No! I don’t like houses that are different on the inside and outside.”
When Claisey firmly refused, Kishin’s icy face looked sorrowful, as if it were about to melt.
Claisey found that look quite cute, so she deliberately continued to be playful. “Sir Kishin, your hair is red, too. Pink is in the same family as your hair, so please treat it with more care.”
“My hair is red, not pink.”
“They’re practically siblings.”
“……And aren’t you the one with dark brown hair, Claisey?”
Stung by the truth, Claisey ran to the window and hid her hair behind the curtains.
As she clutched the curtains tightly with both hands, showing only her face, Kishin let out a laugh of disbelief.
Then, he strode over, cupped her exposed face with both hands, and asked, “Lady Claisey, you are cold on the outside but warm on the inside; why don’t you treat me with that same warmth?”
It seemed as though he had simply played along with her joke, but as his large, hot hands cupped her face, his warmth seeped deep into her skin.
Moreover, his face was too close. Claisey’s sense of shyness suddenly swelled, and she quietly cast her eyes downward.
At that, Kishin fell silent as well, and the lively atmosphere in the room turned ticklish.
Claisey looked down at the tips of Kishin’s shoes, hoping he might kiss her on the cheek, her forehead, or perhaps even her lips.
The mere thought made her heart begin to race as if it would burst. Claisey had never once kissed anyone on the lips before.