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Yvette Lacheize, the second daughter of the Emperor and a Grand Duke holding the title of Elector, asked as soon as she summoned Rahan Norwich to her inner chamber.
"How old are you this year?"
It was absurd. Rahan snorted.
"Subtract eighteen years from Your Highness's age, and that's my age."
"Twenty-two? A perfect age for marriage."
Rahan stepped back with a look of horror.
"I wondered why you summoned me to your chambers first thing in the morning. Did you perhaps fall in love with me?"
"I'd love to tell you to get lost, but unfortunately, I can't. I'm playing matchmaker. Get married."
This was like a bolt from the blue. Rahan narrowed his eyes.
"Since when did it become a trend for a superior to arrange marriages for their subordinates? I'm going to pursue a free romance."
The Grand Duke, who was lying stretched out on the sofa, snorted without even pretending to listen.
"Stop talking nonsense."
As she spoke, she threw something at Rahan. Rahan snatched it.
What landed in his hand was a pattern embodying light. A mark held only by the high priests of the Eridrahan faith.
Rahan raised an eyebrow and looked at the Grand Duke, signaling her to explain what it was.
The Grand Duke explained indifferently.
"You know that a hidden daughter of House Achen appeared recently, right?"
"Everyone knows that."
In the Foldenbach Empire, there are seven Electors who hold the right to vote for the Emperor.
Among them, the Achen Elector's ducal house was a powerful one. That family, possessing fertile lands, had recently experienced a significant event.
Twenty years ago, Duke Licht Achen, the Elector, died. And the Duchess, who was pregnant with a late-born child, thoroughly hid her pregnancy in the face of her husband's death.
This was because Herbert, Duke Achen's younger brother, had been eyeing the Elector's position.
Since Licht and his wife had been childless for a long time, Herbert had long believed that the next ducal position was as good as his.
But what would happen if it became known that the deceased Licht had a child?
It was certain that Herbert would kill both the Duchess and the child.
Thus, she feigned grief and returned to her parents' home. Afterward, she entrusted her secretly born daughter to Wind Rock Monastery, which had ties to her family.
Abbot Wilbert, who helped smuggle the child, had deceived everyone so perfectly that the priests lived believing the child was a poor orphan the Abbot had picked up from the street. Even the daughter herself believed it.
The fact that she tried to become a priest as soon as she turned twenty said it all.
The child thus grew up in the monastery with the priests. Healthily.
However, with only six months left until her twentieth birthday, her birth was revealed to the world.
'The late Duke and I had a daughter. Priest Wilbert, the younger brother of Archbishop Victor, guaranteed the child's birth. The Achen dukedom... belongs to that child, who will soon turn twenty.'
Just before her death, the Duchess of Achen left a will before the people, stating that she had a daughter.
Since the child was nearly twenty, it was likely an attempt to restore the Elector title and the dukedom.
That person was Iris Achen, who had been a novice priest at Wind Rock Monastery.
Naturally, House Achen was turned upside down in secret.
Herbert, who had been called the Duke since succeeding the childless Licht twenty years ago, was infuriated.
To think that Licht's hidden daughter suddenly appeared now.
The Elector title followed the principle of primogeniture. That did not change even if the heir was a daughter.
Furthermore, since the brother of Archbishop Victor, another Elector, had guaranteed the birth, he could not raise any objections regarding her parentage.
Thus, Herbert acted very quickly.
He stepped forward before the Emperor could speak regarding the title.
'Since Iris Achen is a member of House Achen, our family will protect her. After that, we will hand over the dukedom to Iris.'
Of course, he didn't mean he would hand it over willingly.
Herbert divorced his only son, Philod, and sent a marriage contract between Philod and Iris to the Emperor.
By marrying the newly appeared Iris Achen to his son, he intended to transfer the title of House Achen to Iris Achen's husband.
His will was so strong that there were rumors he had even obtained the signature of the previous-previous Duke Achen, who was in seclusion after losing his mind to old age.
At a glance, there seemed to be no problem. It wasn't uncommon for cousins to marry to protect titles and assets.
"But what does that have to do with me?"
"Listen further. Do you know how old that Philod Ahen is?"
"I don't."
"That bastard is five years older than me. He already has two children. One of them is probably the same age as you."
The Grand Duke of Lacheize, who said this, was forty.
Rahan's mouth dropped slightly. A marriage between a twenty-year-old lady and a forty-five-year-old middle-aged man.
Of course, such things happened. However, it wasn't something a parent with a daughter would welcome.
"It seems the Abbot of Wind Rock Monastery cherishes that lady quite a bit."
Abbot Wilbert cherished Iris enough to have considered adopting her. It was obvious that the Abbot judged he could not send Iris Achen to that family.
"Her life would be in danger."
"Even if they don't take her life, it's a marriage that's bound to be miserable. That's how women's lives are."
The Grand Duke replied slowly while eating a grape. Rahan looked at her with an incredulous expression.
"I don't think you're the one to say that, Your Highness."
"My father is the Emperor. So I don't have to live like ordinary women."
But for the lady of House Achen, instead of a reliable father, she only had an uncle who coveted her life and status.
The situation was pitiful, but Abbot Wilbert had no choice but to marry her off.
Once it was certain that Iris was the daughter of House Achen, her guardian was no longer the monastery, but House Achen.
If they did not accept the marriage, House Achen had sufficient justification to destroy Wind Rock Monastery.
After much deliberation, the Abbot asked Grand Duke Yvette Lacheize for help.
Grand Duke Lacheize was a powerful figure who held two of the seven Electorates.
There was also the fact that Iris's mother was, strictly speaking, a distant collateral relative of the Lacheize family.
The conclusion Grand Duke Yvette Lacheize reached upon receiving the request for help was simple.
Since the marriage contract between Philod Ahen and Iris Achen had already been sent to the Emperor, wasn't there only one way to reverse it?
"Kidnap her and marry her to someone else."
Rahan's face contorted. The Grand Duke smiled thinly.
"Since the two haven't spent their first night together yet, the only way is to kidnap Iris Achen and have her spend a night with another man, right?"
In truth, wedding ceremonies and contracts were merely decorations for the first night.
Marriage vows could be made in a field with a priest standing by; the essence of marriage was the union of two people.
Therefore, if it were said that she had already married another man and spent her first night, what could Herbert possibly do?
Of course, he didn't actually intend to kidnap her.
<Under the guise of a kidnapping, I shall ensure Iris Achen marries the partner of my choosing.>
That was how the Grand Duke had written in the letter to the monastery.
‘But… with whom?’
In response to the Abbot's question, the person Grand Duke Yvette Lacheize designated was the knight known as her right hand.
Rahan Norwich.
The man himself let out a sigh.
“If the Abbot were a sane man, I think he would have opposed this.”
“Correct.”
The Grand Duke spoke as she flicked a grape into the air. Rahan caught it with his hand and stuffed it into his mouth. The grapes presented to the Grand Duke tasted excellent, but strangely, his mouth felt bitter.
Who was Rahan Norwich?
The second son of Margrave Norwich and the rake of the Grand Duchy.
Born with red eyes that looked as if they belonged to a magical beast, he had been called the child of a demon. Ultimately, Countess Norwich had cast him out as soon as she gave birth to him.
And the one who had taken him in was Grand Duke Yvette Lacheize.
Perhaps it was because he had been abandoned and shunned as a child?
The man was famous for his twisted temperament. Of course, what made him even more famous were his handsome face and breathtaking swordsmanship.
It was a well-known anecdote that when he stood at the triumphal ceremony after returning from a six-year expedition on behalf of Grand Duke Lacheize, the Emperor's illegitimate daughter had fallen for him and caused a scene, insisting she would marry him, only to end up humiliated.
The expedition had ended two years ago. However, even after his return, Rahan Norwich's reputation did not fade.
Rake, thug, troublemaker, womanizer…
To marry someone with the nickname ‘child of a demon’ to Iris Achen.
Abbot Wilbert had protested vehemently. But Grand Duke Lacheize merely scoffed.
“They're the ones in a hurry, yet they're so picky.”
“I want to be picky too.”
“You are my knight, so you must listen to me.”
Of course, Grand Duke Lacheize hadn't chosen just anyone.
The family of Margrave Norwich was also a powerful northern house holding the title of Elector. No matter how much that family shunned Rahan Norwich, it was an undeniable fact that he was the son of Countess Norwich.
“Unless it's a family that's incredibly easy to push around, it would be too easy for House Achen to take Iris Achen back.”
It was perhaps natural that the Abbot chose the second son of a young Count over the greedy old man of House Achen.
However, for Rahan, it wasn't particularly welcome.
“And am I supposed to play the part of a kidnapper from now on?”
“You're already a thug and a rake; what's one more label as a kidnapper going to do?”
The Grand Duke said this as she stood up.
“It's not like you actually intend to get married anyway.”
“I don't intend to marry by force either.”
“What if your marriage is necessary for me to ascend the throne?”
At those words, the look in Rahan's eyes changed.
The Grand Duke smiled thinly. Others called those red eyes ominous, but the Grand Duke quite liked them. Did they not look like blazing flames?
“The married life won't be long. The kidnapping and marriage are merely formalities. It'll only take a short while.”
“I understand.”
“Any questions?”
“What about the stigma of Your Grace having laid a hand on House Achen?”
The Grand Duke brushed back her long hair. In doing so, the eyepatch covering one of her eyes was revealed.
It was a wound from a recent injury, and because of that wound, the Grand Duke had been in critical condition, nearly losing her life. However, neither of them cared about such things.
“I'll handle that myself.”
Rahan thought to himself.
None of the things that person 'handles' have ever turned out well for me.
Of course, whether it would be a good thing or a bad thing remained to be seen.
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