Express Contract Marriage Chapter 12 – Wedding Preparations (3)

Previously

Aracella meets with Duchess Vandermeer, who demands an exorbitant dowry and a new capital palace to sabotage the marriage. Aracella cleverly challenges the Duchess's contradictory views of Damian before visiting the Red Falcon Knights, where she punishes Damian and his men for their disrespectful gossip about mages.

“I have no intention of doing that.”

Aracella cut him off, speaking with absolute certainty.

She showed no sign whatsoever of considering calling off the marriage over the dowry.

“I can give them whatever dowry they want. It’s certainly expensive, but it isn’t as though I don’t have the coin.”

She looked at Damian, who was staring back at her in silence, and held up two fingers.

“There is another matter that bothers me.”

Aracella folded one finger down.

“First, is it truly necessary for us to live in the Vandermeer mansion after we marry? Let’s find a new estate.”

“No, that isn’t possible. I’ve been away from the ducal territory for a long time, so my influence within the family is weak. At the very least, I must keep the Vandermeer mansion in the capital firmly under my control.”

Damian was not clinging to his current residence out of affection or desire. It was part of his strategy to maintain his standing within the family.

Albert, for instance, who currently served as his valet, hailed from a family that had served the Vandermeer estate for decades.

Once Damian inherited the title of duke, people like Albert would be the ones to offer him the greatest support.

“Very well, I understand your reason. That makes sense. Second, if I readily concede to all their demands, they’ll take me for an easy mark. What do you think? If I grant them the entire dowry, what will they demand next?”

Even if the dowry issue could be settled with money, yielding so smoothly to every demand would only make them look down on her.

Moreover, the Vandermeer family was not financially destitute, which meant that once the dowry was settled, another demand would inevitably follow.

“Besides, the dowry and everything else concerning this marriage are matters I must handle entirely on my own. If my family finds out, they will adamantly oppose sending me to that house because they love me too much.”

This marriage was not a losing bargain for the Marquis Hugo household and Aracella. There was no reason for them to marry off their beloved second daughter while enduring demands that crossed every boundary.

Furthermore, Aracella’s family had already accepted her stance against marriage in the first place.

They would undoubtedly try to persuade her to remain unwed rather than go through with this union.

Aracella had no desire to face her own family’s opposition on top of the ducal house’s.

“Prepare only half of the items on the dowry list. I will handle the rest.”

Damian spoke in a calm voice after a moment of consideration. There was no flaw in Aracella’s reasoning.

Their opponents were not the sort to show mercy simply because one cooperated. Rather, they would seize upon it to inflict even more harm.

If he wanted to maintain this marriage of convenience, he needed to actively protect Aracella.

“If any issues arise in the future, tell me immediately. I will take care of them. You don’t need to do a thing.”

Damian wanted to ensure that Aracella would not change her mind.

Yet she gave him an unexpected answer as she prepared to leave.

“Why tell me to stay still? We’re in the same boat now, aren’t we? We should resolve our problems together.”

Her words sounded casual, but they struck a chord in Damian, who had grown accustomed to fighting alone all this time.

As he hesitated involuntarily, Aracella spoke up once more.

“Besides, I’m not the type to just take blows. I don’t rest until I return every slight twice over. So don’t go trying to rob me of the pleasure of revenge.”

“…I won’t.”

When Damian abruptly covered his eyes with his palm, Aracella broke into a bright laugh.

“Don’t worry, though. I’m not the type to attack indiscriminately. I’ll make an effort to cooperate as long as I can bear it.”

“And what is the limit of your patience?”

“Who knows? When someone is disrespectful, perhaps?”

“Your patience seems quite thin.”

“Why make it sound like a flaw? How do you expect to survive in this world with such a tender heart?”

Aracella spoke without hesitation and with utter cheek, drawing a dry chuckle from Damian.

“I’ll take my leave now. Next time, be sure to muzzle your men properly—and mind your own ears as well.”

Aracella gave a nod and pulled the door shut behind her.

Damian murmured under his breath.

“Truly, she is not normal.”

• • •

Marchioness Hugo had harbored romantic dreams about her daughter’s wedding.

She had pictured herself picking out gowns and ornaments with her daughter in an atmosphere full of bliss, visiting wedding venues together, and discussing how to hold the ceremony late into the night.

Yet it was her second daughter—the most reckless of them all—who was marrying first, completely shattering her mother’s dreams.

She had been forced to rush through preparations as if pursued by debts, all while lecturing a daughter who showed not a shred of enthusiasm for the ceremony.

“It is your wedding, so please show a little more interest.”

The Marchioness sighed as she dragged Aracella to the boutique today, after the girl had dragged her feet out of sheer boredom.

“If everything isn’t flawless at the ceremony, people will start criticizing you.”

“Then I’ll just go and bite them myself.”

Aracella’s voice came from behind the curtain where she was trying on the wedding gown. Hearing such a childish retort, her mother pressed a hand to the back of her neck and sank onto the sofa.

‘Good heavens, what am I to do with her? I thought Iris would be the first to marry.’

She cast a rueful glance at her eldest daughter, Iris, who sat beside her. She had planned to see the quiet, composed Iris wed first, while intending to keep Aracella by her side.

Now, however, everything was unfolding in reverse, which only deepened her worry.

“Aracella is only joking, Mother. She will do what is proper.”

“Yes, I must believe that. But now, all that remains is to see you married. Do you have any young gentleman in mind? Or should I contact Madame Kylie?”

Madame Kylie was a renowned matchmaker in high society within the capital. Many couples had been successfully paired through her arrangements.

Iris paused for a moment, then gave a gentle smile and shook her head.

“I would like to look on my own, without rushing. If I cannot find the right person, I will let you know.”

“Yes, of course, Iris. You always do what is right without me having to tell you.”

“Wouldn’t it be far more exciting if my sister simply renounced marriage altogether?”

Aracella’s teasing voice drifted from behind the curtain, drawing a sharp glare from the Marchioness.

“Aracella, haven’t I told you to mind your words? Do not speak in a way that obstructs your sister’s path.”

Following the stern warning, silence fell behind the curtain.

The mother took her eldest daughter’s hand once more.

“Iris, you are everything to me. You know that, don’t you? I rely on you more than anyone.”

“Yes, I know, Mother. Please don’t worry.”

“How fortunate I am to have you, at least.”

Her youngest son was still so small, and her second daughter had never once listened to her since childhood.

In such circumstances, had it not been for Iris—so wise and always attuned to her parents’ hearts—the burden would have been overwhelming for the Marchioness.

“Mother, stop placing all that weight on my sister.”

Aracella stepped out from behind the curtain, clad in the wedding gown. The Marchioness approached her, narrowing her eyes.

“Then try being half of what she is! You never listen to a word I say, yet you complain endlessly!”

“Ouch, that hurts.”

The Marchioness gave Aracella a smack on the back, making her scowl.

She then gripped her daughter’s shoulders to adjust her posture and began examining the gown with great care.

The strapless neckline suited Aracella’s long, straight neck perfectly.

One of the shop assistants pinned back the loose fabric at her waist.

“Everything looks fine, but the neckline is far too low. A wedding gown ought to be modest to look its best.”

“I don’t mind it.”

“I do, so don’t argue. I’ll select another dress.”

The Marchioness walked off with the assistant to choose a new gown, leaving the two sisters alone in the fitting area.

Iris walked over to her sister.

“Seeing you in a wedding dress truly makes it feel real that you are getting married.”

“What do you think? Do I look good?”

“Yes, you look beautiful. It suits you wonderfully.”

“Thank you, Sister. Though in truth, everything looks good on me.”

Iris chuckled softly at her sister’s shameless confidence, then looked at her with eyes tinged with a faint sadness.

“It’s wonderful that you’re marrying for love, but it still feels so strange. You never even told me about him.”

“I’m sorry. Secret romances are always much more thrilling when kept tightly under wraps.”

Aracella lied with effortless confidence, and given her nature, anyone would readily believe her. Thus, Iris found nothing amiss.

“At least it isn’t an arranged marriage. If it were, I would be the one wearing this gown, not you.”

“And why is that? I could have been the one to enter an arranged marriage.”

♥

“I would never have allowed it. How could I let you sacrifice yourself in an arranged marriage?”

Aracella gazed at her sister.

Her own stance was no different; she had no desire to see her sister sacrificed in an arranged marriage either.

Yet because Iris had always surrendered her own rights and made sacrifices for her siblings, Aracella felt her sister’s words carried far more weight.

“Then is it acceptable for my elder sister to sacrifice herself for my sake?”

“I didn’t mean it that way, Ara.”

“Exactly. So why must it be you who enters an arranged marriage instead of me?”

“Because… you have a dream.”

Iris answered in a quiet voice, lightly resting her hand on her sister’s shoulder.

“As your elder sister, it is only natural for me to help you achieve your dream.”

“And what about you? Don’t you have a dream? You must have something you wish for.”

“…I don’t really know.”

Iris gave a faint smile and drew back slightly.

Ever since childhood, Aracella’s dream had been clear and unwavering: to become a mage.

Iris, on the other hand, had grown up without any distinct ambition. That was why she had always viewed her sister, who pursued her dream with such fierce passion, as shining brighter than anyone else.

“If I had to have a dream, perhaps it would simply be to make a good marriage.”

“That isn’t your dream. That’s Mother’s dream.”

Aracella countered swiftly, and Iris could not deny it.

Her sister looked at her with a complicated expression, then spoke.

“Find a dream of your own. You are still young. Marriage isn’t the only thing you can do; there are so many other paths open to you.”

Iris was only a single year older than Aracella. She still had time to try anything she wished.

“My dream…”

The word felt utterly foreign to Iris, who had grown up striving to meet her parents’ expectations and caring tenderly for her siblings.

“Aracella, try this gown on.”

At that moment, the Marchioness returned, followed by an assistant carrying another dress.

The conversation between the sisters drew to a natural close, yet for the rest of the visit, Iris found herself unable to focus on shopping or helping pick her sister’s wedding gown.

— END —

Express Contract Marriage Chapter 12 – Wedding Preparations (3)

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