10 - Not Your Son, But Your Father
Chapter 10
A wave of light washed in, brightening the distant sky.
It was that time, just before the sun fully rose.
The world was silent, but the Marquess Morgana's residence was bustling with an unexpected visitor.
What time is it? Five? Six?
My mouth felt gritty, and I couldn't even open my eyes properly. It wasn't the time, nor was I in the condition, to force myself to sit in the drawing room.
But the person sitting across from me didn't seem to notice, so I kindly explained my state.
"I'm sleepy."
I was a person who couldn't function normally if I woke up before nine in the morning. It had been like that even before I was born as Maybia Morgana.
The amount of sleep didn't matter, but the wake-up time had to be after nine in the morning. On days I woke up early, my head felt foggy and I was irritable all day.
Thanks to that, I creaked like an undercharged machine throughout my school years.
Even as I stared at her with a sulky expression, Edith smiled contentedly.
"Cute pajamas."
What pajamas was I wearing?
I think I just grabbed whatever was there yesterday because my feet hurt and I was tired.
I couldn't even be bothered to look down and check. So, I just watched Edith stacking the round cherries Sera had brought like a tower.
If I had been in my right mind, that bizarre behavior would have been quite fascinating.
"I didn't expect you to be so easygoing."
"Drop the formalities."
"Go home. I'm going to sleep more."
Edith chuckled. Her curved eyes were alluring.
I wasn't amused at all.
Edith, who knocked down the cherry tower she had painstakingly built with a flick of her finger, turned her attention to me.
She was wearing a jet-black suit like her hair. It was probably a light material for summer, but the shirt buttons were undone, revealing a hint of her prominent collarbone.
Did she feel the heat because she came from the North? No scars, perfect muscles, and I was sleepy.
Edith said soothingly.
"We need to discuss the details, Eve."
Now she's even using my nickname. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.
She must be trying to tease me, knowing I love my morning sleep.
Edith pushed the documents she had taken out towards me. I skimmed through the outdated contract with blurry eyes and picked up a crisp piece of paper.
It was a marriage certificate with the Emperor's seal already stamped on it, even though I hadn't signed it yet.
"Is this why you went to the Imperial Palace yesterday?"
"Speak informally."
"It's more comfortable for me to use honorifics."
"Why?"
"Because my language is rough, so I usually have to package it nicely."
That was the honest truth. If you weren't going to be my husband, I would have already said some bullshit.
Edith smiled languidly and got to the point.
"In that case, I'll gladly accommodate my wife. I have no intention of having a marriage with divorce in mind."
Hmm. It was unexpected that she immediately switched back to informal speech. But it wasn't a stiff, formal tone, so it felt quite friendly.
Was Edith someone who could show this kind of consideration?
"I have no intention of getting divorced either."
What was amazing was amazing, and my eyes started to close again.
I want to sleep. I would have nothing more to wish for if I could lie down on my fluffy bed with a subtle aroma and fall into a sleep sweeter than honey.
"You're going to spend your life with a man you met for the first time yesterday?"
"If you don't cause trouble."
Edith understood even my sleep-induced mumbling.
"Interesting."
As I rubbed my eyes, a deep, languid voice continued, a voice that seemed more suited to a night with a white moon than this violent morning.
"It will be difficult to have children. My constitution is a bit like that."
"I'll keep that in mind."
There was a moment of silence.
"...I will try to accommodate your conditions as much as possible. Is there anything else you're curious about?"
I was so sleepy that my head couldn't possibly be working properly. Forcing my heavy eyelids open, I blurted out a moderately safe question.
"How old are you?"
"Older than my dear wife, I'd wager."
"I know that."
Even the ignorant people of the capital knew that Gilbert Calakis had lived for too long.
However, they didn't know his exact age and just assumed he was an old geezer.
My knowledge from the novel wasn't very useful either. I had only focused on the part where Gilbert died, and Edith was the most secretive man of all the characters.
Edith added an explanation to my dissatisfied reply.
"I met the first head of the Calakis family. Back then, he wasn't even a Grand Duke and was just a fool with a dazed look on his face, wandering around dangerous areas."
"You look young. It wouldn't be strange if you had children's, children's, children's, children's children."
"I don't have any biological children, though."
"Lovers?"
"That too."
"Or someone who unilaterally has feelings for you."
Edith smiled again. This time, it was a slightly dumbfounded smile.
"Eve, aren't you curious why I've lived so long?"
"I'm more interested in your relationships right now."
"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't have any."
Edith propped up his chin, his eyes shining like the deep sea. His ebony hair swayed. An impulse to tidy it up arose, and my fingers twitched.
Ugh. Don't do useless things, Maybia. You need to send that guy away and sleep.
I let out a shallow sigh and said.
"I have one condition. Since I'm settling in a strange land with a maid who only looks up to and trusts Edith, I need to be compensated fairly if I get hurt."
He nodded, as if to say he would listen to the end.
"Continue."
I recited what I had thought of in advance in a dry voice.
"Bruises, 1 million Marca. Lacerations, 10 million Marca. Burns, 50 million Marca. Fractures and amputations, between 100 million Marca and 200 million Marca. I won't charge you for my life, especially."
Of course, it was an absurd condition. What reason would the Grand Duchess have to get hurt in the Grand Duke's territory? She would be under tight security.
But there were two problems.
The first was that Gilbert Calakis was also planning to go down to the North, and the second was that Edith underestimated him too much.
Well, it's strange not to underestimate him, given his position. To Edith, a guy like that wouldn't even be a handful. But Gilbert also has his own power, and I'm the one who's going to beat him up.
Unfortunately, there's no guarantee that I'll win overwhelmingly against Gilbert even if I use tricks, so I'd rather get money if I get hit once after hitting him a hundred times.
"What do you think my territory is?"
It wasn't an angry tone, but a dumbfounded one.
I showed him a bright smile for the first time today.
"Please think of it as a safety device. Not everyone will welcome you marrying a woman you didn't even know."
"You think I'll just stand by and watch?"
Edith's tone became sarcastic.
"If you don't want to get ripped off, you'll protect me diligently, right?"
As I tilted my head like Raven, Edith said without a smile.
"If you're so scared, hire bodyguards. I won't say anything even if you bring all the soldiers from the Marquess family."
"Why waste manpower when I have a husband who's second to none anywhere?"
"It's because you don't seem to trust that husband who's second to none anywhere."
A bored look gradually appeared on the man's face, whose smile had faded. Knowing that, I brought up a cliché.
"We're only meeting for the second time now."
Huh?
Suddenly, my sleepiness vanished for a moment. It was because I had discovered something in Edith's eyes that I had glanced at lightly. I couldn't take my eyes off that unfamiliar light.
In the novel, Edith Calakis was described as having hair like a black sea and eyes as deep blue as an iceberg.
But I had been wondering since we danced yesterday. This man.
"That's a very old-fashioned thing to say for a wife who proposed before we even met. I thought you were bold, but is your liver only as big as a rabbit's?"
I impulsively jumped up. It was something that would never have happened normally because I was used to the etiquette of the nobility, but the chair scraped.
Without realizing it, I pushed my face close to Edith's face.
My flowing pink hair touched his sculpted cheek. Breaths scattered.
"Edith."
"..."
"You have purple in your eyes?"
I found a very small fragment of light in his deep-sea-like eyes. It was a precious secret that had not been mentioned in the novel and that no one had ever discovered.
"...Why are you suddenly saying such nonsense?"
Edith froze with his chin propped up, but I was pleased with the unexpected discovery and smiled proudly.
I've already made a new discovery. At this rate, it's only a matter of time before I find out Edith's remaining secrets.
Edith, who is quick to gather information, knows a lot about Maybia Morgana, but I was secretly upset because I didn't. It should be fair between a couple.
I'm pretty amazing after all. My eye for detail is the best.
"Did you know? That it can sometimes be completely blue, but it changes like this."
I bit my lip before I could smile too broadly, but Edith raised his hand.
Poke.
A white, long finger poked my cheek gently.
"What is it?"
It wasn't a pinch, just a light touch.
Edith muttered with a thoughtful face.
"I'm just amazed."
What was he amazed by?
"Is it because my skin is good?"
Edith quietly inhaled.
"It's because you have a very unique scent. A sweet and strangely familiar scent."
