With Selina’s brief letter lying open between them, the two men continued their discussion.
“Still… she turned down my marriage proposal.”
“That was only because you sprang marriage on her out of the blue. You just flustered the poor girl, nothing more.”
“Right… So my mistake was rushing into things.”
Xenos nodded solemnly.
“If we meet again, I must avoid making the same mistakes. Father, what should I do? What should I wear? I ought to have asked her beforehand what colors she prefers.”
One could easily picture an invisible tail wagging behind the massive young man out of pure excitement.
Philip found the sight so endearing that he instinctively wanted to pull him into a hug, but instead he simply rested his hands on the shoulders of the son who had grown so tall.
“My son, you need to calm down a bit. You cannot repeat the blunder you made the other day.”
“Yes, Father. I will try to remain calmer this time.”
“Trying is not enough. Remember this well… this is the most crucial negotiation of your life.”
“A negotiation…?”
At that word, Xenos’s eyes lit up.
Xenos stepped into the cafe, his cheeks slightly flushed from catching Selina’s scent from afar.
“Miss Arsene.”
Calling out before anyone could escort him, he strode straight into the room where she sat.
Startled, the cafe manager bowed respectfully to Xenos.
“Your Grace.”
Caught off guard as well, Selina hid her surprise, offered a polite greeting, and turned to the manager.
“Everything is fine here. Please step out and prepare some tea for us.”
“Right away, my lady.”
The manager withdrew, leaving the two of them seated across from each other.
“Your Grace.”
“Yes, Miss Arsene.”
Selina gestured for him to speak first. After a moment of silence, Xenos gathered his words.
“First and foremost, I wish to apologize to you.”
“Apologize…?”
“It was only natural for you to refuse a marriage proposal from someone you barely know. I was thoughtless. I am sorry.”
He bowed his head as he spoke.
‘A man revered by everyone in the Empire… bowing to me and apologizing with such earnestness…’
Selina bowed in return, thinking to herself,
‘If anyone would ever grant my request… it must be this man.’
After severing her betrothal with House Patel, she had spent the past few days searching for a suitable family.
Though she had displayed absolute confidence before the family elders, claiming she could easily find a suitable match, the grim reality of her tarnished reputation in high society weighed heavily on her heart the moment she actually had to pursue one.
‘How many men would accept an engagement with a woman of my standing? Wouldn’t this only end up destroying the connections I’ve fought to keep?’
After long deliberation, she had arranged this meeting. Seeing Xenos’s sincere demeanor now, she felt certain she had made the right choice.
Once the manager returned with the tea and departed again, Selina broke the silence.
“Your Grace, the truth is… I came here today because I have a request to make.”
“A request?”
Xenos leaned forward, his gaze locked intently onto her as if he refused to miss a single breath.
“Yes. If you decline… I will entirely understand. It is not an easy thing to ask.”
Xenos listened with complete devotion, but the words still refused to come easily to Selina.
‘Should I beat around the bush? No… matters like this must be spoken plainly. I never imagined I would say such a thing to a man…’
She cleared her throat lightly, then spoke.
“To be blunt… would you do me the honor of becoming engaged to me?”
That evening, upon returning home, Selina could not shake the memory of Xenos’s stunned expression, looking as though his entire world had crumbled the moment she laid out her terms.
“Could you… give me some time to think?”
“Nola.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“It tastes terrible today. Take it away.”
“What? But…”
“The tea I had at the cafe was far better. Were you daydreaming today? Wasting tea leaves like this… what a shame.”
“…I am sorry, my lady.”
“Never mind. Take it with you.”
The brew had indeed turned out bitter.
Selina had never imagined that her proposal would drain all the color from Xenos’s face like that.
‘I offered him a temporary engagement that we would dissolve afterward, so why look at me with such wounded reproach? Is it because he is the darling of society? And who was the one who proposed first, anyway? Was that marriage proposal just a lie?’
Recalling Xenos’s expression, Selina frowned and let out an irritated sigh.
‘All I asked for was a temporary engagement. Did that really warrant looking so heartbroken?’
“Where did that burning gaze you used to look at me with go?”
“My lady.”
“Ben, you seem to have forgotten how to knock.”
Ben had in fact knocked three times without receiving any answer, leaving him no choice but to let himself in. Maintaining his composure, he replied,
“The Count is asking for you.”
“Very well. I will be right there.”
Putting aside her tangled thoughts about Xenos, Selina headed straight for the Count’s study, as there were trading matters she needed to discuss with him.
“What did you say she wants?”
“An engagement, Father.”
“Isn’t that wonderful? She agreed to an engagement, so things are progressing smoothly—”
“And she says she wants us to part ways later.”
“What?”
“She proposed an engagement contract. We get engaged, and then we break it off. After two years.”
“What on earth does that mean? Break it off? Explain this properly.”
Xenos dropped heavily into his chair, a dull thud echoing as he tugged irritably at his suffocating cravat.
“She said she was grateful that someone of my standing and reputation approached her first. And after giving it thought, she proposed we begin with an engagement.”
“And then what?”
“I wanted to tell her that I didn’t want an engagement, but marriage right away. But remembering what happened the other day, I agreed to the engagement.”
“Fair enough up to that point. But an engagement naturally leads to marriage, so why insist on parting ways?”
“That is what I cannot understand.”
Xenos let out a heavy sigh, his brow furrowing with dejection.
“How could she ask to break it off before we are even wed? Miss Arsene said she cannot dare entertain the thought of truly marrying me.”
He pressed a hand to his forehead, thoroughly bewildered.
“If she doesn’t want marriage, why ask for an engagement at all? And she laid down so many conditions, too. Is being tied to me really that intolerable?”
Philip had no idea why Selina was steering clear of marriage, but he tried to soothe his son.
“Miss Arsene needs time to understand your feelings and look upon you with the same warmth. Perhaps she was overwhelmed, or perhaps she simply doesn’t grasp the depth of your devotion yet. And how did you answer her?”
Xenos let out a long sigh before answering.
“I asked her for time to consider it.”
“Well done. Now that you’ve bought some time, let’s work out a solution. She wants an engagement followed by a breakup, is that right?”
“Exactly. Everything is written down right here.”
Xenos drew a thick envelope from inside his coat.
“What is this?”
“The engagement contract proposed by Miss Arsene.”
“An engagement contract?”
Philip unfolded the papers and spread them across the table.
Three full pages detailed what she required of Xenos over the next two years, along with the corresponding compensation.
‘She drew up every single clause with meticulous care… I never imagined my son would receive an offer like this.’
“And what do you think?”
Removing his spectacles, Philip asked.
“Naturally, I want to marry her at once. There is no need for such an exhausting contract between us.”
“And what if she insists on this arrangement? What if she demands you part ways in the end? Will you let her go quietly?”
Xenos pondered for a moment, then shook his head vehemently.
“I will make her my wife, no matter what it takes.”
Seeing the fierce resolve in his son’s eyes, Philip nodded.
“That’s the spirit. You must not back down. Know clearly what you want, and then devise a way to seize it.”
Philip cast another sharp glance down at the engagement contract.
“Turn it over in your mind on your own for a while. As for me… I shall have to meet Miss Arsene myself.”
There showed the true face of Philip, Commander of the Helwa Knights—the very man feared by the Imperial commanders of Ottom during the postwar negotiations.
