Chapter 22
He abruptly stood up from his seat without a word. Looking at the area of the window blocked by that man’s shoulder, she once again felt how truly massive this man was.
“Ben.”
Soon, he exchanged a few words with his aide Ben, who had come in through the door. A moment later, Ben brought a fairly large box from the next room.
Askin slammed the box down on the table with a thud and opened the lid.
Surprisingly, it was filled to the brim with gold coins. Askin didn’t stop there and tossed down an additional pouch.
With a heavy clink, it sounded like it was stuffed full of gold coins. Sure enough, a glint of gold peeked through the gap in the pouch.
“As you can see, this is all I have right now. I’ll make sure to send the rest by the appointed date.”
“…….”
Somehow, she could sense him gritting his teeth at the words “make sure.”
Calmly looking up at this man, she recalled everything about him from the book.
Even though misfortunes were piling up in his territory right now, and he was struggling helplessly with debt because of his younger sister’s illness, this man was someone with an upright personality that would break before it bent.
On top of that, with his noble character, enduring this kind of humiliation must not have been easy.
“If you just said you wouldn’t annul the engagement, you wouldn’t have to pay back the money. Why do you keep insisting on breaking it off?”
“Are you asking because you don’t know?”
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard it straight from your mouth.”
“…….”
Askin furrowed his brow.
“I hate you. I despise you. You treat people like tools on a whim and do whatever you please to me—no, to me.”
Askin let out a faint sigh.
“The you who humiliated Aria is more loathsome than anyone else in the world. Even if the world ended and only you and I were left, I still wouldn’t spend my life with you.”
I reached out and fiddled with the gold coins before lifting my gaze.
“But it’s not entirely my fault.”
At my words, Askin’s face took on the expression of someone who thought I was being stubborn again, just like always.
I smiled bitterly to myself even as I doubled down on the stubbornness.
My bruised pride was still very much alive.
“If you had understood my feelings, none of that would have happened.”
“If you’re done talking, then get out.”
The words I uttered—ones the real Charlize would have said—weren’t just to make a retreat.
“No, I have a new proposal for you.”
An “I knew it” look passed over Askin’s face.
“Don’t you want to be free?”
“That’s not something you should say.”
“True. But couldn’t the one who bound you also set you loose?”
“……What are you getting at.”
I moistened my lips.
“One year. Just one year—maintain this relationship with me. If you still hate it after that, I’ll let you go completely free.”
“What a laughable deception. How do I know what tricks you’ll pull next?”
“I’ll even swear a magical oath. I’ll stake my life on it.”
“Huh?”
Askin scowled, his face full of even deeper distrust.
“It’s full of contradictions. Even if you let me go, the debt would still be there.”
“What if…… I paid off that debt?”
“You’d just become the new creditor. Utterly exhausting.”
This was like staring down an impenetrable shield.
I let out a small sigh.
Charlize. What kind of life did you live that no one can trust you at all…….
In a credit-based society, you’d be a total deadbeat. Got it?
“Just stake your life right here? If there’s a magically binding contract, bring it over.”
I crossed my legs and looked up at Askin.
“No, just meet me one more time next time. I’ll bring the contract. Once is all it takes.”
“Why should I?”
“Think of it as getting tricked, but one meeting solves all your worries, right? Even if I deceive you, you’ll push through the annulment anyway, and nothing changes.”
“…….”
I stood from my seat.
“You’ll need some time to think about it too. Consider it. Like you said, isn’t it strange that I’m suddenly obsessed with just meeting you? I’ve only asked to meet—no other schemes for the first time ever?”
Whenever Charlize took a liking to something, she’d wrap it up and gift it to Askin.
There was never any regard for Askin’s will, and if he discarded the item later, she’d throw a tantrum at him or those around him.
And that was hardly all. What about the rampages she unleashed on the Remute Family knights?
“……Just take the money and get out already.”
In any case, the meeting where I’d finally carved out a chance wasn’t entirely fruitless.
That man’s face had shaken for the first time.
Yes, please, for the love of everything, let’s just sign the contract to maintain it for one year. Stamp it, and I swear I won’t bother you again!
Cheering myself on inwardly, I grabbed the gold coin box. Or tried to.
‘What the—this thing won’t budge?’
The box didn’t move an inch.
As I strained with a flustered expression, I felt eyes on me. Looking up, Askin was staring like he’d witnessed something pathetic.
His gaze carried a sense of utter bewilderment.
“……You could just call a servant. What are you doing?”
“Ah.”
Right. I hadn’t realized it would be this heavy.
“I measure the gold coins’ value by their weight.”
At Askin’s scolding, I nodded with a brazen expression, as if to say, “Exactly.”
His face grew even stranger.
“But were you just worrying about me? I’m touched. Let’s keep the engagement going.”
“……Don’t spout nonsense. Go home.”
“That rejecting attitude of yours is pretty charming too.”
Feeling pleased, I tried a line I really shouldn’t have.
I flashed a bright smile, and a look crossed Askin’s face like he was staring at a genuine lunatic.
“Yeah, got it. See you. Pretty boy.”
“Pretty…… what?”
“Oh, you just seem prettier than me.”
Right on cue, the servant arrived. “Well then, goodbye.” I stood briskly and headed off.
Along the way, my eyes met Ben’s—he was still standing there—and for some reason, he whipped his head away.
What was that? Looked like he was holding back a laugh. Whatever. Who cares.
With the servant trailing behind, carrying the gold coin box and pouch, I reached the carriage.
I was just about to climb in when—patter patter—small footsteps came running.
“D-Duchess!”
“Duchess! Duchess!”
Surprisingly, it was the children from the territory who’d been in the crowd earlier.
What? Why are they still here? And around my carriage, no less?
I gestured to the escort knights. The children, who’d been held back by them, approached hesitantly.
I glanced around. The territory folk were standing off at a distance.
What? They haven’t gone home yet? I scanned for Aria just in case, but fortunately, she wasn’t there.
“Um, Duchess…….”
The children wouldn’t come any closer, so I went to them.
One boy and two girls. They exchanged glances and shyly held out their hands.
“W-We were waiting!”
“Y-Yeah!”
“Why for me?”
Their tiny hands were brimming with small, red berries.
“W-We picked these wild strawberries ourselves!”
“Yeah, we really wanted you to have them, Duchess!”
“Sis, valyou!”
Among the children, the boy looked the oldest and tallest, followed by one girl. The tiniest girl seemed about seven.
Her speech was lispy from missing teeth. And the two girls were the spitting image of sisters.
I stared at the wild strawberries before picking one up.
They looked incredibly fresh, as if picked today, with a beautiful color.
Without hesitation, I popped one into my mouth.
I sensed the knights beside me stiffen in shock, but I just smirked.
“Not bad.”
Oh, sweet.
“I can’t accept these for free.”
I pulled a gold coin from the pouch the servant had been holding.
Then I placed one in each of their hands. The wild strawberries they carried went straight to the nearby escort knights.
“No such thing as free in my life. That’s your payment. Go buy some sweets.”
“Uh, uh.”
“W-We weren’t trying to take anything!”
As the children looked baffled, I narrowed my eyes.
“Oh my goodness. These kids are already so money-hungry.”
“Y-Yes?!”
“Here, that’s it. No more.”
I slipped one more gold coin into each tiny hand and gave them a gentle shove.
But two gold coins were too much for the smallest child’s grip.
Watching her struggle to close her fist, my eyes drifted to her tangled hair.
“Your hair’s a mess.”
“Gasp, i-it’s ‘cause we r-ran here!”
The littlest one flailed about in her lispy panic from the missing tooth.
I removed a small pin from my hair and placed it in her palm.
“Pin it up.”
“Gasp, it’s so sparkly!”
I grinned and handed the little one to the girl who seemed like her big sister.
Go on, shoo. Pushed by my hands, they retreated with bewildered “Uh, uh"s.
Once the children were gone, I took another wild strawberry from the knight’s hand and ate it.
Wow, this one’s tangy—delicious.
“Knight, want one?”
“……N-No, ma’am!”
I’d offered because it was good, but he went pale like I’d handed him poison, so I let it go.
It was right then, as I was about to board the carriage.
A carriage was pulling in from the opposite direction. It came to a stop near mine, the door opened, and someone stepped out.
‘Who is that?’
The carriage bore an emblem, but I couldn’t place it.
Either Charlize hadn’t remembered it, or it was some family she hadn’t bothered with.
Which was it?
