Chapter 3

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: A Very Interesting Bride
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The night Croire Alloje came to occupy the guest of honor’s suite in the Argenta residence.

“Have you confirmed it?”

Diello asked the figure who had entered the room without a sound.

The woman bowed her head.

Though dressed as a head maid, her swift movements clearly belonged to someone who had undergone rigorous training.

“Yes. The name of Your Grace etched between her shoulder blades was indeed an elaborate fake. As you said, the mark has faded since it was last checked, and it seems it will disappear with time.”

—A soft scratch.

Diello Argenta, who had been handling Argenta’s affairs, quietly set down his quill.

An Argenta informant, who entered the room right after, also provided a useful answer.

“We’ve looked into it, and as you suspected, our informant in the Alloje Duchy reports that the household has been far too quiet for Croire Alloje to have truly awakened as a Pero.”

The Allojes and the Argentas were practically enemies. Even if she was an illegitimate daughter, if Croire had truly awakened as Diello’s Pero, it would have undoubtedly caused an uproar.

Unless Duke Alloje had secretly orchestrated the matter using only his closest aides.

This meant that Croire Alloje was, just as she’d said, a fake Pero.

He suddenly recalled the events of that afternoon.

*‘Duke Diello Argenta.’*

That was how Croire Alloje, with her deep violet hair, had addressed him.

The aura she projected was strikingly different from when he had seen her before their marriage was arranged.

Rumor had it she was impulsive and moody, but in the eyes he had seen, a future glittered.

The eyes of one who sees the future and prepares for it.

“So she’s been hiding her true self…”

He tapped, tap, tap, on the desk.

Duke Alloje was a man who saw everyone, including his own kin, as nothing more than cards in his hand, so it was a wise choice for Croire Alloje to hide her true nature.

He thought of the way Croire had confidently proposed a deal before him.

Throughout their conversation, Croire Alloje had repeatedly shown her open palms, as if to reassure him.

Like someone trying to calm a frightened herbivore.

Without even knowing who the gentle herbivore truly was.

“A deal with the enemy…”

He examined the letter from Duke Alloje that had come with Croire Alloje.

The marriage conditions, written with arrogant words despite sending a fake Pero, were a sight to behold.

[First, 20% of the income from the Argenta territory’s main mines and farmlands shall be paid to the Alloje Duchy as a dignity maintenance fee for the Duchess of Argenta, Croire.]

It was beyond him why the Duchess’s dignity maintenance fee would go to the Alloje Duchy.

[Furthermore, allow for the deployment of one hundred additional Alloje knights at Tila Pass, located between Argenta and Alloje, which has recently been swarmed by monsters.]

Tila Pass was a key strategic point between the two families.

Should a war break out between them, the family that controlled this high ground would gain an overwhelming advantage.

And Tila Pass was currently in the possession of House Argenta.

This was a demand to hand it over.

[Also, could you be so considerate as to ensure Croire is able to visit the Alloje Duchy without fail, once a month?]

The reason written below that was truly absurd.

[The relationship between Argenta and Alloje has hardly been amicable in recent times, so I find myself concerned about sending my pretty daughter away so suddenly.]

“Because she’s his *too*, pretty daughter.”

Sending such a daughter into enemy territory as a disposable card?

Diello, reading what was less a letter and more a threat, muttered the sentence before letting out a short laugh.

It was a dry laugh, completely different from the warm smile he had shown Croire Alloje earlier.

—*Click.*

He pulled the bell cord, and the maid, who had left at some point, quietly re-entered.

Her footsteps were, as expected, unnaturally light.

“Pielle.”

“Yes.”

Diello gestured to the bowing maid.

“You will personally attend to the future Duchess. And…”

He pressed the family seal firmly onto the reply for Duke Alloje, sealing the letter.

“Grant Alloje everything they desire.”

They have, after all, given me a bride so interesting I cannot possibly refuse.

He laughed silently.

* * *

Soon, preparations for a lavish wedding began.

Now that Argenta had found its Pero, there was no reason to delay, so things moved quickly.

The wedding costs were split fifty-fifty between Argenta and Alloje.

On the surface, it was an equal transaction, but the reality was different.

Unlike the one-time wedding expenses, the concessions Alloje was extorting under the pretext of this marriage were enormous.

Of course, it was all just a temporary expenditure.

“It’s all stuff we’ll get back once our lord blooms, anyway.”

That was how important a Pero was, and the people of Argenta considered the various concessions handed over to Alloje as nothing more than a short-term loan.

Even so, it was only natural that the Argenta servants did not look kindly upon Alloje at the moment.

On top of that, perhaps due to Argenta’s particularly exclusive attitude towards outsiders, I found myself dealing with a pointless provocation.

“We would like to place an advance order for your wedding dresses. If you would select four designs from these, we will have them made.”

Perhaps because rumors of Argenta’s concessions were spreading, the servants here did not view me favorably.

Of course, I had no intention of bowing down to them either.

I was the lady of the house for as long as I was here. Even if I was planning to leave soon, I deserved to be comfortable, didn't I?

“All of them.”

I answered without even looking at the seven colorful designs.

The maid’s jaw dropped.

“Pardon?”

“One usually changes outfits at least five times during a wedding, no?”

I looked the maid straight in the eye.

“So how does it make sense to have only four dresses? Are you telling me to wear the same dress twice? At a lavish wedding attended by every family that knows of Alloje and Argenta? Besides.”

I pointed outside.

“How can you know what the weather will be like and prepare only four dresses? There should be spares, at the very least.”

Argenta’s weather was notoriously fickle.

A place could be bright and sunny without a single cloud in the morning, only to be hit with a sudden downpour.

Thanks to that, the original Croire Alloje had only four dresses made and ended up in a difficult situation.

But there was no reason for me to do the same.

“...Understood.”

“And prepare at least three sets of matching necklaces, shoes, and earrings for each dress.”

This much wouldn't even make a dent in the budget, would it?

I shot a glare at the maid.

The maid, looking slightly flustered, bowed her head and retreated without another word.

I have no intention of letting them see me as a pushover.

If another childish provocation like this came my way, it seemed I would need to discipline the staff.

* * *

While an entire building was being constructed solely for the wedding, a banquet was held to announce the union of the two families to the empire’s central high society.

The hosts of tonight’s banquet were, of course, Diello Argenta and I, the engaged couple.

The only problem was… that central high society believed ours was a sweet marriage for love.

The truth about Peros and the succession of a family head’s abilities was a secret known only to the three great duchies and the imperial family.

“At the banquet tonight, Lady Croire Alloje, you will shine the brightest.”

The head maid said as she adjusted my attire.

“It has been a very long time since a marriage has occurred between the three great ducal houses.”

The woman, who had introduced herself as Pielle, treated me with great friendliness.

Of course, I knew full well it was nothing more than a pretense.

“I suppose so.”

I replied, glancing at her.

Pielle.

She was the head maid of Argenta and the manager of the ‘Cleaners.’

The Cleaners weren’t people who simply swept and mopped floors.

To be precise, they were a group of assassins who ‘cleaned up’ people.

People who literally dealt with anything that got in Argenta’s way.

In the original novel, having sworn her life to Argenta, she was someone who did not hesitate to bloody her own hands.

It meant that despite the kind smile she wore now, she was a completely different person underneath.

Even though I’d only read the novel up to the midway point, I knew that much.

Even when Diello Argenta’s gentle nature made him hesitate to make a decision, anyone who posed a threat to House Argenta could not escape Pielle’s blade.

In the novel, after it was revealed that Croire Alloje was a false Pero, it was Pielle who had come to take her head.

Though she never got the chance, as Duke Alloje killed Croire first.

“By the way, Pielle.”

The original Croire was afraid of Pielle, but my situation is different.

I wonder if she knows. That I’m a fake Pero.

My deal with Diello Argenta is a secret, but someone in Pielle’s position might already know.

The fact that I’m a fake Pero.

There was a simple way to find out.

“Yes, Lady Croire Alloje.”

It seemed she wasn’t calling me ‘my lady’ yet, since we weren’t married.

I looked up at the meticulous head maid and asked.

“Was it His Grace, Duke Diello Argenta, who personally ordered you to attend to me?”

If he had assigned Pielle to me himself, it meant they had already shared the plan.

As an Argenta himself, Diello would know what kind of work Pielle did.

If he needed to hide the fact that I was a fake Pero from her as well, he wouldn’t have assigned someone so perceptive to me.

“Of course.”

Pielle answered my question immediately.

“He commanded me to devote myself wholeheartedly to assisting you, Lady Croire Alloje, from tonight’s banquet through to the wedding and beyond.”

she said with a faint smile.

I gave a slight nod at her words.

Diello likely assigned her, the family’s Cleaner, to me for protection as well.

“Then I’ll be in your care from now on.”

So, she knows my true identity.

Pielle bowed her head.

“I look forward to serving you, Lady Croire Alloje.”

Her reply came in a soft, relaxed tone, but I knew.

Pielle was still wary of me.

As the family’s Cleaner, it was her job to be wary of outsiders until the very end.

“…”

I had no intention of deceiving Argenta, but I couldn’t help feeling a renewed sense of tension.

While she paid her respects, I gazed out through the glass that made up the entire front wall of my room.

Beyond the pristine white walls and windows, I could see a vast expanse of ocean, its surface glittering beautifully under the light.

The ocean view was nice, but if my predictions were correct, that sea was not as beautiful a place as it looked.

“That’s the Infinite Sea, isn’t it?”

I pointed to the seemingly endless ocean.

That sea, much farther away than it appeared, was where the Ducal House of Argenta had defended against monster invasions for generations.

This was the front line where the fiery Argentas had ceaselessly held back the monsters that swam out of the sea or emerged from the tidal flats.

“Yes, that’s correct. This must be your first time seeing it.”

Pielle glanced at me and smiled faintly.

“How does it compare to Alloje’s ‘Endless Forest’?”

The ‘Endless Forest.’

The place where Alloje held back the monsters.

Just as Argenta defended against monsters from the Infinite Sea, the three great duchies surrounding the empire each defended a different front.

The other family, the windy Cartiels, was likely defending the ‘All-Crushing Desert.’

This, along with the power to wield their respective elements, was said to be a pact with the imperial family dating back to ancient times.

There was also a theory that the reason each family defended a region with a disadvantageous element was a clever ploy by the imperial family to keep them from running rampant.

To prevent them from running wild despite their powerful abilities. To force them to pour all their energy into stopping the monsters.

“It’s beautiful.”

I said it with sincerity.

Setting aside the fact that I’d never seen the forest Alloje defended, I simply loved ocean views.

The sea viewed from a pristine white building like this was especially exotic.

“I heard the Allojes are sick of water, but it seems that’s not the case for you.”

Pielle chuckled softly. I shrugged.

“Why would I be sick of water when I have the ability to control it?”

I moved my hand.

I was uncertain at first, but from the moment I possessed this body, the ability had already begun to adapt to me.

Especially after using it for the first time in front of Diello.

Since then, the power had felt even more familiar.

Thanks to that, I could move the water in the glass before me as I pleased.

—*Splash!*

“...!”

It was clear my ability to control water was superior to the original Croire’s.

I had only intended to gather a few small droplets, but the entire volume of water in the glass was churning.

Manipulating water felt far more natural than I had expected.

I shaped the water in the glass into a dolphin and made it move.

—*Plip!*

The little dolphin leaped lightly above the surface before disappearing back into the water.

As if it were alive.

The entire process was, strangely enough, as easy as breathing.

* * *

And soon, the banquet began.

With the announcement of the shocking news—the marriage of Diello Argenta and Croire Alloje—high society began to burn with excitement.