Chapter 5

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: An Irrevocable Deal
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The splendid banquet hosted by the Argentas and the Allojes came to a close.

After the banquet ended, the rumors circulating in high society were much as the two families had expected.

“To think the Argentas and the Allojes would reconcile.”

“Haven’t the two families been on bad terms for a long time? Especially in this generation.”

“And yet, such a happy occasion...”

And most of them said the same thing.

“The soon-to-be newlyweds looked so wonderfully in love.”

“I can’t recall such a sweet pair in high society in recent memory...”

The couple whispering behind the white veil became a particularly hot topic.

Of course, what the two of them discussed did not leak beyond the veil.

However, the sight of them whispering each other’s names, embracing, and kissing was deeply imprinted in the minds of high society.

*Thud.*

After the banquet was cleared away, Diello Argenta returned to his office.

This was, of course, after he had escorted his ‘lovely’ new bride safely to her room.

They were now officially engaged, so there would be no scandal even if they stayed in the same mansion for several days.

“High society is abuzz about your display today.”

Attending to him upon his return to the office was Rick, the head of intelligence for House Argenta.

Diello gave a slight nod.

“It seems it was because she was far more proactive than expected.”

Rick replied in a light tone.

“There is some talk of Lady Croire Alloje being proactive, but most of it is about you, my lord.”

Diello’s gaze turned to Rick.

This man always maintained a seemingly frivolous demeanor, but his loyalty to Argenta was more zealous than anyone’s.

When their eyes met, Rick gave a brief, silent bow and continued.

“It’s because you showed a different side of yourself than what you usually present to high society.”

Diello Argenta, who had always revealed only an indecisive and weak nature.

For such a man to display such possessiveness toward his bride at a high society banquet—even if his face was hidden by a veil—it was bound to become a topic of conversation.

Diello nodded slightly.

“They must think we’re quite the sweet pair, then.”

“Of course.”

“The more the rumors spread, the better. Fan the flames, just enough so that we don’t leave a trail.”

The reach of Argenta extended to the very borders of the empire.

They could conjure rumors from thin air; embellishing an existing story to paint them as a doting newlywed couple would be the work of a moment.

“Yes, sir. I will relay that to the Argentas on the front lines.”

The Argentas on the front lines.

The ‘Argentas’ mentioned here did not refer to those of the ducal family’s bloodline.

It referred to all the members of the Argenta household.

From the knights to the servants, maids, and even the stable hands, anyone with a deep connection to Argenta, anyone who had not betrayed them, was called an Argenta.

It was a tradition that dated back to the founding of the ducal House of Argenta.

Our Argenta.

Everyone’s Argenta.

*Click.*

After confirming Rick had left, Diello braced his hands on the office desk.

“Hah.”

He let out a short breath while looking down at the table, then loosened his necktie with a few tugs.

It wasn’t because he felt suffocated. It was because his mind was in a whirl.

A feeling of being completely filled.

It wasn’t because of the shifting political landscape due to the Alloje and Argenta marriage, or any other secondary matters.

*‘You said you’d follow my lead.’*

*‘Deeper, bolder.’*

It seemed to be because he was thinking of Croire Alloje, who had whispered those words from beneath the white veil.

*‘Try to love me.’*

It was neither a confession nor an encouragement.

To him, it was a kind of provocation.

Croire Alloje probably had no idea.

What kind of man she was setting on fire.

That must have been why she could whisper so daringly.

Of course, that was also what Diello Argenta himself had been aiming for.

[A foolish and indecisive duke.]

[One who doesn’t know the first thing about acting... a young duke tossed about between the three ducal families, which are rife with schemes and under-the-table dealings.]

Those who had already finished their assessment of him were beginning to drift away from his side.

Those who were not ‘true Argentas’.

Believing they could gain nothing from their master, those who could turn their backs at any moment had begun to contact the other two ducal families.

They would soon pay the price.

*‘You said you’d follow my lead.’*

Recalling the bold words of his new bride, he smiled again.

His fingertips, which had started tapping on the desk at some point, came to a halt.

*‘Haa...’*

He remembered Croire Alloje standing on her tiptoes, fitting perfectly in his arms.

And those violet eyes.

And those soft lips that had pressed against his rather eagerly, as if she thought he couldn’t lead a kiss.

*‘Like this?’*

He also remembered her eyes when he had asked that question, after stealing her breath with a deep kiss on those audacious lips.

Her violet eyes, somewhat hazy and breathless, clearly held a hint of surprise.

And when he had truly kissed her deeply, Croire Alloje, who had claimed she would lead, had collapsed, completely defenseless.

It was Diello Argenta himself who had caught and supported her as her legs gave way.

As if that weren’t enough, it was also he who had coveted her lips beneath the veil until she was panting with heated breaths.

*‘...!’*

Afterward, her eyes, wide with surprise like a rabbit’s, had stared at him.

“Croire Alloje...”

He slowly tapped the desk again.

By now, she must have revised her assessment of Diello Argenta somewhat.

From an indecisive and weak man to one who could be proactive when necessary.

And Diello, after this banquet, had completely revised his assessment of Croire Alloje.

The Croire Alloje known to the world was completely temperamental. One who would cast out or even kill her subordinates based on her mood.

The family tradition of House Alloje, the most unhesitating of the three families when it came to taking lives.

And Croire Alloje was said to even enjoy that tradition.

But the Croire Alloje that Diello Argenta saw was a completely different person.

“It seems I wasn’t the only one acting.”

Croire Alloje, it appeared she was the same kind of person as me.

The facade she had shown until now was nothing more than a false front, put on out of fear that Duke Alloje would be wary of her, his illegitimate daughter.

Just watching her for a few days made that much clear.

*‘I’ll take the lead, so just follow me.’*

This was her true self.

And to reveal that side of herself to him without reservation meant that she was betting everything on him.

“Do it, or don’t.”

To Argenta, whose creed was those very words, she was a very suitable business partner.

Do it, or don’t.

Muttering the words again, he laughed silently.

She probably didn’t realize what kind of card she had drawn.

Even if she regretted it, it was already too late.

She had already stepped into Argenta’s domain, and the deal was struck.

Beneath that pure white veil at the banquet.

It was an irrevocable deal.

“...”

Diello touched his lower lip where she had touched him, then smiled faintly.

The corners of his mouth, holding a strange emotion, curved into an arc.

***

After the banquet, a strangely excited atmosphere filled the Argenta mansion.

What was peculiar was that this energy permeated the entire Argenta mansion, from the head maid, Pielle, to the servants and stable hands.

“Usually, even if the master of the house gets married, the servants wouldn’t be this excited.”

No matter how you look at it, their master getting married wouldn’t change the daily lives of the servants, would it?

Besides, from the servants’ perspective, isn’t Croire Alloje an incredibly difficult villainess?

She even killed servants when her mood soured.

The servants must have heard those rumors, yet the people of Argenta surrounding her seemed strangely happy.

“It seems everyone is happy about the engagement news, so I’m happy too.”

At my words, Pielle, who was attending to my bath, gave a faint smile.

“It seems they have high expectations based on the image you both presented.”

“Because we looked like an incredibly sweet newlywed couple?”

*Splash!*

I splashed the surface of the water with my hand and looked back at Pielle.

Pielle gave a slight nod.

After confirming it was just the two of us here while I was being attended to in the bath, I whispered to her.

“Pielle, you know the truth.”

Pielle flinched at the whisper.

It seemed she never expected me to bring it up directly.

More than that, she seemed to have never imagined that I knew she was aware this was a contract marriage.

“How did it look to you? The engagement ceremony.”

To someone who didn’t know the circumstances, it must have looked very sweet.

But I needed to know how it appeared from the perspective of someone who did know the circumstances.

Because Diello and I had to deceive not only the nobles of high society, but Duke Alloje as well.

Duke Alloje, who sent me as a fake Pero.

[You must seduce Diello Argenta.]

[Steal Duke Argenta’s potential.]

The one who gave those orders.

I had to be able to fool him.

It had to look like Diello was truly head over heels for me.

“It was very good.”

Pielle’s hesitation was only for a moment.

She set down the bottle of scented oil and smiled.

“So much so that even I was almost completely fooled.”

She didn’t seem to be lying. It looked like this act was a success.

Just as I was smiling back at her.

“It’s an emergency!”

An urgent voice and the sound of dress shoes echoed from outside the bathroom.