Marriage with the Younger Brother of the Man Who Betrayed Me - Chapter 75

As soon as I expressed my desire for a meeting, the second son of Koelnhausen visited the baron’s residence.

The meeting was arranged in just one day.

Even though it’s a nearby territory, I didn’t expect him to arrive this quickly.

I went down to the baron’s garden with a slightly uncomfortable feeling, and finally met the person known as the second son of Koelnhausen.

“Oh, Lady Yulia von Schneestern!”

Although it was our first meeting, he greeted me with a big smile as if he was meeting an old friend.

I briefly examined his appearance.

He looks like someone who enjoys drinking and gambling.

That was my assessment based on his outward appearance.

Blonde hair styled carelessly with pomade.

Carefree-looking green eyes.

A carefree-looking smile.

He gave the impression of someone far from diligence.

And how flashily he was dressed…

He could be said to be someone who didn’t match my style, which pursued neatness, from his attire alone.

Still, it’s a bad habit to judge someone by their appearance alone, so should I stop here?

…Just as I thought that, the second son of Koelnhausen opened his mouth and offered an incredibly carefree greeting.

“You are as beautiful as a statue carved from the moon, just as the rumors say. Seeing you in person like this, I feel like tears of emotion might spill out. I am Rolf von Koelnhausen, the second son of the Koelnhausen Count family.”

“……”

A statue carved from the moon…

Did he prepare that line at home?

If he came up with such a grandiose compliment on the spot, it would be quite a natural talent.

It’s not easy to think of such an extravagant phrase on the spot.

I sighed softly, not loud enough for him to hear, then replied.

“I’m Yulia von Schneestern. Pleased to meet you.”

He seemed a bit taken aback by my brief and concise greeting, but soon regained his smooth smile and pulled out a chair at the tea table for me.

I plopped down in that chair and said to him.

“Thank you for providing the oil.”

“Haha, we couldn’t ignore a neighbor’s difficulties. Our family put in a little effort.”

“Yes, thank you very much. This territory was almost turned into a land of death. Then your county would have also suffered great damage from that corrosion eventually.”

His expression stiffened a little.

Did he understand the hidden meaning in my words?

In fact, deliberately mentioning that the Koelnhausen Count family would have also suffered damage eventually was a kind of warning.

A warning not to try to take credit just for lending some oil, as they would also be in trouble if the cracks weren’t dealt with.

Towards Rolf, who seemed to understand that meaning as his expression hardened, I gave a somewhat artificial smile.

“Isn’t it fortunate that both territories will be safe thanks to the count family’s help?”

“Haha, yes, it’s really fortunate. Ahem…”

Rolf gulped down the cold water on the table as if trying to cool his reddened face.

He seemed a bit flustered, but only for a moment. Soon he opened his mouth again with an excited look.

“By the way, the weather is really nice today, isn’t it? If we were to have a wedding, it would be nice to have it on a day like this…”

“I think it’s a bit hot.”

“Ah… yes… Now that you mention it, it is a bit hot. Hmm.”

If a conversation means exchanging words on the same topic, what we were having probably wasn’t a conversation.

Shouldn’t it be seen as Rolf’s one-sided mumbling?

At least I had no intention of talking about the topic of marriage with him.

However, unfortunately, Rolf’s one-sided mumbling continued for quite a long time.

He talked alone for about 3 hours without getting tired.

I’m starting to want to get up from my seat…

Just as I was thinking that, he threw another boring question at me.

“You’re at the age to find a partner soon, aren’t you, my lady?”

“……”

I was already sufficiently tired, so I didn’t answer separately.

Rolf, as if used to it, continued his lonely mumbling this time as well.

“Fighting for the empire is of course a splendid thing.”

“……”

“But true happiness comes when you start a family.”

Although I had been trying to listen to his words until now, it seemed that the time of torture was finally coming to an end.

It seemed that he was finally finishing his tedious introduction and about to get to the main point.

As expected, soon words containing his true intentions flowed from Rolf’s mouth.

“Have you found a suitable partner?”

“Hmm…”

“If you haven’t found one yet, there’s no need to look far away, is there? There’s quite a decent man right in front of you, my lady.”

I smiled inwardly with satisfaction.

Now that he had revealed his true intentions, I could finally reject his true intentions as well.

However, unfortunately, my chance to step forward did not come.

Bang!

Suddenly, with a loud noise, a window on the first floor of the baron’s residence flung open.

Since the garden table where we were sitting was near the window, we could immediately see the face of the person who opened the window.

“Your Majesty…?”

The one who opened the first-floor window and poked his head out was Friedt.

He soon rested his elbows on the window sill and looked at Rolf in a comfortable posture.

With a face that seemed strangely chilling despite smiling.

“Rolf von Koelnhausen. You came here wanting to receive thanks for providing the oil, right?”

“…Pardon?”

Rolf seemed perplexed by this situation.

It was understandable, as Friedt had suddenly appeared and thrown out a strange question in the middle of our conversation.

Of course, I was also stunned and frozen in place, but Friedt continued to pour out strange words amidst all this.

“As a token of gratitude, we’ve decided to pay for the oil at the grand temple.”

“…? But that oil was something we decided to give you for free—”

“No, please accept it without feeling burdened.”

Friedt continued, still grinning.

“It’s just pocket change for the grand temple.”

“……”

“We couldn’t possibly not give you at least that much pocket change. So—”

He took a deep breath as if tired, then let out a long sigh.

“I hope you’ll leave now that you’ve received our thanks. Or… do you perhaps want to get something more for the oil?”

“Wh-What…”

Rolf’s face immediately turned red with anger.

He then glared directly at Friedt and snapped.

“Your Majesty, Light of the Empire. It’s truly an honor to see you, but I believe you need to explain that last statement. Our family providing the oil was purely an act of ‘goodwill’. What do you mean by wanting to get something more? What are you saying?”

“Did I say something wrong? Haven’t you already gained the opportunity to meet privately with Lady Schneestern in return for providing the oil?”

“……”

“So I wondered if you were sitting here wanting to extort something more.”

Finding the situation increasingly interesting, I listened intently to the conversation between the two men while holding my breath.

Silence followed for a while.

Rolf seemed at a loss for words, stammering, while Friedt glared at him with a cold gaze.

In that situation where time seemed to have stopped, the first to move was Friedt.

He suddenly leaped over the first-floor window into the garden.

With his flowing white clothes fluttering, he began to approach us without hesitation after jumping into the garden.

Then—

Bang!

He slammed the table with one hand while staring at Rolf.

Such a powerful display from the man who was a symbol of benevolence was… well, it momentarily made me stop thinking.

Rolf also seemed to have stopped thinking, just standing there frozen.

Friedt spoke to Rolf in a low voice.

“If you truly helped us with a pure heart, please leave now. The Lord does not favor those who disguise self-interest as goodwill.”

Rolf, who had been speaking well until just now, really couldn’t utter a single word this time.

He just got up with a reddened face and left his seat.

Then he disappeared without looking back even once.

Left alone with Friedt, I first moistened my throat with tea.

Then I evaluated Friedt’s actions with a single word.

“That was as powerful as the knights who roam the battlefield.”

“Did I perhaps intervene unnecessarily? I stepped in because Yulia seemed to be in a difficult situation…”

“You didn’t intervene unnecessarily. Thanks to you, I didn’t have to talk to that man anymore. However… I was a bit surprised. By your sudden appearance. Were you listening to the conversation from inside that window the whole time?”

I couldn’t bring myself to ask if he had been ‘eavesdropping’, so I just asked if he had been listening.

Friedt denied it with his usual gentle and warm smile.

“No, I just happened to overhear while passing by.”