Please Marry My Son (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 7
Alicia blinked in confusion for a moment, then stared at her mother.
“An invitation? What invitation? Him? Inviting me? Why?”
“I told you. To invite you to Earl Russell’s residence.”
“You did?”
“Yes. Here, take it. The invitation arrived today.”
Alicia gaped blankly at the smiling Countess, lips moving soundlessly, until her mother gestured impatiently for her to take it, and she finally accepted the invitation.
She stared dazedly at the card, wondering if all her mother’s sweet words just moments ago had merely been bait for this.
“……I’ll go out for a bit.”
Her mind had gone completely blank, and she suddenly wanted to be alone.
Alicia left her mother’s bedroom and quietly returned to her own room, collapsing onto the bed as if she’d fallen.
Then, blinking slowly, she mulled over the current situation.
‘She was rescued from an awkward situation, didn’t even say thank you, rejected him within fifteen minutes of their next meeting, ran off, and now quietly suggests meeting again.’
“Ugh… that strange girl is me—.”
So mortified she felt like dying, Alicia pulled the blanket over her head completely.
If she rejected him again after this, she wouldn’t just be a strange girl—she’d be considered insane.
‘Why do I keep getting tangled up so weirdly with that man?’
‘I should’ve never met him at all. I should’ve insisted firmly back then, no matter how much Mother cried.’
But regretting it now was useless.
Groaning in shame, embarrassment, and mortification under the covers, she hadn’t noticed how much time had passed.
With a sense of resignation, Alicia slowly peeked her head out from under the blanket.
“He must’ve felt this way too.”
She could almost hear Eric’s voice from the past, sighing in exasperation.
“Even if we have no choice this time, will this really be the end? His mother seems just as unpredictable as mine.”
“If things keep dragging on like this, we’ll end up in a situation with no way out—”
“I should sort this out somehow before it gets worse.”
Alicia murmured weakly, then suddenly sat upright.
Eric’s situation was different from hers.
He was the heir of a ducal house, and everything in his life was already stable—it wouldn’t be odd for him to marry at any time.
But right now, since he himself didn’t want to marry, he was probably in an awkward spot because of his pushy parents.
“Wasn’t the largest shareholder of that trading company I did an audit for before the House of Gloucester?”
Back then, she’d been inexperienced and young, only able to handle assistant-level tasks—but having worked for such a major company would surely help her find a job in the future.
“There seems to be room for negotiation. Isn’t it worth a try?”
“If talks go well, we proceed; if not, it ends anyway—so there’s nothing to lose, right?”
[This is the timeline separator]Eric was flustered.
His mother’s sudden visit was startling enough, but what she said next flustered him even more.
“Countess of Lancaster sent a letter. She said you were wonderfully kind.”
“Me? What did I do?”
Seeing his bewildered blinking, the Duchess of Gloucester chuckled teasingly.
“Oh, don’t be coy. You even fed pudding to the child yourself? With your temperament, going that far—you must’ve really wanted to impress her, huh? And besides—”
The Duchess suddenly burst into loud laughter.
“You like children? You?”
‘Aaaaah! I should’ve just killed my past self right then!’
He was so flustered he nearly screamed inwardly—but outwardly, his whole body froze stiff.
“The twins still ask for you. Countess of Lancaster mentioned her thanks several times in the letter.”
“……”
“So invite her. As soon as possible.”
“Invite who?”
“Who else? Alicia.”
“Huh? No, why?”
“Why are you acting like this now, child?”
“She’ll come if invited?”
“Well, why else would I bring this up?”
“……”
‘I was sure we’d agreed to settle things—so why again? No, more importantly, why is she suddenly doing this?’
Watching her son blink dazedly, unable to keep up with the rapidly shifting situation, the Duchess looked at him with the happiest expression she’d worn all year.
[This is the timeline separator]The moment Alicia’s carriage arrived at Earl Russell’s residence, the Butler dashed forward.
Eric, flustered, didn’t even have time to stop him.
Regardless of Eric’s reaction, the Butler opened the carriage door with an eager smile.
“Welcome, Miss.”
“Thank you.”
Eric, who should have been escorting Alicia from the side, stood blankly—so the Butler gestured impatiently, as if asking what he was waiting for and urging him over quickly.
Normally, the Butler would never dare do such a thing even if a knife were at his throat—but in their excitement and fluster, neither the Butler nor Eric noticed.
Catching the Butler’s cue, Eric quickly offered his hand to Alicia.
“Welcome.”
“Hello.”
Alicia took Eric’s hand and stepped down from the carriage.
Though both behaved with impeccable manners, the atmosphere between them was unbearably awkward.
‘What’s with this mood? Her Ladyship clearly said things were going well…’
The Butler, watching from the side, tilted his head in confusion.
‘Ah, right. It’s the first time a lady’s been invited to the mansion. That explains it.’
Satisfied with his own reasoning, he once again adopted the most courteous and friendly posture toward Alicia.
[This is the timeline separator]“……”
“……”
After the Butler served tea and left, the two sat silently for a while.
When their eyes finally met, Eric offered tea with an awkward smile.
“Please, have some.”
“Yes. Ah—it’s that tea. Orange Saylet.”
“Yes.”
He watched as Alicia sipped her tea, then began speaking.
“I heard the Saylet region used to be famous for oranges. They apparently wanted to cultivate a tea with orange flavor or aroma, so they experimented with various methods. At first, during testing, it really did taste like orange.”
“But when they started mass cultivation for commercial sale, something about the conditions must’ve been off—because it ended up tasting and smelling like a different fruit altogether.”
“Oh dear.”
“Since the marketing and packaging had already been finalized, they couldn’t change the name.”
“Ah, so that’s why it’s still called Orange Saylet.”
“I remembered I hadn’t told you this last time, so I looked into it.”
“You remembered. Thank you.”
“Well… um.”
He’d grilled a distant baron cousin who managed the Saylet estate for conversation topics, anticipating their meeting would be awkward—and it turned out useful.
While Eric was still pondering what to say next, Alicia took a careful sip of tea and spoke cautiously.
“I’m sorry, my lord.”
“?”
“It’s not just your problem. My mother, too… um… I didn’t expect her to go this far.”
“Ha, haha.”
After watching Eric’s awkward laughter for a moment, Alicia lightly gripped her skirt and spoke.
“To be honest, I was worried you’d think I’m a strange woman.”
“Oh—no, not at all. I’m hardly in a position to think that. Besides, we didn’t come here of our own free will.”
At those words, all the events they’d experienced flashed through their minds like a reel of film.
Then, when their eyes met again, both suddenly burst out laughing.
“Thinking about it now, it really was embarrassing.”
“Indeed. I’ve never been swept along like this before.”
“Same here.”
The absurd, almost trance-like feeling made them laugh again.
But thanks to it, the earlier awkwardness melted away, and they could now interact far more comfortably than before.
Relieved inwardly, Alicia met Eric’s eyes.
“?”
“Shall we get engaged?”
“……What?”
“Let’s get engaged.”
At first, he thought he’d misheard.
“What do you mean, all of a sudden—”
Eric, about to fumble through an excuse with an embarrassed expression, straightened his posture upon meeting Alicia’s serious gaze.
“I’m sorry—that caught me completely off guard. May I ask why?”
“You and I both don’t actually want to marry, right?”
“Well… yes.”
“But our parents don’t seem likely to give up.”
“That’s true.”
“So… how about making a contract with me?”
“A contract?”
“Yes. Call it an engagement contract.”
“Why propose something so disadvantageous? Breaking it off later would damage your reputation.”
He himself had no reputation left to lose, so it didn’t matter—but Alicia surely did.
Yet Alicia simply shrugged, unfazed.
“Thank you for worrying about me. That’s my problem to handle. But since you mentioned it… it’s a bit awkward to say this, but—”
“?”
“Would you consider hiring me?”
“Hiring you?”
“I need a job.”
“A job? Why?”
“Our circumstances aren’t easy. As you know, my father has been away for a long time, my mother is in poor health, and my younger siblings are still very young.”
Alicia spoke calmly with a neutral expression, but Eric was taken aback.
Most people would hide such matters—not state them so openly.
Moreover, he’d heard the Lancaster earldom had been quite prosperous in the previous generation. It had only been one generation—so why was the earl’s daughter now seeking employment?
“Does anyone know about the earldom’s current situation?”
“They’ll find out, won’t they? We’ve never hidden it.”
Neither Eric nor the Duchess had noticed anything during their visits to the estate.
Not even Madame from the dressmaker’s shop, whom the Duchess had met Alicia at.
Then, suddenly, his conversation with his mother flashed into his mind—and everything Alicia said began to make sense.
‘It must be fate. Countess of Lancaster mostly wears clothes from that very dressmaker’s—our regular one. You know that shop doesn’t give clothes to just anyone, right? Exactly.’
‘Mother, she must be working there and getting paid.’
‘That’s why she uses the goods or cash she receives to help needy neighbors.’
‘Mother, I think she’s the needy neighbor.’
‘The mansion feels so antique and full of history.’
‘Mother, it’s just old.’
“My lord?”
Eric snapped out of his thoughts at Alicia’s voice.
He looked at her—she was watching him, waiting for his reply.
‘Given my parents’ personalities, they won’t give up. If I can just quietly endure a few months in the capital, that’ll be enough.’
A contract required mutual exchange—and since both sides clearly knew what they wanted, this could make an excellent agreement.
Besides, if Alicia truly was as capable as Madame had guaranteed, Eric stood to lose nothing.
“Let’s do it—engagement.”
His decision was swift.
“We’ll be equal partners, taking what we each want through this contract.”
“Yes. That’s what I wanted.”
“For now, we’ll announce it as a formal betrothal—but since Earl Lancaster is absent, we won’t actually become engaged. That way, if we break it off later, it won’t seriously tarnish either of our reputations.”
“Oh, that sounds perfect.”
“One more thing. I’ll decide the reason for breaking off the engagement.”
“Why?”
“Well, I’ll likely have more reasons on my side.”
“What kind of reasons?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
Not wanting to say it himself, Eric smiled evasively.
“Then shall we discuss the contract details in full?”
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
I love how they interact with each other. They feel at ease together.
Hahaha. The butler’s perfect timing. And Erik hiding his face.
Maybe I’m really wrong about it, but I think Alicia has something to do with what happened ten years ago and maybe her father is the leader of that group.