Strategic Marriage with the Mad Villain (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 15

Perhaps… it might be the way to bring down House Yveler.

That was the issue right there.

No matter how unique his status as the Empire’s sole Grand Duke, completely destroying a noble house would entail unnecessary risk—and regardless of the reason, it was clearly an excessively troublesome endeavor.

Especially when it came to a powerful and wealthy house like Count Yveler’s.

Yet Reus was saying he’d willingly endure all of that—if only I’d marry him.

If this wasn’t just him teasing me as a joke, then he must genuinely want something from me.

Carefully, I opened my mouth to speak.

“Your Grace seems to know all my secrets already, but let me say this anyway… I have nothing to offer you.”

Despite my claim of having nothing to give, Reus still looked pleased.

“What I want is something you can certainly provide. Well, perhaps a bit of effort might be needed depending on the circumstances.”

“What is it that Your Grace desires…?”

“The Forest of Silence. That’s all I need.”

Once again, his answer caught me completely off guard.

‘He wants that?’

The Forest of Silence.

The least valuable of all my father’s assets.

A gloomy, perpetually shadowed woodland—even at midday—and at night, when darkness layered upon darkness seeped through, it became a cursed place plagued by all manner of accidents and incidents.

That was the Forest of Silence.

No one would buy it even if sold dirt cheap; in fact, one would have to pay someone just to take it off their hands.

And yet he wanted to trade the entirety of House Yveler’s fortune for that forest?

“Why specifically the Forest of Silence?”

“Hmm… who knows.”

Reus gave a brief reply and offered a gentle smile.

That smile seemed to say he couldn’t reveal a word until he trusted me completely.

“I’m not asking you to stay here for life. When you return here, you’ll bring the Forest of Silence with you—and that will be enough for me. So even after we sign the contract, you may leave whenever you wish.”

‘So he’s saying as long as I bring the Forest of Silence with me at the wedding, he won’t interfere no matter when I disappear.’

In other words… right now, right before me, was the perfect opportunity—not only to achieve the revenge I’d never dared dream of but also to secure the one asset I needed most?

‘It’s sudden, but will a chance like this ever come my way again?’

It was clearly an offer too good to refuse, no matter how coolly I might want to walk away.

After all, with money, the quality of the rest of my life would change completely.

It wasn’t as if I’d chosen to settle in Veliatra penniless out of desire—only because, among the options given to me, it had been the best available.

Reus’s rebellion would happen roughly two years from now.

‘What if I just ran away before he rebelled…?’

If that were possible…

“Your Grace is proposing a contract with me…?”

“That’s correct.”

“Then… can everything be finished within a year?”

One year before Reus’s rebellion—neither too late nor too early to escape safely.

The villain flashed a charming smile and answered,

“That’s more than enough.”

[This is the timeline separator]

I accepted Reus’s proposal. After my acceptance, things moved swiftly.

As if he’d already anticipated my decision—despite claiming to know everything—Reus immediately handed me the contract.

Along with the very words I’d been most curious about.

[“Rest assured—the person who claimed to have seen you will never reveal your secret.”]

Summarized, the contract Reus presented stated:

We would hold the wedding, after which he’d tell me who exactly knew about me, and once the Forest of Silence became fully his property, he’d begin dismantling House Yveler.

Since he claimed a year was sufficient for all this, I had no reason to refuse.

There was just one problem—I’d have to pretend, for a year, to be deeply in love with Reus.

I wasn’t sure I could pull off the acting well…

‘But at least I’ll get to properly mess with Cassien.’

I was genuinely curious how Cassien would react—after declaring there was nowhere for me to go but by his side.

Just then, a familiar voice came from beyond the door.

“Roel. It’s me, Shanet. May I come in for a moment?”

“Yes, of course…!”

When I opened the door, Shanet greeted me with a bright smile.

“I heard the news from Reus. I never imagined the day would come when he’d tell me about his marriage himself…”

“Oh…”

Shanet led my dazed self to the table and, as soon as she sat down, spoke with evident joy in her voice.

“When he mentioned a few days ago that he wanted to introduce me to someone special, I didn’t believe him at all. But now here’s such wonderful news!”

‘So he’d planned to marry me all along.’

What on earth was so special about the Forest of Silence…?

I’d resolved not to grow overly entangled or curious about anything, deeming it too dangerous—but hearing he’d prepared in advance just to marry me stirred my curiosity.

It almost made me wonder if something extraordinary was buried within that forest.

“Roel?”

“Ah, yes…!”

“I heard Reus wants to hold the wedding as soon as possible… The schedule seems quite tight, so it’d be helpful to have someone assisting you. What do you think?”

“I’d be incredibly grateful to have someone help.”

“Then may I assist you myself until the wedding? Would that be alright?”

“Your Ladyship personally?”

“It would be the happiest honor for me to help the two of you marry.”

Seeing Shanet’s childlike excitement, a twinge of conscience pricked my heart. But since I’d already signed the contract, I supposed I’d have to bear this kind of burden.

I smiled back at her, matching her warmth, and replied,

“…It would be a great honor if you’d help me, Lady Shanet.”

[This is the timeline separator]

Just as Shanet and I were deeply immersed in wedding planning, Reus entered the room.

“Oh, Reus. You’re here?”

“Aunt. I’d like a moment alone with Lady Yveler.”

“Oh my! How inconsiderate of me! Roel, I’ll take my leave now. I’ve had such a lovely time today. We’ll continue our talk tomorrow.”

Shanet smiled, gave Reus’s arm a light tap, and vanished before I could even bow. In an instant, Reus and I were left alone in the large room.

‘This is so awkward…!’

He’d always been difficult and unbearably awkward to deal with—but now that we were about to marry, even looking him in the eye felt strangely hard.

He, however, didn’t seem to think so at all. Reus approached me casually and reached out his hand with perfect ease.

“We’ll need to get used to this, won’t we?”

“Yes, we will…”

I gave a faint nod and took his hand.

“I’ve just returned from sending a letter to House Yveler.”

Reus led me to the table beneath the window and even pulled out my chair himself, allowing me to sit facing him naturally.

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

I assumed he’d take the seat opposite me, as he was still standing beside me.

Instead, Reus sat right next to me. That alone flustered me—but then he kept his gaze fixed firmly on me without looking away.

“…Is there a-”

“Roel.”

“…”

Taken aback by his sudden use of my name so familiarly, I unconsciously held my breath.

“Didn’t we agree to call each other by name?”

“Oh, yes… right…”

After signing the contract, we’d briefly discussed how we should behave around each other.

Reus said he wanted people to see nothing but love in our marriage—no other motives.

He seemed to have his reasons for this request, but I hadn’t pressed him. After all, I figured that arrangement would suit me well enough too.

But I hadn’t expected us to start so immediately—especially not when just the two of us were alone!

“I was the one who courted you passionately, but since you’ve agreed to play along, at least call me by name.”

“Yes, Your Gr—”

“Roel. By name.”

My mouth refused to obey just yet, so I nodded earnestly instead, as if promising I’d do better next time.

[This is the timeline separator]

Yesterday, Reus had come to me to announce that wedding preparations would begin immediately.

And true to his word, the arrangements moved at a frantic pace.

On the first day, we finalized the venue and the decorating company; the next day, the food for the guests; then came drafting the guest list and deciding the invitation design.

After several days of nonstop rushing, it was already time to be fitted for my wedding dress.

Today’s dress was from Seles Atelier—their wedding gowns were so sought after that appointments were booked solid years in advance.

That was precisely why Shanet and Seles had been passionately discussing options in front of me since earlier.

“Lady Yveler seems to suit something more elaborate, don’t you think?”

“But everything she’s tried on so far has looked perfect—it’s so hard to choose! Even the last one she put on was stunning…”

“Oh! How about selecting three dresses? One for the main ceremony, another for the reception, and a third for the celebratory banquet.”

I nearly gasped aloud—each dress reportedly cost more than an entire mansion, and now they were talking about three?

‘Even one is already far too much…!’

But Shanet, as if she’d already agreed with Seles, was deep in thought, spreading out the dress options before her.

Just as I decided I should step in and dissuade Shanet, a commotion suddenly erupted among the Seles Atelier staff.