Strategic Marriage with the Mad Villain (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 16
When I turned my head, Reus was already right behind me.
Unlike his usual cold expression, he was wearing an unusually gentle smile.
“Roel.”
Reus naturally took my hand and led me to a corner.
Though I tried to act as if I didn’t notice, I could feel everyone in the room glancing our way.
Feeling awkward, I cleared my throat for no reason—when Reus whispered in a voice only I could hear,
“A reply has arrived from Yveler.”
“Oh…”
‘…Judging by your expression, I probably don’t even need to ask what the answer was.’
Indeed, in the Empire, no family with a daughter in their care would be foolish enough to reject a marriage proposal from the current Grand Duke, the true power behind the throne.
Even Peria, who clearly wished me ill, hadn’t dared to refuse outright.
“More importantly… could you please talk some sense into someone?”
“Talk sense into whom?”
“Lady Shanet. At this rate, she’ll end up ordering three wedding dresses.”
“I don’t think there’s any need to stop her on that account.”
“I don’t need three wedding dresses, Your Grace…”
Reus stared at me intently for a moment, then spoke calmly.
“Then let’s settle it this way. I’ve taken a liking to the dress you’re wearing right now, so I’ll purchase this one.”
Whether it was because I’d saved his life or because of our contract, Reus seemed to have grown slightly more amiable toward me.
That thought had barely crossed my mind a second ago when Reus suddenly said,
“In return, you’ll go over there and deliver the message yourself.”
“Deliver what…?”
“What I just said.”
“Huh? Why would I have to repeat what *you* said…?”
“And of course, I’d prefer you address me by name rather than ‘Your Grace.'”
“……”
“After all, we’re engaged now, aren’t we?”
In my mind, casually calling a character from a novel by their first name and casually calling the Grand Duke of the Empire by his first name were worlds apart.
Even though I remembered my past life, I’d been born and raised in this world.
And acting as if I were in love with Reus in front of everyone…
“Is that really so difficult?”
“Huh?”
“I mean the way you address me.”
“It’s just… not easy to suddenly change how I address you…”
“So ‘excuse me’ comes easily, but ‘Reus’ is hard? I truly don’t understand your standards.”
“…T-that was a mistake! I won’t make that mistake again, Your—”
If I couldn’t bring myself to say his name, I should’ve at least stopped calling him “Your Grace”…
As if he’d expected exactly that, Reus kindly turned me around.
“Just think of it as practice to get used to it. Go ahead.”
With no other choice, I walked over to Shanet and Seles.
“Hm? We can keep talking, you know!”
“No, we’ve said all we needed to. All of it…”
“Oh… Did His Grace perhaps say he didn’t like the dress…?”
When I hesitated to answer, Seles couldn’t hide her obvious disappointment.
The dress I was wearing was clearly the one Seles had put the most effort into among all the wedding gowns she’d brought.
Tiny gems were delicately embroidered all over it, catching a soft shimmer with the slightest movement, and as it rose toward the bodice, increasingly large and precious stones were intricately set—so much so that it resembled a work of art.
No wonder Seles looked so disheartened by my hesitation.
‘But what am I supposed to do?! I just can’t say it…!’
“If His Grace doesn’t like it, I can have another dress ready in a few days…”
“Seles, that’s not it at all…!”
“You may speak honestly, Lady Yveler.”
Before Seles could sink deeper into misunderstanding, I hurriedly spoke up.
“It’s not that! Re, Reus… said this dress is the one he likes best…”
“Oh my…”
It was undeniably an intimate way to address him. Seles clearly thought so too, exclaiming in delight over how sweet it sounded.
“If that’s the case, why didn’t you just say so from the start? What’s there to be shy about?”
“Haha…”
Just then, Reus—who must’ve approached silently—wrapped his arms gently around my shoulders and said to Seles,
“I did say that, but truthfully, it might be hard to choose just one.”
“Huh? You… I mean, Reus…!”
“So you may as well leave all the dresses you brought.”
I gave him a slightly reproachful look, but Reus merely smiled his perfectly practiced smile.
[This is the timeline separator]Shanet said she still had matters to discuss with Seles, so Reus and I went down to the dining room first.
“You said something different earlier, Your— I mean… Reus.”
“I don’t recall ever lying.”
“But you clearly said you’d only buy that one dress…!”
“I said I’d buy that dress—but I never said I’d buy *only* that one.”
…So he’d intended to buy all the dresses from the start.
When I glared at him resentfully, Reus continued,
“Our engagement came rather suddenly, so it would be best to give people a plausible reason to accept it.”
“Well… I suppose that’s true.”
“The staff from the dressmaker’s will spread the news before any official announcement—everything from your stay here to rumors of how utterly smitten I am with you.”
“Still, it feels unnecessary to spend so much money on something like this…”
“Roel, rumors passed from mouth to mouth—however exaggerated—can sometimes be helpful. Consider this an investment.”
“……”
“This was my unilateral decision, so you needn’t worry about it too much.”
He was right. He hadn’t consulted me, nor even explained it beforehand—so there was no need for me to fret over it.
But beyond the money…
“I just feel bad toward Lady Shanet. She’s genuinely happy for us and celebrating, and yet it feels like we’re deceiving her…”
“We’re already deceiving her.”
“……”
Once again, his perfectly accurate statement made me glare at him without realizing it.
“You didn’t have to point it out so bluntly. I just meant I felt uneasy…”
“Roel.”
“Yes… Reus.”
Satisfied with my answer, Reus continued,
“I assume you’re aware that noble marriages are usually contracts between families.”
“Yes… I know.”
“So think of it simply: the parties to this contract have merely shifted from families to individuals.”
“…I understand what you mean.”
“If it bothers you, feel free to blame everything on me. After all, I’m the one who kept you here against your will.”
“No! I don’t think that way at all… I accepted your proposal after hearing everything.”
Reus fell silent for a moment, simply gazing at me.
“Are you certain you’ll be fine going alone? Seeing you so soft-hearted, I’m a bit worried about letting you go by yourself.”
In a few days, I would leave the Grand Duke’s estate and return to Count Yveler’s residence.
That day also happened to be when Father would finally return home after a long absence, so I planned to meet him in person, deliver the news of our engagement, and—while I was at it—discuss the Grove of Stillness.
We’d originally planned to go together, but Reus suddenly had urgent matters to attend to, so I’d decided to go to the Count’s estate alone first.
“We could also wait another week and go together.”
“It’s alright. After all… it’s my home. I won’t make any mistakes, so please don’t worry too much.”
That’s what I said—but honestly, I didn’t want to return to the Yveler estate alone.
‘I have no idea how Peria’s going to react.’
But since the annulment hadn’t been properly settled yet, and I’d already gone ahead and announced the engagement… delaying further might anger Peria beyond repair.
Therefore, no matter what, I had to return to Yveler as quickly as possible and explain everything myself.
[This is the timeline separator]Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and at last, the day arrived for my return to Count Yveler’s estate.
According to Reus, rumors of our upcoming marriage had already spread thoroughly throughout the central aristocratic circles.
As Reus had intended, the gossip centered entirely on our dramatic love story—
how he’d secretly cherished feelings for me for a long time, how he’d persuaded me until I finally yielded my heart, how seriously he took our marriage, and just how much money he’d lavished on it.
Apparently, the news that House Yveler had formally sent a letter of annulment to House Ershian had spread at just the right moment, making the rumors even more sensational.
As a result, whether they liked it or not, no one could easily undo this marriage now.
Peria, who feared social gossip enough to accept me as her daughter and put on a warm facade in public for appearances’ sake, would be especially unable to back out.
Thus, the only remaining hurdle was to soothe Peria and secure her blessing…
“Haa…”
As I rubbed my cold fingertips, the carriage gradually slowed to a stop, signaling our arrival at Count Yveler’s estate.
Pushing aside my anxiety and unease, I slowly made my way toward the manor—when I spotted Peria quickly approaching from not far away.
“Roel!”
“O-oh, Mother…”
Her voice calling my name so loudly made me tense up—but Peria didn’t look nearly as angry as I’d expected.
In fact, she seemed… strangely pleased.
“Was your journey difficult?”
“U-um… No, I came comfortably.”
“Let’s not stand here—come inside first. Your father has already arrived and is waiting for you.”
Though clearly meant for me, Peria’s tone was unusually gentle.
‘Why is that…?’
I wondered if she was acting this way because of the Grand Duke’s knights visible in the distance—but it didn’t seem to be the case. Peria genuinely appeared happy.
She took my hand as I stood awkwardly and even wrapped her soft arm gently around my shoulders.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
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