It was less than an hour after the two had finished their confusing encounter.
“I came a bit early, didn’t I, Duke Pelton?”
Rosalyn greeted him with a bright smile through the carriage window.
Edric was annoyed by the visit that was three hours earlier than scheduled, but he couldn’t reproach her.
After all, it was he who had said she could visit anytime without minding the time.
He tried to set aside the confusion caused by Melly and greet his fiancée with a faithful attitude.
But when he saw the familiar young man sitting next to Rosalyn inside the open carriage door, he became irritated again.
‘How shameless. Are these two a set?’
Edric thought as he exchanged a fake handshake with Francis Adel, who got out of the carriage after Rosalyn.
‘Surely they’re not trying to drag me into bed too?’
Some nobles seemed to prefer that sort of thing, but it wasn’t to his taste, at least.
“Francis really liked this mansion, it seems. He said he wanted to come see it again, so he came along. Is that alright, Duke?”
Rosalyn explained the reason for coming together in a coquettish manner.
It was an unpleasant coquetry, but Edric wasn’t so green as to show such a reaction.
“Of course. Come anytime. You can come alone without your sister too.”
He readily agreed, and even instructed the butler to open the mansion doors to Francis Adel anytime.
Francis expressed his gratitude politely, and Edric personally escorted the two to the reception room.
Eida Pelton happened to be out.
Rosalyn took a sip from the teacup brought by the servant and showed a surprised expression.
“The tea tastes really good. How can it be so smooth and not astringent?”
Edric just smiled in response.
‘It’s just that the tea at your house tastes bad.’
After tasting deplorably bad tea at Rosalyn’s house before, he had instructed the servants to memorize Melly’s tea recipe. It was to teach her ‘this is what tea should be like’ when Rosalyn visited again someday.
“I’m glad it suits your taste, Rosalyn.”
Edric felt satisfied that his purpose had been achieved.
It was the only moment he could calm the confusion that had been swirling in his head all morning.
But Rosalyn stirred up his barely settled mind again, like dust in the wind.
“By the way, where is Miss Melly? I’d like her to join us…”
“…”
Edric didn’t want to call Melly to this place right now.
“Ah, what to do? Melly isn’t feeling very well today. I’d like her to rest in her room if possible.”
“Oh my.”
Rosalyn said with a distorted expression, as if regretful.
“Then could I see Melly for just a moment? I’d like to see her face and give her some words of comfort.”
Her kind and affectionate attitude, along with her beautiful appearance, was what made her beloved by everyone in society, but to Edric now, it was just a tactless behavior stirring up the confusion he had barely covered.
“It would be better if you didn’t.”
Edric reassured Rosalyn with a gentle smile, careful not to let his irritation show.
“Actually, there’s an epidemic of fever going around the capital. I don’t think Melly has the fever, but just in case. If it really is the fever and it spreads to you, both Melly and I would feel terrible.”
“But still…”
“Let’s let Melly rest well and enjoy a cozy chat, just the three of us today. My mother will be here soon, so it would be nice to have dinner together.”
Rosalyn didn’t insist further.
She had also heard that measles was going around the capital recently. Other diseases might be fine, but measles, which could leave scars on the face, was not something she wanted to catch.
“Then please just tell Melly that I was very worried about her.”
“Sure. Just a moment.”
Edric rose from his seat.
When he opened the reception room door, the butler was waiting outside.
“Prepare dinner.”
He ordered the meal preparation loud enough for everyone to hear. Then he lowered his voice so only the butler could barely hear, adding a secret instruction.
“Go to Melly and tell her. Stay in her room and don’t come out.”
[This is the timeline separator]Edric engaged in conversation with Rosalyn on a wide range of topics, from trivial daily matters to international affairs.
Francis mostly listened, occasionally participating in the conversation by agreeing with Rosalyn’s opinions, but he didn’t feel out of place.
The three were, at least on the surface, having an enjoyable time.
However, none of them brought up the topic of marriage first.
It was obvious that they would only talk about that once the Dowager Duchess Pelton, who was briefly out, returned, so they didn’t want to get tired of it already.
Just as the conversation was getting lively, Francis suddenly stood up.
“I’ll go smoke a cigar for a moment.”
“Why don’t you smoke here? I’ll have it prepared for you.”
Edric offered. But Francis shook his head.
“That won’t do. Rosalyn has a weak respiratory system, you see.”
At those words, Edric’s gaze naturally turned to Rosalyn.
She smiled seductively and lowered her eyes. It was a confident smile typical of someone who is loved.
What a frustrating situation. Being lectured by his future wife’s lover.
Edric felt unpleasant but didn’t show it and apologized in a humble tone.
“How embarrassing that I don’t even know my fiancée’s constitution. I’ll make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
“It’s alright. It’s fine if you smoke moderately. Actually, Fran is a bit of a heavy smoker.”
Rosalyn replied in a relaxed tone.
Meanwhile, Francis left the reception room and headed towards the corridor he had noticed on the way in.
It was the colonnade stretching from the west entrance of the mansion to the granite pavilion at the end of the garden.
Francis, who no longer wished to intrude between the engaged couple, willingly took steps along that long path.
Striding quickly to reach the pavilion, he leaned against the railing and took a long drag of his cigar.
Hoo-.
A sigh came out of his mouth in the form of smoke and soon dissipated. His amber eyes watching this scene were dazed to the point of emptiness.
‘I shouldn’t have come along.’
Regret washed over him like a tide.
It had been five years since he was adopted into the Adel family.
And three years since he secretly became lovers with Rosalyn.
For the past three years, his lovely sister had been his everything, but he had no intention of holding her back.
He started knowing the end, and was always prepared to accept that end.
Francis was even glad to hear the news that Rosalyn was marrying into the Pelton ducal family, renowned for their excellent character and ability.
He was willing to end the relationship if he ever became an obstacle to her happiness. However.
‘Pleased to meet you, Young Master Adel.’
On that day when both families met, Francis did not receive as good an impression of Edric as was known to the public.
Everything seemed too perfectly made, like a manufactured product, which made him feel uneasy.
It seemed that behind that façade of perfection, he was hiding a baseness that would use any means necessary for his own ends, while meticulously designing situations to be praised as a noble person.
The more they met, the more suspicious Edric Pelton appeared.
He will never be able to make Rosalyn happy. Francis was certain.
‘How about someone else besides him? The Marquis Michel who proposed to you before seemed fine.’
He tried to subtly persuade Rosalyn. But it was useless.
‘I must become the Duchess of Pelton.’
She believed that only the title of Duchess Pelton was a fitting position for her.
He had never regretted saying that such vanity was also part of her, and that he loved every aspect of her, more than at that moment.
Because of that, Francis himself would remain in her memory as just a man she briefly enjoyed in her childhood, so he had essentially stabbed himself in the back.
Hoo-.
He exhaled another long puff of cigar smoke and turned around.
Then he leaned his back against the railing and stared at the majestic main building of the mansion.
“Damn, it’s huge.”
A vulgar exclamation flowed out spontaneously.
It was not for nothing that it had the modifier of being the Empire’s finest noble family boasting a long history.
The faint blue tinge emanating from the neatly carved main building exuded an elegant charm that money could not imitate.
Each window, arranged in regular order, shone as if looking down on the world with an arrogant posture, like the many heads of the Pelton family who had lived inside.
Even the cynical Francis bowed his head to the majesty of the great nobility that nouveau riche could never imitate.
Being the mistress of such a place is a privilege that anyone, not just Rosalyn, would covet.
Moreover, with the husband being Edric Pelton, the Empire’s finest talent, who would dare refuse if given the chance? Unless they were out of their mind.
‘Hidden nature is nothing compared to visible beauty and audible virtue.’
Francis took another puff of his cigar with a bitter smile. That’s when it happened.
Suddenly, a clear glint appeared in his amber eyes that had been hazily staring at the pale smoke.
On the third floor of the east wing, he saw someone standing at one of the glass windows.
Brown hair and a petite figure.
With his good eyesight, Francis recognized who it was at once.
And also with his good eyesight, he could tell that she was in a healthy state.
‘Melly isn’t feeling well today.’
Recalling Edric’s words, Francis’s eyes suddenly curved mischievously. A meaningful smile formed at the corners of his mouth.
He had somewhere to stop by before returning to the reception room.
He dropped the cigar he had been holding, crushed it out with his foot, and slowly began to walk.
My Ex-Girlfriend Is The Regent In The Female-dominant World (Male lead transmigrates to the matriarchal world)
Two years ago, Gu Sui picked up a homeless woman in ancient costume from the street.
Apart from occasionally claiming to be a princess from a female-dominant country due to illness, her figure, appearance, intelligence, and martial arts skills were impeccable.
Naturally evolving from roommates to girlfriends, as time went on, Gu Sui found it increasingly difficult to tolerate her queen syndrome.
“Mu Jiulu, can you stop controlling me inside and out? Let’s break up.”
Gu Sui made a breakup call, and since then, he couldn’t find any trace of her.
A year later, Gu Sui, who was planning to move, woke up the next day and found himself in a different place.
“Young Master, today is the day you choose your Wife-master through martial arts competition at Jade Dew Pavilion. Please get up quickly.”
Gu Sui: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
As the only son of a general’s mansion in a female-dominant dynasty, the young empress personally issued a decree allowing Gu Sui to select his Wife-master through martial arts competition. Whoever could defeat him could marry him.
Gu Sui: “……”
He didn’t inherit the original owner’s martial prowess, so anyone could defeat him! And what the hell is a Wife-master?
Forced to come to Jade Dew Pavilion, the densely packed women below made Gu Sui’s agoraphobia act up, and his face was full of resistance.
Until he saw the Regent sitting on the second floor, with a smile on the corner of her lips, her eyes wicked and nonchalant.
Hmm… she looked a little familiar.
It turned out that the Regent also found him a little familiar.
Mu Jiulu fiddled with her bone clasp, her deep gaze locked on the man who was out of place in this world.
“Finally, I found you.”
Male transmigrates into female-dominant world
One-sentence summary: What goes around comes around, taking turns in the crematorium
