Chapter 46
Even though Jeffrey must have known how this marriage came to be, his eyes genuinely seemed happy for some reason. Liana could only give an awkward smile.
“Don’t make it difficult, Jeffrey. What are you trying to pull on someone you’ve just met? It’s uncomfortable.”
“What did I even do…? Alright, fine. Please stop glaring at me.”
Fortunately, Ianhart cut in at the perfect time.
“…Liana.”
And then, someone else interrupted.
“What is it, brother?”
It was Reindel, who had come to his senses faster than the king, who called out to Liana.
His stiffened face was quite the sight.
“I’d like you to explain… what exactly is going on here.”
He glanced at Ianhart, trying to put on a kind brotherly face, and gently spoke in a composed tone.
But he couldn’t completely hide his surprise, and his face wasn’t as warm as usual.
‘Judging by his reaction, Reindel must’ve known about the marriage talk concerning me.’
Sheesh. Not a single person in this family actually likes me. Well, I knew that already.
With a cynical smile at that not-so-new realization, Liana glanced sideways at Ianhart, sitting beside her.
As if to match her thoughts, he looked at her with a face full of affection.
“Should I explain?”
“No, I should speak to my family myself.”
Liana gently tapped Ianhart’s arm and turned to face Reindel directly.
“You probably already heard everything from Marquis Delcaron earlier, but His Majesty proposed to me. And I accepted.”
Hearing Liana repeat what he already knew—what he perhaps wished wasn’t true—made Reindel’s eye twitch.
He struggled to hide his inner turmoil and barely managed to speak in a steady voice.
“What I mean is… why would His Majesty propose to you…?”
“Crown Prince, that’s a strange way to phrase things.”
“…Pardon?”
Reindel turned his gaze toward Ianhart, sitting next to Liana.
With an openly displeased expression, Ianhart looked straight at him.
“Which part of my words was strange…?”
“I mean… why would you ask the princess about the reason for my proposal? Isn’t that the wrong person to question?”
That cold tone made Reindel instinctively shrink back in his seat.
He was overwhelmed by the sheer force Ianhart exuded without holding anything back.
“T-That’s not what I meant. I just…”
“Just?”
“I just can’t imagine how Your Majesty came to know Liana… I assumed the two of you had never met before…”
That weak excuse was all Reindel could muster.
Clearly, he wasn’t brave enough to directly ask Ianhart why he proposed to Liana—especially with that stern look on his face.
“I’m not a stranger to His Majesty.”
“…What?”
“I didn’t expect us to end up getting married, but I’ve known His Majesty for a few months now. Isn’t that right?”
Liana looked at Ianhart with gentle eyes, tossing that baffling statement at Reindel.
“You said you didn’t want to talk about it because it was embarrassing.”
“Well… it’s better than letting them misunderstand.”
“That’s true.”
Ianhart smiled softly and nodded like someone helplessly giving in to his partner. It really made them seem like a couple.
Pretending to be shy, acting like they were in love—she thought it’d be hard, but now that they were doing it, it wasn’t so bad.
‘Maybe it’s because he’s so good at playing along.’
Watching Ianhart’s every move and look—so full of kindness and care—made her feel like she was being pulled into the act too.
Though they had to pretend to be close, she didn’t feel uncomfortable or negative about it.
‘…Maybe we’ll get along.’
Even if it was a contract marriage, something told her that they might actually do just fine together.
Meanwhile, Reindel, unaware of the full situation, was simply stunned.
So this was… a real proposal? The Emperor of Erkal truly proposed out of love for Liana?
Honestly, it seemed like the most believable explanation right now. If there were no feelings involved, the Emperor had nothing to gain from this marriage.
Reindel stood frozen, processing the same thoughts Liana once had.
“…This can’t happen!”
That moment, the king—who had been in shock until now—suddenly spoke up in a panic.
Though he didn’t say exactly what couldn’t happen, everyone in the drawing room knew what he meant.
“What do you mean, ‘can’t happen’?”
“T-That is…”
“That is?”
Ianhart’s icy question made the king stumble, his face pale.
“T-The First Princess is already involved in another engagement. I… I mean… h-hiiik!”
At that moment, Ianhart’s face twisted with annoyance, and he let out a sharp breath.
He looked like a completely different person from the one who had smiled at Liana just moments ago.
Had he just stopped there, it would’ve been better—but the foolish king, stubborn despite trembling in fear, insisted on saying his piece.
“I-I made a mistake… Liana was already engaged to someone else…! The discussions had progressed too far to be called off now… It seems Liana tricked Your Majesty…!”
Liana let out a mental scoff, watching her father desperately try to throw her under the bus.
When he thought Vivian was the one being proposed to, he acted like he owned the world, but the moment it was Liana, he was suddenly against it with his whole being.
‘So he hasn’t forgotten how he treated me after all.’
How ridiculous.
Of course, Liana had already expected this kind of reaction. She had even discussed it with Ianhart beforehand.
In fact, it was after seeing her list of potential fiancés that Ianhart first brought up the contract marriage.
“Hey, Your Majesty.”
“Y-Yes…?”
“Are you aware that what you just said contradicts what you told Marquis Delcaron earlier?”
“…Excuse me?”
The king looked confused, as if he had no idea what Ianhart meant—he had already forgotten his bold claim from earlier?
Then, Jeffrey—now standing beside Reindel—tapped the brooch on his jacket.
-By the way, is the princess already engaged to someone else? That would be a bit inconvenient.
-No! Of course not! Don’t worry, Marquis. We haven’t even considered such a thing!
The voices replayed loudly and clearly.
As the king heard his own earlier confident words, his face turned pale.
“You clearly said the princess had no engagement. Was I mistaken?”
“T-That’s…”
“If you’re changing your story like this, I’d say you’re insulting the Empire of Erkal…”
Ianhart muttered lazily, and both the king and Reindel turned white with fear.
It might have seemed unfair to them—but what could they do?
“H-How could you record that without permission…!”
That was the best complaint the king could come up with. But he surely knew—
Such arguments wouldn’t work against the Emperor of Erkal.
“Permission? Seems like a strange complaint coming from someone trying to deceive the Emperor.”
“I-I thought the princess referred to was this one…! Not the First Princess…”
“And where exactly in your words did you specify which princess?”
“…”
His face turned red and then blue again. Quite the sight.
“H-However, even the Marquis never specified the First Princess…”
“Haha, that’s hilarious.”
Ianhart cut off the trembling king and gestured toward Jeffrey.
“Haha, I definitely stated I was referring to the First Princess from the beginning. I even said it was perfect timing, as she’s of marriageable age.”
“B-But that could have meant this princess…!”
Jeffrey responded with a confused expression.
“But I was under the impression that this princess hasn’t come of age yet.”
“So what?!”
“Well, the Empire’s marriageable age starts after twenty.”
At those words, the king’s face turned pale again.
“So naturally, this princess is not yet of marriageable age.”
It was a complete and total defeat for the king.
