CHAPTER 66………………………………………..
A Blocked Marriage Path
“Are you sure that was a proper apology?”
The duke frowned as he looked over a letter from the Marquis’ household.
“I mean Count Frances’ family.”
It had already been a week since the incident. Anje couldn’t understand why the duke was bringing up such an unpleasant matter again, but she watched his expression carefully.
“Count Frances clearly said he was fine with it.”
“Then why do things like this keep happening…?”
The duke trailed off and handed the document he had been reading to Anje.
It was a letter bearing the seal of the House of Battenberg — a polite rejection of a marriage proposal.
The letter expressed gratitude for the great honor of receiving a proposal from such a fine lady as Mariana, but claimed that the young marquis and she did not share compatible interests, making a happy marriage impossible.
Not compatible in hobbies? It was such a flimsy excuse that it would’ve been laughable — if the letter didn’t sound so desperate in its long-winded explanations that one couldn’t even find it in oneself to argue.
“Could it be that Lord Jerome has been speaking ill of the young lady? From what I’ve learned, every family that refused a meeting with her had already met with Lord Jerome beforehand.”
At Elliot’s words, the duke’s expression hardened further.
They had apologized. Count Frances himself had said that his son bore some of the fault and that they shouldn’t worry about it.
So why this change, and so late? He couldn’t figure it out.
“I doubt Lord Jerome has been spreading rumors,” Anje said slowly. “If that were the case, ugly gossip about the young lady would’ve reached the salons first. Even so, this letter—though a refusal—shows they chose every word carefully. It reads as if they’re being cautious of us.”
After a pause, Anje hesitated before continuing.
“And actually… I didn’t mention it earlier because of all the chaos that day, but I saw Viscount Algernon at the Frances estate.”
“What was Algernon doing there?”
“When I arrived, he was just leaving. We exchanged a few words before he boarded his carriage, but I didn’t have time to ask why he’d come.”
The Duke of Syde’s gaze returned to the letter, then drifted to the stack of other rejection letters he’d received in the past week.
“So that’s what it is.”
Anje didn’t know what he had realized, but she sensed trouble and instinctively hunched her shoulders, as if to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
“I told him to stay out of it… and yet he dares… This man, I swear…”
The low, murderous murmur made a chill run down Anje’s spine, though she had done nothing wrong.
“He thinks there’s no way to counter this? We’ll see about that… Anje!”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
“Find out if there are any foreign nobles currently residing in the Empire for an extended stay. Someone of good repute, preferably with a decent title. Wealth would be ideal. Hmm… and as you suggested, the more handsome the better. Ideally—more than Algernon.”
“…Excuse me?”
A foreign noble, rich, good-looking, well-mannered — and handsomer than Algernon? She might as well go searching for a unicorn in the capital! And if such a man existed, she’d claim him first!
“Have a list of candidates on my desk by tomorrow.”
The duke issued the order without any concern for whether such a person actually existed and began preparing to go out.
“May I ask where you’re headed?”
“There’s someone I need to meet.”
“If it’s Viscount Algernon you’re going to see, may I come with you?”
The duke turned and glared at her.
“This isn’t the time to indulge your personal interests.”
“Oh, no, I insist. I must be there.”
The shameless insistence made the duke’s face darken even more. Up until now, Algernon had merely been an annoyance — but at this moment, the duke could have killed him.
Yet he couldn’t do anything about Anje, who had quickly donned her cloak and stood by his side. If he could control this woman, he wouldn’t be in this mess to begin with.
Too proud to add another word, the Duke of Syde turned and headed out first.
* * *
Viscount Algernon’s mansion stood in a quiet neighborhood on the outskirts of the capital.
The house, a remodeled old farmhouse, felt less like a nobleman’s residence and more like a wealthy commoner’s villa — informal and free-spirited.
While Anje’s eyes wandered to the garden beyond the wide parlor windows, the duke’s growling voice broke the stillness.
“I’m certain I made myself clear.”
“Did you? I don’t recall,” Algernon replied with a faint smile, lifting his teacup.
“The Duke’s house has already done its duty to His Highness. To covet Mariana as well — that’s overreaching. You must know how the Emperor would take it if His Highness married her.”
The duke made no attempt to hide Algernon’s true identity, even with Anje present.
Algernon’s eyes flicked past the duke to the attendant standing silently behind him. Hands folded neatly before her, Anje betrayed no emotion.
“When I was born, His Majesty was already a young man. In fact, I had several half-brothers older than me.”
By all rights, Algernon’s birth should have been a blessing — that of the rightful heir.
But his mother, the late Empress, had been frail, falling ill soon after giving birth and dying before she could secure her son’s position.
After that, the Emperor himself had lost his sanity, and the young princes, Algernon’s half-brothers, became his worst enemies. The fact that Algernon had survived at all was nothing short of a miracle.
“I know full well I owe my survival to you and your family.”
“My father — the late duke — was like most nobles, a man who valued bloodlines. He believed it was wrong for the legitimate son of the late Empress to die an untimely death, even if he could not be Emperor. Many nobles agreed, and that’s how Your Highness survived. But the world has changed. Now, Your Highness is a forgotten man.”
Algernon tilted his cup, his tone calm.
“And no noble would risk his life for a forgotten man.”
“Indeed.”
Anje’s gaze, which had been fixed on the garden, drifted to the table.
How could two men speak of life and death with such cold detachment? As if it were about someone else entirely. Heartless — both of them.
She shook her head slightly. She knew these two too well to be surprised anymore.
‘I really need to finish this assignment and escape the Duke’s household soon…’
Whether the duke sensed her thoughts or not, he spoke again.
“His Majesty is simply being patient, waiting for you to disappear on your own.”
Algernon laughed, shaking his head.
“Patient? That’s hardly a word that suits the Emperor. If he’s waiting, it’s only because killing me now would be too conspicuous. Do you call that patience? He’s probably just waiting for the moment I set foot on a ship out of the country.”
“So what then? Are you so afraid that you’re clinging to Mariana? You think having the Duke’s house behind you will make things better?”
Algernon frowned and leaned back on the sofa.
“You truly have a talent for making a man sound despicable.”
“……”
“No matter how desperate my situation, I’m still a man. I wouldn’t use the woman I love as a shield.”
“…A woman you love.”
The duke muttered the words, turning his head slightly toward Anje.
What? Why look at me like that?
Does he think I’m hurt or something?
Guessing the duke’s misunderstanding, Anje nearly snorted.
True, Algernon Frederick Kaiden’s looks were more than enough to make ladies swoon — as much as the duke’s own misjudgment suggested.
At the last ball, countless women had practically thrown away their pride to court him. His ambiguous background and mysterious past only made him more alluring.
But that charm did nothing for Anje. She could see too clearly the ill-fated aura that clung to him.
Though… if it were Lady Mariana, with her patience and steady nature — perhaps she could endure his accursed fate.
“Do you truly love Lady Mariana?” Anje suddenly asked.
Both men turned to her.
“This isn’t your place to speak. Stay quiet,” the duke warned.
“I’d like to, Your Grace, but timing is everything,” she said, rubbing under her nose. “My opinion may not matter much, but I’ll say it anyway. You shouldn’t drive Viscount Algernon away. As you said, he’ll be in danger the moment he leaves the Empire — and the Duke’s house will lose a valuable card in its hand.”
