chapter 08
It wasn’t about Dale, but this was a world brimming with romance, like a storybook.
Dale wasn’t even the male lead—just an extra—but he could still have love. Absolutely!
After all, he was handsome.
Whether you just glanced at him, looked at him after washing your face, or saw him sweating profusely while chopping wood—he was still good-looking.
“Of course. There’s no way a guy like that wouldn’t have at least one lover.”
He was the kind of man anyone could fall for.
I looked at Dale, who remained silent.
“If it’s an important secret, then don’t tell me. Sometimes you just want to keep things to yourself.”
“……”
Dale quietly looked at me.
“This might be something I should have told you from the beginning.”
“Oh, you don’t have to tell me. Really, it’s fine.”
“It might not be.”
He lowered his voice and looked at me.
With the shadow of his hair falling over his face, he looked darker than usual, and his golden eyes shimmered with sadness.
He looked exhausted, or maybe tense… and his lips seemed dry.
“The truth is…”
“Did you get a new girlfriend?”
Dale froze like a stone.
“You were hesitating so much, I thought maybe…”
His expression twisted slightly—something rare.
He ruffled his black hair, looking dazed as he opened his mouth.
“My neighbor—Mrs. Maji—said you were really popular with women. Even girls from neighboring estates like you.”
“……”
“Some elders even picked you out as a future son-in-law. They said it was such a pity. Is that true?”
“I…”
Dale touched his cheek with a troubled look and glanced at me.
“I don’t like that kind of thing.”
His voice was very serious.
“I’ve never dated anyone. I’ve never done anything that could cause a misunderstanding.”
From how serious he looked, I could tell he really didn’t have anyone.
But for some reason, I felt like teasing him. I rested my chin on my hand and grinned.
“What kind of things could cause a misunderstanding? Dale, do you even know?”
“I do.”
He looked up and whispered.
“Making eye contact.”
He said, gazing into my eyes.
“Having a conversation.”
“……”
“Saying ‘I like you.’”
I nodded quietly. He knew exactly what it meant.
“But that last one’s not a misunderstanding—it’s a confession.”
“……”
“If that’s a misunderstanding, then you’re a player.”
Dale stared at me for a moment before smiling. He looked like he was holding back what he really wanted to say.
“With a face like yours, Dale, even if you stared someone straight in the eyes and said, ‘I like cats. I like dogs,’ people would still misunderstand.”
“That would be nice.”
He looked at me.
“But it doesn’t seem like those misunderstandings happen to me.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“And again, I want to assure you—Ms. Enya—that I’ve never done anything you should worry about… and I won’t.”
I looked at Dale and nodded with satisfaction.
“Oh, right—it’s guaranteed in the contract, isn’t it?”
Probably around clause 4 or so. I understood what he meant.
He was saying I didn’t need to worry because it was in the contract.
“I believe you, Dale. No matter what anyone says, I’ll believe in you.”
“No matter what anyone says…”
He repeated my words.
“…Yeah.”
Looking noticeably more at ease, he smiled faintly.
“Thank you.”
…Can I really believe him?
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Just a few hours after Dale left for work that morning—
I was visited by a group of women who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
“It’s a fake marriage, right?!”
“Tell us how you ended up marrying Dale. He promised us he wouldn’t belong to anyone…!”
Isn’t that just wishful thinking?
There’s no way Dale made such a promise.
I watched the women who came causing a commotion at my house after Dale left for work.
“Are you rich?!”
Then one woman shouted.
Oh, so that’s how it is?
This was clearly a test—to see whether I was a suitable match for Dale.
And probably to determine whether they still had a chance of winning his heart.
I couldn’t understand why these women were after a man who was already married.
Isn’t this too much?
Then suddenly, Dale’s face popped into my head.
Actually… now I kind of get it.
If his looks were compared to a treasure, he’d be like an ancient divine relic that appears once in a hundred million years…
“You must be rich, right? You bought Dale with money, didn’t you?”
Explaining that the empire forbids buying lives—even slaves—with money would be pointless, wouldn’t it?
I stared at the woman who asked the question.
She was mocking me with a face full of certainty.
“Are you rich or not?!”
“A little.”
“So you’re not even that—”
“So much that saying ‘a little’ would be a lie.”
I nodded bashfully.
“I have everything.”
“?”
“And yet—I also have Dale?”
The woman’s face instantly turned red.
“You bought Dale with money?! That’s not love! Th-that’s not right!”
“Bought him with money?”
I slowly shook my head.
“…Nope. Dale likes me, and I just happened to be rich. Next question?”
I smiled brightly and tapped the table.
For a village that was supposedly short on young people, the line of women stretching over the hill was suspiciously long.
“Hey, don’t touch the sofa. That cushion’s not Dale’s—it’s mine. I drooled on it.”
“Eeek!”
“And you throw it?!”
Clap clap clap!
I clapped my hands loudly.
“I’ll only answer questions from those standing in a single line!”
I shouted at the top of my lungs.
“Anyone who breaks stuff will be kicked out—and I’ll tell Dale exactly who you are!”
Rustle rustle.
The women who had crowded my house quickly lined up in a neat row.
“Finally, we’re making progress.”
“Um…”
“The one in the yellow dress is first. Go ahead, question!”
“Yes! Me! How long have you known Dale?”
“We met five years ago—a young mercenary and a rich girl forced apart by their parents. Then we reunited and got married. Next!”
“Just one more—”
“Back of the line. Next!”
“What’s your name?”
“Anne!”
That was my alias.
Even after answering question after question, the endless line barely shrank.
“Is Dale’s ideal type someone like you?”
“He adjusted his ideal type to fit me. Next!”
“Does Dale snore in his sleep?”
“Good-looking men don’t do that. Next!”
How long had it been? I was starting to get tired, so I sat down for a moment to rest.
They say they’ve never even made eye contact with him.
So why are there this many women who like Dale?
What would happen if he did make eye contact with them?
I let out a long sigh.
Then something was held out in front of me.
“Oh, thanks for the handker—”
Wait, it’s not a handkerchief?
What I saw in front of me was a letter.
A letter?
I looked up at the woman who had cut the line and approached me.
She stood in the middle of my living room, smiling brightly under a parasol.
Golden-blonde hair, a voluminous dress—was she a noble? Maybe the lord’s granddaughter?
“Are you Miss Anne?”
She smiled sweetly and said,
“Yes, I’m Anne.”
“Nice to meet you. I’ve finally seen you.”
Finally?
I stared at the woman.
Did she know me? Was she from the emperor’s side?
“My name is Adelaine Kidland. I’m the daughter of Viscount Kidland, the lord of the estate next to Grunwald.”
“Wow…! It’s Lady Adelaine!”
“Lady Adelaine! So graceful today, too!”
All the women in line praised her.
Adelaine smiled benevolently, as if such adoration were natural.
Kidland?
That Adelaine Kidland—the viscount’s daughter from the estate next to Grunwald?
“Dale…”
She began to speak, then slowly looked at me—no, sized me up.
Her eyes scanned me from top to bottom, and then she gave a strange smile.
“Oh. I’ve seen Dale a few times.”
Adelaine smiled brightly, looking a little bashful.
“I heard he got married… but this is my first time meeting his wife.”
She quietly observed me, and I returned the suspicious stare.
Why was she staring so much?
“What is the meaning of this?!”
Then suddenly, the butler next to her shouted sharply.
“Lady Adelaine is a noble! A commoner must show proper manners and bow!”
