TYWML 30

May 30, 2024

“It’s my fault. I should’ve told you in advance.”

“No, it’s okay. I forget sometimes too. Still… you remembered. I thought you’d have definitely forgotten.”

“How could I forget? I remember everything about the Young Lady.”

Cassel responded casually, as if it were no big deal.

“…Excuse me?”

He remembers everything about her? Did that mean Cassel had never once forgotten about her and Dyke?

No, that’s probably an exaggeration. The peach allergy incident would be hard to forget, after all.

There had been an incident related to Riena’s peach allergy when Cassel was staying at Count Dyke’s residence.

I almost forgot about that…

When Cassel first came to stay at the Dyke residence, Bianca hadn’t paid him any attention.

She didn’t seem interested in Cassel, who was shy and wary of people.

Count Dyke hadn’t asked Bianca to play with Cassel, and Riena didn’t press her either when Bianca refused.

In fact, Riena was upset with Bianca for calling Cassel “depressing and gloomy.”

However, about three months later, after Cassel had changed a lot through his swordsmanship training with Count Dyke, Bianca began to show interest in him.

It even seemed like she liked him romantically.

But Cassel had no intention of associating with the girl who had once ignored him.

Bianca, watching Cassel spend all day with Riena, grew jealous.

And strangely enough, her anger wasn’t directed at Cassel—it was directed at Riena.

Bianca, who knew about Riena’s peach allergy, decided to use it to play a trick on her.

She told the chef she wanted a dessert containing peaches, then swapped hers with Riena’s.

Unaware, Riena ate the dessert and suffered a painful allergic reaction.

At first, no one understood why Riena was in pain.

Even the physician wasn’t certain it was an allergic reaction, and treatment was delayed.

Only when the chef belatedly revealed that he had prepared a peach dessert at Bianca’s request did everything make sense.

“It’s true I said I wanted to eat it! But I didn’t know it would go to Riena! Mommy, you believe me, right?!”

Bianca cried and made a scene, insisting it wasn’t her fault.

In the end, the incident was brushed off as a maid’s mistake, and the maid was dismissed for it.

But everyone in the household knew Bianca was behind it.

Cassel had been furious too.

So that must be why he remembered.

While Riena concluded as much, a servant who had gone to check with the kitchen hurried back and reported,

“There were no peaches used. However, apricot jam, which is similar, was included.”

The servant glanced cautiously at Cassel.

“If you dislike the tartness, I can have it replaced.”

Riena answered instead.

“Apricot is fine. That’s a relief, though. I could’ve unknowingly eaten something with peaches again later.”

Cassel nodded to the servant.

“It’s alright. Inform the kitchen to be careful from now on—Lady Riena has a peach allergy.”

“Understood. We’ll be cautious moving forward.”

“Are there any other foods you need to avoid?”

This time, Cassel looked directly at Riena as he asked.

“As far as I remember, you didn’t have any particular dietary restrictions, but tastes can change.”

“No, your memory is correct. I don’t have any special food aversions.”

Cassel nodded and gave a light instruction to the servant.

“No foods to avoid besides peaches. But make sure to serve shrimp often from now on.”

“Understood.”

Once the servant had left, Riena murmured in surprise.

“You remembered that too…”

Riena had always loved shrimp.

She ate anything with shrimp in it, but Dyke was located inland, making seafood hard to come by.

Wealthier noble families preserved fresh seafood using magic, but the Dyke family wasn’t rich enough for such luxuries.

“I told you, I remember everything about the Young Lady.”

“…Yes, it seems so. Honestly, I’m surprised.”

With that, Riena began eating her tart.

Just like during the main course, the two didn’t exchange any words until the dessert was finished.

After the meal ended in silence, Cassel took Riena to his office.

His office, like Riena’s room, was decorated in dark tones—which somehow suited him well.

“Welcome, Lady Dyke. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

Inside the office waited a man with golden-blond hair tinged with red.

“I’m Leo Petel, the Duke’s aide. Please feel free to call me Leo.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Riena Dyke.”

“I know everything has happened suddenly, and it must be overwhelming. But I’ll assist you as best I can. Amy is probably taking good care of you already, but if you need anything or have questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me.”

“Thank you. That’s reassuring.”

Once Riena and Cassel were seated at the table, Leo placed a set of documents in front of each of them.

“What is this?”

“These are the documents the Duke requested. Please read them while I explain.”

Riena picked up the documents and skimmed them.

They began with a “Pre-marital Agreement” and contained details concerning their future married life.

As Riena read, Leo began to speak.

“I heard from the Duke that this marriage will be maintained for a limited time.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I thought it would be better to have that in writing for your benefit, so I’ve prepared this agreement.”

“I see.”

“Please review it and let me know if there’s anything that needs to be changed. I’ll revise it accordingly.”

Riena skimmed through and then looked at Cassel.

“Um…”

“Yes?”

“You remember what I asked before I left Dyke? About my father…”

Cassel nodded as if he understood.

“I will absolutely investigate your father’s death. I’ve already informed my aide.”

Leo, who had been quietly listening, added,

“If it would ease your mind, we can include a clause about it in the contract.”

Riena hesitated, then nodded.

It’s not that I don’t trust Cassel…

She just needed something more concrete to feel at ease.

Leo asked for a moment’s pause and then added the clause in front of her.

Afterward, he asked again if there were other revisions needed, but Riena found none.

Even without legal expertise, she could tell the contract heavily favored her.

The contract period lasted until Riena decided on her future path.

The condition was that the two would maintain a marriage relationship until then.

Additionally, during the marriage period, Riena would have all rights as Duchess of Winkler.

“What exactly does ‘rights as Duchess’ entail?”

“It means just that. You are entitled to everything that comes with being Duchess.”

“That sounds very vague.”

“To explain in more detail…”

Cassel raised his hand, interrupting Leo.

“You mentioned the cost of dresses earlier.”

“Yes.”

“You don’t need to worry. All of your expenses will be covered by the Winkler family.”

“Are you giving me a personal fund?”

“More like…”

Cassel clarified further.

“You may manage funds as you see fit. Without restriction.”

Riena was stunned.

“No restrictions? How do you know what I might do with the money?”

“It doesn’t matter what you do.”

“Even if I use it to pay off Dyke’s debts?”

She specifically meant debts incurred by the Countess Dyke for personal reasons.

Cassel replied calmly,

“I doubt you’d do that—but even if you did, it wouldn’t matter.”

“That’s… crazy…”

Riena almost blurted out if he was out of his mind but checked herself and rephrased.

“Are you in your right mind?”

But her words weren’t much better.

Riena quickly waved her hand.

“No, that came out wrong. I meant to say…”

“To answer your question: I am perfectly sane. I don’t drink or use drugs.”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

Riena set down the document and pressed her forehead.

“That’s not it. I’m asking why… Why are you doing all this for me?”

“I don’t understand the question.”

“As Mr. Petel said, this marriage is only temporary and for mutual benefit. So why are you being so generous? Even in real marriages, spouses don’t usually get this kind of unrestricted access to funds. Normally, they’d be given a budget to spend within.”

“There’s no need to compare to other families. The Winkler family has more than enough resources to accommodate you.”

“I’m not worried about depleting the duchy’s wealth…”

Riena took a deep breath and calmly explained.

“What I mean is, the authority you’re giving me is too excessive.”

“It’s not excessive.”

“It is. And this contract is full of clauses that only benefit me. Honestly, I can’t see any reason for you to agree to this.”

“I…”

Cassel paused and signaled to Leo.

Leo bowed and said, “Please call me when you’ve finished your discussion,” then left the office.

Riena wasn’t sure if this could be called a “discussion.”