Living a Scheming Marriage with a Mad Villain - Chapter 15

I think the way to bring down the Ivelle Count’s family is probably like this.

So, this was the problem. No matter how much of a Grand Duke he was, completely destroying a family was an unnecessary risk, and it was also clearly an overly complicated task for some reason.

Especially when it was a family like the Ivelle Count’s, which was powerful and wealthy.

But Reus was saying that if I married him, he would endure all of that.

If he wasn’t trying to tease me with some joke, there must be something he truly wanted from me.

I cautiously spoke up.

“It seems like you know all my secrets, Grand Duke, but just to clarify I have nothing I can offer you.”

Even though I said I had nothing to offer, Reus still looked pleased.

“What I want is something you can easily give. Well, depending on the situation, you might have to make a bit of an effort.”

“What is it that you want, Grand Duke?”

“The Forest of Silence. That’s all I need.”

This was another completely unexpected answer.

‘He wants that?’

The Forest of Silence.

The least valuable asset my father owned.

A gloomy forest that was always shrouded in darkness, as if it was consumed by it, and a place where accidents happened during times when even darker shadows seemed to seep into the land.

That was the Forest of Silence.

Even if it was sold for next to nothing, no one would buy it. It was land that might only be gotten rid of after paying someone to take it.

Now, he was asking to trade all of the Ivelle Count’s wealth for that forest?

“Why, of all things, the Forest of Silence?”

“Well, I’m not sure.”

Reus gave a short answer and then smiled softly.

That smile seemed to say he couldn’t tell me anything until he could trust me.

“I’m not asking you to live there forever. I’ll take the Forest of Silence when you come back here, and that will end my business. So you can leave whenever you want after the contract is signed.”

‘So, this means if I bring the Forest of Silence when we get married, I can leave without him getting involved.’

Is this really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, where I can get revenge along with the one asset I most need?

‘It’s sudden, but will this kind of opportunity come again?’ It was definitely a hard proposal to reject. After all, having money could change the quality of my life for the rest of my life.

I hadn’t tried to settle in Veliata without a single coin because I wanted to. It was simply the best option out of the choices available to me.

Reus would start the rebellion about two years from now.

‘If I run away before the rebellion starts, it might be okay, right?’

If that’s possible…

“You’re offering me a contract, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then, can everything be finished within a year?”

Reus would start his rebellion about a year later. It would be a perfect time to escape without being too early or too late.

The villain smiled charmingly and answered.

“That’s enough time.”

I accepted Reus’s proposal. After the acceptance, things moved very quickly.

Reus, who supposedly knew everything, must have already anticipated my decision because he immediately handed me a contract.

It came with the one sentence I had been wondering about.

[“The person who saw you will never reveal your secret, so you can rest assured about that.”]

Summarizing the contract Reus handed me:

Once we were married, I would tell him who knew about me, and once the Forest of Silence became his property, he would start the process of bringing down the Count’s family.

He said everything would be finished in a year, so I had no reason to refuse.

However, the problem was that for the next year, I would have to pretend to be a lover deeply in love with Reus.

I wasn’t sure if I could act well enough, but…

‘At least I’ll be able to properly get back at Cassien.’

I couldn’t wait to see how Cassien would react when I told him I was going to marry Reus.

At that moment, a familiar voice came from beyond the door.

“Loelle, it’s me, Shanette. May I come in for a moment?”

“Yes, of course!”

When I opened the door, Shanette smiled brightly.

“I heard the news from Reus. I never thought he would tell me directly about the marriage!”

“Ah…”

Shanette, leading me to the table while I stood there dumbfounded, sat down and said in a voice full of joy.

“A few days ago, when he said he wanted to introduce a woman, I didn’t believe it at all. But now, I’m hearing such wonderful news.”

‘So, he was planning to marry me from the start.’

What on earth is the Forest of Silence?

This was getting too complicated, so I decided not to ask any further questions, even though my curiosity was rising.

Could there be something special hidden in the Forest of Silence?

“Loel?”

“Ah, yes!”

“I hear Reus is eager to have the wedding soon. Since the schedule is tight, it would be good to have someone helping out. What do you think?”

“I would be very grateful if someone could help.”

“Then, would it be okay if I help with the preparations until the wedding?”

“You, personally?”

“I would be absolutely thrilled to help with your wedding.”

When I saw Shanette excited face like a little child, a small piece of my conscience pricked my heart. But, since I had already signed the contract, I had to bear this kind of burden.

I smiled back, somewhat similarly to Shanette.

“..If you help, Shanette, I would be honored.”

While I was talking with Shanette about the wedding preparations, Reus came into the room.

“Ah, Reus. You’ve come?”

“Aunt, I would like to speak with Lady Ivelle alone for a moment.”

“Oh my, I wasn’t paying attention! Loelle, I’ll leave now. I had a wonderful time today. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”

Shanette smiled, playfully tapped Reus’s arm, and disappeared before I even had a chance to greet her. So, I was left alone with Reus in the large room.

‘This is awkward!’

Reus was always hard to talk to and awkward. Now that I had to marry him, it felt even more difficult to look at him.

But it seemed he didn’t feel the same. Reus casually approached and naturally reached out his hand.

“We’ll have to get used to this.”

“Yes, we should…”

I nodded weakly and shook his hand.

“I just sent a letter to the Ivelle Count family.”

Reus, who had led me to the table by the window, pulled out a chair and seated me, before sitting down directly beside me.

“Thank you, Grand Duke.”

Although Reus was still standing beside me, I had expected him to sit across from me.

But instead, he sat right next to me. That alone was enough to make me feel very awkward, but then he stared at me without looking away.

“..Is there a problem…?”

“Loelle.”

When Reus suddenly called my name in a friendly manner, I was so startled that I unintentionally held my breath.

“Weren’t we going to call each other by name?”

“Ah, yes that’s right…”

We had discussed how to act now that we’d signed the contract. Reus said that he didn’t want people to find any other reason for our marriage except love.

He seemed to have his own reasons for suggesting this, but I didn’t ask. After all, I thought it was probably for the best.

But I didn’t expect that we would start this so soon, especially in private!

“Even though I pursued you, if we’re going to be together, please at least call me by my name.”

“Yes, Grand Duke…”

“Loelle. By your name.”

I couldn’t speak immediately, so I nodded vigorously as if to promise I would from now on.

The reason Reus came to see me yesterday was to let me know that the wedding preparations would start immediately.

As expected, the wedding preparations proceeded quickly.

The first day, we decided on the venue and the decorator; the second day, we decided on the food for the guests; and the third day, we began narrowing down the invitation list and finalizing the design of the invitations.

After several busy days, it was finally time for me to try on my wedding dress.

The dress I was going to try on today was from the highly sought-after Celeste Boutique, which had been booked for years in advance.

Shanette and Celeste were already arguing in front of me about which dress would suit me best.

“It seems like a more glamorous dress would suit Lady Ivelle better.”

“But everything I’ve tried on so far looks great, so it’s hard to choose. Even the one I just tried on was so beautiful.”

“Ah! How about picking three dresses? One for the ceremony, one for the afterparty, and another for the celebration banquet?”

The idea that one dress could cost as much as a mansion made me gasp. Three dresses?

‘One is already more than enough…!’

But Shanette had already agreed with Celeste’s suggestion and was deep in thought, looking at the dresses.

Just as I was about to step in and stop her, there was suddenly a commotion from the boutique staff.

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