The Story of a Modest Young Lady Who Formed a New Engagement the Day After Her Engagement Was Annulled - Chapter 15

While dodging those who tried to engage me in conversation, I searched for the black-haired woman, Lady Eleanora Narcissus. Black hair is common among commoners, but among nobles, it’s a rare combination.

Nobles are mostly blond or silver-haired, with a fair number of redheads and brunettes, but black hair is unusual. Perhaps because it frequently appears in commoners, some despise it as a sign of strong inferior bloodlines. I can’t help but feel that her hair color is partly responsible for her diminished reputation. For a noblewoman, appearance can indeed be a factor in how she’s evaluated.

“She’s not here, huh?”

Despite her conspicuous black hair, finding her in the crowded venue was difficult. It would be convenient if she stayed in one place, but that’s just my own selfish wish.

Resigning myself to moving around diligently, I turned my head left and right when I noticed a shift in the crowd at a corner of the venue. For some reason, a crowd had gathered, and at its center was a drunken man hurling abuse and the black-haired woman I’d been searching for. —No way.

“My fiancée Eleanora standing on the same battlefield?!”

The man’s words from that night resurfaced in my mind, and everything clicked into place. According to the report I received from Heinrich, after the previous head of House Narcissus died in battle, the military and royal family approached the count’s family about providing military forces. Unable to send any more of their subjects to war, the count’s family, with permission from both their own house and the marquis family of her fiancé, allowed Lady Eleanora Narcissus to volunteer.

Valued for her ability to use magic, she underwent accelerated training and went to the battlefield. I’d heard she had a fiancé, but I never imagined it was that man. I should have realized when I saw her name in the report, but my memory, having discarded that vulgar conversation into oblivion, delayed my recognition.

A bad feeling washed over me, and I quickened my pace toward her. The man was spewing unpleasant words; his actions on the battlefield only increased casualties among allies, and his military achievements were practically nonexistent.

Having only witnessed one scene involving him, I couldn’t make an accurate assessment, but judging by his words and behavior, I couldn’t accept his claim of having greater achievements than her. The surrounding onlookers were merely amused, watching the black-haired woman, the man, and his mistress. If this continued, I thought about telling them to move elsewhere and started to step forward again.

“—I’m annulling my engagement with you.”

The man at the center of the commotion declared this to the black-haired woman. How dare he act on his own. An engagement between houses can’t be decided unilaterally by someone who isn’t the head of the family. He’s using his so-called achievements as a shield, but are they even worthy of being called achievements?

Ignoring the woman trying to reason with him, he walked away with his back turned, and all I could do was watch, grinding my teeth. Wait. Maybe there’s something I can do, I thought, desperately racking my brain. If this were the battlefield, numerous solutions would come to mind, but for some reason, no good idea surfaced now. Asking Heinrich to resolve the situation crossed my mind, but I realized that would make me seem like a child relying on parental authority.

Without a chance to stop the man, the black-haired woman watched him leave her. I turned my gaze to her, head bowed. Clad in her military uniform, she was no different from any other woman unjustly tormented. A far cry from the gallant figure she’d cut on the battlefield.

If the engagement between that man and the black-haired woman is annulled. Why do I find myself hoping for it?

If it was a promise exchanged between houses from the start, annulling it could cause problems, and she might even be blamed by the count’s family. Lost in thought, I noticed the crowd had dispersed without my realizing, and she had vanished as well.

Given the circumstances, I couldn’t approach her. Even if I chased after her now and spoke to her, the annulment wouldn’t just disappear. Praising her under these conditions wouldn’t make her happy. Even someone as insensitive to women’s feelings as I am can understand that much.

I wondered if there was anyone I could consult, picturing faces in my mind. My friend Heinrich… He wouldn’t give bad advice, but he’d definitely find it amusing. My superior… He’s busy with military reorganization; bringing personal matters to him feels inappropriate. Friends and colleagues… They’re rejoicing in reunions with family and lovers; my appearance would only be a nuisance.

That leaves the people of the Margrave’s household. Consulting family might involve considering my position as a noble… But right now, family is the only option, and if I want to gather information, I’ll need the family’s influence. In the end, I have to consult them; sooner or later, my family will find out.

It feels a bit pathetic, but I’m not well-versed in the power dynamics of the kingdom’s nobility, and I’m somewhat ignorant about social matters. Thinking it couldn’t hurt to ask, I headed to the Margrave’s townhouse in the royal capital.

“Oh my, Fels is bringing up a woman’s matter! What shall we do, what shall we do? Fels, whose only hobby was fighting!”

In the townhouse’s reception room, my mother was delightedly fluttering about, while my father watched with a wry smile.

“Listening to the story, what is the Hydrangia Marquis family thinking? I heard they accepted the eldest daughter of the Narcissus Count family because they desired the Narcissus bloodline. Do they really intend to annul it?”

Though puzzled, my parents were indignant at the actions of the Hydrangia Marquis’s son. If the marquis and count families truly annul the engagement, my father and mother declared they wouldn’t mind having Lady Narcissus marry me. I’ve always refused being assigned a fiancée just because I went to battle, and since matters of romance never came up, it seems I’ve been worrying them.

If asked whether I like or dislike the woman in question, I can say she’s not bad. With the war over and me set to become the next Margrave, I need a partner. Maybe this is just convenient? It feels like I’m using her for my own reasons… But I can’t stand such injustice being tolerated, and I can’t just watch.

It might be an overreaction. However. The image of the black-haired woman, made small and exposed to public scrutiny at the soirée, is stuck in my mind and won’t leave. Though it’s still uncertain what will happen, I wish for her to regain the gallant face I saw on the battlefield.