DSDD 10

Chapter 10

Gasp, that is……

The moment I caught a glimpse of the turquoise satin box between his fingers, I froze.

There was no way I wouldn’t recognize it as the box from the most prestigious accessory shop in the capital of Orden.

He placed the palm-sized box on the table, looking unmistakably significant, then quietly stared at me—as if he wanted to savor my reaction.

“Getting married right away would be too sudden and burdensome, wouldn’t it? So, for now……”

For now?

“I’d like us to continue seeing each other on the premise that we’re engaged.”

“……Pardon?”

Before I could even process his words, the ring case snapped open in his hand.

When the emerald ring inside was revealed, its green color exactly matching my eyes, I was rendered speechless.

This is bad. This man is serious.

“So this is……”

“A shackle, in a way. A beautiful form of binding us together through a contract.”

“……You’re probably the only person in the world who would call an engagement ring that, Your Highness.”

“Still, at least you recognize that it’s an engagement ring.”

Apparently pleased by that, he casually held the box out toward me again.

I couldn’t bring myself to touch it just yet, when the Grand Duke suddenly extended two document envelopes toward me.

“This one is the ‘Engagement Pledge.’ It’s not that I don’t trust you, but you never know. The contents have already been certified through our lawyer, and my signature is already on it. So all you have to do is sign. Once you sign it and give it to me, I’ll register it with the Imperial Family.”

“A pledge?”

“No matter how much I’d like to deny it, I am still a member of the Imperial Family. Because of that, the procedures are much more complicated than they are for ordinary nobles.”

The Grand Duke spoke as though the whole thing were slightly troublesome.

“And the other one…… simply put, you could call it my engagement gift in advance. Something like a bribe.”

“Oh my. A bribe for me? It must be very difficult to get into my good graces.”

“That’s why I put quite a bit of effort into it. I think you’ll probably like it.”

I wonder. Will I really?

When I looked at him skeptically, he spoke first.

“Exclusive port rights.”

“Pardon?”

“To be precise, exclusive rights to use a port.”

Wait, what did he say?

At the unexpected nature of the bribe, I quickly picked up the documents.

When I checked the contents, there really was a certificate transferring the rights to Valka Port, just as he had said.

“I have a territory called ‘Valka’ among the lands I own. It’s located along the coast, and I’m currently having a port built there. It’s scheduled to be completed within this month. This is the deed granting the Roar Trading Company exclusive rights to use that port.”

“T-This……”

“In other words, it’s a port that only House Zacherete can use.”

“……”

“Do you like it?”

“Do I like it? Of course I do! This, this is absolutely enormous!”

All the tea leaves currently being cultivated by Roar were being transported entirely by land.

The problem was that the terrain between the plantations and the capital, where the factory was located, was mountainous. And because the roads were poorly developed, the goods had to take a long detour.

Naturally, transportation took a considerable amount of time, and the resulting losses were quite substantial.

On top of that, the nobles who owned the territories along the routes were taking advantage of the situation to demand tolls, despite the fact that they barely had roads worth calling roads.

But what if transportation by sea became possible instead of by land?

“If you like it, that’s a relief. So, does that make you want to get engaged to me a little more now?”

Oh, no.

It suddenly felt as though someone had dumped a bucket of cold water over my head, snapping me back to reality.

I had been frantically imagining all sorts of business plans, only to suddenly be dragged back into the real world.

“Ahem.”

I cleared my throat and quietly set the troublesome documents back down.

This was a very sweet and delicious piece of candy.

But accepting it without hesitation would be a little too much.

“My signature is already on the transfer certificate. As soon as you sign, the rights will be transferred to you. Of course, that’s on the condition that you also sign the engagement document.”

“What if…… I only sign the transfer certificate and then tear up the engagement document?”

“I don’t think that would be possible.”

“Pardon?”

“I came here today specifically to prevent that from happening.”

The corner of the Grand Duke’s mouth lifted ever so slightly.

It was almost as though he wanted me to actually try it.

“If you’re really curious, go ahead and try. But I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’ll definitely regret it.”

When I asked what he meant, he gave me a playful wink before smiling brightly.

“Don’t worry. Soon enough, you’ll know even if you don’t want to.”

I stared blankly at him and swallowed dryly.

Somehow, it didn’t sound like a simple warning.

“That’s all for my proposal. Think it over carefully.”

Having said that, he calmly rose from his seat.

His strangely leisurely stride seemed to reflect just how relaxed he was.

But when he reached the door, he suddenly turned his head back.

“Oh, before I go. I suppose I should collect my down payment this time, too.”

Down payment? Gasp. Surely not.

I froze as I remembered the kiss I had received from him last time.

Wondering if he was going to kiss me again, I awkwardly fidgeted.

As though determined to live up to my expectations, the Grand Duke’s dazzling face slowly began approaching me.

Oh, no. Should I close my eyes this time, or keep them open?

If he really is going to kiss me, when should I close them?

I was seriously pondering the matter when—

“Leon.”

“Pardon?”

“Try calling me Leon.”

“L-Leon?”

Caught off guard, I repeated his name after him.

Then a bright smile spread across his lips.

His smile was so sweet that simply looking at it made me feel as though all my worries and troubles could disappear.

He looked immensely satisfied by the simple act of hearing me call his name.

“Good. From now on, call me by my name. We’re close enough for that, aren’t we?”

Perhaps he was worried that I would refuse if he called us betrothed.

He hadn’t said it outright, but it wasn’t difficult to infer what he had deliberately left unsaid.

Of course, that was only assuming we became engaged—assuming I signed the documents sitting on that table.

Since he wanted us to address each other more casually, I nodded.

It wasn’t particularly difficult, after all.

“Then I’ll be going, Erna.”

After bidding me farewell once more, Leon slowly turned around.

Then he quietly walked out the door.

After he left, silence once again settled over the office.

I watched his retreating figure through the second-floor window.

Perhaps he had noticed me watching him.

After walking for quite some distance, Leon suddenly turned around and looked directly toward where I was.

Caught off guard, as though I had been caught secretly peeking at him, I froze.

He smiled sweetly and waved at me.

Without thinking, I waved back.

What on earth is this?

One corner of my heart felt strangely ticklish.

As confusion continued to wash over me, I kept repeating the same question in my mind.

“What on earth happened to you?! Tell me exactly what happened. Everything! Every single detail!”

Bang!

The door flew open, and Laura burst in.

Judging by her ragged breathing, she must have run all the way here.

Apparently, she had figured something out.

“Ah, all right. I understand, Laura. Just calm down first……”

“Do I look like I can calm down right now? My goodness! To think that an incredible woman who managed to bring down the Grand Duke of Bernstein himself was right before my eyes……”

Bring him down? Conquer him?

I had thought so for a while, but I really didn’t like those expressions.

“Forget that. Let’s just get to the point. So, is the Marquess the Grand Duke’s lover from that rumor?”

“I don’t know about being his lover.”

Right. Lover or whatever. I still didn’t know exactly what our relationship was.

“But we definitely did something reckless.”

“Something…… reckless?”

Yes. Reckless.

Laura, who had visibly looked disappointed when I said I wasn’t his lover, suddenly had her eyes gleaming again at the ominous word reckless.

She looked like a starving beast on the verge of pouncing at any moment, and the way her shoulders trembled with excitement was extremely overwhelming.

“My goodness. Oh, God!”

Then came an exclamation that sounded almost like a roar.

“Our Marquess, who used to regard men as though they were nothing but stones, has finally, finally! Done something this adorable!”

“Adorable?”

“Of course it was that day, right? The day you stayed out overnight! I knew it! I knew there had to be something going on. I have pretty good instincts, you know?!”

“L-Laura. I understand, so just calm down first……”

“Is this really something I’m supposed to calm down about?! Right now, I feel like running barefoot into Roden Street and shouting it at the top of my lungs!”

Shouting? What would she even shout?

That our Marquess slept with the Grand Duke of Bernstein from the rumors? Something like that?

“Ahhh. I thought I’d be grateful if you brought home even one unmarried nobleman with a decent face, even if he were much older than you…… But my goodness, the Grand Duke of Bernstein! Gasp, w-wait a minute. Then!”

Laura, who had been making a huge fuss and didn’t know what to do with herself, suddenly stopped.

Her face turned pale.

Wondering what bizarre thing she was about to say this time, I remained silent.

“Are you really okay just standing there like this?”

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

“What else could I possibly mean? There might be an heir to Your Highness and Your Excellency growing inside your belly!”

……I’m going to lose my mind.