01x02 - Why Raeliana Made a Contract

[bunniefuu]

I'm so hung over

Miss Raeliana.

Venia

I'd really like to sleep

a little longer today

There is someone here to see you, my lady.

To see me?

Tell them I'm not feeling well

and send them home.

But it's His Grace the Duke

What did you say?

A deal?

It's about the royal seal.

Neither the master

nor the mistress are at home.

What shall I do?

All right.

Have him wait in the living room.

I just have to come out and tell him

that if he doesn't want me

to expose the dirt on him,

he has to help me break off my engagement.

Welcome, Duke.

Miss McMillan

I'm glad to see you made

it home safely last night.

Yes, thanks to you, sir.

Are you feeling unwell? You look pale.

No, I was just a bit surprised.

I feel like puking

But I never dreamed I'd see

you again so soon. I am honored.

He doesn't even look like

the same man today.

I fervently wished to see you

as soon as possible.

Please pardon my imposition.

Sir

Isn't His Grace the Duke the one

that even Vivian Shamal

couldn't seduce, no matter

how hard she tried?

And yet he's here, and with a bouquet, no less!

Nothing's better for

a hangover than ice cream!

Why did you drink so much, anyway?

You know you can't hold your liquor.

It had been so long

I thought I could get away

with just a little bit.

I can't tell her I don't know this

body's limits because it isn't my own.

So why did His Grace the Duke come here?

You're curious about that, too?

Of course I am!

I can't talk about it in a lot of detail

But I happened to meet him

at the banquet yesterday,

and we realized that we had

certain things in common.

Oh, my!

I think he could prove to be

a great partner if things work out.

Wow! My lady with His Grace the Duke?!

I mean a business partner, of course

Okay, so

For starters

I guess I should learn

how to write a contract.

Even a Monkey Can Understand

How to Write a Contract

so You Won't Be Deceived

I hear the Duke came to see you.

Would you mind explaining

what that's all about?

We I mean, I

want to break off my

engagement to Lord Brooks.

Raeli, did you not love Lord Brooks dearly?

I didn't, Father.

I was only abiding by the decision

made by both of our families,

for the benefit of the McMillan family.

But now

I want to spend my life

with someone I truly love.

That said, this affects both

the McMillan family and my father's business.

I don't expect him to just

calmly tell me he understands.

I understand.

Huh?

Um Father?

You have always done as we said,

without a single word of complaint.

We were proud to have such a daughter,

but it also made us worry about you.

We questioned whether

or not you were truly happy.

Yes.

You don't need to endure

anything for our sakes.

Our beloved daughter's

happiness is our happiness.

I was so disgusted with myself,

I thought my heart might burst.

Okay

I'm not even

your real daughter.

I swallowed the words down so hard,

they stuck like thorns in my chest.

It is an honor to welcome you,

Miss McMillan.

The master awaits you inside.

Duke, I hope the day finds you well.

Let's skip the tiresome greetings, shall we?

You spoke of the royal seal.

Yes,

it seems the royal seal that

disappeared still has not been found.

If you wonder why I spoke of this

to you, of all people

I believe you yourself know

the reason better than anyone.

I'm sure no one hates me,

the one who knows where the seal is,

as much as you do.

What makes you think so?

Because you are the one

in possession of the royal seal.

He serves as a guide to lead

the old nobility against the new nobility.

No one would expect him

to have the royal seal

that the royal family uses to enact laws.

But that's exactly what

the royal family wants.

Noah's role in leading

the old nobility is just for show.

He's actually the king's pawn.

The only ones who know the truth

are the duke's household

and those closest to the royal family

and me, one who came

to this world from outside.

Though it's actually supposed to be

the novel's heroine who knows it, not me.

Are you being serious?

And here I decided

to have this discussion with you.

Now it's no fun.

What did he say?!

We've wasted precious time.

Let's pretend this never happened.

I can't lose my composure.

He's testing me right now.

I believe your family graveyard is

located at 31 Vangelio Street.

The grave of your cousin,

Robert Wynknight

is where it's buried, correct?

Saying any more will do you no good.

Please leave now.

After all I've said,

he's still feigning ignorance?

In that case

Very well.

I will take my leave, then.

He definitely reacted

when I brought up the royal seal.

Which means everything

I said must have been right.

So I can't lose heart.

I have to appear confident.

That said

I don't have that many cards to play.

If he decides to say everything I told

him was made up, it's all over.

So please

Stop me from leaving!

Is this really the end of it?

There must be some way

A chess board with only one king on it.

The number of pieces don't add up

Is this

the current state of the Kingdom of Chamus?!

Sir

Please move that bishop to the right.

That would place the Gale family under you.

Because the next head of the Gale family

is not the eldest son, Valdur,

but the second, Harrelson.

Valdur is backing and financially supporting

a militia that the kingdom is wary of.

I'm sure you're aware

that this is no mere rumor.

To the Gale family,

he is essentially a ticking time b*mb.

That means they have no choice

but to select the second son, Harrelson.

Don't they? We have no way to be certain.

The truth will be known in time.

Well, then

Wait.

Very well.

Let's negotiate.

Was this really a good idea?

I feel like I'm getting myself mixed up with

someone even more dangerous

than Francis Brooks.

In other words

You want me to pretend to be your fiancé?

Yes. That is my only condition.

Why?

Is a reason necessary?

Depending on the situation.

And in the current situation?

It's necessary.

Uh right.

Then again, I came from a different world,

and I've read about what

happens in this world.

That's how I know where the royal seal is.

But it's not as if I can tell him that.

I heard a rumor that Lord Brooks

was trying to k*ll me.

So I want justification for ending my

engagement to him as quickly as possible.

You would take such a rumor

seriously even with no evidence?

It doesn't matter if you don't believe me.

Did this rumor come from the same place

as your knowledge of the royal seal?

Well yes, that's right.

Why don't you tell me what

this source of yours is?

I would like you to agree to a contract

without requiring me to tell you.

I can't do that.

The source of my information

has already died.

I cannot reveal their identity.

If you cannot agree to that,

we will forget all talk of this contract.

The information I possess

is extremely valuable.

There are many who would

pay any price to obtain it.

I'm sure some would happily lick my boots

if it meant they would have

a chance to bring you down.

What's so funny?

Did you not come to me because you

fear those people wouldn't believe you?

Can we just stop these negotiations now?

Six months.

If you'll pretend to be my fiancé

for just six months,

you will likely never see me again

after that period is over.

Never again.

So just hurry up and sign this already!

All right.

The deal is made? Seriously?

In return

For as long as this farce goes on,

you will play your part as my

fiancée whenever I need you to.

What do you mean by that?

Oh

You'll see soon enough,

whether you want to or not.

Then, some days later

I would wish to death that I had never

made a contract with this man.

From one disaster to the next

"Immense compensation demanded in return

for one-sided engagement annulment."

I never thought a family as high-ranking

as the Brooks would go this far.

Besides, if this could

be resolved with money,

I wouldn't have needed

to go through all this.

Nothing I can do about it now, though.

The one bound to cause

the most trouble for me now is

Yep, this guy. Adam Taylor.

The knight Noah assigned specifically to me.

He's also known as the Observer.

Jeez, his gaze stings!

He had a pretty strong

presence in the novel, too.

He stood on the b*ttlefield

from a young age as a child soldier.

He's an exceptional fighter

who's been through many battles.

But then the royal family halted

the use of child soldiers,

so Adam had nowhere to go.

He was then hired by the Wynknight

family to serve as a knight,

at which point he swore loyalty to Noah.

The maids gushed that Noah's assignment

of Adam, someone so close to him,

must be out of love for me,

but in truth,

it's no more than a warning that

if I do anything funny, I'll lose my head.

But that's all well and good.

The problem is

Master Taylor.

Will you serve as my guard even when

I move to the duke's mansion?

Say something, would you?!

Yes In three days,

I have to go to the duke's mansion.

I'll need you to move

to my mansion as soon as possible.

Why is that?

Because you will be a candidate

for marriage into the House of Wynknight.

Y-Yes, but we're still only engaged.

That's exactly why it's necessary.

Call it bridal training, perhaps?

My lady.

What is it?

My lady, this must be so difficult for you.

Huh?

I can't fathom why the master

and mistress don't say anything!

Everyone else just says I couldn't

have found a better man to marry.

Elma's the only one who understands me.

Those red eyes

Huh?

He looks like he might swing

that sword at any moment.

Oh, you meant Master Taylor?

Yes.

I hear some people call him

the God of Death.

Plus, they say he descends from

that band of savages, the Alsasa.

Why would he hire someone like that?

Elma, Master Taylor is a hero

of this kingdom and a fine knight.

My lady?

That's why the Duke assigned him to guard me.

But

Please refrain from saying such rude things.

I'm very sorry.

I was just concerned about you.

Yes, I know.

I just don't want you to judge people

based on their looks and backgrounds.

Right

So you wanted to talk to me?

Oh Yes.

I finished making the chocolate-covered

almonds that you asked for.

Wow, really?!

Thank you!

That must have been a lot of work!

Not at all.

Are you knowledgeable

about flowers, Master Taylor?

Um What foods do you like?

He's too silent!

Sister!

Sister!

Rose!

Rosemary!

My angel!

What have you been doing?

Praying!

Praying?

That you and the Duke will be

happy forever and ever!

Rosemary!

Oh, I just can't stand it!

I'm getting dizzy!

What's the balloon for?

Oh, this?

To let go into the sky, like this.

What do we do?

Let's have Hans get it when he comes later.

I'm sure a gardener would have a stepladder.

It has to go up into the sky.

Why?

The balloon is going to

carry my wish up to the gods.

My wish for you and the Duke

to be happy forever and ever.

What if it takes too long

to carry it to the gods,

and the balloon forgets my wish?

She's just too cute!

Sister?

Sorry. You're so cute, I just can't

Don't worry about the balloon.

I'm sure it'll remember your wish.

Really?

Yes.

So eat these with me while we

wait for Hans to get here.

Okay.

The balloon flew away!

I didn't expect that

I figured he'd think a thing like this

was none of his concern.

Thank you, Master Taylor.

Go on, Rosemary. You should thank him.

Give me your hand.

Thank you very much!

Huh?

He seemed like he reacted more

quickly than usual to that.

Could it be that you like sweets?

Aw, there's a cute side to him!

Since he had to be on

the b*ttlefield since childhood,

he probably never had a chance

to act much like a child.

Once again

I look forward to your continued service.

I should get Elma to make more of those

before I move to the duke's mansion.

And then

The morning of that day arrived.