CH 32

‘Everything was going swimmingly, everything was in order, and I had everything.’

Ernest agreed to marry her after she persuaded him.

The king was initially hesitant, but when he discovered that there were no other ladies willing to be betrothed to Ernest, he reluctantly agreed.

Charlotte was suspicious of Francine’s presence, but fortunately Francine was about to conclude talks with the third prince, Claude.

Her fortune was on her side.

At this rate, her father’s title may be elevated.

There is an unspoken understanding that a royal marriage must be with a marquise or higher.

Finally, Charlotte is the Marquis’s daughter.

“As His Majesty will inform you later, I’ve decided to marry Ernest.”

“Don’t be silly.”

“Why not? If that happens, will Oto-sama be promoted to the rank of marquis, right?”

Her father appeared to be biting his tongue for some reason.

“Since I’m marrying the second prince, can’t you at least build us a new castle?”

“How am I going to get the money for that?”

“How do you get the money…”

‘You don’t need to be concerned about money now that you’re a marquess with royal connections.’

“We’re no longer a poor viscount, you know?”

After everything Charlotte had done, her father simply stated, “You’re such an idiot.”

She needed a place to stay until her father or Ernest could build her a castle.

Lord Colgard had arranged for Angelique to stay at the Duke of Montan’s detached palace. It is essentially a small castle. To be honest, it’s bigger and better than Viscount Barabou’s.

‘Let’s make that our permanent residence.’

It’s in the heart of the capital, spacious and luxuriously furnished, and she has free reign over the duke’s servants. There is no better place to be than here.

‘I could live there indefinitely.’

But…

Lord Colgard abruptly turned away from Charlotte.

He told her not only to leave, but also to have her own father pay for her shoppings from now on. He also told the shopkeeper to do the same.

“You are not the duke’s daughter.”

When Lord Colgard said that, she couldn’t believe it.

‘What makes him say that now? Is he lying when he says I was like a fourth daughter to her?’

She glared at him with resentment, but Lord Colgard’s demeanor remained unchanged.

When he was forced to return home, a messenger from the king arrived to inform her that the betrothal had become official.

She was relieved to know that her good fortune had not yet deserted her…

“What are you going to do now that you’ve accepted Ernest’s proposal of marriage?!”

“What am I going to do?”

“Didn’t you realize?! Marrying a royal brings nothing but honor. A poor aristocrat like us does not require great, meaningless honors. If we are promoted to the rank of Marquis, we will have to spend many times as much money on each state feast, and our tax rate will rise as well. The tax we collect from people is already 40%, the maximum we can levy, so where will the money come from?!”

“Because he’s a prince, Ernest must have a lot of land and money…”

“I already told you! It’s simply an honor! Ernest is a poor prince!”

‘It can’t be…’

“T-Then what happens now?”

“That’s why you’re sitting here with your head in your hands! You’ve been dealt a bad hand, so you’ll have to deal with it on your own.”

My father left the room, saying that he would have preferred the slow (retarded) Kathrine.

Charlotte was taken aback for a moment, but then she realized something.

It was obvious from the start.

First and foremost, her father was unable to take over the dukedom due to Lord Colerado.

When she realized this, she began to feel extremely unjustified.

“That’s right, Oto-sama would have been Duke of Montan without Oji-sama.”

His marriage to the second prince would be a great honor if his father was the Duke of Montan.

The engagement to Ernest is already set, and all that remains is for his father to be made Duke.

“I feel sorry for Oji-sama, but…”

‘Oji-sama was also to blame; he should have simply given Angelique’s place to me. And don’t bother me with my shopping…”

“You’ll get what you deserve.”

She occasionally used black market merchants to sell items to pay for items she purchased in the Royal Capital’s stores. If the item was new, legitimate traders would check with the Montan family and be extremely picky.

The black market was located in the Krim neighborhood.

They were told to avoid going there because of the high crime rate, but when she went, she discovered it wasn’t so bad.

She directed people to purchase nails, ink, and other items she had used for harassment.

There are people here who can do things that a submissive lady cannot.

“I can’t help myself. You shouldn’t be so distant from me. Oji-sama…”