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nChapter 4 | Bedroom Plan

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nMrs. Flambard “…What?”

nMrs. Flambard was so shocked, she released the lace she was tying and Rienne’s loose inner skirt fell to the floor.

nRienne “Exactly how long does it take for a baby to start showing?”

nMrs. Flambard “O, oh, w, well, that’s…”

nAs Mrs. Flambard struggled to find her words, guards had rushed over and knocked on Rienne’s door.

nKnock, knock.

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nGuard “Message for the Princess. We’ve received word that the head of Tiwakan has arrived and is at the front gates. We’re awaiting Lord Weroz’s orders before allowing him entry.”

nSuddenly, the faces of Mrs. Flambard and Rienne changed once they noticed Rienne was still in her underwear. Making eye contact with her nanny, Rienne spoke slowly.

nRienne “…Open the gates. Tell him I’ll be with him shortly.”

nWith that, Mrs. Flambard quickly got to work tying Rienne’s dress.

nEven though Mrs. Flambard had told Rienne not to look so beautiful, she unfortunately looked radiant when dressed in such bright clothing.

nHer snow white skin blended strangely with how slender her neck was, giving her the image of a fragile flower that could break at any moment.

n* * *

nRienne “. . .”

nThere were six coffins placed in the front yard. Silence filled the air, save for the sound of each of them unceremoniously hitting the ground as they were brought in.

nCompletely forgetting to welcome her guests, Rienne just stared blankly at the closed caskets.

nSeeing them like this, they all looked the same. She couldn’t tell which one of them contained her dead lover.

nPhermos “We’ve brought back the bodies without damage, just as you requested.”

nSo said the strange man with a funny looking contraption on his face—a man who identified himself as Phermos.

nPhermos “This is a small gift to you, Princess of Nauk, who graciously accepted our offer.”

nRienne “…Thank you.”

nThe first gift she received from her fiancé was a corpse. How eerie.

nAs Rienne nodded her head to acknowledge the gift, Black took a step towards her. His eyes bored into her face, and it felt like it was stinging her flesh.

nRienne “Thank you for granting my request. And for the coffins.”

nIt was a miracle enough that the bodies of those slain during a surprise attack were returned intact, but the coffins were not a requirement.

nThe barbarians must have wanted to play nice because they’re engaged now.

nRienne was now in the position to be grateful for these sorts of things.

nThe head of Tiwakan took another step closer, and Rienne pushed down the desire to take a step back.

nBlack “The day is over.”

nThe way he said it made it sound like a day was a very long time, but in reality, it had only been a single day since her lover died.

nBlack “I want to talk about our marriage, now.”

nRienne “. . .”

nThe six coffins, one of which containing the body of her lover, were both a gift and a threat, as if to say…

nDon’t get distracted by grief and forget about my proposal.

n* * *

nThey had to move locations.

nThe office was too small, but the chapel was too large. In the end, they ended up using the reception room with the biggest table.

nAt one point, the most important families in all of Nauk would make frequent visits to the King every day, but such a tradition had long since died out.

nThey sat on opposite sides of the table, face to face in a weirdly shabby room.

nOnly Weroz and Maslow sat with Rienne, but luckily the other side didn’t have many people either, so the picture looked equal on the outside.

nBut it didn’t feel that way in the back of her mind.

nEven if Lord Tiwakan had been there alone, Rienne would still have to contend with that awkward and endless feeling of contradiction.

nPhermos “I know it isn’t a wise decision to make the engagement period too long.”

nPhermos was the first to speak. Even in Nauk, it was known that he was practically the second in command of Tiwakan, serving as Black’s right hand man and aide.

nPhermos “Though we’re in the south, it’s starting to get cold. Before that, the Tiwakan Mercenaries want to dismantle our camp and settle somewhere with a roof over our heads. And considering your position, Princess…”

nPhermos stopped talking for a moment, a meaningful smile on his face.

nPhermos “I’m sure you must also be in a hurry to marry so that you may baptize your newborn child.”

nMaslow “Wait… Excuse me?”

nMaslow leapt to his feet.

nMaslow “Oh, Princess… Who… Whose child is it…?”

nAs Maslow stuttered out his words, two different voices spoke up from either side of the table.

nRienne “It’s my child.”

nBlack “It’s mine.”

nTheir words were the same, but the meaning was completely different.

nRienne looked straight at Black in embarrassment, thoughts in her head wondering what on earth he was talking about.

nBlack returned her look with no sense of embarrassment on his face.

nBlack “Your child will recognize me as being its biological father once we’re married.”

nSince they both decided to leave the pregnancy as is, it was an obvious and easy conclusion to come to.

nMaslow “Oh, so that’s what you meant.”

nBlack “It doesn’t matter to me if the child remains an Arsak.”

nMaslow looked right at Rienne with widened eyes.

nAlthough there were differences between himself and someone more proficient, Maslow was still an experienced politician and had long since served as Rienne’s advisor.

nHe knew for a fact that Rienne had never allowed her lover to sleep with her, so of course he immediately knew her claim of being pregnant was a lie made to refuse the proposal.

nBut even so, he scolded Rienne for being reckless as best he could with his expression.

n…I know.

nRienne agreed, but there was no point crying over spilled milk.

nIt was too late to say she had lied; which meant she needed to lie about having a miscarriage when the time was right, or she would have no choice but to have a baby.

nBut that meant…

nRienne hid her face and bit down on her lip.

nThat meant…

nThat meant she needed to sleep with the barbarian as soon as possible.

nI can’t do that.

nIt would be too obvious. He’d notice.

nHaving accepting his proposal, she had no problem sleeping with him if need be. No matter how much she hated it, it was an unavoidable circumstance after marriage. But beyond that, there was another problem.

nRienne instinctively closed her eyes.

nHe’ll notice I’m inexperienced. He’ll think there’s no way I could possibly be pregnant.

nThen what would happen?

nLord Tiwakan’s reputation was rife with rumors of his brutality. Her imagination ran wild with awful thoughts that made her sick even thinking about it.

nPhermos “If you allow me, I can help. The birthright of your child will be guaranteed in the name of Lord Tiwakan. If you’d like, we can even notarize it in the marriage pledge.”

nLord Tiwakan’s aide was a shrewd and precise worker. He was already setting the stage.

nPhermos “It would difficult for you to hide your pregnancy starting in a month or two, so our best option would be to hold the wedding sometime in the next fifteen days.”

nMaslow “Fifteen days? That’s too fast!”

nMaslow stood up for the second time that day and shouted out.

nMaslow “It wouldn’t even possible to complete the marriage robes in fifteen days!”

nBlack “…Sit down.”

nA low but clear voice immediately stopped Maslow’s shouting.

nMaslow “. . .”

nWith a frustrated look, Maslow looked at Black, who had ordered him to sit down. Stumbling, Maslow fell back down into his seat as he faced those blue eyes that were so pale that it made his pupils more defined.

nIn the end, the face of the old royal advisor turned pale.

nBlack “I’ll prepare the robes. If the Princess finds any part of the wedding planning burdensome, then you needn’t do anything. I don’t want you to find any reason to postpone our marriage…”

nBlack had stopped talking, leaving dead air for another to speak, but no one dared raise their voice.

nThe head of Tiwakan had the power to force everyone to listen to his commands. Even as he was silent, everyone waited with bated breath for his next words.

nThen, Black looked at Rienne and spoke slowly.

nBlack “I want you to be honest, Princess.”

nNow it was Rienne’s turn to fall pale.

n* * *

nNo matter how much she thought about it, there was no justification for it except that she just didn’t want to.

nJust looking at him sent chills down her spine.

nCould she really marry such a man and sleep with him?

nCould she trick him into believing the child was someone else’s? Could she act well enough to make him think she was experienced? Like she couldn’t feel the pain of her first time?

n…No, there’s no way.

nThere was no way she could maintain such a lie.

nWeroz “Princess…”

nWeroz, who had been silent the entire time, called out to Rienne quietly.

nIt was only then that Rienne realized she was clenching her fists under the table with her eyes closed.

nShe had to give him an answer.

nRienne “I need time to prepare myself.”

nBlack “How much time do you need?”

nEven a year wouldn’t be enough.

nRienne “It’s not just a matter of preparing clothing. I’m sure you’ve been made aware of the situation in Nauk. We don’t have the financial capabilities to fund a wedding in fifteen days.”

nShe wasn’t lying about that. Money was Nauk’s biggest problem, and it was the reason why even her lover’s funeral was considered a luxury.

nBlack “Money’s the problem?”

nRienne “…As ashamed as I am to admit it, yes.”

nBlack “And there’s no other reason?”

nRienne bit her lip and answered.

nRienne “Yes, that’s right.”

nBlack turned towards his aide. Understanding the implicit order, Phermos opened the lid of box he brought and pulled out something. A sheet of paper.

nThinking he was going to hand the paper to Black, Rienne was a little surprised to see him instead shove the box towards him.

nBlack “Think of this as an engagement gift. It’s much better than few stone coffins.”

nThe box, which was by no means small, was filled to the brim with gold.

nMaslow was so shocked that he dare not even reach for the box. He only looked at Rienne.

nMaslow “Princess…”

nRienne was the same.

nAs Maslow and Rienne stared down at the gold in front of them, Phermos spread out the paper in his hand and turned it around so they could see the contents.

nPhermos “We require the Princess’ consent here. After your marriage, the Tiwakan Mercenaries will take on a new name—The Guardian Knights of Arsak.”

nThey still had ten times as many troops as there were in Nauk.

nRienne “Excuse me?”

nRienne’s first thought was to be appalled. She couldn’t believe this stroke of unexpected luck, but at the same time, such a thing was too good to be true.

nThings like that always came at a price.

nRienne “You wish for us to take on the Tiwakan Mercenaries as part of the Arsak family knights? That’s something that cannot be settled simply by using gold as a gift.”

nPhermos didn’t seem too surprised. In fact, he looked like he was expecting this response.

nPhermos “In exchange for using the Tiwakan Mercenaries as your Guardian Knights, Lord Tiwakan will be granted the ability to take the throne of Nauk alongside you once you ascend as part of your marriage.”

nRienne “What…?”

nInstinctively, Rienne looked back at Black without even realizing it. Though she had been avoiding his gaze the entire time, the moment she met it, their looks lingered.

nIt was like someone had cursed her, preventing her from moving away.

nRienne “You… expect me to believe that?”

nMercenaries were fighters that specifically fought wars in others’ stead, so naturally they required an absorbent amount of money to hire. With the Tiwakan Mercenaries on their side, Nauk would easily become the strongest of all the five southern kingdoms, but it was too much.

nRegardless of the reason, using the Tiwakan Mercenaries as guards made no sense.

nBlack “I have no reason to lie to my fiancée.”

nThat was Black’s answer.

nRienne “But still, there’s no need for such a powerful force in Nauk. There’s nothing valuable enough here worth protecting to that extent.”

nBlack “And yet, you had the commander of the Knights of Arsak.”

nRienne “…Huh?”

nRienne’s lips parted in surprised, catching Black’s notice. As he stared, there was a strange sense of greed in his gaze.

nBlack “Someone will desire Nauk in the future, whether that be Nauk itself or you, Princess.”

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nRienne “. . .”

nWhile Rienne was rendered speechless for the time, Phermos broke the silence before she could gather herself.

nPhermos “Then we have an agreement. Within fifteen days, we’ll make an announcement no later than sunset tomorrow. We’ll leave organizing that to the Captain of Nauk’s guards. Oh, and I’d also like to inspect the Knight’s quarters.”

nThe barbarians were concise.

nThey had set a trap so quickly and perfectly that she couldn’t escape from it.

nPhermos “We don’t have much time, so we should move as fast as we can. It will take at least two days for our men to dismantle the camp and begin their march, and we’ll need to delay their knighting ceremonies until after the wedding.”

nPhermos grinned as he remembered the arrangement they had made. It was then that those two letters that they sent were finally being realized.

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nT

/N: This was a fun chapter to do. Rienne’s panicking made me laugh, ha.

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