The Villainess Proposed a Contractual Marriage

Chapter 28: The Meaning of Cicadas Crying

As we stepped down from the ballroom after our first dance, a swarm of people rushed to shower us with attention. While some looks were disapproving, most simply wanted to approach out of curiosity.

However, they hesitated to come near. Three imposing figures were already making their way towards us.

His Holiness the Pope, Commander Rupert, and lastly... the Holy Maiden Ibria.

'One would be intimidating enough, did all three really need to come at once...?'

The other attendees seemed equally uncomfortable.

Typically, the Temple shows little interest in worldly affairs. As such, nobles had no reason to feel uneasy around or revere them.

However, figures well-known among the common people - roughly cardinal-rank and above - were a different story. Even the haughtiest nobles watched their words around them.

This was closer to respect than fear of the Temple.

They respected the Temple's sincerity in not meddling in politics despite having the people's support.

With these three paragons of that respect now right in front of us, how could we not feel pressured?

I immediately dropped to one knee in a show of respect.

"Holy Knight Harte, greeting His Holiness the Pope."

"No, no, what are you doing? This is a banquet hall. You're making everyone uncomfortable."

"... My apologies."

Truth be told, I had deliberately lowered myself excessively.

Having already committed a sin, I thought taking an extremely humble stance would help smooth things over.

At that moment, His Holiness turned his attention to Elphisia.

"It's nice to meet you~ Harte's wife."

"It's an honor to meet you, Your Holiness."

"First time, huh..."

His Holiness trailed off.

Silence enveloped us afterwards. If only a crow would caw to break the stillness. Even the chatter of the crowd seemed to have suddenly quieted.

As Elphisia's lips parted to break the awkward silence, His Holiness's eyes suddenly shimmered with rainbow hues.

Then he asked:

"Truly?"

"..."

This time, Elphisia fell completely silent. I had no idea what was going on. But my deliberation was brief, and my action swift.

I stepped between Elphisia and His Holiness, shielding her behind me.

"Please withdraw, Your Holiness."

"Hmm."

His eyes, which had been gleaming with rainbow light, returned to their original sky-blue color. Then he let out an awkward chuckle, as if embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, both of you. But you know, Harte? It's not something I can control."

"... I know, which is why I only intervened to end it."

"Oh my... With such a close couple, it'd be hard to even suggest returning to the Temple."

"I've made too many promises to be responsible for."

"I see~. If that's Harte's justice and good faith, I personally have no complaints?"

He was sincere.

His Holiness is someone who would rather stay silent than ever speak a lie. If he gave the OK, it truly meant he had no regrets.

A moment later, he craned his neck to address Elphisia behind me.

"I was quite rude earlier, wasn't I? As an apology, I'd like to bless you. Would that be alright?"

"... Yes. I'd be grateful."

I stepped aside. His Holiness moved forward and placed his hand above Elphisia's head.

Pop, bloop, pop.

A peculiar sound, like giant soap bubbles popping, rang out. Simultaneously, rainbow-colored bubbles floated gently around us.

It was divine power.

The only person who could use divine power without a baptismal name. That's the giant known as the Pope.

Divine power takes different forms for each person. His Holiness's divine power took the shape of rainbow bubbles.

"So that's... His Holiness's divine power."

"My goodness, it's awe-inspiring just to look at."

"So that's what divine power is like... I've never seen it before."

Comments drifted in from the sidelines. Certainly, for people from the outside world who never have a chance to witness divine power and miracles, it was only natural.

On the other hand, I found his divine power, which I was seeing after a long time, somehow unpleasant.

Why?

This was something I could only explain as a gut feeling, nothing more.

Afterwards, having finished the blessing, His Holiness clapped his hands lightly.

"Well~ That's it! I didn't do much, but you shouldn't fall ill for a while. If you had any ailments, they should all be cured now?"

"Thank you again, Your Holiness."

"It's nothing. Our Harte has lived an admirable life, you know? So... please, please take good care of him from now on."

"You don't need to say that."

Elphisia didn't look at His Holiness. Instead, she gazed past his shoulder at Ibria and declared as if to make a point:

"He's my husband, no matter what anyone says."

"Hehe... That's nice."

He took a step back. Then, his parting words were a farewell.

"Well then, I'll go grab some snacks~. I hope the remaining two of you have a pleasant conversation!"

The atmosphere felt as if a storm had just passed through.

As a result, I was forced to break the ice first.

"He's still the same... His Holiness."

"He can't help but be that way."

The Commander replied cynically.

Then he approached Elphisia, showing great interest.

"Tell me, Your Highness. I have many questions."

"Ask away."

"Well then..."

The Commander asked with gleaming eyes:

"What did you see in that guy to even marry him?"

"Koff!"

"Khugh."

It was practically a sneak attack. Both Elphisia and I couldn't help but choke and cough.

The Commander grinned like a lecher and pressed on relentlessly.

"I've watched him since he was young, but he's a thoroughly uninteresting fellow. Sure, his face is decent enough, but just look around and you'll find plenty of better-looking men...

And it's not like he's rich either."

The more I heard, the more shamelessly he was fighting with facts. Damn Commander.

"Since I'm old enough to be Harte's father, let me hear it just once."

"..."

Elphisia alternated her gaze between me and Rupert. Judging by her flushed face, it seemed too embarrassing for her to say out loud.

No matter how good she was at lying, with the person in question right in front of her, it would be too much for Elphisia's nature.

I had no choice but to bail her out somehow.

... Just as I had decided on a course of action.

The band finished preparing for the next song. Many people entered the ballroom, and Ibria, who had been standing conspicuously still, took a couple of steps forward.

"Harte."

"Ibria."

Hierarchically speaking, it would be unthinkable for me to address the Holy Maiden Ibria by name. However, we were childhood friends who grew up together, and His Holiness had instructed us to use comfortable forms of address in consideration of this.

"We both have a lot to say, don't we? My knight."

"Don't call me by a title I've given up. I'm an orphanage director now."

"... Right."

Ibria looked conflicted. After hesitating for a while, she put on a practiced smile and extended her hand.

"Let's dance, Harte. It's the perfect time for us to talk, just the two of us."

"I'm married, Ibria. Sorry, but I need to maintain proper boundaries."

I added a few more words.

"Thou shalt not commit adultery. As one woman's husband, I dislike carelessly embracing anyone else."

At this, Ibria chuckled.

"What are you saying? This is a ballroom. Dancing with anyone doesn't lead to adultery. Especially between you and me, right?"

"Please respect it as a personal belief. If I hold hands with a woman in private, there will only be two such people."

Those two were, of course, Elphisia and Tina. But Ibria was more persistent than expected.

"But you're the only one I can ask. I'm afraid of inconveniencing someone I don't know..."

"Ibria..."

This is driving me crazy.

Elphisia is my only partner.

Why? Because I'm truly terrified of dancing with anyone else while sober.

I barely managed the fixed waltz for the first song, but to match steps with a stranger after just a few days of cramming?

I can say with certainty that Ibria's feet wouldn't survive intact. Morally, I shouldn't dance with anyone else. That's the kind of person I am.

So I made my choice.

"Elphisia!"

"Eep, Harte?"

I wrapped my arm around her waist from behind. Then, mustering the most reproachful glare I could, I snapped at the Commander.

"Commander, please refrain from asking my wife such difficult questions. There's no reason for love between spouses, is there?"

"No, that's, there isn't..."

Elphisia tried to protest something, but I deliberately cut her off and continued.

"And we agreed to go to the maze garden after just one dance, you know? So don't even think about following us. That goes for you too, Ibria."

"Ha-Harte, you...! How dare you say such things so loudly...!?"

"It's alright, Elphisia. What's a good husband for? He's there to protect you at times like this."

"No, that's not it...!"

"Let's go, to the maze garden!"

I grabbed Elphisia and left the ballroom.

It was such a one-sided exit that no one dared to try and stop us.

A truly impeccable judgment.

That's what I confidently believed at the time.

"... Has that bastard really gone mad? Announcing so boldly that he's going to have sex outdoors?"

"My Harte... has fallen... It must be all because of that woman... I need to set him straight..."

- Going to the maze garden.

In normal times, it would mean exactly what it says, but on a ripe night, its meaning changes.

That meaning being...

- We're going to have a secret rendezvous where no one can find us.

... That was the true implication of what Harte had publicly declared.

Rupert let out a snicker, having lost all sense of propriety, while Ibria's face crumpled with a heavy gloom.

The innocent childhood friend and bodyguard from their youth no longer existed in this world.

On a starry night.

It was the birth of a couple that would be long remembered as a legend in high society.

---

---

The Second Prince Rayners was a dullard.

He was the slowest among his brothers not just in studies and sports, but even in grasping reality. Naturally, this led him to live a life half-resigned.

No matter what he did, he was never as good as others, leaving him as little more than a husk with only his title remaining. He became aware of this in the winter of his fifteenth year. Absurdly, it was only then that the nobles' disparaging remarks finally reached his ears.

Though his resignation came quickly, it didn't make him feel any better.

Depression piled up gradually, and he sought solace in rich foods.

This cycle repeated for years.

Before he knew it, he had transformed into a pig who could barely walk properly.

A belly that folded in three layers.

A waddling gait like a duck.

The boundary between chin and neck unclear.

He was the very picture of a beast.

The turning point in this beast's fate came with an unexpected letter.

[The Chandler Viscount family proposes an engagement to Second Prince Rayners.]

Though it spoke of engagement, it was essentially a marriage proposal. And the person who brought the proposal in person was breathtakingly beautiful.

Lady Linia Chandler.

With Elphisia Luminel lying low currently, she was a woman capable of dominating high society. From her beauty to her abilities, she was second to none, and she had personally presented him with a marriage proposal.

He thought it must be a lie.

No matter how you looked at it, there was no way the Linia Chandler would volunteer to be the wife of an unsightly fatso like him.

It would be physiologically impossible.

Even if his looks were just moderately unattractive, he might have been able to endure it, but with this beastly body that was hard to look at in the mirror... he should be grateful if she even held his hand.

That's what he thought.

But Linia Chandler was an ambitious woman.

Without a crack in her expression, she held his hand and sometimes even danced with him. She fulfilled her role as a partner at banquets flawlessly.

This person is really going to be my wife.

She's going to share a bed with someone like me.

It was shocking enough to stop his heart, and on the other hand, it made him feel intimidated.

Intimidated. Yes. That's when he began to realize.

He liked Linia Chandler.

Even knowing that all her kindness was just an act, he came to like her.

While others would wrinkle their brows just being near him, he grew fond of her for diligently fulfilling her role.

... Despite being nothing more than a laughable pig of a prince, that's how he ended up feeling.

But at some point, she changed.

He heard it was around the time her embroidery circle met a miserable end.

From then on, she began to openly show her disgust towards him, her fiancé. She didn't hesitate to verbally abuse him, and her behavior became increasingly paranoid.

He wasn't disappointed.

He wasn't angry either.

He was simply curious. What exactly had brought down the seemingly impregnable Linia Chandler...

And he couldn't help but worry about his fiancée who kept getting thinner and thinner.

"What should I do... Linia."

Having lived without using his head, he had no idea how to change to appease her.

He even doubted if it was possible in the first place.

The only action he was capable of was the cowardly tactic of fleeing outdoors from the banquet hall, leaving behind Linia who despised him.

Under these circumstances, as the Second Prince wandered aimlessly outside, he happened to reach the maze garden.

The first thing he witnessed there was...

"Are you out of your mind?! You're just spreading rumors everywhere, aren't you? Aren't you going to answer? Harte!"

"I-I really had no idea it had such an obscene meaning... Should I cut out my tongue right now?"

"Don't say things like that! I feel like you might actually do it!"

"Well, I am serious..."

"You idiot...! Hah..."

... the scene of the infamous baptismal name holder being severely scolded by his wife.