The Adopted Princess Hopes to Escape the Genre - Chapter 42
Was this about a marriage proposal between Lady Baccharis and one of my brothers?
They didn’t seem particularly pleased. Would this start as an antagonistic or rivalry-based romance?
Scenes from contract marriage novels I had read flashed through my mind. They always started with, ‘I’d rather die than marry that person!’ but ended with them hopelessly in love.
It was fascinating to see something straight out of a novel unfolding before my eyes.
“I do remember, but wasn’t that agreement nullified four years ago?”
“No, it wasn’t. It can now be enforced again.”
Duke Delphinium frowned. In contrast, Duke Baccharis’s cold face showed a hint of amusement.
He seemed quite enthusiastic and supportive of this in-utero betrothal.
So, was Lady Baccharis going to be my new sister-in-law?
Most likely, Theodore would be the candidate. As the eldest, he would naturally be expected to marry first.
‘Ah… this is getting interesting. Keep going! Keep going!’
“What do you think, Lassetia?”
Duke Baccharis, who had glanced at the silent Duke Delphinium, shifted his gaze to me and asked.
Caught off guard by the sudden attention, my eyes widened for a moment. Still, I casually stabbed a piece of meat on my plate with my fork and answered.
“Shouldn’t you be asking Theodore instead of me?”
At my response, everyone’s expressions turned strange.
I found their reactions odd, but I didn’t pay much attention and simply put the meat in my mouth—without realizing I’d soon regret it.
“Why would I ask Theodore when it’s your marriage we’re discussing?”
“Cough-. What?”
Why is my marriage coming up here?
‘Is this a joke? Since when were we close enough to joke around?’
The sudden mention of my marriage was so shocking that the steak I had been chewing got stuck in my throat, making me cough violently.
Just moments ago, the meat had been melting in my mouth. But after Duke Baccharis’s words, it now felt like I was chewing on sand.
As I clutched my throat and covered my mouth, coughing uncontrollably, Rashid handed me a glass of water.
“Are you okay?”
I hurriedly took the cup from him and gulped down a sip, finally managing to stop coughing.
“Thanks.”
Grabbing a napkin from the table, I wiped my mouth while sneaking a glance at Duke Baccharis.
Duke Baccharis, the very person who had thrown me into this absurd situation, looked as calm as ever. No, more than calm, he seemed completely at ease.
His indifference was so irritating that I wished I could land just one hit on him. Of course, I wouldn’t actually do it.
I pushed aside my useless thoughts and focused on figuring out why Duke Baccharis had chosen to bring up such a topic during a meal of all times.
Placing the napkin back on the table, I composed my expression and asked him outright.
“What do you mean by that? My marriage?”
“This engagement was an agreement between the daughter of House Delphinium and the son of House Baccharis. And now, you are the only daughter of Delphinium.”
At those words, Lucian slammed his hands onto the table with a loud bang and shot up from his seat.
“That agreement was with Rose! Not Lassetia!”
His sudden outburst, completely disregarding etiquette, made my previously calm emotions shift in another direction.
He meant that since I wasn’t the “real” daughter of House Delphinium, the engagement shouldn’t apply to me.
“That’s right. Someone who wasn’t part of the original agreement has no obligation to uphold it.”
Theodore added, his voice cold and indifferent.
Judging by their reactions, they must have thought I was some outsider who had suddenly fallen from the sky, snatching away the position of their little sister.
“As if I even wanted it.”
I had expected this. This was precisely why I had signed a contract before stepping foot in this place.
They were acting as if I had taken something precious from them, even though they were the ones who had forced all of this onto me in the first place.
I had absolutely no intention of taking over that old engagement, but did they really need to emphasize so much that I wasn’t their real sister?
Kaiden, whom I glanced at from the side, remained silent, his lips firmly pressed together. His expression carried a clear hint of displeasure, as if something about the situation deeply bothered him.
Despite my brothers’ strong opposition, Duke Baccharis poured fuel onto the fire with another remark.
“It may have started that way, but situations can change, can’t they?”
“W-What do you mean?”
Lucian, caught off guard, stuttered as he questioned him.
“I mean, I don’t care which one it is.”
He was talking about his own son’s engagement, yet his tone was utterly indifferent, completely devoid of interest.
I barely managed to stop myself from clicking my tongue.
Duke Baccharis’s attitude irritated me. It was easy for him to be indifferent—it wasn’t his problem.
Meanwhile, Rashid, the person at the center of this discussion, remained completely still. He neither voiced his approval nor his objection.
Most likely, he was being cautious, trying not to provoke his father.
I looked at Rashid with pity.
He couldn’t even express his own opinion about his engagement because he was too busy gauging his father’s mood.
As if sensing my gaze, Rashid, who had been slightly bowing his head, raised his eyes and met mine.
‘Don’t worry. The brothers are already against it, but if this somehow happens, I’ll make a scene and ruin it myself.’
Rashid blinked, unsure of what to make of my silent message.
When I refused to break eye contact, he hesitated, then slowly lowered his gaze.
Even as he tried to ignore it, I persistently kept staring at him. Eventually, he raised a hand and covered his ears.
Between his fingers, I could see the tips of his ears turning red.
‘Why are you blushing? I’m seven years old, you idiot. I’m still a baby.’
