The Sub Male Lead is Burning with Jealousy - Chapter 1 Part 3
Remembering her cold gaze, Rahil furrowed his brows.
“Was their engagement a political one?”
“Yes, I heard they got engaged knowing well that the other had political motives.”
So why did she look at me like that?
He thought maybe she looked at him coldly because she didn’t find him noble enough, or perhaps she was a woman who despised the very emotion of love.
He still loved only Angelica, but the situation required him to bring in an Empress and have children with her. He needed a woman who was indifferent to his love, clever enough not to torment Angelica, and from a family less powerful than the Calix Duchy.
‘Anais Ruol.’
A cold woman cynical about love, the daughter of the Marquis of Ruol, a family that saw a lack of ambition as a virtue.
“Let’s proceed with this lady for now.”
As he handed back the file, the secretary’s face brightened. Until now, the Emperor had been rejecting candidates with a myriad of excuses.
“Are you saying you’d like to meet with Lady Ruol for a matrimonial proposal?”
“Yes.”
Rahil confirmed, glancing disdainfully at the piles of documents. The secretary felt like tossing the stacks in the air and cheering but held back.
It was merely permission for a marriage meeting so far. The path to marriage was long and perilous. The secretary hoped with fervor that Lady Ruol would capture the Emperor’s heart, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
* * *
Three days had passed since the main characters’ wedding when an invitation from the royal court reached the Marquis of Ruol’s household. The recipient was Anais Ruol.
The Marquis summoned his daughter, wanting to know the reason.
‘Damn, that narrow-minded Emperor!’
The only thing that came to mind was their encounter at the entrance of the wedding venue.
For now, Anais decided to feign ignorance. Even if the Emperor took an interest in her, he was not the villain but the supporting male lead of a novel. He was meant to be a wise and compassionate Emperor for the protagonists. He wouldn’t unexpectedly oppress the Ruol’s family.
Or so she hoped.
Since the royal court had sent a carriage specifically for her, Anais didn’t even consider refusal and boarded it. After arriving in the capital and annulling her engagement, her plan was to retreat to a vacation spot for the summer and, by autumn, look into another prospective marriage.
‘It might be best to completely rule out getting engaged in the capital.’
Anais sighed as she rubbed her temple. She recalled the lukewarm annulment process with the Noer Duchy and bit her lip. Contrary to public knowledge, she was unaware of Jeremy Noer’s legal mistress.
No, she knew of that woman’s existence but didn’t know she was Jeremy’s mistress.
Jeremy had deceived her by introducing the woman as his ‘father’s mistress.’
Although a repugnant matter, it was common in noble society for children to monitor or supervise their parent’s mistress.
About a week after their engagement ceremony, Jeremy had introduced his mistress to Anais in that manner. He seemed to suggest they were connected due to his father and cautioned against any misunderstanding. He said not to worry even if rumors arose.
‘They took our family lightly with that ploy.’
He probably calculated that even if discovered, given the relationship between a marquis and a ducal house, it would not lead to an annulment.
Jeremy’s father, the Duke of Noer, was a stubborn man. He demanded that his son, at the very least, wed a princess, a duke’s daughter, or a Marquis family’s lady. He even threatened not to confer the title of the minor duke if these conditions weren’t met.
Anais’ fiancée, Jeremy Noer, was still a count. Although he had a significant chance of inheriting the Noer Duchy in the future, he was a man with an illegitimate child.
Even if Duke Noer wanted to arrange a marriage of convenience for him, he was much older, and would also have to compete against his sibling with stronger backing for inheriting the title.
There’s no way a high-ranking noble family would give their daughter to such a household.
So, the Duke of Noer planned to deceive the Marquis of Ruol. The ducal houses were aware of each other’s situations, and foreign royals were thorough in their background checks. Thus, the Marquis of Ruol was the perfect target.
‘I’d rather live alone.’
In her previous life, she had lived as a single woman and died of illness past the age of 80. She died in her sleep, a peaceful death where she didn’t even realize when she passed.
She had several relationships but never discussed marriage. Although she might’ve led a solitary life, she was quite content. The only regret she had in her later years was not having a child.
While she wasn’t sure about a partner, she thought it’d have been nice to have a child.
However, her financial situation only improved in her late 50s, so having a child then would’ve been challenging. Raising a child is always a major responsibility, but at 50, by the time the child reaches college, she’d be elderly.
‘I thought I’d marry and have children in this life…’
Thinking of having a child, she deemed it best to marry a noble since this world had a rigid class system.
While there were tales of commoners rising to nobility through merit, it was a rare feat. This might be possible for a novel’s protagonist, but in reality, the odds were one in a million.
Even if it started as a marriage of convenience, there was always a possibility of growing fond of each other. Even if they didn’t, if they had a child and shared a mutual understanding about its upbringing, they could live as allies in the name of marriage.
There were noble couples who, despite having separate relationships, maintained a good rapport. In high society, such relationships were even considered ‘noble-like’, often glamorizing affairs as ‘true love’.
‘Maybe I should just give up on the idea of having a child. I don’t even really want to get married, why all this hassle…’
The Duke of Noer kept sending letters of threats and pleas, reading ‘If only you’d bear with it…’
Even if they were a ducal family, they had not a drop of royal blood, and facing the aggression of another house that held more influence and power was no trivial matter.
Indeed, she didn’t favor the Emperor, nor the ducal family, and especially despised the class system. Anais gazed outside the window, thinking,
‘I wish they’d all just disappear where I can’t see them.’
She sighed and buried her body deep in her chair as her body sank.
