Was she supposed to trust Sierra?

“What are you saying?”

“Since you already know, I won’t hide it anymore. Edward and I have decided to get married.”

That seemed odd. They shouldn’t have gotten married so quickly in the original story. Perhaps her presence had accelerated everything.

The word ‘Edward’ sounded strange coming from Sierra.

“I’m marrying Edward. So, there’s no reason for us to be at odds with Your Grace.”

Despite her words, Elysia remained silent, simply watching her. No reason to be at odds? Was she actually expected to believe that?

“Your Grace… I understand if you can’t trust me. I should have confided in you first.”

“Since when have you two known each other?”

“That is—”

“Surely not just from this recent meeting.”

It was too strange. No matter how well Edward and Sierra’s interests aligned, they wouldn’t rush into marriage so soon.

“It’s been since I decided to marry.”

That made sense…. Nearly half a year had passed since her own marriage. Reflecting on it, it seemed that Edward had changed around that time. That meant… Sierra had deliberately approached Edward.

Such a move was so typical of Sierra it was almost beyond belief.

As Elysia chuckled bitterly, Sierra’s expression remained unchanged.

“To be precise, since your marriage was arranged.”

“Ha!”

The revelation that it had been even longer left Elysia breathless. The absurdity of it all…. Sierra had approached Edward right after her marriage was arranged. What on earth had Edward trusted to accept her?

“I am aware of the special bond between Your Grace and Edward. Why would I do anything to harm you?”

“If you approached him intentionally after my marriage was arranged, you wouldn’t claim to be in love now, would you?”

“No, I wouldn’t lie about that. Edward and I are not in love. We merely respect each other.”

Even if it had been longer than her marriage, it was still less than a year. To claim a burning love had developed in that time was far-fetched, especially since Edward had only returned to the empire about a month ago.

“Then, the marriage…”

“Both Edward and I are single. So, we’re getting married because there are no hard feelings between us?”

They were getting married just because there were no hard feelings between them?

“Just for that reason…”

“Weren’t you and the Grand Duke in a similar situation?”

“Yes?”

Elysia frowned at Sierra’s comparison to her relationship with Damon. It was unclear why he was being brought up now.

“It’s a strategic alliance. A common type of marriage among nobles. Edward and I agreed on this, so we’re proceeding with the marriage.”

At the mention of a strategic alliance, Elysia found herself at a loss for words. It wasn’t incorrect. Nobility often married out of necessity, regardless of personal feelings. Why had she pretended otherwise? After all, her own marriage to Damon had started similarly.

No, it was no different now.

“Isn’t it rare for nobles to marry for love? Even the Emperor and Empress didn’t marry for love…”

“Isn’t that to be expected the higher one’s status?”

The greater one’s possessions, the more entangled their interests, making it impossible to make decisions lightly. Especially marriage, which in the Caesar Empire, given its monogamy, was a once-in-a-lifetime commitment.

“Yes, that’s true. Still, there are those with enough power who still can’t afford to marry for love. Didn’t the Grand Duke and Your Grace also not marry for love?”

“But surely County Caitlin isn’t a house that needs to engage in arranged marriages?”

Sierra’s response was nothing wrong. However, there was a reason that didn’t apply here. That reason was Countess Caitlin’s status both in the social and noble hierarchy. Elysia had become the Grand Duchess by chance, bringing unwanted attention to an otherwise insignificant house.

“Me becoming the Grand Duchess was purely by chance. County Caitlin is hardly noteworthy.”

“….”

“Is there anything going on between one of the four Duchy, Duchy Armando and the insignificant County Caitlin?”

Strategic alliances when one side has little to gain?

County Caitlin barely held on to its name as a noble house. Julius has been disastrously unable at managing it, with every venture failing, and the County was propped up only by Angelina’s family wealth.

However, Angelina came from commoners. The rich bought their way into nobility—a fact no one truly admited.

“County Caitlin isn’t recognized even among the nobles. The Count is incompetent. The Countess is of commoner originals. Moreover, it was known that all of their children were illegitimate.”

Elysia spoke with a bitter taste in her mouth, feeling as if she was exposing her own secret with every word. Tying Sierra to the County could bring no advantage. After all, in the original story, Edward had been portrayed as a hero unrelated to such a declining house.

“Forming a relationship with the County doesn’t seem like it would benefit a duchy, would it? Unless it’s because I’m the grand duchess?”

The only real advantage of County Caitlin right now was Elysia’s title as the grand duchess, which to outsiders might seem significant, but in reality, she could be discarded at any time. If that was the reason, Sierra had made a mistake.

“If that’s the case…”

“That’s not why. I value Edward for his own merits. Besides, I’m set to inherit the Duchy. The less prestigious his family, the better for me.”

So that was why she had previously said she didn’t want to marry. She wanted to become the Duke herself. Wasn’t she after the empress title then?

“Edward wants to save Your Grace. I know how close you two are, so why would I jeopardize you? If that were my intent, I wouldn’t have disclosed the existence of the Information Guild.”

Sierra had given Elysia accurate information. If she had wanted to put her in danger, she could have easily fed her false information.

“It’s rare for a woman to be an heir. Typically, a son-in-law is brought in, or a marriage is arranged with a man of higher status to pass on the family name.”

Indeed, the role of women in this world was limited—being tools used for higher status. Elysia felt no different from being exploited.

“I chose Edward to solidify my own position.”

“Why did Edward… accept the Lady?”

A hypothesis flickered in her mind, one she hoped wasn’t true. Nevertheless, they had met since her marriage had been arranged.

“What do you think? Actually, it wasn’t me who found Edward first.”

* * *

Naturally, she had assumed Sierra had sought out Edward after hearing she was to become the grand duchess… but that wasn’t the case?

“What do you mean? Did Edward… came to find you?”

“Yes.”

That made no sense. This was completely different from the original story where she had discovered Edward. It was unthinkable for him to have approached her first.

“That can’t be… That just can’t be.”

“Edward came to me first, knowing I was a candidate to be the Grand Duke’s bride.”

“I… I haven’t heard such a thing…”

This wasn’t mentioned in any document either. Elysia felt her world blurring from the shock.

“Are you alright?”

“Why, why did he go to you?”

“What do you think?”

Sierra’s question made her lips tremble.

There was only one possibility she could think of. She knew why Edward would go to Sierra—it was because he wanted to save her, especially after her marriage arrangement was made.

“He came to save Your Grace. Edward knows quite a lot about the Grand Duke.”

“….”

“And about the Grand Duchy, too.”

She had suspected as much. Edward was well-informed.

“I’m…already married. Don’t give my brother false hope. If he attacks the Grand Duchy, the Duchy won’t survive either.”

Despite her words, Sierra merely shrugged and didn’t respond significantly. Knowing everything, why had Sierra sided with Edward?

“Lady.”

“Yes, I understand what Your Grace is worried about.”

“Let’s call off the marriage. It hasn’t been made public yet, right? I have no plans to leave the Grand Duchy. There’s no need for anyone to ‘save’ me.”

Elysia had never expected Edward to go to such lengths to save her. She knew he hadn’t given up yet…

“I’m afraid that’s not possible.”

“…What do you mean?”

Elysia stood up abruptly at Sierra’s refusal.

“I need Edward as well, and he agrees. It’s not the kind of relationship you’re thinking of. We get along fine.”

“Why? Lady could find a better match if you wanted.”

“I believe I can have a respectful life with Edward. Besides, there isn’t a better match for me.”

Did Sierra always like Edward? Elysia’s memory suggested otherwise.

“Even if it weren’t for Your Grace, I would have married Edward.”

__