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She looked down at her hand. It was still in contact with Carl's hand, so he slowly let go.
"Do you remember?" Sienna hoped that her voice would not be filled with her complicated feelings."You said you'd grant me any wish of mine, right?"
"Of course, I remember. Tell me, what's your wish?"
"Please, divorce me."
Carl looked at Sienna, wondering if he had heard her wrong. His face filled with questions. He couldn't believe that she was asking for a divorce.
"What?"
"Please, divorce me in five years. That's my wish."
"Huh?!"
It would have been less ridiculous to ask for a Royal Gazette or to say that she wanted to see a dragon who had now become a deluded god. To talk of divorce so abruptly...
"Is there another meaning to the word divorce that is not to my knowledge? Or, do you really not know the word divorce?"
"I know that divorce leads to the end of a marriage between two people."
"If you really want a divorce, I think you are missing the problem that you and I need to be married first in order to do so. Rather, you should have just told me that your wish was to become my princess."
"That's because I don't have to wish for that."
"You're speaking as if it's only natural that you will become my princess."
The moonlight clouded over. Carl's face was also shaded, but curiosity crept over his face covered by shadows. She pressed on as if they would get married no matter what, but also demanded for a divorce for a marriage which hadn't happened yet. He was sure that no one in his life had ever attracted as much attention from him as she had done so far. He was also sure that he would never meet another person who would draw him in so closely.
"That's how it's going to turn out."
Carl was left speechless by Sienna's confident response.
Sienna headed toward the railing. She could feel the touch of the cold marble, not the handkerchief he had laid down. The cold from the tips of her toes cooled her head.
'Yes. My choice won't be wrong. This is the best I can do. '
She leaned her upper body against the railing. Even though it was a low railing, at three stories high, the whole garden was visible at a glance. The trees planted in time looked the same as each other, appearing as twins. There was not a single fallen leaf in the walkway surrounded by the trees.
'How many people manage this vast garden?'
Sienna tried to contain different thoughts within her. Otherwise, she felt like she was going to spit out another word. She wanted to tell him that she took back her wish for divorce. She still had lingering feelings for him. There was no way to know whether her foolish feelings were a remnant of the past or part of some present greed. But, she knew she shouldn't be with him.
'Don't forget that the person he loves is Bluebell, not you. ' She shouldn't be greedy this time. If she was greedy again, she would have to live her terrible life again. She knew better than anyone what terrible choices her greed and jealousy could spawn.
Carl broke the silence first when Sienna kept her mouth shut for a long time, "Why are you so sure?"
"I know you can't believe what I'm saying. There's also Duchess Fair, who is already your match. I'm sure you think the Peers will somehow proceed with the marriage between Your Highness, the Crown Prince, and Lady Fair."
The Peers were the largest group of Carl's supporters. They were an emerging family, who had grown in capital and power through trade. Although their history was not extensive yet, the Peers were wielding great power due to their enormous financial resources. That is why Empress Arya was the most in checkable family.
As Sienna remembered, the owner of Liquid had failed to come to his senses due to old age. He needed to choose a successor from his two sons–Garrite and Kenyon. Kenyon, the eldest son and Bluebell's father, took control of the castle and the business when his brother failed to make the correct judgments while in the capital. Upon learning of the matter belatedly, Count Peer must have hurried back to his estate. The two brothers' succession battle, which began after that, had lasted for two years, leaving Peer unable to afford to care about Arya's push for the marriage between Sienna and Carl.
It would not be until a few years later that the second son, Garrite, would be known to have prepared the rebellion under the influence of Queen Arya. In the past, before Sienna returned to the present, Lady Fair had protested to Empress Arya, but Arya had simply asked for some money, which Lady Fair didn't know would be used to fund the rebellion. On the contrary, Count Peer made a fuss, saying that the money she was lent was lent under the Peer Family's name (oath), and that she had to pay that money back.
This Empress plot had already begun, so Sienna had no time to waste.
Count Peer should already be back at his own estate. Unaware of this, the Peer brothers, Kenyon and Garrite, should have already started their war. News of it did not spread quickly because they kept it within the family.
"At this point, Count Peer should have returned to his estate. While he's away, she won't be able to marry Carl. As you know, without Count Peer, there is no pillar to keep Empress Arya in check."
"I don't know how you heard about Count Peer leaving the capital, but how can you be sure of our marriage?"
"Count Peer will not be able to come back to the capital for at least two years. He went back to his estate due to a family inheritance dispute."
Carl thought Sienna kept on saying things that hadn't occurred to him. She was just too sure for him to ignore what she was saying, as if she had seen the future.
"A few years ago, while Peer was away, there were frequent deaths and lots of bodies being brought in for medical treatment. Most of them were from old age, but in such a short period of time, there was no reason why as many as five elders would die from the same cause. What's more, if all the elders who were replaced after their deaths came from knighthood, that would be all the more doubtful."
Kenyon and Garrite were brothers, but they had different names. While Kenyon was a politician, Garrite, who had a delicate character, had been awarded knighthood for his generous character. That was why Kenyon was supported by tattoos (thugs), and Garrite by knights.
"And according to the information I have, a lot of mercenaries are staying there. Isn't it strange that they're recruiting mercenaries now when they didn't even in times of monster attacks?"
Since monsters often come down from the mountains to attack the private estates when they ran short of food, the tobeol usually happened in late autumn, before winter began. Even though there were knights and soldiers in each of the castle estates, it often took mercenaries to fill a small minority of lands. Nevertheless, they required a lot of money to keep them stationed there. (Translator's note: tobeol – no specific term for this word, which means it was made up. In my opinion, it's the name they use for when monsters come out more often in hunt for food before their hibernation)
But the Peers did not need any mercenaries. They had enough knights. Moreover, as Sienna said, it was not the right time to hunt monsters.
Carl was inwardly impressed by Sienna's remarkable intelligence. She knew exactly what she was saying.
"Even if Count Peer stays far away for a long time due to family problems, wouldn't that be even more reason for us not marrying?"
"The reason I can speak so confidently is because of the conditions that Empress Arya wants."
Carl's eyes narrowed when Arya's name came out of Sienna's mouth. That was how much Carl was careful about the empress.
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