The Abandoned Duchess Seems to Want a Peaceful Life - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: He Says He Has No Intention of Loving Me!

"There is something I must tell you. I do not intend to love you as my wife."

Immediately after the wedding ceremony, to Melfina, utterly worn out, what came from Alexis, who had only just become her husband, was not a word of consideration for his bride. It was a declaration in a cold, freezing voice, as ill-suited to the moment as anything could possibly be.

A marriage between high-ranking nobles is a kind of festival, a celebration. They endure days of parties and parades, and each time, rumors fly about how lavish the wedding was, how large the dowry, how magnificent the food that was served, all of it becoming fodder for commoners over their drinks.

It isn't only the nobles. Drink and food are given out to the people around the venue and to the citizens of the bride's and groom's home capitals, and the occasion is celebrated grandly by many. The marriage of Alexis, Duke of Oldrand, a man of formidable martial prowess who held the greatest power in the north, to Melfina, daughter of the House of Marquis Crawford, which governed a great territory in the south, was a joyous event that set the whole kingdom abuzz, not least because it was the first union between two great houses in a long time.

"Our marriage is nothing more than a political arrangement between the House of Duke Oldrand and the House of Marquis Crawford. I ask nothing of you beyond the role of my wife on paper. In return, you will refrain from trying to win my love, and from wasting my time by waving your position as my wife in my face."

His eyes were the same blue-gray as his hair, a coloring said to appear often in the north, particularly among nobles, and they were like a sculpture carved from ice. Together with his handsome features, the passionless, matter-of-fact tone was intimidating. The young Duke of Oldrand, whispered about among noblewomen as the beautiful duke, spoke those words with a freezing gaze to Melfina, who stood in her pure white dress.

"As long as you don't go to excess in your conduct as a duchess, you may live wherever you please. You are free to go to the theater or to hold a salon. If life in the countryside on the estate weighs on your spirits, you can spend your time socializing at the townhouse in the royal capital."

"...Is that so."

She had gone rigid for a while under the words thrown at her so one-sidedly. When she finally opened her mouth, what came out was, even to herself, rather vacant.

He called it the countryside, but Soarasonne, the ducal capital of Oldrand, was a large metropolis known as the Great Flower of the North. It put great effort into protecting culture and fostering the arts, and its development was by no means inferior to that of the royal capital.

He said agreeable-sounding things, but what it came down to was a declaration: you're an eyesore, so go and do as you like somewhere far away.

After two weeks by carriage from the royal capital, she had been squeezed into a tight corset and a heavy dress without a moment to catch her breath, and had gone through the betrothal ball, the wedding, and the parade one after another. She was terribly tired. Just when she'd thought it was all finally over, he said this. Her mood had gone past bad; every last bit of anger and emptiness had hit bottom.

—This man really is only good for his face.

Never mind consideration for his bride; he showed neither respect nor courtesy. A marquis's daughter was of lower rank than the head of a ducal house, but the House of Marquis Crawford was by no means a family to be taken lightly. Besides, from the moment they had exchanged marriage vows at the church a little while ago, they should at least have been equals as husband and wife.

Melfina was by no means quick to quarrel. Rather, she had acquired the ability, as a lady, to respond appropriately without letting even some displeasure show in her face or manner.

—But if the other party behaves without courtesy, there's no need for me to bother with it either.

"I truly may do as I please?"

"I do not go back on my word."

Undaunted by her confirmation, he answered straight out, and only then did Alexis knit his brows slightly, puzzled. His flawless features gave him the look of a snow sculpture when he was expressionless, but the moment a little feeling showed, he became human at once. So this gap must be what made him popular with the noblewomen. Not that Melfina had the slightest interest in that.

"Is that all Your Grace requires of me?"

"Yes."

"Very well. However, a marriage lasts a long time, and I would be troubled if demands were added afterward, so please allow me to confirm a few things at the outset."

She held out a hand in its white silk glove and raised one finger.

"One: so long as I do not go to excess, Your Grace will not interfere in what I do. Two: wherever I live is for me to decide as I like. Three: whether it is a ball or the theater, I may do whatever I wish."

Raising three fingers, she thought that this was the life of some wanton, self-indulgent noble daughter. And she was disgusted all over again that she was evidently not being treated as a proper person.

"This is a firm promise, then. Just to be sure, what will you do about an heir?"

"...I have a nephew, left behind by my younger brother, who was a knight. He is gifted and clever. I intend to let him inherit the house."

"Then I ask to be exempted from the duties of a married couple as well. If, by some mistake, a ducal son were born, I would not want to invite needless trouble."

That said, Melfina knew that no child would be born between "Melfina" and Alexis. Even without adding it, she "knew" he had no intention of doing anything with her.

But since one could never tell what might happen, it was better to be doubly careful.

"So that it does not become a matter of who said what later, I would like you to set the terms down in writing as a contract. I imagine Your Grace would feel more at ease that way too."

"What guarantee is there that the contract will be honored?"

"I do not believe Your Grace is unaware of what it means for a high noble to sign his name."

A noble's signature, placed bearing the weight of his name, always stakes pride in his house and his clan. She found it offensive to be thought, as a marquis's daughter, to lack even that much pride. When she said it, staring straight at him almost as a glare, he drew his chin back ever so slightly. As the head of one of the few ducal houses in the country, an unmarried and handsome man who had inherited the title at the young age of twenty-five, he had probably never had a woman take such an attitude with him.

"Understood. Is there nothing you demand of me? You had best say so now, so I can tell you whether I can agree."

She made a show of thinking for a moment, then nodded.

"Then, there is the territory around Lake Moltre at the edge of the duchy, is there not? Give it to me."

"You mean you wish to live there?"

"No. I mean it as I said: I want the ownership of the land around it transferred to me."

At the mention of ceding territory, Alexis frowned conspicuously. The area around Lake Moltre was called the Enkar region, a frontier at the northern edge of the country, bordering the neighboring country, a remote place even within the Duchy of Oldrand.

A vast forest lay between it and the neighboring country and served as the border in place of a boundary line, but much of the land was untamed, and pioneering parties led by serfs were still pushing the clearing forward even now.

Beyond the forest there were no particularly dangerous monsters, but since it was the very edge of the country, not even a bailiff wanted to govern it. Although it was land directly held by the Duke of Oldrand, it could be called a forgotten region. It was unlikely to have made much of an impression on Alexis either.

Even so, formally ceding land was not a welcome prospect for a lord. Alexis plainly showed his reluctance.

"Why there? It has a large lake, but beyond that no notable industry. It is an unremarkable piece of land on the outskirts of the duchy. There should be nothing there to interest you."

No notable industry, an unremarkable land where serfs and settlers eked out a thin living. Beyond that, only a beautiful lake and a forest that was rich but would cost far too much effort to clear. It was in any case not the kind of land a showy, spendthrift noble's daughter would want.

"I simply want to live at my leisure in a place with few people, rather than enter a convent. But if I merely live there, the owner might change his mind at any time and tell me to leave, so I would like the ownership of the region."

At those words, Alexis frowned with some displeasure.

"Now that we are married, I intend to respect your standing as my wife."

—Having told me he won't love me, won't have children with me, and that I may live anywhere I like, does this man truly think I'd trust words like that?

At the very least, Alexis's words did not touch Melfina's heart in the slightest.

"What I want is not to wrap myself in extravagant dresses as a duchess and spend my days nibbling sweets and chattering with noblewomen. That said, I answered only because you asked what I wished. If you cannot accept this condition, by all means reject it. I will live quietly in a corner of this mansion."

"...Very well."

Alexis seemed to think about it for a while, but he appeared to be persuaded that having an eyesore of a woman vanish from his sight, in exchange for handing over land whose conditions were poor, being for the most part still under development even if the territory itself was fairly vast, was the greater benefit.

Then again, Alexis probably truly sought no financial gain from this marriage.

The territories and mining rights that Melfina had brought as her dowry were by no means of little value.

For the House of Oldrand to take possession of that property, a child had to be born between Alexis and Melfina. Since he had refused that, the inventory would return to her family, the House of Crawford, after Melfina's death, and whatever profit it generated until then would be treated as Melfina's personal assets, so the House of Oldrand gained nothing.

Either way, for Alexis, one of the wealthiest men in the country, it would be an expense that stung not in the least.

"I will cede the Enkar region to you. So long as you do not mistreat the people of the land more than necessary, you may act as you please as its lord."

—What kind of personality does this man think Melfina has? We only met for the first time the other day, didn't we?

Was his view of people so warped, or did he think this was simply how noblewomen were?

Never mind. What mattered now was that her demand had been accepted without trouble.

"I promise you most certainly that I shall do no such thing, Your Grace."

Even to herself, it was an unlovable attitude. Alexis nodded and turned his back, as though the conversation were over.

The bodyguard knight and the butler who had been standing behind Alexis like shadows made a perfunctory bow and followed him out.

At that, she stuck her tongue out with a big, childish "bleh."

It was a gesture utterly unbecoming of a noble daughter—no, she had just changed jobs to become a noblewoman—but no one was looking, so it would have to be forgiven.

After all, I was Melfina von Crawford, a marquis's daughter who had only just become a duchess, and at the same time I carried another set of memories in my head.

I originally published this novel on another website that was discontinued some time ago. I'm now re-publishing it here on my own blog so it won't get lost again. Please bear with me while I re-upload all the chapters <3