Chapter 6. The Bride’s Price  

It was only after the host of the banquet came and almost begged the old noble that he finally left the venue. Even then, he shouted loudly enough for everyone to hear, still unable to quell his anger.

〈Just being in the same place as such an arrogant and rude person is unpleasant!〉

This meant he did not want to see Ael at any banquet he attended.

Naturally, the Viscount couple blamed Ael for the commotion.

〈You should just smile and stand quietly among people like a lady, but you dared to interrupt the important conversation of men and ruined the banquet? Do you even know who that old noble is? Just how arrogant were your actions? Everyone is pointing fingers, saying we couldn’t even educate our daughter properly!〉

After that day, no more invitations came for Ael.

The following year, the old noble who had been angry passed away, but Ael still couldn’t attend any banquets. That was the year Elise made her debut in the social world.

The Viscount couple devoted all their energy to Elise’s debut. It made sense because even before her debut, marriage proposals were pouring in for her.

Elise’s debut was nothing short of extravagant and beautiful, with every detail meticulously arranged.

From clothes, accessories, shoes, to the carriage she rode in and the footmen attending her that day.

It was as splendid and beautiful as any great noble’s debut. Although everything was arranged by taking on debt.

As much as money was spent on Elise, they had to save money in other areas.

Half of the household staff was dismissed, and Ael could not attend any banquets. After all, just attending would cost money.

Moreover, with Ael’s reputation already thoroughly tarnished, the Viscount couple had no intention of investing further in her.

Ael was secretly delighted by their decision. From the beginning, the social world was not a place that suited her. She preferred staying at home, doing household chores with the servants, and quietly reading books.

In the meantime, Elise received countless marriage proposals. Yet she still hadn’t married.

〈For our Elise, we should send her to someone for whom 300,000 guilders is no issue at all. Moreover, it should be someone who will frequently interact with us even after marrying Elise.〉

In other words, they were looking for someone who would not only pay the dowry of 300,000 guilders but also repay all the debts the Viscount family had accumulated.

Elise herself had great pride and considered this a given. However, no matter how beautiful she was, there were few who would readily offer such a large sum in a marriage proposal.

If there had been no suitors at all, the Viscount couple might have reconsidered the dowry amount, but because several proposals had fallen through at the last moment, they still couldn’t let go of their attachment to the dowry.

Thus, four years passed by.

Elise was now 24 years old. In Denertum, noblewomen typically marry by the age of 25 at the latest. So, Elise also intended to decide on a marriage this year. It was during this time that she became acquainted with the Grand Duke.

Elise opened a new invitation sent by the Grand Duke and spoke.

“The Grand Duke paid 300,000 guilders for a gun to be used in this hunting season.”

When this was mentioned at the banquet last night, the Viscount couple subtly hinted that they were hoping for a similar amount for Elise’s dowry.

The Grand Duke smiled as if it were nothing. He discreetly held Elise’s hand, away from others’ eyes.

Elise did not reject that touch, feeling happy.

‘If he spends that much on a gun, surely he would send an even larger amount as a dowry.’

It wasn’t just about the money. Becoming the Grand Duchess would mean spending her life at the pinnacle of the social world.

Satisfied with her rising worth, Elise spoke to Ael, who looked pale.

“Oh, and our parents said that for the dowry to send you off this year, Rida…”

A smile appeared on Elise’s face.

“They are thinking of 1,000 guilders.”

1,000 guilders.

“Miss! The apron! The apron is burning!”

“……!”

Ael snapped back to reality at Jenna’s surprised voice. A spark from the hearth had indeed caught the edge of her apron, and smoke was rising.

Ael hurriedly looked for water. Fortunately, there was a water bucket nearby. Without thinking, Ael grabbed it and poured the water over her clothes.

Luckily, only the apron was burned, and her body was unharmed. However, the muddy water left a clear stain on her clothes.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Have you been feeling unwell lately?”

“Huh? No.”

“Then why have you been so out of it all day?”

Jenna’s voice was full of concern, as if her sister were sick. Ael gave a weak smile at Jenna’s words.

“Maybe it’s because the weather suddenly got warm. Anyway, I’ll go change my clothes.”

Ael took the burnt apron and left the kitchen.

“Phew…”

Her steps toward the upstairs were heavy. She had been in this state ever since hearing from Elise about her dowry.

‘1,000 guilders.’

Considering the 100,000 guilders they demanded in the past, it was indeed a significantly reduced amount.

Ael thought of the wilted vegetables that merchants would call out as bargains before the market closed. She wondered how she was any different from those vegetables.

Women like her were generally married off to lower-ranking nobles from rural estates who had the outdated notion of not wanting to marry commoners.

Ael knew from people’s stories what happened to women who disappeared from the social scene like that.

Most of them went down to the countryside, where it was hard to send even a single letter, and lived continuously going through pregnancies and childbirths.

If they managed to endure and live like that, it was honestly considered fortunate.

Very occasionally, women who had been married off in such a manner appeared in the capital, their bodies bruised or broken, in a terrible state.

They would go to their families and beg for a divorce, saying they would die if things continued as they were.

In Denertum, going through a divorce requires several complicated procedures. But more importantly, the dowry the groom’s side sent during the marriage must be returned.

Women married off in such a way were considered a disgrace by their families. If not, they were sold for money. So, there was no way the money would be returned or a divorce granted.

‘Most of them went back to their husbands…’

What happened to them afterward is unknown. Whether they lived or died. That’s why Ael had been plagued with anxiety ever since Elise told her that their parents had lowered her dowry to 1,000 guilders.

She felt as though she would face such a future.

‘Still, it’s fortunate that no proposals have come in yet.’

It seemed her reputation was even worse than her parents’ expectations.

But she couldn’t keep feeling relieved. At the end of summer, the royal family’s summer banquet would be held.

It is the largest banquet in Denertum, and everyone listed in the nobility register is invited.

Nobles from distant places would all come to the capital at that time. Naturally, many marriage talks occurred during the banquet.

Some people even called the banquet the greatest bride market in Denertum. It was a place with brides ranging from very expensive to very cheap.

“Sigh…”

A sigh escaped her lips, now out of habit. Would she really be sold off somewhere after the summer banquet?

Having changed her clothes, Ael looked under her bed. There, the books she borrowed from the library were neatly placed on a cloth.

“I need to return these soon.”

No one knows when a proposal might come.

Of course, it wouldn’t come easily, but if her parents decided to lower the dowry further to clear her out before Elise’s marriage, someone might propose.

In fact, she had already read nine out of the ten borrowed books. Unable to sleep, reading was all she could do.

But the last book was problematic.

‘I thought it would be difficult, but I didn’t expect there to be so many words I don’t understand.’

The book was more challenging than Ael anticipated. The issue wasn’t so much the content’s difficulty, but rather that she didn’t know the meanings of the terms repeatedly mentioned in the book.

‘They’re all new economic laws announced by the Empire, so there didn’t seem to be any related books in the library.’

If someone could just explain them once, she could quickly understand and read it, but it seemed related explanations could only be heard in Academy classes. Naturally, Ael couldn’t attend those.

It was as Ael was descending the stairs to return to the kitchen…

“Did you really buy this to send to the Grand Duke!”

Elise’s sharp voice was heard.