Chapter 2: A 500-Danir Wedding (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 2: A 500-Danir Wedding (1)
“How about holding the wedding at the temple?”
At those words, the Marquis’s eyebrows shot up ever so slightly.
Normally, the wedding should be held at the Marquis’s estate. Decorating the Great Hall on a grand scale and preparing the subsequent banquet would cost a fortune.
On the other hand, weddings at a temple were mostly handled by low-ranking priests. Since they used artificial or paper flowers made by the faithful for decorations, the budget would be significantly smaller than hosting it at the estate.
The Frais family had donated plenty of money and land to the temple over the years. They certainly had the right to use the Grand Temple.
“True. Our family does have the right to use the Grand Temple. Though preparing a separate reception is a bit of a headache…”
The Marquis, who was busy flicking the beads of a mental abacus, was about to give a positive answer when I cut in.
“No. Not the Grand Temple—I was thinking of the annex chapel.”
“What? That tiny place? What about the guests?” the Marquis asked, looking bewildered.
“The vows are the most important part of a wedding anyway. I think it’s best to keep the ceremony minimal, without any guests.”
“Are you saying you’ll have the wedding all by yourself?”
Bravo.
To the Marquis, not inviting guests apparently meant he didn’t need to attend the wedding himself. Well, I might be his daughter on paper, but we weren’t related by blood, so we were essentially strangers. There was no reason for him to attend a wedding where no guests were coming.
To be honest, that was exactly what I wanted. A wedding ‘without family.’
Since the conversation was going better than expected, a genuine smile tugged at my lips.
“As long as the vows are made with a proxy, the marriage is recognized. I don’t want to bother my busy father unnecessarily.”
“Even so, a family of the Marquis’s rank has a reputation to maintain. People will gossip.”
The Marquis frowned, but he didn’t look displeased at all.
“The Grand Duke was the one who sent a proxy first, wasn’t he? Even if we simplify the ceremony, people will just think the Grand Ducal Household and our family agreed to pursue practicality. It’s not like our pride will be hurt over a proxy.”
“Father! How can she have a wedding in a place like that, no matter what!”
As the Marquis showed signs of being swayed, Ladriel flared up and gripped her fan tightly.
“Even commoners don’t have weddings without guests these days!”
Ladriel had already commissioned a dress specifically to wear to my wedding. Losing the stage to show off her beauty must have been a huge disappointment.
“She’s the one who brought it up herself, isn’t she?”
“She’s just stup—! No, Annette is still young and doesn’t know how the world works, that’s why she’s saying such things!”
“I’m really fine.”
Watching Ladriel throw a fit on my behalf, I gave the Marquis a bright smile.
“If we hold the ceremony at the chapel, wouldn’t the budget the Grand Duke sent be more than enough?”
“Hmm.”
“Then there’s no need to delay the wedding, either.”
My last remark seemed to strike a chord. The Marquis looked at me with the most satisfied expression I had ever seen on his face.
“You’re finally saying something useful to the family.”
Nice!
“In exchange, I shall specifically ask the High Priest to officiate.”
And just like that, my 500-Danir wedding was set in stone.
Click.
Leaving the whining Ladriel behind, I stepped out of the Marquis’s office.
Phew, first goal accomplished!
I let out a sigh of relief and turned to leave, only to startle and look up at the shadow looming before me.
The eldest son and heir of this house, Ferdin, was watching me with an unreadable gaze. He resembled the Marquis, but he was a handsome man with a smooth face that hadn’t yet been etched with the lines of age.
“You’ve done something pointless,” he said in a voice devoid of emotion.
“O-Brother. It’s been a while.”
“No one will recognize your sacrifice just because you have a wedding like that. If the Grand Duke finds out you held a ceremony without guests, he’ll look down on you even more.”
His tone was one of reprimand, as if he found me pathetic. However, it wasn’t aimless criticism or mockery. I was a bit taken aback by his unexpected words.
Every time we crossed paths, he had passed me by with indifference, as if I were invisible.
Is he actually worried about me because we’re ‘family’?
As I was beginning to feel something akin to touched, Ferdin gave a sharp nod.
“Move. I have something to discuss with Father.”
“Go right in, Brother.”
Of course.
He wasn’t even a dog, yet he was dismissing me with a jerk of his chin.
My blood pressure spiked, but what could I do? Like the true disgrace of the family, I stepped aside with a compliant smile.
Ferdin looked elegant even as he entered the room.
I suppose he’s been treated like royalty since the moment he was born.
Thinking of it that way, it wasn’t surprising that he looked uncomfortable whenever he saw me. He probably felt that his noble name was tarnished just by my existence.
Though, I honestly couldn’t understand why even the servants of the Marquis’s estate treated me so poorly.
A maid passing through the hallway walked right past me, pretending not to see me.
Look at that, just look at that.
Whether in reality or here, being ignored was exactly the same. I shook my head and walked down the long corridor of the estate.
Has it been two weeks already?
Not long ago, I had transmigrated into the novel The Saintess Becomes a Duchess, also known as Seongmigong.
I was clearly on my way home from work when, for some reason, I ended up dropped into this world. It had been a particularly stressful day, but no matter how hard I tried to recall the circumstances, my memory was hazy.
Well, whatever.
I was adapting to this world so well it was almost embarrassing.
Perhaps it was because I had lived a life with no one to lean on, but I didn’t feel a strong urge to go back.
The third daughter among two sons and two daughters.
I was a child born into a position that was incredibly awkward to love.
My family wasn’t dirt poor, but for a family of six to live decently, just ‘not being poor’ wasn’t enough.
My older brother and sister were looked after because they were the eldest, and my younger brother was doted on because he was the baby, but I was a complete surplus.
I was neglected under the guise of ‘autonomy’ while growing up, and from the moment I graduated high school, I had to survive entirely on my own.
Still, I struggled desperately to escape that harsh fate by my own strength.
Thanks to that, I managed to graduate from a decent university and land a job at a fairly respectable mid-sized advertising agency.
I thought my life would finally change, but professional life wasn’t that easy either.
I had to bow and scrape to clients, cater to my team leader’s whims, and beg and plead with subcontractors. On top of that, I was plagued by overtime on weekdays and buried under extra work on weekends.
The only joy in my life was reading a chapter or two of webnovels with dead fish eyes during my commute.
Thinking about it made me feel bitter again.
Anyway, even when I realized I had transmigrated—something every webnovel reader has imagined at least once—I wasn’t exactly thrilled.
Because the person I possessed was Annette Frais, a foolish villainess who appears briefly at the beginning of the original story.
And even here, I’m the third daughter of four siblings.
Still, it was bearable at first—no, it was great.
I loved this life where I didn’t have to go to work at the crack of dawn and return home under the moonlight.
Since I didn't know when I might return to reality, I intended to enjoy this luxury to the fullest.
— “The Grand Duke replied that he wants to marry me instead of you. What should we do?”
But the moment I heard those words from Ladriel, whose smile reached her eyes, I realized that living a leisurely life here was impossible.
The flow of the original plot existed here as well.
Seongmigong is the story of Constine, a Saintess from the slums, who survives the power struggles between the Temple and the Imperial Family to marry Duke Kyle and become a magnificent Duchess.
In that story, Annette was a mediocre villainess with no presence or popularity, who fell for Duke Kyle and bullied Constine.
Right now, it’s the very beginning of the original story.
Annette, who had been chasing Duke Kyle, is forced by her father to marry the Northern Grand Duke, Loik.
Even after the marriage, the Grand Duke does not call Annette to the North. Consequently, Annette remains in the capital and gains infamy by committing transparently wicked acts against Constine.
And before even a year passes, the Grand Duke declares the marriage annulled on the grounds that the marriage was never consummated.
On the day of Duke Kyle and Constine’s wedding, a completely unhinged Annette shows up to harm Constine, only to be sentenced to hanging and forgotten by the story.
A character designed solely to add minor trials to the Saintess’s life.
That was Annette.
But this time, that wouldn’t happen. Unlike the original, I wouldn’t refuse the marriage, nor would I stay here.
The Marquis of Frais’s estate was a very beautiful place.
A magnificent mansion, classically decorated rooms, beautiful dresses, and servants with elegant movements.
But to me, someone accustomed to the stimulation of modern civilization, all of this was peaceful yet boring.
The maids basically wouldn’t even meet my eyes, and my family only spoke to me when they were picking a fight. I hadn’t even seen the faces of my stepmother, the Marchioness, or my youngest brother, who was said to be at the Academy.
Furthermore, an unmarried lady couldn’t even go out as she pleased.
To escape this prison-like life, I must marry the Grand Duke.
I’d have to negotiate well with the Grand Duke to stay in the North, but even as a Grand Duchess in name only, I’d have much more freedom of movement than I did here.
At the same time, I wouldn’t have to run into Constine, and I could avoid the ending where I die after bullying her.
But more than anything, the reason I wanted to leave for the Grand Duke’s castle was…
Because I’m curious! The castle of the Northern Grand Duke! It would be insane to transmigrate and not go there!
A territory surrounded by snow-capped mountains, a grand and beautiful castle with soaring spires, a medieval village with charming houses, and even Grand Duke Blenheim, who was described as a cold beauty in the original story.
Just the thought of seeing all of that made my heart race.
Fortunately, the marriage was confirmed, so now all that was left was to have the wedding and leave for the Grand Duchy.
Though there’s still work to be done.
To depart for Blenheim safely, every preparation had to be thorough. I couldn’t afford to let my guard down until I had completely left this place.
Secretly going over the necessary preparations in my head, I hummed a little tune.