The Fiancée
Eric's fiancée, Amber Hyde, had never once been satisfied with the hand life had dealt her.
She was a noble—at least on paper.
In a world where half the commoners couldn't even manage three decent meals a day, being born of noble blood was undeniably a privilege. She could bathe in clean water daily, eat nutritious meals, and sleep in a bed free of fleas. Yet having food, clothing, and shelter guaranteed was never enough for Amber.
Her father was the third son of a baron—a noble, certainly, but landless and titleless. Blessed with a sharp mind, he had studied law and worked as a prosecutor for over two decades, but the profession hardly brought in serious money. It offered a modicum of authority, sure, but made a mountain of enemies in return.
"Amber, I'm sorry, but our finances simply can't cover the Imperial Academy tuition. If you had an innate talent for magic or swordsmanship, it might be a different story, but we both know you don't."
"High society galas...? I understand what you want, but forcing your way in will only get you sneered at. Don't go looking for heartbreak, dear."
"You have to find a profession that suits your station."
Her father had practically made a habit of preaching words like 'station,' 'means,' and 'humble reality.'
The career paths he suggested never came close to satisfying her either.
Become a gynecologist catering to noble ladies; you'll earn decent coin and gain respected professional standing. How about becoming a teacher at a civic school? If you dislike that too, I can introduce you to a junior prosecutor so you can marry early.
To be fair, his advice was entirely rational. Amber was born of an insignificant family and possessed no remarkable talent. Striking beauty aside, she had nothing to boast of. Aside from visiting her uncle's fief once a year where he served as lord, she rarely even felt like a noble.
But Amber simply could not accept her father's recommendations.
Staring between other women's legs as a gynecologist; teaching letters and arithmetic to filthy commoner brats for a meager civic school salary; or becoming the housewife of an ordinary man like a prosecutor, spending her days doing chores and raising children—every single option disgusted her.
She firmly believed that she was entitled to a life of glamour.
Had she grown up under strict parents, her delusions might have been beaten out of her by force. Fortunately or unfortunately, Amber's parents doted on their daughter to an extreme fault. They were the sort who would move heaven and earth to satisfy their only child's ambitions.
In the end, her father scrambled desperately, leveraging every connection he had forged as a prosecutor until he finally secured an opportunity that matched her lofty desires.
It was a betrothal to a member of the Imperial Guard Knights, the premier military force of the Empire—and one of its top prodigies, no less.
That man was Eric.
Though a commoner by birth, his prodigal talent with the sword had placed him on a fast track to success since his youth. He had even come close to becoming a knight in the Hero's party, though he had stepped down voluntarily—likely bowed by the immense pressure of an expedition into the Demonic Realm.
Thinking this might finally be the golden ladder for her social elevation, Amber bestowed a bright, radiant smile upon her father for the first time in ages.
Still, she didn't forget to inspect Eric's caliber in person before sealing the engagement. If he was just a musclehead with no vision, he wouldn't be worth her time. Simply getting a name onto the roster of the Imperial Guard Knights was said to bring honor to three generations, but Amber craved far more than hollow prestige.
Fortunately, what Eric showed at their first meeting was relatively satisfactory.
"...First and foremost, keeping all four limbs intact is what matters most," Eric had said. "If I lose an arm fighting monsters, I'd have to scrape by on a pitiful disability pension for the rest of my days. I'm not some fanatic chasing glorious military feats."
"Then... do you aim to become Commander or Vice-Commander?"
"If I reach Master, they'll force the post onto me whether I want it or not. But even if I don't, it hardly matters. You know ducal territories run their own private knight orders, right?"
"I've heard rumors that high nobles often court Imperial Guardsmen."
"With my track record, receiving an offer for a commander post in my thirties and transferring over is entirely feasible. Becoming the commander of a ducal order makes securing a fief of my own quite simple. Plenty of people have successfully laundered their social status that way. ...That said, I didn't expect to have this kind of conversation on our first meeting."
"Oh my, forgive me. Tee-hee."
Amber had belatedly covered her mouth, feigning ladylike innocence, while Eric offered a slightly awkward smile and nodded along.
From then on, Amber played her cards carefully, buttering him up with coy charm. He was a man worth the effort: a prodigy who had nearly been chosen for the Hero's party, paired with a sharp, grounded sense of reality.
A few dinners, a formal gathering with her family. Following the typical etiquette, they eventually held an engagement ceremony.
This is a decent catch, she had thought.
While it had the drawback of spending the next decade living as the wife of an ordinary elite knight, he was a man who could deliver a life of luxury once he reached his middle years. Even though her intrusive screening had dampened their first impression, she believed she could easily smooth it over.
As time passed, her estimation of Eric soared higher and higher.
Naturally, that was all thanks to the explosive surge of Kodana. Eric's worth had jumped from a solid prize to a massive jackpot—no, something beyond measure.
She hadn't liked how he dodged the topic whenever she asked, "Tell me exactly how many you have," but...
Still, he never denied having a fortune of them.
Even assuming he held just a hundred coins, at the current market rate, that amounted to well over thirty billion liras. It was an astronomical sum that most baronies or viscountcies, strapped for cash just maintaining their estates, would never see in a lifetime. Even an ordinary county would have to liquidate every scrap of its assets to muster that much liquid wealth.
Holding that kind of fortune in cold, hard cash meant she could live a life of dazzling opulence right in the Imperial Capital.
A sprawling mansion? Dozens of servants and a four-horse carriage? Those were trivial chump change.
Nor would it just be a matter of material comfort. With that degree of wealth, the haughty noblewomen of the Imperial Capital might even rush to send her invitations to their salons first. She would finally live the life of a true aristocrat, the dream she had nurtured for so long.
Her heart swelling with anticipation, Amber had begun pressing Eric about marriage two months ago.
Eric was in his mid-twenties—an age where an ordinary man might easily have a couple of children. The sooner they held the wedding and merged their households, the sooner she could share in his colossal wealth.
I need to wrap this up. Now.
She had exhausted every trick in her arsenal just to hear the words "Let's get married" from his lips.
She went out of her way to meet him at least twice a week, initiating subtle physical contact whenever they were together. If Eric pushed aggressively enough, she was even prepared to surrender her virginity. Once he took her innocence, he wouldn't be able to back out of the engagement.
Yet the infuriatingly distant Eric never uttered what she so desperately wanted to hear. It was as if he lacked any carnal desire whatsoever; he never once attempted to spend the night with her.
Is he just old-fashioned and trying to cherish me?
Though practically an endangered species, she had heard rumors that some men placed great stock in preserving their fiancée's purity before marriage.
If so, that would have been ideal—it would mean he truly treasured her.
Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the case. He wasn't just avoiding bed; he rarely displayed any affection at all.
Amber never doubted her own allure, but as their lukewarm relationship dragged on, seeds of anxiety inevitably took root.
And today, an incident fanned those suspicions into a blaze.
Celine, a female knight and Eric's colleague, had paid her an unexpected visit.
"You're... Amber, right? I know you've been engaged to Eric for quite a while, but this is the first time we've met. Honestly, with our ties, there'd be nothing strange about us hanging out like friends."
"Eric happens to be quite cautious when it comes to women."
"Is he really that type? Strange, considering back in his first year, during the western campaign, he and that village girl... Ah, never mind. Shouldn't be gossiping about that the first time we meet. Still, for a fiancée, you don't seem to know Eric very well. What do you two even talk about when you meet?"
"..."
"You don't talk much, do you? Well, I suppose Eric's far too busy checking Kodana prices these days."
The word 'Kodana' made Amber flinch involuntarily.
Lately, her mind had been consumed entirely by the Kodana coins in Eric's possession. Celine smirked, as if reading Amber's inner turmoil like an open book, and lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper.
"I bet your head's spinning with wild daydreams right about now, but I wouldn't get my hopes up if I were you. Eric has zero intention of sharing that mountain of wealth with you, Miss Amber."
"How could Sir Celine possibly know that?"
"Just think about it. Hasn't Eric grown cold ever since the price of Kodana skyrocketed? He meets you less often, acts distracted whenever you do see each other, and sidesteps the subject whenever you bring up marriage."
"..."
"You know what that means, don't you?"
In truth, Eric had never been affectionate from day one. He had never showered her with thoughtful gifts or escorted her to high society banquets.
Yet listening to Celine, it felt as though Eric had genuinely undergone a treacherous change of heart.
She's right. Something was definitely off.
Hearing that even people within the knight order found Eric's behavior suspicious only fed the doubts taking root in her heart. Coming from one of the Empire's most prominent female knights, the claims carried immense weight. Why would Celine bother lying to her?
Unable to bear it any longer after her conversation with Celine, Amber had rushed straight to Eric's quarters.
Still, she hadn't dashed over without a plan. To avoid suspicion that she had come running solely for Kodana, she had prepared a whole script beforehand.
She planned to masquerade as an innocent maiden gathering her courage to win over her indifferent fiancé. She would explain away her callous interrogation during their first meeting as her parents' overbearing meddling, not her own desire.
I mustn't mention the word 'Kodana' directly. I have to sound him out indirectly.
And yet.
"Amber. You came because of Kodana, didn't you? You must be in quite a hurry."
The question dropped from his lips with an expression that said it was glaringly obvious. Amber's brow furrowed before she could stop herself. Though she managed to compose her features a second later, Eric's eyes were already ice-cold.
In that single heartbeat, every meticulously prepared plan crumbled to dust.