The Reason for Marriage

“Teacher Nila must have no money.
Her clothes are the same every day.”

“How about the shoes? The front part is all worn out.”

Whenever the sisters were gossiping about their tutors, Ivecca would say, ‘It’s not like that’, to herself.
Nila didn’t buy a new maid’s dress; although the sleeves were shortened.
Considering that her contract renewal date was near, it seemed like she was thinking of leaving the Count’s estate.
Iveca had no one to talk to, so she had observed everyone by herself.
When her reasoning fell right, she kept it to herself.

She lived a life where her parents treated her as a stranger, the sisters subtly ignored her, and the servants chattered behind her back.
She had been through so much, worked hard for so many achievements, but no one acknowledged them.
Although there was no material shortage in her life, she got used to the emotional loneliness.

Then one day, when her 10-year-old self was wielding a long sword alone in the backyard of the Count’s estate, a brown-haired boy approached.

“You’re short and you don’t have a lot of muscles, so it would be hard to learn long swordsmanship,” he said to her, unflinchingly, “besides, I think you’re left-handed.
Why did you hold the sword with your right hand?”

Iveca looked at the boy with a puzzled expression.
In this house, he was the only one who had spoken to her first.

“I’m Anriq Renka.
You are Iveca der Esselburn, right?”

Anriq was the son of a close friend of Iveca’s mother, Riszora.
After losing both of his parents, Riszora felt pity on him and asked Count Esselburn to take him in to the Count’s estate.
The Renka family itself was a fallen viscount, and Riszora’s friend was also from a poor aristocratic background, so it was difficult to entrust Anriq to another family.
As a son of a used-to-be a commoner family who was later knighted for their military service, his physical skills were remarkable, although at that time he was just ten years old, no one could ignore his dream of becoming a royal bodyguard.

“It would be better for you to learn a dagger style, according to your physique.
But your body movements are really fast.
If you learn a little more from me, I think you will do really well.
First, start by holding it with your left hand.”

“Is that so? Then will you teach me?” Iveca smiled, her dark hair tied high and her purple eyes twinkling.
She was excited because this was the first time someone said that she did well.
Anriq crossed his arms and thought for a moment before asking another question.

“Aren’t you busy? There are five tutors attached to you.
Usually, the aristocrats are very busy because they have banquets or tea parties in between.”

Iveca hesitated nervously.
Truthfully speaking, she didn’t really want to learn the dagger, but she wanted to talk to him again in the future.

“I’m not busy.”

After that day, Iveca learned how to throw a dagger, plus self-defense, from Anriq.
Anriq, who was the same age as her, apparently was a better teacher than anyone else and Iveca was able to absorb all the lessons.
Soon after, Anriq noticed her situation in the Esselburn family, and silently became her only friend.

It was because of that kind of background story that no aristocratic ladies came to visit Iveca.
She especially avoided social gatherings or tea parties as she didn’t want to embarrass everyone by hearing ‘Oh my, it was only the third daughter who looks different than the other sisters?’ And even if those kinds of words did not come out openly, she was more afraid of the murmur behind her back.
Of course, none of her sisters asked her to go out with them, so that worry was avoided there.

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She kept trying to put off the burdensome invitations to the tea parties and banquets that suddenly poured on her now she was a Queen, even though the lady-in-waiting of the aristocrats were allowed to come along.
It was difficult for her to get close to someone, so she put her distance first.
Since she had promised that she would not attend the meeting anyway, she also thought that there was no reason for those noble girls to try and build a new friendship with her other than trying to get close to someone in a newfound position of power.

But she did not expect that she would never see the only friend from her childhood, Anriq.
As he was Daniel’s escort, she thought an embarrassing situation was bound to occur, yet after a week in the palace, she hadn’t seen him at all.

Iveca shrugged.
What was the point of seeing someone who didn’t want to see her?

Anriq said she didn’t look for him for four years.
Iveca thought it was impossible for her to do that, but she did not think that Anriq would lie about that kind of thing.
Did Iveca really forget Anriq during her days in the Bureau of Investigation? How could she never visit her only friend who made her able to survive through that terrible childhood?

However, she decided to believe in one thing.
Although she had no memory, she could go on with her life.
She was going to live according to the Bureau of Investigation pact she had made with Daniel with no shame, then later decided to transfer to the Judicial Affair Bureau, and she would not meet Anriq ever again.