Chapter 8. Marriage Deal

“…Pardon?”

Grace blinked in confusion.

Then, belatedly recalling how she and Valentina had swapped dresses, she quickly explained,

“I’m sorry for changing the dress you bought for me without permission. Valentina really liked it, so I let her wear it…”

But that explanation did nothing to quell their father’s fury.

Instead, Count Helio erupted in anger.

“Even so, you should have stopped her! Your sister just became an adult—what does she know? And yet you let her wear that dress? What if some wolf of a man took advantage of her?”

“…What?”

“I spent a fortune buying that dress for you! And you just switched it with your sister? Do you think so little of your father?!”

Grace stared at him in silence, momentarily stunned.

At first, she had assumed her father would scold her for not stopping Valentina from drinking.

After all, whenever Anthony or Valentina misbehaved, the blame always fell on her for not keeping them in check.

But this time, his anger had nothing to do with Valentina being drunk.

Instead, he was furious about the fact that she and Valentina had swapped dresses.

Why was he so fixated on that?

And more importantly—why did he refer to it as “that kind of dress”?

That dress had been a gift from him.

How could the one who bought it suddenly speak as if it were inappropriate?

A creeping sense of unease settled in Grace’s mind as she looked down, comparing her own dress to Valentina’s.

The dress she was supposed to wear was an off-shoulder gown that completely exposed the collarbone. It accentuated the long curve of the neck and the bust line, revealing more skin than usual.

In contrast, the dress Valentina was meant to wear had a high neckline with delicate lace. Though the sheer fabric subtly hinted at the skin beneath, it was far more modest.

As Grace took in the details, her face darkened.

Something deep inside her lurched and collapsed.

No. That can’t be it.

A tremor ran through her lips as she fought against the sickening thought creeping into her mind.

She had heard of such things before—noble families who used their daughters as bargaining chips, arranging marriages to secure political and financial advantages.

In the capital, high-ranking noble houses usually betrothed their children early. If someone remained unmarried at a certain age, it was often due to illness, scandal, or divorce.

Families desperate to sell their daughters into high society targeted these unmarried men.

They paraded their daughters through lavish banquets, dressed in extravagant gowns, hoping to catch the eye of a wealthy suitor—like peacocks in courtship.

That was the best-case scenario.

If a girl failed to attract a suitable husband, she might end up as the concubine of an aging noble.

Many houses had thrived overnight by using their daughters as currency.

The phrase “marriage business” was not just a rumor.

Grace had always thought it was something that happened to other people—never to her.

She wanted to deny it, to believe that her father wouldn’t intentionally put her in a revealing dress for such a reason.

Maybe he was simply upset that she had changed the outfit he chose for her.

Maybe this was all just a misunderstanding.

But then… her father spoke again.

And her world came crashing down.

“If you ever act on your own like this again, I won’t stand for it. Stop pushing off your responsibilities onto your sister.”

Your responsibilities.

There was only one possible meaning behind those words.

Her responsibility was to marry for the family’s benefit.

It had been planned from the start.

Her father had always wanted to establish a foothold in the capital.

To do so, he needed strong alliances with powerful noble houses.

And the most effective way to secure those alliances?

Marriage.

With two daughters, he had two chances.

It was only natural that he would use her, the eldest, first.

But… was that all?

Grace felt a shiver run down her spine as she watched her father in silence.

He had already removed his jacket and was draping it over Valentina’s shoulders, his eyes darting around, scanning for any prying male gazes.

His protective, scowling expression made one thing very clear—

He would never allow Valentina to be treated the way he was treating Grace.

At that moment, a terrifying realization settled in her heart.

Would he ever use Valentina as a marriage pawn?

Before she could dwell on the thought any further, Valentina whimpered.

“Oh, come on, Dad. I wore this because I wanted to. Be honest—it suits me better, doesn’t it?”

“If you wanted to wear it so badly, why didn’t you just ask me first?”

“Tch. As if you’d ever buy me a dress like this, even if I did.”

“Of course not. What if some wolf of a man got the wrong idea? Over my dead body.”

“Hehe… Dad, I’m sleepy…”

Valentina swayed on her feet before snuggling into their father’s arms.

Without hesitation, he scooped her up effortlessly.

Then, without so much as a trace of warmth, he turned to Grace and spoke coldly.

“I thought you were smart. Turns out, I raised a fool instead. You didn’t do this on purpose, did you?”

“…….”

“You’ve been awfully quiet. Do you really mean to deny any fault?”

“I…”

Grace almost said I’m sorry.

But the words refused to leave her lips.

Because no matter how hard she thought about it—she couldn’t understand what she had done wrong.

The only mistake she had made was not realizing her father’s intentions when she changed dresses with Valentina.

It had never been her intention to defy him.

But that didn’t matter—because he had already decided she was guilty.

“Tch.”

With a click of his tongue, Count Helio turned away and left, carrying Valentina with him.

Grace stood frozen, watching their retreating figures.

She felt as though she had been left behind—abandoned in a place she no longer understood.

If she had known her father’s true intentions from the start…

Then what?

She wouldn’t have had a choice.

She would have worn that dress, gone to the banquet, and played the role expected of her.

Even if not today, it was bound to happen eventually.

Because in the Ecleon Empire, daughters were nothing more than their fathers’ assets.

They existed to be married off at their most beautiful, to secure their family’s standing.

Even inheritance was impossible without marriage—unwed women had no claim to their family’s wealth.

Now, she finally understood why her father had brought the entire family to the capital.

Why he had repeatedly told her that there was no future for her in Helio.

It had all been part of his plan from the very beginning.

A wave of dizziness swept over her.

The ground beneath her feet suddenly felt unsteady—

As if she were a rudderless ship, drifting aimlessly across a vast, endless sea.

* * *

The next morning, invitations arrived one after another at the Helio estate.

Most of them were addressed to Grace.

“All of these… are for me?”

Having barely slept the night before, Grace stared in shock at the sheer volume of letters.

She had only attended one banquet, yet this many invitations had poured in.

The senders included not only the people she had met at the Rose Banquet but also noble families she had never even heard of.

She had no idea how they had managed to find out her address so quickly—but the speed was astounding.

Could this be a mistake?

Yet, when she checked the envelopes, they were all clearly addressed:

“To Lady Grace Helio.”

Still bewildered, she turned to the household butler, who nodded firmly.

“Yes, my lady. All of these invitations are addressed to you.”

“This many…?”

Sorting through them alone would take ages.

Writing responses to each one would take even longer.

By all accounts, this was an incredible achievement after just one appearance at a social event.

But Grace felt no joy at all.

“If you ever act on your own like this again, I won’t stand for it. Stop pushing off your responsibilities onto your sister.”

Her father’s harsh words still echoed in her mind.

Even after an entire night had passed, the weight of their argument refused to fade.

It felt like betrayal.

Just then, the butler, Duell, spoke again.

“And this is today’s newspaper, my lady.”

“Ah, thank yo—”

Grace froze mid-sentence the moment she laid eyes on the front page.

There, front and center, was a large photograph—of her handing a twilly scarf to Princess Elizabeth.

“This…”

And it wasn’t just one article.

As Duell set down multiple newspapers, she saw that they all contained stories about her.

[Who is the Helio family, chosen by Princess Elizabeth?]

[The Helio Countess makes her grand entrance into high society.]

[Duke Václav initiates conversation with Lady Grace Helio.]

[How Lady Helio secured an invitation from the Empress upon arriving in the capital.]

Duell carefully offered an explanation.

“I believe all these invitations are because of these articles, my lady.”

“That seems likely.”

Grace exhaled slowly, setting down the newspaper.

All of this had happened in just one day.

The Ecleon social scene was evidently obsessed with gossip.

Unseen eyes and ears had already fixed their attention on her.

But Grace remained calm.

“I should review these letters carefully and send out my responses.”