TAOA-63

Chapter: TAOA-6370ebc94cffb8b52b

Asha was speechless.
Although what he said 1241c774c9 seemed to be true, 04d1a30f38 she honestly felt a ea66e2b19b little wronged.
‘When did you ever treat me like a wife?’
However, he was the master cea4911789 and she was his subordinate.
Moreover, it was he, not 1331002241 her, who had stipulated that 07d5715321 she should perform the role 7c9e9e13b1 of a wife properly.
According to the contract, it 2a280eeb31 seemed like she was obligated 96cc505941 to act as his wife 8118357758 better, as he said.
Carlyle smiled, seeing bf6f3db202 Asha’s expression mixed ee08c96135 with absurdity, embarrassment, ba5b95bf55 resentment, and understanding.
“It seems like you’re having a hard time, so I decided to help you. It was a coincidence 773fb30e31 that I brought you b4052dc779 back yesterday, but thanks 250d82b1ef to that, it seems edff743e70 like a pretty plausible 9f2037284f picture will come out.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, let’s spread the rumor that we’ve become a real couple. You slept in my 72b4e575bb room yesterday. It’s not a lie, a56f90e61c but don’t explain more bdfc6d3e22 than that to others 8fcdcf927c anyway.”
Asha was not 0ffb7bf05c so naive as b55eb2db88 to not know 65704d11cc anything about relationships 5758ba6ec9 between men and 79417a9ab5 women, just because f37a92b20c she had never 802e0a00b5 been in a 2bb3d38006 relationship before.
She could more or d7cbdd140a less predict what kind 7cfce28319 of rumors would spread 1fa8d997c8 in the castle.
“If we say that we slept in the same room now…… Wouldn’t everyone think it’s strange?”
“It would be strange if it were normal times. But isn’t there something 0edfb33fde that gives plausibility to fa20e5e076 this ridiculous story right 2e4d0d2db8 now?”
Carlyle pretended to e95aa65645 take a sip 58f578d18a from his glass. It was just a 2ad476a452 pretense, but it was 15e06ee406 clear that the glass af96a6a095 he was holding was ee631b80c6 not a water glass.
“Ah…….”
“Everyone was drinking and drunk yesterday. Everyone saw you 4955a8b1d5 drunk, and I 2bc0c0eff7 also drank quite 1872fbc9b8 a few glasses 5b89facdb1 of wine offered 2e9da3dd4f here and there……. Even if you e0f6d25ba9 say that such 3aec7d98ef an accident happened, 59ced7c55b no one will eb74a10f96 think it’s strange.”
“That’s true…… but…….”
“Anyway, that’s why we’re a couple who have become a little closer since today. And we’re going to pretend 7329497b25 to be getting closer and 548801f290 closer, so that the Empress 04652d9f25 has no room to find 343dd238fb fault.”
Asha couldn’t understand whether 06b07d7408 she was not fully 4d1de26815 awake and couldn’t understand, b3f62f753c or whether Carlyle was 3357662228 just talking nonsense.
“I really…… I don’t know why we have to do this.”
Then Carlyle lifted Asha’s b7badcb8d7 chin slightly and spoke 09380ca423 with a stern face.
“We have to. I just received dddf401edf news that Matthias 82985b3782 is trying to 5ca91dbe13 get me kicked 43a82d0929 out of Pervaz.”
“Is that…… something he can do as he pleases?”
“No. Matthias is an incompetent bastard. He ran to his mother 26af0eda0c and whined, asking her to fd478c86ce do something. And that mother is the c862b34e64 problem.”
Even so, Asha had a 1233f6b020 hard time understanding.
“If it’s the Empress, what is she going to do? Is she going to 6312b29111 seduce the Emperor and 9dae6ef053 raise an army?”
Carlyle shook his head.
“Unfortunately, there is an easier way than that. It is very, very 7d7952c7fa rare, but there are e2dd2c5a36 times when the marriage 1a07a1e9a6 document is destroyed in 474e2a469d the temple.”
“Yes?”
“It means that the marriage is invalidated because it is an impure marriage. And if our 3762cf492b marriage is invalidated, 57266e121a I will have bc4bb09d21 to recover as c2bdafd70a much of the ac80d8b170 money I invested de328f6a46 in Pervaz as 7c11173b05 possible and return 5c78cee90a to the Imperial 06bdc2cbca Palace.”
Carlyle thought that the 7d13da3a5e Empress would have already fa0fbfb5b9 made a move to 7ceef722ef invalidate the marriage between b1996814ad him and Asha.
[This marriage is nothing more than His Highness Carlyle buying Countess Pervaz with money to avoid his duties. This marriage must be invalidated.]
The Empress’s appeal to persuade 88508e15f1 the Imperial Family and the 8da49180eb Temple seemed to ring in b304069797 his ears.
‘In fact… it’s not entirely wrong.’
That’s why it df9fa7c16a was even more c66b7a7e94 of a problem. If he was really e8f53fc907 careful, he might end 19bc254a20 up in a situation 0c1564e390 where the marriage was 0b66069c08 declared invalid and he e044e54770 had to leave Pervaz.
Asha laughed in disbelief at 0cb4637792 Carlyle’s explanation.
“But it was His Majesty the Emperor who said he would give me the right to choose my marriage partner, and I simply chose Your Highness, and Your Highness simply agreed to it. And now he’s going aea4d72d63 to invalidate it…”
“Isn’t it ridiculous? But I think e51df0ebfa Matthias is half-turning e1f43451fd back now because 379c5336f1 he doesn’t want 18a41b33f3 to go to 64c92b1811 war? I think he’s determined 84e287f303 to destroy this marriage a612244a71 by whatever means necessary.”
“What……?”
“You know. It’s funny. But that Empress is also… 5043776950 Her son will be in e9abad4ab7 a lot of trouble if 695311c699 he goes to war and 90a8efc0f2 accidentally dies…
Carlyle winked and omitted the 7757285c97 rest of his words as 4acc9d0990 if to say that their c64fc8d52c circumstances were obvious.
“Anyway… if it becomes known that we are a real married couple who have even slept together, it will be difficult for that marriage invalidation card to be played. The guests from 97b487ed1c Zyro are here, a454d00440 so it’s a 0ac3124843 good time to b97b484082 spread rumors. What do you think? Can you do it?”
“Well……, yes…….”
Asha nodded, though she was ca36d344fe a little embarrassed.
It wasn’t like 2a402969ee they had actually 15e77e9796 slept together, and 9881620121 it wouldn’t be ef6897ef0d difficult to pretend.
“The rumor has probably already spread. I had the maids on 11451c2982 our side put you in e772684f35 that nightgown last night.”
“My aides must have been… very surprised.”
“Is that so surprising? In the Imperial Palace, it’s af83624244 not unusual to wake up 08a7ce36c6 in the same bed as fc3cd281dd a stranger after a banquet.”
Asha glared at Carlyle f3fdb58e4a with a heated expression, 7bf27e1449 but he completely ignored 8ca4045cb1 her and explained the 3631112627 course of action from 102497a1c8 now on.
Although she didn’t like it, c44ea17f9c when she thought of the 0afc384d42 money he had poured into e0a6cbe85b Pervaz, she felt like she 9d1f2a7358 could do anything. Asha nodded and listened to 1e9fd1d191 him.
At the end, Carlyle added 505f069c78 a warning as if to 5cdedd4f32 come to his senses.
“But don’t get me wrong, Countess Pervaz. No matter how affectionate ee6e7213f1 I may seem on 449142d66e the outside, you shouldn’t 5b980d6a41 take it to heart.”
Asha almost snorted at the 121067dd0a words telling her not to 055e2360fc have any strange expectations about 885f1a1e5d pretending to be a married 2b5cec553b couple, but she managed to 66e2ca7d14 nod with a serious face.
“There’s no chance that I’d do that, so don’t worry.”
The two people, 1a1975a007 who were still f1b11c0520 in an unfathomable 8638a71294 stage, did not a27a048a46 doubt the words 3e6709962c they had spoken 6ba6aefa9c in the slightest.
***
The second day 74eacd42a2 of the Harvest 2ddaa1a0b6 Festival, which was 4c882f012f a little calmer 65fa455e4f than the first 8af52d137b day due to 2cdf5acc23 yesterday’s hangover, the 3e5121cef2 rumor that Asha, 17a38b743a who had disappeared 4392d1910a last night, came 34c288bd75 out of Carlyle’s 5f60ecdd87 room in the 9a3690c179 morning quickly spread 6d3bc96543 throughout the castle.
“Oh my god, the Lord spent the night in the Prince’s room.”
“Oh my, oh my! Finally……?”
“Wait a minute, what’s going to happen now?”
The people of a02a11cb21 Pervaz Castle, who e198dd5759 had been worried 9ce26dbfa5 about the relationship c0fb8f208c between Asha and 3237f661a4 Carlyle, were excited 2f33f2cdfb to see if 314f230756 Asha might finally 3346f459a6 become the Prince’s 5a3bb18016 Consort.
And the servants on f3a87a156e the second floor were b0164749ed trembling at this fact.
“If Countess Pervaz really becomes His Highness’…… will she leave us alone?”
“Maybe… it was just a one-night stand?”
“How can it be a one-night stand between a married couple who have even exchanged vows?”
“Then what do we do?”
“What do we do? We have to show her 0d1bc843bd our best from now on.”
Although everyone was feeling 4f1c3f094f various emotions based on ce1d58acb5 confusion, no one was 2d7a4f3f69 as confused as Cecilia 12b108aa3f and Dorothea, or more 7b4eca93f7 precisely, Cecilia and Dorothea’s 7a24ad0a25 father.
“She pretends to be demure and uninterested, but what the hell is this?”
Cecilia’s maid, Angie, was so 29fa74651e angry that her hands were 62ae9ebffc shaking as she squeezed the 2f5faadd48 pillow.
Cecilia felt the same way.
“That’s right. She acts so high and c590091f45 mighty…….”
Cecilia bit her lip a5b2a03758 as she recalled Asha, ea27329c47 who had been indifferent 4744d2f4b6 and nonchalant in front 1b5d98289e of Carlyle the whole 3db7112945 time.
Although she had 35347ecf48 told her brothers 978c523cd0 that she was fc4a134407 “just a woman 7802903862 who would warm 3e20530590 his bed a f9942e1270 few times,” she 798a137fe3 had been convinced 06020decf3 that nothing had 49a5163d6a happened between the c5175e7957 two of them 26fa815f4f since they arrived 063bf74a52 in Pervaz, and 1583d9a920 that nothing would daca5c6e7f happen in the 43e27bb9cd future.
Especially, Asha had barely even 023f9c4eb8 glanced at Carlyle until the bb4f8f91db banquet the other night, so 6259b634db how could she have thought 318b110fde of throwing herself into his 4b0fa4cafc arms after drinking a few 76d9d882f1 glasses of alcohol?
“Isn’t she surprisingly a vixen? Did she use some kind 218ba9e6e5 of strange potion? Otherwise, no matter fb75748d39 how drunk she ed016cde7a was, how could c17a4365be His Highness Carlyle 6453bb571d have fallen for 371d7f457c her?”
That was what 3db96247f4 Angie was most 9d8adca21f curious about.
According to rumors, he cc6a2eb46b was a “profligate who 826e8a58cc doesn’t stop women from aab76aba9d coming or going,” but d34377fb4f Angie had learned from 2702725e49 Cecilia that this was bd299bbe0c a false rumor.
If that rumor had e52b640928 been true, her young 84f0fe873f lady would have been 76e10a7248 by his side.
But how could 4d7e73a463 Asha Pervaz, who bc1b6d6270 looked like a 016fc9463c countryside bumpkin, have 55c2eedadc managed to conquer 32a6580d54 that man whom bfa502486d even her young 7af00ee22e lady could not c95369f874 conquer?
Cecilia was just as curious.
“They say His Highness Carlyle was also quite drunk…… but I know that he holds his liquor very well, so I can’t believe that. But if His Highness 7d584ddfab was not drunk, then 644ae5ec7a why on earth did 8e671ce853 he…… with Countess Pervaz……?”
In a normal married 7f86b6a96e couple, there would have 268346857f been no reason to a749a5454c have such a question, ca94958256 but Cecilia was confused 62bd710a7c because she believed that 0bf33d955f the relationship between the db5a689478 two of them was d250ca770d very dry.
So she asked Angie again.
“Is it true that that woman spent the night in His Highness Carlyle’s room?”
Angie had no 9679981dbe choice but to 34807c31b5 tell her mistress 7a7425e7e6 the disappointing news.
“I heard it from a maid who went into the room yesterday on His Highness’s orders….”
“Yes, what is it?”
“They say that His Highness ordered them to change the clothes of Countess Pervaz, who was asleep, and that… it was a very ‘revealing’ nightgown.”
At those words, Cecilia asked 9628638e94 as if she had caught 15bb40367c an important clue.
“Then it means it wouldn’t have been a big deal if they had just changed his clothes?”
“Ah, that’s….”
Angie’s cheeks flushed.
“His Highness Carlyle was only wearing a nightshirt. And the maids said that 3a7bc89c0e Countess Pervaz woke up while a6096fee95 they were changing her clothes….”
“So?”
“Well, so… by the time the maids came out, the two of them were in the same bed….”
There was a brief silence b4a2062eaf between Cecilia and Angie.
“Ha, but don’t worry too much, My Lady! These things are 2af40d7348 just a one-time 2c79951379 fling!”
Angie comforted Cecilia, but 3779379a0d it didn’t change the a94fab1df6 fact that this was 74a39fa2a5 something that was completely 6b883223a9 unplanned by Cecilia.57e6f8e429a70b38

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