Ch.34 Contract Renewal

While waving *bye-bye* behind her, Calendula leaves out the opposite side of the door, that Mimosa is holding open, like a really fresh gust of wind.

On the other hand, before my eyes, the Duke has stiffened like a hare depicted in a marble carving.

Without knowing what would be good to call out to Calendula, I silently see off that back and  Lotus and Dahlia also keep silent. These two people don’t have any sort of expression placed on their face so, there is no way of knowing how they feel.

Well.

What should I do with this solidified sculpture(Duke). He is serving as an entrance-way decorative stone statue.

Not.

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His beautiful dark eyes are not focused on a point although they are open, his pupils also seem open. However, at this rate he will be standing in the entrance way forever and frozen like this. Not to mention that transporting this tall figured, wonderfully styled and nice Duke manually would be hard labour so, he must be removed by his own two legs. I flutter my hand in front of the Duke’s eyes.

“Duke, Duke? She ended up leaving? Is it okay not to chase after her~?”

O-i, is your consciousness there? My hand is swinging in a buzz. Whereupon the eyes, that until then were not clear wherever they looked, their radiance abruptly returns and then clashes with mine.

In that moment the Duke, who has suddenly returned from his small trip, is surprised and takes a step back.

*mugyuu!!* [Surprise]

“*guee*……” [speechlessness]                                      [T/N: both Onomatopoeia words]

Both of the Duke’s arms are gently wrapped around my body. Or, should I say, it is with all his strength, or should I say, that the feeling of being blocked by facing a stone wall is impressive. My soul or something is almost close to flying out! I think all my backbones have been taken away.

“Du… Duke!! It hurts, it hurts!!”

I beat the Duke’s back a lot with my hands, which I can just manage to move freely. I have a feeling that the only damage I can do is less than a neko punch[1] to the Duke, who trains regularly as a knight. It is vexing!

Not loosening up his grip at all I am in the situation of being tightly held and hugged close. I am struggling to mumble then,

“Viola!! I will not ask you to leave?!”

The Duke’s voice descends from overhead. It is not his usual calm, pleasing-to-the-ear voice, it is a voice oozing impatience and is a little raised.

“Huh?”

I stare with eyes of amazement *what, what did you say?* and, the strength of the arms embracing me furthermore gets intense. *squeeze* My back! Because my back is being bent!!

“Viola, let’s have the discussion once again! Not a marriage bound by a contract like up till now, one for the sake of being a properly married couple!!”

I will discuss this so please loosen your strength and please do not rub your cheek on my head!!

“We cannot easily have a talk here so, let us move to the reception room.”

No sooner than I say this, The Duke momentarily releases me, who he was hugging close, when this time he *lift* ends up holding me up in his arms. And then, like this, he is turning back to the reception room like it is nothing. But, why am I being carried with a princess hug?  Today my stomach and everywhere is not unhealthy though?

“Umm~, why are we moving with me held up in your arms?”

I worship the Duke’s beautiful countenance with upturned eyes. I modestly convey my feelings of doubt towards this situation but,

“It is in order so that Viola does not end up escaping,” the Duke declares, with an unusually serious expression, while looking at me who is slightly below. The clever eyes are as lovely as possible but, I think that there is no need to waste the loveliness in such a useless place.

I mean, I will not escape so sincerely please let me down! I feel like running away from Lotus, Dahlia and Mimosa’s lukewarm gazes!

“I will not escape and, the reception room is right there!”

I struggle *flap flap* to get let down.

“Well then it will be a moment longer. It is dangerous to struggle. Look, we have arrived.”

While exchanging this conversation, with the Duke’s long legs, we end up arriving at the reception room just like that.

Seriously what kind of S&M play is this? While thinking this, I am softly placed on the couch and without a moment’s delay the Duke takes a seat next me. I mean, there is a lot of sitting places like opposite or diagonally and yet, he sits next to me! The distance is so close! It is a couch where three people can easily sit but, for some reason he is stuck close. Already there is too many contradicting things and it has become troublesome.

“First of all is the most important thing, we will not cancel the marriage,” the Duke clearly declares as the first thing he says. Certainly it starts from there. Because it has been a contractual marriage from the start based on his sweetheart.

“But She is no longer here? Besides also Duke and I did not marry based on love, rather it was with a completely unknown nearby stranger”

“Such things, in this world, there is a great quantity!  Things like political marriages of convenience are common everywhere.”

“Well, that is right”

It is an aristocratic society so it is common knowledge that marriages are made for the purpose of mutual household connections. Or rather maybe marriages from love are more rare. This country is still an open-minded one towards things like social status difference, though.

“There are many married couples who become close after getting married.”

“That is right.”

“So, you and I can think of it as ‘merely a political marriage of convenience.’”

The Duke is unusually eloquent. However he does not have his usual archaic smile. I am being stared at in a slightly prickly-like seriousness and, is this feeling like there is somehow a edge of a cliff right behind me, merely a hallucination?

Like this clause of ‘decoration wife’ will be deleted.

And next is a important clause. That is the problem of my family’s debts. They have already been fully paid by the Duke’s duke-household ability.

“In which case what shall be done about the debts shouldered by Duke? They were paid in exchange for me becoming a decoration wife.”

I ask the Duke while being ready to possibly be told ‘pay with your life’ when,

“If that’s the case would it not be nice if we thought of it as betrothal money that I have given to the earl’s household? It was given under that pretense from the start and, if it is for the sake of gaining you, that amount of money is not a regret. Please accept it.”

It is quite a quick reply. But no, it is not an amount of money on the level of ‘please accept it’……

I have lost to the Duke, who is persevering to the extent of reforming the unequal contract.

“Well then that is the first one. I have decided to live here everyday from now on.”

Uh huh, if it was an ordinary marriage this would be very obvious but, regarding this person he is not ordinary. Having to reform this contract it from such a rudimentary place, we must have been bound a strange contract from the start!

“Yes”

“The room I will use will be my personal room I have been using so far”

Glad to hear that.

“Yes”

“As soon as the detached building is put in order, my luggage will be brought over here. Please use your personal bedroom the same as always.”

“Thank you.”

However, as far as the Duke completely moving over here is concerned, various problems, particularly in relation to meals, will spring forth……

“As I promised in the beginning, it is alright to freely do as you please but,”

“but?”

I cut in the middle of the speech and look slightly doubtful at the Duke who is looking closely at my face. What is this, this delicate distance.

“With the exception of me, lovers are absolutely prohibited.”

A love prohibition with the exception of the Duke has been incorporated into the contract.

T/N:

[1] 猫パンチ – a cat’s punch is referring to a punch with little to no damage like a cat’s punch. Something soft and adorable like this: