Chapter 1:
_"To Live"
"Duke, I wish to annul the marriage."
The Duke was surprised, yet he skillfully spoke in a steady tone:
"Annul the marriage? Why?"
"Because we hold no feelings for one another, Your Excellency."
Ariana's manner was clear and simple. Philip raised an eyebrow and spoke as courteously as possible, despite the mockery of the subject:
"Isn't the marriage of nobles often built upon mutual interests?"
"But I might die at any moment. I prefer to die a spinster rather than marry a man I do not love, or one whose heart holds another woman."
Philip chuckled mockingly. Her tone was firm despite speaking of death as though she were discussing a meal or an ordinary routine task. He hesitated briefly, then resumed speaking:
"But you know that annulling the engagement is not easy."
"That is fine for me. However, you can announce that you have separated from the young Miss of the Seilas March for reasons of mutual consent and for private reasons known only to the two of you. Since you are the Duke, a person who holds weight in the social arena, you will be believed."
Ariana spoke with unwavering confidence. Philip almost stammered, but he quickly regained his composure and asked with confusion:
"Why do you focus so much on these bonds?"
"..?!"
"The bonds of love and affection..."
Ariana smiled at Philip's direct and simple question:
"These bonds are important. When wealth, power, and even beauty vanish, only the bonds of love remain."
"...."
"Does the Duke have someone he loves?"
As Philip fell silent, pondering her words, she looked at him to confirm the question.
'I know he is not aware of his feelings, and that is why I decided to provoke his heart without entering his life. In the novel, Philip only realized his feelings for Elena a long time after Ariana's death.'
The Duke, who didn't fully grasp the significance of her words:
"What does love mean in your opinion?! How do you know it is love?!"
'I knew he was beginning to realize his feelings, so I decided to provoke his emotions. It took him a great, great deal to realize his feelings in the novel. I will give him a strong push, after remembering the signs of love in most of the novels I had read previously... How clever I am.'
"To intensely miss someone even if you have seen them frequently, jealousy, the desire to possess the one you love, unconditional affection, for your heart to beat for the slightest details of the one you love.... Duke, sometimes love is right before our eyes, but we often, and frequently, ignore our feelings."
The Duke stammered and his emerald eyes wavered. He took a deep breath and covered his face with his hands, but I noticed his ears turn red. It seems I have done it; I hit the mark. I looked at him intently, with a friendly smile:
"It seems the Duke has something to say."
"Alright, I will be able to annul the engagement... But only one week has passed since our engagement. How will you explain that?"
'Good, it seems the Duke is convinced.'
I restrained myself from shouting with joy, and spoke with elegance and composure:
"Duke, as long as you agree, leave the matter to my ideas."
He looked at her with suspicion, but she parted her lips in a confident smile:
"First, let us wait for some time to pass... Two or three months, that's fine. Second, I will send you a letter expressing my wish to separate, or you can send one, whichever you prefer. Then, third, we will spread a rumor about our separation, a friendly one, and you must manage it correctly so that it does not deviate into something we do not want..."
Philip sighed. This woman was well-prepared, and he did not truly dislike that.
"You send it. A rejected man is easier than a rejected woman."
"I thank the Duke for his kindness. I will do the right thing."
Ariana's smile was sweet and triumphant. Philip did not understand the reason, but deep down, he was fully convinced about annulling the engagement... He spoke with as friendly a smile as possible:
"Won't rumors chase you? I mean, are you not considering marriage or anything like that?"
"The person who will love me will not care about anything said about me."
Her tone was calm, as if the matter did not concern her. Philip admired Ariana's honest and self-assured character, truly.
"I don't know if my decision will be right or wrong, but I will trust the Miss."
"Trust me completely...."
Ariana smiled with relief at what had happened. All that remained was to complete the rest of the tasks.
Philip got into his carriage and left the Seilas manor, all sorts of thoughts clashing in his mind:
'Duke, I wish to annul the marriage.'
'Because we hold no feelings for one another, Your Excellency.'
'Are feelings important?'
'But I might die at any time, I prefer to die a spinster rather than marry a man I do not love or one whose heart holds another woman.'
'I never thought of marrying for feelings, I made it an obstacle, but...'
'These bonds are important, when wealth, power, and even beauty vanish, only the bonds of love remain. Does the Duke have someone he loves?'
'Someone I love, but...'
A knock on the carriage door brought him back to reality. The thoughts had dragged him along so much that he hadn't realized he had reached his palace... He took a deep breath and opened the carriage door.
Click!
He was surprised to see the head butler and the beautiful young woman with light platinum hair and worried pink eyes, with a beautiful body and graceful figure, dressed in knight's clothes. Despite her strong appearance, no one could deny her beauty. He got out with a cheerful smile, and before he could speak, the girl bowed:
"Elena Brion greets Duke Philip Silvano. My Lord, what happened to you? I mean, I heard you went to meet Miss Seilas."
There was worry and trembling in Elena's eyes despite her attempts to hide it; Philip knew Elena better than anyone.
"Miss Brion, follow me to my office."
"Yes, My Lord."
Philip moved towards the office with Elena silently following him. She was feeling worried and annoyed for some reason.
'Why did the Duke return with that expression?!! What did that woman do?'
Elena was deep in thought and didn't notice they had reached the office until they were there... She looked at Philip and widened her eyes when she saw him looking at her, with his arms crossed. Elena gulped and almost stammered. Philip didn't wait for her to speak, he opened the office door and entered. Elena followed him awkwardly... Philip sat down in his place and looked at Elena as if to say, "Speak."
"My Lord, did something happen? I mean, I feel it's strange that the young Miss Seilas would summon you."
Elena spoke, moving her hands with clear confusion and looking at him.
'What's wrong with him? Why isn't he speaking... It's not like him.'
Elena relaxed her shoulders and pouted her lips with a frown. Philip laughed:
"Alright, alright, I'll tell you what happened."
Elena did not change her expression, but her ears perked up in anticipation. Philip stifled his laughter and said seriously:
"Miss Seilas requested separation."
"Separation? What? What? And why?"
"I don't understand the reason, but she seems to be an emotional woman; she doesn't want to marry without love."
'Her wish contradicts what we live by, but everyone has a point of view. I don't know, I suddenly feel happy about it. I didn't understand her wish, but I admired her way of thinking, she doesn't care what will be said about her, she thinks honestly, I liked that.' She looked at the Duke, tried to hide her relief, and spoke seriously:
"And what did you decide, Duke?"
"I agreed to it, and we agreed to postpone the separation for now to avoid suspicion, then we will spread a rumor about our friendly separation and manage it."
Elena placed her hand under her chin, thinking.
"It seems Miss Seilas thought well. Is there a reason for the Duke to refuse?"
"In your opinion, why would Miss Seilas refuse me?"
Elena was still thinking deeply and concentrating, until she spoke unconsciously:
"She is mistaken, for the Duke is wonderful in every regard."
Philip raised an eyebrow, humoring Elena, who tends to speak unconsciously when deeply focused:
"How so?"
"The Duke is handsome, strong, kind, and....."
Elena covered her mouth in embarrassment and looked at the Duke, who was watching her with scrutinizing eyes. Elena stammered and scratched her head in embarrassment:
"I mean, our Duke is the best."
Philip laughed and spoke cheerfully:
"It's good that I am still desired by women, Elena, thank you."
Elena's face completely flushed, and she bowed deeply to hide her embarrassment:
"My Lord, I request permission to leave."
She didn't wait for Philip's reply but left quickly. Philip leaned back in his chair with relaxation and smiled at the sight of her rushing away.
'How could she read me so easily? It seems I will be grateful to her soon.'
Ariana was sitting on her chair overlooking the window, contemplating the red sunset. Before her was a warm cup of tea with lemon and many papers filled with writings and illustrative drawings. After the Duke left, she quickly returned to her room and called Marian...
"My Lady, tell me what you spoke about with the Duke, you promised me."
Marian's pleading voice interrupted her contemplation. Ariana sighed the air out in surrender.
Marian had insisted on knowing what she had spoken about with the Duke. I knew she was worried about me, but I was afraid that if I told her, she would be shocked, so I had tried to postpone the conversation since the morning. So, I decided to tell her.
"Alright."
I saw her eyes sparkle, so I decided to take advantage of the situation:
"But before all that, first promise me that you will not object to what I do, and you will help me with all sincerity and not divulge my secrets to anyone."
"Certainly, I promise you. I have not spoken and will not speak about anything my Lady does not wish for. I am very loyal to you, loyal with my soul."
Her sincere tone and honey eyes glittering with loyalty were enough to make me decide to ask for her help, as I desperately need it...
"Marian, first, I requested the annulment of the engagement from the Duke, but the matter will take some time, so I will need a lot of help from you."
Despite Marian's shock, she said with sincerity:
"I follow the Lady's orders."
Ariana smiled at Marian's sincerity and was relieved:
"I trust you, Marian. There are many things I need, and certainly, no one else will help me with them but you."
Marian smiled brightly and said enthusiastically:
"My Lady, I will go prepare dinner."
As Marian left, I stood up in relief, took what I had written, and moved quietly towards the bed. I took a deep breath and placed it in the drawer of the cabinet.
Knock, knock, knock
Before Ariana could straighten up, she heard a knock on the door. The knock was firm, but it was not a familiar knock. 'It's not Marian.' She stood up with dignity:
"Come in."
Click!
Ariana's room door opened, revealing a medium-sized presence... A middle-aged man with dark brown hair and cold green eyes.
"Uncle, good evening."
Ariana bowed gracefully with a bright smile. When she received no reply, she straightened up with dignity, looked at the silent man, and stared coldly into his eyes with a look that meant 'Why have you come to my room?' But her pink lips did not utter a single word. The suffocating silence surrounded them, and finally, Albein spoke with disdain:
"Why did the Duke come?"
Ariana smiled brightly and laughed shyly:
"The Duke came to see his fiancée, his action delighted me. Why? Is Uncle upset by the Duke's visit?"
She feigned shyness, and Ariana's question was thorny, so much so that Albein looked at her suspiciously. What he knew about Ariana was that she was shy and gloomy, or rather, that is what he thought of her, as Albein had never cared about his niece, he had never even asked about her. So, he looked at her coldly:
"What I want is that you do not anger the Duke, so that this marriage continues... Did you understand?"
Ariana bowed submissively:
"As you wish, Uncle."
Albein was satisfied with her behavior, which made him overlook her thorny manner; somehow, he thought she was not an intelligent girl.
Albein left with a triumphant expression, while Ariana dropped her sweet smile, and a cold, sarcastic expression replaced it on her face:
'Do you think you are an intelligent man, Albein Seilas? You are a bad man.'
What I know from the novel, or what I had reached in the novel, is that Albein was a very bad man and a traitor. I don't know yet what he did, because unfortunately, I didn't read all the side chapters, as they talked about some important characters in the novel, or rather, they talked about the secrets that needed a large space. Perhaps the author dedicated a chapter to him, that's what I noticed, but I didn't get to it, because I died.
I looked at the cabinet drawer and the door that opened for Marian to enter, carrying dinner.
I sat on the chair near the window; it had become my favorite spot, perhaps because it overlooks the outside, and I am deprived of leaving this gloomy place, I don't know.
Marian placed the food, so I started eating... While eating, I began to think about what I had done throughout the day:
First: I must change the course of the novel in order to live; the matter of ending the marriage is in progress...
Second: I must find a way to leave this place freely..
Third: I must find a way to meet the villain of the novel, Raphael de Cassian. To meet him, my message must reach him first, and my offer must be tempting.
Raphael Cassian is the most powerful man in the Empire: power, authority, wealth, even beauty and cunning... His only flaw is that his power comes with a price:
"Mana Overload."
No matter how much he uses his magic, it still overflows and might kill him... The reason for his death is that he tried to take Elena because she is a first-class saintess, and for his power to stabilize, he must couple with a saintess... His repeated kidnappings of Elena led to the distortion of the King's image, and with his multiple failures, the overload increased until it took over him and turned him into a madman who craved power and killed others without mercy.
In the novel, there is another solution that almost succeeded, were it not for the life-costing interferences: "Mana Purification," which is a less dangerous method and also requires patience and time to achieve success...
The solution to the Emperor's problem is to solve my problem... But if I go rashly now, the results might not be satisfactory. Let us first leave the manor, then gather the necessary information about this world, and Elena still hasn't realized her sacred power. Most importantly, despite the mana overload in the Emperor now, it is still a minor issue compared to the feeling that will afflict him in the coming months, so I can put pressure on that point. Forgive me, Your Majesty, I will torment you a little...
... To be continued ...