The Unfinished Book✔️

CHAPTER IV

According to this Diary, Rhea met the Duke two times before. And according to the novel, in the third meeting, they sign their contract. But no matter how many times, I think about it. I do not desire this marriage. There are multiple flaws in this. The Duke completely ignored Rhea and merely assigns her tasks to spy which clearly has sometimes indeed caused danger but he never cared. Even though she had become a duchess, she lived in the Duchy like an abandoned princess. The parties she has to attend are like walking on fire and constantly getting stabbed. No one is in fact accepting towards her because of her family losing their wealth and merely becoming a noble in name. As a result even if she became a duchess, no one respected her. And last but not least, this one marriage ruins her life for the next few years. And I am not enduring that hell. Nope. No way.

I quickly grab a blank paper and pen to write down the things I require to carry out. First thing is first, tomorrow, I need to terminate this contract before I even sign it. After I annul contact with the Duke, I then need to find a way to arrange money. Honestly, I have already thought of a way to pay more than half the money. But I am not quite sure if everyone else will agree or not. That is why I have decided to talk to them tonight during dinner when Rhea's father or now my father will also be present along with my two younger brothers.

I was still drafting my list when a rushed knock came on the door.

"En-"

Before I could even reply, mama comes rushing in along with the Reynold.

"Rhea! Your father...he fell sick on the way to coming back!"

"....."

I suddenly sprang up, pretending to be shock. I already knew this was going to happen. Rhea's father stays sick in the hospital throughout most of the plot, as far as I have read. Yes, I didn't follow the book properly, so I still don't know the ending. Which makes me more anxious than ever but I also feel a sense of relief that I can promptly do what I require without dwelling about the future. As for papa, the author most likely didn't want to write much about extra characters or maybe forgot he even existed, but she doesn't mention him at all except that he fell ill and was admitted into the hospital, the night before she signs the contract with the Duke. Making her more motivated than ever to sign it.

"Don't worry, he has been admitted to your Uncle Edmund's clinic. He's your father's friend, so he is not charging us for his treatment. I am not exactly sure of what happened to him which is why I am going to meet him now."

"I will come with you."

Although I already know that he won't leave the clinic after today, but it still would be better to assess the situation beforehand and see how's he doing.

"No. Stay with Lia. She's already confused as it is. Besides your brothers are coming back soon and they will need their eldest sister to explain to them."

"Okay. Please take care."

"You too, dear. Stay strong."

She then leaves the room while I stand there, gazing vacantly at the list I had just prepared. When mama came, I placed my hand over it to conceal it. But after she was gone. I once more started staring at it. Why is every character in this story utterly miserable? Does the author enjoy seeing other's so unfortunate? Weirdo.

That evening, I stayed with my sister and younger brothers who were terribly worried. But I tried to console them as best I could and thankfully they were kids who understood others. But it was challenging to feed them dinner because they wanted to wait for mama and papa. However, it was getting late, so I forced them to eat even if it was a slight bit and then put them to sleep. Following that, I waited for mama to come back who came back quite late. I wanted to talk to her about my plan but noting her disheartened broken self, I couldn't bring myself to deliver a bomb on her. Hence, I decided to do it tomorrow and after making sure she also ate dinner, I then got ready to sleep.