Becoming the Villain's Family

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Translator: Latte Editor: BakaReem Proofreader: Adulldoll

"You'll have to get married soon."

Thud—!

Aria dropped the book in her hand as soon as she heard the grand duke's words.

'Why so suddenly?'

"Your wedding will be as luxurious as the empress'," Tristan spoke.

Aria tugged the hem of her dress and tilted her head, feigning ignorance at what he said.

While playing with her rabbit ears, the grand duke continued, "Don't you like extravagant weddings?"

[But what about Lloyd?]

"It's a child marriage anyway. Marriage is just a means of laying the groundwork for you. If you don't like my son, you can divorce each other once you become adults."

Under the imperial law, it was possible to request for an annulment and declare the marriage invalid after the pair reached adulthood. Divorce was allowed within the empire so that they could prevent nobles from recklessly forging their powers and economic status under the pretext of marriage.

'That's not what I meant. I want to ask what Lloyd feels about all of this...'

Aria was troubled. She wondered if the grand duke was intentionally ignoring Lloyd's opinion and forcing him into an arranged marriage he didn't even want.

'If it's true, then I'll never be able to get closer to him...'

Even back then, she had barely escaped from his threats.

Aria wondered if he truly wanted to murder her.

She shook her head, still clutching the fringe of her dress.

"Hmm? Do you not like my eldest son? Then, how about my second son? He's in the academy right now, but he'll come back soon."

Aria shook her head even more violently.

She just wanted to meet Lloyd. She didn't want to marry him. It would have been better for her to get a job as a maid than to become someone's fiancé.

[I don't want to be forced into a loveless marriage.]

Lloyd was a vigilant person, and he was tough to approach.

Aria decided to write on her card to distract the grand duke from discussing the topic of imposing Lloyd into an arranged marriage.

[If I don't get married, then I can always play with father.]

"Hmm."

At that moment, the grand duke fell in deep thought. It seemed he finally realized that his pursuit of Aria's marriage was at the expense of her own happiness.

Then, all that was left was to find a place where Aria could settle in peace.

'It's not bad to have a daughter.'

The grand duke smiled and wondered if it would be better to just go through the adoption process if his son still had no feelings for her in the future.

"I heard from the doctor. He said that you have trouble eating."

Aria widened her eyes.

Although the grand duke brought up marriage first, this topic was what he truly wanted to talk about.

"I'm not sure what it means to be unable to express one's feelings..."

His midwinter eyes were like the grey of the last ashes on a fire. It accentuated every feature of his, glistening like stars melted in platinum.