Contract Marriage Interrupted - Chapter 90



Only Noblemtl

Episode 90. Crack
2023.12.10.

Walter didn’t seem that surprised by Odette’s question.

He wasn’t stupid, and when he put that clause in the contract, he had thought that something like this might happen someday.

“… … I don’t know what you’re talking about. Are you thinking of dying? That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard recently.”

Walter sighed with a blank expression, as if he wasn’t praying.

It was time to bring out the excuses he had prepared for such a situation.

“I’m the only direct descendant of Ertmann. What will happen to this family if I die?”

“Sir Arnold’s nephew is registered as the successor.”

“… … .”

The first excuse was interrupted.

“Considering your age, it’s strangely early to register a successor.” “I

registered him in case I died on the battlefield in the past. Even if I’m not there, someone will eventually have to take over, and my grandfather is old—.”

“You said that was the first thing you did when you got back from the battlefield a few months ago?” The

second excuse was also blocked. It

didn’t make sense to use the excuse that you registered your successor in advance because you might die on the battlefield, since you registered your successor after you got back from the battlefield.

Walter could easily guess where the shallowness of my lie had been exposed.

“… … Your grandfather?”

“He didn’t like your choice very much.”

Odette nodded her head slightly and answered.

The conversation with Arnold was the trigger that ignited Odette’s suspicions that had been simmering around her ankles.

Up until then, Arnold had hardly mentioned children because he thought that Odette and Walter might break up.

However, after their marriage, when the two of them seemed very close, he began to slyly bring up the topic of grandchildren, and that day was one of those days.

– As soon as the child is born, regardless of gender, let’s make the first child the successor. The one who is currently the successor is not very good.

– Right now… … Is there anyone who came up?

– Didn’t you know? Well, don’t worry about it. He’s useless. What on earth was Walter thinking when he put someone like that on as his successor… … Tsk. That’s why the battlefield is never going to work. They completely abandon people.

Odette heard from Arnold that Walter had registered a successor as soon as he returned, and quietly looked into him.

Arnold’s nephew, he was a man of books who was far from swordsmanship, and he was knowledgeable and gentle.

As Arnold had said, he was somewhat lacking in many ways to lead a large family, but at least he wasn’t someone who would rely on his vast background and act cruelly.

However.

– Walter and you are still young, so I don’t understand why you’re registering him as your successor so early. Well, he should have done something understandable at some point… …

Odette also agreed with Arnold.

Usually, a successor is registered in case there is no one to replace the head of the household, but Ertmann had Arnold alive. That meant there was no need to register a successor already. That

was for sure. Walter was hiding something.

‘I knew it when he talked about the masked ball.’

As Ellie had expected, Odette had also noticed that Walter’s excuses were not sufficient.

If he had only been chasing the bootlegger, there would have been no reason for him to risk such misunderstandings and keep it a secret from Odette.

At least, unless he wanted to hide something more.

‘And… … When I brought up this topic again, Walter deliberately changed the subject.’

In the carriage on the way to Duke Ertmann’s residence after the wedding. Walter

did not say yes to Odette’s request to not hide it. He

simply said that he was asking her to do something difficult, and in the end, he changed the subject to the story of the first night.

Of course, Odette knew.

However.

‘I wanted to ignore it.’

She didn’t want to break up her relationship with Walter, and she wanted to maintain this peace.

That’s why she was able to turn a blind eye to the problem, making the lame excuse that Walter would eventually tell her the truth if she waited.

However, on her way back to Duke Ertmann’s residence today, Odette realized.

‘If this continues, I’m becoming a coward.’ If she

happily accepts what Walter gives her, but closes her eyes and turns a blind eye to him,

how would she be any different from Countess Noarsh, who abandoned Walter with such lame excuses?

“Walter. Do you remember what I said before? That I wanted to live a normal life.”

“… … Even if you say you want to live a normal life now, I can’t give you a divorce.”

“No, what are you talking about? I want to ask you to be honest. I will be honest with you too.”

Odette said and grabbed Walter’s hand.

And Walter was a little surprised that he could think of shaking off Odette’s hand.

In fact, his heart sank every time Odette continued to speak.

If it had been someone else, he would have long since wanted to avoid those straight eyes.

Or he would have shed tears and confessed everything.

There were two reasons why Walter could pretend to be calm.

The first was because the memory of losing Odette was blocking his mouth in his memory.

The second was because selfishness was greater than guilt in Walter’s inner feelings.

‘I will never be a good person.’

Feeling selfishness rather than guilt at being asked to be honest about everything.

If he really cared about Odette, he should have suffered from the absurdity of having to deceive her for her sake.

Walter felt a terrible urge to tell everything.

If I were to really tell everything ‘honestly’… ‘…

‘… Will you feel even a little pity for me?’

Will you not forget me even after I die?

Can’t you be obsessed with me without caring about other guys?

Can you think of me even half as much as I suffered because of you because you couldn’t forget me?

Can’t you care for me more than Louis Clovis or Cedric…

He wanted Odette to be happy. And at the same time, he wanted her to love him and be unhappy.

If he was sure that Odette would shed even a single tear when he died, then he would be able to die without regrets.

In front of the love that came to him even at the risk of his own death, he became infinitely mean and pitiful, and at the same time, petty and selfish.

Because of this, Walter always walked a tightrope in front of Odette.

If he went one step further, he would be ‘honest’ to Odette.

He felt this impulse even when Odette didn’t ask for it directly, so his patience grew thinner when Odette came straight at him like this.

“… … I’ve never lied to you.”

“But I’ve never been honest with you, you.”

“Everyone has secrets.”

“There shouldn’t be any between you and me. That way, I can decide how I… … feel about you.”

Odette was usually kind and gentle, but at times like this, her honey-like eyes shone firmly and solidly.

Was that what it meant to trust someone?

When Odette gave her the pendant in the past, she had this kind of face.

A face that made her feel like she was something great to her.

A face that didn’t blur even in the face of death, a face that made him want to live a little longer.

Walter’s shallow patience lost its luster in front of her.

Instead of thinking that he had to remain silent for Odette’s sake, his selfishness of wanting to tell her everything and imprint his existence on her mind, whether it was sympathy or whatever, took over.

Odette continued to speak seriously, completely oblivious to Walter’s desires.

“You have to be honest with me, Walter. You… … .”

Walter lowered his eyes.

If the same question came back again, it seemed that this time he would no longer be able to remain silent.

“… … Are you afraid that the Emperor will take revenge on you for marrying me?”

“That’s right… … .”

Walter’s movements, which were about to reflexively nod, suddenly stopped.

“… … ?”

Revenge?

A large question mark floated over his head, but Odette had already heard the few words of affirmation that had leaked out of Walter’s mouth.

“As expected! I knew it. No matter how much I thought about it, that was the only way.”

“W-wait.”

“Honestly, I think it’s petty, but I don’t think the Emperor would take revenge on me either. I was worried about that, and you were too!”

　
Before Walter could stop her, Odette was amazed at her own deductive powers.

‘Walter… … is preparing for his own death.’

I don’t know why, but I could tell that fact just by looking at the contract.

Otherwise, there would be no need to obsessively document the slim possibility of his own death.

The important thing is the reason.

Why on earth?

And Odette had found a plausible reason.

That is, if he were to push forward with his marriage with Odette, the Emperor might get angry and send Walter back to the battlefield!

Walter, who should have been living comfortably in the capital, returned from the battlefield to the battlefield, and it was a reasonable inference that he was trying to pay for the crime of ‘that incident’.

And since Walter had easily achieved great feats and returned from rugged battlefields so far,

“There’s a high probability that the next battlefield he’ll be sent to will be a place known for its harshness. It would be good if it wasn’t a rocky area… … They say that it’s easy to catch endemic diseases in such places.”

Walter’s chances of meeting a disaster in a foreign land, such as disappearance or murder staged as suicide, were high.

So it’s understandable if he deliberately tried to establish feats by uncovering a bootlegging business in order to prepare for the emperor’s wrath.

And above all, this hypothesis also explains why Walter hid the fact from Odette.

‘In a way, it’s no different from me providing the cause.’

If Walter hadn’t married Odette, there would have been no need to prepare for such danger.

“You didn’t tell me this on purpose because you thought I’d feel guilty?”

“… … “That’s right.”

And while she continued to reason, Walter’s patience returned to normal.

“You’re out of your mind. To think of telling everything.” He

was literally throwing ashes on his own plans.

If Odette had not misunderstood, that would have really happened.

“Thank goodness,”

Walter thought, but there was something he had not yet noticed.

The clear relief that had suddenly crept over his face,

and that Odette had seen it clearly.