The Cold-Hearted Grand Duke Obsesses Over Me After My Death - Chapter 75

Chapter 75. A Remarriage Candidate

‘Why does he keep coming over here?’

“Prince Ian.”

Emilia hid her true feelings and gave Ian a formal smile. Her face muscles were on the verge of going numb from holding that smile for so long.

“Grand Duchess, do you like wine?”

Ian approached her and lifted his wine glass as he spoke.

“Yes, I do.”

At the mention of wine, Emilia’s stiff expression loosened. Ian didn’t miss the change in her face.

“I’ve heard that in the Richert Empire, the wine from Count Dalton’s territory is the finest in quality,” Ian spoke in a gentle tone, wearing a kind smile.

“That’s right. Selgona wine is sweet, slightly bitter, and has a flavor and aroma you can’t quite describe with words.”

“I see. I’d like to taste it someday.”

“You haven’t tasted it yet?”

Emilia’s eyes widened. The fact that a prince hadn’t yet tasted such a famous wine felt surprising and strange.

“Selgona wine is rare and produced in small quantities, so it hasn’t been brought into the Kingdom of Billiot. And since I’m a hostage, I can’t leave the capital, you see?” Ian said with a bitter expression.

“I see….”

Count Asher had loaded hundreds of bottles of that precious wine onto his carriage every time he came to the grand duke’s residence. Even now, the wine cellar at the manor had hundreds of bottles of Dalton wine that Asher had sent recently.

‘I can’t exactly tell him to come drink it at the manor.’

She didn’t know how to respond.

“Someday you’ll have the chance to taste it. Haha,” Emilia replied with an exaggerated smile.

“I’m sure I will. Someday I’ll drink the finest wine of Richert. Even if I have to take it by force,” Ian said with determination.

“I hope so.”

Ian’s words struck Emilia as a little strange, but she didn’t ask further. The two clinked glasses and drank their wine together.

“Huh?”

At that moment, someone pulled her from behind. Emilia was grabbed by the waist and swept backward.

The person who pulled her spun her around in an instant and trapped her in his arms.

“…Louid?”

Emilia’s blue eyes shook violently.

“Louid, what are you doing?”

Louid held her hand tightly, said nothing, and pulled her away by herself.

“It’s time for us to dance in front of everyone. As the grand ducal couple.”

He looked down at her with a rigid expression.

“Ah…!”

When she looked around the hall, the noble men and women were already paired up, holding hands and beginning to dance to the gentle music. Since this banquet was held in honor of the grand ducal couple, they needed to show a harmonious appearance.

Without a word, the two held hands and danced.

“Emilia, are you already looking for someone to remarry?”

At last, Louid broke the silence.

“What? When did I ever do that?”

Remarry? She thought she’d heard wrong. Emilia’s face crumpled.

“How many men did you dance with today?”

“Well….”

Willard, Dwight… Emilia counted the men she had danced with, then stopped. She hadn’t counted from the start, and she didn’t remember all of them clearly.

She didn’t remember exactly how many she’d danced with. What she did remember was that she had danced with many. So many that their names were already starting to blur.

“What does it matter to you if I look for someone to remarry or not?”

Emilia snapped at him mid-dance, then walked away toward the corner of the banquet hall.

‘So that means she really is looking for a remarriage partner?’

When Emilia stormed off, Louid stared after her with a stunned expression.

Groups of nobles huddled together here and there glanced at the two of them, but none of them registered in his eyes.

‘What a strange man. He’s the one who was smiling so generously at the young ladies, so why is he blaming me?’

With that handsome face, a solid and impressive build, and being a strong candidate for the next emperor, it was obvious why the young ladies liked him.

Tonight’s banquet belonged entirely to Louid. And yet he had the nerve to pick a fight with her, which was utterly ridiculous.

“Your Highness the Grand Duchess. It’s been a while.”

At that moment, someone familiar approached her.

“Count Asher. I’ve missed you.”

Emilia’s tense expression brightened immediately.

“Is that so? That’s wonderful to hear.”

Asher beamed, delighted by her words.

Meanwhile, Louid was barely managing to suppress the anger boiling inside him. Just as Emilia had said, he had no right to interfere in her affairs, which only made him even angrier.

“Have a drink.”

Asher, who had somehow approached while speaking with Emilia, came over and offered him a glass of wine.

Louid took the glass and drained it in one gulp. Asher covered his mouth with his own glass and muttered quietly, “Prince Ian, the one who danced with Her Highness earlier, is known as the most ruthless among the Billiot princes. Rumor has it he holds more power than the crown prince. And he came here as a hostage of his own will. He must have a hidden purpose. Be cautious.”

“Understood.” Louid nodded slightly.

“By the way, Her Highness didn’t look pleased.”

Asher spoke carefully, watching Louid’s reaction. Louid’s expression hardened.

“A woman is like glass. Beautiful, but delicate. You have to handle her so she doesn’t break.”

“….”

Louid didn’t answer Asher’s advice. He simply kept staring in Emilia’s direction.

After quite some time, Emilia and Louid got into the carriage with stiff expressions. They sat facing each other but didn’t exchange a single word, each staring out their respective windows.

***

The next day, Louid was in his office speaking with Eddie.

“Among the former grand duchesses who divorced, were there any who remarried?”

“Yes, of course, Your Highness. If I recall correctly, Grand Duchess Christine and Grand Duchess Martina remarried after their divorces. There are likely even more.”

“Then do you think Emilia will also remarry?”

“Naturally. Why would Your Highness think she’d live alone forever? She could remarry at any time.”

Eddie responded immediately, as if it were obvious. Louid’s body stiffened as if he’d been struck.

“Besides, in the Richert Empire, remarriage among divorced men and women is strongly encouraged.”

“Why is that?”

“Because of you, Your Highness.”

“Because of me?”

“Yes, Your Highness has continually expanded the empire’s territory. But the population is far too small. So encouraging remarriage among divorced couples is a way to increase the birthrate.”

“Ha… unbelievable.”

The reason remarriage was encouraged was because he’d expanded the territory. Strange as it sounded, it wasn’t exactly wrong, leaving him unable to argue.

A year or two from now, Emilia would leave his side. Until now, he hadn’t truly felt the reality of her departure, but now that he imagined Emilia gone, something inside him felt empty, as if something precious had fallen out of his grasp.

‘Why didn’t I think of that?’

Louid’s thoughts stretched on endlessly.

There was nothing in the contract forbidding remarriage. Once divorced and free, Emilia could date and remarry anyone she wanted.

She’d live far from the Duke, but Duke Berthe was old and wouldn’t live much longer. Once he died, Emilia would inherit all his wealth, marry another nobleman, and live a happy life.

‘Why did I assume Emilia would always live alone?’

No matter how terrifying or hateful Duke Berthe was, Emilia didn’t need to throw away wealth and honor to go live somewhere unknown.

On top of that, her beauty was so exceptional it could be called the greatest on the continent. There was no way other men would leave her alone once she became single.

‘Emilia’s remarriage….’

He’d had only one older brother who could be called family, so he’d always been lonely since he was young. He didn’t like Emilia romantically, and they were a temporary couple who would eventually separate, but thinking about becoming alone again after having been with someone made him feel strangely disappointed.

Louid’s worries grew deeper.

***

Late at night, the connecting door between their bedrooms opened. In the quiet, dark room, only a few candles were lit.

Louid entered silently, and she heard the sound of him lying down on the bed. Emilia closed her eyes and pretended to sleep. After a while, his steady breathing reached her ears.

With her eyes closed, the image of Louid smiling at the young ladies kept surfacing in her mind.

‘Why does it keep coming back? Stop thinking about it. It doesn’t matter to me whether he likes other women or not.’

Angry, she suddenly snapped her eyes open and turned over sharply.

“…?”

“…?”

Gem-like red eyes and lake-like blue eyes met in the darkness.