🌷 Chapter Nine –
The next day after Theodore Annette was discharged from the asylum as Grand Duchess, all the tabloids and wall magazines in Lieder City covered the event with identical headlines.
[The secret marriage of Grand Duke Theodor to Miss Annette, the only daughter of the deceased Marquis Scheringen.]
The news of the marriage became a scandal, although it did not matter whether it was a trivial scandal or a serious affair.
Prominent socialites were bored, and the story of Theodore and Annette was an occasion to entertain themselves.
In imperial law even the marriage of a poor rural villager is announced to the entire village, but a member of the royal family got married secretly?
Theodore had mixed blood between his father, the emperor, and his mother, who was a commoner, but he was definitely the son of the emperor.
In addition, his powerful appearance and domineering behavior—which made others feel afraid of him—were more like the actions of a member of the royal family than those of Crown Prince Hugo.
No one admitted it, although everyone knew it because Hugo was the son of the current emperor.
It is a strange irony that Theodore was treated as a member of the imperial family only the moment he did something unbecoming of his family position, as this was used as an excuse to belittle him.
The aristocrats who attended his first wedding were well aware of how fearsome and terrifying Theodore was compared to the imperial family.
Although it was a failed marriage that was not consummated, for the same reason it was unforgettable.
Theodor's first marriage was to Paula Stadler.
The Stadlers were a rare and respected aristocratic family.
The head of the family was a court aristocrat without title, but with honor instead.
(M.M.: The title means the title of Duke/Marquis/Count/Baron...etc.)
He built his reputation by setting an example for the nobility through his generous benevolence towards the common people.
He was far from the power war and his character was characterized by honesty and virtue, but his fame became a power in itself.
The respect for Stadler was what Theodor, who was looked down upon as an illegitimate son of the Emperor, needed most.
The previous emperor, Theodore's father, married Theodore to the daughter of Mr.
Stadler - of whom he was a loyal subject - in the hope that his beloved son would be less criticized.
Because he thought that Theodor could overcome one of his great weaknesses if he had the support of the Stadler family by marrying at that time.
So that marriage was a political marriage, and for that very reason there were people who got in the way.
Paula Stadler was poisoned at her wedding.
There was a poisonous needle in her bouquet, and she was slowly poisoned from the moment she appeared over the Maiden's Corridor.
(M.M.: The Virgin’s aisle, the church aisle, or the wedding aisle is the space between the church door and the platform on which the groom stands.
The bride’s father usually accompanies his daughter on that path in order to hand her over to her husband.)
The sweat that Paula thought was running down her skin from stress was her body's cry for help.
The bride's expression, which was smiling shyly, changed to one of fear of death after holding the flowers.
The bride collapsed when she reached the stage and began bleeding right in front of Theodore, but he did not panic at all.
With displeased eyes, Theodore looked at the guest seats and not the bride, who had become a cold, lifeless corpse.
He wondered who would want to stop his marriage and looked at those who were suspicious in his opinion.
Looking at the guests' reaction, he identified the suspects among whom the culprit could be.
There were people everywhere who didn't want the wedding to end safely, and one of them was definitely the culprit.
Theodore searched for the culprit with his eyes, and a cold smile appeared on his face as he looked at the audience.
No one knew whether Theodore knew the criminal that day or not, but anyone who looked into his eyes could not forget that horror.
[The devil smiles even in the face of the death of his bride.]
The newspapers reported that his cruel smile was his true devilish face.
Theodore's cruelty attracted more attention than the identity of the killer who killed Paula.
The marriage, undertaken to quell criticism that questioned Theodore's character, further damaged his reputation.
From that day on, those who saw the deadly smile on his face avoided confronting him face to face.
Among them were Casselia Scheringen and Bjorn Scheringen.
Annette's aunt Casselia and uncle Björn have seen Theodor's eyes at the wedding.
Therefore, it was extremely exhausting for Casselia and Bjorn to bear Theodor's gaze here and now.
The eyes that looked at them were exactly the eyes of the stalker who was searching for the culprit that day.
So they had to escape quickly to avoid getting into danger.
Bjorn spoke in a high-pitched voice as if to prove his discomfort.
"How rude!
Are you accusing us now or what?"
In the middle of the upscale salon, Theodore suddenly appeared and sat down in front of the two Scheringen, and gave words similar to interrogation.
By manipulating documents related to Annette and searching for those who forcibly admitted her to a psychiatric hospital, Theodor discovered that the culprit was within the Scheringen family.
Of course, Bjorn and Cassilia denied this.
In particular, Bjorn's resistance was intense.
“How many times do I have to tell you for you to understand?
I told you that I know nothing.
No matter how big a prince you are, you cannot accuse a noble of being a criminal without proof.”
“Lower your voice, Bjorn.”
Casselia covered her mouth with the fan and whispered to Bjorn.
Attention was drawn to them inside the salon.
It was clear that what happened today would spread throughout society because they were nobles with a great reputation in social circles.
“Sister!
Our family has just been insulted.
Even if he is a prince, he cannot ignore the status of the Shiringin!”
“The real insult is the insult my wife received in that psychiatric hospital.”
“Didn’t I tell you a moment ago that we had nothing to do with her being admitted to a mental hospital?”
When Bjorn's voice showed no sign of abating, Cassilia gently tapped her brother's hand with her fan.
Only then Bjorn was startled and looked around and found that everyone was looking at them with curious eyes.
Instead of Bjorn, who still needed to calm down, Cassilia dealt with Theodor.
“Where is my niece now?
I believe that Sheringen’s daughter will not stay with His Highness without attending her father’s funeral.”
Casselia skillfully turns the topic of conversation, directing criticism from the Scheringen family's complicated relationship with each other to Theodor and Annette's inappropriate relationship.
“She may not be comparable to the members of the imperial family, but she is a precious child who has inherited the Shiringen blood.
If she is really with you, then I request you to return her to her home.”
“My sister is right.
The fact that she became Grand Duchess is even stranger than the fact that she was locked in an insane asylum.
Your Highness will have to send her back until we find out whether the rumors in the newspapers are true or not.”
Even Bjorn joined in to claim Annette, but Theodor did not accept it easily.
“My wife is in my home, which is now also her home as the Grand Duchess.
However, her safety is not guaranteed, so she is refraining from going out for the time being.”
“She is in the Grand Duke’s Palace...Are you saying that you really made Annette the Grand Duchess?”
“The marriage took place in secret, with only the two of us present.
The priest who witnessed our relationship at that time will prove it to you both.”
Bjorn couldn't hide his embarrassment.
Casselia had always thought that her younger brother, who showed his emotions without adding or concealing, was lacking much, but she would have had difficulty managing her expressions as well if she had not had a fan.
That Iron Man defended Annette with all his might.
How can Annette escape with Theodore's help?
How could she become the Grand Duchess and step into untouchable darkness?
Why did her niece marry a strange man without saying a word to the family?
Casselia asked with a firm attitude, but what came back as an answer was thick paper.
They were documents proving the marriage of Annette and Theodore.
I looked through it carefully, but it was perfect content without any legal process issues.
“You are not the type of person who does not know that marriage is not established by the marriage oath alone.
There are other major procedures other than the exchange of vows in the church.”
Theodore was a Grand Duke who inherited imperial blood.
It is impossible for such a person to be able to marry simply by wishing to do so.
Casselia did not believe it at all and remained convinced that it was just nonsense.
When Björn clicked his tongue and expressed his displeasure towards Theodor openly, Theodor laughed and put something else on the table.
“This…this…”
This time, even Casselia couldn't keep calm.
“I'm sure you both know what this necklace means.
If you were from the family of Marquis Scheringen, you would know what it means without me needing to explain anything.”
It was a pendant engraved in the shape of a dragon holding a red ruby in its mouth.
There was only one person in the empire who could use a dragon-using seal, and that was the Emperor.
The dragon placing a jewel in its mouth symbolizes the emperor who gifted the necklace.
The ruby was a symbol of Emperor Dominic, Theodore's father.
“I used this necklace on my wedding day with Annette.”
“You say that His Majesty the Emperor’s seal was used for marriage… is that what you mean?”
“Exactly.
I am ready to give everything I have to stay with the Grand Duchess, whom I love more than anything in the world.”
Björn thought it was time for Theodor to be admitted to a mental institution as well.
The necklace containing the emperor's crest was a kind of token of love and a sign of power.
Those who owned the previous emperor's pendant could get anything they wanted from the next emperor.
As long as the request did not threaten the emperor's status or the establishment of the empire, the emperor had to listen to all the requests of the person holding this pendant and accept anything he wanted.
The reason the current emperor was so dissatisfied with Theodore was that he could not touch him because he was the one who had been given the necklace by his father.
(M.M.: The current emperor is Theodore's brother and Hugo's father.)
But to think that he would use the armor that protects him just to marry a crazy murderer…
This was never sensible.
However, Theodor's face was extremely calm as he looked at the stunned Bjorn and Cassilia.
“I went through the experience of losing my future wife right before my eyes.
I couldn't risk doing the same thing twice, so I had a secret wedding, which is why I hope you can understand my situation.”
“So you're already married to Annette...right?”
"This is correct."
Theodore's failed marriage was a pretext to make Annet Grand Duchess.
It seemed plausible that he did not reveal their marriage publicly because he feared that the bride would die again during the wedding.
But if he had thought more closely, he could have seen an illogical loophole in Theodor's words, but Bjorn, who was not quick to pick up on other people's lapses, began to get confused.
Casselia was angry at her stupid younger brother in her heart, but she controlled her temper and managed the situation on behalf of her lacking younger brother.