I Ended Up Snatching a Marriage With the Male Lead! - Chapter 25

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I’d ended up in a shotgun marriage with the male lead.
Chapter 25

“Well, you see…….”
Emilia hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth to speak.
A maid appeared at the doorway.
“Advisor. The butler is looking for you.”
“Of course, I’m coming.”
Herald’s eyes went dull in an instant, and he quickly gathered up his documents and rose from his seat.
“Ah, but wasn’t there something you were about to tell me just now?”
“No.”
Emilia shook her head quickly under Herald’s questioning gaze.
“It’s nothing important.”
“Is that so? I wish it had been something terribly urgent that would keep me from the butler.”
He murmured with genuine regret.
“In any case, Emilia. Thank you so much for your help today.”
Then he trudged out of the study with heavy steps—
“Ah, that’s right!”
He suddenly spun around.
“Goodness, my mind is scattered. I nearly forgot the important thing!”
“Yes?”
Emilia blinked, bewildered.

* * *

Moments later.
When Emilia came downstairs, she found Kaiden preparing for an outing.
He seemed uncomfortable as he fiddled with his cuffs, adjusting his clothes.
Noticing Emilia’s presence, Kaiden lifted his gaze.
He withdrew his hands from his sleeves and asked.
“Where are you going?”
“Oh, yes.”
Emilia finished descending the stairs.
“I need to buy a few things.”
“Things? You could simply ask the servants.”
Kaiden questioned, seeming puzzled.
“I have letters to send as well, so I might as well go myself.”
In truth, she’d been too busy since arriving in the Capital to write to Mrs. Anderson.
So she intended to send a letter now.
She wanted to tell her that she’d found proper work and was living in a wonderful estate, so there was no need to worry.
“And I thought I’d buy some snacks for Ivain as well.”
Emilia added, her voice lifting slightly.
The important thing Herald had forgotten was actually her two weeks’ wages.
It was certainly significant to Emilia.
“I got a dessert shop recommendation from Lora, you see.”
“I see.”
Kaiden let out a soft laugh.
Not quite like a child showing off after receiving pocket money for the first time.
He began walking alongside Emilia, who’d drawn near.
“Since you arrived, Ivain seems to be getting on better with the other servants than before.”
Emilia’s eyes widened slightly at his words, then she smiled.
“That’s a relief.”
Just as he said, Ivain had been mixing well with the others lately.
She felt quietly proud of her efforts bearing fruit.
“How is Ivain progressing with the Imperial Language?”
“He learns remarkably quickly. He seems naturally talented.”
Emilia explained Ivain’s progress to the guardian she’d met again after so long.
“He’ll likely pick up anything else he studies just as readily.”
She spoke freely in praise of the boy’s aptitude.
Before long, they’d stepped outside the estate.
Emilia spotted the Duke’s carriage waiting and came to a halt.
“Well then, I should be going——”
But Kaiden, having walked steadily to the carriage door, opened it and nodded to her.
“Won’t you ride?”
“I beg your pardon?”
Caught off guard, Emilia could only blink.

* * *

‘Hmm.’
Though she’d ended up boarding the carriage almost without thinking, Emilia felt a twinge of regret.
‘I wish I’d brought a book to read, if I’d known.’
Kaiden, seated directly across from her, was leafing through documents.
Meanwhile, her own hands were empty.
Sitting idle like this felt terribly awkward.
The public carriages rattled badly and people constantly got on and off, creating a chaotic atmosphere.
So she’d brought nothing to focus on, given the environment.
But Kaiden’s carriage was smooth, with barely any jolting, and the interior was very quiet.
Somehow the presence of the man sitting across felt more pronounced.
The truth was, facing him like this still felt strange.
Until now, she alone had known about this man unilaterally.
‘But now…….’
They were naturally sharing ordinary moments of life, like in that conversation just now.
Suddenly she recalled the image of Kaiden looking down at her with a soft laugh.
For some reason she tensed, straightening her back to correct her posture, when the sound of her shoe dragging emerged.
“Oh.”
The moment she lifted her head, their eyes met.
“I’m sorry. I was in your way.”
“Not at all. My concentration was slipping anyway.”
Kaiden answered casually to her apology.
“Really?”
Kaiden genuinely set his focus aside and positioned himself to converse with her.
‘Thank goodness.’
If he would speak with her, she could avoid being so aware of this awkward silence.
“But where are you headed, sir?”
Yet at that question, Kaiden simply looked at her without answering.
Emilia’s eyes shifted uncomfortably.
“Ah, is it not something I should ask?”
“No. It’s simply that I don’t think I’ve ever been asked that before.”
Never asked where he was going? Emilia’s eyes widened and she opened her mouth.
“Surely you’re joking?”
It seemed like a casual greeting she’d heard this very week from the butler or Herald.
As if reading her thoughts, Kaiden spoke plainly.
“By you, that is.”
Emilia blinked, disoriented.
‘Was that really the case?’
It was certainly an everyday sort of question, but now that he mentioned it, she didn’t think she’d ever asked him.
‘But of course I haven’t.’
It would be strange for a governess to pry into her employer’s plans.
‘And the truth is…….’
Even apart from Kaiden, she rarely asked such questions of anyone.
Whenever Cedric or Mrs. Romanace left for outings——

“Why do you have to keep prying? I’m going out for a change of scenery. Is that a problem?”
“Girl, you just focus on making dinner.”

The dismissive responses that came back had naturally made her stop asking.
Emilia, who’d glanced down for a moment, quickly shook off her reverie.
Then she asked Kaiden in a playful voice.
“So, should I ask you every time we meet?”
“Yes.”
“……Really?”
His immediate answer startled her instead.
“I’m telling you to do so.”
There was no trace of jest in the man’s expression.
Instead, he was quietly holding her gaze.
“I, I will.”
Emilia found herself nodding without quite meaning to.
‘It’s not a difficult thing to do anyway.’
She glanced at Kaiden’s face sitting across from her, tilting her head slightly.
Somehow that odd little promise seemed to please him.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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