Standard Contract Guidelines for a Fraudulent Marriage - Chapter 85

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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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Chapter 85

“Your forehead’s all wrinkled. I saw you with Sophie Kissing earlier—you’ve really mastered that duchess tone, haven’t you? You didn’t raise your voice at all, just pointed out her mistake so gracefully.”
“Well, that’s…… Never mind. Let’s go for a walk, please. I’m feeling stifled.”
“Of course, madam.”

When they stepped outside, far more people were strolling through the Garden than when Adelia had come out earlier with Ellie.

Apparently, the heat building up inside the Ball Hall had driven many guests to seek the fresh air outside.

“Ellie showed me this Garden earlier, and it’s absolutely wonderful! She designed that flowing fountain herself—she’s such a talented person!”
“She designed the fountain herself?”
“Yes! Would you like to see it?”

Adelia was delighted that Loerston showed interest, and she led him toward the fountain.

There weren’t many people nearby, which made viewing comfortable enough, but she found herself wondering why so few others seemed to appreciate Ellie’s gifts.

“Hmm, is this that Water Wheel contraption?”
“That’s right. It uses the Water Wheel mechanism…… Look, see how the water from that pond below circulates backward, becomes the fountain over there, and then flows back along this path into this small pool?”
“Fascinating. It’s almost as if…… the water never diminishes. Well, it actually doesn’t diminish—the pond’s volume stays constant.”
“Not quite. Some evaporates in the middle, and some splashes out and spills elsewhere, so it’s not perfectly constant…”
“Let’s ignore such microscopic details for now, madam.”
“Oh, there I go again…”

As Adelia’s face flushed red, Loerston burst into laughter.

“You’re really quite amusing, you know.”
“Me?”
“Of course. You always point out angles I’d never considered. But I must say, I’m rather covetous of this device. Do you think I could ask Ellie to make another one?”

Adelia looked up at Loerston with surprise in her eyes.

“To install in our Garden?”
“Hmm, the Garden would work, but your birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it? I thought it might be fun to display something like this at your party.”

Adelia blinked, her expression momentarily blank.

Her birthday? She’d forgotten it entirely. How on earth did Loerston find out?

“Senior, my birthday…”
“How did I know? Simple enough—I paid the Academy a visit. Student records are kept for three years after graduation.”
“But why would you…”
“Why look? Because it’s only natural.”

Without warning, Loerston tilted his head and planted a soft kiss on Adelia’s unguarded lips.

“I wanted to wish you a happy birthday myself—what other reason would there be?”

Adelia’s cheeks burned crimson as she covered her lips with her fingertips, her wide eyes darting about.

She stared at Loerston for a moment, uncertain how to respond, before finally breaking into a smile and leaning her head gently against his shoulder.

“Thank you. I’d forgotten all about it.”
“I figured as much. That’s exactly why I wanted to be the one to celebrate it.”

As Adelia rested her forehead against his shoulder, she suddenly fixed her gaze on something in the distance.

“What is it, Adelia?”
“Oh, nothing… Just now… Wait?”

Her sudden sharp intake of breath made a tall silhouette standing far off abruptly freeze.

Adelia left Loerston where he stood and hurried toward the figure.

“Huh?”
“It really is you, Clucker! What are you doing here?”

The person Adelia had spotted was indeed Clucker—the fellow who rode a Unicycle.

He was dressed quite smartly in a fine Bow Tie, vest, Shirt, trousers, and polished shoes, and he was carrying a Wine Crate.

Though his white gloves had become somewhat soiled, everything else was so pristine that she could scarcely believe this was the same man who’d worn clown makeup.

“What am I doing? Working here, of course.”
“Working?”
“Yes. A party of this scale requires more servants than they have on staff, so they’ve had to hire Temporary Day Laborers like myself.”
“Good heavens.”

Adelia wondered if Ellie knew about this. If the rumors about her affection for Clucker were true, surely she’d be pleased to know he was here…

“And what of your twin sister? She’s doing well?”

Loerston’s voice came from behind her.

Adelia moved closer to his side, taking his hand lightly as she looked up at Clucker.

“She’s doing splendidly. In fact, she’s counting on me to bring back something delicious from this party.”
“Leftover food?”
“That’s right. I have my methods.”

Adelia smiled.

“But Clucker, have you had a chance to see Ellie yet?”
“No, ma’am. How would someone like me, doing menial work, possibly meet with the hostess? I’d have had to be serving champagne inside, but those cushy jobs belong to the regular staff.”
“So you haven’t seen her at all! This is…”

For just a moment, Clucker’s expression grew very serious—worried, almost, or perhaps deeply grave.

“Has something happened to Ellie?”
“No, nothing like that…”

But you’d be so happy to see her, Adelia thought.

“If nothing’s wrong, that’s a relief. My shift’s nearly over anyway, so I should find a moment to rest. This Garden is truly beautiful.”

Rest? He’s going to rest? Adelia’s mind began to spin.

She quickly seized Clucker’s forearm, and both he and Loerston started in surprise.

“Tell me, Clucker—can you dance?”

***

Adelia stood before a distant partition, tapping her feet nervously, then turned to Loerston with arms crossed.

The empty room in Rumble Mansion felt unnaturally hollow, casting an eerie pall even with the lamps lit.

Listening to nothing but the whisper of fabric in that silence made her chest feel tight and oppressive.

“Senior.”
“Hmm?”
“Is this overstepping my bounds?”

Loerston, who had been considering the question thoughtfully, looked directly at her and replied.

“To be honest, yes.”
“Oh no!”
“So why did you do it?”
“It’s just…… Ellie…”

It had all started when Adelia asked Clucker if he could dance.

From a young age, Clucker had worked as a Temporary Day Laborer at aristocratic balls and country estate parties, scraping by with whatever odd jobs he could find.

In the process, he’d unconsciously learned to stand and move like a proper nobleman, and though he knew only two or three styles, he could imitate the dances of the nobility reasonably well.

Upon hearing all this, Adelia’s thoughts had turned to Ellie, and her heart had grown troubled.

Ellie clearly harbored feelings for Clucker.

As for Clucker—whether he realized it or not—it seemed certain that he felt something more than mere affection for her.

‘If the romance novels I’ve forced myself to read are any indication, my hypothesis must be correct!’

Ellie was a good person, and Adelia had grown fond of her. Whenever Ellie spoke of Clucker with that sorrowful tone, Adelia’s own heart ached as if the matter were her own.

So she’d been scheming to do something—anything—to help, and now here they were.

“But here’s the thing.”

Loerston’s voice made Adelia’s eyes widen.

“We can solve the clothes problem easily enough—I’ll lend him something of mine—but…”

As his words trailed off, Adelia’s shoulders tensed. She thought she could already guess what he was about to say.

“Are you sure it’s safe? There are plenty of people here who’d recognize his face from when we went to see the Circus Troupe. You saw yourself how many leisured nobles came to visit.”

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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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