The Contract Marriage for Attilenta's Revenge - Chapter 7

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

Atilenta’s Revenge: A Contractual Marriage — Episode 7
The prince of Bwendopfska seeks your hand. As a princess of Francia Kingdom, do not lose your dignity. For the peace between our two nations.
The next evening, a brief message arrived through a servant that the king had sent. In that moment, I let out a cry of joy.
“At last!”
The opportunity has come, Atilenta. The stepping stone for my future is in place. When I smiled broadly, the servant who delivered the letter stared at me as though I’d lost my mind, but I couldn’t stop laughing.
The farewell banquet for me and Henrik, the prince of Bwendopfska, was arranged with remarkable speed.
The kingdom happened to be in the midst of hosting a reception for foreign guests, so it seemed no additional preparations were necessary.
It was more than fortunate for me. I had no desire to waste another moment in this place.
“Princess Atilenta makes her entrance.”
And so I stepped into the royal banquet hall for the first time in what felt like ages. The hall was bathed in silver light, sacred and majestic music filled the air, and decorative pieces imported from abroad mingled with an excellent feast.
My first impression was this: a reception fitting for a foreign prince, yet not ostentatious.
The banquet hall held only a delegation from Bwendopfska, the knights who served the prince, and a few people who had known me.
“Father. To think this is our last farewell. I beg you to accept the respects your daughter offers.”
“My daughter, Atilenta. What a beautiful sight you are.”
I paid my respects to the king first. It had been truly a long time since I had faced him. The titles of father and daughter were nothing but hollow names.
He had pretended not to know when I received my divorce from Antonio. Now that a foreign prince wished to marry me, he was concerned with maintaining appearances.
“My princess. You must remain in good health even in that distant place.”
“I shall pray each day for your own peace and tranquility, Father.”
I spoke the falsehood I had rehearsed countless times before coming to this banquet. I painted on a fabricated smile. All while imagining a blade between his ribs.
“I am certain the goddess Pria will bless you, Atilenta.”
Having observed the kingdom’s etiquette to perfection, I accepted his hypocritical blessing and withdrew.
Immediately after came Selena. I clenched both hands tightly beneath the loose sleeves of my dress, hidden from view.
“Atilenta. You’re going to that distant, wonderful place. It’s a shame to part, but I truly wish you joy.”
When I thanked her, Selena leaned in close and continued in her tender tone.
“Atilenta. It seems your disgrace hasn’t reached his ears. Antonio worked hard to ensure it didn’t. Isn’t that fortunate?”
Ha! I barely suppressed a bitter laugh that threatened to escape at such hollow words.
As if Antonio alone made the effort. You did too, didn’t you, Selena? The reason you’re sorry to part is because you’ve lost the chance to use me. Isn’t that right?
“Selena. I’ll miss you too, but I’m grateful to have met such a good man.”
I mirrored Selena’s gentle smile. When I said “good man,” I put extra force into the words.
Henrik was taking me in the form of marriage, so he must have given proper compensation to the king of this nation.
For him, it was a matter tied to his nation’s honor, so there’s no way he would have been careless about it.
For the sake of that bride price alone, whether the king or the duke, even Selena tied to them could not have damaged my value.
It seemed they had hidden the rumors—that I was barren, or illegitimate, or whatever else. In short, this marriage was a fraud: Francia’s king and nobles, myself included, all lying to the prince of Bwendopfska.
A fraudulent marriage. I turned the word over silently on my tongue.
“I too think him a good man, Atilenta. How pleased the king seemed! Bwendopfska must be quite a wealthy kingdom.”
That was the moment. Having finished his conversation with the king, Henrik approached and took his place beside me.
“My wife was here. And who is this you were speaking with?”
With eyes that gleamed like violet gems, he looked down at me. His glance toward Selena and his manner were impeccably refined.
“Your Highness. Permit me to introduce myself again. I am Selena of Kennan House. I offer my congratulations on your marriage.”
To Selena, who bowed with the grace of a delicate deer, Henrik gave a slight nod. I could feel it—the gazes fixed upon us, even as I pretended not to notice.
Henrik was the sort of man who naturally commanded attention. It was obvious he would have done so even without me at the reception.
His cold beauty, his military bearing, his fluid accent and low voice—all of it made him appear utterly “captivating.”
There was no need to overthink it. Using him as he had just arrived was precisely the right answer.
I smiled slightly and spoke to my husband in a gentle tone.
“Your Highness. How was your conversation with Father? Oh, I was greeting an old friend. Selena was so delighted, praising you as a fine man.
She said her impression matched mine exactly.”
To my deliberate display, Henrik responded to Selena with perfect propriety.
“My wife’s dear friend—how wonderful. Since coming here, I’ve had the fortune to form a pleasant acquaintance. It’s truly cause for celebration. I hope Lady Selena will enjoy the evening.”
It was a display masquerading as blessing. Regardless of his true purpose, he was emphasizing that he was taking a worthy lady from this place.
It was the proper manner befitting a foreign prince speaking of peace.
“That Your Highness recognizes Atilenta’s true worth touches my heart deeply. I shall pray that peace and happiness bless you and my dear friend always.”
“Selena. I truly thank you for your kindness.”
I replied with warmth, as though we were intimate friends, while my thoughts turned inward.
My nominal father, the duke, Selena, and the other nobles attending this hollow farewell—they believed they had deceived the prince of Bwendopfska.
It was certainly a misunderstanding.
There was no way Henrik didn’t know of my disgrace. To a man as ambitious and aggressive as he, information could not possibly be lacking.
Henrik simply had no interest whatsoever in my family’s standing or my nation.
His purpose was clear. Just as mine was.
That’s why he maintained his etiquette with such precision even here. To appear as though there were no troubles between us at all.
The fact that he took care of even this detail made me deeply satisfied.
Even in Bwendopfska, I sensed he would maintain such courtesy before others, and that realization brought me a quiet relief.
Truthfully, it mattered little to me whether I was called a false wife, a party to a fraudulent marriage, or any other name for this arrangement.
Henrik wants only to conquer this continent. I have no interest in my husband. I simply want this country—the one I refuse to call my homeland—the Francia Kingdom, to be destroyed. I want it to shatter as utterly as I have shattered, stripping away every dream, every hope, every shred of faith I once held.
There could be no transaction more profitable for us both. I felt the weight of satisfaction settle over me, and smiled with genuine warmth.

* * *
The banquet wound down in due course, and soon I found myself boarding a carriage behind Henrik. He moved with efficiency—Henrik and the Northern Region knights alike—and the carriage itself was swift and without excess.
I did not gaze out the window.
The length of the journey held no importance for me. My thoughts were fixed only on what lay ahead, on what I would do next.
As we left the Francia Kingdom and traveled northeast, an unusual scent began to permeate the air—something damp and moisture-laden, unlike anything I had smelled before.
There was even a saltiness to it. Henrik must have noticed too, for he spoke in a languid voice:
“We’re nearly there.”
I had heard that the Northern Region bordered the Sea itself. The sharp, briny sweetness of it pricked my nostrils. So this was the scent of the Sea.
Even here, alone with Henrik in the carriage, the air seemed to shimmer with a pale blue quality. Yet his face betrayed no particular emotion at arriving in his own homeland.
The sea-scent was novel to me as well, but I did not let myself be swept away by the thrill of travel. I studied the man seated across from me—my husband in name only.
His black hair, sharp nose bridge, and defined jawline all conspired to make him appear utterly cold and untouchable.
“The journey was long. You haven’t grown weary?”
The words themselves carried the veneer of courtesy, yet I detected no genuine concern in his eyes or his tone. I took this too as another test from Henrik, and answered coolly:
“Not at all, Your Highness.”
Henrik regarded me with that characteristic ease of his. I pictured myself standing confidently at his side.
To achieve my purpose, I first needed standing. Only then could I claim a place in Bwendopfska that no one would dare diminish, a position from which I could act freely.
To accomplish that, two things were essential.

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