Around the time I had just turned thirteen, talk of a marriage between me and the royal family came up.
But that talk seemed to fade away before I could really grasp what had happened.
I had prepared myself as best as I could, but when I heard the engagement talks had been called off, I felt a little relieved.
I am Angelina Schteizen. The eldest daughter of the Schteizen family.
My mother passed away around the time I gained awareness of the world.
Since then, my only family has been Otou-sama and my Onii-sama, who is a year older than me.
Otou-sama is a strict man, with a strong sense of loyalty to the royal family and the kingdom, and he is an exceptionally capable man.
Perhaps because he already has two biological children, me and my Onii-sama, he doesn't seem to be considering taking a second wife.
To avoid unnecessary succession disputes, that is surely the right decision.
Raised strictly by my stern Otou-sama, I believe I grew up to be a proper noblewoman.
I mind my conduct as a member of the ducal family.
In Okaa-sama's absence, I sometimes step in as the "lady of the house" for the House of Schteizen.
Because of that, I've been raised with an education on par with that of Carlos Onii-sama, who is to become the next head of the family.
There are no problems with my relationship with Otou-sama. If there's a problem, it's my relationship with Onii-sama.
"... Tch. Angelina."
"Carlos Onii-sama? Is something the matter?"
"... It's nothing."
If it's nothing, then please stop clicking your tongue the moment you catch sight of your sister's face.
For some reason, Carlos Onii-sama has been particularly cold to me lately.
It's not as though we'd been a pair of doting siblings before all this, but...
Even so, our relationship shouldn't have been so openly hostile as this.
"I hear Prince Leonhardt has called off the engagement to you."
"Called off the engagement? I'd heard that talk of a betrothal between the Schteizen House and the royal family had come up..."
"That talk has been called off. At His Highness's own request."
Prince Leonhardt is a year older than me. The same age as Onii-sama. So he's fourteen now.
Given his status as a duke's son, Onii-sama's name had apparently come up as a candidate for one of His Highness's close aides.
If I had become His Highness's fiancée, his aide position would have been all but confirmed.
"This is your fault, Angelina."
"... I beg your pardon?"
"His Highness is disappointed in you. That's why you will never become his fiancée."
Disappointed. But I have never even met Prince Leonhardt.
Even I couldn't help but knit my brow as I stared at Carlos Onii-sama.
"Carlos Onii-sama. What in the world are you talking about? I find it rather questionable that you'd presume to speak on behalf of His Highness... But why must I be 'disappointing' to a Prince I have never even met?"
Hearing my retort, Onii-sama, instead of growing angry, only glared at me as though sizing me up.
"... You have no idea what I'm talking about?"
"Of course not. What strange thing are you talking about?"
"You feel nothing for Prince Leonhardt?"
"What? For His Highness? ... Truly, what are you on about? I just told you I have never even met His Highness. You should know that yourself, Onii-sama."
"... So you're just going to pretend nothing happened? Honestly. You got off easy, Angelina."
"Haa...?"
Onii-sama clicked his tongue again then walked away.
What is wrong with him? He'd always been a man of few words, but this is just too strange.
Bewildered, I decided I'd best keep a proper distance between Onii-sama and myself.
About two years has passed since that exchange with Onii-sama, and I turned fifteen.
Since then, talk of my engagement had faded, and I had not been betrothed to anyone other than Prince Leonhardt, either.
Marriage portfolios [1] are still coming in, so it seems my engagement is currently "on hold."
His Highness's engagement still hasn't been announced either.
... As things stand. I can't help but think that I was being treated as a "spare" fiancée for Prince Leonhardt.
The royal family, or perhaps His Highness, had another "preferred" candidate they wanted to engage him to.
But, because forming an engagement with that person was difficult, my own engagement was being "put on hold" until Prince Leonhardt's was settled.
A "spare," in case His Highness's engagement didn't work out smoothly. That was what I am now.
"... I do think it's a ridiculous notion, though."
That said, I have had the opportunity to meet the King and Queen, so I know them.
Considering Their Majesties, and Otou-sama's manner as well...
It seemed that the King, the Queen, and Otou-sama all genuinely wanted my engagement to Prince Leonhardt to go through.
Which means the one refusing this engagement is none other than Prince Leonhardt himself.
... It's frustrating, but Onii-sama's words back then might have been the truth.
Even so, it's none of my business.
In less than a year's time, I will be enrolling at the Royal Academy.
If possible, I'd like to have a fiancé before I do.
I don't want people around me whispering things like, "It's not as though she's the Prince's fiancée or anything."
It wasn't hard to imagine getting whispered about that way if I went in without one.
The Schteizen Duke's house is to be inherited by Carlos Onii-sama.
Since the title won't pass to me, if a betrothal isn't decided, I will only become a burden on the duke's house.
What's more, the more time passes, the fewer good candidates there will be.
In my case, unless I marry into the royal family, I will end up tied to a house ranked below that of the dukes.
There is one other duke's house besides the Schteizen, but the engagement of their heir has already been decided.
And since their family is in a rival faction, I'm unlikely to be tied to them anyway.
"Haa..."
How depressing. And Prince Leonhardt is a nuisance.
A man who I have never met before is casting dark clouds over my future.
"A house Otou-sama would accept, that the royal family cannot meddle with. If only I could form a betrothal with such a house..."
That narrowed down the candidates considerably.
I don't know who Prince Leonhardt wants to marry instead of me.
But if he rejected the betrothal with me for the reasons my Onii-sama mentioned, and on top of that, if my own betrothal was being squashed without any guarantee...
"It's been two years since the talks first came up. Whatever his motives may be, I have no obligation to play along."
Things could very well end up at, "Prince Leonhardt's fiancée has finally been decided. It is not you, Angelina. Since you were the spare, you may as well marry into one of the leftover men."
I refuse to accept that.
So, I decided to send a letter to "a certain house."
"Would you please form an alliance with me through marriage?" was what I wrote. I would sell myself to that house.
And so, that led to a marriage proposal being submitted to the Duke's house from "Margrave Baltzrein."
The northern margrave's house, the Baltzrein house.
The Baltzrein house does not guard the national border.
It was a peculiar house that protected the kingdom from the magical beasts that swarmed forth from the Great Northern Forest.
In a land of frequent battle, few young ladies wished to marry into that house, and few houses were willing to send their daughters there.
The Margrave's parents had apparently lost their lives several years ago, also from battle with the magical beasts.
So the present Margrave Baltzrein was a man who is only five years older than me.
One could say that he was awfully young to inherit a high-ranking title.
Due to such circumstances, the young Margrave had inherited his title without having a fiancée.
... This meant that Baltzrein was a dangerous place. So much so that even the previous head of the house and his wife had perished.
If a young lady with insufficient resolve married in, she would be nothing but a burden. But, I thought there was "meaning" in it.
If a Duke's house and a Margrave's house were to unite, the central government could lend support to an important house who plays a vital role in the kingdom's defense.
It would be the perfect political marriage. For our house, and for the kingdom too.
It would be nothing short of a 'waste' for a duke's daughter to be left behind because of the endless marriage talks with the royal family.
Even if I were to propose a marriage to a peaceful and respectful family, Otou-sama might refuse on the grounds that it was for my own sake alone, but...
A betrothal to a margrave wouldn't go that way.
If a young lady is chosen to marry into a family, there would be advantages for the royal family, the other houses, and our own house alike.
This is a marriage proposal that benefits everyone.
"Angelina. A marriage proposal has come in from Margrave Baltzrein house."
I was summoned to Otou-sama's office, where he relayed this to me.
"Please accept it, Otou-sama."
When I answered without hesitation, Otou-sama looked at me dubiously.
"That betrothal is one I proposed myself."
"You did, Angelina?"
"It seems the marriage talks with the royal family, between His Highness and myself, have hit a snag. So I took matters into my own hand. As a woman of the Schteizen house, perhaps I should wait on the royal family's answer, but... it has gone on far too long. Either the king, or Prince Leonhardt himself, has no intention of marrying me into the royal family. Isn't that right?"
"... It is."
Otou-sama knit his brow. He must have his own thoughts on the matter after all.
"There is no reason for me to keep going along with the slowness of their decision and the royal family's clumsiness in being unable to settle on a match with anyone other than me. For the sake of the kingdom's interests, and for the sake of our house, please proceed with my engagement to His Excellency Baltzrein, Otou-sama. Perhaps, once my engagement is decided, the royal family will finally get off their backsides? Once they lose the luxury of having me as a 'spare,' that should be a good thing for the royal family as well. Surely even you, Otou-sama, are not satisfied with the current situation either, are you?"
"... Indeed. It is just as you say, Angelina."
By the way, Carlos Onii-sama's engagement also hadn't been decided.
For him, the plan was probably to let him pick someone himself at the academy.
The smooth course of action would have been: finalise my engagement with Prince Leonhardt, secure the Schteizen Duke's house's position, and then arrange a marriage for Carlos Onii-sama with a young lady of an appropriate house.
In that scenario, his options for a partner would have been... well, to put it bluntly... "anyone he wanted to pick."
She would, after all, become the duchess of the queen's maternal house. Many young ladies would wish to be betrothed to Onii-sama.
Of course, Onii-sama's plan isn't exactly going according to plan.
Still, whoever marries Carlos Onii-sama will be the duchess.
Because of that, Onii-sama has more leeway than I do when it comes to his marriage arrangements.
"Baltzrein is a harsh land. You do understand that, do you not, Angelina?"
"No. I do not understand it yet, Otou-sama."
"... What did you say?"
"I have heard that the previous Margrave and his wife fell to the magical beasts. To say one understands such a land, one must first set foot in it, and see the magical beasts firsthand, and the people who fight them, and those who are wounded. I cannot lightly claim to 'understand' the pride of the partner I am to marry. That said, I believe I am prepared. However, that resolve will satisfy no one until I stand on the actual land. Including myself."
"... I see. That may very well be true."
"Yes, Otou-sama."
"Then before this engagement is formalised, you will go to Baltzrein. See and hear all you wish there, and reach your own answer. I grant you the right to decide whether to proceed with this engagement."
"Yes. Thank you, Otou-sama."
And so, half a year before I was to enroll at the Royal Academy, I set out to Baltzrein.
The one who greeted me upon my arrival was Margrave Ash Baltzrein.
... The man who would later become my "beloved husband."