Chapter 5

“U-Um, are you alright? Can you stand?”

I helped the fallen Nazelbert to his feet, supporting his wobbling frame.

Seeing this, the Princess let an ill-natured smirk cross her lips.

“An out-of-date dress and makeup that is far too thick. You must be that rumored Potato Lady, Agnes Eventail.”

“…Pardon?”

I turned toward the Princess, staying on guard for whatever she might say next.

It didn’t feel like I had simply earned her resentment by defying her; it felt like she had some other underlying motive.

As expected, the Princess leveled a shocking decree at Nazelbert and me.

“This is perfect. I shall now announce Nazelbert’s punishment.”

“Punishment…?”

“His sentence is banishment to the frontier. And his wife shall be none other than this ugly Potato Lady!”

—Wait, what!? Me? Why!?

The venue erupted into a localized frenzy. Everyone’s eyes were glued to us, filled with voyeuristic curiosity.

—Is marrying me really considered a punishment on that level?

I have to admit, that actually hurt my feelings quite a bit.

Still, I couldn’t exactly snap back at the Princess to her face. Feeling incredibly sorry for Nazelbert, I simply stayed quiet to endure the moment.

I chose to believe that His Majesty the King would surely step in and fix this mess.

“You absolute disgrace!”

The moment we returned to our townhouse in the Royal Capital, my father’s fist came flying. Unable to dodge in time, I was sent slamming into the wall with enough force to make my entire body ache.

Far from helping me, my mother joined in the verbal assault, siding with my father.

“Agnes, I told you, didn’t I!? I told you to choose Viscount Bree’s son! Instead, why have you ended up having to marry a criminal who offended Her Highness!? How pathetic!”

“You fool! This happened because you had to go and butt in at a time like that! Now that you’ve been ordered to marry in front of everyone… no noble house will ever consider taking you as a bride again!”

I could do nothing but hang my head in silence.

To be honest, I didn’t think any house had been considering me for a bride in the first place.

My parents, being so out of touch with information, might have only realized it today, but I was already the “Potato Lady”—the laughingstock of high society.

“Agnes, you are disowned! Leave the House of Eventail this instant!!”

“T-That’s…”

—That’s so unreasonable!

It was already late enough to be called the middle of the night.

Furthermore, if I was to leave the house, I needed time to pack and prepare. I had to think about what I would even do after I was gone.

“Father, please. At least wait a little longer.”

And if possible, please cool your head and take back the disownment.

“Shut up! You are no daughter of mine!”

His face flushed a deep crimson, my father grabbed my arm by force and dragged me toward the exit of the mansion.

—Ow, that hurts! I said it hurts!

Refusing to listen to a word I said, he handed me over to the soldiers stationed outside.

The soldiers guarding the estate looked bewildered to have someone like me suddenly thrust upon them.

“Throw this girl out past the gates!”

“…!?”

Look at that. These poor soldiers are frozen in place, having no clue what to do with me.

“You lot, move it! Or do you want to be fired!?”

However, that one shout from my father seemed to snap them back to reality, and they hurriedly began to lead me away. I didn’t have nearly enough physical strength to resist a soldier.

It’s not like I’m some elite magic user who can go on a rampage, either.

While I was busy thinking that, the soldiers carrying me moved toward the gate.

Just like that, I was unceremoniously tossed outside, hitting the ground palms-first from the momentum.

“Ah…!”

Heartlessly, the heavy iron gates slammed shut right before my eyes. Getting back inside was impossible.

Even if the gates were to open again, the soldiers likely wouldn’t let me back onto the grounds.

When my father gets like this, he is stubborn and severe; lingering in front of the mansion would surely be a waste of time. He was serious.

“What am I going to do? I was kicked out empty-handed. I’m still in my dress… even if I wanted to make the rounds to my relatives’ houses, they’re all at their country estates, which are several days away by carriage.”

Dragging my heavy dress behind me, I walked through the city at night in my grandmother’s shoes, which had absurdly high heels.

To be honest, I had no idea how the capital was laid out.

The price for being a shut-in at the mansion all this time was finally coming due. I didn’t even have a single close acquaintance in the Royal Capital.

Even if I did, they probably wouldn’t take in someone who had become the center of such a scandal.

“Seriously, what am I supposed to do now?”

Wandering through the streets under the moonlight, I eventually found myself in front of a large plaza. I wasn’t even sure of the path I had taken to get here.

There weren’t many people around now, but the crowd would pick up once morning came.

Fortunately, the public order in the capital was supposedly quite good, so I decided to wait until it got light out to look for someone I could rely on.

“It’s not like I can think of a better plan.”

I sat down on the edge of a fountain and gazed up at the sky over the quiet, sleeping city.

Only the golden stars and the silver moon watched over me and my hopeless situation.

“At least the weather is nice. That’s a relief.”

I felt a slight chill and began rubbing my arms with my hands when I heard the clack-clack of someone walking across the cobblestones.

When I looked toward the sound, an unexpectedly beautiful figure was standing there in the shadows. I thought I was seeing things at first, but given the expensive quality of the clothes, I was certain it was him.

“…Lord Nazelbert?”

When I timidly called out to him, the figure gave a nod along with a faint smile.