Common Sense of a Duke’s Daughter - Chapter 259: The silence didn’t last for long
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Chapter 259: The silence didn’t last for long

The silence didnt last for long .

But it felt like quite the contrary .

Everyone was being suffocated by the heaviness of the serious atmosphere .

All right . If we can treat this as part of the reparations .

In this atmosphere, he finally sighed and said the above .

I quietly stifled my reactions of relief .

Immediately Tanya handed us the two documents, and we signed on them .

Done . Buttheres also items on this list that have imposed tariffs to limit their export?

Weve also had several items on our side with lowered tariffs . Dont you think this is a situation beneficial to us both in the long run?

Yesbut youve beat me to it . There were several items I wanted to open up when marrying you . So shall I treat this as your response?

Yes . Although I appreciate your good intentions, I must refuse .

Can you tell me the reason why?

First, its far too large of a burden to become a queen . As for the reason, you should understand that better than me .

Although he had obtained the throne, his position was still unstable .

Unlike our nations first princes decisive tactics, he still had factions hed yet to deal with .

As for other countriesalthough plucking a bride from the Tasmeria Kingdom was a generally effective way of helping his nation develop, what he needed more right now was domestic peace .

This was the conclusion I came to through Tanyas reports .

But since I didnt want to discuss the matter of interfering in national politics, I remained silent on that point .

Although to be quite frank, it was a little late for that .

Yes, I understand . Even though I understand, I still want you . If I can have you, Im willing to shoulder that burden .

His gaze pierced through me .

It made me feel as though he genuinely wanted me .

I didnt know if it was out of love or convenience, but he was telling the truth .

When he had proposed to me in the beginning, he already had designs to win the throne for himself .

Perhaps hed already foreseen this situation .

Even so, he still formally asked for my hand, meaning he had genuine interest in me .

Considering this, I was quite honestly scared to meet him here .

Even though you say thatthe second reason is that even if we use this opportunity to marry, what we gain will be negligible . I cant give any other benefits than the ones listed in this contract . Of course, if a marriage could bring further benefits to my territory, then that would be a different matter .

His only response was an exasperated smile .

Youre just raising the roof here, he must be thinking .

Of course, I wasnt one to deny that .

Well then, lets forget it . At this point, I think weve concluded the peace negotiations between the Acacia Kingdom and the Tasmeria Kingdom .

Yes, well hand Sir Jalal back to you, please take care of him . Shall I take you to him?

No, just lead the people waiting for me outside to his location .

Yes, your majesty .

Lady Iris, now were just having a friendly personal discussion . How do you feel about that?

I feel quite good . Having a good relationship with your nation is not just good for me, but also my country .

Under the assumption that were having a private discussion, may I ask you a question?

If its something I can answer .

What is the truth behind your rejection of my proposal?

The question he asked with a smile, left me dumbfounded in an instant .

Honestly I hadnt expected him to just ask the question outright .

Looking at me as I bit my lip, debating how to respond, his smile only deepened .

Even if he knew the truth already, he was quite the villain for tormenting me for the sake of it .

Weve already confirmed this is a private discussion, right? No matter what you say to me, I wont be angry . Just treat it as the final desperate plea from a difficult man whos had a proposal to his dream lady denied .

What an irritating question .

I exhaled . My mother, sitting by me, was still smiling .

Isnt marriage your duty? This is something that your countryno, any country treats as the duty of the nobility? Right now you cant have better prospects than me, correct? Prince Majid said .

Yes . I wont deny that . Right now there arent any other noble parties near my age . If after rejecting your proposal I dont manage to find a suitable candidate, I think Ill eventually depart from Duke Armenias family and live on my own, running the merchants guild for a living . Helping out at the orphanage would be quite fulfilling too .

Iris

My mother said this worriedly . I looked at her with a smile .

I had already made my decisions . After ending my engagement with Edward and returning home, I had realized I wouldnt be able to marry anyone .

Although the situation had changedif I didnt want to get married my only choice was to leave home .

I couldnt inherit the territory . If Bern ended up getting married and inheriting our land, I would just be an irritating presence .

But even so I wouldnt have married you . Because Prince Majidyou struck out against us, didnt you? Attacking our territory .

Ohso you did realize .

I only smiled in reaction to his words .

This was the intel wed gathered from interrogating the first prince, plus what Id learned from Tanya .

Because we didnt have direct proof, there was a high risk of mentioning this information during the actual negotiations . But it seemed like we were right after all .

The person who ordered the eastern invasions was indeed Prince Majid .

Someone who hurt my beloved peoplehow could I marry someone like that? Even if I have to leave this home, Ill still be me . Even if I turn into just Iris, all alone, Ill still work for the development of this land .

I glared at him .

He responded in kind .

And so we stayed like that, neither of us speaking .

It was as if we were trying to read each others hearts .

Well, its my loss then . Lets remain good neighbors, then .

Finally he stood up, saying this with a sigh .

Thank you . The feeling is mutual .

To escort him away, I stood up as well .

Although Im departing this time, this doesnt mean Ive given up . The moment you show a hint of weakness, Ill be here to take you away .

He grabbed my hands when he said this .

Ah, how scary . But this is encouragement for me . Ill try my best to become independent in my own territory .

He smiled bitterly and left the room .