Chapter 1: At the night gala.

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.

T/N: Found this while browsing Kakuyomu, and really enjoyed the story. Enjoy!

Also, I’ve already downloaded the raws and the story is complete. Don’t worry about this one disappearing!

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“Haah…”

“Don’t sigh. Every time you do, a piece of your good luck flies away,” one of my friends warned me.

“…I couldn’t help it,” I answered, feeling it was unavoidable.

At a night gala held for young aristocrats, my eyes chased one young girl surrounded by heaps of single men. Her name was Lulu Camell, and she was the second daughter of the Count of Camell, boasting radiant golden hair and emeralds for eyes. She was also Ruben Berner’s fiancé—my fiancé, two years younger than myself.

I’m the eldest son of the Count of Berner and was to marry her in the near future… Or at least I thought so.

“…My apologies, Lyla,” I turned to my other friend. “I don’t think I can keep this engagement going under these circumstances.”

“No, I’m sorry too… That foolish sister of mine has caused you so much trouble,” Lyla frowned, implying Lulu was also a headache to her. They were both sisters, though Lyla had sapphires for eyes instead. If her sister was described as the ‘cute type,’ then surely Lyla would be the ‘beautiful type.’

She and I remained close even after our graduation, partly because we were classmates and had the same age—I will turn 20 this year—and partly because we were good rivals who competed for grades every test since we were 12-year-olds.

“Well, that’s just the way it is,” the other friend, who warned me not to sigh just earlier, tapped me on the shoulder. He was Reinhard Andrea, the third son of the Marquise of Andrea, and Lyla’s fiancé. His platinum hair and deep ocean eyes gave him a rather ruthless image, but he was just a passionate man who loved his friends.

I’ve been classmates with him as well, but he was from a higher-ranked marquise family. Thus, I never thought he’d ever want to get along with me, given my pitchy-black hair and gloomy atmosphere.

However, since he and Lyla were engaged at such a young age, we had the opportunity to see each other more and more often, and now we were the closest of friends. We even called each other by nicknames, without any shred of formality: he called me ‘Rou’, and I called him ‘Rein’. No matter how long we’ve known each other, I still think the world’s a strange place every time I talk to him.

“My parents have agreed to respect my decision, but what about your parents, Lyla?”

“They are fine with it, but as for my grandparents… Not at all, to say the least.”

“I see…”

Lyla and Lulu’s parents, the current head of the Camell family and his wife, were good people. Lulu had a serious illness when she was very young, so her grandparents took care of her instead of the then-busy head of the family. However, even after she beat the disease, her grandparents still had a soft spot for her. So how could they ever allow their beloved Lulu to be ‘scarred’ by a broken engagement?

The former head of the Camell, her grandfather, still had a strong voice in the current state of affairs of his family due to how he took care of his granddaughter. However, she ended up getting spoiled by him and his wife, which is why she is the woman she is now.

“I’ll tell them about the breaking off tonight, but…”

“Oh, so Rou has finally made up his mind to break off the engagement!” Rein seemed happy, but it wasn’t time for celebration.

“I wish I could’ve solved this without inconveniencing the Camell family, at least…”

“What are you on about? She didn’t listen no matter how many times you warned her, and her grandparents keep spoiling and protecting her to no end! She’s not worth your concern.”

“…I’m worried because it’s Lyla’s family, and your future family too, rein. I do care.”

The Camell family has only two daughters, and it was decided the eldest—Lyla—would take over the reins of the family in the future. Rein was to be their son-in-law, so if something unsavory were to happen to their family, it would only burden the two. The last thing I want is to cause trouble for my dear friends.

An engagement is also a contract between two families. In particular, an espousal between nobles is closely related to the three warring factions in the country. The Camell family is of the royalist faction, and the Berner family is neutral. Though it wasn’t as important at the time, my engagement with Lulu was to balance the factions against the aristocratic faction, which has been gaining momentum in recent years.

The weight of breaking off a marriage instead of dissolving it is much heavier,

“I’m glad you care, Ruben, but you don’t have to shoulder the blame and cover yourself in mud.”

“Yeah, yeah! Don’t worry about the Camell family! Lyla and I will definitely keep things running.”

“…Thanks, you two.”

These two friends were dependable and bright people, and I was truly lucky to call them as such… Even so, had any of that luck remained for my love life?

Another sigh parted my lips as I saw my fiancé dancing in the center of the hall, whimsically coddling to another stranger.

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