Jared, confined in a dark room, desperately tried to escape, but all his efforts ended in vain.
Even knowing he was wasting his stamina, he couldn’t give up and continued to resist.
“If it were me, I wouldn’t resist to conserve my stamina, Jared.”
“Leonard!”
The door opened, and light from the hallway spilled into the room. As Leonard Gallagher lit a lamp, Jared’s vision cleared.
“Now, come in.”
“Who are those children?”
From behind the rebel, five girls, close in age to Jared, appeared.
“They are the daughters of fellow ducal and count families. They are the ones who will be your wives. Now, introduce yourselves.”
“Don’t mock me, Leonard!”
“At least call me Leonard. It’s not admirable to speak to your superiors so disrespectfully.”
“If you were someone I respected, I would have changed my attitude long ago.”
As Jared rattled his chains to intimidate Leonard, the latter remained as casual as if conversing with a friend.
“Hmm. So you’ll resist with your words at least? How brave. To sacrifice yourself for your non-magician fiancé—you are gravely injured.”
“Hah, I’m less injured than your head.”
No matter how much he provoked Leonard, his demeanor didn’t falter. It was the attitude of a victor, which irritated Jared.
“You’re free to resist, but it’s you who will suffer. I’ll give you a word of advice. Now, returning to the matter at hand, choose one of these girls.”
“What?”
Unable to comprehend what was being said, he stared intently at the girls. Being young ladies from noble families, all five were dressed in beautiful attire. From cute to dignified, they were all beautiful girls who would surely delight any boy their age. Some offered smiles in this situation, while others wore expressions of displeasure or reluctance to be there.
“What do I do after I choose?”
“You will take the one you choose first as your main wife, and the remaining four as consorts.”
“Hah—are these girls your puppets? How pathetic.”
At Jared’s words, the girls trembled.
“Watch your mouth. They desire this too. For example, they were born into a magican family but their parents are non-magicians, so their family would be in danger if they couldn’t build a good relationship with you. Or perhaps, they simply desire your excellent children and wish to be your wife. Perhaps you don’t know, but there were even those who wished to become consorts but were crushed by Olivier Alway.”
He didn’t deny that there had been those who desired to be consorts, but he had no interest. He believed that he would spend his life with Olivier and his current family. He knew that becoming a Court Mage might lead to many offers for consorts, but he never imagined he’d be held captive by rebels and made to attend arranged marriages.
“They’re not doing this of their own free will, are they?”
“That’s how noble marriages often are. My wife and I were also married by our parents’ decision, and we were quite happy. You never know until you get married.”
Leonard’s words, tinged with nostalgia, held no hint of falsehood. This, however, made Jared question him further.
“If you were so happy, you shouldn’t have started a rebellion. If you lose, your entire family will be executed.”
“Of course, I’m aware of that. However—I have no intention of losing.”
Jared couldn’t fathom where Leonard’s confidence stemmed from. He couldn’t even predict what they would use to achieve victory. He couldn’t imagine the end point of this rebellion that had suddenly begun.
“From now on, I will give you time with each of your future wives individually. Perhaps you might develop feelings for them.”
One by one, the girls entered the room from behind Leonard.
“Impossible. Do you think I can develop feelings for people I’ve just met?”
“Is that so? Olivier Alway wasn’t the person you wished for either, was she? Yet, after learning of her circumstances, living together, you developed feelings for her. Therefore, if you learn of the circumstances of the girls you met today, there’s no reason why you couldn’t develop feelings for them.”
Jared couldn’t answer. While he admired how thoroughly they had investigated, he had to admit that what they were saying might not be entirely wrong.
“Or is it that, for Jared Murphy, only Olivier Alway is special?”
Jared didn’t have an answer to that. After all, he himself didn’t understand why he was so drawn to Olivier.
