"Your engagement has been decided."
Father called me out and broke the news.
"Ahm, isn't it different from what we decided on? I'm just the fourth son, soon to become a commoner, so aren't I entitled to choose my partner myself, at the very least?"
It was too abrupt, and it sounded like it was already set in stone, so I protested, of course.
"Hm. That was the plan, indeed. Sorry, but it has to change today."
"Huh, why does it have to turn out that way."
I was exasperated at this arbitrary decision making, and I couldn't hide it from my tone as I asked my father again.
I was exasperated at this arbitrary decision making, and I couldn't hide it from my tone as I asked my father again.
"A letter of betrothal consultation came in today. That's the reason why the plan changed so suddenly. Your partner is Lady Anastasia Sevensworth, the only beloved daughter and apple of the eye of Duke Sevensworth."
"Duke Sevensworth!!?"
I was stupefied when Father dropped the infamous name like a bomb. There wasn't a single person in this country who didn't know the name of that noble house.
"That's right. The letter was penned by the most noble House. We're just a mere viscount, so there's no way we can refuse this. It is already set in stone."
It seemed that I would be married into the House of Duke Sevensworth.
"Another thing. It has been decided that the Duke and Duchess of Sevensworth will visit us with their daughter next month."
'Whaaat!? No no, isn't that too awkward? They're way above our league, so we should be the one to visit them."
"The Duke wanted it that way. Alright, you have to show your utmost sincerity, alright? You understand our situation, don't you? We don't have any right to refuse, but they are still going out of their way to visit us. It'd be unreasonable if you don't prepare something for her to take home, alright? As for the Young Miss, any other answer aside from 'yes' is unforgivable, got it?"
Father emphasized his words again.
"No need to worry. I know that much, even if I'm just like this. If I said no, then we won't have any place in this country, right."
Actually, the Duke was really famous for his tremendous power.
There was no way we could go against them.
"If you have any problems with women, do something about it before they come, alright? You can use all the money you need."
"Yeah. I'm a blank slate when it comes to women, so you don't have to worry about it."
I retorted at Father's useless concern.
My family was over the moon when they learned that we would become relatives with such a noble family.
Only my mother was in a panic, since she was in charge of receiving the visitors.
By the way, I accepted the fact that my entire life was going to change, and I actually looked forward to it.
As for why, let me tell you frankly - I had the memories of my previous life.
I had worked in a single company from the time I was hired until I retired.
Being a long term salary man had its perks - you learned to swallow all unreasonable demands without objection, and you would also be compelled to be involved in absurd situations countless of times.
The fervent spirit of youth was already crushed to pulp until it disappeared by the age of retirement.
I no longer had that rebellious desire to go against authority.
It was much more comfortable accepting the status quo and giving your best in the situation you were currently in - I already knew that very well.
I am Zhinorius Adorni.
The fourth son of the destitute, nominal Viscount Adorni.
We were more or less part of the nobility, but it was inevitable for the fourth son to become a commoner in the future, right.
If the aristocrat was affluent, then the rest of the sons could still remain in their House to aid the eldest son when he inherited the title.
However, we didn't have the financial means to have such a leeway.
Not to mention the fourth son, even the eldest son wasn't sure whether he would receive any inheritance at all.
That's why I had to leave our house, stand on my own two feet and fend for myself.
Usually, aristocratic sons would hate their fallen state, so they would do their best to become part of the chivalric order as a knight, praying that a knight peerage would be bestowed on them eventually.
However, I didn't have the slightest aversion to becoming a commoner.
As for why, again, it's all due to my memories of my previous world, when I worked as a person with no status in our company.
I could live as a business-man because of this knowledge, so I actually wanted to become a fallen noble.
In order to prepare for that day, I borrowed just a little bit of capital from my parents and started my trade when I turned ten.
My starting capital was far from huge, but thanks to my previous memories — which could be considered as a cheat skill, I guess — my startup business had rapidly grown this past six years.
Father even acknowledged my ability when my business boomed, and he even consulted me regarding the management of our territory.
He applied the innovative solutions I offered him, so our territory, which had been on the verge of collapse, was revived somehow.This world was far more behind in terms of development when compared to my previous world, so even the information I garnered by reading the newspapers when I became an employee was already ground-breaking stuff for them.
My trade was a success, and the fief management was also great, so I was lionized.Because of that, I caught the attention of the House of Duke Sevensworth.
Because of that, I caught the attention of the House of Duke Sevensworth.
They only had one daughter, so they were probably looking for a son who could marry into their family.
I was at the same age as the Young Lady, and not to brag, but I was also good-looking.
On top of that, I possessed an ability that was enough for me to be lionized, so I guess that's the reason why their target was me.
The Sevensworth family was one of the pillars of nobility, and was the chief among the dukes, and they were said to be second to the royal family when it came to power.
Under normal circumstances, they would never set their sight on the fourth son of a poor viscount, which was equivalent to a splinter compared to their greatness, no matter how excellent that lad was.
However, that family had undergone severe hardship in finding a groom.
As for the reason — it was because the Duke's Young Miss was a hideous woman, and she was called the "Young Lady Goblin" by all.
◆◆◆◆◆
"This is the first time we meet. I am Anastasia, the eldest daughter of the House of Sevensworth."
The girl with the lovely silver hair performed the perfect curtsey in front of me.
This person was my fiance
That turtle-neck dress she was wearing was a luxury item, and it was obvious at a single glance.
The base color was lilac, and the A-line skirt with delicate flowers were parted in the middle. She was wearing another skirt made from layers and layers of snow-white lace underneath. The chest area and hem of the dress were studded with gems, and the jewels on the hem looked like stars in the night sky.
The lace skirt was also delicately woven, and it was truly magnificent.
It exuded calmness, and you could see the superb handiwork that was used to create her clothes.
Her accessories also matched the color of her dress, and I could see that she chose modesty.
However, it was 'conservative' for aristocrats with high status like her.
The sapphire on her pearl and sapphire choker was as big as a chicken egg, and it was the biggest one I'd ever seen.
It was probably one of those celebrated jewels that would be named after some sort of star or constellation or whatnot, and even if we sold our mansion and entire properties of the House of Adorni, we would never be able to buy a single piece of gem from that choker.
Lady Anastasia wasn't the only one who was being reserved. Even the Duke and the Duchess were the same.
They were probably being considerate so that we wouldn't be intimidated, or they were humble enough to look plain altogether.
Still, I was a businessman.
Just a single glance, and I could tell how absurdly expensive those 'plain' outfits were.
I could keenly feel the vast difference between the Duke's House and our status as the Viscount.
They call her "Young Lady Goblin", but I think it was probably some sort of illness.
She has a huge bump the size of a ping pong ball on one side of her exposed neck, so it looked like her face and neck didn't have a gap at all.
She also had a bump on her eyelid, so her distorted face looked like she had been punched on the face by someone.
Her nose bridge was also full of lumps, so i didn't have a slightest idea what her nose looked like originally.
Her eyes were the same calm green as the duchess
.Both the duke and the duchess were beautiful people, so if she didn't have those bumps, then she was probably as gorgeous as them.
Just as her nickname implied, her skin was white and mottled with green.
That half-baked whiteness looked really uncanny, to the point that the green looked better.
I didn't mind her appearance in the slightest.
The reason was simple.
I was also a very famous Kimomen in my previous life.
Not a single girl wanted to be my dance partner when I was still in school.
Whenever a girl dropped something and I picked it up, she would cry as if she was scalded, and she would throw whatever object that was into the trash can.
"I heard you have a super Kimomen in your school."
"Yup yup, we do have that. Look, there he goes."
I also overheard someone talking about me that way.
I didn't have the courage to look at them.
"Hey. Isn't that guy the worst ever?"
"Ugh, so disgusting! What's that? Whoa, he's looking at us!"
There was also a group of girls who laughed while pointing at me.
As long as the girls were participating in drinking parties after work, they would never invite me there.
All I experienced was severe discrimination from the moment I was born until I died of old age.
I already knew how painful it was. Besides, I couldn't change my appearance just for the sake of their approval, just so that they would change their treatment of me, nor did I want to.
Of course, it didn't mean that I was totally fine with my ugliness right from the get go.
I would unconsciously chase after the
figures of beautiful people with my eyes, then I would feel self-loathing whenever I caught myself doing that.
However, there came a time when I no longer followed them with my gaze after repeating that for a few decades.
I could also distinguish beauty objectively among the women.
Even if I saw a pretty lady, I would only classify her as such, but I would no longer feel attracted, not even in the slightest.
It happened before I noticed it
But there was one thing that I promised myself. I would never fall to the level of those who mocked me.
This Kimomen pride turned me into what I currently am.
After greeting each other, both our parents, Lady Anastasia and I engaged in pleasant chit-chat.
Because the great pillar of nobility went out of their way to visit us, our entire house couldn't help but feel really nervous.
However, the Duke and Duchess seemed at ease as they navigated our conversation skillfully, and it seemed that they were used to dealing with lowly nobles like us.
As our conversation continued on, I had somehow grasped the character of my soon-to-be betrothed. Lady Anastasia was smart, elegant, and she would never let the person before her feel inferior.
I also noticed how deep the relationship was within the Duke's family.
Actually, I thought that compared to us poor nobles who were raised by our own parents because we couldn't even afford to hire a wet nurse, those nobilities who had their own wet nurses would probably feel distant to their parents.
However, this family was even closer to each other than us.
My fiancée was kind and she also displayed sagacity, and my future in-laws were deeply affectionate people.
I was glad that I received such a great proposal.
I smoothed my chest down.
I never married in my previous life. I died as an old bachelor who lived a solitary life.
While my friend was surrounded with children and grandchildren during the lantern festivals, I would eat my rice cakes and New Year Soup all alone, and I would also watch the special programme all alone.
It was already hard for my weak knees to walk and visit my friend's home, so I ended up spending all those holidays by myself.
It was painful spending all those solitary
days alone with no one to talk to, so I would have never chosen to live that long had I known that it would continue on until the day I would die.
If I would become a part of this warm family, then this time around, I would be extremely
blessed compared to my previous life.