"We'll be selling our nobility title Suzanne, henceforth you'll be joining the Lustwood household as its first Duchess, " A man with silver colored hair dressed in a tuxedo uttered while holding the hands of an eighteen year old girl.
"Huh?" Seeing her father and mother standing before her with their eyes streaming with tears before hugging her tightly, Suzanne couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
'Huh?... Why?... I thought... ' Confused by what she was hearing, a million questions swarmed into her mind. Suzanne knew her father's fashion industry had recently been declining for over two months now but she didn't think her family's problem could get any worse.
Moreover she had never heard of any peerage titles been sold before. After all, the titles were afforded to a selected few families by the Imperial family themselves. They've never been a record of titles been sold in the past. And now theirs was about to be sold in the next twenty four hours.
They were the highest level of the aristocracy hierarchy so it would surely take a fortune for anyone to convince the Empress to agree the sale of such a title.
She didn't expect that her family's desperation to improve their financial situation would result to them going to such a length.
"We only want what's best for you Suzanne. With the situation we find ourselves in, This is the safest bet we could offer you." Her father continued.
"Best for me? If it's the best then why didn't you guys inform me of your intentions before planing out my future without my consent," Suzanne snapped while shoving her parents off her.
"Try to understand my dear. Your boyfriend has clearly proven to us that he has your best interest in mind, we couldn't be more proud knowing we are leaving you in safe hands. We hope to sell the title with the aim of starting over. We'll surely strive harder to reclaim our family's honor once more." Suzanne's jet black haired mother uttered with tears in her eyes.
With Damon Lustwood being a dashingly handsome eighteen year old young man. Suzanne had met Damon by 'fate' in a restaurant where they 'accidentally bumped' into each other. Drinks spilled on his clothing and with Suzanne being well versed in anything fashion, she was able to immediately discern what quality of clothes Damon was wearing.
Long story short, both became acquainted after such event. Days passed by and both have been in contact with one another ever since. To Suzanne, Damon had every quality a woman would want in a man.
His charming looks, his ginger colored hair and seductively teal blue eyes, his well built physique coupled with the fact that he seemed to come from a family of growing affluence.
All this attracted her to him more but still she knew her limits, she had yet to give her heart to him completely because of her growing concern about her parents company.
Weeks went by and Damon noticed her continual fleeting depression, this led Suzanne to explain the predicament her family currently found themselves in. Unbeknownst to her, her family's wealth had begun to deteriorate at an alarming rate.
Damon decided to offer her a chance to save her parents company by investing in it, this led to her introducing Damon to her family. Of course, it brought great joy to everyone's ears and eventually Suzanne was dubbed Damon's girlfriend by everyone in her household.
Alas, the calm was just before the storm. Things became more difficult and chaotic for Suzanne's household later on, enabling her family to have no choice but to sell both their company and their peerage title.
"This was why we sold it to him. So that you can continue our legacy. Please my daughter, there is no other choice."
Rather than marrying her off to someone she doesn't know, her parents felt it would be better to let her be with someone she introduced to them herself.
A month later, she was wed into the Lustwood household and on the day of her wedding was when Suzanne noticed something bizzare happening to her.
"Huh? What is this?" Dressed in a sparkling wedding gown, Suzanne was befuddled to see a golden ring been offered to her.
"Oh it's nothing. It's a sort of tradition in my family. I hope you don't mind its appearance," Damon relayed with a huge smile on his face as he places the ring into Suzanne's finger.
At that moment, Suzanne saw a fleeting image of two golden cuffs shaped like bracelets, clutched tightly to her wrists. The cuffs immediately vanished together with the ring right after she blinked.
"Did you see that?" Shocked to her core, Suzanne's entire being trembled by what she saw. She immediately shifted her gaze towards Damon to inquire.
"See what?" Surprised by her reaction, he asked back.
Noticing the way he looked at her, Suzanne thought he really didn't see it. She shifted her gaze towards the priest who stood as a witness before their marriage. But he cocked his head sideways to indicate he didn't see anything either.
'Was it all just an hallucination?' She pondered but the weights her hands felt said otherwise.
Eventually she informed her parents but both didn't see anything either. It's normal for couples to decide if they want to showcase their rings or not. By focusing a bit of mana towards their hands, they are able to allow their respective rings to be shown to everyone around them.
But by doing the opposite, the ring vanishes from everyone sights. But the wielder is still able to feel the ring on his/her finger.
"Maybe you're just nervous. It's understandable since it's your wedding day. " Suzanne's mother uttered. Suzanne decided to heed her mother's words.
Weeks passed by after the wedding and Suzanne was shocked to hear an unanticipated news about her family. They were killed by bandits on their way during a business trip across inter realms.
The news affected her but seeing as how she couldn't take it anymore and there wasn't any reason for her to stay in the Lustwood household, she decided to inform Damon of her desire for a divorce. After all, everything felt weird for her since the beginning of their marriage.
And it had only being a few weeks since they were married, so what's the harm in cutting their ties.