I Became the Madam of The House - Chapter 1

A black cloth hanging from the ceiling. Two people- a brother and sister, were seen in mourning clothes.

“I can’t imagine how heartbroken you must have felt.”

Such empty words flowed from the passing nobles who did not care about the Leire siblings at all. Instead, they were only interested in the enormous inheritance of their parents that fell on top of the sibling’s head.

“Once Lady Archel turns 20-years-old, it’s possible to hold her coming-of-age ceremony.”

“And then the first thing to do is to deliver the flowers…” The crowds continued to talk despite the grieving atmosphere. Archel, who heard that, bit her lips to suppress her boiling anger.

Those people were going to put someone to become her husband when she became an adult. Even though she’s only 17 years old, those people were already talking about the event set three years in the future. As if it already decided.

‘I can’t just stand still.’ Archel bowed her head and gritted her teeth.

“…sister.” A familiar voice calling out to her. She then glanced at the source of the voice.

Her brother who turned 13 years old this year, Michael, gripped her hand tightly. The tiny hand clasped Archel’s hand, which was slightly bigger than his. It was a desperate grip as if he was barely holding on to a branch on the edge of a cliff.

“Don’t cry.” A resolute voice was heard from Archel’s mouth.

‘People will look at you when you cry.’ She whispered gently to her little brother. Michael took his breath slowly and fixed his mind, “…Yes, I won’t cry, sister.”

“It’s not because I was embarrassed. A kid can cry too.” Archel tried to appease him while holding Michael tightly and stroking his hair.

“But when we cry, people will think easy of us. We..” She paused for a moment,  swallowed her breath, and spoke again, “We only have each other now. There’s no one to trust.”

“How about those people?”  A feeble cry rang in her ears. Then she nodded her head and answered.

“Yeah. Except me and you, don’t put your trust in anyone. Those people don’t feel sorry for us at all.”

“Then?” At his innocent question, once again Archel braces herself to say the truth, “They desire our parent’s inheritance.”

She said that while trying to hide Michael from all the lustful gazes directed at them. It was cruel to tell a child who was only 13-year-old about the harsh truth, but it was better than having Michael know nothing about it and feeling betrayed when he learned the truth later on.

“Then,” She could feel that Michael leaned his neck closer and spoke, “All of them, are they bad people?”

“Yes.” She answered straightforwardly and nodded her head, “Think of them as our enemy.”

“Enemy…” Michael’s words were trailed off weakly as his mind was occupied by the unfamiliar word.

‘It was up to us -no-  it’s up to me to find allies among them.’ Archel thought internally. She then hugged Michael’s tiny body again.

Before she was transmigrated here, she had an older sister on the earth. They lost their parents early, and for her sake, her sister gave up her college entry and got a job instead. Without a single tear, the older sister who gave up on her college life and her friends to work day and night for their livelihood was forced to grow into an adult too early. The one who matures too early, eventually gets abandoned quickly and falls apart. It was the fate of her sister.

‘Did my sister also feel like this at our parent’s funeral?’

Reminiscence of her past-life flashed briefly before her eyes. Then Archel took Michael off her shoulder. To avoid people’s gaze, she covered his reddish eyes and whispered softly, “…Michael, I’ll protect you.”

I’ll protect you no matter what. So don’t cry. Michael nodded his head at the soft whispering voice.

“Then me too, I’ll protect you, sister.”Michael’s little arms wrapped around her neck as he continued to speak, “From the enemy.”

Archel hugged her 13-year-old brother, a brief thought came across her mind whether her young and naive brother knew who exactly the said enemy was.

However, Archel has no idea. Michael with his dead-pan expression, cast a cold gaze while looking down on the nobles that were talking about his sister’s marriage. That child at least knew exactly what the enemy was and who it was. On that day, the enemy and allies were clearly mapped out in Michael’s mind.

And his ally was only one person. It was his older sister, Archel.

———-

‘I’ll protect you no matter what. So that your future will not be ruined.’

Archel swore an oath to Michael on the day of their parent’s funeral. Then she thought to herself, ‘If I must get married, I will find my own marriage partner.’

She had her status as Countess Leire and the head of the family, and countless islands belonging to the state of the Leire County, that she would inherit once she became an adult.

Before she possessed the body, she already read the whole book and was well-versed in the knowledge about this world. Although she couldn’t read the complete story, she knew the continent’s condition like the back of her hand so she could instantly think about who is her ideal marriage partner.

‘The Dukedom of Zenat.’

The famous dukedom with a vast maritime territory. A noble family that was wrapped in a veil and well-hidden, whose real headquarters is on an island.

Around this time, their family would be under pressure to accept the emperor’s marriage request. Moreover, the 20-year-old duke, who had a slim chance of succeeding ever since he was young, doesn’t listen to the talks at all.

‘Because he doesn’t trust people.’

With a personality that extremely abhorred to be caught in a state of uncertainty, he would welcome this marriage offer.

‘It’s because I don’t love him.’

‘I don’t want the inheritance, I just want to keep my marriage life until my brother meets a good woman and marries her.’

And The Duke of Zenat, Gael Von Zenat, will be liberated from the pressure of the imperial family. Then when the time comes, we’ll get divorced.

‘Isn’t this a perfect deal?’

Their surroundings were filled with those who wanted to take advantage of them and snatch their inheritance, anyway.

‘We need to survive.’ Archel thought, her face was brimming with the new-found determination, ‘I need to head to Zenat Dukedom tomorrow.’

It didn’t matter if they cursed her as a child who left to find a marriage partner a day after her parent’s funeral.

Because in her mind, survival was more important than reputation.