Read Novel Full Chapter 48
Chapter 48
Engagement and Traditions
Hearing Ricardo’s father’s words, Francesca eyes widened with shock.
(Engagement? Me? With whom?……….Eh? WHAT!?!?)
With every blink, the words that she had heard became more and more clearer.
(……..me and Ricardo, getting engaged?……..)
“Father………”
Even Ricardo gulped in surprise as he looked towards his father sitting beside him.
(UEHHHHHHHHHH!?!?)
She honestly wanted to praise herself for not screaming out loud in astonishment.
(Wait wait wait, Aren’t I currently engaged with Leonardo right now!? Well, even if I am trying to annul that engagement, but still…..!!)
“Firstly, explain things in order to my daughter, Serranova.”
Sitting beside Francesca who was simply opening and closing her mouth, her father’s eyes turned even colder as he spoke.
“——-I have not decided to agree to your proposition just yet.”
“………”
With a voice so low it could crawl on the ground, his words froze the atmosphere in the room. Her father took in another long drag of the cigarette held between his fingers.
“……..That was rude of me, allow me to start from the very beginning.”
Ricardo’s father exhaled lightly.
“Just as you all know, a very strange incident occurred during the night party a couple days ago. The attendees lost their minds, and violently began to go berserk in the hall.”
Ricardo’s father looked towards her, and she inadvertently straightened her back.
Even if he knew that she was there, that doesn’t mean he knew that she had used her skills to solve the situation but still, she felt a little a little unpleasant and awkward.
“Our Serranova household is also investigating this incident as well. After all we were both there, at the party, when this incident happened.”
“Hmph. Good work, I suppose.”
“But, Calvino. The truth is that this detailed investigation is worthless since I saw the truth with my very own eyes.”
Ricardo’s father lay his clasped hands on top of the table and then spoke.
“In that place, he was also there, Aldini’s greenhorn. Leonardo Valentino Aldini, that is.”
(……..but if that’s your reasoning then..)
Francesca, inside her mind, began to ponder further.
(Ricardo was also there, so was Papa and Graziano as well………)
They were all people related in some way to the [game’s protagonist] Francesca.
(Any of those could technically be the real mastermind as well. It’s not like Leonardo was the only suspicious person there………I don’t want to doubt anyone here, I really do trust them but, I need to resolve myself beforehand against the fact that someone I care for might turn out to be my enemy, and that’s a fact.)
Without letting anyo0ne else notice, she took a small, but deep breath.
But her father saw her, and worriedly asked her about her well being.
“Are you okay? Francesca?”
“Papa……..”
Her father instantly put his cigarette away worried for her, and seeing that made her respond with a smile.
“Thank you, I was a bit shocked, but I am fine. No need to worry.”
Seeing her father like that, quickly calmed down her shaking heart.
(——-I need to think about this calmly. If us villains that never abide by the normal laws were to lose their ability to think, it’ll all be over. I need to calm down and rethink how to deal with this situation. This event should still mostly follow the general framework of the meeting from the game.)
In this world, Francesca has been fighting a long but peaceful battle to annul her engagement with Leonardo. But in the game, things were a lot simpler.
After all, once her kidnapping incident and the drug incident came to light, after the chaos of the party, they all conveniently decided that [Leonardo was behind it all] and called it a day.
And by this logic, Leonardo would seem as someone who was breaking the Iron Code that the families are meant to follow.
And so, their engagement was broken with the excuse that Leonardo was not suitable as Francesca’s partner. And once the engagement was broken, Francesca would have the freedom to build relationships and deepen bonds with all the other characters available in the game.
The annulment of their engagement in the game happened just before the [meeting] with Ricardo’s family. While the events had gone out of order here, the details were still mostly the same.
(This proposition to get engaged to Ricardo instead, must be a replacement for the original engagement break-off event…………yeah, alright. I think I finally have a good grasp of the situation.)
Having calmed herself down like that, it won’t be too hard for her to guess what comes next.
Reminding herself that, Francesca finally spoke up.
“Lord Serranova. With all due respect, would you mind if I ask you some question as well?”
Hearing his name called out, Ricardo’s father looked a bit surprised to see Francesca look all calm and collected. But soon after, he gave a wry smile and then spoke.
“No need to be so formal, especially here girl. After all, there’s a possibility that I might become your father-in-law so you can talk to me like you would with a relative.”
“Oi, Serranova.”
“Papa, calm down!……….then, uncle Serranova-sama.”
Francesca rephrased herself and then began to ask her questions.
“Uncle, do you see Leonardo as someone dangerous I presume?”
“I do indeed. Aldini’s skills are all still a secret but, I can only think of him as someone capable of instigating the events that happened in the party that night.”
“So I am right to believe that you think that Leonardo would cause an even bigger incident in the future then?”
“Yes. That is why I came here today to hopefully bind our families in an alliance, so that we can fight against him when the time comes.”
Ricardo’s father smiled, and looked at Francesca.
“Don’t you also want to get away from the clutches of that brat?”
“…….!”
Hearing that, Francesca could only gasp.
“Bu-But, my engagement with Leonardo was built atop a blood signed contract. To break it off one-sidedly would go against our Code.”
“………there is one way, a [tradition] to avoid breaking the Code as well.”
“Ricardo?”
He had been quiet until now, but Ricardo suddenly spoke up, surprising Francesca.
Ricardo pressed down on his forehead, and spoke as if he was already very tired.
“A way to steal someone’s bride, A [Duel].”
“Ah………..!”
Hearing a word that she had some recollection of, Francesca exclaimed in shock.