Rin headed back to his room after breakfast and his maid followed him quickly. She shifted from foot to foot, showing how anxious she was.

Rin would not have called her out for it, but seeing her act like this was distracting and annoying.

"What are you doing? If you have something to say to me, then stop jumping around and say it."

His voice was calm but the maid had a guilty conscience so she immediately tensed up and avoided his eyes.

"W-What do you mean? Nothing is wrong with me. In fact, I am sure that something is wrong with you, young master. Not only did you pick a fight with your younger brother, but you also looked your father in the eyes. Are you trying to worsen your impression on your father?"

The maid was annoying, but she was unfortunately sharp in all the ways Rin did ’not’ want her to be. Still, since she was one of his targets for revenge as well, he had to keep her close for now.

"Nothing is wrong with me. I’m just tired of living in the shadows all this time. There’s no need for you to worry. If you have that much time, then go and wash the sheets."

Rin decided to give the maid some work to do, and he noticed her face pale even further.

"Y-You want me to work? B-But, young master, I would become a target. You won’t want the only person by your side to be bullied, right?"

The maid tried to emotionally manipulate Rin but he gave her no emotions to exploit. His cold eyes looked back at her and she understood that her plan to live off her young master’s money was failing.

In the end, the maid had no choice but to do as she was asked to. She quickly left for her new post and Rin headed back to his room.

According to his mother, his fiancée would be visiting him for the first time today. She belonged to the Duke’s family and was the eldest daughter.

She was someone who had many marriage prospects, but the reason she ended up engaged to Rin was simple—she was never given a choice.

Rin’s family had made sure the truth about his condition did not escape the walls of their mansion. All servants were made to take a magical vow and the family members were given special training to keep matters within the family.

Moreover, the Duke’s eldest daughter had declared that she would only marry someone the same age as her, so it significantly narrowed the list of candidates.

It also became a source of jealousy between Rin and his siblings, but the beef was one-sided.

So it did not surprise him to find his clothes destroyed. His brothers were playing petty games which he was an expert in.

"Well, since my meeting clothes have been destroyed and I cannot appear naked, it seems I truly don’t have a lot of choices left."

Rin headed toward his closet and picked out the simplest robes he could. Wearing them made him look paler and lifeless, almost as if he was sick.

This was exactly the image he wanted to present. Rin wanted to appear as a fragile young Master the Duke’s daughter needed to save and look after. That girl was at an age where that kind of image appealed to her.

Even the ghosts agreed with him after they provided the information he had asked them to.

Rin was ready to head out after making all the necessary preparations, but his maid had other thoughts. She pretended to faint as soon as she noticed Rin’s attire and immediately clung to him.

"Young master, what are you wearing? Where did your meeting clothes go? You cannot appear like this in front of people, people would gossip! Hurry up and change-"

The maid finally noticed the destroyed clothes lying nearby and let out an awkward noise before she started rummaging through his closet.

Rin just shook his head as he watched her panic before he walked out of the room.

He might have decided to pretend to be a fragile young master, but being late was not his style.

His maid’s expression had been amusing so Rin was now looking forward to the other amusing expressions he might see on everyone else’s faces. He was especially looking forward to his mother and father’s.

...

Rin arrived in the guest room silently. But since the entrance was in a prominent location, no one missed seeing him.

"Hey! Did your fever get to your head? Can’t you see what you are wearing to your first meeting with your fiance? My lord, my lady, please pardon my older brother’s foolishness. He’s not in his right frame of mind."

Rin’s foul-mouthed younger brother took advantage of the stunned silence to address the Duke and his eldest daughter. Rin also turned his attention toward them and tried not to show his surprise when he saw Shelly staring back at him.

A certain possibility started forming in Rin’s mind about his fiance and Shelly, but he could not ask her this question with so many people around.

The Duke looked the most stunned by what was happening. He turned towards Rin’s father to question him.

"Are you trying to insult us? Why would you offer your sick son to us? Do you take us for fools? Shelly, we are going-"

But the pink-haired girl did not move. Her eyes remained fixed on Rin and she immediately made a decision.

"Father, I want to marry that man."

Silence followed Shelly’s declaration and no one moved for a whole minute. They all stared at him, wondering whether she would change her mind or not, but Shelly showed no signs of changing her mind.

In the end, the Duke was a soft-hearted father who was unable to refuse his daughter. So he decided to agree to her wishes. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Alright! Since this is what you want, Shelly, then this is what we will finalize. But remember, you can always call off this wedding whenever you want to."

The Duke informed Shelly and she nodded. Her focus never left Rin for even a second but Rin was still not 100% if this was his Shelly or the original owner of the body. After all, there had never been a clear explanation about when Shelly possessed the body.

Rin’s father tried to take advantage of the situation.

"Should we leave the kids alone to discuss a few things? The adults can go to another room and continue our discussion. And as for others...it’s time for everyone else to return to their rooms and rest."