She knew the penalty for breach of contract—a shameful marking that branded you for your crime. Proof that you were a cheater. That was why the ritual of engagement was only performed once couples were serious about marrying. Lyse couldn’t stand the thought of Alcede suffering the suspicious gazes of others over an engagement that was just meant to shut her up.
But again, as an Olwenian now, she had to hide her understanding of Razanate ritual. She thought long and hard about how someone who was none the wiser would respond under the circumstances.
“Please, don’t recklessly endanger yourself...” she eventually said.
She’d come to the conclusion that most people would assume “the mark of one’s crime” to be a scar from some kind of punishment, and so she ran with it. It finally set in on Lyse, however, just how much of a pain it was going to be to keep playing dumb like this. She wanted nothing more than to extricate herself from the situation and get away from these imperials at once.
“Worry not, Miss Lyse. He doesn’t mean any physical harm would come to him. But if it troubles you, then take my hand instead,” Sidis said soothingly, seeming to fall for Lyse’s presumed misunderstanding. He then turned to argue his worth to Alcede. “It doesn’t seem as if Miss Lyse is comfortable accepting the engagement right away. If you’re branded with a sigil of punishment before she’s even come to terms with the situation, the guilt she’d feel over your marriage would keep her from ever being truly happy. I’d like to give her some time, and let her choose to come to the empire of her own accord.”
That much was fair, but the fact that the scenario ended with Lyse going to the empire either way was a problem.
“Very well. I wanted to press her for an answer while she was still taken by surprise, but perhaps we shouldn’t rush things. We’ll be together for a long time, after all. As such, it might be good for you to be her fiancé first, Sidis,” Alcede yielded.
And thus Sidis was chosen as Lyse’s temporary fiancé.
“Is that really all right with you, Sir Sidis? We’re talking about betrothal here. Why would you want to marry me? And I must know—why did you behave so strangely when you chose me as His Majesty’s lady-in-waiting?” she asked him in a flurry.
Sidis had acted as though he’d no choice but to choose Lyse, and she wanted to know why. It couldn’t have been just because she had sword calluses. There had to be another reason he was so eager for this engagement.
Lyse stared intently at Sidis, who looked troubled about how to answer her.
“For some reason,” he finally said at last, “you have mana.”
“What? But I was born and raised in Olwen...”
It was impossible for anyone outside of the imperial bloodline to possess mana. Lyse had already experimented to see if she could use any simple magic, and not once had her tests yielded results. Nevertheless, Sidis seemed convinced.
“That’s what’s so strange,” he said. “Since you have mana, I wanted to bring you back to the empire.”
“It’s also why I’d like to marry you,” Alcede added. “I brought up engagement to surprise you, but if possible, I’d like to wed you immediately and take you home with us.”
“That’s...”
If Sidis had known Lyse possessed mana, he must have shared this knowledge with Alcede and the emperor. As all three of them looked at her quite seriously, it hit Lyse. That must have been what Sidis was discussing with Alcede on the way here, and what Alcede must have explained to the emperor once they arrived.
Lyse now understood why they wanted her as a lady-in-waiting and as a bride. She didn’t really get why they were so fixated on taking her back to the empire if she had mana she couldn’t use, though. If they just wanted to keep her under observation, that would make sense...
But it was still a problem.
“I’d like to stay in Olwen,” Lyse said, looking straight at Sidis, “so if getting engaged will convince you that I won’t reveal the emperor’s secret, then I accept if you’ll allow me the option of calling it off once the matter with His Majesty is settled. Otherwise, I refuse anything other than stricture magic.”
Alcede looked at the emperor before replying, “So be it. During His Majesty’s stay, we shall do our best to win your heart. Sidis, please go ahead with the temporary engagement. However, Miss Lyse, should you reveal the secret...we’ll be forced to make the engagement public and take you back to the empire with us—no matter how you might object.”
Lyse nodded, then stood at Sidis’s behest. The emperor gave a little bark, and Sidis nodded in response.
“Thank you, Your Majesty. Now, Miss Lyse, let us head to the next room.”
Leading Lyse by the hand, Sidis showed her to the room next door.
“Ah, this is a dressing room...” she remarked.
It was approximately one-fourth the size of the emperor’s quarters, and the walls were lined with clothing. There was a small, circular window for air about the size of Lyse’s arms held in a ring. A curtain hung over it to keep the sun from bleaching the garments. Sidis pulled it open, letting in a beam of light that cut diagonally across the room, illuminating his silver hair in a most otherworldly fashion.
Looking slightly nervous, he said, “It will be imperial style, but let us begin the engagement ritual.”
“Um, don’t we need a witness?” Lyse questioned, thinking that one was required.
“His Majesty would do the honor, but he cannot speak. And since this is only a temporary engagement, I thought that you might prefer that there be no witnesses. The ritual requires a kiss, after all, albeit only to the tips of our fingers.”
He had a point. The imperial engagement ritual required proof that participants would respect and honor their promises—a commitment on top of the oath. The token gesture was a kiss on the fingertips, and Lyse did indeed want to save a public showing of such for when she truly got engaged.
“Now, I’d like to make sure of something before we begin. Do you have anyone you’ve promised your hand to? Is that why you didn’t want to get engaged?”
This question flustered Lyse. She’d never promised her hand to anyone. The reason she didn’t want to go to the empire was purely because of her memories from her past life—something she couldn’t tell Sidis.
She thought up an excuse on the fly and answered, “I don’t want to go far from my late father’s grave. My uncle is tending it, but I’d like to be able to visit him sometimes.”
“So that’s why... I’m relieved,” Sidis sighed, his expression softening. He seemed to have been worried that things would get messy if Lyse already had a fiancé.
She prayed with all her might that Sidis wouldn’t catch wind of her lie. The last she’d been there was two years ago.
But what a turn of events...
On her trip back home two years ago, she’d given up all hope of ever getting married. And now, to think she’d been proposed to by one of the imperials she so wanted to avoid...
Not realizing Lyse was lost in thought, Sidis began explaining the ritual, “I’d like you to forget for now that this is meant only as a temporary engagement. Imperial-style engagements are a magic contract, so there’s a considerable chance that it won’t work if you hesitate.”
“All right,” Lyse said with a nod, gulping hard.
There was no backing down now. Determined that she would find a way out of it later, she faced the ritual head on.
Sidis quietly began reciting the magic words: “I wish to marry this woman. As proof, I pledge this promise to her.”
He held out his hand, and a round ball of light appeared in his palm. It glittered and shimmered with tiny stars and a sun inside. Lyse’s gaze was drawn to it, and she felt herself getting sleepy as she beheld it.
“Touch this as you recite the same pledge,” Sidis urged her.
Lyse did as she was instructed, reaching for the orb. It was slightly warm to the touch.
“I too wish to marry this man. As proof, I pledge this promise to him.”
As she recited those words, she realized why the engagement ritual was such an effective alternative to stricture magic. She was pledging a magical contract to keep her promise.
And once she did, the ball of light burst into sparkles that showered down on the two of them. The ritual was complete.
“From this moment on, I will treat you as my fiancée. I swear to protect you,” said Sidis, taking Lyse’s still-extended hand and kissing the tip of her index finger.