The Abandoned Lady Lives in a Dollhouse - Chapter 15_1

Juno admired the carriage in front of her. It was large and decorated with lavish embellishments. The most special thing about it was how there was no coachman.

A man got off his horse, which was standing by the carriage, and approached her. “Lady Juno Trish.”

He was a tall nobleman.

“Who are you?”

“I’m here on the orders of my master.” He had no expression on his face and moved rather stiffly. He firmly shook Juno’s hand.

“…You’re a doll, aren’t you?”

“Yes. Please get in.”

Juno nodded and looked back. No one was here to see her off. She told Jupiter not to come, and there were no servants, no father, no one. They felt it wasn’t worth saying goodbye to me.  She stared at the mansion she had lived in for eighteen years. The magnificent building held a lot of bad memories, but it was also the place with memories of Jupiter. She gazed at the shadow seen from her bedroom window and turned around. It was time to leave.

Juno hugged the urn in her arms. In the end, all she had was Nereus. I’m glad I didn’t spread his ashes around the mansion. She grabbed the doll’s hand and climbed into the carriage.

“Let’s go,” the doll said.

“Yes.”

The carriage set off quietly. Juno reflected on her current circumstances and didn’t want to be in despair, so she focused on the carriage ride itself.

“It’s very comfortable and doesn’t wobble.” No matter how despised she was, Juno was always provided a good carriage to keep up appearances; however, the carriage of House Trish and this carriage couldn’t be compared.

She murmured, “How much money did he spend on this?” It didn’t look just expensive. It was also aesthetically pleasing. After seeing the child from yesterday and the doll today, I think the alchemist has a good eye for beauty.

Juno recalled the doll that escorted her earlier. He had brown hair and brown eyes, but his features were defined. He didn’t look like a doll at first glance. If she hadn’t met the child last night, she would’ve thought the doll was a man with strong hands. She became more curious about Count Sergien. What kind of person is he?

Knock, knock.

Oh, how thoughtful. She didn’t realize the carriage had stopped.

“We have arrived,” the doll said.

Juno got off the carriage with the doll’s help. The priest who came to meet her smiled and guided her into the church. There was no Peter Sergien. Am I going to sign the document and say my wedding vows by myself?

She asked the doll following her, “He’s not coming, is he?”

“I will be the one to sign the paper in his place.”

However, the church was the only place where dolls weren’t allowed to enter. The clergy didn’t accept human-like creatures made by humans. It was ironic. The church used Count Sergien’s inventions, but to save its pride, the dolls had to stay outside.

Perhaps noticing Juno’s confusion, the doll replied quietly, “It’s all right. No one will know except for us.”

Indeed, he looked like a human on the surface. He’s quite tall as well.

How long have they walked? The priest stopped in front of a door. “We have arrived.”

Once the priest opened the door, the man in the room smiled and approached them.

“Your Excellency,” the priest said.

The archbishop nodded. “You may leave.”

Juno and the doll entered the room; the door closed.

The archbishop greeted Juno with a friendly face. “Good morning.” He looked at the doll standing behind her. “Is this his representative?”

“Yes.” No one thought this doll was a doll.

“Then, shall we get to the vows?”

Juno followed the archbishop to the elevated platform.

“Peter Sergien, do you take Juno Trish as your lawfully wedded wife?”

“I do.”

“Juno Trish, do you take Peter Sergien as your lawfully wedded husband?”

“I do.”

The archbishop smiled. “Then you may… Oh, that’s impossible when there’s a proxy. You may now sign the document.”

“All right.” Juno looked at the marriage contract. It was written in advance by the bride’s and groom’s families, but Juno hadn’t even seen the paper. She glanced at the doll.

He nodded. “You may read it.” He was quick to sense her intention.

“…Thank you.” Juno skimmed the document and found something ridiculous.

Marquis Trish didn’t even provide a dowry to Count Sergien. Juno sighed; she thought her mother’s dowry would be used. How can you marry me off without even sparing a gold coin? She couldn’t understand the count who agreed to this. Who would accept such a marriage? Did you really like my face?

The words that followed were even more outrageous. She couldn’t ask for a divorce. Marriages between family members or marriages to fulfill large transactions also had this clause, so it would normally be acceptable. The problem lay in what came after. I’m not a member of the royal family. Was it necessary?

With this marriage, Juno Trish could no longer become the head of House Trish. Juno was a woman anyway, so she wouldn’t be able to do that. The purpose of the clause was to keep the branch families in check. You bastard.

Juno gritted her teeth. This also prevented her from returning to House Trish if Lilith’s child was a girl. As soon as her family relatives saw this contract, Juno would no longer be of use to them. As the marquis, her father did everything he could to ensure there were no loopholes. Wonderful.

Who knew he could actually be smart? She didn’t like the fact he used his authority like this.

Juno took a deep breath. “…Do I sign here?”

The archbishop, who had a bored look on his face, nodded with a pretentious grin. Juno wrote her name with the quill pen he gave her. A name that will never be used again: Juno Trish.

The archbishop took the paper. “You are now husband and wife. Congratulations.”

Juno forced herself to smile. The wedding was over. Did it only take ten minutes? She never thought she could rid herself of the surname Trish so easily and quickly.

***

Count Sergien.

It was said that in order to meet him, who was famous throughout the entire continent, one must wait at least a year.

It’s quite plain compared to its owner’s reputation. Juno was slightly disappointed as she stared at the building before her. The medium-sized, somewhat colorful mansion appeared no different from those owned by other noble families. Was I expecting to see more dolls?

She didn’t expect a happy marriage, so she wanted to see something extraordinary. As she followed the doll, she only saw the peculiarity of the count. Compared to House Trish’s mansion, this place was eerily quiet. In such a spacious environment, Juno wondered if it was possible even to feel this way.

In the corridor, the only sounds were her and the doll’s footsteps. Is it true he has no servants?

The doll stopped in his tracks and gestured to a door. “My master is waiting.”

“…I have to go in alone?”

“Yes.”

Juno slowly entered the study. It was dark; only a single candle provided a source of light. This atmosphere… She shuddered at the sound of the door closing behind her. She approached the person sitting at a desk.

“Hello, I’m Juno Sergien.”

“…”

Juno spoke again to the silent alchemist. “You are Count Peter Sergien, correct?”

“He’s not here.”

To the side, there was a door that was slightly open. She looked at the person sitting at the desk. A doll? Unlike the two dolls she saw earlier, this doll had a crude appearance. The doll nodded at her. Then, Juno approached the other door.

“May I come in?”

“…”

There was no response, but Juno entered the other room.

Thud.

Her foot kicked something away. A book? Tomes lay scattered all over the floor. There was also a lot of strange junk. Is this his workshop?

Juno carefully stepped over the objects and approached the old man standing in the middle of the room. This place was spacious and messy; it was ten times as large as the room Juno was in earlier. Aside from the junk and dolls laying to the side, there were shelves packed with books. Strange.

The old man was ignoring her on purpose. From a large, circular window on the ceiling, sunlight poured down on the old man.

“Count Sergien?”

He didn’t look back at her. “Juno Trish?”

“Juno Sergien,” she corrected.

The white-haired old man turned around, and Juno saw what was behind him.

“That child…”

It was the doll from last night. The blond hair, blue-eyed one.

The old man said, “Yes, I heard he visited you.”

The child still had a beautiful face, but…

The rest of his body had been disassembled.