MTLNOVEL Chapter 1448: Pitiful Women
While Orion and Hilda took another step forward in their relationship, a certain aborigine woman—one who had been in between them—felt like she was facing a death sentence.
Her eyes were red and her body gave off a tired aura from crying so much the previous night.
They had to use very expensive makeup—bought from a very distant City, brought here by the City's Post Office—to cover up the signs.
It was not helping that a hateful woman was chattering right next to her ear.
"Sigh, my dear daughter, you shouldn't look like this is a curse. This alliance will help us out so much," she said, looking at her as if she were an elder. "You must be perfect."
Octavia looked at the woman in front of her. She was young and beautiful, her brilliant red hair cascading down her shoulders. The way she touched her bulging belly made her appear especially gentle, like someone destined to be a mother.
"You are not my mother, Enala," she snapped back, though the woman didn't seem to mind. Rather, she just gazed at her as a misbehaving kid and it irked her very much.
Enala Trion, his father's favorite wife, was decades younger than he was. She remembered the young girl going after her, showering her with admiration. 'I'm going to be just like you when I grow up, Lady Octavia,' she said, always running to her whenever they were in the same space.
Cut to the current scene where the gentle woman had the air of confidence—no, arrogance—for becoming someone above her.
It grated on Octavia's nerves, and it wasn't helping the disgust she was feeling for what was to come.
Soon, she was led to enter a sedan with some metallic accents, which was at least to show off how important they thought her to be. That bastard had famously played around, and it seemed that her father was also offended, so Hassen had to take a few measures to calm them down.
Apparently, an intricate metallic sedan was all that was needed to display sincerity…
Hassen City's specialty industry was metalworks. This naturally made them quite powerful, albeit they remained low-key through the decades and had rarely started wars.
This was also the reason why their mass collection of black metal all over the region and beyond was not too suspicious.
She herself was covered in what must be the gaudiest wedding dress in existence. She was wearing an intricate headdress as big as her own head, and her wedding dress had inlaid gems and metal with various patterns. If Octavia's level was not high, she doubted she'd even be able to move at all.
Of course, in other people's minds, it was a show of strength and richness. The heir's wedding could not be shabby, after all.
In contrast, Bleuelle's industry was the (now diminishing) Blus. For now, they could get by by selling the materials at an exorbitant price. However, eventually, some people would just opt not to develop their own buildings, particularly when new building types become available in the System.
Her father wanted to create an alliance to keep Bleulle's value high, and Hassen was willing to exchange a lot of money and materials in exchange for some Blus. There was also something else but she was not privy to, but she couldn't find it in her heart to care.
It was a win-win situation for everyone, except for her.
However, she had been taught since she was young about her duties, about how she must listen to her father before marriage and, after marriage, to her husband.
Octavia felt extremely uncomfortable and disgusted, but her mind was telling her that she could only endure, and it was breaking her inside.
As she was carried in the sedan, feeling the movement to her doom, she couldn't help but wrap her arms around herself as if it was the only way to keep herself contained.
"Orion…" she whispered, thinking how different it could've been if things hadn't changed. She didn't care that the metallic embellishments were poking her soft skin at all. Rather, she welcomed the pain.
Orion…was actually very good to her.
If she hadn't put Love Potion on Orion then, maybe his heart wouldn't have been so hard against her.
She had just been so… desperate.
There were so many noble women in talks of getting into a marriage with him, some had relatives close to his father, that she had believed they could really make it into a reality.
Orion always seemed to treat her at a distance, but she belatedly realized she was still far closer to him than others. But it was too late, her insecurities got the best of her. Not to mention, the person who gave her the potion—one of her father's women—had made it so convenient and attractive for her to use.
So she did what Orion would think to be the greatest disrespect—to give him a love potion. That failed horribly, making him hate her to his core, and after that he only looked at her in disgust.
Not only that, it even facilitated his meeting with Hilda.
She knew this, but she had refused to accept it, putting all the blame on the other woman instead. However, now when she felt like she was at the end of the rope, she couldn't help but ponder some things through.
Well, not that any of that matters now.
…
The Wedding Venue was in the Event's Place, a large system building that could accommodate hundreds and hundreds of people for an event. It was not a special building and was really just a building with wide spans and large open spaces.
The entire palace was decorated from the flooring to the ceiling. The vases were made of metal, and the chairs had accents made of the material. Even the moudling—the corner where the walls and the ceiling met—was made of metal, molded into an intricate pattern.
The lights from the magic tools made the entire place glimmer in light, and the metallic decor reflected the glamour, adding a shimmering effect to the entire venue.
The groom was wearing an intricate armor of metal, and it matched with the molded black metal sewn into her clothes and pinned on her head.
Piddes inherited his mother's features and actually looked dashing, but she knew how disgusting he truly was. Every step she took towards him was heavy.
She could see their own families. Even hers, and his father's wives. They were smiling, glad to not have her in the house anymore. For better or for worse, they had more control over the household now.
Ah, to be accurate, Enala should have the strongest grip now. After all, she was pregnant with a son, and this was why although she was the 'current' favorite, her position would be stable even if she lost the Lord's favor.
The life of this brother of hers would be in stark contrast with her own. His life would definitely be smooth sailing, and he would be a son who had full control over his life—like her fiance did—and a son who'd be loved and admired no matter what.
Sadly, that son was not her, and such was her life.