On Rational Marital Life - Chapter 6

Two months ago, Layla Edgestone was the beloved fiancée of the crown prince of Graemers.

A generation ago, Edgestone—who was merely a soldier at the time—saved the king in the midst of a fierce battle but lost one of his legs in the process.

“I hope that through marriage, our descendants will strengthen the bond between our two families.”

The king honored Edgestone’s achievements by granting him a medal and the title of count. As promised, the eldest son of the royal family and the eldest daughter of Count Edgestone’s family were engaged. The people rejoiced as the fairytale-like promise became a reality.

Layla Edgestone was a perfect match for the crown prince’s fiancée. She was kind-hearted and widely admired for hosting numerous charity events for the less fortunate. The people praised her as the ideal future queen who would bring glory to Graemers.

Layla worked hard to reach this position. She underwent strict training. Her mother, Lewinda, was a harsh and relentless overseer. If Layla so much as loosened her discipline, scoldings would follow, leaving her unable to relax anywhere.

In public, where countless eyes were upon her, she kept her back straight and smiled at all times. Even at home, she wore a suffocating corset and could never sit comfortably.

Every word and action of hers was tied to the honor of the Edgestone family. Any mistake would bring shame upon the royal family.

“Layla Edgestone, people are watching.”

“You are the face of the Edgestone family. Smile.”

“People judge our family based on you. That’s why you must always be careful—again and again. Your mistakes will become our family’s disgrace, spreading from mouth to mouth.”

“Do you really think you deserve to be called an older sister? You can’t even make a small sacrifice. How selfish and narrow-minded can you be? It worries me that someone as petty as you will one day be queen and rule the entire nation.”

Even when she was in pain, when her body felt heavy, when rumors whispered behind her back left her feeling miserable—Layla had to smile. The corset that constantly constricted her was suffocating, but she could never loosen it.

Then, everything collapsed when strange rumors began to spread.

“Layla Edgestone was away from the capital for a whole year before her engagement. Apparently, she went to the countryside and gave birth to a child.”

It was utter nonsense.

Layla knew it was a lie. Her family knew it too.

During that time, she had visited her ailing grandmother in the south. Her grandmother’s condition worsened, and Layla remained by her side to care for her. By the time she returned to the capital, a full year had passed.

Yet, the rumors spread and continued to grow, with witnesses and testimonies surfacing.

“I heard she ran away in the middle of the night with an artist she was learning to paint from. A maid even saw them together all the time!”

“Wait—before her engagement? That means she was fifteen! How could she do something like that at such a young age?”

“Wasn’t the engagement originally supposed to happen earlier? But it was postponed until she was sixteen.”

“Maybe that’s why His Highness was always distant from his fiancée. Didn’t he seem oddly cold toward her?”

“So… does that mean His Highness knew about the child?”

“He must have kept quiet to protect the honor of the Edgestone family. And yet she betrayed him like this.”

There was no evidence—only relentless rumors.

If it had been any other rumor, she would have ignored it. But this one was too malicious. Of course, she wanted to step forward and refute it, but her mother and younger sister, Lilia, opposed the idea.

“People will think you’re only denying it because you feel guilty. If you stay quiet, the rumors will fade on their own. Just wait, Layla.”
“That’s right, sister. How would you even prove your innocence? If you make a fuss, you might upset Her Majesty the Queen.”

With her family holding her back, she had no choice but to endure. Layla waited for the rumors to die down.

Then, an embezzlement scandal broke out.

[Layla Edgestone: Embezzling Charity Funds to Fund a Lavish Lifestyle!]

Layla had always been passionate about her charity work. Because large sums of money were involved in the donation events she organized, a designated bank employee was assigned to handle the transactions.

But now, that very employee testified that, at Layla’s request, a portion of the funds had been secretly siphoned away.

People who had noticed how her dresses and jewelry changed at each event began eyeing her with suspicion. Newspapers ran sensational headlines, speculating that the embezzled money had been used to purchase luxury goods.

The morning she read the article in the daily paper, police officers arrived at the estate. Declaring that they had already secured evidence and witnesses, they confiscated documents and ledgers from Layla’s study.

She was arrested and taken away.

Many had dismissed the childbirth rumor as baseless gossip spread by those who wanted to ruin her. But as the embezzlement articles flooded in, public opinion shifted from “His Highness’s fiancée would never do such a thing” to “How could she…”

“What have you done? Did you really steal that money? My God, Layla! How could you do something so terrible?”

Her mother, staring down at her coldly, did not believe in her innocence.

“I am disappointed in myself for not seeing you for what you truly are.”

The queen’s brief words cut deeper than any whip. Layla had worked so hard never to disappoint, to meet expectations—only to realize how fragile their favor had always been.

She fell into despair.

She denied it over and over, but the police presented ledgers that, even to her own eyes, clearly proved the embezzlement. The records spanned years—far too extensive to have been fabricated overnight.

“No… I didn’t do this. This is a setup.”

That was all she could say, stunned.

Just then, gossip tabloids began spreading false stories that she had been seen meeting a man while adorned in jewelry. The childbirth rumor, which had seemed to fade, resurfaced—repackaged as truth in the cheap scandal sheets.

Count Edgestone struck her across the face.

“It shames me that you carry the blood of the Edgestone family! Admit what you’ve done and apologize at once! Pay for your crimes! If you have any sense of responsibility, if you understand the gravity of your actions, then conduct yourself accordingly! Are you trying to bring ruin upon this family?”

Layla’s father pressured her to admit to the crime and publish a written apology.

It wasn’t just her family. The day she returned from police questioning, her fiancé, Crown Prince Ethanwark, arrived with a formal notice of annulment.

“Layla, the people’s anger is turning toward the royal family. You need to resolve this before the palace has to step in. Grandmother is furious over this.”

His expression was heavy as he continued.

“If you donate the embezzled funds from your own pocket and plead for leniency, you might be able to avoid prison. So just admit it and apologize.”

She could no longer fight back and insist she was innocent.

Layla stood before the flashing cameras—not because she feared prison, not because the royal family was enraged, and certainly not because of her parents’ harsh reprimands.

She did it for the family. For the royal family.

She could not allow their honor to be tainted any further because of her.

Preserving honor—that was the purpose of her existence.

Even if it was a lie, she bowed her head.

“To the people of Graemers, I offer my deepest apologies. I, Layla Edgestone, have committed a grave wrongdoing.”

In front of the flashing cameras, she read aloud the apology she had written, her voice trembling.

A photograph of her bowing deeply in remorse was plastered across the front page of the evening newspaper that day.

Crown Prince Ethanwark kept his promise. He donated the embezzled amount on her behalf and appealed for leniency. The people cursed Layla while praising Ethanwark’s generosity.

After that, Layla shut herself away in her room.

Thick curtains blocked out all light, leaving her chamber shrouded in darkness even at midday. She wanted to escape from everyone’s gaze—her family’s, the servants’, the world’s. She feared that someone might be watching her, mocking her, or spreading even more baseless rumors.

Whenever she felt the weight of people’s eyes, her breathing grew rapid, her chest tightened, and her limbs trembled with fear. She had no strength left.

Unable to bear her parents’ cold stares, she refused to leave her room.

Her acquaintances in high society also turned their backs on her. Invitations stopped arriving, and not even a single letter of consolation came from the noblewomen she had once been close to.

When she was finally forced to leave the house to prepare for her marriage to Blake Burman, she encountered familiar faces. But they did not greet her.

“They’re probably avoiding you because they don’t want to be mistaken for having squandered stolen money alongside you,” her sister comforted her.

Layla spent the days leading up to the wedding lying in the darkness of her bedroom.

And as time passed, she sank deeper and deeper into that darkness.

* * *

The sound of the door closing woke Layla from her sleep.

The room was bright. Sunlight filtered through the delicate, ornate curtains, warming the space with its gentle glow.

A strange room. A foreign scent.

Layla lay in bed, staring blankly at the unfamiliar surroundings.

“Ah… the Burman estate…”

The moment she spoke, the aftermath of the previous night came crashing down on her.

Her throat ached—she must have screamed too much. A dull pain spread through her body, particularly in her thighs. Even the space between her legs, a place that had never known pain before, throbbed.

“Ugh…”

Layla bit down on her lower lip.

Only then did she notice her arms. Dark bruises marred her wrists where Blake had gripped her. Faint red marks dotted her upper chest, visible through the loose fabric of her chemise. The imprints were vivid—he had sucked hard enough to leave them behind.

‘The wedding night…’

Her gaze drifted to the window, where sunlight streamed between the curtains. The clock on the wall indicated that it was already late afternoon.

A water pitcher sat on the bedside table, but the bed was so large that it felt out of reach. Her aching body felt even heavier.

She reached for the servant’s bell cord hanging beside the bed. A faint chime echoed from the hallway.

The first day in the Burman household had begun.