Inside sat not only her father and Kouji but also her stepmother and Kaya. Despite sensing that they had bad news for her, she concealed her fear behind an expressionless face. She sat down near the entrance, distancing herself from her grimacing stepmother and half sister. Her father began to explain the matter at hand in a detached voice without even glancing her way.

“I would like to discuss the prospect of marriage as it relates to the future of this family. Miyo, I thought it best for you to be present for this as well.”

Marriage? Hearing that word made her heart skip a beat. Thinking about how marriage could change her life brought her both fear and anxiety, yet it also rekindled the faintest of hopes within her. Perhaps it could be a change for the better. A moment later, however, she chided herself for entertaining such fantasies. Miracles simply didn’t happen—not to her, at least. Her father’s strong voice broke the silence once again.

“Kouji will be adopted into our family so that he may continue our family name. As such, he will need a wife to support him. Kaya, you will be his bride.”

Of course it would be her. Though Miyo should have expected as much, she nevertheless felt as if a chasm had opened beneath her. Everything went black for a moment as fear, or maybe despair, overwhelmed her. Kaya’s smug look didn’t even register. Miyo had been aware of her father’s plans to adopt Kouji, the Tatsuishi family’s second-oldest son, so at some point, a faint beacon of hope must have unknowingly wormed its way into her heart.

Hope that she might have married the one and only man she trusted. That she would have become proprietress of the Saimori household. That Kaya would have been married off and sent away so Miyo would no longer have to live in her shadow. That one day she would have been able to freely converse with her father again, as they had in the past.

It was all so foolish. She should have known that fate simply wasn’t in her cards.

“Miyo, you will be betrothed to the Kudou family’s heir, Kiyoka Kudou.”

She couldn’t even bring herself to look up. Instead, she gave her reply in a shaking voice, head hanging limply.

“As you wish, Father.”

“What, aren’t you glad to marry into the Kudou family?” Kaya added with insincere enthusiasm.

The Kudou family also possessed the Gift. Many of their lineage were blessed with exceptional supernatural powers, and the clan distinguished itself through countless feats of valor, some of legendary proportions. Their social standing, fame, and wealth were leagues ahead of their peers’.

On the other hand, Kiyoka had a reputation for being heartless. Of all the girls from well-heeled families who’d been offered to him as brides, none had managed to bear him for more than three days before running back home. Miyo had heard as much from the servants’ gossip. If those tales were true, the man must be horrible indeed.

And now her father was telling her to marry him, likely intending to never allow her to step foot into this house again. Miyo had no education. Her father was certainly aware that there was no chance of this arrangement going well.

“It’s really such a waste to give you this wonderful opportunity, since you have no redeeming qualities. You’re really in no place to do anything so rude as to refuse, of course.”

Her stepmother was in high spirits at the prospect of finally ridding herself of the stepdaughter she abhorred.

“Yes, you have no choice but to accept. Pack your things, and as soon as you’re done, we’ll have you sent to Mr. Kudou’s house.”

Miyo turned pale, unable to speak. Although she used to look forward to leaving the Saimori house, with the Kudou residence as her destination, she would be going out of the frying pan and into the fire. From there, she could envision only two possible outcomes. Either this merciless man would throw her out of his estate on the spot, or she’d irritate him and he’d cut her down where she stood. Her only hope was that he’d treat her like a lowly servant, just as her family did.

Very rarely did a potential bride stay with the man her family wanted her to marry in order to learn the rules of his household and find out whether they were compatible before making their betrothal official. The precautionary measures made sense in light of Kiyoka’s reputation as a difficult groom, but Miyo saw them differently—as evidence that her family wanted to get rid of her as soon as possible. Her world turned black.

After she left the reception room, enveloped in dark thoughts, she heard Kouji calling her name.

“Yes, Kouji?”

She turned toward him. Anguish and embarrassment colored his face, something she’d never seen before.

“Miyo, I’m sorry. I’m so useless. I couldn’t do anything for you, and I don’t even know what to say now.”

“You need not apologize, Kouji. Such is fate. It simply wasn’t in my favor.”

Miyo tried to grin to lift the mood but found it hard to change her expression, as if her face had frozen solid. Come to think of it, when was the last time she’d smiled?

“No, you can’t just put it down to fate!”

“On the contrary. It’s fine, Kouji. I don’t mind Father’s decision. Who knows—I may even find happiness in my new life.”

She didn’t actually believe that, but she said it with conviction anyway, as if to reassure herself.

“…Do you hate me now?”

Kouji seemed on the verge of tears. Clearly, he wanted her to take it out on him for not having advocated for her. She could glimpse that in his eyes. But Miyo was too drained to cater to his emotional needs right now, so she decided to cut things short.

“No, I don’t. I distanced myself from such emotions long ago.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so terribly sorry. I wanted to save you so that we could laugh together again, like we used to. I wanted to—”

“Kouji!”

Kaya had yelled his name upon exiting the room after them. There was something terrifyingly twisted lurking beneath her dazzlingly beautiful smile.

“What were you two talking about?”

“…”

Her husband-to-be bit his lip, swallowing what he hadn’t gotten to say.

“N-nothing important.”

Kouji came from a respected family and had been blessed with the Gift and handsome looks, but he had one flaw. He was a coward who was too worried about upsetting others. Taking a side would hurt either Miyo or Kaya, so he’d clammed up. Miyo didn’t know what he’d been gearing up to say before her sister had interrupted, but at this point, she didn’t care. And yet, even though it hadn’t amounted to anything in the end, it was true that the kindhearted Kouji had come to her aid many times in the past.

“Kouji.”

“Yes…?”

“Thank you for everything.”

That was all she could say. She was utterly exhausted.

Kaya smiled charmingly as she watched her sister bow deeply and walk away without looking back.

Sleep eluded her that night. Miyo’s room, a servant’s bedroom barely five square meters in total, was austere to begin with. Now that she’d packed away her few personal possessions, there was really nothing left. Her stepmother and half sister had thrown away or stolen the kimonos she’d inherited from her mother. The same had happened to any other valuable items she’d once possessed. Now the only things she could call her own besides her body were a servant’s outfit, a set of plainclothes hand-me-downs from one of the workers, and some personal care items.

Later that same day, however, her father had given her a set of fine clothes so that she wouldn’t bring shame to the Kudous by arriving at their residence dressed in rags. His gift finally opened her eyes to the fact that her father had been aware she’d owned no presentable clothes but had simply been unbothered by her plight until now.

As she struggled to fall asleep, wrapped in the flimsy quilt she’d had no choice but to grow used to, memories of the past flashed before her eyes like images in a kaleidoscope. The happy ones were distant, while the more recent ones were filled with pain and misery. Nothing was going to change for the better the next day. She was going to sleep hoping only that her life would soon end. A simple wish. It felt as though she were teetering on the brink between the worlds of the living and the dead. Emotionally spent, she couldn’t even smile bitterly as those thoughts raced through her mind.