Chapter 4: Fainted

She was successfully choked by his narcissistic remarks.

If coming with no in-laws makes one the best groom to marry...

Then what about her— err... no, her brother?!

Direct eldest son of an illustrious Ducal family whose parents are still very much alive and well, with a younger sister, seven grand elders, more than 10 uncles and aunts, as well as not less than fifty cousins thrown into the mix...

Oh, and not only that. Whoever marries him will have to help in supervising more than a hundred ancestral rites and family gatherings a year.

With such large number of relatives standing behind him...

Wouldn't that make the Young Duke, Charon Eustace Blair, the most undesirable man in history?!

Catherine's face contorted for a moment, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

If not for the young man's words, she wouldn't have realized that her brother's marriage prospect was so dreary.

No wonder not many noble families came to propose a marriage alliance with their family...

All along, she thought it was because of her father's pickiness and cranky personality that scared all the young ladies away, as it turns out, there was also this kind of possibility.

With a complicated expression on her face, Catherine silently trailed after the green-haired senior along various interconnected hallways and finally stopped in front of a wooden door that was not much different from the rest she had passed along the way.

"Here we are." Silas opened the door and directly strode in, making Catherine's eyes widen as she saw him kick of his boots and unceremoniously lie down on the massive bed that can apparently accommodate at least three people, if not four.

Moreover, she didn't miss the fact that this already seemed to be occupied, what with all the stuff that filled-up almost half of the room.

"This... did you make a mistake somewhere? This room can't possibly be the one I'm not assigned ."

Hearing her words, Silas laughed. "Oh. There's no mistaking it. 107th room of the thirtieth floor's east wing offers you it's warmest welcome, my dearest roommate~"

Catherine "..?" What roommate?

"Please speak human words, dear sir."

"I just did." Silas raised an eyebrow. Thinking for a moment, he suddenly realized. "Pardon me, you must have not yet been informed of the new policy issued by the academy a few days back."

"How did it go again? Right, all new students are instructed to share a room with older students, preferably second year ones, in order to help them adapt quickly to their new environment, foster friendship and a sense of belonging, facilitate training, etcetera etcetera."

"To make it simple and easily understood, you are now not only my roommate, but also my ward."

"Nice to meet you, Little Ferryman." Silas grinned as he waved his hand. "I'll definitely take good care of you till the day I'm rid of all my guardian duties."

Whooosh!

That was the sound of Catherine's soul having flown away.

"Are you alright? You look quite pale. Should I go call the doctor? Seriously, how did you even pass the Academy's qualification test with such a frail physique?"

"I'm fine." Catherine said with a forced smile. "I just need to lie down for a while for the long journey must have taken it's toll on me. Now, where I ask, is my bed?"

"Oh. Here!" Silas patted the space beside him with a caring expression. "Just sleep beside me."

BANG!!!

Catherine's vision darkened instantly as she fell to the ground.

....

"...Where am I?"

The moment Catherine opened her eyes, she was greeted by the sight of a strange and unfamiliar place, with towering buildings and clean streets paved with some kind of hard gray material.

Wheeled boxes, which she surmised as this place's mode of transportation after a period of observation, ran about the streets, with some carrying people while others are used to load goods.

It was an advanced civilization, though without a shred of mana, yet magical in many ways...

More so than her own.

It filled her with curiosity and the desire to explore more of this place and gain more knowledge that was much too different from what she had learned growing up.

As such, stretching out her hand to touch the shoulders of a passing man, she hoped to be able satiate her curiosity by asking him a few of her questions. However, to her dismay, her hand directly passed through the other person's body and only then did she realize her own condition.

No wonder she felt so light earlier.

Turns out that currently, she was nothing more than a spectre. An existence that cannot be seen or have the ability to touch anything.

In the end, Catherine could only sigh as she continued wandering around in that state for days, spying on everything around her with wide admiring eyes until her gaze was attracted by a poster pasted on the walls of what seemed to be a bookstore.

It was a picture of five young men with outstanding looks surrounding a pretty girl with pink hair in the middle, all of whom she couldn't recognize, yet the place they were standing on gave her a strong sense of familiarity.

As if she had once caught a glimpse of it in her childhood.

Where was it again?

Catherine thought long and before she finally remembered.

Right!

It was the Imperial Palace!

"Mengmeng, what a coincidence! Are you also here to buy the new bestselling book, [ The Royal Lady and her Five Paramours. ]?"

"Yeah. I heard today is official release of the limited edition physical books that were specially signed by the author. Hope there won't be too many people. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to buy anything today, what with how popular the novel has become."

"That's true. Well, we'd better line up. Luckily, we got here early enough so there's not much people waiting outside the store."

"Yeah, let's go."

Listening to their words, Catherine's eyes gradually narrowed as she once again cast her gaze at the poster written with words she was unfamiliar with, yet could surprisingly understand.

[ The Royal Lady and her Five Paramours. ]