Chapter 24 - Beginning

I had to reevaluate Chelleno. Did he like much more beautiful girls? To think there would be a man who would turn that face down. But why is he comparing her to me? That makes it seem like he’s lying. 

At that moment, Lumi took Chelleno’s hands off her and mumbled, “Yeah, yeah. You got influenced by Marin and like red-colored eyes-”

“That damn pr*ck Kyles!” shouted Chelleno, interrupting what his sister was trying to say and changing the subject. “Falling for that worthless woman and dumping my Marin! It makes me furious!”

I had to rethink the definition of the word ‘worthless’ in response to Chelleno’s angry remark. What would be worthy in his standards then? Anyway, the way he said that Kyles dumped me was getting on my nerves, so I said, “Stop saying he dumped me. I was the one who dumped him. Alright?”

I bellowed in a low voice, putting my feeling of not wanting to be involved with him again, and everyone looked at me sympathetically. Dammit. I should get settled as an official fast so that I can escape this sympathy. Who cares about that man when I can succeed on my own?

“All of you are making my head hurt. I want to rest now. You guys can leave now.”

“Yeah, you should get some rest. Illumina, Jianneen, let’s go,” said Chelleno.

“Goodbye, sister,” said Lumi.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” added Jianne.

With all three red puppies gone, the room became quiet. I laid down on a bed and sighed, ‘It’s tomorrow, Marina.’

Tomorrow was the new beginning of my life. It was me who was going to choose where I wanted to be on the beau monde and the political scene. Starting tomorrow, I will be a secretary and jump into a policy planning system right away. I became a bit worried, but I knew I was going to do fine.

If I come across Kyles… I’m going to ignore him. Hah! See with your own eyes how successful your ex-fiancée has become! For a while, I used to hate and blame him. But was it because it was dull? I had no resentments. The only thing I had was anticipation for new work that was waiting for me. 

On the other hand, Elise… I will have to see, but she still seemed pretty much the same as before from the way she acted today. If she continues to act hostile and treat me like her enemy, I won’t let things slide anymore. Unlike Kyles, whose self-esteem hurt whenever ignored, I remained resilient. From the day I ended my engagement, I decided to get payback on Elise. Thinking of these various things tired me out, so I fell asleep.

***

The next day, Daisy woke me up and got me prepared. I wasn’t going to a party, so she helped me dress as cleanly as possible, and as a result, I looked sort of like a female government official. Looking at myself in the mirror, however, made me depressed. I was worried about crossing paths with Kyles, and I was also worried if I could really do this.

“Marin, it’s time to go.”

I had to put those thoughts aside when I heard my uncle’s voice. My uncle and Chelleno were watching me. This wasn’t the northern region where I was fighting alone. I had such trusty people watching my back. Kyles was nothing to be worried about. I felt safe by their presence and headed to the palace with them.

***

As soon as I entered the hall, I saw people who passed the exam this year and their families. As for me, I was excused from a month-long aptitude education for getting first place and was to report directly to the Chancellor’s office and to the superior secretary for the job description. 

Soon, each head of each department and various high-ranking officials came and sat on the chairs above the stage. The Chancellor, the head of the entire central government, got up to the podium to proceed with the middle-rank government official appointment ceremony.

“Welcome, everyone. I am Duke Vernon Hadecion von Siccain, Chancellor of the Genorium Empire.”

The Chancellor was a middle-aged man with faint white and gold hair and blue eyes that resembled a deep lake. With his proud and strong voice, he looked noble yet powerful. I already knew how he looked, but some who had seen him for the first time couldn’t seem to take their eyes off of him.

“I know that you all are the victors who passed this year’s exam, which has been the most difficult exam as of yet. But if you are here with the intention of riding on someone else’s back while they do the hard work, you should get the heck out of this place at once.”

This startling welcome speech shocked many nobles within the hall. I, for one, wasn’t astonished at all because I already faced his character before. But it certainly was understandable that nobles that came from the countryside were shocked by him.

“Oh, and we have a talented individual who passed the exam with a perfect score, which is the highest score ever for first place. Marina von Harrant, you may come up to the stage.”

As my name was announced, I stood up and walked gracefully toward the stage. The Chancellor’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw me, then his face turned intrigued.

‘He remembers me.’ Thinking of that made me laugh, but I held back. From chess to anything else, keeping cool was the most important thing. I was acting as if I wasn’t feeling anything in order to take the winning piece in this game.

Soon, as I read out loud the Oath of a Government Official, the audience followed along. Their voices filled the hall. The Chancellor looked around them, then turned to me and mouthed a few words.

‘Huh? He wants me to follow him?’ 

“And that concludes the ceremony. Listen to your seniors’ guidance for your education. You will be sent home if you give up, so be ready,” said the Chancellor.

As the Chancellor, Duke Mccain turned around to leave, I followed him. I looked around and saw a door of the building at the center of the Internal Affairs. I kept my eyes busy while walking inside and saw my seniors busily working. I walked past them, following the Chancellor to his own office at the end of the building.

“Sit,” said the Chancellor.

Gracefully, I sat down at his offer. He was watching me and was very interested. Of course, he was. He had finally found the chess opponent that he had been searching for after a long time.

“It’s been a while. I was disappointed that you didn’t leave your name back then, so I couldn’t find you for a rematch. I tried searching but to no avail.”

I kept my name unknown for Kyles, as I would be in his way if I gained any attention. But that seemed to have made the Chancellor more interested. It was just three games of chess, and he still remembered.