The mansion of the Caniro Duchy.
In the living room of the mansion, the former Duke Rafael Caniro, his wife Elvira and their son, the current Duke Theodore Caniro, were having their afternoon tea sitting on the luxurious furniture. As usual from early on, voices could be heard in the farthest annexe.
"No! This is not going to happen!"
"Theodore Caniro! Is this your last word?"
"Yes!" said Theo, slamming the door behind him.
Rafael Caniro sighed and placed the cup on the table.
"What are we going to do with this child, Elvira?"
This was a question both parents asked each other often. Their son never acted normal.
First, when he was young he didn't care about anything but doing well in his lessons. He never got into mischief and would reprimand anyone who didn't behave well and wisely.
As a teenager, he never stopped reading and the only thing that had changed in his life was that he was preparing to become a duke. He had no friends except those who were training with him.
And now, as a duke, he was stuck in business. He rarely left his office and his only amusements were practicing swordsmanship.
For this reason, his parents were worried that he would die from working so much. And that wasn't all.
"Yelling won't get him to do what you want him to. He needs other handling," Elvira Caniro said.
"But we have to do something about it! If we let this go, our son will be left alone, without a wife and without an heir. He must marry!"
Theo Caniro was a sought-after young man in high society circles, and many girls were keen to have him. He received many proposals daily from parents for arranged marriages and love letters. But he had no interest in getting married. He tried to avoid it at all costs and whenever his parents tried to open that subject, he would leave.
No matter what his parents did, it didn't work. Not the matchmaking they did to him, not when they forced him that if he didn't marry he would be stripped of his title, not when his father pretended to die. Every time he said the same thing: "I did not and do not intend to marry. I will die a bachelor!"
That's what he shouted as soon as he entered his office. His poor secretary was jerked out of his chair by the crash of the door and as usual he was on the floor.
"This is outrageous! They're still pushing me when they know I won't back down," Theo continued talking to himself as he walked into his office.
"Did you visit your parents' annex again?" asked his secretary, Evans, who had just gotten up from the floor.
"Yes! And as usual they stunned me about how much they want me to get married."
Evans handed him the papers he was holding, but Theo ran his fingers through his hair, sighing deeply, and ignored him.
"But they don't understand that I have no interest in getting married. I have so much work to do that the least I need right now is a wife," he said, finally taking the papers from Evans' hands.
The secretary sat down at his desk, watching his boss walk nervously around the room. This wasn't the first time this had happened. In fact, it happened every time Theo returned from visiting his parents.
A solution to this issue definitely had to be found. Since the day the former Duke Kaniro and his wife opened this discussion, apart from the constant fights between them, no work could also be done in the Duke's office.
This must not continue. At this rate, I'll die of exhaustion trying to cover the duke's work.
He remained thoughtful for a moment but immediately his face lit up, as if a light bulb went on above him.
"Your Grace, I've found it! I've found a plan to convince them to leave you alone to do what you want."
"Tell me," Theo said, turning his full attention to him.
"Your parents want you to get married, right? Well, that's what you're going to do."
"That's your plan?"
"Yeah," Evans said with a big smile.
But Theo wasn't happy with that answer.
"It's my fault for sitting here listening to you," he said and sat down at his desk, ignoring his secretary.
"No, you don't understand. You're not getting married."
"Will you please explain!"
Evans realized there was no room for any more delay. His boss was too angry to make fun, so he immediately started explaining his plan.
"For starters, you need to find a low-class woman to pretend to be your bride-to-be. Then, when they meet, we will make sure that this woman causes chaos. You will insist that if you do not marry her you will not marry at all. And so-"
"And so the parents, in order to make a commoner their bride, will give way. That’s a terrific idea," Theo interrupted him, looking thoughtful
This idea seemed to be the best solution so he wasted no time. He stood up and said all excited: "Let's go find our bride!"
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